Go less frequently, stay longer: how I learned to embrace slow travel

The antithesis of whistle-stop world tours, single-destination holidays offer sustenance and sustainability * Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email I came late to a love of travel. A combination of early marriage, child rearing and a focus on my own front yard were to blame for the delay. But I recovered from all three and started to focus on the horizon instead. Being well into my 50s, I knew my chances of ticking off all the usual tourist destinations were slim. And, for me, there was only one other horizon I absolutely had to see for myself. It belonged to a country with a cuisine, culture and history I knew better than that of my own: one whose language I had studied for nine years but had never spoken on its soil. In 2015 my long-distance love affair with France was finally consummated. Liberated at last from – and with the encouragement of – my children, who clearly wanted me out of the country, I joined a house- and animal-minding website. I then went about trying to sell my animal husbandry skills – at the time non-existent – to potential hosts. Continue reading...

Edition’s Slow Burn Growth Heats Up

Today’s edition of Skift’s daily podcast looks at the Edition hotel brand’s growth, Japan’s relaunched travel discount program, and G Adventures’ technology investment. -Jason Clampet

Southern Europe’s Short-Term Rentals Boosted by Economic Crisis in North

The region is already seeing soaring demand for long-term winter stays because of rising energy costs in the north. The impact on traditional vacation pricing could be huge. -Matthew Parsons

Flynn Properties’ $1.1 Billion Hotel Play Signals Ambition in Franchising

A recent acquisition of 89 hotels will almost certainly go down as the largest U.S. hotel transaction in the second half of the year. Notably, the dealmaker Flynn Properties remains in a shopping mood. -Sean O'Neill

North York Moors national park at 70 – from steam trains to spas, there’s so much to love

To mark the park’s birthday, we take a look at its best attractions, beyond its fabulously wild moors and valleys Aside from its vast expanse of heather, undulating hills and ancient woodlands, there’s so much to love about the North York Moors national park, which celebrates its 70th anniversary this month. It’s where sheep really do roam on village greens, and you can pass through serene valleys on a heritage train. The skies are so clear here that the region provides some of the best stargazing in the country. From ancient archaeological sites and abbeys to some of England’s finest views, here are its top attractions. Continue reading...

Let it glow: 10 best Christmas light displays in Britain

Add sparkle and cheer to dark nights at these festive illuminations and light trails A pair of giant sparkling reindeer welcomes visitors to Dunham Massey’s illuminated trail, with both the grounds and the exterior of the house blazing with vivid, festive colours. Highlights include the Rose Garden, with 150 illuminated roses that fade and brighten in time to music, and the fire lanterns, which give an atmospheric, ethereal feel to the wooded landscape. The trail takes around 90 minutes, with proceeds going to conservation work on the estate. In the nearby village of Ripton, the Black Swan has 14 bedrooms and a children’s play area (doubles from £125 B&B, theblackswan.co.uk). 18 November to 2 January, nationaltrust.org.uk Continue reading...

Happy holly days: 10 of the best Christmas outings across the UK

Light trails, sparkly castles, pantos, vintage cinema and even a solar-powered ice rink … We pick dozens of events to get you into the spirit of Christmas We all need a bit of cheer at this time of year, when nights are long and days are often dark – maybe now more than ever. Luckily, the UK’s stately homes, galleries, gardens, theatres, churches and steam trains have been planning ahead and are ready with art and music, fire and ice, and mince pies with Santa. Even the most resolute Scrooge should find something to enjoy. Continue reading...

Avianca and Viva Launch Appeal Against Colombia’s Merger Denial

The airlines will be hoping that reducing operations in Bogota and working with state-owned Satena to boost links to Colombia’s most remote regions will appease the country's civil aviation regulator. -Matthew Parsons

10 of the best restaurants in Nottingham

Inspired by Master Chef winners, a sprinkling of Michelin gongs, plus supper clubs and pop-ups evolving into new restaurants, the city’s independent food scene has never felt more energised This Japanese hideaway down an alley in Nottingham city centre made it into the Michelin Guide this October and was described by Jay Rayner as his “restaurant of the year” in the same month, so it’s fair to say chefs and co-owners Simon Carlin and Tom Clay are creating something special. As well as snacks, small plates and kushiyaki (skewers) they offer dishes like slow and sticky soy-braised pork shoulder, sauteed wild mushrooms in a nutty butter sauce (topped with a confit egg yolk) and a selection of charcoal-grilled, smoky meat and veg skewers. Their new bar Yokocho, a stone’s throw away down Hurts Yard, does expert cocktails with a Japanese twist. Lunch deal £14, evening small plates and skewers from £4.50, 1A Cannon Court, kushi-ya.co.uk Continue reading...

