Utrecht Alternative city breaks: Utrecht, the Netherlands – restaurants, culture and nightlifeThe Guardian - Kit MacdonaldUtrecht was the most important city in the Netherlands until it was overtaken by Amsterdam in the 17th century during the Dutch golden age of trade and advances in science, art and military power. Over
travel news Smoke on the water: Sweden’s first Foodstock festivalThe Guardian - Kieran MorrisWe were only a few minutes into our boat trip across the Stockholm archipelago when we began to smell the smoke. In the distance was Stora (or Great) Fjäderholmarna, the largest of the four “Feather Islands”,
travel news Send us a tip on public spas, baths and saunas in Europe to win a £200 hotel voucherThe GuardianRestorative and relaxing spas, baths, hammams and saunas spring up throughout Europe, from Bath to Budapest, Stockholm to Sarajevo, and can be great places to soak up the atmosphere of a town or city.
travel news Truly, madly, steeply: a via ferrata tour of the DolomitesThe Guardian - Andrew GilchristI am standing on an enormous limestone plateau almost 3km up, peering over the edge of a cliff that seems to plunge all the way to the centre of the Earth. Behind me in the distance are stratified towers
travel news The insiders' guide to Japan's Rugby World Cup citiesThe GuardianBy Manami Miura, award-winning sake sommelier at the Ginza Kimijimaya liquor store, instagram.com/sakephygram My city in a nutshell Tokyo is a city of gigantic proportions: 47 neighbourhoods slotting like
Japan 10 must-try ramen shops in TokyoThe Guardian - Diana Hubbell‘Ramen doesn’t have rules the way many Japanese foods do, which means the possibilities are endless,” says Abram Plaut. “And in Tokyo people are always coming up with ideas that have never been done before.”
travel news A new take on old Japan – that's OmoriThe Guardian - Maggie JonesOne summer’s day 14 years ago, my husband and I and our then two-year-old daughter, Addie, took a fast train, a slow train, a bus and a car to get from Kyoto to a 400-person village called Omori, near
travel news We’re going on a boar hunt: into the Forest of DeanThe Guardian - Kate EdgleyIt’s a kingfisher!” Ed’s body swung round and leaned forward, his arm following in a wavelike motion the bird soaring above the water at Cannop Ponds in the Forest of Dean. We leaned with him, scanning
travel news Vendée, France: an old-school family holidayThe Guardian - Isabel ChoatLow tide on the Passage du Gois reveals a scene that has barely changed in centuries. As the sea retreats, people armed with rakes and shovels set out across the sand flats either side of the cobbled connecting
Play buttonJohn Lennon The Beatles’ Strawberry Fields opens foreverThe Guardian - Gavin McOwan“Let me take you down, ’cause I’m going to Strawberry Fields” urged John Lennon in 1967. Now, for the first time, everyone will be able to walk in his footsteps, when the gardens immortalised in the classic
travel news Harvest festivals, feasts and fare this autumn in the UKThe Guardian - Rachel DixonThis weekend Bishop’s Palace in Wells, Somerset, is holding a two-day festival with stalls selling local produce, talks on growing your own, hands-on gardening sessions, morris dancers and brass bands.
