travel

  • Tell us about the travel experience that boosted your wellbeing most for the chance to win a £250 Sunvil holiday voucher

    Saturday's print section carried a story about “Blue Zones” where climate, diet and lifestyle help more people live to 100. Whatever your age, tell us about a holiday experience that made you feel on top of the world, whether it was a spa treatment, an activity, the weather or a location or view that made you buzz.

  • What to do if the rail strikes mean you can't get to the airport for your holiday

    As rail strikes continue this summer, anyone who has to travel in the UK on certain dates in August is likely to encounter major problems, whether they are travelling by train to a holiday on home soil or to catch a flight abroad. We have highlighted the biggest problem areas below, and provide a few solutions.

  • 'Life was passing me by': The adventure sport you should take up in your 60s and 70s

    ‘Go, go, go… paddle!” shouted the woman to my right, ending the whisper-quiet, almost meditative, silence beyond the break line. The sky had turned pink at Rhossili beach, on the Gower Peninsular in Wales, and I hoped to score one of the final waves of the day.

  • The 50 best family-friendly country hotels in the UK for 2022

    Which is the best hotel in the UK for families? The quickest way you can re-boot your family is with a British weekend break. After a short drive, you replace the quotidien routine with time outside, perhaps a spa visit, glorious food and a reminder of what matters most: uninterrupted time together. But what makes a hotel great for families? Child-friendly entertainment, value, indulgence and location. You just need to set your own priorities. Below you’ll find our pick of the best family-friend

  • The cruise lines finally allowing unvaccinated passengers on board

    Nearly every country in Europe (Spain, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Luxembourg are the exceptions), and dozens more beyond, have scrapped every last Covid restriction. Therefore it can be easy to forget that one type of holiday remains governed by some of the strictest rules in the world: cruises.

  • Why you should skip the beach and choose one of Europe's most beautiful lakes instead

    Beaches aren’t just beside the seaside. Lakes and enclosed expanses of water have an allure that seas and oceans don’t, and one that lasts beyond the high days of summer.

  • The quaint French seaside towns you've probably never come across

    Understated and quaintly chic, from Languedoc to Archachon, Provence to a mere Eurotunnel hop across the channel to Normandy and Cote-de-Opale, France is awash with pretty, tranquil – and still relatively undiscovered – coastal towns and villages, perfect for easing into a slower pace of local living.

  • Mapped: 123 great European cities you can reach by train from London in a day

    It has been a bad few years for rail travel. Back in the heady days of February 2020, The Telegraph was touting train journeys as the perfect way to explore Europe: more enjoyable than flying, better for the environment, and increasingly efficient – with our research uncovering 124 fantastic cities that could be reached from London in a single day.

  • The answer to keeping cool in a heatwave is hiding in plain sight

    The other day, I had a few spare hours on a scorching hot day in Athens. I say scorching hot – it was actually only about 34 degrees Celsius, so not too different from the predicted temperatures in the UK this weekend. But it was unpleasant enough not to want to wander around taking in the markets and outdoor sights.

  • Why travellers across Europe are swapping five-star hotels for fancy farms

    Picture the scene. Your day begins with a leisurely breakfast of freshly laid eggs as you gaze out over bloom-filled gardens and pastoral scenes of grazing animals. Then you might lounge by the pool for a few hours or take a leisurely stroll through an olive grove or a swaying wildflower meadow. As the sun sinks, your attention turns to dinner, the ingredients for which have invariably been harvested from the surrounding fields.

  • The loss of Chinese tourists is devastating destinations – from Bangkok to Bicester

    If you catch the 10:12 Saturday morning train from London Marylebone to Bicester Village at any point in the next few weeks, you may well notice that the carriage is less crowded than it would have been on a summer’s day three or four years ago. It will still be busy, of course – packed with weekend shoppers excited to be on a 69-minute ride out into the Oxfordshire countryside, bound for a luxury retail outlet which pulls in more than six million customers every year. But there will be one key

  • What the British could learn from their continental cousins about keeping cool in a heatwave

    Britain is not built for extreme heat. Our buildings are thick-walled, our people thick-blooded, our food warm and hearty, our train tracks… well, they’re not great in rain or snow either, obviously – but in extraordinarily hot weather, they melt. So, when the temperature rises into the thirties and beyond, as it has tended to do in recent summers, we cling to routine, turn on the fan, and wilt – a land of sweltering stoicism.

