Urban Travel Blog

If there’s one thing Madrid won’t tolerate, it’s being second best. Situated in the heart of the country, the city prides itself on being the pinnacle of Spanish culture, art and style. Madrid’s buzzing atmosphere, diverse cultural events and resplendent architecture - even the Post Office building is a work of art here - more than justify its status as Spain’s capital. Yet this beautiful, land-locked city is often shunned in favour of Barcelona’s coastal charms....

If Barcelona were a woman she would be a ravishing but rebellious Miss World misfit, one who regularly neglects her beauty sleep for debauched nights out that can leave her looking distinctly worse for wear. The city’s best features, such as La Sagrada Familia, are perennially being patched up by unsightly cranes and scaffolding, graffiti (only some of which transcends to art) is splashed over shutters and walls and the household garbage of local residents and bodily excrements of fiesta...

Just off the coast of Africa, the magical Canary Islands are Europe’s sunniest frontier. We invited the experts at James Villas to guide us through the four most popular of the isles… The Spanish Canary Islands are incredibly popular places when it comes to luxury holiday destinations. The islands boast a beautiful climate with warm temperatures for most of the year and minimal rainfall as well as beautiful beaches, stunning… The post The Canary Islands: A Traveller’s Guide...

So you’ve dangled yourself off the CN Tower, checked out the city’s best art galleries and shopped yourself silly at the Toronto Eaton Centre… maybe you’ve even caught a classic game of Canadian ice hockey, and done the essential day trip to Niagara Falls… but what next??? As always with our series of Secret Sevens, this is where we lay down some original ideas to spice up your weekend breaks in the world’s best cities. Perfect for those staying for longer, or visiting for a...

Whilst many claim that mass tourism has turned the merchant city of Venice into little more than an European museum, our expert on Italy, Alice Mulhearn, has a different story to tell… Nowhere on earth is as still as Venice at night. No street vendors, no tourists, no sound - only the occasional splashing of oars in a canal. Some nights, the acqua alta siren breaks the stillness. Slow and melodic, it warns… The post Long Weekend: Venice appeared first on Urban...

Pop up breweries, hipster boutiques and rocking music festivals… there are plenty of places to visit, and things to see and do, during a weekend break in Gothenburg. Hanna Johnson guides us around this progressive port town. As the second largest city in Sweden, Gothenburg is often compared to it’s bigger sibling, Stockholm. Where Stockholm is refined, Gothenburg is quirky and artistic. As the city expands it has retained its “working class” essence as an old port city....