Want to feel the beating heart of southern Africa’s most-visited and most-loved city? You can’t get more urban cool than the The Adderley, a contemporary boutique hotel located in the centre of Cape Town’s City Bowl.  The Adderley’s small reception, squeezed between shop fronts on the wide thoroughfare of Adderley Street belies the scale, comfort, style and […]

We expected it to be breathtaking, but Route 62 still turned out to be the most under-rated journey we took during our three weeks in South Africa. A tight schedule meant that we drove virtually the entire length of this celebrated back-road through South Africa’s Klein Karoo in single unforgettable day, and our final stop-off […]

First I should point out that you don’t have to have soya milk – but each of these three places does great coffee and superior snacks and has a lovely ethos –  plus happily for me and other soya fans, they can all offer you a non-dairy latte without blinking an eye. Here are my […]

Despite South Africa being full of world class wildlife and impressive Big 5 game, there’s one little animal that really wins your heart against the odds: the dassie. They look like a guinea pig, their name means little badger, and improbably, they are the closest living relative of the elephant,  but these funny, furry little creatures pop […]

Gumboot dancing started in the dank and dark gold mine tunnels of South Africa more than a century ago as a codified tap used by oppressed black miners as a form of communication. But not everyone knows the hidden meaning and history of this dance tradition.

There seems to be some South African terminology that has taken on a life of its own, these phrases seem to have spread overseas to folks who’ve never even set foot in South Africa. For me personally, ever since my holiday to South Africa, there are 6 words which stayed with me, and will always […]

The Soweto tour was the highlight of my trip to Johannesburg – interesting, educational, vibrant, eye-opening, and most of all, fun. Here I’m going to let the photos speak for themselves…

Finding the right place to stay in any sprawling metropolis can make the difference between a great time and a terrible experience, but in Johannesburg choosing the right suburb, and the perfect bolthole is essential if you want to buck the trend and fall in love with the city that everyone loves to bash. When […]

Be careful. That’s all I heard when I told people I was heading to Johannesburg. Please be careful. Don’t carry any valuables. Don’t stop at red lights. Lock your doors. Don’t go into the CBD. Don’t go out at night. Don’t go into the townships. In fact don’t go into Joburg at all, just land […]

Outside the charming town of  El Calafate on the Lago Argentina, lies one of Patagonia’s most famous sites: the Perito Moreno Glacier. 

Recently I was asked if it was possible to see Hong Kong in a single day. The answer is yes – and here’s what I managed to cram into my 24 hours in Hong Kong. I had exactly 24 hours in Hong Kong due to an unexpected stopover when British Airways messed up my return flight from […]

Never have I been to a more hammock-friendly country than Nicaragua. Here, hammocks are omnipresent. Every hotel, home, café and market flaunts their hammocks in front of me; ‘Come’, they seem to whisper, ‘get in, bring your book. Whatever it is you think you have to do, or wherever it is you think you have […]

If you don’t fancy elbowing your way around your local high street this Christmas to stock up on the usual gifts, you still have time to take in one of the best of the European Christmas markets, to combine your Christmas shopping with a festive mini-break.

I love it when a plan comes together as a well-known member of the A-Team might say. If the makers of the film Chalet Girl planned to inspire me to think about the correlation between bad films and bad holidays, then their plan really has come together perfectly…

Soho’s Secret Tea Room Update: November 2018 This review of Soho’s Secret Tea Room is one of the oldest posts on this site, but looking through the latest reviews from 2018 the experience I had at this Tea Room above the Coach & Horses is absolutely consistent with the way it is today, so I […]

Can you shop ‘til you drop in the Italian fashion capital, and still come home feeling virtuous? It turns out you can thanks to the city’s amazing outlet shopping. So here’s how to shop for amazing designer bargains in Milan on a high street budget… Think of Milan and let’s face it, high fashion is what […]

If you like Zara you might want to try out a bit of bargain hunting in other Spanish stores whenever you hit Mainland Spain or other Spanish territories. So where should you shop in Spain if you like Zara, and want some chain stores which haven’t made their mark on the UK but have similar quality, prices […]