Send us a tip on a literary bar – you could win a holiday voucher

Tell us about your favourite drinking spot in the UK or Europe where you enjoy a drop with the ghosts of writers past How many times have you had to rely on the company of a book while waiting for a friend who has a loose concept of timekeeping? Choose your bar well, however, and you could be kept company by the spirit of the writers themselves. Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in London’s Fleet Street was a favourite of Dr Samuel Johnson, Dickens and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Brendan Behan was a fixture in McDaids in Dublin. Zola, Proust and de Maupassant chewed the fat in Paris’s Café de la Paix. And there are no fewer than six bars in Madrid regularly frequented by Ernest Hemingway, including Museo Chicote. Jot down a few lines and tell us about your favourite literary hangout in the UK and Europe. If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words that will be judged for the competition. Continue reading...

Virgin Atlantic withdraws support for Heathrow third runway

Airline chief Shai Weiss attacks airport’s proposal to increase landing charges by 120% Virgin Atlantic has withdrawn its support for Heathrow’s third runway plans amid an ongoing row over the cost of flying from Britain’s biggest airport. The carrier had been one of the most prominent airline backers of expansion before the pandemic. But on Monday its chief executive, Shai Weiss, hit out at Heathrow’s proposal to increase landing charges by 120% and called on the aviation regulator, the CAA, to reform a “broken” system and “pay closer attention to the abuse of power by a de facto monopolistic airport”. Continue reading...

First-Ever Israel-Qatar Direct Flights Fly World Cup Fans

Although the deal enabling Israelis to fly non-stop to Qatar is a boon for soccer fans, it's only temporary and far from a definite sign that relations between the two countries will improve. -Rashaad Jorden

Running the Mont Blanc ultra, the world’s most famous trail race

With its dizzying ridges and stunning views, Mont Blanc is home to some of the world’s best trail running I’ve been running uphill for over an hour, scaling this narrow mountain trail, when we pass through some trees. This must be the top, I’m thinking, hopefully, as we crest the pass. But alas, rising up on the other side are more hulking mountains and snaking up through the middle of them, like a line of ants, are the tiny dots of the runners ahead of us. “Putain,” swears the French runner behind me. I know exactly how he feels. The 170km Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc is the most famous trail race in the world. In the fast-growing sport of Mountain Ultra Trail (MUT) running, it’s the big one, the sport’s Super Bowl. For a week at the end of August each year, the town of Chamonix in the French Alps is completely taken over by ultra runners and their supporters. Any unsuspecting visitors arriving in the area would be left baffled by this strange world of short shorts and little backpacks and super-fit people that they’d wandered into. Continue reading...

Salt-flats and autumn sun: a car-free break on Suffolk’s Shotley peninsula

Our special feature on trips with no driving starts with a train, bus and walking of the salty wilderness of southern Suffolk Five more car-free UK trips The bus runs right beside the Orwell estuary. There are swans drifting among saltmarshes red with autumn samphire, and oystercatchers digging in the pebbles with their long orange bills. It feels an unlikely place to reach easily by public transport, but I stepped off the train 10 minutes ago, after a rail journey to Ipswich through Dedham Vale, an idyllic corner of rural Suffolk often painted by Constable. Behind me, the cranes of Felixstowe fade into tawny mist and a seasidey smell rises with the sun from seaweed-swathed beaches. A raised path runs past miles of reeds and meadows. I’ve been exploring East Anglia for decades and the Shotley peninsula, where two mighty estuaries converge at the southern end of Suffolk, may be my favourite corner. Continue reading...

Corp Travel Group GlobalStar Fills Critical Gaps In Europe

The London-based consortium is in recruiting mode as rival travel agencies continue to buy up their own local experts. -Matthew Parsons

Delta Is Upping the Airport Experience

Today’s edition of Skift’s daily podcast looks at Delta’s airport investments, flying greener, and Airbnb’s new search tools. -Jason Clampet

Our honeymoon in Mallorca – with a screaming toddler, dodgy stomachs and no loo roll

It wasn’t the romantic getaway this couple had planned but could Mallorca still work its magic on them? “It’s your turn … she’s awake” Heavy, loaded, silence. Continue reading...