travel news Cultural highlights of Japan: readers’ travel tipsThe Guardian - Guardian readersThis summer I visited Hakodate, on the southernmost point of Hokkaido. On steep hills overlooking the harbour is the area where the outside world set up trading and diplomatic missions following the end
travel news Food, wine and antiquity in Frascati and the Roman hillsThe Guardian - Liz Boulter‘We’re going for an aperitivo,” says our guide, Valerio, “but first we need to shop.” In Frascati’s ancient centre, we head to a norcineria (pork butcher’s) for a selection of cured meats, then a deli
travel news Food bloggers reveal their cuisine hot spotsThe Guardian - Compiled by Lucy CampbellThe arrival of autumn in Granada begins with the Virgen de las Angustias festivities. The last weekend in September sees the Fuente de las Batallas fountain in the city centre transformed. Stalls run local
travel news 10 of the best cooking classes with stays in the UKThe Guardian - Rhiannon BattenThe Godolphin Arms restaurant with rooms in Marazion combines views across St Michael’s Mount with a menu packed with Cornish produce (Newlyn crab mac’n’cheese with sriracha, say, or Cornish lamb steak
travel news 10 of the best cooking classes with stays in EuropeThe Guardian - Rhiannon BattenA quintessential red-roofed, white-walled Andalucían farmhouse run by a Welsh/Japanese couple, Finca Las Encinas is popular with hikers exploring Spain’s Sierras Subbéticas natural park as well as with
Vegan Best vegan and vegetarian food tours in European citiesThe Guardian - Antonia Wilson“Anything you can do I can do vegan,” says Vegan Food Tours, which runs jaunts through Rome’s Monti, one of the city’s oldest neighbourhoods (three hours, €67 adult, €29 child). While exploring the area,
TripAdvisor TripAdvisor is failing to stop fake hotel reviews, says Which?The Guardian - PA MediaThe travel website TripAdvisor is failing to stop fake reviews boosting the rankings of top-rated hotels, Which? has claimed. The consumer organisation analysed almost 250,000 reviews for the 10 top-ranked
travel news Share cultural highlights of Japan for the chance to win a £200 hotel voucherThe Guardian - Guardian readersYou may have walked a pilgrimage trail, attended sumo wrestling or bathed in a hot spring. But of course, Japan’s unique modern culture is also a highlight of any visit, so tell us about modern art trails
Miyazaki A local’s guide to Miyazaki, Japan: 10 top tipsThe Guardian - Sean Carey, interviewed by Olivia LeeThe subtropical island of Aoshima, about 10 miles south of the city, is connected to a golden beach by a bridge straddling the ocean. The tiny island is surrounded by long furrows of black basalt – a phenomenon
travel news Send us a tip on autumn breaks in the UK for a chance to win a £200 hotel voucherThe Guardian - Guardian readersShare your experiences of autumnal breaks in the UK, whether they were town-based, or involved outdoor activities. Tell us about markets, seasonal and harvest food festivals in towns and villages, and
Surfing On the crest of a wave: Portugal’s new eco holiday retreatThe Guardian - Isabel ChoatRows of bungalows on stilts are stacked up a slope. Some are painted a pale terracotta colour; others are clad in wood. Sliding glass doors open onto balconies that overlook a wide, sandy beach. Clumps
Outer Hebrides 10 of the best hill and mountain walks in the UK: readers’ travel tipsThe Guardian - Guardian readersFor anyone wishing to experience truly wild, but not too remote or challenging, mountain landscapes, the hills on the east side of Uist in the Outer Hebrides provide plenty of opportunity. On South Uist,
Ancient Egypt A glimpse behind the scenes of Giza’s Grand Egyptian MuseumThe Guardian - Ruth MichaelsonIn the vast, shade-dappled atrium of Egypt’s new Grand Egyptian Museum, construction work surrounded a colossal statue of Ramses II, his left foot striding forward and fists clenched in readiness. Staff
Prince Harry Prince Harry launches sustainable travel initiative TravalystThe Guardian - Antonia WilsonPrince Harry’s new charitable foundation, Sussex Royal, has helped launch an initiative to raise awareness of, and promote, sustainable travel. Travalyst is a collaboration between five companies – Booking.com,
travel news Island baggers: the people competing to visit all 706 isles around BritainThe GuardianIsland bagging? How do you bag an island? You just go there, really. Any island? Well, it needs to be a proper one. That means 74 acres (30 hectares) in area, or 100ft (30 metres) high, of which there
Travel (UK) Top 10 vineyard stays in the UK and Europe – to visit by trainThe Guardian - Holly TuppenRathfinny Estate’s 242 hectares (600 acres) of south-facing chalk downland is one of the finest sparkling wine-producing spots in the UK. And owners Sarah and Mark Driver are not short of ambition: their
travel news Around the world in 245 days – at just £67k for cruise of a lifetimeThe Guardian - Caroline DaviesIn the tick-box, bucket-list era of destination travel, it promises to deliver an unparalleled experience. However, passengers setting off from London this weekend on the longest continuous round-the-world
travel news A local’s guide to Berne, Switzerland: 10 top tipsThe Guardian - Kaspar Allenbach, interviewed by Tom AllanTaking a dip in the river is a national pastime here, with the River Aare the basis of the city’s claim to be Europe’s urban swimming capital. Fed by meltwater from the Bernese Alps, the river has a magical
