Holidays

A NUMBER of popular holiday destinations loved by Brits are about to be much cheaper to fly to.

Wizz Air is launching six new flight routes from a London airport – and one is a UK first.

The budget airline has gained new slot at London Luton Airport, replacing TUI Airways.

From summer 2026, a new destination will connect London to Yerevan, the capital of Armenia.

This will be the only direct flight route from the UK.

Five flights a week will operate to Alicante in Spain, as well as another four to Faro in Portugal.

Three flights a week will connect the airport to booth Turin and Lyon, with two a week to Corfu.

The cheapest fares will be for Faro, Turin, Lyon and Alicante, all starting from £17.99.

Flights to Corfu start from £45.99 while Yerevan is £36.99.

Wizz Air UK’s Managing Director Yvonne Moynihan said: “With the launch of our 15th based aircraft at London Luton Airport, we’re delighted to deliver a festive surprise by introducing six exciting new routes, including the first-ever direct connection from London to Armenia.”

“Our focus on growth continues, having delivered two new aircraft and nearly 20 new routes from the UK during 2025, reinforcing Wizz Air UK’s position as Luton’s local carrier. “

Yerevan is one of the one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, and called “up-and-coming” by Lonely Planet.

Most of Armenia is deemed safe to travel, apart from its border with Azerbaijan.

It’s borders with Turkey and Georgia are also safe to visit, as well as the capital Yerevan.

As part of Asia, Armenia is often overlooked as a holiday destination for Brits.

This is despite having a number of beautiful churches, as well as pink-stoned buildings, leading to its nickname the Pink City.

It also has a lot of street art, and amazing food.

There are lots of new flight routes launching new year.

Air France will operate a London Gatwick to Paris route.

EasyJet is launching new flights from London Southend to the island of Ibiza.

And here are 16 other new routes easyJet is launching next year.

Often dubbed ‘Europe’s answer to Hawaii’, this region boasts dramatic landscapes, volcanic black sand beaches and crystal-clear waters, making it perfect for a winter getaway

With darker evenings drawing in and temperatures plummeting, it’s little wonder many Brits are fantasising about a sunshine escape to welcome in the new year. While countless warm destinations lie within easy reach for a lavish winter retreat, there’s one particular gem that’s earned the nickname “Europe’s answer to Hawaii” – and return flights start from a mere £40.

Nestled off Africa’s northwest coast and celebrated for its subtropical climate, is Madeira, in the Portuguese region. This volcanic archipelago consists of four islands, with Madeira being the principal one, and showcases striking scenery featuring mountain peaks, natural lava swimming spots, distinctive sandy shores and sparkling azure seas.

READ MORE: Virgin Atlantic launching flights to ‘world’s best destination for millennials’ in 2026

January proves an excellent month to explore this Portuguese paradise, with daytime temperatures climbing to a pleasant 19C. Historical records from January 2025 reveal Madeira even hit highs of 23C, while summer months can deliver balmy 28C conditions.

Thanks to its breathtaking volcanic landscape, mild climate and lush greenery, it’s unofficially crowned ‘Europe’s answer to Hawaii’, positioning it as an ideal winter getaway. Better still, travellers can snap up direct return flights from London Stansted to Madeira starting at just £40 with Ryanair throughout January, as shown on Skyscanner.

READ MORE: Best destinations where it’s hot and sunny in January, February and March

Madeira is home to some truly stunning beaches, many of which are adorned with unique pebbles or volcanic black sand, making them a must-visit. Among these is Praia Formosa, the largest beach in the capital, Funchal, and Seixal Beach, renowned for its soft, volcanic sand and dramatic backdrop of verdant cliffs.

Further afield, there’s Porto Moniz, famed for its extraordinary natural lava rock pools, and an ideal spot for a swim, or Machico Beach, with its golden sands and tranquil, turquoise waters. Another favourite is the breathtaking Complexo Balnear do Lido in Funchal, where you can take a dip in two seawater pools that gaze out over the majestic ocean.

READ MORE: ‘We’ve ditched the UK for Thailand by selling everything we owned’

Beyond the beaches, Madeira offers plenty more to explore. The capital, Funchal, boasts historical allure, serene botanical gardens, and bustling markets, while the Zona Velha district features quaint cobbled streets and charming independent shops. Come evening, it transforms into a lively hub, with bars and restaurants offering outdoor terraces perfect for watching the sunset over the North Atlantic Ocean.

Venture around the island, and you’ll find waterfalls to discover, world-class wine to taste, and boat tours to take, offering the chance to marvel at whales and dolphins in their natural habitat. While summer is often the prime time to spot these magnificent creatures, visitors have been known to catch sight of them earlier in the year.

The island is also a haven for hiking enthusiasts, with one of its most frequented trails being the cliffside path of Ponta de São Lourenço at the easternmost tip. The hike spans just under four miles and takes approximately 2.5 hours to complete along some uneven terrain, but the reward is breathtaking panoramic views across Madeira.

Another trail at Pico do Arieiro takes you to one of the island’s highest peaks, standing at an altitude of 1,818 metres. Although it’s a more strenuous hike, it offers a prime opportunity to soak in the stunning green mountain vistas, and there’s a shuttle bus available for the descent.

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

HAVE you ever wanted to feel like you are drifting in space? Well, you can at a new planetarium coming to the UK with cheap tickets.

A new planetarium attraction will be popping up across the UK throughout 2026.

The planetarium will initially pop-up in London, before travelling to Sheffield, Hull, Manchester and then finally, Northampton.

The first destination where the Planetarium Go! experience will take place is at Battersea Power Station in South London, between January 30 and March 1.

It will then head to Sheffield from March 6 to 28, then Hull between April 3 and 25, then Manchester from May 1 to 23 and Northampton between May 29 and June 21 – though specific destinations have not been revealed yet.

Inside, the planetarium will feature a 360-degree screen which will show different films either science-related or of fictional stories and each will last between 20 to 35 minutes.

And of course, some visitors will be able to travel through space.

The experience itself will be in a large, spherical pop-up dome and different film showings will be suitable for different age groups.

For example, you could opt to watch ‘Exploring The Solar System + The Ring World’, a film that takes visitors on an exploration of the solar system, seeing Venus, Mars and the moon.

Viewers will the head to ‘The Ring World’ to see a star and find out whether humans could live on other planets.

For younger kids, ‘3-2-1 Lift Off’ might be better; visitors follow Alan the hamster scientist, who discovers a robot that has crashed from outer space.

There is also ‘From Earth to the Universe’, a documentary film lasting 30 minutes that is more of an educational option for kids aged over 10-years-old.

The planetarium will be open at Battersea Power Station Monday to Thursday and Sunday between 10am and 7:10pm and on Friday and Saturdays between 10am and 9pm.

Tickets cost from £15 per person or £12 for students and children under four go free.

If heading to the planetarium whilst it is at Battersea Power Station, there are a number of other attractions there to explore as well, so you can make it a day out.

Until January 4, visitors can head to the Jurassic World: The Experience at Neon at Battersea Power Station.

Inside the experience visitors can explore 10 immersive zones across two floors.

You can walk under a giant Brachiosaurus, look around the genetics lab and even meet Blue the Velociraptor from the Jurassic World films.

The experience costs £36.70 per adult and £29.55 per child.

Alternatively, there is the Lift 109 experience, which recently had a refresh.

Visitors can travel 109 metres up a chimney that makes you feel as if you are in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

The lift then appears out of the top of the chimney and boasts panoramic views of London.

There is also a small museum experience with a number of interactive features ideal for families, including a touchscreen quiz table.

Tickets cost from £16 per person when booked online, or £24 on the day.

In other attraction news, here’s everything you can do at one of London’s most popular attractions before it closes ahead of £240million renovation.

Plus, the 20 most-visited attractions in England that are completely free to enter.

From finding pants on the floor to a blood-stained sheet on the bed, there’s a lot that can go wrong when staying in a hotel – but there’s one thing I always check before using

The hospitality sector is known for its gruelling demands, with long hours and erratic shift patterns, making anyone in the industry a true unsung hero in my book. It’s a tough gig, with intense time constraints, so it’s hardly surprising that occasionally things can get overlooked when it comes to preparing hundreds of rooms before the 3pm check-in on a busy Friday night.

I’ve discovered everything from discarded underwear on the floor, a half-drunk bottle of water in the fridge, a dirty dressing gown and a blood-stained sheet after checking into my supposedly clean hotel room at various hotels. While these areas are easy to spot at a glance, there’s one thing I always meticulously inspect and clean whenever I enter a hotel room – the glassware.

Most of us have checked into a hotel room to find a complimentary tea and coffee setup waiting for us. However, during my time working in the hospitality industry, I’ve discovered that not all hotels thoroughly clean their mugs before the next guest arrives, which is rather revolting.

On several occasions, I’ve seen housekeepers simply rinse the mugs in the bathroom sink, give them a quick wipe with a cloth, and then place them back on the table ready for the next guest. While this might remove any leftover coffee or tea residue, it doesn’t quite suffice for properly cleaning a mug that’s used repeatedly by guests.

This applies to the water glasses perched on the sink or bedside table, too – a quick rinse and Bob’s your uncle! Now, I’m not suggesting that every hotel is guilty of this, but based on my own experiences, I tend to be a bit sceptical.

So, with every hotel check-in, I now make it a point to inspect the glassware and give it a good rinse with boiling water from the kettle as a precautionary measure, and a dab of hand soap doesn’t hurt either. After all, I don’t want to be that guest who insists on a fresh mug and glass just in case they haven’t been properly cleaned; a simple DIY sterilisation is enough to set my mind at ease.