Japan Tourism Surges After Dropping Covid Curbs

Pent-up demand and a weaker yen will add up to a busy season of tourism. -Jason Clampet

Meet the Victoria CEO Leading One of the World’s Largest Ocean Observatories

Kate Moran, president and CEO of Ocean Networks Canada, helps provide comprehensive data about the ocean to anyone online. She's part of a thriving natural resources sector in Victoria, British Columbia that allows us to better understand the ocean and harness its power. -Destination Canada

Guest-Facing Hotel Tech Could Be $6 Billion Industry: New Skift Research

Guest-facing tech has gained popularity over the last few years, especially due to its contactless capabilities. While there is a lot of investment in this landscape and growing interest from hoteliers and guests, it is still largely in its infancy with a lot of potential to grow. -Saniya Zanpure

Spain’s eDreams Odiego Says Bargain Hunters Are Behind Bookings Surge

With rising airline ticket prices, the online travel agency is attributing some of its success to its subscription product that gives travelers access to cheaper deals. -Matthew Parsons

U.S. Fines 6 Airlines for Ticket Refund Failures

Look at it this way: Frontier has finally found one way to stand out from its domestic peers. -Jason Clampet

Waterfall weekender: my wild swimming adventure in the Brecon Beacons

A walk amid cinematic landscapes to five south Wales waterfalls – and a cosy pub – proves the perfect substitute for a holiday abroad It had been a tough month for several reasons and I needed a break. I initially thought a holiday abroad would be the only antidote. But as it turned out, a wild-swimming weekend in the Brecon Beacons in south Wales was the only medicine I needed. My excitement at the coming trip quickly morphed into panic as we looked at the weather forecast: lots of grey cloud and big rain drops. Continue reading...

Hilton Surveys Find Guests Define Wellness More Broadly After Pandemic

Wellness talk seems to spread at about the same pace as people's waistlines. But if you look beneath the averages, you'll really find a consumer segment that shops for trips that enhance their well-being. -Sean O'Neill

Azul Wants to Deepen JetBlue Ties

Today’s edition of Skift’s daily podcast looks at Azul's relationship with JetBlue, New Orleans' new tourism strategy, and a music-themed boutique hotel. -Jason Clampet

The Indie Boutique Hotel Leveraging Scrappy Rock N Roll Vibes to Stand Out

The Jams Music Hotel in Munich spotlights how boutique hotels created by individuals and small companies can thrive in the shadow of behemoth corporations. It helps to have lots of character and a feisty soul. -Sean O'Neill

HomeToGo Made Progress in Booking Strategy That Other Metas Abandoned

A public company, HomeToGo is still very small. However, in metasearch, albeit for short-term rentals, it is going places where larger rivals were unsuccessful. -Dennis Schaal

A Cruise Ship Covid Outbreak Returns in Australia

When nearly a quarter of passengers – and an unknown number of crew – get hit with Covid, cruising is definitely not back to normal. -Jason Clampet

10 of the best UK seaside hotels, lodges and beach houses

Whether it’s from a cliff, harbour or beach, sit back and soak up the coastal panorama at these stylish getaways The wooden deck of this white, timber-clad beach house on two floors leads straight down to Camber Sands, home to rolling dunes and over four miles of golden beach. The open-plan, centrally heated Hamptons-chic space sleeps up to eight people in four sleeping areas. Warm up with the wood burner, firepit and sheepskin rugs, and relax amid salvaged beach curios or kick back with the beach house guitar or bongo drums. Two-night minimum stay, off-peak, from £550 per night. Seven-night minimum stay during summer holidays; barefootcamber.co.uk Continue reading...

Latin America’s Aviation Transformation and Other Top Stories This Week

In Skift's top stories this week, Latin America's airline industry undergoes enormous change since the pandemic, Marriott debuts an extended-stay brand in the U.S. and Canada, and the United Arab Emirates lifts all Covid-related travel restrictions. -Rashaad Jorden

20 best cosy UK cottages for a winter break

From the Highlands to Cornwall, we select stylish boltholes on hills, coasts and in deep, soothing countryside. Come on, light that fire … Good for: seabirds and snowdrops This 17th-century brick-and-flint two-bedroom cottage in Great Walsingham looks like a picture postcard. And its cosiness rating is off the scale: there’s a large inglenook fireplace, a wood-burner, exposed beams, a twisting staircase and doors you need to duck to get under. You’ll find inspiration on what to do in the bathroom, which is papered with local maps. For instance, it’s a short amble to Little Walsingham, home to the gastro Black Lion hotel and a ruined abbey known for its dazzling snowdrop displays. And it’s only five miles to Holkham’s endless beach, for the most refreshing winter walks. Sleeps four, from £435 for three nights or £531 a week, norfolkhideaways.co.uk Continue reading...

