Travel in county Garden

From a Texas-shaped lazy river that glows with holiday lights to bare trees swaddled in colorful lights at botanic gardens, unexpected destinations around the country turn into illuminated winter wonderlands this time of year. If you’re looking to see some of the most magnificent holiday lights displays between now and the New Year, a new study from SmokyMountains.com shows the top-rated lights in the country as well as the highest-rated lights attractions broken down by state.

Vibrant orange and black wings fill the skies above coastal California each winter as thousands of western monarchs take flight. But these iconic butterflies are disappearing. A new trail brings attention to their decline and invites travelers to help protect them. 

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is known for its vibrant, spirited events like Carnival — and beautiful beaches like Barra da Tijuca, Copacabana, Ipanema, and Leblon. Visitors can admire landmarks like the Christ the Redeemer Statue, visit Tijuca National Park, or check out the Botanical Garden of Rio de Janeiro — among other attractions. Here’s where to spend the night in this spirited city.

Paris is a mosaic of densely populated neighborhoods, known as arrondissements, which spiral clockwise like a snail shell from the Left Bank (south) and Right Bank (north) of the Seine River right up to the périphérique (ring road) that encircles the city.

Say “English countryside” and the Cotswolds might come to mind immediately. And with good reason.

When the long nights and cold snaps descend, it’s natural to want to do as little as possible. Joggers, box sets and takeaways, rinse and repeat until March. And though hibernating at home with your other half is a solid strategy for surviving the more miserable months of the year, there’s nothing like a bit of spontaneity to keep the spark strong over winter.

Situated in the heart of Central America, Belize is a land of breathtaking landscapes and rich biodiversity. Among its hidden treasures, the Belize Botanic Gardens stands out as a haven for nature enthusiasts, offering a captivating blend of horticultural wonders, cultural diversity, and conservation efforts.

Drab winter nights prompt dreamy thoughts of warm balmy evenings in a setting more tropical than December in the UK. Winter sun destinations like the Dutch Caribbean Island of Aruba are ready, willing and able to make those desires come true and even offer a new twist.

The award winning airline partners with local farms and Evergreens Organics to curate EXPO 2023 Doha a la carte menu special.

Why is Berlin the undisputed capital of Christmas markets? Could it be because it has more than 80 different holiday markets that attract nearly one million visitors to Berlin every year. From new additions, to timeless favorites, here are some great Christmas markets in Berlin that you won’t want to miss this season.

Donghu Ecological Park, located in capital city Wuhan of central China’s Hubei Province, has received 21.39 million tourists, ranking the country’s 6th 5A level scenic attractions during the October holiday season, with income of 5.7 billion yuan RMB (about 800 million US dollars), according to the park management committee. Known as the “City of wetlands”, Wuhan is home to 165 rivers, 166 lakes and about 162,000 hectares of wetlands, accounting for 18.9% of the city’s total land coverage. Donghu (“East Lake”) showcased the city’s efforts in ecological civilization construction over the past decades.

What’s your holiday vibe: Gilded Age splendor, Hallmark-movie gazebos or Bavarian-style Christmas villages? Americans have always loved decking the halls. Case in point, we’ve sought out ten of the best places in the USA to visit during this magical season, no matter what your Yuletide style is.

For a place long associated with heavy industry, Aberdeen is certainly easy on the eye. Scotland’s third-largest city enjoys a spectacular location, fringed by the North Sea and framed to the south and north by the rivers Dee and Don. Elegant granite architecture is warmed by pockets of flora. And, however much oil and gas continue to bring in business, the city has invested heavily in its museums and parks, with new and improved spaces to explore.

Dubai’s culinary scene has grown at breakneck speed over the past few years, with those living in the city barely able to keep up. Proving its chops on a global scale has taken a little longer, but the emirate is finally starting to have its moment in the spotlight, with the Michelin Guide launching in the city in 2022 and two Dubai venues appearing on 2023’s list of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

For all its bona fides—cleanest city, best airport, street food mecca—Singapore remains infamous for its prim veneer. Even the crowds at soccer games are polite. But projects like the Green Plan, a bold 10-year sustainable development program, show that change is underway. The latest ventures of young Singaporeans—dreamy restaurants, thoughtful tours, intimate home-dining experiences—reveal surprising sides of the city. Forward-looking hotels and the just-opened Thomson-East Coast MRT line, which snakes from the Orchard shopping belt through the culinary hub of Maxwell to the supertrees of Gardens by the Bay, invite visitors old and new. Less inhibited, more soulful: That's the Singapore of tomorrow.

With 60 miles of sun-soaked coastline and an abundance of holiday cheer, Myrtle Beach, S.C., offers an array of seasonal activities and memory-making experiences for visitors of all ages.

The most famous of New York City’s five boroughs is Manhattan. The hippest is Brooklyn. There’s the forgotten one (Staten Island) and the one that tourists only visit to go to a Yankees game (the Bronx). Then there’s the most interesting one: Queens, a borough of two-million-plus people and among the most ethnically diverse swathes of land in North America.

British Colonial, an iconic Nassau hotel steeped in more than 100 years of local history, will reopen this winter, showcasing a highly anticipated redesign inclusive of its guest rooms, public spaces, amenities, and onsite programs. The hotel’s 288 newly redesigned rooms, including 25 signature suites, occupy seven floors of the building and feature luxurious marble bathrooms, 50” flat-screen televisions, and desks designed for corporate and business travellers looking to work remotely with ease. Highlights include the spacious Prime Minister Suite and One-Bedroom Suites with adjoining parlours. Additional options include City View, Garden View, Oceanview and Premium Oceanview rooms - though with 21 different layouts due to the building’s unique design, there are very few rooms alike. Detailed wallpaper designs rotate between tropical palms, opaque garden-scapes and historical renderings. Dark wood cabinetry and bold, geometric tiling that offer a nod to the roaring twenties are softly juxtaposed by tropical prints and deep garden green, ocean blue and coral hues emblematic of The Bahamas’ nature.

Riga’s Kronvalda Park had taken on a Christmas-card look with icicles hanging from trees and the canal frozen solid. It was minus 14C so I’d lost the feeling in my hands but I ran on, crunching through the snow, avoiding black-ice patches and taking corners slowly.

On a sunny October afternoon in the London neighborhood of Bermondsey, a cool breeze surprised me with the winy smell of apples. It brought on a sudden sharp craving for a nice chunk of Cheddar, the fruit and the cheese together being a favorite after-school snack when I was growing up in Connecticut. This was an appropriate prompt, too, since I was on my way to a very privileged lesson in British farmhouse cheeses at the beginning of an eight-day, cheese-themed trip to London and Somerset run by the specialty tour company Cheese Journeys.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year—if you’re into spooky season and all things Halloween, that is.