But I do empathise with the housekeepers. They have a lengthy checklist of cleaning tasks ranging from changing the bed linen, deep cleaning the bathrooms, hoovering the floor, replacing robes and slippers, wiping down glass and windows, restocking the mini fridge, to meticulously folding countless towels.

Sometimes they barely have a moment to catch their breath, let alone dash down to the kitchen, load the dishwasher and replenish a tray of glasses for each room. They typically have a 3pm deadline for every room, and staff shortages only add to the pressure.

In the past, ABC News conducted an undercover investigation that revealed that housekeeping at 11 out of 15 hotels didn’t replace the glassware when tidying the rooms. Instead, they were simply rinsed in the sink and wiped down with a cleaning cloth or sponge.

To circumvent this hygiene issue, some hotels opt for plastic-wrapped cups, while others insist on their rigorous glassware cleaning practices. However, even if the glass or mug seems spotless and clean, it’s not always easy to be sure.

The next time you settle into a hotel room, consider giving your mug a quick rinse with boiled water as a precautionary measure. If you’re particularly concerned, bring along your own reusable water bottle and request a fresh mug from the hotel bar, because let’s face it, no one fancies pondering over someone else’s lips whilst enjoying their morning brew.

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

The underrated ‘Capital of Christmas’ has everything you could want for a festive break but there’s also plenty more than just Christmas – including Stranger Things locations

Nestled in the south of Lithuania, Vilnius, the second largest city in the Baltic states, is a place where Christmas is celebrated with gusto.

Every nook and cranny of the city sparkles with festive lights, baubles, gifts, and all sorts of decorations you can imagine. The streets are festooned with Christmas trees, buskers strumming carols on their guitars, and everyone indulging in warm wine, soaking up the holiday cheer.

The city has earned the title ‘Capital of Christmas’, and it’s not hard to see why – they pull out all the stops when it comes to decking the halls.

I had the pleasure of visiting this enchanting city and was swept away by the festive euphoria. There’s a magical aura that permeates the city, making the spirit of Christmas palpable.

READ MORE: Jet2 launches huge sale with £400 off all holidays and 20% discount on flights

As I wandered around, snowflakes gently falling, fairy lights twinkling, and shop fronts adorned with such stunning decorations that you can’t help but stop for a closer look.

A short flight from London City airport (with return fares starting at £33) transported me within hours to this vibrant and mystical Baltic city, steeped in rich history and home to over 50 churches, subterranean spas, numerous museums, and an arts quarter. It’s also gained fame as a filming location for Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things, with parts of season four shot here, including scenes in a now-defunct 100 year old prison.

READ MORE: Winter sun destination with 25C weather and £1.75 pints is 5 hours from UK

Vilnius is famed for the architectural splendour of its Old Town, one of Europe’s largest and best-preserved historical centres, earning it a UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 1994. This heritage-rich area also hosts the city’s iconic Christmas market.

The European Parliament’s Christmas Cities Network crowned Vilnius as the Capital of Christmas, largely due to its internationally acclaimed Christmas trees. The Vilnius Christmas tree has topped the European Best Destinations list two years running.

For me, it was the picture-perfect Christmas markets that drew me to this city. The main Christmas market is nestled in the enchanting Cathedral Square, within the old town, and is renowned for its stunning, award-winning Christmas tree – a genuine 205-square-metre installation standing 20 metres tall.

The market is brimming with quaint wooden stalls offering sweet delicacies, mulled wine, and festive crafts.

You can enjoy a warming mulled wine or a hot chocolate for €7 each, but if you return your mug, you’ll receive a €2 refund, making these festive beverages a bargain at just €5 (roughly £4.60).

If all that wandering about works up an appetite for some authentic Lithuanian fare, you can sample regional specialities from the vendors, including traditional “kaladinis” chimney cakes, sweet curd doughnuts and plenty of pudding-style treats such as confectionery, gingerbread, doughnuts, hot chocolate and naturally mulled wine. The vendors also offer numerous handcrafted goods and locally-made products created specially for Christmas.

Adorned with fairy lights scattered throughout the market and featuring an enormous sparkling tree, the principal Christmas market is genuinely spectacular, but in typical Vilnius fashion, one market simply won’t suffice and the city plays host to ten different ones across the area. Once you’ve finished browsing the stalls, be sure to explore the stunning Jewish quarter within the Old Town district.

READ MORE: ‘We’ve ditched the UK for Thailand by selling everything we owned’READ MORE: Inside the enchanting English village where one Christmas classic movie was filmed

Alternatively, if you’re seeking somewhere for supper, you might venture to Lokys, the city’s most established family-operated restaurant, which serves vibrant pink chilled beetroot soup with potatoes, alongside beaver casserole – genuine regional specialities of the area.

The Christmas market launched on 29th November and will remain in the square until 6th January, whilst you can discover the additional markets at the railway station, Hale Market and a rather unconventional market in Lukiški prison (yes, genuinely!).

The city adores Christmas so thoroughly that the national bank even introduced Vilnius’ own Christmas currency, enabling you to purchase goods from the Christmas markets using the festive tender which was revealed as red pine cones. Another yuletide attraction in the square is the two-storey Christmas carousel.

Standing at a towering 10 metres high, it’s been crafted by Italian artisans in a traditional style. Other jolly features to keep an eye out for in Vilnius include the ice rink in Town Hall Square and the Christmas train that whisks visitors on a 20-minute journey through the twinkling streets of Old Town Vilnius for a mere €1.80.

Book the trip

LOT Polish Airlines provides direct flights to Vilnius from London City airport. Ryanair and Wizz Air also offer non-stop flights from the UK.

Rooms at the Hotel Pacai start from €176 a night (approximately £153).

For more information about Vilnius, visit govilnius.lt.

THE Holiday is one of the UK’s favourite Christmas watches – and who hasn’t wanted to step into the magic of the film?

From the Cotswolds to Yorkshire, here are five of the best villages that will make you feel like you’re Cameron Diaz exploring England for the very first time.

Shere, Surrey

Of course first up is Shere in Surrey which fans of The Holiday will know that it was actually used as a filming location.

Found in the Guildford district, the pretty village is considered to be most photographed of all Surrey towns.

You can actually have a pint in the pub where Amanda (played by Cameron Diaz) and Graham (Jude Law) have their first date.

The couple visit The White Horse, a cosy pub that serves up hearty breakfasts, Sunday Roasts and lunches.

You can also pop into The Dabbling Duck cafe, or take a hike around the nearby Surrey Hills.

The Holiday isn’t the only film to have set scenes in Shere – it’s also been the backdrop of Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, and The Wedding Date.

Kettlewell, Yorkshire Dales

The Yorkshire village of Kettlewell is filled with classic stone cottages – just like Iris’.

But there’s also traditional tea rooms, and a quaint High Street and incredible views of the countryside – perfect for a weekend walk.

The village has three pubs, The Blue Bell Inn – a homely spot which serves up tasty home-cooked food by its crackling fire.

Or check out The King’s Head and The Falcon Inn.

Elterwater

Elterwater is a village in the Lake District, Cumbria.

The village lies half a mile north-west of the lake of Elter Water – where it gets its name.

It’s tiny with around 100 residents, some of whom live in its charming slate or stone cottages along the narrow roads.

The local pub is The Britannia Inn which serves seasonal food by its log fire – and during the summer has a pretty beer garden.

The village has incredible views of the Langdale Pikes which are famous mountains in the Great Langdale Valley.

You can also go for a stroll along the River Brathay or go further afield and you might even spot a waterfall or two.

Burford, Oxfordshire

The Cotswolds is an obvious choice when it comes to pretty English villages – and Burford is a very charming spot.

It has the classic pretty stone cottages and a very traditional feel to it.

Along the High Street are antique shops, tea rooms and pubs like The Angel at Burford, The Prince Of Burford and The Lamb Inn.

The oldest pharmacy in England can be found here, and there’s a medieval bridge that crosses over the River Windrush as well as a Grade I listed church.

And for even more magic from The Holiday, actress Kate Winslet used to live very nearby.

Stanton, Gloucestershire

Another very English-looking Cotswolds village is Stanton.

40 minutes up the road from Burford is Stanton, which looks very ‘The Holiday’ with its limestone and half-timbered cottages.

The village is on the smaller side so there isn’t too much to do, but it makes for a charming trip – and there will be great photo opportunities.

Nearby you can hike the Cotswold Way or visit Snowshill Manor, and if you fancy it, you can even book to go horse-riding through Stanton.

The Mount Inn pub is the only pub in the village and has incredible views of the Malvern Hills.

For more, here are 10 UK locations featured in iconic Christmas movies that you can visit this festive season.

And even more filming locations in the UK that you can visit with movie tours. 

FIVE train stations in the UK left deserted for decades have undergone major renovation projects and will soon have new routes to a major city.

The five stations include three on the Camp Hill Line and two between Wolverhampton and Walsall.

All five of the stations will welcome new West Midlands Railway services in early 2026.

On the Camp Hill Line, £120million has been spent on three stations at Moseley Village, Kings Heath and Pineapple Road to reopen them.

Moseley Village, Kings Heath and Pineapple Road train stations all closed in 1941 during the Second World War and never reopened.

Ahead of services starting early next year, construction work at each of the stations has been completed.

Each station will have two platforms for six-carriage trains, bike parking, ticket machines, information screens and lifts.

There will also be pick up and drop off zones at Moseley Village and Pineapple Road stations.

