I spent 2 nights in an Amtrak bedroom and tried both bunks. The smaller bed won me over.

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
The author lays in the top bunk of an Amtrak bedroom
The author booked a bedroom on Amtrak's California Zephyr and slept in both bunks.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

7 surprising things I learned when I booked my first cruise

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
The author holds a passport at an airport (L) Wonder of the seas cruise ship (R)
The author booked her first cruise with Royal Caribbean.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider, Denis Thaust/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

I spent 53 hours on an Amtrak sleeper train. I want to take it again, but I'll do 6 things differently next time.

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
The exterior of a double-decker Amtrak Superliner train with red and blue stripes
Business Insider will do a few things differently the next time she rides the California Zephyr.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

I'm a New Yorker who visited Phoenix for the first time, and 8 things surprised me

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
The author smiles in downtown Phoenix
From hiking trails to the downtown area, there's a lot to love about Phoenix.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

10 side-by-side photos show how a Royal Caribbean cruise ship transforms with colorful lights at night

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
Deck 15 on the world's largest cruise ship during the day and at night
Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas during the day and at night.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

I spent 5 days in the Great Smoky Mountains with just a backpack. Here are 9 items I'm glad I packed and 1 thing I didn't need.

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
A composite image of a white sheet behind everything the author packed: toiletries, books, clothing and tech gear, and the author smiling in front of a mountain on a foggy day
A backpack was all Business Insider's reporter needed for a five-day trip to the Great Smoky Mountains.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

I booked bedrooms on 2 different overnight Amtrak trains. One key difference sets them apart.

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
A composite image of the author lying in the bottom bunks in Amtrak bedrooms
A Business Insider reporter spent a total of 83 hours in two Amtrak bedrooms.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

8 things I learned when I sailed solo on my first cruise, from how to meet people to having to pay a 'single supplement'

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
The author smiles in a sunhat in front of a cruise ship.
Business Insider's reporter traveled solo during her first cruise on Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

The highlight of my trip to the Great Smoky Mountains was finding an epic ride to my Airbnb while stranded in the rain

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
A composite image of an aerial tram above trees on a foggy day, and the author with an umbrella
Business Insider's reporter didn't expect to find a tramway above the Great Smoky Mountains.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

I took my first adults-only cruise. Take a look around the luxury ship with a tattoo shop and a playground for grown-ups.

Tech Insider : Travel, Travel, Business
A pool seen from the top deck of a Virgin Voyages cruise ship with purple and blue pool chairs.
Business Insider's reporter cruised on board Virgin Voyages' Valiant Lady, a luxury, adults-only ship.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

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