Travel advice, ideas & expert tips

Portland Women’s Forum State Scenic Viewpoint, Oregon: Visitor guide

When I first pulled into the parking area — officially named Portland Women's Forum State Scenic Viewpoint but still called Chanticleer Point by locals — what immediately struck me was how every single person with a camera was pointing in the same direction. Nobody photographs…

Vista House overlooking Oregon's Columbia River Gorge.

Vista House, Oregon: Ticket prices, hours, parking & visitor guide

The first time I climbed the stone steps to Oregon's Vista House and stepped inside, what caught me off guard wasn't the 360-degree Columbia River Gorge panorama — though it's genuinely spectacular — but the Tokeen Alaskan marble floors and opalized glass windows in what…

The Wookey Hole Caves in Wells, South-West England.

Wookey Hole Caves, Somerset: Ticket prices, hours & visitor guide (2026)

Many a child has visited Wookey Hole and been terrified of the Witch – a stalagmite formation that, with enough imagination and dim lighting, resembles a hooded figure. Legend claims she was a real witch turned to stone by a monk from Glastonbury. The site…

6 incredible European castles for your bucket list

Sometimes it’s about size, sometimes about history and sometimes about lavish decoration – but these six European castles are truly astonishing. Prague Castle, Czechia So large that it’s more a separate town on a hilltop than a mere castle, it’s easy enough to spend a…

Lower Force at Aysgarth Falls, North Yorkshire.

Aysgarth Falls, Yorkshire: Ticket prices, hours, parking & visitor guide

The first thing that surprised me about Aysgarth Falls in the Yorkshire Dales was that they're not one waterfall but three separate cascades spread across nearly a mile of the River Ure. The second surprise was watching families paddling in the upper falls' pools whilst…

The Tyne Bridge in Newcastle, North-East England.

7 reasons to visit Newcastle, England

Top attractions in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne include Newcastle Castle, the Discovery Museum, Seven Stories and the Victoria Tunnel. Newcastle Castle Is Newcastle’s castle one of the most imposing or impressive in Britain? No. In fact, much of it no longer exists, having fallen into disuse over the…

The Ribblehead Viaduct in the Yorkshire Dales, Yorkshire.

Ribblehead Viaduct, Yorkshire Dales: Ticket prices, hours, parking & visitor guide (2026)

Standing beneath the arches, craning your neck upwards at 32 metres of Victorian engineering, you feel humbly small. Twenty-four limestone piers march across Batty Moss in perfect formation, carrying trains across terrain that shouldn't be crossable. What really struck me about the Ribblehead Viaduct in…

Malham Cove in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

Malham Cove, Yorkshire Dales: Ticket prices, hours, parking & visitor guide (2026)

The first time I stood at the base of Malham Cove in North Yorkshire, I couldn't quite grasp the scale until someone at the top waved. That person — a tiny speck against the limestone — was 80 metres above me. This curved amphitheatre of…

Palau’s Big Drop Off and Rock Islands: Snorkelling on the edge of the abyss

Where coral shelves fall away into deep blue nothingness and jungle-clad islands rise from a glass-clear lagoon. Palau’s Big Drop Off and Rock Islands deliver some of the most extraordinary snorkelling experiences in the world. It all happens so suddenly. On one side, the rock…

Jane Austen Centre, Bath: Ticket prices, hours, parking & visitor guide (2026)

When I first approached the Georgian townhouse at 40 Gay Street, what struck me wasn't its grandeur but its ordinariness. This Grade II listed building looks like any other on this elegant Bath street — and that's rather the point. Jane Austen herself lived just…