This also means that the stations will gain services for the first time since World War II.

The services will call at each of the stations every 30 minutes, with destinations including Birmingham New Street and Kings Norton.

It is estimated that the reopened stations will cut journey times to Birmingham New Street by between nine and 31 minutes.

As for the two stations between Wolverhampton and Walsall – Darlaston and Willenhall – there will be train services for the first time since 1965 when the stations were both closed.

To begin with, there will be two services an hour between Wolverhampton and Birmingham.

A direct service to Walsall town centre, known as the ‘leather capital of the world’ due to its leatherworking history, is also being discussed with the Department for Transport and Walsall Council.

In total, the two stations have cost £85million to reopen.

Walsall Council hopes that the stations will better connect local residents to the wider region, as well as create more opportunities for people to travel, whether that be for holidays or for work.

Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, said: “For some communities, this is the first time in more than 80 years they’ve had their own train service.

“That changes everyday life. Getting to work, college or seeing family becomes simpler and quicker.

“It also means more people coming into town centres. More footfall for shops and cafés. More confidence for local businesses to invest and grow.

“This is what delivery looks like – backing places that have waited far too long for decent connections.”

In other train news, here’s the first look at the new Virgin Trains that will take Brits from UK to France, Belgium and Netherlands.

Plus, the low-cost train launching more routes between two popular UK cities – and tickets are £33.

Chef Zachary Pollack is ringing in the New Year right with a variety of dinner options at his new Santa Monica spot, Cosetta. Choose from three seatings, including an early, all-ages a la carte option; a low-key, four-course menu from 6 to 7:30 p.m. for $75; and a five-course Capodanno feast with Champagne and caviar from 8-11 p.m. for $120 per person. On New Year’s Day, the restaurant will transform into “Aloha, Cosetta,” an all-day Hawaiian BBQ celebration from 12 to 7 p.m., featuring dishes such as coconut shrimp, risotto Spam musubi, macadamia-chile pork ribs and tiki-style cocktails. With three price tiers, the top CHIEFTAIN tickets ($100) include tomahawk steaks, lobsters and a 24-ounce mai tai in a keepsake mug. Book New Year’s Eve on the website, and New Year’s Day via Resy.

Under the glow of fluorescent lights at Seafood City market in North Hills, packages of pre-made adobo, salted shrimp fry and and dried anchovies glisten in meat coolers.

A DJ, dressed in a traditional barong, blasts a dance remix of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” as a crowd gathers to take a shot of fish sauce together.

“That was disgusting!” a man shouts into the mic, flashing a grimacing expression.

The smells of lechon and lumpia float through the air. Smiling children munch on halo-halo (a Philippine dessert made with ube ice cream, leche flan and shaved ice). Flags of the Philippines wave in the air as a man in UCLA Health scrubs hops into the center of an energetic dance circle. Employees shoot store coupons out of a money gun and toss bags of Leslie’s Clover Chips into the crowd. Fathers hold their children on their shoulders as a group of college students perform a Tinikling routine, a traditional Philippine dance in which performers step and hop over and between bamboo poles.

“This is so Filipino,” a woman says, in awe of the scene.

“I came here for groceries,” explains an elderly man, adding that he decided to stay for the party.

Seafood City, the largest Philippine grocery store chain in North America, typically closes at 9 p.m. But on certain Friday and Saturday nights, its produce or seafood aisle turns into a lively dance floor for “Late Night Madness.” On social media, where the gathering has exploded, it looks like a multigenerational nightclub that could use dimmer lighting. But for attendees who frequent the store, it’s more than that. It’s a space for them to celebrate their Filipino heritage through food, music and dance in a familiar setting.

“This is something that you would never expect to happen — it’s a grocery store,” says Renson Blanco, one of five DJs spinning that night. He grew up going to the store with his family. “My mom would [put] us all in the minivan and come here, and she’d let us run free,” he adds. “It’s comfortable here. It’s safe here.”

The first Seafood City location opened in 1989 in National City, a suburb of San Diego, which has a nearly 20% Asian population including a rich Filipino community. For its founders, the Go family, the mission was simple: to provide a market where Filipinos and people within the diaspora could comfortably speak their native language and buy familiar products. It’s since become a community anchor. Of the nearly 40 locations in Northern America, at least half of them are based in California, which has the highest population of Asian Americans in the United States.

The first “Late Night Madness” event happened in September in Daly City, Seafood City’s newest location. The company wanted to launch a street food program at the store’s food hall in a fun and creative way.

The DJ played a selection of hip-hop, pop, soul and classic Pinoy records like VST & Company’s “Awitin Mo, Isasayaw Ko.” Hundreds of people showed up, and videos of people of all ages turning up in the popular supermarket spread like wildfire. So the company decided to continue hosting the event in October during Filipino American History Month and for the rest of the year. It’s since expanded to more locations around the country and in L.A., including Eagle Rock.

By 10 p.m. at the Seafood City in North Hills, at least 500 people are dancing in the produce section, next to rows of saba bananas, fresh taro leaves and bok choy. The lively crowd forms dance circles throughout the night, taking turns jumping in the center to show off their moves to songs like Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Let’s Groove,” “Nokia” by Drake and Justin Bieber’s “I Just Need Somebody to Love.” At one point, TikToker and artist Adamn Killa hops on the mic and says “If you a Filipino baddie, this is for you,” before doing his viral dance.

A group of employees dance behind the counter as they serve hungry patrons who fill their trays with various Filipino street food including pandesal sliders (soft Philippine bread filled with adobo, lechon or longganisa) and Lumpia Overload (think nachos, but a bed of lumpia instead of tortilla chips), lobster balls and barbecue chicken skewers. (No alcohol is served.) Meanwhile, a few lone shoppers sprinkle into the store to get their weekly groceries as music blasts through the speakers.

First-generation Filipino American Andrea Edoria of Pasadena says “Late Night Madness” reminded her of the family parties she attended as a child in L.A. and in Manila, where her parents are from.

“Growing up as a child of immigrants, I was kind of self conscious about displaying too much of my culture,” she says between bites of spiral fried potato. She went to the Eagle Rock event with her mother last month as well. “So it kind of fed my inner child to see so many people celebrating this shared culture and experience that we each grew up [with].”

She adds, “I think it’s so important especially now at a time where our country is so divisive and culture is kind of being weaponized, I think it’s a beautiful reminder that we can come together and find something that unites us.”

About 10 minutes before midnight, the grocery store is still bustling with activity. A dance battle breaks out and people begin hyping up the young women. The DJ transitions into slower tracks like Beyoncé’s “Love on Top” and Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You.” The remaining folks sing along loudly as they walk toward the exit, smiles imprinted on their faces. Staff rush to clean up, then huddle together for group photos to memorialize the evening.

Patrick Bernardo, 34, of Van Nuys looks at the counter, where a man had been chopping lechon, before stepping outside.

“There’s barely anything left on that pig,” he says, pointing to it as proof that the night was a success.

The line at Holbox during the midweek lunch hour has become a cultural sensation, a queue of locals and visitors trailing past the automatic doors and around the parking lot like devotees angling for the latest iPhone series or limited-release sneakers. Believe the lauds, including ours when we named Holbox as The Times’ 2023 Restaurant of the Year. Gilberto Cetina’s command of mariscos is unmatched in Southern California – his ceviches, aguachiles and tostadas revolutionary in their freshness and jigsaw-intricate flavors. The smoked kanpachi taco alone — clinched with queso Chihuahua and finished with salsa cruda, avocado and drizzles of peanut salsa macha — is one of the most sophisticated things to eat in Los Angeles.

Holbox could be considered for the top ranking on its own strength. But in a year when disasters tore at our city, honoring the power of community feels more urgent than ever. Cetina’s seafood counter doesn’t thrive in a vacuum. Holbox resides inside the Mercado La Paloma in South L.A. The mercado is the economic-development arm of the Esperanza Community Housing Corp., a nonprofit organization founded in 1989 that counts affordable housing and equitable healthcare among its core missions. When the mercado was in the incubation stage, Esperanza’s executive director Nancy Ibrahim interviewed would-be restaurateurs about their challenges and hopes in starting a business. Among the candidates was Cetina’s father, Gilberto Sr., who proposed a stall serving his family’s regionally specific dishes from the Yucatán. Their venture, Chichén Itzá, was among the eight startups when the mercado opened in a former garment factory nearly 25 years ago, in February 2001.

Step into the 35,000-square-foot market today, and the smell of corn warms the senses. Fátima Juárez chose masa as her medium when she began working with Cetina at Holbox in 2017. Komal, the venue she opened last year with her husband, Conrado Rivera, is the only molino in L.A. grinding and nixtamalizing heirloom corn varieties daily. Among her deceptively spare menu of mostly quesadillas and tacos, start with the extraordinary quesadilla de flor de calabaza, a creased blue corn tortilla, bound by melted quesillo, arrayed with squash blossoms radiating like sunbeams.

Wander farther, past the communal sea of tiled tables between Holbox and Komal, to find jewels that first-timers or even regular visitors might overlook.

Taqueria Vista Hermosa, run by Raul Morales and his family, is the other remaining original tenant. Order an al pastor taco, or Morales’ specialty of Michoacan-style fish empapelado smothered in vegetables and wrapped in banana leaf. The lush, orange-scented cochinita pibil is the obvious choice next door at still-flourishing Chichén Itzá, but don’t overlook crackling kibi and the brunchy huevos motuleños over ham and black bean puree. The weekends-only tacos de barbacoa de chivo are our favorites at the stand called Oaxacalifornia, though we swing through any time for the piloncillo-sweetened café de olla and a scoop of smoked milk ice cream from its sibling juice and snack bar in the market’s center. Looking for the comfort of noodles? Try the pad see ew at Thai Corner Food Express in the far back.

