Tag: city breaks

How to spend a weekend in the French city of Carcassonne on a budget

I spent a weekend in the southerwestern city of Carcassonne [pictured above] earlier this year.

I was researching a guide to the city for budget travellers, exploring the attractions of the city split between its Unesco-listed citadel and medieval lower town.

Here’s a sample of the text:

Storm the ramparts

Make the citadel your starting point, the ancient fortifications reflecting the city’s long history from the Romans to the medieval heyday and 19th-century renaissance as overseen by the architect, Eugène Viollet-le-Duc.

Join a 75-minute walking tour from the tourist office, where a short VR film first explains historical context.

Otherwise, simply take a one-hour, self-guided stroll around the ramparts to soak up the medieval ambiance with views of The Pyrenees beyond.

The 12th-century Port d’Aude gate makes for the ultimate selfie spot.

Read the full story in Daily Mail Travel: Carcassonne for £100 per night.

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How to spend a weekend in Manchester for the International Festival

*Map via The i Paper

The Manchester International Festival is now under way across the northern-powerhouse city.

If you’re planning a visit, then you might just find my guide to what’s new and interesting around Manchester useful.

Amongst the highlights is the exhibition Use Hearing Protection: the early years of Factory Records at The Science and Industry Museum.

It celebrates the pioneering record label, home to Joy Division and a catalyst for Manchester’s cultural renaissance.

Plus there’s a new afternoon tea at The Refuge, attached to the new Kimpton Clocktower Hotel.

It’s a spoil-yourself end to a Live Forever weekend in Manchester.

Read the full story in this weekend’s i Paper, Manchester travel guide.

Five great reasons why Montpellier is the best city break this summer

I’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 press trip with tourism officials for the opening of the city’s new contemporary art museum, MOCO.

The city has certainly grown, expanding into new districts towards the beach and bustling with language-exchange students.

I still love the Old Town with its cobblestone backstreets and labyrinthine passageways. But I was less grabbed by some of the modernist architecture of somewhat soulless outer districts.

Here’s a taster of my story:

The opening of the art museum, Montpellier Contemporary (MOCO) is the latest development in a city embracing art. There was always a flirtation with street art and a regular summer arts festival but MOCO has really put the city on the map as a hub for all things conceptual.

I finally feel like I’ve got a better sense of what makes Montpellier tick.

Just in time to recommend some places to visit, such as the new Marché du Lez [pictured above], to my daughter, who is due to visit on a school exchange next Easter.

Read my Rough Guide feature.

Read the Independent Travel article.

How to celebrate 100 years of afternoon teas at Bettys Cafe Tea Room, York

To 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 done away with its possessive apostrophe.

The Swiss baker, Frederick Belmont, first founded the company in 1919, creating a niche in Yorkshire for high-quality cakes and pastries, served the old-fashioned way.

Today, the third generation of the family runs the business with two Bettys in York, including the Art Deco-style café at St Helen’s Square, plus the first café in Harrogate.

The company is hosting a series of events, and offering special souvenirs, as part of the year-long centenary celebration.

A recreation of one of Frederick’s famous cakes currently takes pride of place in Bettys front window [pictured above].

But the must–try treat is a Yorkshire Fat Rascal, Betty’s signature fruit scone, served warm with a pot of Taylors tea.

I combined afternoon tea with a visit to York Minster and stroll around the walls, the resulting city-break guide to York due out this winter — watch this space.

More: Visit York