11 Reasons Why You Need to Visit Minneapolis

“Tomi, you said you came to parties here before. How?” someone in my tour group asked from the back of the recording studio. Its wood-paneled walls were strung with instruments and amplifier cables. Tomi, our tour guide, had just invited us to pick up a worn paddle to play table tennis at a ping-pong table—one that Prince, the late Minnesotan rock star, had played on many times before.

When you purchase travel from an airline or another operator, you enter into a contract for a service or goods. And if some unforeseen calamity prevents the seller from delivering the promised goods or services, the seller can claim “force majeure” as a basis for terminating the contract without incurring any liability for breach of contract.

It’s the opposite of a motorway. As I drive into the Cumeengeera Valley, scraggly summer hedgerows slap my wing mirrors. Punky tufts of grass on the boreen work like brushes, scrubbing the car’s undercarriage. The mountains around me make me feel the size a grain of rice in a giant green bowl.

Osaka is affectionately known as "Japan's kitchen". It's the birthplace of ramen noodles (which celebrate their 60th birthday in 2018) and is home to some of the country's quirkiest restaurants.

Sierra Leone has everything adventurous travellers could want – exquisite, empty beaches fringed by palms, rainforest jungles with monkeys swinging through the trees, a fascinating heritage and warm, welcoming people. But its troubled history of civil war and Ebola means that few visitors actually make it here.

The Seto Inland Sea lies between Japan's largest island Honshu and the smaller islands of Shikoku and Kyushu. Surrounding this serene body of water is the Setouchi Region, which features historic cities, castle towns and islands devoted to religion or art. These include the cities of Hiroshima, Okayama, and Himeji (all on Honshu); Matsuyama (on Shikoku); and the tiny islands of Miyajima and Naoshima. The Setouchi Region is a tranquil part of Japan, offering a more laidback and less crowded experience than Tokyo or Central Japan, but with just as many historic and cultural attractions. Here's why you should plot a course for the islands today.

Affectionately known by Brits as the Garden of England, Kent is famed for its leafy surroundings and home-grown produce. But thanks to its bounty of award-winning booze, cutting-edge art and spine-tingling scenery, this county is even more fruitful than its monicker implies. And now is the perfect time to visit – here are five reasons why.

Brazil’s booming southern states – Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul – are often strangely absent on tourist itineraries of the country. The cities of Curitiba and Porto Alegre will host 2014 FIFA World Cup matches, and the region is already a huge draw for Brazilian, Argentine and Uruguayan tourists. Yet it can be a hard sell for European and North American travellers – it lacks the glamour of Rio but often sports the same prices thanks to the booming economy. After an obligatory pilgrimage to the mighty Iguazu Falls most Western travellers simply move on. So what makes those sudamericanos stick around? Here’s ten reasons I can think of immediately…

With its rugged, edge-of-the-world vistas, the stunning Hebridean island of Islay in Scotland's Argyll region has an aura of isolation. But as our videographer Colt St. George found out, it's a breeze to get to – whichever direction you're coming from. And while Islay is rightly famed for the peaty goodness of its whisky, there are many other reasons to visit. Check out our video for some Islay inspiration:

The ingredients for a great European weekend break are simple. You’ll need a walkable city centre, a handful of excellent restaurants, some cool bars, affordable places to stay, interesting attractions and good transport.

There’s so much more to China than the Great Wall, Forbidden City and the Terracotta Army. One of our favourite places to explore is Yunnan province in the south-west of the country, which varies in landscape from tropical lowlands to Himalayan snows. With towering canyons, ethereal rock formations and cities that seem lost in time, there's plenty to capture the imagination – that's why we included it in our Rough Guide to 2019. Here's our must-see Yunnan top ten:

Iceland is on everybody's lips. Stranded in the middle of the North Atlantic, this rugged island of incredible landscapes and adventurous activities is one of the hottest travel destinations around. And with new attractions to experience and little-visited places to discover, along with a rapidly developing foodie scene in Reykjavík, 2018 is set to be an even better time to visit. Here are six reasons why.