Talk to any shopkeepers in this Belgian city and they’ll tell you they’re excited. Excited because Ghent, a sleepy university city just 30 minutes from Brussels, is seeing a new wave of visitors charmed by its beguiling cobbled streets, Gothic architecture and laid-back atmosphere. Once the seat of the Counts of Flanders, whose castle has … Read more
My son Joseph passes to the unusually tall winger out wide on the right, who then splits the defence with a perfectly weighted ball. Joseph runs onto it and then his teammate’s deep Bulgarian voice booms out around the pitch: ‘Feenish!’ Joseph dutifully slots the ball past the keeper to secure his hat-trick, then sprints … Read more
An Inspector Calls… at the Cat Inn in West Sussex, which charms with ‘wonky ceilings’, a candle on the dresser and ‘stupendous confit duck’ The Cat Inn, in the West Sussex village of West Hoathly, has four rooms The Inspector says it’s the food that brings people from miles away He described his breakfast as ‘perfect’, … Read more
Great British Boltholes: Take a tour to Jeremy Clarkson’s local in Oxfordshire, which offers six bedrooms and tender pheasant pie The Kingham Plough in Oxfordshire is ‘handsomely decorated’, says T. D. Isacke The restaurant has just been given a Good Food Award for Gastro Pubs There are also six bedrooms spread across the main building and an … Read more
Britain at its best: A Dickens of a town in the heart of Medway, Kent, that inspired Great Expectations Charles Dickens ‘adored’ Rochester, writes the Daily Mail’s Rob Crossan This year marks the 150th anniversary of the author’s death To mark the occasion, Rochester will be opening a gallery focusing on his life By Rob … Read more
Even after something like 50 visits to Athens, I still find the geography occasionally baffling. Still, that’s part of the charm of this beautiful European city, and, the longer you spend there, the more you realise just how much there is to discover. By all means visit one of the spectacularly glamorous shoe shops on … Read more
An Inspector Calls… Sopwell House in Hertfordshire was once an Admiral’s country retreat but today’s PVC windows and dry seabass trigger a sinking feeling Sopwell House is located just outside St Albans and it has 128 bedrooms It’s been owned by the chairman of AB Hotels, Abraham Bejerano, since 1986 He’s invested £14m in a … Read more
Margaux is explaining how babies drink champagne before they drink milk. ‘Really,’ she assures me, ‘it’s a tradition that goes back generations. A family member puts a drop or two on to the baby’s lips after it is born.’ Margaux, 25, was born and grew up in Reims, in the heart of the French Champagne region. … Read more
An Inspector Calls… A blooming lovely hotel nestled among 6,000 tulips with delicious (albeit fussy) Michelin-starred food on the menu The Inspector checked into Gravetye Manor in Sussex which was built in 1598 Jeremy and Elizabeth Hosking bought the manor nine years ago At the restaurant there is a seven-course tasting menu on offer for £95 … Read more
Group travel on a £5k budget, cancelling trips to Sri Lanka and journeying alone as a pensioner: The holiday guru solves traveller queries To get updates around terrorism risks before travelling visit the FCO website Trailfinders can fix personalised tours for those travelling alone Landmark Trust has historic holiday lets which are perfect for big … Read more
Swans, cobblestones and lace shops: Bruges doesn’t disappoint if your hopes for a weekend away includes old-fashioned charm. But this medieval masterpiece of a city, reached from London in little more than three hours on Eurostar, also has avant-garde musical installations, irresistible chocolate shops and a thriving beer scene all set on winding, ancient lanes. … Read more
There’s only one downside to visiting St Petersburg. You quickly realise you’ll have to return again and again if you want to see everything. I’ve visited the Russian city six times over the past 30 years and still feel I’ve only scraped the surface. The Winter Palace is second only to Versailles in architecture and … Read more
On the dot of 9.30am, there is a knock on my office door — and in troop the senior management team. There’s the food and beverage supremo, the head of housekeeping, the financial controller, the maintenance man, the boss of ‘guest relations’, the hotel operations manager, the director of human resources, the receptionist, the duty … Read more