Didnāt click the embedded link in the article, but what was missing from the CNN story were the words āround trip.ā Just an oversight, Iām sureā¦
From the fine print:
āAll Tickets are round-trip tickets to/from Hong Kong, subject to restrictions and terms and conditions as imposed by the airlines. Please contact the airlines concerned for further details and ticket arrangements.ā
Thanks, thatās a relief. Lure can be a loaded term! 
The same goes for āfree,ā when it comes to travel promotions. Iām curious to see if this one works as a strategy.
From what I understand, the local government bought up the tickets at the height of the pandemic to bail out the airlines. They still seem to be working out the details (they first announced this back in September), but it looks like a lot of the specifics will be left up to the airlines.
With 500k tickets available, I like the odds.
Currently in Stockholm so I can recommend some things to do here, but that depends on your interests.
April-May you can watch the cherry blossoms in Kungstradgarden
Walk around Gamla stan
The Vassa Museum is definitely worth a visit.
For less than the price of a hotel room you can take an overnight boat ride to Helsinki and then a ferry to Tallink in Estonia.
In Tallink I would recommend The olde Hansa inn
And donāt forget the vinho verde (green wine) a dry, slightly petillant young wine. Usually quite low in alcohol, cheap, and a great aperitif. They also do white port which is not chocolate and treacle like the dark stuff but more like Spanish fino sherrry (and do go to some small town in AndalucĆa some time and have the local fino, pungently smelling of wax and roast nuts in a way that export stuff never will!) I havenāt had one as tasty to me as fino but Iāve never been to Portugal so Iām sure thatās the reason.
I quite enjoy Vinho Verde! Am looking forward to enjoying much of it. And will check out the white port.
Hadnāt heard of the ginjinha, @anon67050589, thanks for the tip!
Iām quite excited about the trip, but also feeling a level of physical, mental and spiritual fatigue that is making me really dial back expectations compared to what Iād normally plan on a trip like this. If we can just hang out in some lovely villages and periodically go see something pretty and eat interesting food in temps above 15 degrees F, Iāll be a very happy camper.
Sounds lovely!
Youāre in luck: youāve just described Portugal!
Iām going to be in Los Angeles for two days in March. Any suggestions on some things to take in or places to stay? I have a friend there who Iāll get to see for one day. This is a short stay over tacked onto another trip.
Should I splurge & stay at the Chateau Marmont and jump from balcony to balcony like Jimmy? 
Pretty sure weāll want to walk in Venice Beach.
If you stay at Chateau Marmont, the Farmers Market in the Fairfax district is just 2 miles south and has some good bites. Maybe take in one of the Getty Museums? Oh, the Petersen Automobile Museum is further south on Fairfax, just one block south of LACMA.
I havenāt been to Venice Beach in ages (the late 90s?), so I donāt know whatās around there anymore. I feel like things change so fast in SoCal, even if itās only been a few years, so I can only imagine how much itās changed in 28 years. 
Fascinating. Such a commitment to authenticity too. Wow!
I love the pictures on their site.
Probably wonāt be my last call for suggestions, but maybe getting close. Iāve mentioned weāre going to be in Western Europe for a few weeks doing a āvacation/workā blend.
Weāre thinking the main stays will be Lisbon, Porto, Barcelona, and La Rochelle/Bordeaux.
But we have time to cut the travel days so we can travel to some interim place, stay over a night or two and explore, then move on.
So my question to you, oh savvy mutants, is any recommendations where to do an overnight/explore stopover between:
Porto and Barcelona (Iām thinking Salamanca, but totally open), and
Barcelona and Bordeaux (maybe Toulouse?)
Thanks for any and all ideas.
Girona is worth a visit from Barcelona, either guided or on your own (weāve done it both ways).
ETA I misunderstood your questionā¦ Girona is close to Barca, not really an intermediate place to stop.
No worries. Still appreciated. 
I took the southern route from Lisbon to Barcelona, but Bilbao looked like fun (if itās not too far north).
Sarlat (on the way to La Rochelle) is on my ānext tripā list, and is highly recommended by friends in my French groups:
I donāt have much to add for your route, but if you wander up to the Loire Valley, let me know.
That would have been a better title for āEat, Pray, Love.ā
