Barcelona: where history and culture meets the Nou

Robin Nowacki combines culture and cuisine with football on a visit to Barcelona – the capital of the Catalonian region of Spain

The English seaside

Photographer Peter Williams celebrates the peculiar eccentricities and quintessential charms – from helter-skelters to lighthouses, pirates, palmists and Punch and Judy – of this cherished and rapidly changing English landscape

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.”

The Cultural Coast of Massachusetts

This is the name given to an area just south of Boston in the USA. The name meant nothing to me but then neither did one of the other names, Quincy County. But if I had been told that this included Plymouth Rock where the Pilgrim fathers landed in 1620, and Nantucket where the US whaling industry was once based then I might have realised just how important, historically, this region is. The subheading for the area, “Where American Begins” probably reflects the area better.
As Boston has direct flights to Dublin and London it is easy to tag a few days onto a Boston trip and spend a weekend exploring this area to the south. As to what to see, here are just a few suggestions.

Ryanair rapped over provocative ad

Ryanair – the airline that everyone loves to hate – has been rapped by the Advertising Standards Agency over its latest newspaper campaign.

Why We Holiday At Home

It’s official. Today, staycation has been accepted into the Oxford English Dictionary so they must think that the word, if not the holiday idea is here to stay. Unlike some tour operators who have blamed reduced profits this year on weather, volcanic ash, strikes and the economy for the fact that Britons and Irish are not going abroad. So is the staycation just a passing fad?
The head of Wyndham’s In Europe, thinks not.

Feel good flying

Air pressure, fluctuating temperatures and jet lag can all take their toll and leave us feeling lethargic and groggy rather than ready for the holiday of a lifetime. Here, Anna Carey, takes a look at the top complaints often suffered by travellers and the ways in which these can be alleviated