How to spend a cultural weekend in Galway, Ireland
November 5, 2019I’m just back from a weekend in Galway, the southern Irish city that will be next year’s European Capital of Culture. The west-coast city has always been something of a cultural hub with its annual summer arts festival. It’s also known, of course, for its traditional pubs [pictured above] and… Read more
How a Liverpool children’s home inspired a Beatles classic
September 23, 2019Strawberry Field, the childhood refuge of John Lennon, re-opened to the public last weekend. I attended a preview a few days before, writing an article for iTravel. Here’s a preview of my feature: The former Salvation Army children’s home, made famous in the 1967 Beatles song, has re-opened with a… Read more
How to visit the most historic harvest festival in North Wales
September 13, 2019North Wales today hosts the annual Conwy Honey Fair, a historic harvest festival dating back to the reign of King Edward I. I was in Conwy last week to preview the event and find out more about the walled city with its Unesco-listed castle. I also visited the National Beekeeping Centre… Read more
Five great reasons why Montpellier is the best city break this summer
August 2, 2019I’ve got form with Montpellier, where I spent an early summer visit on assignment for a couple of publications. I remembered it from student days as my favourite French city, but then had a mixed experience on a more recent visit. I was back in early July on a group… Read more
How to celebrate 100 years of afternoon teas at Bettys Cafe Tea Room, York
August 1, 2019To York on the hottest day of the year for a magazine assignment for Immediate Media. It was a special birthday party. This year marks 100 years of Bettys Tea Room Cafe, a Yorkshire institution for its afternoon teas with a frisson of Swiss style. Plus the fact it has… Read more
An exclusive preview of the new Adventure Parc Snowdonia attraction
July 31, 2019The new Indoor Adrenaline experience at Adventure Parc Snowdonia opens tomorrow. But we were there a couple of weeks ago [pictured above] for an exclusive preview of the new adrenaline attraction, researching an article for The Guardian in the family travel section. Here’s a preview of what we found: Now rebranded… Read more
Viewpoint: why do single dads face casual sexism when they travel?
June 21, 2019* This article first appeared in Telegraph Travel in time for Father’s Day. More on this theme from my book [pictured above], Inside Fatherhood. We went to stay with Spanish friends during the last school holiday. It worked well for a family trip with two other kids for my two… Read more
How To Raise A Glass To North Wales’ Real Ale Trail
May 7, 2019I joined a real-ale-themed tour of North Wales recently for Guardian Travel. It was a trip around the hidden-gem rural pubs and microbreweries [pictured above] often overlooked by the stampede down the A55 towards Anglesey. Based around Caernarfon, it highlighted the rise of community pubs at a time when our… Read more
How To Make The Most Of A Weekend In Troyes
May 1, 2019A return trip to France before Easter, then, with an assignment in the Champagne-Ardenees region. I was in Troyes [pictured above] for France Magazine, exploring the medieval city on foot to uncover the hidden courtyards, historic buildings and lesser-known church cloisters. That and sampling some of the local bubbles, of… Read more