While ice and snow pile up across North America, relations with Cuba appear to be thawing. Gap Adventures, the world’s adventure travel leader, announced details of its 2011 trips to the island, which offer travelers the chance to soak up the sun and immerse in Cuba’s culture while changes within and outside the country continue.

The Air Transport Association of America (ATA) reported that passenger revenue, based on a sample group of carriers, rose 9 percent in December 2010 compared to the same month in 2009, marking the 12th consecutive month of revenue growth.

Places are selling out in Rio for the Carnival in March, with just a few places left with Tucan Travel in March. As South American adventure experts, Tucan Travel has been operating tours to include all the magic that Brazil’s famous street party has to offer since the company began. The adventure tour operator has four of its six tour styles all converging on Rio de Janeiro each year in time for Carnival. And 2011 will be the biggest yet.

Carlson announced two key leadership appointments for the new Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel currently under construction in Chicago. The key appointments include Pierre-Louis Giacotto as general manager and Fred Khoury as director of sales and marketing.

That infamous September 11th in American history became a turning point for Melissa Perlman. From that day she sat her sights on leaving New York City and following her passion for cooking and fusing cuisines. Thus began her journey into Buddhism, yoga, travel, Tokyo restaurant ownership and lastly her arrival to the picturesque Mayan fishing village of Tulum.

TourCrafters’ five-night/six-day Barcelona package costs $1,099 and includes roundtrip trans-Atlantic air from New York, fuel surcharge, accommodations in the Hotel Condes de Barcelona, an arrival transfer, a two-hour guided walking tour of Modernist Barcelona and a Hop-On Hop-Off bus ticket. The package is valid until March 31.