Travel & Culture

  • Almost 1m Tripadvisor reviews in 2020 found to be fraudulent

    Almost 1m Tripadvisor reviews in 2020 found to be fraudulent. In total Tripadvisor penalised 34,605 properties for fraudulent activity and banned 20,299 members

  • Tell us about winter camping, glamping and cabins in the UK – you could win a holiday prize

    Tell us about winter camping, glamping and cabins in the UK – you could win a holiday prize. Whether it’s a yurt-stay or a cabin in the woods, we want your tips for a wild winter stay – the best wins £200 towards a Sawday’s stay

  • Le Méridien Lav, Split - hotel review

    Enjoy the sun and sea in style at this luxury retreat just outside Split, says Radhika Aligh

  • Hilary Mantel play to close amid Covid uncertainty

    Hilary Mantel play to close amid Covid uncertainty. Royal Shakespeare Company cancels planned extension of The Mirror and the Light in West End

  • The Mirror and the Light cuts its run amid fears over Covid ‘risk’

    The producers of the critically-acclaimed The Mirror and the Light have cancelled plans to extend its run saying “the risk” is too great. The play, the last in a trilogy based on Hilary Mantel’s best-selling novels, was due to end on Sunday November 28 but announced a two-month extension to January before it even opened. The show, at the Gielgud Theatre in the West End, tracks the rise and final fall of Thomas Cromwell as the power behind the throne at the court of Henry VIII features a 24-strong cast with seven making their West End debuts.

  • Businesses in Thailand urge government to reverse alcohol ban

    Businesses in Thailand urge government to reverse alcohol ban. Borders to open after 18 months of Covid restrictions that did ‘catastrophic damage’ to tourism sector

  • Strictly Come Dancing Halloween Special Songs And Dances Revealed

    Fans are in for a frightfully good show 👻

  • Island-hopping in Germany is an unexpected delight

    In autumn, bobbing in the middle of Lake Constance, where the sun arcs from the foothills of western Austria and vineyards of southern Germany into Switzerland, you could swear you were adrift in the Mediterranean or Adriatic. The meditative blues are the same, the rigging on the single-masted ships are the same, but the difference is these are views, framed by a distant horizon of mountains, that few Brits ever see.

  • Late Constable, review: it’s hard to imagine a more invigorating display of bravura painting

    It’s been a long time coming. Although he studied at its Schools, and was eventually elected to its ranks, John Constable, the subject of a new exhibition at Burlington Gardens, has never been honoured with a monographic show at the Royal Academy – a reminder, perhaps, of the snobbery he endured while flying the flag for lowly landscape painting, which wasn’t taken seriously until he (and his contemporary and rival, Turner) came along. Constable wasn’t made a full Academician until 1829, by whic

  • Will we need a third jab to travel in 2022?

    As booster jabs are rolled out across the Western world and more evidence emerges about the waning protection of our current Covid vaccines, thoughts have turned to the impact this may have on international travel. Many countries framed their entry rules around the perceived ‘silver bullet’ of the vaccine and may well continue down this path, updating their border requirements as third doses become more widespread. In the UK too, it’s not unthinkable that restrictions could eventually increase o

  • Brits plan big budget breaks in 2022

    Canada takes third slot ahead of Dubai and Maldives. The finding suggests there is huge pent-up demand for international travel following the pandemic restrictions, which have only recently begun to ease since their imposition in March 2020. Over one in six (16%) stated between ‘£2,000 and £2,999’,  one in eight respondents selected ‘£1,000 to £1,999’, while a further 12% said they’d likely spend ‘£3,000 to £3,999’ per traveller.

  • Albatross review – liars and lovers collide in a challenge to middle-class do-gooders

    Albatross review – liars and lovers collide in a challenge to middle-class do-gooders. Playground theatre, London‘You don’t want to help. You just want to say you’ve helped’ … this series of heated and occasionally heavy-handed dialogues illuminate social hypocrisy and class barriers

  • Eternals: Everything you need to know about Chloe Zhao’s new Marvel movie

    Your guide to Marvel’s latest superhero extravaganza, from the new characters (and the rumoured Harry Styles cameo) to their comic book history...

  • What to expect from this week's travel update

    Another week, another travel update. You’ll be forgiven for feeling a pang of anxiety at the prospect.

  • London tourism bookings soar for 2022

    Hopes of a huge revival in foreign tourism in London next year were given a boost on Tuesday by a survey showing the capital ranked the second most popular destination in the world for bookings in 2022. Analysis from flights and holidays website Opodo showed London behind only Paris pointing to a much needed recovery in tourism after two “lost” summers for the industry since the start of the pandemic. London was the number one destination in the Nordic countries, second in Germany, third in Spain and fourth in Italy and Portugal.

  • Glasgow city guide: what to do, see and eat

    As the world’s power players descend on the Scottish hotspot for COP26, Christopher Beanland has their itinerary — from feasting to gigs

  • October design news: moon art, forest crayons, celebrating second hand

    October design news: moon art, forest crayons, celebrating second hand . Exhibitions of art from the criminal justice system and tapestry from around the world, plus the chance to take part in a new UK festival of creativity

  • Premier Inn warns over staff shortages as hotel bookings recover

    Premier Inn warns over staff shortages as hotel bookings recover. Hotel chain plans to spend more than £20m on increasing salaries and paying one-off bonuses

  • The new cruise ship that hasn't been banned from the heart of Venice

    On the penultimate day of our seven-night cruise we made our return to Venice in the waning sunlight. Italy’s most compelling city appeared like a celestial frieze of belvederes and domes. Noticeably absent from the scene were the mega cruise ships that formerly berthed at the Stazione Marittima terminal.

  • Adelaide festival launches 2022 program with a free open-air spectacular and international acts

    Adelaide festival launches 2022 program with a free open-air spectacular and international acts. Rock music legends Icehouse and an African chamber ensemble are among the acts featuring at Australia’s premier arts festival

  • Oh yes it is! See the Queen’s fairytale pantomime dress from the Second World War

    Adored by the likes of Elizabeth Taylor and Brigitte Bardot, the luxury British shoe supplier Rayne counts aristocrats and Hollywood actresses amongst its clientele.

  • Inside Melbourne’s Park hotel, refugees sit and wait for Covid to find them

    Inside Melbourne’s Park hotel, refugees sit and wait for Covid to find them . Detainees confined to their rooms say they feel hopeless and afraid as the virus continues to spread

  • ‘Precision and artistry’: 35 years of Away, the quintessentially Australian summer play

    ‘Precision and artistry’: 35 years of Away, the quintessentially Australian summer play. Michael Gow’s 1986 work is one of the most performed plays in the country but also one of its most beloved. He believes a screen adaptation would be ‘impossible’

  • Geoffrey Chater obituary

    Geoffrey Chater obituary. Stalwart stage and screen actor who regularly appeared in British television drama series and excelled in establishment roles

  • The apps making the world safer for solo female travellers

    For her 30th birthday, Yaa Birago wanted to do something special. She settled on a trip to Europe with friends but they bowed out at the last minute. Not wanting to miss out, she decided to go on her own, travelling to Paris, Lisbon and Rome. It was in the latter that she had her very first Airbnb experience – and it wasn't a good one.

  • 36 of the cosiest winter breaks in the UK

    From Instagrammable boutiques in the Lake District to luxury cottage stays in the Cotswolds, we've got your cosy winter staycation sorted