Written by The Zabola estate’s wrought-iron gates swing open and an avenue of chestnut trees stretches before me. Beyond them lies a serene Transylvanian landscape of rolling hills, lakes and gardens surrounding a grand yellow-ochre castle (which has the comfiest beds I’ve ever slept in). I instantly feel myself relax – this place, hidden in a forested valley in […]
Fika on ice, Sweden We booked a brilliant skating experience in the Stockholm archipelago with True Nature Sweden. There are one-day guided tours for beginners and more experienced skaters (from 13 years upwards). Skating on the sea, or on lakes, feeling the wind blow (faster as you up your speed!) is truly exhilarating. The day […]
The sun splashes off the lagoon and I shield my eyes to see the wave rushing up behind me. I’m lying on my big foam surfboard in perfect position as it arrives. “Three big paddle strokes to catch the wave,” is what my instructor, Owen, had told me. I do just that, pop up and […]
We cross a narrow strip of land under vast skies and follow a slim road. It cuts a straight line through the heart of County Clare’s only peninsula – a jagged spearhead-shaped piece of land that dangles downward, like a tail, right into the Atlantic. The landscape tapers as the mouth of the River Shannon […]
Don’t make small talk with strangers. Or talk about the weather. Or even ask people you know how they are… I read these social etiquette tips in a Denmark travel guide – four days into a 10-day trip. I’d already blown it on day one. “Look at that!” I said to the couple opposite me […]
Cross the causeway to another world, Kintyre Davaar island, off the Kintyre peninsula in south-west Scotland, is a true getaway: it is connected to the mainland by a shingle causeway, which is only possible to cross when the tide is low. There are a few cottages and cabins for rent, but a day visit (remember […]
Viewed from the top of the 2,255-metre-high Stelvio piste, the town of Bormio far below looks like a Christmas cake, with pine trees and church spires poking out of a snow-filled scene. The two are connected by a run which, with a vertical drop of 1,010 metres and gradients reaching 60%, is one of the […]
For 20 years, the raft bar Zappa Barka sat on a bend of the River Danube in central Belgrade. Revellers walked a gangplank to board the boat, then danced to live music and DJs on wooden floors, or stayed on deck all night to see the sun rise over the water. But in June 2024 […]
The Urdaibai Bird Center has been cutely styled like an international airport terminal, with multilingual boards marked Arrivals and Departures, and a raised observation platform resembling an air traffic control tower. Through a roof-mounted telescope I watch various avian species landing or taking off from little floating archipelagos on the adjoining lagoon. I am not a […]
If you walk along the south banks of the Douro River in Vila Nova de Gaia, opposite Porto city, towards the sea, the scene will be classic Portugal for a while: a lot of waterside restaurants, a lot of grilled chicken, some stalls selling unlikely items made of cork (aprons?). A little further back are […]