Hunan is a landlocked province in the south-central part of the country, surrounded by mountains, with the fertile Yangtze River to the north. This is picture-book rural China, a major agricultural centre for thousands of…

Having walked for hours without seeing a soul, it almost came as a surprise when we spotted a couple heading towards us from across the Rhine Valley. “It’s so nice to see young international tourists…

  In the summer, Norwegians take their holidays on the south coast, rambling in the forests, strolling up hills, swimming in tiny lakes and exploring the islands. At the beginning of October, it’s still warm,…

I’m travelling between Beijing and Shanghai, a 1,318 km journey down the Eastern coast of China, the first leg of Rail Discoveries’ 13-day escorted group tour. I dip my chopsticks into the plastic tray containing…

I boarded Eurostar 9116 at London St. Pancras International just before 9am to embark on beer trail through Rotterdam, Leuven, Nuremberg and Pilsen. By midday, I was sipping a ‘Noordt Dubbel’ dark craft beer at…

Endless rows of Christmas trees and a bluebird sky surround me as I sit by a pond with a dog-eared copy of Paul Theroux's compendium of travel missives, Fresh Air Fiend. Fresh air fiend is right.…

Tourism was relatively unknown to the Maldives until the 1970s, but these days it’s a very different story. Since 2007 more than eight million tourists have visited Maldives and tourism accounts for 28% of the…

How do you like to celebrate Halloween? Do you carve a pumpkin? Decorate the house with creepy fake spiders? Dress as a zombie and terrify the neighbours? Why not up your game this year and…