Elton John travel tips

You’ll know you’ve arrived at L’Escargot once you spot the vintage-style, neon lights spelling out its name, and notice the plaster bust of a person riding a giant snail above the door (it turns out this is the famous restaurant’s founder, Charles Gaudin, sat astride a giant gastropod). With its creaking stairs, top-floor, plant-filled bar and colourful, art-lined walls, the restaurant, in the heart of London’s Soho, has been at the epicentre of the capital city’s dining scene for nearly 100 years.

Love to travel to the most posh places? A new analysis from travel experts at the blog OptimosTravel ranks Aspen—a mountain town in Colorado—the most expensive U.S. vacation destination.

The Peninsula Hong Kong may have earned the moniker the ‘Grande Dame of the Far East, but the years have been kind to this distinguished lady. With a fleet of Rolls-Royce Phantoms, its own helipad, and one of the most opulent penthouse suites in existence, you would be hard-pushed to find a swankier stay.

Most cities are known for something. In Los Angeles, it’s movies. In Paris, it’s fashion. And in Zurich, Switzerland’s gleaming metro set along a lake dotted with white swans and shiny bikes, it’s money. To be more specific, it’s “serious money,” as a Swiss colleague insisted during our afternoon tea. In Zurich, the serious money of the world is deployed, managed, and grown for generations to come. Accordingly, the people that hold the serious money of the world need somewhere to stay when a trip to Zurich is called for. As another Swiss businessman told me: “There’s only one place you stay when you come to visit your money in Switzerland. It’s the Baur au Lac.”

Caffe Florian claims to be the oldest café in Italy, and the second-oldest in Europe. It's also the stuff of legend. The Venetian café was where some of history's most revered writers — including Goethe, Lord Byron, and Charles Dickens — hung out. And in more recent years, modern celebrities — from Elton John to Clint Eastwood — were spotted.

It’s not clear when London museums first reinvented themselves with the opening of the queue-forming ‘blockbuster’ exhibitions that we are so familiar with these days. Was it back in 2013, when the V&A opened the David Bowie is exhibition? (It was so popular that the exhibit eventually visited five international cities and has now been seen by over two million visitors worldwide, making it on track to become the V&A’s most visited exhibition in its history.) Or could the seed for this phenomenon have been sewn way back in 1972, when the British Museum announced its Treasures of Tutankhamun exhibition, which saw lines snaking around the block – the first for a London museum at the time?

New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz, draws millions of visitors year-round to experience the city's rich and thriving live music culture. While some of the best talent can be heard in the clubs, bars and streets, one of the biggest draws for live music enthusiasts is the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival at the Fair Grounds Race Course.

The holiday season is a magical time to visit New York City. While Rockefeller Center is a must-see, thanks to its famous Christmas tree and ice skating rink, Manhattan has many other spots for taking in holiday lights and festivities.

Every year, retired cruise ships are sold to ship-breaking yards in Turkey and India where thousands of workers painstakingly dismantle the massive vessels and sell their parts for scrap. 

From ancient temples to hyper-modern skyscrapers, these are just a few of the world's most incredible architectural wonders. Whether you're looking to wander lost ruins or explore lavish palaces, you'll find inspiration here.

The first thing you might think of doing in Switzerland is skiing, but a summer holiday there can be just as much fun — after all it is high among the most beautiful countries in the world voted by our readers. Here are ten things to do in Switzerland during the summer months in the land of peaks, lakes and chocolate — and the best things to do in Switzerland aren't only hiking and outdoor activities. For more on what — and what not— to do in Switzerland read up on Switzerland etiquette. You might also want to read more widely around the best time to visit Switzerland and read up on festivals in Switzerland.