How many hotels are there in London? I’m sure that Google would be able to tell me but the information would soon be out of date. There are faceless chain hotels, independent quirky hotels and then … there’s 40 Winks. It defies description –...
There are over 60,000 stolpersteine in various places throughout the world. If you’ve been to Germany, Austria, Belgium, Italy … most of Europe … then the chances are that you’ve seen at least one. If your trip is in the future, watch out...
I imagine that in years to come, there will be an increase in American visitors to St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle – thanks to the marriage of the UK’s Prince Harry to American actor Meghan Markle. Our two countries have a long history together...
I have just added this place to my bucket list and originally, it was simply because of the name. (Although the fact that it’s in the wonderful county of Yorkshire helps, of course. It’s in a great location – about ten miles away from York itself and...
Definitely falling into the category of dark tourism, Peenemünde is decidedly spooky. It is located on the island of Usedom in the Baltic and since the nineteenth century was a vacation venue for Prussian royalty and German nobility. But, in common with several other...
This is true but I can’t blame you for wondering how sausages could possibly save lives. Well, admittedly I’m going back a few hundred years here but the fact is that yes, a humble sausage saved hundreds if not thousands of lives. I’ll explain…...
If you have an Airbnb or similar rental, who is cleaning it for you and preparing it for guests? If you’re not able to do it yourself, how do you choose a cleaning service? It might be more important than you think. Sheila Perera FIH is the manager of the...
Now that more and more visitors from other countries are realising that visiting Britain means more than just touring London, many other resorts are enjoying a new heyday. This means that some of the UK’s best – and most quirky – hotels are in the...
Airline companies are making small but significant changes to their procedures, and their aircraft, all the time. Most of these are seemingly quite minor changes that over the years add greatly to passenger comfort … and to airline profits. Every year Crystal...
At the end of 2017, Airbnb published a list of destinations that were (and had been) trending. I was surprised to see the second on the list was the good old English seaside resort of Bournemouth. I lived near Bournemouth for several years – and worked there...
For some years now landlords, Airbnb hosts, hotel designers and the like have been warned that glass shower doors in rental apartments or rooms can cause trouble both minor and major. The chances are that you’ll recall that this began with a well documented...
Don’t you think that there’s something very spooky but nevertheless fascinating about abandoned ships? Well, did you know that the USA has one of the world’s largest ‘ship graveyards’ and that you can visit it? What’s more,...
Capsule hotels, often found in overcrowded countries such as Japan, have been with us for many years now. But if you’re heading to Amsterdam and looking for accommodation try CityHub. This is similar to a capsule hotel but its ‘hubs’ (as they are...
Often, when people write about Yorkshire, their articles are illustrated by photographs of sheep. There are lots of sheep in Yorkshire and the county was, at one time, at the forefront of the woollen industry. But this is a bit of a strange one… Many years ago,...
Fort Lauderdale isn’t necessarily one of the first places that springs to mind when people are thinking about vacationing in cities that show concern for the planet. But they would be mistaken. From our turtle-hatching initiatives to our waterways clean-ups, ...
Visitors to Venice, or at least those who are in the know, often take a trip – even if just for a day – to the colourful island of Burano. It’s only a few kilometres from Venice itself and the water bus trip takes only about half an hour from St...
There has always been a demand for accommodation for people with mobility problems – that’s nothing new – and Airbnb have demonstrated their knowledge of this by acquiring Accomable, a service that introduces less-abled travellers to people who...
Staying in an Airbnb recently, I was really impressed by the splatter guard thingy that was in the microwave. It probably cost less than a dollar. I was so tempted to bring it home for my own (besplattered) microwave but bottled out – I’m too snooty...
It’s one of those debates that crops up from time to time – which do you prefer to drink, still water or fizzy water? Whichever you prefer, the fact remains that the bottled water industry is enormous (and regarded by some as something of a con.) I...
At one time, travellers were taking a bit of a gamble when they booked accommodation. Unless they were heading for an opulent hotel that featured a full-colour brochure, the chances are that they didn’t see their rooms until they arrived – by which time it...