The everyday and the exquisite; the fast and the formal (just try to score a reservation for Holbox’s twice-a-week tasting menu); a food hall and sanctuary for us all. Mercado La Paloma embodies the Los Angeles we love.

With two glorious beach-fringed coasts, a pair of national parks, plus quaint villages and vibrant cities, Devon is the ultimate staycation destination. 

This picturesque county – sandwiched between Cornwall to the west and Somerset and Dorset to the east – has everything you need for a fantastic holiday.

Fill your days by building sandcastles, walking the coastal path, trying various watersports, diving into fascinating history or simply embracing nature. 

So the hardest question on your upcoming £9.50 Holiday will be: where to visit first?

If there are keen surfers in your group, you’re in the right place. 

North Devon boasts some of the country’s best surf spots, such as Croyde, Woolacombe and Saunton Sands, with companies like Surfing Croyde Bay and Woolacombe Surf Centre offering lessons and equipment hire. 

The more sheltered south coast also has a handful of spots to ride perfect waves, including Bantham, Bigbury-on-Sea and Challaborough Bay, and you can book classes with a provider such as Bantham Surfing Academy. 

If you still want in-water action but prefer something gentler, both North and South Devon are ideal for other water sports, such as bodyboarding, kayaking and canoeing. 

You can even add a splash of history, by hiring a paddleboard with an operator like Discovery Surf and then paddleboarding amidst the shipwrecks of Hope Cove in the south.

Or maybe you’re up for leaping into swirling seas near Baggy Point, a significant World War II site in Croyde, with a coasteering session from the likes of Coastline Sports. 

With over 500 miles of jaw-dropping coastline, you’re sure to find a sandy bay, hidden cove or private pebbly beach during your visit. 

Those looking to escape the crowds could head to Barricane Beach, which is more hidden than its more famous neighbour, Woolacombe.

In South Devon, you’ll get Ayrmer Cove and Wyscombe Beach almost to yourself, so long as you’re prepared to walk to get there.  

Families with prams, and wheelchair users, are able to roll straight onto Challaborough Beach, Bigbury-on-Sea and Saunton Sands – where bucket-and-spade perfection awaits. 

Meanwhile, dog walkers will never have to tread the same path twice, with miles of dog-friendly beaches, coastal paths and country trails to explore.

The Tarka Trail, a 180-mile traffic-free loop in North Devon, is a good place to start – and also works well for a family-friendly cycle ride with staggering sea views. 

When it’s time to refuel, Devon’s mainly rural cuisine will satisfy your taste buds. 

Think hot pasties, fresh fish and cheeses like Curworthy, Sharpham and Vulscombe – yum!

Harbour Light in Paignton, The Blue Hut in Teignmouth and Brixham Fish Restaurant & Takeaway are some of Devon’s best-rated fish and chips providers, while the award-winning Country Cottage Bakery in Bideford specialises in Devon-style pasties. 

No Devon holiday experience would be complete without a traditional cream tea.

Unlike in neighbouring Cornwall, here locals spread cream before jam on their scones, which are known as “Devonshire Splits” – with Someday Something in Sidmouth, Chandlers Cafe in Paignton and Ullacombe Farm in Newton Abbot all rated highly for theirs.

When it comes to natural and historic attractions, Devon is bursting to the seams. 

You could begin a deep dive into history at the 600-year-old Dartmouth Castle, or by meandering through the grounds of Saltram, a Georgian house and gardens in Plympton. 

There are also museums and galleries located near Devon’s holiday parks.

Family-friendly options in Plymouth include the top-rated National Marine Aquarium and The Box, an engaging art gallery that is free to enter. 

And you’ll never be too far from a natural attraction in Devon, with five Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and two national parks (Dartmoor and Exmoor) to explore.

Bordering the coast, Exmoor is the UK’s first dark skies conservation area and offers everything from wildlife spotting to stunning walks, like the four-miler through rugged moorland to Speke’s Mill Mouth waterfall. 

Families may prefer to swap hiking for a relaxed steam train ride, with the Dartmouth Steam Railway a sure bet to keep kids happy while adults take in sweeping views of the South Devon coastline. 

To keep costs down, dads can head to free toddler play sessions, or you can simply build sandcastles on the beach.

Another wallet-friendly day out for families is the top-rated Donkey Sanctuary in Sidmouth, where entry and parking are both free. 

A traveller discovered that paying a small fee to choose your specific room at Travelodge can get you a noticeably larger space in the same category – without upgrading

When booking a hotel, aside from selecting your room category, you’re often left in the dark about what room you’ll end up with. But I’ve stumbled upon a nifty trick that could land you a larger hotel room for just £3.50.

Securing a hotel for any occasion, be it a city break with mates or a romantic weekend getaway, can be a bit of a headache, given the vast array of options available. And even after you’ve picked your preferred hotel, you then have to decide on your room category, which is usually dictated by price (let’s face it, we’d all opt for the premium suites if our wallets allowed).

But what if I told you there’s a way to bag a bigger room when booking through Travelodge, without having to rely on the whims of the booking system? This little gem came to light during a trip to London with my pals earlier this year.

We were staying overnight after catching an evening show, so I booked us into a Travelodge on Central City Road in London. As there were three of us, I opted for a triple family room – the most budget-friendly choice for a Saturday night in the capital.

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A few days prior to our stay, I noticed an option in my booking that let me ‘choose my room’ before checking in. Initially, I was a tad sceptical, but I’m chuffed I decided to delve a bit deeper.

For a mere additional £3.50, I discovered that I could handpick the exact room my mates and I would bunk in during our getaway. In the spirit of investigation and intrigue, I coughed up the trifling £3.50 and was directed to a site map showcasing all the available rooms within my category, enabling me to select our quarters.

What took me aback was that, despite all the rooms displayed falling within the specific category I’d booked, a handful were markedly larger as per the floor plan. So naturally, I opted for the most spacious room on offer.

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Even at this juncture, I was sceptical about whether we’d actually be allocated this room upon check-in, given that I’d shelled out less than a fiver and it was significantly roomier than the rest. So you can imagine my delight when I checked in on Saturday afternoon and they handed over the keys to the exact room I’d chosen – it was absolutely worth the extra £3.50.

We found ourselves in a sprawling room equipped with a double bed and two single beds, despite never altering the room category. Plus, it afforded us crucial additional space for prepping for a night on the town without having to splurge on an expensive upgrade.

This nifty trick can be employed at over 575 Travelodge hotels, and it’s not just for securing extra room. You can opt to ‘choose your room’ to ensure you’re lodged near family or friends, secure a particular view, guarantee a top or ground floor room, or ensure you’re close to a lift.

Not only does this trick potentially offer the bonus of a larger room, as I discovered, but it also eliminates any check-in uncertainty. However, it’s crucial to bear in mind that this hack depends on the hotel’s availability and layout.

Some Travelodge hotels may not have a bigger room available in the category you’ve booked, but it’s definitely worth enquiring. Furthermore, the cost can fluctuate depending on the hotel, room type and duration of stay, but it’s applicable for a range of Travelodge room categories.

Got a travel story you want to share with us? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

IF you have a thirst for history and nature, Sussex is the place for you.

This county, which boasts around 140 miles of coastline, has sunny seaside resorts, the rolling chalk hills of the South Downs, country parks and wildlife-packed nature reserves.

It’s also loaded with history. The name Sussex is from the Saxon period, but its history goes back even further – just take a look at the Iron Age hillfort at Cissbury Ring or Boxgrove where the oldest human remains in Britain were discovered.

To find out which natural and historic attractions are worth visiting on your upcoming £9.50 Holiday, we spoke to Sun readers and local experts, and have suggested some of our own. 

Here’s our pick of the best…

Explore ancient forests 

Daniel Start, author of Wild Guide London and South England, recommends Kingley Vale, just north of Chichester in West Sussex.

It’s a nature reserve that’s home to one of Europe’s most ancient yew forests, with twisted trunks that have stood here for more than 500 years.

Daniel says: “These majestic, gnarled trees create an almost mythical atmosphere, their branches twisting skyward like ancient sentinels.

“Strolling through the groves is a journey through history, with some yews as old as the Norman conquest, sheltering a wealth of wildlife beneath their shade.”

As you explore, look out for various types of orchids on the ground and red kites and buzzards overhead. 

Pedal to Rye Harbour Nature Reserve

Home to more than 4,355 species of plants and animals, Rye Harbour Nature Reserve is one of the country’s most important wildlife sites.

Spend the day watching them from one of five bird hides, before learning more in the Discovery Centre (or sipping a cuppa at the Lime Kiln Cafe).

You can reach it by public transport or car, but Georgie Radford-Brown, Assistant Guest Experience Manager at Camber Sands Holiday Park, reckons the best way to get there is by electric bike.

She said: “It’s a more unusual way to get there. There’s e-bike hire at Rye Harbour and you can cycle all the way through the nature reserve to the beach. It’s a beautiful ride.”

Seal spotting 

Wildlife lovers can jump in a boat for a seal-watching adventure. Harbour seals are commonly spotted along the East Sussex coastline, while some large colonies of grey seals live off the West Sussex coast.

