I feel like we live in an atavistic time. In spite (or due to) the rapid pace of change caused by humans in the world (and on it), the calls to return to prelapsarian times when the earth was a simpler and better place seem more urgent than ever. I get it. I get it. Living in the past is even scarier because it prevents progress and growth.
From a traveler’s perspective, it is heartening to see how the past has been reevaluated around the globe (an idea that we return to in these pages often) to reflect what we have learned and where we are headed. Take two quintessentially American cities Charleston and the surrounding area will be key to next year’s semiquincentennial. Boston. Through food, history and art, both are actively working to expand the narrative about how they became great and include all voices that made them so in a manner that is aligned with their diverse, vibrant present. Take CairoThe Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo, as well as numerous hotel and lifestyle developments in the central area, are allowing the modern city to channel millennia worth of history. Malta is another example, where redevelopment and ambitious curatorial initiatives have transformed the island into much more than just a dusty museum in the Med.
Design is one of the best ways to engage with the past in a modern context. In a series of stories, we look at everything from how to update icons like W Hotels or the Orient Express In places like Alabama, modern-day textile artisans are revitalizing centuries-old traditions. Okinawa. All of this reminds us that the past doesn’t have to be fixed. History is alive and we can better prepare ourselves for the future by looking back at it again and again.
This article appeared in September/October 2025 issue Condé Nast Traveler. Subscribe to the Magazine here.