From Father Ted to Bond in Basilicata: the best film and TV-inspired holidays chosen by readers

A galaxy far, far away, crossing The Bridge, an act of Atonement … our tipsters share their best screen-based getaways. Scroll down to find the winner The sight of James Bond cruising up a precipitous road towards the rock-hewn city of Matera, southern Italy, at the beginning of No Time to Die, proved irresistible. While Bond drove an Aston Martin, we arrived on the bus with an under-the-weather child. Like Bond, we checked into a cave hotel, the stylish Corte San Pietro, and meandered through the city’s labyrinth of staircases and cave dwellings. Then, just as disaster struck Bond in the cathedral square, we had to abandon sightseeing to look after our poorly four-year-old. At least we got to sample the gelato (excellent medicine for sore throats) at the famed I Vizi degli Angeli – something poor 007 had no time for. Morag Continue reading...

Building a Sustainable Airline Fuel Infrastructure

Today’s edition of Skift’s daily podcast looks at infrastructure for sustainable fuel, Booking.com's short-term rentals, and Norwegian Cruise Line's recovery. -Jason Clampet

Where tourists seldom tread, part 3: five towns with hidden histories

This trail through our industrial, ghostly past includes a haunted motorway and old dye works repurposed as cute cottages Part one | Part two Heritage tourism should be about crisis and decay as well as conservation. As Michael Symmons Roberts and Paul Farley write in Edgelands, their psycho-geographical field guide, “England … offers the world’s most mature post-industrial terrain.” We were first to turn the engines on, and the lights out. It’s a pity we don’t make more out of our working-class ghost past. In many countries, regions are packaged to curious visitors through trails typically themed around wine or a foodstuff or a path taken by invading forces or someone notable. Where is the UK’s textile trail, its cider-making highway, its salt road and its coal circuit? The towns below, scintillating on their own terms, also serve as access points to the hidden histories of contemporary Britain. Continue reading...

Share a tip on an affordable place to ski in Europe for the chance to win a £200 holiday voucher

Tell us about your favourite small, friendly and more affordable ski resort. The best tip wins £200 towards a Sawday’s stay Ever had a hankering to go skiing only to hit the buffers when you see the price of a week for a family in Verbier, Chamonix or St Anton? Admittedly, it’s all relative, but a slide on the slopes needn’t require a bank loan. There are affordable hacks and cheaper destinations, such as Bulgaria and the Spanish Pyrenees – and the beauty is that these smaller, under-the-radar villages and resorts are less crowded and more in tune with the mountain way of life. So, this week, we’d like to hear about your favourite affordable places to ski in Europe. If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words that will be judged for the competition. Continue reading...

Ryanair half-year profits soar to record £1.2bn amid strong flight demand

Airline reports greater traffic at higher fares than the same period in 2019, before Covid lockdowns Ryanair has reported a surge in profits to a record €1.4bn (£1.2bn) for the first half of its financial year, as the airline said it was seeing no letup in the demand for air travel going into winter after record summer passenger numbers. The airline reported greater traffic at higher fares than the same period in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic, the first time that has been achieved since the first Covid-19 lockdowns. Continue reading...

Hotel Operators Face Thorny Choices for 2023 Budgeting

A top hotel asset manager sees too many hoteliers trying to restaff to 2019 levels and too many failing to upsell guests effectively. Heed her words. -Sean O'Neill

China Vows to Stick to Zero-Covid Policy

Through its strict Covid containment approach, China says it is putting people and lives first. Surely, there are many who would argue the opposite. -Peden Doma Bhutia

From dog-sledding to saunas: nine winter adventures in the UK

Embrace your inner Scandi, wrap up and make the most of the winter months Tara and I are happily glowing when our sauna host, Sarah, enters with a bucket of birch water and a tea towel. Tara is sitting on the top level of the sauna, squinting out of a small window at the bright Dorset coast and the seaweed-slippery sea we’ve just come from, while I am down a rung, where the heat is milder. Sarah is beaded with sweat, her eyes bright blue above a deep smile. She emanates the kind of wellness that can make those around her feel a bit blessed, which is ideal as what I am doing here is a kind of worship: of water, friendship, the sea and the seasons. Swimming can be a non-liturgical service, a naked exchange between you and the planet where words fall away and you drop back into the world as if you belong. Continue reading...

