Each month Alice Holland will entertain us with her daily struggles to manage her new life in New York City. The Adventures Of Alice In New York A Brief Introduction… I moved to New York City almost one year ago, escaping the humdrum but secure life as a biological science researcher at Vanderbilt University in … Read more

Who says you have to rough it on a bootcamp? These breaks promise serious results in luxe surroundings 1.    Ibiza’s A-List Hideaway Island idyll: the peaceful side of Ibiza  ‘Last time I tried a residential bootcamp, it was hardly glamorous – I spent it in a wet West Country field, covered in mud and sheep … Read more

7.    Team Games In Devon How do circuits and team games in 52 acres of meadows and orchards, followed by chill-out time in your own luxe cottage in Devon grab you? Expect every day to be different here as military PT instructors take you on a ‘high-energy journey’, including boxing, pool sessions, beach workouts, rock … Read more

13. Get A Beach Body In Mexico Beach view at Tulum This boho hotel at Tulum is where the supermodels come to get picture perfect. You’ll do five hours exercise a day – power-walking, beach workouts, dance, yoga and snorkeling. Meals are low on fat and crabs, but you won’t starve on the healthy menu … Read more

Three of the best water sports destinations Hotel Eden Roc Ascona, Switzerland Influenced by its close proximity to Italy, Ascona is the charming Swiss town graced with a unique micro-Mediterranean climate that appears to escape the rest of Switzerland. Though the snow-peaked landscape provides a striking backdrop, its other claim to fame is Lake Maggiore, … Read more

London’s West End is where everyone heads for a night out. Clubbers from outside London catch the last trains into the capital and head for its bars and music venues, knowing they won’t leave till dawn. Here are the great theatres of Shaftesbury Avenue and Charing Cross Road, the star-struck cinemas of Leicester Square and, … Read more

A Walk Around the West End Morning Start the day in Trafalgar Square at 10am when the fountains are switched on. You could spend a day at the National Gallery , but limit yourself to an hour, perhaps just visiting the Sainsbury Wing. For coffee, head next door to the Portrait Restaurant at the National … Read more

Pubs and Cafés Patisserie Valerie A classic Soho café with a wide range of delicious cakes and pastries: the fresh croissants make it a good place for breakfast. Its Frenchness extends to the Toulouse-Lautrec style cartoons byTerroni. 44 Old Compton Street W1 Maison Bertaux This little corner of Paris in the heart of Soho attracts … Read more

Madeira… Yep, we couldn’t believe it either. But forget your preconceptions as these destinations shake off their package-holiday reputations and reinvent themselves as cool and luxurious places to visit Trendy, Exotic Downtime In Funchal, Madeira The funchal Municipal Gardens are a cool oasis in the summer heat The pool at the Choupana My grandma used … Read more

We are wading back to the anchored skiff after and slowish morning on the sand-flats, when our guide stops, crouches, and points urgently into the shallow sea. Out goes James’s fly-line, the little shrimp pattern pitches down, a silvery fin wags briefly above the surface. his rod bucks and the reel begins to whizz like … Read more

An expedition to the flats is predicated on teamwork, and success is often dependent on your guide. He poles you gondola-fashion, and also acts as your bird-dog: Yoandry had exceptional eyesight, and put us onto plenty of fish. It’s a constant process of hide and seek, and you need to be an opportunist par excellence. … Read more

The Surf Lodge The hotel’s casual restaurant, right beside the water, looks good – painted wood floors, oversized nautical lights, director’s chairs in vibrant colors – and serves chef Chris Rendell’s creative takes on seafood. Try the mussels in Thai coconut broth or blackened cod with delicate ‘chilli water’. Ditch Witch This food truck, which … Read more

Surf Bazaar The shop at the Surf Lodge may be tiny but it’s packed with all the makings of a boho-chic beach holiday: cute cover-ups, printed tops and swimwear; sailcloth bags; Soludos espadrilles. Surf Bazaar Cymthia Rowley The American fashion designer is a Montauk summer resident and her low-fi boutique stocks a location – appropriate … Read more

There’s a lot of talk these days in Montauk, the village at the tip of the East End’s South Fork, about Old Montauk versus New. It was always the anti-Hamptons, a place where fishermen, surfers and loners came to kick back, take in the sea air and ride killer waves. In recent years, however, it … Read more

Mansions Hôtel de Coulanges This mansion boasts beautiful early 18th-century architecture, although the right wing dates from the early 1600s. 35 rue des Francs-Bourgeois, 75004 Open only for concerts Hôtel Salé Built in 1656–9 for Aubert de Fontenay, a salt-tax collector, this mansion was restored in 1986 to provide a home for the Musée Picasso. … Read more

Fashionable Hang-outs Zéro Zéro It doesn’t get much cooler than this den-like bar with wood panelling and flowered wallpaper. Though not listed on the menu, cocktails are a speciality. 89 rue Amelot, 75011 Andy Wahloo Located in one of Henri IV’s former mansions, pop art and Oriental decor form a backdrop for some of the … Read more

The area named for its shape (TRIangle BElow CAnal) long consisted mostly of abandoned warehouses. Then Robert De Niro set up his Tribeca Film Center in 1988, stylish restaurants began to open, and the area started to draw celebrity residents. Now TriBeCa is one of New York’s hottest neighborhoods, the center of the city’s movie … Read more

A Stroll Around SoHo and TriBeCa Morning The Bleecker Street subway stop is a good starting point to explore Soho’s shops and galleries. Galleries worth a visit are Peter Blum at 99 Wooster St

A trip across IRELAND reveals surprises beyond medieval ghosts and family ties I’m standing in a muddy field in Country Antrim, just outside Belfast, Northern Ireland, surrounded by hundreds of enraged sheep. They’re bleating violently, puncturing the peace of the picturesque emerald countryside as if to say “You don’t belong here”. They’re right. My boyfriend, … Read more

On our way back to the hotel, the GPS directs us over the top of a massive hill that overlooks all of Tipperary. It’s nearly dusk, so we decide to ditch the car on the side of the road and enjoy the sunset. There isn’t another soul for miles, just a flock of sheep. This … Read more