In the beer gardens of Berlin, night trains are a conversation topic almost as hot as how to get the Berghain bouncers to let you into their nightclub. (“Be a single man, be ‘alright’-looking, don’t smile,” I’m told.) I’m in Prater Biergarten – the German capital’s oldest beer garden – reconnecting with a friend over […]
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A new start after 60: backpacking in the Himalayas, I found the courage to change my life
One day last September, Ann Halloran made her way to her nearest bus stop in Hove, East Sussex, with a 15kg rucksack. She had done plenty of travelling but, at 65, was setting off alone on her first backpacking adventure. Somewhere between her first stop in Turkey and her final destination – a yoga retreat […]
Read More‘The mountain’s power sends volts through the soul’: hiking the Tour du Mont Blanc
It was the penultimate day of my Tour du Mont Blanc and, as I scrambled up the side of the Aiguilles de l’Argentière, I was feeling smug. I’d ticked off more than 90 of the 105 miles, almost all in dazzling spring sunshine. Such luck with the weather was encouraging complacency. But up high, any […]
Read MoreYes, I do take my pillow with me on holiday. And I’m very happy with my life choices, thank you very much
Another year, another survey (by M&S bank this time) of the stuff British people insist on taking on holiday. None can beat my mother’s friend who travelled to China for a fortnight with an entire suitcase filled with Ginger Nuts, but honestly, what weirdos take a water filter jug (4%), anti-bacterial spray (30%) and air […]
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Eerie pics reveal inside Heathrow Airport’s abandoned Terminal 1 that closed after 50 years
ABANDONED departure lounges, retro seats and darkened corridors are captured in eerie photos of Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 1. Dated luggage carousels and nostalgic signage also feature in the blast-from-the-past snaps inside the mothballed building. 14 Terminal 1 was opened by The Queen in 1969Credit: North Downs Picture Agency 14 Darkened halls containing luggage carousels were […]
Read MoreLet’s Split: Croatian island-hopping is heavenly
Croatia’s coast is made up of 1,200 islands – some are glamorous and hotelled, some are grand rocks enveloped by gulls. Some are for naturists, some are for fishermen, some have lagoons so blue they appear Photoshopped. The most sensible and affordable way to travel between these islands is by ferry and, next year, the […]
Read MoreLir and Native Seafood & Scran, Northern Ireland: ‘Born out of a fascination with the sea’ – restaurant review
Lir and Native Seafood & Scran, The Marina, Coleraine, Northern Ireland BT52 1EY. Meal for two, starters £7.50-£8.50, mains £16-£29, desserts £7.50, wines from £24 The restaurant stands by the river. The river runs down to the sea, where the fish swim deep. The fish are brought to the restaurant that stands by the river […]
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UK airport delays updates — Heathrow Airport confirms e-gates are ‘up and running’ following queuing chaos
British Airways chaos Half-term plans were thrown into disarray after British Airways cancelled at least 175 flights due to the impact of an IT failure. Around 20,000 passengers have been affected by the cancellations. There were also widespread delays to other flights, and some passengers were unable to check in online. Most of the affected flights were […]
Read MoreStatic buildup: Hull’s caravan makers enjoy a British holiday boom
When the David Attenborough nature series Wild Isles was documenting the UK and Ireland’s coastal beauty, Peter Munk noticed it not because of the rave reviews, but because traffic to his website surged. The business he runs makes caravans, and a pleasant Sunday-evening advertisement for the islands of Britain and Ireland provided a welcome boost. […]
Read MoreFive European city breaks for art and culture on a budget
Malmö, Sweden Across the Øresund strait from Copenhagen, Sweden’s most southerly and culturally diverse city has developed into the region’s art and music hub with an opera house, concert hall, its own symphony orchestra, a museum complex and a contemporary art scene. It’s also close to sandy beaches, has a dockland which is still gritty, […]
Read MoreGrand Torino: why the ‘cacophonous and intoxicating’ Italian city is a must-see
