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A Week Cycling though the Loire's Château Central
It would be nice to be able to say that you'd cycled the Tour de France, but it would actually be a lot nicer to spend a week cycling the Loire Valley, stopping off at the vineyards you pass for a tipple, sleeping in comfortable rooms in pretty medieval towns, appreciating the objet d'art on display in the fairytale châteaux and eating well in the restaurants along the way – the ones with the amazing terraces opening out onto views of the river valley.
Five day Loire Cycling Itinerary (Tours - Blois)
This itinerary travels west to east along the most popular region of the Loire: chateaux central, between Tours and Blois via Chenonceaux and Chambord. It's about 145kms worth of riding to cover, which most people will find quite comfortable on the paved, flat back roads, and should leave plenty of time to make the most of the sights you're passing.
Ghostly Goings on: World's Best Halloween Celebrations
A good scaring can be a lot of fun and Halloween is the right time to have the wind put up you by the dead or undead. But where are the best places to find that Halloween thrill – or is it a tingle – that will make your heart race and your hands clammy?
Halloween Special: World's Most Haunted Cities
If you've ever been trick or treating at you might recall that while some houses dole out the full sized chocolate bars, some doors you knock on are hiding a trick of their own: an adult wanting to quiz you about the meaning of Halloween. In just the same way some cities 'do' Halloween and some don't. But there's another category: those where the resident dead are unsettled and haunt the streets and buildings all year round, oblivious to the date... Just like that old house on the hill where the crazy lady with all the cats lived...no one went trick or treating there...
Paranormal Palaces: The UK's Most Haunted Places to Stay
Haunted bedrooms in haunted houses, home also to the paranormal and unexplained, are a most haunted way to spend Halloween...Here is a WR list of the Most Haunted Places to Stay...
Five Days in Cusco
For the ancient Incas Cusco was the centre of the world – which is why they called it the 'belly button' – for the Spanish conquistadors it was the 'City of Gold', but for most modern visitors it represents the 'Gateway to Machu Picchu'. Cusco deserves all three titles and some others. It also deserves more than the cursory two acclimatisation days many visitors afford it on their way to Machu Picchu. Five days would be a better taster of the place.
Holiday Idea #48: Cusco, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu & Lake Titicaca
There's more to Cusco than having the nearest airport to Machu Picchu. This city is the ancient capital of the Incas, and you don't have to stray far from your accommodation to appreciate the impressive ruins of their civilisation. The Sacred Valley and surrounds have more ancient archaeological treasures to explore. That's on top of the wonders at Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca.
Four days on the Inca Trail
There are many ways to journey to Machu Picchu. You can catch the Hiram Bingham train all the way, walk along the railway tracks in a day and catch the bus up the hill, ride horses in via the Sacred Valley, arrive via helicopter, spend weeks trekking in over surrounding, very undulating countryside, or, as many people do, follow the ancient Inca Trail up to the Sun Gate and enter the same way Incan royalty would have.
Which type of Boot Camp is best for you?
The First National Boot Camp Survey is covering one-week residential boot camps only.The term 'Boot Camp' is also used to describe people meeting to train during the week in a municipal park. Run by British Military Fitness instructors though they may be, and good development though they are - they are nothing like real, residential boot camps, and little more than PT in the open-air.
Holiday Idea #47: Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail
The Inca Trail to Machu Picchu appears round the top of many people's "Do Before You Die' Lists. Of you're one of those people we can help you make that adventure travel dream a reality - here's what you need to know:
