Posts by author Alex Robertson Textor
The Chamberlain Clock in Birmingham. Photo: Elliot Brown
Birmingham, the UK’s second-biggest city in terms of population, is no London copy. The West Midlands city is full of classic Victorian buildings and bold contemporary architecture alike. Historically an important center of manufacturing and modern industry, Birmingham has more recently seen an extended refurbishment of canals and industrial areas and the creation of a » Read more
Exploring Antwerp. Photo: Photo by Esther DG on Unsplash
Antwerp in Belgium, the capital of Flanders, is an oddly overlooked charmer in spitting distance by train of several big European cities, most notably Brussels (only one hour away by train), Amsterdam, Paris, London and Cologne. The city, long a diamond trade and fashion industry motor, is stylish and self-possessed. There are loads of reasons » Read more
Germanwings has a Blind Booking offer that takes you on an adventure for prices as low at €33. Photo: Mark Harkin
Budget airline Germanwings’ Blind Booking offer is a neat marketing trick. For a low fare, the airline sells a ticket from one of six German airports to a destination revealed only after payment is received. Travelers can choose to launch their journeys from one of six airports: Berlin, Cologne/Bonn, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover and Stuttgart. The » Read more
Just 90 minutes outside of London, Warwick Castle is a fun excursion for all ages. Photo: Phil Dolby
England is full of tourist attractions of broad interest within day trip distance from London, and there are countless excellent destinations to explore. Warwick Castle, located in the town of Warwick just a stone’s throw from Birmingham, is among these. Located only 90 minutes from London by train, Warwick Castle combines dizzying histories and tactile » Read more
Aberdeen is known as "Granite City" with plenty of beautiful examples of historic architecture. Photo: Bernt Rostad
Aberdeen is an appealing city, sturdy and solid. In part, this observation is architectural. The city’s predominant building material is granite, something that gives central Aberdeen an attractive if austere uniformity. Aberdeen is also the center of Scotland’s oil industry—even the whole continent. The city uses the tagline “Energy capital of Europe.” As you might » Read more
A classic street sign in the heart of Bath. Photo: Alex Robertson Textor
The attractive southwestern English town of Bath is one of the few places in the UK that can rival London for general tourist cost index. It’s not an obvious place for a budget-conscious break, and in fact, the tips that follow hardly enable anyone to scrape the bottom of the budget barrel. Instead, they point » Read more
The Grand Large du ZAC is part of a long-term reorientation of Dunkerque towards the ocean. Photo: Alex Robertson Textor
Calais, the closest French port to England, is the principal crossing point between England and France. The Channel Tunnel links England to Coquelles, just a few miles from Calais; through it car and train passengers utilize Calais as a gateway to France and beyond. But in fact very few people take the Eurostar to Calais-Fréthun, » Read more
The museum is marked by a large sign befitting the ship's size.
There are museums for adults and there are museums for children. And then there are museums that manage to ensnare the interest of adults and children alike. Northern Ireland’s Titanic Belfast is in this rarefied category. The museum provides information about the Titanic itself, the Belfast shipyards where it was built, and, more impressive yet, » Read more
Arriving at Orly. Photo: Lanzate
Everybody loves Paris. The French capital is one of the world’s top travel destinations and a perennial EuroCheapo fave. Getting to the City of Light remains a primary goal for many visitors to Europe, first-time and veteran alike. France has no low-cost airlines of note, but there are several budget airlines that serve Paris. Here » Read more
In-flight snacks. Photo: Steven Damron
Ten years ago, European budget airlines were widely celebrated as a positive symbol of then-contemporary Europe. The new budget airlines sold tickets online, easing the transaction process. Airlines flew cheaply to destinations both familiar and novel. The low fares and simplicity of travel ushered into effect by Europe’s budget air revolution were largely commended. Budget » Read more
Rome Fiumicino? Well designed. Photo: Philip Mallis
This week, let’s set our sights on six key features that define a good, contemporary airport, whether in Europe or elsewhere. Here the focus is on those areas of the airport open to all passengers, not just the frequent-flier set. What makes a business-class lounge good is a matter for another investigation. 1. Public transportation » Read more
Is there a market for a European Allegiant? Photo: lostinfog
Allegiant Airlines is one of North American aviation’s most under-reported success stories. The airline flies to a select number of popular vacation hubs from several relatively remote and seriously underserved destinations across the United States. Allegiant’s model is genius. It is the only vacation destination player at most of its traffic-starved airports. For residents of » Read more
The BBC's volcanic ash map on Tuesday, April 20, 2010.