The Porta Palazzo, Europe’s biggest open market, sits on the Piazza della Repubblica, Turin’s biggest square. The market is open six days a week and its hundreds of stalls attract thousands of visitors. The enormous octagonal piazza is criss-crossed by tram lines and usually clogged by delivery vans, empty pallets, full boxes of fruit and […]
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I went to the brand new Gruffalo attraction in the UK with all the characters and live dance parties – my kids loved it
“OH no, too slow, Gruffalo,” guffaws my little boy, delighted at his own gag. Watching my cheeky three- nager offer the Gruffalo a high five, only to leave his new furry friend’s paw hanging, is exactly the kind of magic moment Merlin is hoping to conjure up at its new Blackpool attraction. 2 Helen Flanagan […]
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The new Dubai hotel with rooftop swimming pool and outdoor sauna – and it won’t break the bank
WITH a reputation for sparkle, sunshine and excess glamour, it’s no surprise that blingy Dubai is often referred to as The City of Gold. Known worldwide for its luxury shopping centres, epic skyscrapers and £12billion artificial palm-tree islands, this blazing jewel of a city in the middle of the desert is THE place for a […]
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A Guide To Miami’s Craft Cocktail Scene — Where To Go And What To Drink
Although New York and Los Angeles generally get all of the love, when it comes to the country’s best cocktail scenes, Miami promises to give those monsters of mixology a run for their money. From tropical backyard oases to dark, speakeasy-style hideaways, Miami’s craft cocktail scene spans a variety of neighborhoods, ambiances, and approaches. Of […]
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The Epic Pass — Basically An All You Can Ride Buffet — Is On Sale Until May 29th
I drove through Iowa and Nebraska last week, and guess what? Everything they told me about “the flyover states” was a lie. I didn’t see a single stalk of corn, but I did see a ski lift. Before that mindf*ck, I passed through several gorgeous National Parks and nothing gave me worse FOMO than driving […]
Read MoreSecret Home Office policy to detain people with NHS debt at airport found unlawful
A secret Home Office policy to detain people with the right to live in the UK at air and seaports has been found to be unlawful in the high court. The policy applied to those with unpaid NHS debts and was only uncovered through evidence gathered from charities and lawyers fighting the cases of two […]
Read MoreThe Midland Grand, London NW1: ‘This may be the campest restaurant in the UK’ – restaurant review | Grace Dent on restaurants
The Midland Grand might be one of the most useful recent restaurant openings in the entire UK. Of course, no restaurant wants to be called useful; they’d much prefer flowery prose such as “gastronomically enlightening” or “a shattering orgasm for the tastebuds” or some other stuff they’d be able to regurgitate on the promotional material. […]
Read More‘Astonishing, luminous beauty’: readers’ cultural highlights in Europe
Winning tip: Caravaggio in his element, Malta Commissioned in the early 1600s by the Order of St John in Malta, Caravaggio’s masterpiece, The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist, has been hung in St John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta, Malta, ever since. It is rare to view a painting in the space intended by the artist, […]
Read MoreBusy roads and airports expected over late-May UK bank holiday weekend
The start of the May half-term holiday for many schools will see “hectic” roads and the most flights departing the UK since before the pandemic, according to industry estimates. About 19m leisure journeys by car are expected on Britain’s roads over the next four days, and more than 3,000 planes are scheduled to take off […]
Read MoreGame of Thrones backdrop in Northern Ireland becomes Unesco geopark
It is said the Mourne mountains of Northern Ireland were “born of fire and shaped by ice”, moulded from 400 million years of geological history into a landscape of dark peaks, drowned glacial lakes and lush green farmland, patchworked by stone walls. Now, that jaw-dropping beauty, as well as sustainable tourism projects and 25 years […]
Read MoreK-pop tourism: how Tossa de Mar became a hot spot
