When people write about India, they stereotypically comment on the devastating poverty and scarcity of natural resources. Tourists will apparently expect to suffer from culture shock and even a bad bout of dysentery (many even come prepared with a list of foods they should and should not eat). The tourist should always be conservatively dressed,
One of Britain’s peculiarities is that, in my opinion at least, large parts of it look best in inclement weather. Where Tuscan vales and Greek temples are indisputably at their finest under glorious sun rays, London’s narrow alleys and grey buildings take on extra mystery on cold, gloomy winter evenings. Its pretty squares never look
I’m often guilty of opting for obvious destinations when planning my travels – picking out famous ‘Wonders of the World’, capital cities or clichéd experiences. There is, of course, nothing wrong with such holiday preferences; those kind of trips are raved about because they do merit the hype, and I feel lucky whenever I tick
In 2002, I vowed aged nine, that I would “never ever in a million years” return to Nepal. My exclamation had come after spending an entire 13-hour flight from Kathmandu back to Heathrow with my head plunged in a sick bag, after a particularly nasty bout of food poisoning. Ironically, it later turned out that I
A week never sounds long enough for a decent break but this particular seven-night yoga holiday in Essaouira certainly did the trick for me. Sun (remember it?), a rich and colourful culture, the rolling waves of the Atlantic Ocean, dynamic yoga in the morning and restorative yoga in the evening – all experienced with a
The idea of a family holiday booked solely around an episode of Rick Stein’s Spain series unnerved me. In fact, not even a whole episode, but an aspect of one episode: Iberico ham. We were off to the isolated (and generally unheard-of) region of Extremadura because my food-mad husband had been seduced by tales of
I have always been interested in the why of travel: why people want to visit a particular destination, and how that desire comes about. Often it comes from the media, of course, and that is where Travel PR and our rivals come in, working with the press. But equally often, I think, there are other
Fine white-sand beaches. Clear warm water. Tropical fish. These were all things I had expected on a recent trip to Mauritius. The dodo, however, was not on the list. Thinking about it now, of course I knew the dodo was Mauritian but, before I arrived, I hadn’t put two and two together – and therefore
Five best girlfriends, an introduction to red kites and a boutique hotel in the bucolic Chilterns. What more could you want for a good old weekend away?! We arrived in our gladrags to a puzzled reception. ”Are you the walking group?” enquired the hotel manager, sounding sceptical. “Hmm – well, we’ve booked a short-break package that
Guest blog by Oliver Broad, Chairman of AITO Specialist Travel Agents. Oliver recently travelled to the Portuguese island of Madeira to finalise plans for the AITO and AITO Agents combined overseas conference, being held on the island from 14-17 June 2012. During his trip, he was particularly fascinated by what local artists have done to doors in Madeira’s