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Originally called Connaught Place, this is the centre of New Delhi. You find everything here - big shops, restaurants, art galleries, hotels and craft emporiums. More importantly, if you go to the lanes behind the main circle, you will find very good eating places. Now, with the Metro Station in the centre, you can go to the far flung parts of Delhi as well.
Underground Station of Connaught Place / Rajiv Chowk
Walk up to the Cross in the centre of Chester at noon and you'll see a jolly bloke wearing old fashioned clothes and ringing a bell. He's the town crier; Chester's the only place in the UK to have had a continuous tradition of town crying, and he and his wife share the job. He'll give all the latest news on Black Death, local hangings and news of the the Boston Tea Party that's filtering from across the pond - and on occasion he'll even read out council notices. Great interaction with the crowd and super for kids.
The Cross, where Eastgate St meets with Westgate St and Bridge St.
This clever card ("Friends of the Uffizi") gets you into all the state galleries for free - Uffizi, Accademia, many more. Plus - and this is the best thing - you get to jump all of the massive queues! It lasts for a year and it's genius.
25 euro for the under-26s, 60 euro for those above, and a family deal for 100 euro.
Each year, usually on the third Saturday of August, St Mark's Road is shut to traffic and given over for the day to music, dancing and food stalls. It's a small and family-friendly community event Easton style.
St Mark's Road, Easton BS5;
Take the Severn Beach suburban line to Stapleton Road station.
We stayed in the wonderful Sevilla Hotel in Havana and then 2 Casa Particulars (people's houses) in Trinidad and then back in Havana. In retrospect I would probably have finished with the hotel as after 2 weeks in Cuba you really need a bit of luxury! The casas are great however, as you get to stay with a proper Cuban family and they love kids.
Carrie found us all the casas, and she was invaluable. Her site is www.cuba-particular.com and you can contact her at carrie@cuba-particular.com
Cubans love kids! We went everywhere and did everything and heard constant moans from fellow tourists about being hassled and ripped off - we had none of that and can only assume that they left us alone because we had kids in tow. So, they can be an invaluable asset.
Ecomusee du Marais Salant provides an interesting insight into how sea salt is produced. Both now and back in the day. History, technique, boutique.
Near the town of Loix.
www.marais-salant.com
Most of the south coast of Ile de Ré is beach but the mother of all beaches is Plage de la Conche on the western end of the island. Wide and sandy and child-friendly, especially when the tide is out, this plage is worth a drive or a bike ride every day.
The Germans fortified Ile de Ré on this beach and their bunkers remain - now tilted and silted and covered in colourful artwork but cool inside when the sun is hot. The film The Longest Day was shot here, by the way.
Go west to the end of the island.
Santo Tomas is a very quiet resort with very little nightlife, we found the best beach on the island here. The Hotel Playa Victoria is superb for families.
Hotel Victoria
Playa Santo Tomas
07749
If you're in La Rochelle and need a quick beach trip then Les Minimes is the best option. Take the cosy little harbour boat (bus du mer - 1.70 euros each way) from the Old Harbour (near the La Chaine tower) to the Les Minimes port and the beach is a hundred metres from the quay. It isn't massive but its proximity to La Rochelle makes it attractive. And it is cleaner than the beach on the La Rochelle side.
Les Minimes Port itself is the largest pleasure boat harbour in France with room for 3500 yachts.
10 minutes by harbour boat from the Old Harbour in La Rochelle.
You've probably seen it on the telly - every country in Europe has had its version of the adventure game show which takes place on Napoleon's ill-fated oval fort. While you can't visit the fort a refreshing sailing trip can be had from La Rochelle (and Roquefort and Ile d'Oleron). The boat sails past and stops at the quaint Ile d'Aix before heading back to La Rochelle. Takes 2 hours. Great if the weather is hot. Costs 18 euros for adults.
Several companies make the trip. We tried Inter Iles. Departures from just outside the city walls past the little La Chaine tower on the Old Harbour.
www.inter-iles.com
We wanted a week in La Rochelle in our own flat and the Comfort Hotel St-Nicolas provided us with a perfect studio for our little family of three. Reasonably priced at 392 euros (245 in off season) and impeccably located in the fantastic and charming St-Nicolas quarter - a stone's throw from everything. The studios are just around the corner from the hotel proper and their facilities (breakfast, free internet, bar) are available to studio guests.