Chichester Harbour has a colony of more than 40 mixed seals, and you can cruise around the harbour in search of them on an organised trip with Chichester Harbour Water Tours (90 minutes from £25 per adult, £20 per child).

Meanwhile, in East Sussex, a one-hour seal safari boat trip from Rye Harbour costs £37pp.  

Castles and cathedrals

History lovers can get their fill on a whole host of historic attractions within easy reach of coastal holiday parks, including a number of famous castles.

East Sussex is home to Hastings Castle (Britain’s first Norman castle, built by William the Conqueror in 1067) and Camber Castle, a coastal fort built by Henry VIII (tip: it’s only accessible via a one-mile walk from Rye).

In West Sussex, you have Arundel Castle with its Norman Keep, medieval gatehouse and award-winning grounds that have plenty of space for kids to run off steam. 

Sun reader Clare Johnson, 52, from Brighton, recommends Chichester for “a mooch about”.

She said: “It’s got good shops, a theatre and an incredible cathedral.”

The 900-year-old Cathedral is free to enter (although donations are welcome) and should also be top of your list.

Admire its stunning stained glass windows and look out for the Roman mosaic floor, uncovered during renovations 50 years ago.

Tip: to discover more, book a guided tour (£6pp, free for under-12s) – they run at 11.30am and 2.30pm Monday to Saturday and take around 45 minutes.

Step inside Anne of Cleves’ house

Get a glimpse of Tudor and Elizabethan life by stepping inside the Anne of Cleves House in Lewes, not far from the coast in East Sussex.

The 15th-century timber-framed pad was given to Anne of Cleves at the end of her short marriage to Henry VIII – but she never lived there.

Still, there’s plenty to explore here from its Tudor kitchen to the garden with herbs and fruit trees that would have been grown at the time.

Kids will love rifling through the dressing-up box that will bring their surroundings to life. 

Hike along the white cliffs

You can’t miss the South Downs National Park when you’re visiting Sussex – it spans 86 miles through Hampshire and Sussex (both West Sussex and East Sussex).

The park’s crowning glory is arguably the coastal section, particularly the white cliffs of the Seven Sisters and Beachy Head.

You could explore it on foot by picking up the South Downs Way National Trail, taking in epic views of Cuckmere Haven, Belle Tout and Beachy Head lighthouses.

Tip: the views are better if you start the walk from Seaford Esplanade, potentially finishing with a pint at the Tiger Inn at East Dean.

The pub is a short walk away from a bus stop (with routes to Eastbourne, Brighton or back to Seaford).

WITH its staggeringly beautiful beaches, scenic woodlands and hidden waterfalls, Cornwall has natural attractions galore.

There’s also fascinating history to discover, from legendary King Arthur’s roots, the tin mining heyday and the infamous pirates that terrorised the coastline for hundreds of years.

We’ve spoken to Sun readers who have visited Cornwall on £9.50 Holidays to get their recommendations of the best local natural and historic attractions to visit.

We’ve also asked local experts and holiday park staff for their top tips, with options that are all within easy reach of your £9.50 Holiday. Here’s what they said… 

Waterfall magic 

Dani Fillery, Owner and Guest Experience Manager at White Acres Holiday Park, near Newquay, recommends the beautiful St Nectan’s Glen, on Cornwall’s north coast.

A scenic woodland walk leads you to a spectacular 60ft waterfall with a cafe at the top (tip: wear decent footwear as it can be wet and uneven underfoot).

Kids will be amazed by the sight and sound of the waterfall.

Admission costs £9 per adult and £5 per child (free for under fives), but you can see some of the smaller rapids for free, which are also lovely. Don’t forget to take £3 cash for the car park.

Castle legends 

You could pair St Nectan’s Glen with a trip to Tintagel Castle, just a couple of miles away.

Said to be the birthplace of King Arthur, it has medieval ruins to explore, accessed by a jaw-dropping footbridge.

At low tide, don’t miss Merlin’s Cave – located below the castle, which is believed to be where Merlin lived.

If you’re staying further south, Pendennis Castle offers a glimpse into Tudor Cornwall.

One of Henry VIII’s finest seaside fortresses, it’s ideal for a family day out, with kid-friendly tours, an events programme and even a soft play for little ones. 

Tin mining legacy

For Sun reader Anne Walton, 71, from Newport in Wales, there are lots of historic attractions in Cornwall worth visiting.

She said: “You’ve got the Poldark area and Jamaica Inn, which they filmed near Holywell Bay. We’ve been down on the beach when they’ve been filming it.”

Another highlight that Anne recommends, and which features in Poldark, are the tin mines.

You can walk right next to well-preserved engine houses on the coastal path near St Agnes Head, one of the filming locations for the BBC drama.

Or, delve deeper into the history of Cornish mining and more at the Royal Cornwall Museum in Truro, which is a wallet-friendly option for families (free for under-18s, £7.50 for adults).

It houses over 300,000 artefacts, with hands-on exhibits to capture kids’ imaginations. 

Escape to an island fortress

Carol Harris, 72, from Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, stayed at Parkdean Resorts Lizard Point.

She recommends taking the hop on, hop off bus from outside the holiday park to Marazion, to visit St Michael’s Mount, an island fortress that she says is “beautiful”.

And it might look a tad familiar – it has a French counterpart across the Channel, in Normandy.

Located on a tidal island, you need to take a boat to reach the castle and its subtropical gardens at high tide (£2.80 one way for adults, £1.50 for children).

But at low tide, you can get there for free by walking across the granite causeway (it’s open for about four hours each day).

Tip: there is a great cafe on the island, but you can keep costs down by packing a picnic and finding a grassy spot. 

Swim in a natural sea pool

Cornwall is blessed with more than 400 beaches – so you’re never short of sea swimming locations.

But for something more sheltered and a little more unique, head to a natural sea pool.

Cornwall expert and Sun travel writer Ellie Ross recommends Trevone Natural Sea Pool, which you can walk to from Trevone Bay car park in under ten minutes.

She says: “You have to time it for low tide, and clamber across some rocks, but it’s well worth it for the experience of swimming in a sea pool – which is completely free.

“There is also a shallow end nearest the path so supervised children can play here, too.”

Other tidal pools include a man-made rock pool, which is relatively unknown, hidden out of sight at Porthtowan Beach.

Anyone travelling to these destinations could invalidate their holiday insurance

There are certain spots around the globe that are considered quite risky, and travellers heading there receive guidance on safety precautions they should adopt to avoid mishaps.

However, only 55 locations feature on the ‘do not travel’ list, which has been flagged with a warning by the Foreign Office.

Anyone journeying to these places will be voiding their holiday insurance, meaning if things go pear-shaped, they’ll be left without support. Officials also caution that they could be jeopardising their safety. If you require consular assistance locally, it will likely be difficult to obtain.

For specific countries, the Foreign Office also advises against all but essential travel, implying you should reconsider any holiday plans The Foreign Office cautions: “Get advice and warnings about travel abroad, including entry requirements, safety and security, health risks and legal differences.”

It explained: “No foreign travel can be guaranteed safe. FCDO publishes travel advice to help you decide if it’s safe enough for you to travel to a particular destination. In some instances we also give information about how to reduce the risks you may face there. All environments contain some level of risk and you should consider what precautions you should take.

“You must take personal responsibility for your own travel. Only you can decide whether you should travel to a country or stay there, and what activities to take part in.”

People may face different risks due to their:

• gender
• ethnic background
• sexuality
• health

The Foreign Office has general guidance for specific types of traveller to help you understand some of these risks.

The FCDO sometimes formally advises British people against ‘all but essential travel’ or ‘all travel’ to a particular country. It said:

“Your travel insurance could be invalidated if you travel against advice from FCDO. We only advise against travel if we think the risk to British nationals is unacceptably high. For example, this could be due to:

• armed conflict
• military coups
• civil unrest
• disease outbreaks
• natural disasters

“For terrorist threats, we only advise against travel:

• in situations of extreme and imminent danger
• where the threat is sufficiently specific, large-scale or widespread to affect British nationals severely

“We may advise against travel to:

• a whole country
• parts of a country

“The ‘Warnings and insurance’ section of each travel advice page lists all the areas where we advise against travel. If you want to know about changes to travel advice for a specific country, you can sign up to receive email alerts about updates.”