At first, the very idea that a plume of volcanic ash could force the closure of airspace seemed ludicrous. Until a few days ago, clearly, I knew nothing about the power of volcanic ash. Volcanoes of the world, hear this: I and millions of others stand corrected, now and forever. Never again will we doubt » Read more
A Turkish Airlines plane. Photo by wicho.
Airlines—especially flagship carriers—have the awesome opportunity to create compelling brands that connect, in ways both obvious and creative, with their home cultures. Turkish Airlines, which I just had the pleasure of flying for the very first time, does a very good job of connecting its service as an airline to the brand of Turkey. Last » Read more
The Museum of Contemporary Art (Kiasma)'s imposing entrance.
Helsinki, Finland, is home to high design, price tags to match, and lots of heavy metal fans. The city’s atmosphere combines the obvious Swedish and Russian influences yet also feels, with its gray mid-century apartment blocks, cafés, and Jugendstil beauties, somewhat reminiscent of Mitteleuropa. How to keep costs manageable in such a pricey Nordic capital? » Read more
The unveiling of Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum in 1997 may have inserted Bilbao into international hipster consciousness, but the Basque city on the river clearly knew it was cool long before Gehry’s agenda was realized. Bilbao is an immediately attractive city with green parks and a pleasingly well-heeled atmosphere. There are so many exciting things » Read more
The winding streets of Andorra La Vella's Old Town. Photos by Alex Robertson Textor.
Andorra La Vella, the capital of Andorra, may be Western Europe’s most maligned capital. A huge duty-free shopping hub, it tends to be written off as an outdoor mall only good for short shopping adventures. Its commercial bluster may indeed shock those emerging from a weeklong mountain journey through the Pyrenees. And in fact, some » Read more
The beach in Terre-de-Haut.
The island of Terre-de-Haut in the tiny Les Saintes archipelago just south of Guadeloupe is a little slice of Francophone heaven in the midst of the Caribbean. But unlike St. Barts, another tiny French Caribbean isle, Terre-de-Haut isn’t so French that it doesn’t also feel as if it’s part of the region. Terre-de-Haut marries its » Read more
Terre-de-Haut, Guadeloupe, a part of the French Caribbean.
Three European countries have territories in the Caribbean today: France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. If one measures things in terms of citizenship rights, then all of these three countries’ Caribbean territories are part of Europe. If one measures them instead in terms of full territorial integration with their European “mother countries,” then only » Read more
A few weeks ago, we stumbled upon hidden europe, an amazing publication devoted to the lost corners and secret terrains of Europe. We blogged about the magazine, ordered six back issues, delighted in the unexpected arrival of the current issue in the mail, and then blogged about it some more. This sort of fan activity » Read more
It’s been a fine day, though our massive Ukrainian lunch was loaded with MSG, and we’ve spent the afternoon nursing headaches and queasiness with water, coffee, and aspirin. We’re exhausted. Sue us. We did just come across some exciting, if press release-driven information, though. Plucky UK low-cost carrier Jet2 celebrated their 10 millionth passenger today. » Read more
They might not be giving away free flights à la Ryanair, but Slovak low-cost carrier SkyEurope is at least trying to keep up in the cheap fares department. Through July 29, SkyEurope is offering €39 all-inclusive one-way fares. No word on which routes are included in the sale. We performed our industry-feared fare check and » Read more
We purchased a Belgrade-Ljubljana one-way JAT ticket on Sunday night, for travel in late July. We were, as the Brits say, chuffed. The ticket came to just RSD5,942 (€74; $99). The JAT search engine worked fine, and we were approaching that magic, banal moment that drives all online air travel purchases: the invitation to print » Read more
Some stuff on our minds as this week draws to close. 1. Ryanair’s new routes in and out of Stockholm’s Skavsta. Ryanair is launching another 13 routes to and from Skavsta. Starting in October, routes between Skavsta and Alicante, Basel, Berlin, Bratislava, Eindhoven, Karlsruhe Baden, Liverpool, Malta, Pisa, Porto, Trapani, and Valencia will kick off. » Read more
Photo by ldandersen
Every week should end with a list. The following things are causing tremors in our world: 1. This fellow’s daily photographs on Flickr. Why? Because we’re suckers for stark landscapes, found objects, and Nordic cityscapes. And we like to be able to depend on regularly scheduled aesthetic replenishments. 2. Eurostar’s green turn. 3. Czech Tourism’s » Read more