13 rue Sardinerie
17000 La Rochelle
Tel: 05 46 71 55
E: comfort.larochelle@wanadoo.fr
www.comforthotel-larochelle.com/en/accueil.htm
A hidden formal garden with little box hedges, herbs and stone benches. It’s just opened to the public. A lovely place to chill out and eat a sandwich on your way down from the castle to Holyrood.
On the left-hand side of Cannongate as you walk down towards Holyrood, about halfway down the Royal Mile;
Nearest station: Waverley
Family Camp is a small festival for families in south Devon which is lively but very safe for kids. It's only about 750 people and has a lovely atmosphere and loads to keep the kids entertained. I get involved with all sort of workshops, but my partner just watches bands or wacky performances and hangs around. We meet lovely people every year and then continue to Cornwall for more holiday! Its amazing!
It's in south Devon, and they have a website - www.family-camp.org.
They release more location info nearer the time but state that it's around 2 hours from Bristol as a guide.
Want some Dim Sum? Go to the oldest dim sum house in San Francisco, with lime green tables and orange chairs. It's also by Hang Ah Street - one of the small back alleys in Chinatown between Grant and Stockton. After filling up wander along the street, cross Clay St into Spofford Lane, cross Washington St into Ross Alley - along the way see the fortune cookies factory and hear the mah jong players clicking away in the rooms lining the lanes.
Hang Ah Tea Room: 1 Pagoda Place; tel: (415) 982-5686;
Hang Ah Street is between Grant and Stockton Street, off Sacremento Street
San Franciscans (I am one) have many passions, and the Giants are among the most important.
This elegant baseball park was built in 2000, funded entirely by the club - a rarity in the American sporting world, where clubs often hold cash-strapped city governments for ransom. It's located on the southern end of the South of Market district, and the views from between the foul lines frame the entire San Francisco Bay Area, from the Bay Bridge and Yerba Buena Island to the Oakland ports, Mount Diablo and even down to the San Mateo bridge, a good thirty miles away.
For value, sit in the bleachers in left (where Bonds hobbles around, feeling the effects of twenty years of baseball on two ravaged knees) and center field, where the hoi polloi sit, or even buy a standing room ticket and stand on the right field arcade - the closest thing you'll find to a terrace. For views, sit in the upper deck down the right field line.
But be sure to come soon, as Barry Bonds nears retirement. It may be your last chance to see the most controversial and most talented American athlete of this, or perhaps any other, generation.
24 Willie Mays Place
www.sfgiants.com
Mission Bay line - Third and King Sts.
Tralee has built its reputation on the famous Rose of Tralee Festival, an annual event much more than a beauty contest. The girls come from all over the world, have to be of Irish descent, are from the professions and have to be able to promote both themselves and the Festival.
The festival which is in August is host to a quarter of a million people when the centre of the whole town is closed to traffic and the streets echo to a medley of song and dance. This is a festival for all ages as can be seen in the wondrous faces of children who delight in the magic of clowns and theatre.
At night too during the Festival, the streets come alive with a wealth of quality pubs where can be heard the story of a young Tralee lad who came undone on Broadway when he met a woman, “with eyes that shone like diamonds.”
Krabi's night market is wonderful - tonnes of different foods to try and all fantastic and so cheap. The atmosphere is relaxed but exciting too, and there's a real community feel as most of the town turn up at some point during the evening. A must!
A roadside cafe with a great view across the local marina to the bay. The cafe is a pitstop for those on two wheels, cyclists and motorcyclists alike. The breakfasts are yummy, the coffee great and the view superb.
15A Marine Pde, St Kilda (just near Luna Park);
tel: 9534 9988;
www.miettas.com/archive/guide2000/racer.html
The Monash Gallery of Art is a public gallery run by the local council. Its aim is to push the visual arts and I think it succeeds in that. Predominantly showing Australian photography, the collections and the special exhibitions are worth a visit.
860 Ferntree Gully Road, Wheelers Hill;
tel: 9562 1569
www.mga.org.au
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