FCDO advises against all travel

1. Afghanistan – “The security situation is volatile”
2. Belarus – “You face a significant risk of arrest”
3. Burkina Faso – “Due to the threat of terrorist attacks and terrorist kidnap”
4. Haiti – “Due to the volatile security situation”
5. Iran – “British nationals are at significant risk of arrest”
6. Mali – “Due to unpredictable security conditions”
7. Niger – “Due to the rise of reported terrorist and criminal kidnappings”
8. Russia – “Due to the risks and threats from its continuing invasion of Ukraine”
9. South Sudan – “Due to the risk of armed violence and criminality”
10. Syria – “Ongoing conflict and unpredictable security conditions”
11. Yemen – “Unpredictable security conditions”

FCDO advises against all travel to parts

1. Algeria – all travel to within 30km of Algeria’s borders with Libya, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Tunisia
2. Armenia – within 5km of the full eastern border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the M16/H26 road between the towns of Ijevan and Noyemberyan
3. Azerbaijan – within 5km of the Azerbaijan-Armenia border
4. Benin – northern border regions
5. Burundi – Cibitoke and Bubanza provinces, former Kayanza province, former Bujumbura Rural province and the RN5 road north of Melchior Ndadaye airport
6. Cambodia – within 50km from the border with Thailand
7. Cameroon – Bakassi Peninsula, parts of the Far-North Region, North-West Region and South-West Region and within 40km of the Central African Republic, Chad and Nigeria borders
8. Central African Republic – against all travel except to the capital, Bangui
9. Chad – Borkou, Ennedi Ouest, Ennedi Est and Tibesti provinces, Kanem Province, including Nokou, Lake Chad region and within 30km of all Chad’s other borders
10. Congo – within 50km of the Republic of Congo-Central African Republic border in Likouala Region
11. Côte d’Ivoire – within 40km of borders with Burkina Faso and Mali
12. Democratic Republic of the Congo – within 50km of the border with the Central African Republic, the province of Kasaï Oriental, the Kwamouth territory of Mai-Ndombe Province and provinces in Eastern DRC
13. Djibouti – Djibouti-Eritrea border
14. Egypt – within 20km of the Egypt-Libya border and the North Sinai Governorate
15. Eritrea – within 25km of Eritrea’s land borders
16. Ethiopia – international border areas, parts of the Tigray region, Amhara region, Afar region, Gambela region, Oromia region, Somali region, Central, Southern, Sidama and South West regions and Benishangul-Gumuz region
17. Georgia – South Ossetia and Abkhazia
18. India – within 10km of the India-Pakistan border and Jammu and Kashmir
19. Indonesia – Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki, Mount Sinabung, Mount Marapi, Mount Semeru, Mount Ruang, Mount Ibu
20. Iraq – advises against all travel to parts of Anbar province, Basra province, Diyala province, Kirkuk province, Ninawa province, Salah al-Din province, Sadr City and within 30km of federal Iraq’s borders with Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait
21. Israel – against all travel to Gaza, parts of the West Bank and Northern Israel
22. Jordan – within 3km of the border with Syria
23. Kenya – Kenya-Somalia border and northern parts of the east coast
24. Lebanon – areas in Beirut and Mount Lebanon Governorate, the South and Nabatiyeh Governorates, the Beqaa Governorate, the Baalbek-Hermel Governorate, the Akkar Governorate, the city of Tripoli and Palestinian refugee camps
25. Libya – advises against all travel to Libya except for the cities of Benghazi and Misrata
26. Mauritania – Eastern Mauritania and within 25km of the Malian border
27. Moldova –Transnistria
28. Mozambique – Cabo Delgado Province
29. Myanmar (Burma) – Chin State, Kachin State, Kayah State, Kayin State, Mon State, Rakhine State, Sagaing and Magway regions, Tanintharyi Region, Shan State North, North Mandalay Region
30. Nigeria – Borno State, Yobe State, Adamawa State, Gombe State, Kaduna State, Katsina State, Zamfara State and the riverine areas of Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states
31. Pakistan – within 10 miles of the border with Afghanistan, areas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province and the Balochistan Province
32. Philippines – western and central Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago
33. Saudi Arabia – within 10km of the border with Yemen
34. Somalia – advises against all travel except the western regions Awdal, Maroodijeh and Sahil
35. Sudan – against all travel except to the Hala’ib Triangle and the Bir Tawil Trapezoid
36. Palestine – against all travel to Gaza, parts of The West Bank and Northern Israel
37. Thailand –parts of the south, near the Thailand-Malaysia border, the Hat Yai to Padang Besar train line and within 50km of the whole border with Cambodia
38. Togo – within 30km of the border with Burkina Faso
39. Tunisia – parts of Western Tunisia, including the Tunisia-Algeria border and Southern Tunisia, including the Tunisia-Libya border
40. Turkey – within 10km of the Turkey-Syria border
41. Ukraine – all regions of Ukraine with the exception of some western regions
42. Venezuela – within 80km of the Venezuela-Colombia border, within 40km of the Venezuela-Brazil border, Zulia State
43. Western Sahara – within 30km of ‘the Berm’ boundary line and areas south and east of the Berm boundary line

FCDO advises against all but essential travel

With regard to the definition of ‘essential travel’, the FCDO says: “Whether travel is essential or not is your own decision. You may have urgent family or business commitments which you need to attend to. Only you can make an informed decision based on your own individual circumstances and the risks.”

1. North Korea – “The security situation can change quickly with no advance warning”

Virgin Atlantic will start daily direct flights from London Heathrow to Seoul from 29 March, with the South Korean city named favourite destination by millennials and Gen Z for the fourth year running

Virgin Atlantic is set to launch a new direct route from London Heathrow to Seoul, a city that’s become a must-visit for many millennials. The airline has confirmed that daily flights to the South Korean capital will commence from 29 March.

This exciting news follows Seoul being crowned the Favourite Worldwide City at the 2025 Trazees Awards, an accolade it has now won four years running. The awards celebrate destinations and brands that resonate with millennials and Gen Z travellers, highlighting Seoul’s appeal to the under 40s.

A key factor in attracting younger tourists to Seoul could be the global rise of K-Pop. With Korean bands like BTS dominating music charts and K-Pop Demon Hunters becoming Netflix’s most-watched film ever, 2025 was a landmark year for the genre.

K-Pop enthusiasts visiting Seoul can explore K-Star Road in Gangnam, the district immortalised by PSY’s 2012 smash hit Gangnam Style. This vibrant shopping street features giant bear statues, each one symbolising a different K-Pop band who’ve hit the big time, reports the Express.

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Another must-see is the Starfield COEX Mall, home to shops like the expansive KTown4U, brimming with K-Pop merchandise. It even boasts a massive Gangnam Style statue depicting the dance’s iconic crossed hands pose, providing the perfect backdrop for a memorable photo.

Seoul, a city of the future, is renowned for its colossal shopping centres like Times Square, home to the mammoth Shinsegae Department Store and multiple floors filled with shops, eateries, cafes, and even a hotel. Don’t forget to head to the rooftop for breathtaking views of the city.

For an unparalleled view, make your way to the Lotte World Tower. Standing at 123-storeys and 555 metres, it’s not only South Korea’s tallest building but also the sixth tallest globally.

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Daredevils can visit the Seoul Sky observatory for panoramic vistas and walk on the glass floor where just a couple of panes separate you from a dizzying drop below.

Despite its futuristic reputation, Seoul also boasts numerous well-preserved historical sites. Gyeongbokgung, a former Royal palace dating back to 1395, features a vibrant interior adorned with traditional artwork.

You’ll see locals donning national costumes, and if timed right, you can witness the twice-daily changing of the guard ceremony. Gyeongbokgung also houses the National Folk Museum of Korea and the National Palace Museum of Korea, both excellent spots to delve into the country’s history and view ancient artefacts.

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At Bukchon Hanok Village, you can gain insights into the lives of ordinary Koreans throughout history. Meander down winding streets lined with over 900 traditional homes, some centuries old, alongside artisan shops offering souvenirs crafted using time-honoured techniques passed down through generations.

No trip to Seoul would be complete without a visit to one of its bustling markets. The Myeongdong Night Market, open until 1am, is the perfect spot to taste local delicacies and snag vibrant keepsakes.

Be sure to try tteok-bokki, a rice cake smothered in a sweet and spicy fish sauce, Korean hot dogs encrusted with cheese and panko breadcrumbs, and flame-grilled skewered meats.

Each of Seoul’s districts boasts its own distinctive charm, making it easy to find an area that aligns with your travel preferences. Luxury seekers might gravitate towards the high-end district of Gangnam, while shopaholics will love the central location of Myeongdong, surrounded by numerous shopping centres.

Itaewon offers a lively atmosphere with an international flair, renowned for its vibrant nightlife, whereas Insa-dong provides a more traditional experience with weekend markets and street performances.

Virgin Atlantic’s new flight path to South Korea will utilise the airline’s Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, offering economy, premium economy, and upper class seating options. This latest addition to their routes marks Virgin Atlantic’s ongoing efforts to diversify its destinations beyond its typical transatlantic flights, with new paths to Ghana and the Caribbean also recently announced.

Have a travel story you want to share with us? Drop us an email at webtravel@reachplc.com

NEW passport rules were rolled out seven years ago – and people are STILL being caught out by them.

Back in 2018, the UK government updated the passport validity rules, after leaving the EU.

Now, passports must be only be valid for 10 years, with any months rolled over from previous passports no longer allowed.

Alongside the requirement to have between 3-6 months left on it, enforced by a number of countries, it is still causing confusion for travellers.

And elderly couple recently were banned from their cruise because of the rules.

Their son Ben explained to The Times: “Unfortunately, my mum’s passport fell foul of the ‘not issued more than ten years ago’ passport rule for entry to the EU, and so at the terminal, despite having six months’ validity left on the passport, and after a terribly stressful journey down during a storm, they weren’t allowed to board.

“Clearly they had never heard of this rule, and I freely admit, nor had I.

“Having asked many people, it isn’t well known.”

Despite the rules being seven years old, it is thought thousands are still being caught out every year.

Figures have shown up to 100,000 holidaymakers a year face being turned away at airports if their passport is more than 10 years old.

So holidaymakers should be checking their start date, not their expiry date, to see if it is valid.

For example, if a passport has an October 2015 start date but a January 2026 expiry, it has technically expired.

And always check how many months are required from countries as well – lots of places in Europe require travellers to have at least three months left on their passport.

Some places like Dubai and Thailand require at least six months left.

The last burgundy passport will expire in 2030, as blue passports were rolled out in 2020.

An updated blue passport has also been rolled out this month.

When Queen Elizabeth II died, passports after this were issued by His Majesty’s Office rather than Her Majesty’s Office.

