Travel Doctor
Having a holiday dilemma? Let travel expert Mark Hodson point you in the right direction
I’m going to London to do some Christmas shopping. Can you suggest a stylish hotel that won’t break the bank?
The trick in London is to avoid the obvious hotspots like Park Lane and Piccadilly. Try the City Inn Westminster (+44 (0)20 7630 1000, www.cityinn.com/london) near Tate Britain, which has contemporary rooms, free Wi-fiand doubles from £109.
Alternatively, head east towards the galleries and bars of Great Eastern Street where the stylish Hoxton Hotel (pictured left; +44 (0)20 7550 1000, www.hoxtonhotels.com) has doubles at around £99.
In Kensington, base2stay (+44 (0)20 7244 2255, www.base2stay.com) has good-value doubles from £93 excluding breakfast. If you prefer a townhouse setting, try The Sumner (+44 (0)20 7723 2244, www.thesumner.com) on Upper Berkeley Street, where rates start at £153 for B&B.
I love Paris, but I feel I’ve done all the main sights. Can you recommend any secret neighbourhoods off the well-trodden path?
Parc des Buttes
-Charmont
Head north into the 10th arrondissement, where you can stroll along the banks of the Canal St Martin, criss-crossing footbridges and peeping into the windows of houseboats. From there it is a short walk to the Parc des Buttes-Charmont (pictured above), one of the city’s most charming green spaces. A former gypsum quarry, it was remodelled in the 19th-century to create a fairytale park of lakes, cliffs and wooded paths. A Corinthian temple at the top offers majestic views across to Sacré-Coeur.
The neighbourhood to the east of Buttes-Charmont is also worth a visit. It’s a warren of cobbled streets connected by leafy lanes that open out onto modest houses with neat gardens. There are no real “sights” but it provides a fascinating slice of real Parisian life and is a long way off the tourist trail.
My boyfriend and I are planning a romantic weekend in Amsterdam. Can you suggest a glamorous night out?
envy
If you’re after a full-on experience, book dinner at the trendy Supperclub (+31
(0)20 344 6400). Sprawled out on white mattresses, you will be fed a five course meal from silver trays before decamping downstairs to an all-red nightclub. The food costs €65 from Sunday to Wednesday and €70 from Thursday to Saturday.
The people behind Supperclub also own the stylish restaurant envy (pictured above; +31 (0)20 344 6407) on Prinsengracht, where prices are more modest. Finish off the evening with delicious cocktails at Suzy Wong (+31 (0)20 626 6769) on Korte Leidsedwarsstraat or at Rain (+31 (0)20 626 7078) on Rembrandtplein.
I fly to Brussels about once a month on business and love the city, but I can’t seem to find a really good place to hear jazz. Any recommendations?
L’Archiduc
Try L’Archiduc (+32 (0)2 512 0652), an intimate jazz bar in an authentic art deco building on Rue Antoine Dansaert. It has occasional live music and opens until 5am. If you’re in Brussels over the last weekend in May, you’ll be able to witness the city’s annual three-day Jazz Marathon (www.brusselsjazzmarathon. be). This year it featured 400 artists in more than 160 free concerts.
Mark Hodson has visited more than 75 countries in more than 15 years as a travel writer. During that time he has slept in thousands of hotel rooms and has worn out four suitcases and countless pairs of shoes. When not travelling Mark lives in London with his wife and two children.
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