Travel Topics
It’s the wild tales about celebrity guests that have helped give The Portobello Hotel in Notting Hill London its raffish, alluring reputation. Within these walls, the legend goes, Johnny Depp…
Love and travel are intertwined — journeys spark romance, and shared adventures deepen connection. Yet for couples separated by borders, the dream of living together can only be realised through…
“I can resist everything except temptation,” wrote Oscar Wilde – and theatre-goers will find it hard to resist the temptation of The Importance of Being Earnest when it transfers to…
Mark Bibby Jackson goes on two walks in the Peak District to discover two excellent hotels and a country house impressive enough to inspire one of our finest writers. I…
This autumn, the historic pottery heartland of Stoke-on-Trent will once again become a stage for clay in all its forms, as the British Ceramics Biennial 2025 returns from 6 September to…
In September, Strawberry Hill House, 18th century villa and former home of Horace Walpole (1717-1797), welcomes visitors to its fabulously fragrant annual Flower Festival. Strawberry Hill House Flower Festival 2025…
Whitby is set to welcome a wave of literary talent this autumn as it launches its first Whitby Lit Fest, running from Thursday 6 to Sunday 9 November 2025 across…
Travel Begins at 40 has produced its own brief round-up of the best festivals in August around the world from Colombia to Nevada and Utah to Notting Hill. Cultural Festivals…
Gill Haynes celebrates her birthday by taking a Le Boat holiday on The Thames. As Ratty tells Mole in Wind in the Willows, “there is nothing — absolutely nothing —…
Mark Bibby Jackson goes on a narrow boat cruise along the Worcester and Birmingham Canal with Black Prince Holidays. The last time I had ventured onto a narrow boat was…
Roger Hermiston and Eileen Wise follow in the steps of CJ Sansom’s detective Matthew Shardlake to explore revolt in Norwich He’s one of the great popular fictional creations of the…
Fearne Cotton Happy Place Festival takes place in two beautiful locations — Gunnersbury Park in London and Tatton Park in Cheshire. This vibrant celebration of wellness and self-care features inspirational…
Cornish Hall End is a sleepy village in Essex with around 50 houses. It has a delightful church and one pub – the Horse & Groom…
Hairy Traveller chats with Martin Roper, former vocalist for British punk rock band Anti-Pasti and now the owner of The Secret Dining Company…
Hairy Traveller visits the Kicking Dickey pub in Great Dunmow, Essex. Learn how the Essex pub got its unique name…
Hairy Traveller takes a spin on the wheel and visits the V&A Collection at the World of Wedgwood, Stoke on Trent…
Hairy Traveller chats with Vince, landlord of The Maypole Thaxted, about the popular Essex local…
Hairy Traveller goes to Essex to sample the best Finchingfield pubs. Finchingfield is one of the prettiest villages in Essex…
Hairy Traveller selects his favourite pubs in Kensington London – The Scarsdale Tavern, The Blue Stoops and The Windsor Castle…
The Hairy Traveller stays at the Ellen Kensington hotel in London, managed by Montigo Resorts. The property is located in the former home of Victorian actress Ellen Terry…
Mark Bibby Jackson aka the #HairyTraveller, stays at the beautiful Charlton House in Somerset. This beautiful Grade II-listed Georgian hotel is next to the town of Shepton Mallett…
The Unicorn Inn is a beautiful pub in the heart of Stoke – perfectly looked after by Tracy. Very popular with theatre goers and the Norwegian Stoke City supporters club…
Hairy Traveller discovers some of the best pubs in Stoke-on-Trent including a great Stoke music pub called the Artisan Tap, community-focused Sanctuary Ale House…
Its setting is sublime, its 950-year history as rich as any English country house, and the restoration work carried out on it in the last 30 years exceptional. Combermere Abbey…
The UK has so much to offer with its rich history, galleries, theatres and concert halls, its commercial and scientific enterprise and its varied and undeniably scenic countryside.
UK National Parks
There are 15 National Parks in the UK, ranging from coastal areas to mountainous regions in England, Wales and Scotland. There are currently none in Northern Ireland. Unlike National Parks in other countries, in the UK parts of the designated, protected areas can be owned by private landlords. Such areas as the Lake District, Yorkshire Moors, Pembrokeshire Coastal Path, Snowdonia and the Cairngorms draw hikers and naturalists to them like a magnet.
UK Weather
The British never tire of the weather as a talking point. Broadly speaking it is a temperate climate, although winters are becoming wetter and summers warmer, probably from climate change. Warmer in the South, wetter in the West and colder in Scotland and Northern Ireland, the UK climate can be subject to diurnal change on a sudden basis, although, with the advent of satellites, the weather forecasts are more accurate. It is wise to take a waterproof with you on an extended trip.
Northern Ireland
Since the Good Friday Agreement brought greater stability to this previously troubled land, visitors are on an increase. The Titanic Museum displaying memorabilia regarding that renowned disaster and Ulster Museum looking at 3,000 years of Irish culture and history, are well worth a visit. Outside of Belfast, the Mountains of Mourne in County Down and the Giant Causeway, 60 miles outside Belfast, are not to be missed.
