Chieftains, saints and sinners: eight of the best unsung castles and abbeys of Ireland

I moved to Ireland when I was 15 due to my father's temporary assignment abroad with an insurance company. It was my mom, my dad, and me.

This two-hour train trip gets seriously scenic after Coleraine, when it partly follows the coast and Lough Foyle. As it runs along Downhill Beach, the sands and turbulent ocean are just outside the window, with the domed Mussenden temple perched on the cliffs above. On through farmland and past views of craggy Binevenagh – a towering cliff on the edge of the Antrim plateau – it will offer views of wintering geese, whooper swans and waders on the shores of the lough.

In the gloom caused by the loss of many rural bus services and Rishi Sunak’s shameful rollback of environmental pledges, there has been one gleam of (green) light. The bus fare cap, now set at £2.50 across England, will run until 30 November 2024. The cap doesn’t apply to buses in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, but there are still some reasonable fares, so here are 10 great sightseeing routes across the UK.

Tens of millions of travelers fly across large oceans annually. It’s routine these days. Main routes, such as between New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport and Heathrow Airport in Hounslow to the west of London, see over a dozen nonstop flights a day in each direction. The massive airports that serve them have multiple terminals connected by their own rail systems to move both people and their luggage. Thousands of workers start shifts before dawn and stay on duty until the last airplane has safely departed. More than 76,000 people work at LHR as flyers know it.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Niav Konno, a social-media strategist and content creator for small businesses, who lives in Makarska and runs the popular TikTok account @mylifeincroatia . It has been edited for length and clarity.

Two books bestrode my childhood, and made me the man I am: The Magic Bridle, a collection of British and Irish myths retold by the folklorist Forbes Stuart, which ignited my six-year-old imagination in 1974, and Mysterious Britain by Janet and Colin Bord, published two years earlier, and part of a then burgeoning bookseller phenomenon of often unreliable Earth mysteries compendiums. Nonetheless, they set this particular boy off, seeking out ancient sites whenever possible. Now everything has wilted but I still have calves of iron, and I can identify the outline of a hilltop earthwork from a moving car on a motorway as surely as a falcon seeing a field mouse 500 feet below.

Up a steep and grassy windblown hill, in the top row of what’s known as the new graveyard, the playwright Brian Friel lies buried under a dark, glossy slab etched with an image of a St. Brigid’s cross, a traditional Irish symbol woven from rushes.

This series of articles about credit cards, points and miles, and budgeting for travel is brought to you in partnership with The Points Guy.

Ahead of the new year, we’ve crossed the world to find the 30 most exciting destinations for 2024, from Norway to Nova Scotia. With landmark hotels opening, ambitious rewilding projects under way and new train routes making travel easier than ever, there’s a lot to choose from for your next trip — whether you’re looking to connect with nature in Norway, scale Himalayan peaks in Sikkim or savour the culinary stars of Lima.

Which natural wonders are most sought after by travelers? The experts at Titan Travel have noted the popularity of world-famous natural wonders on Instagram and TikTok, as well as Google search volumes and Tripadvisor, to reveal the world’s natural wonders perceived as most worthy of a visit.

While studying in northern France in 1998, I didn't expect to celebrate Thanksgiving, but I was shocked to encounter French ignorance of Halloween, my favorite spooky holiday. This explained the absence of costumes, decorations, and candy corn, which compounded my culture shock.By the time my French partner and I moved back to France in 2008, I was a parent. I wanted to keep our American traditions alive, but finding not much more than carving pumpkins and a meager Halloween display in the grocery store, I scoured the internet for recipes and DIY decorations.

The Las Vegas Sphere is Sin City's newest entertainment venue and has attracted celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and LeBron James since its September opening.