Hong Kong has been renowned for decades as a hub of commerce, finance, glitz, endless shopping options, and a gourmet capital which refuses to show any signs of inability to retain its status. Having been well-acquainted with East Asia (a year spent teaching in South Korea, and 5 years in central Japan), the charms of Hong Kong seemed almost familiar to myself on first glance, and after a while, its character revealed its teeth, and proved to possess aspects of culture and dynamism which you would perhaps best attribute solely to the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong. The night market culture here is a joy to behold, and the Jade market, and neighbouring Temple Street market, alongside nearby Mongkok's ladies market are three examples of market-style commerce where bargain hunters are in their element, and ... read more

Cities grow in size, shape, stature and renown, some at a snail's pace, and others at such breakneck speed that you wonder exactly what kind of money and work ethic is behind all the speedy urbanization. Shanghai is a case in question, since although there are palpable vestiges of the city's traditional roots, this is one megalopolis with its finger on the pulse, poised to take on any like-minded technologically advanced city also prepared to throw down the gauntlet. Getting to Pudong international airport via Dubai with Emirates airline was a simple two-step process, and even for a seasoned traveller, it really is hard to grasp the enormity and sheer scale of the distance covered from what is essentially an A to B long-haul flight. The first piece of technology to manifest itself came in the ... read more

Getting to Budapest was a breeze, and part of the by-now familiar tale - budget flight out of Manchester airport, and enough research done to allow me to reach the hotel at the shoestring end of the budget scale - my sentiments entirely! The city itself, though, was a different picture, and although you still get a good run for your money in the Hungarian capital city, its wealth of tourist attractions and architectural masterpieces suggested to me that you were in the thick of a tourist spot where you'd easily expect to part with more substantial sums of money in order to enjoy the experience. The hotel Gellert is a long-established Budapest institution, and staying there in late August meant full use of its' extensive spa facilities, both indoor and outdoor, and wandering around the ... read more

Relatively speaking, I was on home soil for this trip, and acting as a tour companion for a couple who had flown in from the Far East to take in the sights and sounds of this Scottish gem which many a seasoned traveller sings the praises of. Driving to Skye from home in Yorkshire was, in terms of journey time, something akin to a long-haul flight, and it therefore came as no surprise that the first port of call on the island was to be Kyleakin, a stone's throw from Skye bridge. My newly-purchased satnav took us to the guest house's doorstep, which was as convenient as you could have asked for, and first impressions of the island were as pleasant as any member of our mini tour party could have hoped for. The B and ... read more

It seems that no self-respecting traveller should call their itinerary substantial unless it includes a stopover in Marrakech, regardless of their length of stay. Looking back over the past decade or so of holiday bookings, this trip easily stands out as one which I've always thought best fits the description of 'holiday bargain of the century', and a half board stay at a pristine 5-star hotel, plus flight, clocking in at less than £300 still suggests to me that there can be some huge rewards to be reaped by planning and booking trips as strategically as possible. In late June, the city was almost impossibly scorching, and bustling with life, and the sheer colour of the city alone floored me more than any other place visited up until that point in time. It is fair to ... read more

For a country whose credits include IKEA, Volvo, Abba, the smorgasboard buffet, and rotten herrings, the Swedish capital has certain attributes which elevate its status beyond your average European city. OK, so the cost of living might ultimately make your wallet weep, the winters may be long and oppressive, and the food culture may not appeal to everyone, but this is officially Europe's cleanest capital city, and it has to be, for my money, Europe's most pleasantly cyclable city. Four nights at a city centre hotel proved to be the best plan, as the urban sprawl is set out on 14 main islands, and a centrally-located hotel is something which a visitor to the city would consider to be vital. With a one-day Stockholm card, I was able to see a wide variety of attractions, and ... read more

Ski destinations don't really get more renowned than the expansive Canadian resorts, and Fernie had that 'criminally overlooked' feel about it, virtually as soon as you had reached the resort proper, and assessed the state of play, and the vast nature of the ski terrain. This time around, lodgings were in the shape of a catered chalet, with 2 friendly Australian chalet hosts, and an unreliable shuttle bus service which prompted us to rely more heavily on the legendary hospitality and accommodating nature of passing Canadian motorists with room in the back of the vehicle for you and your ski gear. Being a leisure skier and nothing more, I simply revelled in the option of gliding across luscious terrain where ski conditions were the best I had ever experienced, and the routes were clearly marked, until ... read more

As a fledgling English teacher in Cairo in the mid 1990's, my encounters with Egyptian culture involved sizeable amounts of city grime, culture shock, job-related stress, and an Egyptian man who followed me virtually everywhere in the city, as a perennial friend who I didn't really have the heart to shake off, because his will was good, and he introduced me to a few sides of life in Egypt which demonstrated their sense of hospitality. Revisiting Egypt in December 2006, 11 years on, to the resort of Sharm El-Sheikh, was a fitting way to pay homage to a former hunting ground, and also a brilliant winter escape route, with the promise of much longed-for winter sun. Boarding a plane at East Midlands airport on Christmas Day was a first for me anyway, and I'm a real ... read more

The trip to Malta came about simply because I had entered a prize draw through a coffee promotion at work by punching in codes into a website, and entering myself into 5 draws for a pair of tickets to a European destination. Well, somebody up there likes me, because I scooped a pair of return tickets to Malta, and almost instantly, I was boarding a BA flight to Valletta, and arriving with the task of getting from the airport to the hotel armed with a basic map, and no other sense of direction. This proved to be the hardest task of the entire trip, really, despite how simple the map made it look, and once we'd arrived, after taking numerous diversions, and straying well off course, the resort of St. Julians looked lively enough to spend ... read more

What could possibly be said about Amsterdam that has not been said before? Well, one thing which can be mentioned, on a purely personal note though, is that it currently stands as the only continental European city destination which I have been able to visit on a city break for a full weekend with no necessity for taking time off work either side of the weekend to enable me to do this. At just 9.20am on a Saturday morning, I was walking down the Damrak, and heading for the hotel which was situated somewhere in the labyrinth of the city's infamous Red Light District, but the vibes were good, the hospitality seemed welcoming, and best of all, I still had the entire weekend ahead of me. Walking around the backstreets, canals, and residential areas seemed to ... read more