Captain Roam: Custom Travel Guides badge

Custom trip guides

Your trip. Your dates. Your guide.

Practical guides with usable information, no fluff. Tell the Captain where you're going and when. You get a practical field guide built only for your trip: a day-by-day plan, what's on while you're there, where to eat and when to book, how to get around, and what to pack.

Order your guide: from $49 See a sample guide

Built by a real human Captain, not just AI. Get a PDF, or add a printed book. Ready in 5 business days, or 48 hours with rush.

The Captain, a cartoon mascot in a flowered shirt, studying a map with a compass

How it works

Three steps. No back-and-forth.

Fill out one short form

Destination, dates, who's coming, what you love, your budget and pace, and anything we should plan around. About five minutes.

The Captain builds your guide

We research your exact dates: events, opening hours, reservation windows and the weather to expect. The Captain checks and signs off every guide.

Your guide arrives

Ready in 5 business days, or 48 hours with rush: a PDF by email, a printed book, or both. Printed books ship after your guide is approved. Want something changed? One round of revisions is included.

Travel news

What changed for travelers

Last checked November 14, 2026. Every item links its source.

Entry Rules Oct 13, 2026

ETIAS Europe Entry Permit Delayed, No New Launch Date

The EU's ETIAS travel authorization is not yet in operation and no applications are being collected. The official EU site says the start date will be announced several months before launch. Travel trade group ABTA warned that more than 150 websites already offer authorizations they cannot deliver.

Why it matters: Anyone selling an ETIAS right now is not offering the real thing. Rules can change, so check the official EU site.

Source: Travel Weekly UK (reporting ABTA); official EU ETIAS FAQ

Airports and Flying Oct 6, 2026

TSA Plans Faster PreCheck Lanes at Seven Airports

TSA's administrator said the agency will start rolling out upgraded PreCheck lanes at seven airports over the next six weeks. The lanes combine electronic gates, newer body scanners and AI-assisted bag screening, and he did not name the airports.

Why it matters: As of an October 6 speech. Lanes at your airport may look the same for now.

Source: Federal News Network, reporting TSA Administrator remarks; Travel Weekly · Expires Nov 30, 2026

Airports and Flying Oct 16, 2026

TSA Gateside Pass Back to 13 Airports After Wider Rollout

Gateside by TSA PreCheck lets approved PreCheck members past security without a flight. After a quiet expansion to many more airports, it is reportedly back to its original 13 airports, and TSA has not said why.

Why it matters: TSA's own page still lists the 13 airports and says more will come in the coming months.

Source: TSA Gateside page; The Points Guy · Expires Nov 30, 2026

All travel news

What's in every guide

A field guide for one trip: yours

Same style as the Captain Roam guidebooks: clear facts, real times, bordered tables and plenty of photos. No fluff and no filler.

A day-by-day plan built around your pace
Events actually happening on your dates, with status marked
Restaurants matched to your tastes and budget, with reservation deadlines
A "book first" list: what sells out, what has no refunds
Getting around: airport to hotel, transit, passes and costs
Expected weather and daylight for your dates, plus a packing list
A rain or closure plan B for each day
Sources for every fact and credits for every photo
One round of revisions

A day page from the sample Chicago guide: a timed plan in a bordered table, a photo and tips

Sample guide

See one before you order

A 3-day Chicago weekend for two, May 7 to 9, 2027. The travelers are made up; every venue, event and date in it is real and sourced.

Book first table — Book first: deadlines and refunds

Look inside the sample

Pricing

One price per trip, or per destination

Weekend

$49

1 to 3 days, one city or base

Perfect for a long weekend or a city break.

PDF: the guide price, paid by the link the Captain emails you
Printed book or both: estimated quote first, nothing charged until you approve
Guide ready 5 business days after you pay (print orders: after you approve your quote)
Rush in 48 hours: +$35 (guide only)
One round of revisions

Order Weekend

Vacation week

Week

$89

4 to 7 days, up to 2 bases

The classic vacation week, or a city plus a side trip.

PDF: the guide price, paid by the link the Captain emails you
Printed book or both: estimated quote first, nothing charged until you approve
Guide ready 5 business days after you pay (print orders: after you approve your quote)
Rush in 48 hours: +$35 (guide only)
One round of revisions

Order Week

Long or Multi-City

$149

8 to 14 days, or up to 3 cities

Big trips, road trips and two-week getaways.

PDF: the guide price, paid by the link the Captain emails you
Printed book or both: estimated quote first, nothing charged until you approve
Guide ready 5 business days after you pay (print orders: after you approve your quote)
Rush: not offered for long trips
One round of revisions

Order Long or Multi-City

New

Full Field Guide

$49

Any destination, no dates needed

Like our published All In books, made for the place you choose: neighborhoods, sights, food, nightlife, transport, money, safety, day trips and practical info. No itinerary.

PDF: the guide price, paid by the link the Captain emails you
Printed book or both: estimated quote first, nothing charged until you approve
Guide ready 5 business days after you pay (print orders: after you approve your quote)
Rush: not offered for Field Guides
One round of revisions
Joins the Captain Roam guidebook library when finished

Order a Field Guide

Longer than 14 days or more than 3 cities? Tell us about it and we'll quote before you pay anything.

New: the Full Field Guide

The whole destination, made to order

Want the full picture instead of a day-by-day plan? A Full Field Guide is a custom destination guide like our published Captain Roam's All In books. It isn't tied to dates and has no itinerary. It covers everything in the place you choose: neighborhoods, sights, food, nightlife, transport, money, safety, day trips and practical info.

$49 flat, for any destination. PDF, printed book, or both. Once your guide is finished, it joins the Captain Roam guidebook library.

Order a Field Guide

Cover of Captain Roam's All In: Edinburgh, an example of a full destination guide

Who makes your guide

A real human Captain, not just AI

Anyone can ask a chatbot for an itinerary. What it can't tell you is whether the restaurant is open that Sunday, whether the game time is set yet, or that the boat tour has no refunds. That's the part the Captain does.

We use research tools to move fast. Then the Captain, a living, breathing human, checks the plan against your dates and signs off before anything reaches you. Anything we can't confirm is marked "TBA", never guessed.

Start your guide

Also from the Captain

Captain Roam's All In guidebooks

Full destination field guides for Las Vegas, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Valencia, Key West and Fiss, plus three Lake Erie guides. All are Sailing Soon, in print and PDF.

Get notified when it sails. Email askcaptainroam@gmail.com with the book's name and we'll let you know when it's available.

See the guidebooks

Cover of Captain Roam's All In: Las Vegas

Cover of Captain Roam's All In: Edinburgh

Cover of Captain Roam's All In: Lake Erie Shores & Islands