Marriott’s Rosy Forecast for 2023

Today’s edition of Skift’s daily podcast looks at Marriott’s optimism, Royal Caribbean’s bounce, and a tourism innovator in Zimbabwe. -Jason Clampet

Airbnb Reportedly Will Face New Data Regulations Under European Union Plan

Concern over the spread of short-term rentals in cities with housing crises has spurred a patchwork of local regulation. Can the European Union harmonize the rules in a way that also helps support destinations eager to attract the likes of Airbnb? -Sean O'Neill

Vistara CEO on Fighting India’s Low-Cost Carriers and Nagging Merger Questions

Merger or no merger, the Vistara team has its work cut out for it. The full-service airline would rather concentrate on thriving and growing in a market that’s dominated by low-cost carriers. -Peden Doma Bhutia

Rail route of the month: the slow train to Skagen, Denmark, where the North Sea meets the Baltic

Our slow-travel expert passes forests, dunes and sea to reach the country’s northernmost railway station By the time you reach Aarhus on the train from the south, there is a sense of having penetrated deep into Jylland, the long Danish peninsula whose name is often rendered as “Jutland” on English and German maps. At Fredericia, a one-time garrison town on the east coast, the overhead wires give out. North of here it is diesel traction only on a railway that links the heads of several long sea inlets on the ride up to Aarhus. The railway station at Aarhus, four-and-a-half hours from Hamburg on the occasional direct train, is a handsome terminus and, for many travellers, the northern extent of their Jutland journey. But some trains reverse in Aarhus, looping around the west side of the city, and then meander north. There’s a lot of Jutland still to come, and the 160-mile journey from Aarhus up to Denmark’s northernmost railway outpost at Skagen is a scenic delight. It offers not grandeur, but a pleasing mix of forest and heathland, agricultural and coastal landscapes. This is a journey to the very end of Denmark. Skagen itself is an extraordinary community, perched on a fragment of land poking into the sea where the waters of the Skagerrak and Kattegat straits mingle. Continue reading...

The trail blazer: the rewards of setting up a walking group

Wanting to stride out into the countryside with like-minded people, our writer established Black Girls Hike in 2019 and has never looked back I became a walking group leader by chance. In 2019, I was on a train going through the Peak District, and I watched all these hikers getting on and off. I wanted to do something new for my wellbeing, so I set up a Black Girls Hike Instagram page a few days later. I didn’t want to go by myself and I wanted to feel safe and supported so I set up a group for black women. It absolutely took off – for our first walk we had 14 people. A group is good for making connections. Manchester’s quite a transient city. People move here for work, or stay on after uni, and their friends are elsewhere. It’s a good way to make new friends. Everyone’s on the same page – you’re a group of strangers looking to meet people and do something you all enjoy. If it were a speed dating event, you’d have ticked loads of boxes already. Continue reading...

Cadaqués, secretive star of Spain’s Costa Brava

This hidden cove has drawn artists for generations but the ex-hippy seaside town has maintained its independent character Cadaqués is a bit of a tease. It’s the most inaccessible town on Catalonia’s Costa Brava but also its most seductively beautiful. Put the two together and you can see how it’s pulled off the trick of maintaining an air of a happening place where nothing happens, a place way off the beaten track that is a magnet for celebrities. However, the pretty Mediterranean location belies a tough history. The character of the Cadaquesencs, as the locals are known, has been forged by piracy, contraband, isolation, bad luck and the Tramuntana, the maddening north wind. Continue reading...

Witch hunt: a Halloween trail through Scotland’s haunty past

Combining hard-hitting history and hands-on adventures, a new trail reveals stories of sorcery and the healing powers of nature The tourists crowding into Edinburgh Castle can be forgiven for overlooking a small fountain and plaque near the entrance; it is easily missed. But we have come here especially to see the Witches’ Well. This modest monument marks the spot where more than 300 women were murdered – strangled and burned at the stake – in the 16th century. More “witches” were killed here than anywhere else in Scotland. We are on a Real Women of Edinburgh walking tour with Invisible Cities, which employs people who have experienced homelessness. Our gregarious guide, Sonny, tells us tales of witch-hunts, but also of women such as Maggie Dickson, who miraculously survived a public execution in the early 1700s, and Agnes Maclehose, for whom a besotted Robert Burns wrote Ae Fond Kiss. Continue reading...