8 great alternative UK city breaks

As I bowled along the roads linking Herefordshire’s ‘Black and White Villages’ (named in honour of their two-tone buildings), I believed, for a second, in time travel. Here, in one of England’s least populated counties, little appeared to have changed for decades, centuries even.

You’ve already photographed the Big Five, sipped your way across Stellenbosch, straddled a camel beside the pyramids and now you’re looking for someplace new and different to feed your fascination with Africa.

From cricket at Lords to darts in Lakeside and boxing in London, here's ten of our favourite British sporting breaks. Share your own below.

As a tourist in London, you won’t be short of company. The capital has the three most popular free visitor attractions in the UK (British Museum; National Gallery; Natural History Museum). It also lays claim to the top three paid-for sites (Tower of London; St Paul's Cathedral; Westminster Abbey).

This feature has been made possible by Homestay.com, an accommodation marketplace connecting guests to local hosts in over 150 countries.

Get up close to nature with our pick of the ten best wildlife sites across the UK, and let us know your own top British wildlife experiences below.

The Great Lakes comprise the largest body of fresh water on the planet and more than 35,000 islands are found in the water system. Not all are inhabited and some aren't much more than a single rock jutting out of the lake with a lighthouse on it – but the inhabited ones provide the perfect opportunity for a weekend getaway. Here's our list of the best islands in the Great Lakes.

From India to Italy to the USA, whether it's fiction or non-fiction, we've all travelled the world at some point in time through the captivating words of our favourite novels. Some will take you into the depths of the African jungles, and others plonk you right in the middle of the wide, empty ocean. It's often these words on paper that ignite our desire to see the world for real, so if you're after some literary inspiration, here are twelve books with great journeys to read about and get lost in, and perhaps one day follow.

Not all that long ago Margate was a forlorn seaside town rejected by even the bucket-and-spade brigade. In a sad story echoed across England, the already struggling high street was devastated by the opening of an out-of-town shopping centre; pubs and restaurants were closing, and the future of this once thriving seaside resort looked grim.

The former French Concession in Puxi, Shanghai, is one of the city’s most beautiful areas. With many streets shrouded by overhanging trees it can seem like a world away from the manic bustle that characterizes rest of the place and its 22 million inhabitants.

From Hogmanay in Edinburgh to Bonfire Night in Lewes, Britain is home to a whole range of excellent festivals and events throughout the year. If you're planning a visit anytime soon we recommend you build you trip around one of these memorable parties.

In anticipation of this year's Commonwealth Games, Meera Dattani finds out how to explore Glasgow on a bike.