  • The best seaside and beach hotels in the UK for 2022

    Britain’s love affair with the seaside goes back at least 300 years, when the Georgians first discovered the delights of ‘taking the waters’. But while the days of bathing machines and forcible dunking are long gone, some 20 million of us still make an annual migration to the coast to swim, scour the rockpools, eat fish and chips by the seafront, surf the waves, dine at sublime seafood restaurants or walk the perennially popular coastal paths. But where to stay at the end of a long day beside th

  • The best alternatives to the UK's busiest beaches for the summer heatwave

    With the mercury climbing across the UK as we embrace the latest heatwave – it’s time to face the music: Britain’s beaches are going to be mobbed.

  • The 20 best beaches to visit across the UK in the summer heatwave

    Britain is home to some exemplary beaches. And with the sun finally shining, it's time to start planning a day at the beach.

  • England's best secret beaches to enjoy the August heatwave in peace

    There's nothing better than the feeling of stumbling across a secluded beach – especially during a summer heatwave, when you know the majority of Britain's sandy shores will be packed with daytrippers. Whether you want to relax with a book in hand between genteel dips in the sea, or gather for a proper picnic with friends and family, knowing you won't have to compete with the hordes for a spot on the sand is seriously satisfying.

  • England's 18 best hotels with outdoor pools

    When a spot of lovely, warm, sunny weather hits England, you know you need to make the most of every sun-drenched moment. Beaches always make for a fabulously British day out, but when you desire a sparkling pool, spotless loo (sans queues) and somewhere to quickly hop over to for a cup of tea, glass of wine or spot of lunch (without the paraphernalia of a picnic), hotel pools are the creme de la creme of summer days off.

  • 20 of the best outdoor swimming pools and lidos in the UK

    With another heatwave this weekend and the summer holidays in full swing, the idea of going for a swim in the sunshine is more appealing than ever.

  • Travelling to Qatar for the World Cup: What fans need to know

    Football fever is back on the menu, thanks to England’s glorious success in the UEFA Women’s European Championship.

  • Post-Brexit travel to the EU is about to become very different

    Brexit may be “done”, but from the traveller’s point of view, the full implications of what it means for our holidays are only just becoming apparent. And I’m not talking about the short-term problems – the chaos at Dover, the queues at airport immigration desks and the 90-day limit on the time we can spend in EU countries. What is going to feel very very different – and a lot more bureaucratic – are the new border control systems which are due to be put in place by the EU next year.

  • Flight cancelled or delayed? Here's how to claim compensation

    Flight cancellations and delays continue to affect British holidaymakers, making it more important than ever to know your rights when it comes to compensation, refunds and rebooking options.

  • Eight things you must do now if your flight has been cancelled

    We aren’t out of the woods yet. Flights are still being cancelled and the problem looks set to continue through the summer as airlines go on strike, and staff shortages continue to cause disruptions. Both Ryanair and EasyJet workers in Spain are striking for multiple days this month, which could lead to a last-minute slashing of flight schedules. If it happens to you, the quicker you act, the better the chance of mitigating the consequences.

  • Why the rise of clueless 'Instagram-adventurers' is so dangerous (and dumb)

    Mountain rescue teams and guides are scratching their heads over how to quell the growing number of people stumbling into the mountains unaware of the risks. They blame Instagram and other social media outlets that glamourise some of the world’s toughest climbs without showing the behind-the-scenes years spent building experience, and the skills, equipment and decision-making nous required.

  • The great leftie city of the American West has landed on the travel map

    It is a little after 10am at the farmers’ market, and what appears to be half the city is fumbling its way through an overcast Saturday morning, ambling between the stalls dotted along SW Park Avenue. Coffee helps, of course – but there are more exotic possibilities than caffeine for those hoping to shake off last night’s excesses.

  • The 20 greatest destinations in Italy – and the perfect time to visit each one

    You never need to look far for an excuse to plan a trip to Italy. Not only does it offer myriad festivals, carnivals and celebrations, but it also has one of the best and most varied climates in Europe – from the snow-clad winter resorts of the Dolomites, to the summer heat of Sicily and the warm glow of Tuscany in the autumn.

  • The 10 best beach holidays in France for discerning British sunseekers

    This summer, skip the classic French beach destinations and opt for one of the country's more underrated spots – you may never look back. Provence, Normandy and Brittany are some of the best regions for finding that feted trio of sun, sea and sand combined with a more rustic and relaxed feel, but there are also gems in Languedoc and on the islands of Île d’Oléron and Île de Ré.