The 9 o’clock bus from Barcelona to the Costa Brava resort of Tossa de Mar is packed, mostly with young Asian women. Seventy-five minutes later they make straight for the Forat del Dimoni (Devil’s Hole), a small gap in the old city wall, where they queue to take each other’s pictures in a variety of […]
Read MoreMy travel insurer was inhumane after my father-in-law’s death
My partner and I travelled to the south of France in December to spend Christmas with my father-in-law. We were taking our newborn twins to meet him for the first time. When we arrived at his flat in Perpignan, he didn’t answer the door. We had to break a window to gain entry, whereupon we […]
Read MoreFraudsters conned UK holidaymakers out of more than £15m in 2022
Holiday fraudsters conned UK consumers out of more than £15m last year – twice as much as the year before – according to the UK’s scam reporting centre. Action Fraud said there had been a surge in the number of people being conned into paying for fake flights and accommodation bookings as more people sought […]
Read MoreThe little-known London train ticket that could save you Eurostar hassle
Two weeks ago I caught a train from Stafford to London Euston that was due to arrive at lunchtime – in time to catch the Eurostar to Brussels two hours later. However there was a fatality on the line at Rugby, and all trains were cancelled going into London on the west coast mainline. I […]
Read MoreMissed out on Vermeer? Try these arty gems across Europe instead
Turner Contemporary, Margate For a top-notch art fix without leaving the country hop on a train to increasingly creative Margate. There’s a colourful exhibition of paintings and works on paper by Brazilian Beatriz Milhazes, one of the leading abstract artists working today, and a major installation in the Sunley Gallery Window, from 27 May until […]
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Parisian Luxury Hotel Le Bristol Brings Its Boutique Curation To St. Barths
The exterior of Le Bristol Hotel in Paris. Phot Courtesy of Oetker Collection That ‘je ne sais quoi’ of French style will echo throughout the globe this summer. Luxury travelers to the French capital and popular French tropical escape, St. Barths, can each experience Le Boutique du Bristol at Le Bristol Paris or Eden Rock […]
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Biden Is Really Trying To Make Flying Less Infuriating With Proposed Rules And A New Web Portal
There’s no worse feeling than getting screwed by an airline. Imagine you planned the perfect escape to Costa Rica to listen to some music. Maybe you carefully budgeted and planned every detail. Nothing can possibly go wrong now (except maybe the whole festival getting canceled?). You hop on a red-eye to Miami to connect to […]
Read More‘I stood there with my mouth open. It was a utopia’: 50 years of Olivia, the lesbian cruise company
Jai Henrietta still remembers the first time she went on an Olivia Travel vacation: “I just stood there with my mouth open. Seeing 2,000 women in one space, all cuddling, holding hands, and kissing – it was a utopia for me.” Henrietta has now traveled six times with Olivia, the world’s first travel company for […]
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Woman slams friend for stealing hotel towels but not everyone agrees – here’s the rules
A WOMAN has sparked debate online after her friend admitted to taking towels from hotel rooms. It’s very common for guests to take things away from their room when staying in a hotel, but some people apparently take it too far. 2 Téja argued that it was not okay to take towels from hotel roomsCredit: […]
Read MoreThis tiny Channel Island – population 65 – feels like a place cut adrift: exploring car-free Herm
At 6.30am, I walk to the empty beach at Belvoir Bay. The sand is soft, the sky is pink, Normandy lines the horizon. The only sounds are the murmur of the waves and the piping of oystercatchers. I plunge into the sea. Immediately, the cove is filled with terrible swearwords: I force myself to stay […]
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China Billionaire’s Fosun Sells Stake In Diamond Concern To Blackstone For $455 Million
Guo Guangchang, chairman and co-founder of Fosun International Ltd., in 2018. Photographer: Billy … [+] H.C. Kwok/Bloomberg © 2018 Bloomberg Finance LP Shanghai Yuyuan Tourist Mart, a retail subsidiary of China billionaire Guo Guangchang-controlled Fosun International, has agreed to sell 80% of its ownership in diamond-related investment arm Alpha Yu to a fund controlled by […]
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