How to enjoy an outdoor adventure – in the Lake District and beyond

All travel is by definition quixotic — the most seasoned globetrotters can be led on wild goose chases, deceived, and/or just plain make huge mistakes all by themselves about what's around that next corner. Trekking up to the Scottish highlands to look for "Nessie," aka, the Loch Ness "monster," allegedly "sighted" — perhaps even several times — a half-century ago in the Highlands' breathtakingly gorgeous 23-mile-long freshwater lake just south of Inverness, is an epic, decades-long wild goose chase.

It’s no longer something to keep hidden.

OAG, which dubs itself an “air travel intelligence company,” has released its top-10 rankings of the most and least punctual airlines in 2016. The group analyzed 54 million flight records using full-year data from 2016 to compile the list, and for the purposes of the study defined “on-time” as “a flight that arrives or departs within 14 minutes and 59 seconds (under 15 minutes) of its scheduled arrival/departure time.”

Halfway through my international journalism program at City, University of London, COVID-19 hit. I was forced to move back in with my parents in rural Wales for three months. I then made the impulsive decision to fly to any airport that would take UK travelers. I found myself on the last flight out to Belgrade, Serbia. 

As holidaymakers were evacuated from wildfires raging across the Greek island of Rhodes and Corfu this week, some still in swimsuits, travel analysts are taking bets that the U.K. and northern European destinations will be the travel winners in the short-term. As Bloomberg notes, with thousands of tourists evacuated under the scorching European heat at the height of peak season, can the southern European tourist industry, worth $2 trillion, survive the impacts of climate change?

Most people think traveling from the US to Europe means crossing the Atlantic Ocean, usually on a six-plus-hour flight. However, there’s a whole other part of Europe smack in the middle of the ocean that melds the green, rocky hillsides of the UK with the Mediterranean vibes and culture of Portugal.

Lake Como, or Lago di Como, is what the Riviera is to France: An area of the country that is so beautiful and serene it has attracted the rich and famous for centuries. (It is no secret that George Clooney has a swanky villa along the lake.) All these wealthy celebrities have managed to create a bubble of luxury around this magnificent part of northern Italy by building immense and luxurious villas along the lake’s shore, but if you’re a non-millionaire traveler who wants in on the action, worry not, there are ways to have a good and affordable time on the shore of Italy’s most famous lake.

Beyond the areas that were devastated by the earthquake earlier this year, Turkey is very much open for business and keen that visitors keep coming. Away from the tourist hotspots of Istanbul, Antalya and the Cappadocia region, there are still vast parts of the country that remain relatively little-visited. We would like to hear your tips on a hidden Turkish gem, somewhere that is off-the-beaten-track and ideal for a holiday. If you have a relevant photo, do send it in – but it’s your words that will be judged for the competition.

2020 awards season is in full swing! And what better way to celebrate than to look at some of the most beautiful filming locations gracing our screens this year. If you're still working on your travel plans for the year, read on for our pick of the top TV and Film locations to visit in 2020. Take inspiration from The Secret Garden and embark on a road trip to visit some of the most beautiful ornamental gardens in the UK or follow in the footsteps of Mulan and explore the wide-open landscapes of New Zealand’s South Island. All of the destinations on the list are just as spectacular in real life as they are on screen.

Spain is known throughout the world for its Mediterranean diet, heavily featuring seafood, meat and fresh vegetables, all splashed with a healthy dose of olive oil. But while you may think Spanish cuisine is all about tapas, paella and sangria, there are many more dishes that are not so well known, but are just as popular among the locals. Here's our pick of the best Spanish food on offer throughout the country.

If you live in North America you’ll probably need no introduction to Outlander. This epic TV series is already massive on the western side of the Atlantic and has finally hit UK TV screens courtesy of Amazon Prime. For the uninitiated, think of Outlander as a cross between Game of Thrones and the movie Braveheart.

If you like your holidays with a dash of exercise, or perhaps even liberal lashings of adrenalin and white knuckle thrills, one of these excursions may appeal. From deep sea diving to Scottish skiing — via a quick go at zorbing in Dorchester — here's a few essential outdoor pursuits on offer across Britain.