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Traveller's Guide: Montenegro

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 11:00:01 GMT

The sun sets over the Bay of Kotor, turning the placid water from blue to gold and highlighting the cream stone of the villages against the granite grey of the high, surrounding cliffs. It is one of the natural splendours that have made tiny Montenegro (population 620,000) one of the most attractive Adriatic destinations. Thanks to improved flight links to Dubrovnik (whose airport is conveniently close to the north of Montenegro) and to the country itself, it is also easier than ever to reach.

Where's hot: The Mediterranean islands

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 11:00:01 GMT

The sun might have made a welcome appearance across Britain recently, but with it comes the promise of a dip in temperatures and more rain.

Grotty no more: How Lanzarote upgraded its appeal

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 11:00:01 GMT

Of the many myths and legends of the Canary Islands, the most often rehearsed is the story of the existence or otherwise of a mysterious eighth island, called San Borondón. Over the centuries there have been various reported sightings to the west of the archipelago, but whenever sailors tried to approach, a mist descended and the island either moved away or disappeared, according to which account you read.

Travel Challenge: Summer break in Ireland

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 11:00:01 GMT

Each week we invite three companies to offer us their best deal for a specific holiday. Today: a summer trip to the Emerald Isle. Prices are per person, based on two people travelling together. Each includes a week's accommodation and transport from the UK on Monday 11 June.

Summer 2012: French favourites

Sat, 26 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Brittany's south coast is the setting for Les Jardins d'Arvor, a new complex of 134 family friendly apartments at Bénodet that is being sold through Brittany Ferries (0871 244 1444; brittanyferries.com/holidays).

For men only: A pilgrimage to Mount Athos in Greece

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

All the Greeks I met on my way to Mount Athos appeared preoccupied by the euro crisis. But as we approached the Holy Mountain, their financial worries seemed to fade. Here in this corner of their country is a place where money has no meaning, where the angry protests in Athens feel like foreign news. Mount Athos is a state within a state, far removed from the 21st century. And in the midst of economic chaos, it's a place where Greeks (and even Britons) can find respite from the relentless pressures of the rat race.

On the road in Ibiza: Drawn to the good life as inspiration kicks in

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Today a few fellow travellers and I are taking part in an art class in the cute garden studio of Can Amonita, a quiet Ibicencan villa in the north of the island overlooking the San Juan valley. It is stunningly hot and I am glad to be inside, standing at a giant easel with a smooth piece of charcoal in hand, pretending I'll be able to draw the heavily pregnant naked woman in front of me.

The Hedonist: Going wild in Florence

Fri, 25 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

I wake up with a jump to a knock at the door. The Boyfriend doesn't stir and since I'm somewhat disoriented, due to waking up face down in a ridiculously fluffy pillow, it takes the sight of terracotta rooftops and sunshine streaming through the windows to remind me that we are in Florence. Firenze: city of fashion, art, food and, as my pounding head is reminding me, rather potent cocktails.

Le Touquet: I do like to be beside le seaside

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Driving along the coast of northern France, not far from Calais, everything is very grey... and then I arrive in Le Touquet. Celebrating its centenary of gaining "commune" (official town) status in 1912, this colourful seaside town is a strange mélange of French and English and a place not quite like any other.

A Viennese whirl through the life of Klimt

Sat, 19 May 2012 23:00:16 GMT

Gustav Klimt prompts are everywhere in Vienna, in this the 150th anniversary of his birth. Naked Klimt women gaze out from hoardings, shops sell jewellery and clothes based on his gold-leaf extravaganzas and nine museums are displaying his canvases in the city that he made home. So I was sorry to find no plaque marking 21 Josefstadterstrasse, where Klimt had his studio in the garden.

B&B And Beyond: Simon Says, Ghent

Sat, 19 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Just as picturesque as Bruges, but with only a fraction of the tourist traffic, Ghent is Belgium's hidden gem. With its canals and cobbled alleyways, it's perfect for a romantic getaway, and its thriving university gives the city a youthful buzz. And last week, a four-month cultural celebration of Ghent was unveiled; The "art experience" Track highlights the city's landmarks and open spaces via specially commissioned artworks (track.be; until 16 September).

Sun and solitude on a hike through the Alps

Sat, 19 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

High summer. Day three of a journey through rural France. It's peak holiday season. Here are three things you might not expect to find in the country at this time. First, wild flowers in profusion, banks of them surrounding me wherever I go: deep blue delphiniums, delicate pale-blue harebells, pink-tinged scabious, genipi, buttercups, daisies and thick, velvety green grass. Not the sort of blooms you will encounter in late summer on the scorched-earth shores of the Mediterranean.

Why Greece really wishes you were there

Sat, 19 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

'Wish you were here" isn't a slogan that can be spotted amid the racks of postcards spilling into the streets in Athens' tourist traps, but the sentiment is visible everywhere. It's in the eyes of every bored-looking hotel receptionist and overstocked ice-cream vendor.

