Mexico’s delightful Puebla rivals any tiled city in Spain

Looking for a tantalising travel destination? Perhaps Puebla could be the answer. Read Irene’s article on the colonial Mexican city that’s guaranteed to make a suitably smug Facebook update

Spotlight on San Francisco

Ahead of the Golden Gate Bridge’s 75th birthday on May 27, San Francisco has never looked more golden writes Kaye Holland. Read her guide to the city with its head in the clouds, here

Consumer Direct (formally the National Consumer Council)

From the website:

“Consumer Direct is the government-funded telephone and online service offering information and advice on consumer issues. Consumer Direct is funded by the Office of Fair Trading and delivered in partnership with Local Authority Trading Standards Services.”

At your service

Motorway service stations have, over the years, gained a justified reputation for offering poor quality service at inflated prices. Regardless of the operating chain, the food in the cafeteria is the same, the gifts and publications in the shop show little variation and the prices reflect the almost monopoly market in which they operate.

But as with many aspects of travel, there are hidden gems. And one of these is Tebay motorway service area on the M6 in Cumbria.

A £14,000 Taxi Fare

Taxis can be expensive but £16,000 must be a pretty long trip. And so this one is. The entire journey is 4,000 miles and takes passengers into the outback of Western Australia.
So what’s so special about this one? Has some footballer or Hollywood film star with more money than sense decided to get some PR by “disappearing” in the outback? Is this another way of raising money for Sport Relief now that the English Channel has been swum and water skied?
No this is another ingenious idea from Australia to help publicise their country and get some more visitors. Last time, you might remember, it was Queensland that ran an international competition to find a warden to write a diary for 6 months on an island. This time it is Western Australia.

EU Consults on Travel Protection

Starting today, the EU will consult with the travel industry over the next 8 weeks before coming up with new proposals on giving greater protection to travellers.

A Taste of the Far East

Celebrity chef Rick Stein has explored the culinary delights of Britain and France but for his latest TV ‘food odyssey’ the much loved cookery writer and chef travelled further afield – to the Far East.

On arrival in Asia, Stein steered clear of the beaten track and tourist hot-spots; instead he sampled from local chefs, family-run restaurants and street vendors and roamed through the markets of Phnom Penh and the kitchens of Kampot in search of recipes to spirit the rest of us to the Orient.