However, the updated designs will now have King Charles‘ Coat of Arms, replacing Queen Elizabeth II‘s as well.

Inside will also have new designs of UK landmarks, each from the four UK nations.

For England there is Lake District; for Scotland there is Ben Nevis; for Wales there is Three Cliffs Bay and for Ireland there is Giant’s Causeway.

New technology in the pages will also make it one of the most secure passports ever.

Make sure you don’t have any novelty stamps, pen marks or stickers in your passport either – these have all caught out travellers as well.

The cheapest destinations for package holidays in summer 2026 have been revealed, with five Spanish getaways making the list, with a seven-night stay starting from £864 per person

As we near the end of 2025, there’s no better time to think about booking your sun-soaked getaway for next year, and some popular holiday hotspots have been revealed as the cheapest.

Whether you’re dreaming of a well-deserved trip under the Mediterranean sun on a golden sand beach or time spent wandering around European streets soaking up a city’s vibrant culture, there’s a bundle of desirable holiday destinations on offer. In a bid to help you choose your next getaway, the experts at Which? have revealed the 10 cheapest destinations to book for a package holiday for the summer of 2026.

For the results, they compared the prices of 5,393 package holidays from Jet2holidays and easyJet Holidays. This was based on a seven-night stay, including flights, departing on or around August 2, with two people sharing a room with various board types.

The winner

With its white-sand beaches and sprawling resorts, Which? found Costa Blanca along Spain’s Mediterranean coastline as the cheapest option for a package for next year. Known as the White Coast, it boasts popular resorts like Benidorm, Alicante, and Altea, each offering its own unique allure.

For a stay in Costa Blanca during the peak of summer, Which? found that it would cost, on average, £864 per person for a seven-night package. This was the only destination they found to be less than £900 for a week’s stay in August.

The second-cheapest package holiday was to Tuscany in central Italy, famed for its rolling hills, Renaissance art, and cities like Florence, Siena, and Pisa. A week’s stay in the gorgeous Italian region would cost £929pp per week, including flights and accommodation – what’s not to love?

This is in stark contrast to the Italian region of Sardinia, which would cost around £1,508pp for the same stay, saving you a whopping £579. Tuscany is said to be more affordable due to its wide range of accommodations available, from self-catering to bed-and-breakfast, room-only, as well as all-inclusive and full-board packages.

Ranked as the third cheapest for a summer getaway was the stunning Agadir coast in Morocco, known for its sprawling sand beaches and as a major resort destination. With plenty of accommodation options along the coast, with beach days at its core, a stay here would cost £946pp.

Following the research from Which? they found that six of the cheapest holiday hotspots for 2026 were in Spain, with Tenerife, Fuerteventura, and Gran Canaria also on the list. Elsewhere, Zante in Greece, with its pristine blue waters, fruity landscapes and lively nightlife, also made the top 10.

Here are the cheapest package holiday destinations for 2026, as outlined by Which? The results show the average price, per person, for a seven-night package stay.

1. Costa Blanca, Spain – £864
2. Tuscany, Italy – £929
3. Agadir coast, Morocco – £946
4. Dalaman area, Turkey – £1,048
5. Tenerife, Canary Islands – £1,073
6. Fuerteventura, Canary Islands – £1,119
7. Gran Canaria, Canary Islands – £1,121
8. Costa Brava, Spain – £1,125
9. Costa Dorada, Spain – £1,133
10. Zante, Greece – £1,142

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It was a chilly Sunday in November 2000 when the gods chose to smile on Ken Wallace. The retired teacher was sweeping his metal detector across a hillside in Leicestershire’s Welland valley when a series of beeps brought him up short. Digging down, he found a cache of buried coins almost two millennia old. He had chanced upon one of the UK’s most important iron age hoards, totalling about 5,000 silver and gold coins.

More than 25 years on, I’m staring at Ken’s find at the civic museum in the nearby town of Market Harborough. The now gleaming coins are decorated with wreaths and horses. They’re about the size of 5p pieces, but speak of a wild-eyed age of tribal lands and windswept hill forts.

A map of the Welland valley area.

Hidden riches are something of a local theme here. The treasure was unearthed close to the Leicestershire-Northamptonshire border, in a sloping, sheep-dotted landscape where the River Welland ribbons eastwards in no special hurry. The town (“people just call it Harb”, one of the museum staff tells me) is the main settlement in this stretch of the valley. I’ve come here on a short winter visit to see why the area – hills, villages, Harb and all – gets described as an unsung alternative to the Cotswolds.

The town itself has ancient Saxon roots and is easy to like, with a head-turning mix of Jacobean, Georgian and Victorian architecture. I stumble on Quinns, a cracking independent bookshop tucked down an alleyway, then devour a curry bowl at a lively cafe called Two Old Goats. A board on the street lists notable town residents through the ages, the most recent being rugby giant Martin Johnson. I read this, then turn and immediately see him on the pavement 10 metres away. It’s unclear if this clever routine is something he does for all visitors, but he’s hard to miss in any case.

The real pull of the Welland valley is the countryside, a slow-moving world of hushed green dales and drifting red kites. On local advice, I head to rural Foxton Locks – Britain’s highest combination of staircase canal locks, where 10 adjacent early 19th-century locks transport boats up and down a 23-metre hillside – for a gawp and a wander. “It takes 50 minutes for boats to get from one end to the other,” says volunteer Malcolm, who seems delighted to have a visitor to talk to. The neatly painted locks rise up handsomely beside us.

You need a decent woolly hat to go gongoozling (that is, canal-watching) in December, but there are rewards to be had. The skies are already fading to a wintery grey when I climb past the locks to the upper towpath. The narrowboats I see are moored up, their chimneys smoking and their roofs decorated with bums-out gnomes. I walk the path for an hour of rippled quietude, passing little other than moorhens and blackthorn sloes, then return the same way.

Back at the locks I stop at tiny canalside pub Bridge 61, where I find a crackling log grate and a row of Camra certificates. The barman pours me a Widebeam bitter from Langton Brewery. “Local ale,” he says. “From three miles up the way as the crow flies.” Proof, it turns out, that beer doesn’t have to travel far to hit the spot.

My base is nearby Medbourne, one of numerous placid, calendar-pretty villages that stud the Welland valley. Medbourne has a clear stream, a lovely pub – the Nevill Arms, where I spend the night in a four-poster and enjoy exactly the kind of warming, candle-lit dinner you’d want from a country inn in winter – and cottages built of tough, reddish Leicestershire ironstone.

The next morning I meet local author and poet Tim Relf for a three-hour footpath ramble in the hills. Crossing stiles and ridge-and-furrow fields, he leads us to a spot above his home village of Drayton, from where the valley’s rolling green folds reveal themselves to the full. “You can make out six churches from here,” he says. He’s right. Their medieval spires punctuate a view that tumbles out for miles in all directions.

Drayton itself is home to the smallest of these churches, a stone chapel with pews that seat about 25 people. It once spent time as the village bakery and still has a bricked-up serving hatch. “The vicar likes joking about the fact that Bethlehem translates as ‘House of Bread’,” Tim smiles.

Close by, they’re used to far bigger crowds at the hilltop Nevill Holt Hall. In early summer, the Grade I-listed hall draws thousands of opera and music lovers for its annual arts festival, though when we pass it on this midweek December morning its trimmed lawns and topiary are as quiet as everywhere else.

We finish in Great Easton, another village of thatched roofs and wide lanes. It has a little cafe, aptly called the Great, where I refuel on coffee and sticky spiced ginger cake before heading to Eyebrook reservoir on the village outskirts. It’s a glorious spot for winter birding – teal, wigeon and great white egrets in the shallows, a 200-strong flock of lapwings billowing overhead – and completely uncommercialised, with a tiny car park and just one other birdwatcher. He’s excited at seeing five smew a little earlier. I give it an hour and don’t see them, but still leave feeling enchanted.

Even a short trip needs a finale, which comes in the form of the extraordinary Harringworth Viaduct. I’m staggered when it comes into full view. The viaduct is a bona fide marvel of Victorian mega-engineering, a colossal 82-arch span stretching right across the valley. Glinting beneath it is the River Welland itself, looping and languid. It seems improbable that such an attractive valley should be hiding in plain sight in the middle of the country, but there’s not a tour bus to be seen. A treasure, indeed.

The trip was provided by the Nevill Arms in Medbourne, which has doubles from £140 B&B

Mar Hall Hotel and Resort near Glasgow underwent a £20m refurbishment and was voted in the top 20 resorts in Europe by Condé Nast Traveler readers – and I recently stayed there

Many tourists are drawn to Scotland for the Highlands, Loch Ness and whisky — not necessarily the outskirts of Glasgow. However, I recently discovered a charming corner of Scotland is just a stone’s throw from the baggage claim.

The phrase “airport hotel” isn’t one that ignites much enthusiasm. They’re more often a necessary inconvenience than a destination, but just outside Scotland’s largest city lies the newly refurbished Mar Hall Hotel and Resort. Let’s be clear, this isn’t so much an ‘airport hotel’ as it is a hotel near an airport. The five-star resort has recently undergone a £20million makeover under new management.

Despite being no more than 30 minutes from my flat, it feels like an escape to the country. Arriving at 3pm, which is sunset during the depths of winter here, the sun casts a golden hue over the Clyde and the gently rolling hills and trees beyond. Toto, I don’t think we’re in Glasgow anymore.

The new Mar Hall

At the grand old age of 180, Mar Hall has had several incarnations. Originally commissioned by the 11th Lord Blantyre as the latest Erskine house estate, it was later transformed into a hospital for soldiers returning from World War 1 with amputations.