A journey through the heart of Italy

Fri, 18 May 2012 11:00:01 GMT

Since childhood, Italy has been special to me. It was the first foreign country I visited as a teenager and so it was officially the most exotic place in the world. Although that wasn't hard – frankly, anywhere outside Strathclyde could have laid claim to that title in 1982. I also share my surname with the Italian city of Ancona. (My Italian heritage is all rather tenuous, madly fluctuating, according to whom I'm talking. Needless to say, if I was with Al Pacino, I'd be first generation.) It sounds exotic, but actually Ancona is a port on the east coast of Italy in Le Marche and a city with a bad football team; it's a bit like being named Ronni Grimsby. Obviously, I was very excited about flying into Ancona airport, but then quickly very disappointed at the lack of reaction to my surname at Ancona passport control.

The Big Six: Garden retreats

Fri, 18 May 2012 11:00:01 GMT

Parador de Granada, Spain

Taste of travel: Bouillabaisse, Marseille

Fri, 18 May 2012 11:00:01 GMT

This one-pot fish dish is as inherently French as cognac, croissants and champagne. It is thought to have originated from Marseillais fishermen who used the bony fish they were unable to sell, to cook their evening meal.

Portugal: One man on a bicycle in a land of beauty

Sat, 12 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

When the rain stopped and hazy sunshine emerged, I climbed off the bike and gazed around. The landscape was not dramatic, but it was utterly entrancing: an undulating expanse of green meadows dotted with cork oaks, holm oaks and olive trees, seemingly devoid of fences or walls. From this country road only the faint, tingling bells of unseen grazing animals and the call of birds could be heard. It was April and wild flowers were out in force, the meadows carpeted in yellow, white and purple, the waysides thronged with vivid poppies, rock roses, bugloss and alkanet.

Cannes: Feel the glamour on the Mediterranean's glitziest seaside strip

Sat, 12 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Rarely a week goes by when Cannes isn't hosting a convention. However, the annual gathering of the movie world (www.festival-cannes.fr), from this coming Wednesday until 27 May, is its obsession, a subject raised in every other conversation.

War and peace: Romance on the rails of a Slavic odyssey

Sat, 12 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

He chatted hard, the taxi man, as he drove us from the station to our Belgrade hotel. "I have never left Serbia. I learn English from magazines – I practise, practise." I watched the back of his head while he practised now, a swirl of grey hair bouncing with every gesture as he careered from one broken story to the next. Finally he paused to look at us in the mirror. "You married? I been married 27 years; I very old – first was God, then I born."

Inside travel: How to make the most of the falling euro

Fri, 11 May 2012 11:00:00 GMT

The last time you could hope to change sterling to euros and clear €1.22 for each £1 was in the autumn of 2008, when the pound was halfway down its freefall towards parity – the midwinter trough when £1 equalled €1. Sterling enjoyed a briefest of summer flings in 2010, when €1.20 seemed tantalisingly within reach.

Travel Challenge: A luxury Turkish holiday

Fri, 11 May 2012 11:00:00 GMT

Each week, we invite three companies to offer us their best deal for a specific holiday. Today: a summer beach break in Turkey. Prices are per person, based on two people travelling together. Each package includes a week's accommodation, transfers and flights from the UK in mid June.

Paris with your enfants terribles

Tue, 08 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

What's the attraction?

Paris may be the capital of style, but the city is more child-friendly than you might imagine. Its many of cultural institutions and attractions will keep young visitors occupied, while the French capital's countless green spaces come into their own for games and picnics in spring and summer. And if you really must venture out of the city, Disneyland Paris (0844 8 008 898; disneylandparis.co.uk) is celebrating its 20th anniversary with special events, while the Parc Astérix (020-8792 9715; parcasterix.fr) has opened an ancient Egypt kingdom and new rollercoaster. For affordable family friendly accommodation, see parisinfo.com.

Madeira on the menu

Tue, 08 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Staring up from its slab in the art deco Mercado dos Lavradores, Funchal's main produce market, was one of the ugliest edible fish I have ever seen. With massive eye sockets, jagged teeth and a long, slimy, dustbin-greybody, the espada has all the charm of a dinosaur. But Benoît Sinthon, Madeira's top chef, was in rhapsodies about this unlikely creature. It's almost unique to Madeira, whose steep volcanic steep slopes are matched by astoundingly deep waters.

Strike it rich on an Italian treasure hunt

Sat, 05 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

Tupperware, Tupperware, wherefore art thou Tupperware? I was in Verona, city of passion and ancient feuding, my mission to find a small plastic box hidden somewhere among the medieval turrets of the Scaligero bridge. In fact it was not my mission so much as my son James's, a recent convert to the craze for geocaching.

Stay the night: Chateau les Carrasses, Languedoc, France

Sat, 05 May 2012 23:00:01 GMT

If only I could bottle this. So I thought, as I stood amid rows of vines in the searing sun, popping sharp carignan grapes with my tongue and surveying what I wished was my domain. And if only I could stay longer. My time at this château and wine estate had been short – but maybe that was appropriate, since Château les Carrasses was built in 1866 on the foundations of a rest stop on the pilgrim route of Saint-Jacques de Compostelle – the Way of St James.