Fast forward to 2025 and Mar Hall finds itself under fresh ownership once more. For Glaswegians such as myself, an evening spent in a lavish period property offers a welcome escape from everyday life. For those travelling from further away, it provides an exceptionally luxurious introduction to Scotland.

Despite the hotel’s new proprietors being Dubai-based — and its Instagram-ready aesthetic — Mar Hall’s makeover feels unmistakably Scottish. During a tour of the recently renovated establishment, Jim Hamilton from Graven, the interior design company behind the transformation, told me he grew up locally and still lives minutes away.

The quintessentially Glaswegian design house Timorous Beasties provided wallpapers and fabrics, while Glasgow’s Artpistol gallery sourced much of the artwork displayed throughout, including pieces from recent Glasgow School of Art graduates.

Noting how Mar Hall has transformed from “home to hospital to hospitality”, Jim said they aimed to maintain that sense of homeliness and care in its latest incarnation.

One of the callbacks to its Victorian roots is the potted palm trees flanking the entrance hall — a nod to an era when exotic plants were a symbol of sophistication and worldliness. The attention to detail extended to the very walls. A series of four large paintings depicting Scotland’s seasons, commissioned from Scottish artist Nichol Wheatley, are set within custom wall panelling, reflecting the style of the period.

The aesthetic is a bold mix of vibrant colours and patterns: it’s Victorian, but with a 2025 twist. Your gaze is constantly drawn upwards through the lofty spaces towards the stunning vaulted ceilings above. The overall effect is lavish and chic, yet inviting. Whilst it is a five-star resort, the staff are incredibly friendly, making me feel perfectly at ease.

The rooms

It’s nearing December and the hotel has been fully decked out for the festive season. The receptionist, who offers a typically warm Scottish welcome, pauses before the doors to the Gallery, clearly excited to show me the grand room at the heart of the hotel.

For a moment, I worry about having to feign excitement for this kindly lady, but when she swings open the doors, I’m genuinely taken aback. It’s even more impressive in person than online.

To reach one of the hotel’s 74 rooms, guests walk through the Gallery with its plush seating, fireplaces and marble bar. I’m handed the keys to the Erskine grand suite for the night, priced at £1,125 per night, kitted out with a regal sitting room and grand piano.

The sitting room and bathroom, featuring a rolltop bath, offer views over the golf course, River Clyde and picturesque woodlands beyond, in that order. The bespoke bookcases are so perfectly illuminated — as is everything in the hotel — that when I meet Jim, I can’t resist asking if he would design my flat pro bono.

The festive decorations extend to the rooms. I’m thrilled to discover a Christmas tree in the lounge, sparkling next to a handwritten note and dish of treats welcoming me to Mar Hall. It’s enough to make anyone feel warm and fuzzy.

The bedroom, with its luxurious four-poster bed and impeccably luxurious bedding, lulls me to sleep shortly after I start watching a cheesy Netflix Christmas film. It’s a pity I can’t spend more time savouring a hotel room of this standard.

Mar Hall only reopened in May this year, but I hear Kylie Minogue has already stayed in these suites twice.

The food

Before dinner, I enjoy a drink in the Slàinte bar, which is delightfully cosy with a crackling fireplace and a Christmas tree. For dinner, smoked salmon, beef, and sticky toffee pudding are the mainstays of ‘fancy dining’ in Scotland and rightly so. I’m pleased to see all three on the menu.

Layering local smoked salmon on a bed of horseradish and a crunchy cracker was a real treat. The blade of beef was as tender as expected, with dauphinoise and honey-roasted carrots making for a perfect mouthful. The only critique I’d have is that the pudding could have done with more toffee sauce, as is often the case.

The unexpected highlight, however, were the warm fig bread rolls – they’ve been on my mind ever since. And all throughout, the service struck a good balance between being attentive and unobtrusive.

Breakfast in the Dining Room offers a continental selection with a variety of hot options including full Scottish breakfast, sausage egg roll, eggs Benedict, and porridge. I chose the ‘rise & shine crumpet’, a tasty combination of Argyll smoked salmon with scrambled egg.

Location and facilities

Mar Hall is set within a 240-acre estate, just a 25-minute drive from Glasgow city centre or a mere 10 minutes from Glasgow Airport. However, it’s not easily reachable by public transport.

The 18-hole Earl of Mar golf course is conveniently located just outside. Like the hotel, it boasts picturesque views of the River Clyde and the Kilpatrick Hills.

The spa features a swimming pool, saunas and steam rooms. Other amenities include a gym, games room and private screening room.

Final thoughts

Mar Hall’s new owners have invested millions into the hotel with the aim of making it a world-class destination. Resort director Andy Roger shared plans for a clubhouse featuring a second restaurant and a state-of-the-art indoor-outdoor spa.

However, it faces tough competition just an hour up the M8. This year, Mar Hall made it into the top 20 resorts in Europe as voted by readers of American luxury travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler. The number one spot on the list? Gleneagles. This iconic resort is a Scottish summer camp for the rich, offering seven eateries, three golf courses and a spa, along with horse riding, shooting, fishing, off-roading and more in the hills of the Perthshire resort.

While it may not be a full-service millionaire’s playground, I’m already excited about returning. Mar Hall tops my list for a pampering staycation with my husband or for afternoon tea with out-of-town visitors. Once the spa is refurbished, I know it’ll be a huge hit with locals.

The more time I spent at Mar Hall, the less I wanted to leave, and that’s the sign of a great hotel.

Booking details

Rooms and packages can be booked through Mar Hall’s website. Rooms start from £292.

Theme parks have long had a checkered reputation when it comes to dining.

And theme park designer Eddie Sotto once wanted to put an end to such a reputation. “Why,” Sotto reflected to me in 2023, “are we not thinking more holistically as to what we’re putting inside the guest as to what we’re putting in front of the guest?”

“The old joke is that people don’t expect the food to be any good in an immersive environment,” Sotto said. “I don’t believe that. I believe it should all be good. You’re paying a lot. The opportunity is for it all to be transformative.”

Sotto, whose outspoken passion for theme park design made him a favorite among Disney’s vast fanbase, died on Dec. 17 in Orange County after a long battle with various heart-related issues, said his wife of 48 years, Deena. He was 67.

While Sotto’s best-known masterworks are overseas, be it the creation of Main Street, U.S.A., for Disneyland Paris or overseeing the development of the early trackless attraction Pooh’s Hunny Hunt for Tokyo Disneyland, he had a reputation for fighting tirelessly to enhance the theme park experience, pushing for improvements to everything including ride vehicles and the food on guests’ plates.

In the early ’90s while working for Walt Disney Imagineering, the company’s secretive arm devoted to theme park experiences, Sotto took it upon himself to hold a chef-led symposium for Imagineers.

“They taught us Imagineers a lot about the ritual of dining, and understanding what foods do to you,” he said, describing how theme park dining should go beyond developing a burger with a cute name.

He was also an early designer on Disneyland’s Indiana Jones Adventure, brought music to Space Mountain and elevated a Los Angeles landmark: He led an interior refresh of the now-shuttered Encounter restaurant at LAX.

Born in Hollywood on March 14, 1958, and raised in La Mirada and Fullerton, Sotto grew up obsessed with Knott’s Berry Farm and Disneyland. He married Deena, his high school sweetheart, when he was 19. Sotto initially followed in his late father’s early footsteps, working at Sears. His meteoric rise in theme park design would be unheard of today, as Sotto never attended college and was self taught, drafting theme park designs in his down time while selling appliances.

His hiring at Imagineering caused some debate, says Tony Baxter, the Disney legend who oversaw the creation of such attractions as Big Thunder Mountain, Indiana Jones Adventure, Star Tours and Splash Mountain. Outgoing and driven, Sotto began reaching out to Baxter for advice in the late ‘70s, says Baxter. It would take nearly a decade for Baxter to persuade his superiors to take a chance on Sotto, who was eventually hired by Imagineering in 1986 after stints at Knott’s Berry Farm and the Landmark Entertainment Group. It was at Landmark where he met one of his key mentors, Herb Ryman, a fine artist and longtime concept designer with Imagineering.

“For people in management, they kind of want to see a portfolio of something solid,” Baxter says. “But for me, it’s what’s going on in someone’s mind. And Eddie’s mind was sharp as a tack.”

So savvy, believed Baxter, that he was given the task of reimagining Main Street, U.S.A., for a French audience at Disneyland Paris. Sotto’s take on the introductory turn-of-the-century land is widely regarded as its finest, with its grand Victorian-inspired designs diving more deeply into factual American history than its predecessors. Enclosed archways line each side of the street behind the shops. The arcades serve as a shield from Parisian weather but also gave Sotto the opportunity to design installations that focus on the Statue of Liberty, American inventions and the bond between the United States and France.

The goal, says Baxter, was “to create shops in competition with European architecture.” Tom Morris, a retired Imagineer who worked closely with Sotto, says Sotto’s Main Street possesses “an extra layer of storytelling,” adding that Sotto gave the thoroughfare “more of an opportunity for exploration.”

“It’s excessive in the best way possible,” adds Christopher Merritt, a theme park designer and author who worked with Sotto on Pooh’s Hunny Hunt.

Morris recalled first meeting Sotto when they were teens in the 1970s. Morris jokes that he and Sotto both went to Disneyland “more than our parents thought was healthy, which was four or five times per year.” Their paths initially crossed at the Anaheim public library, where they went to peruse its Disneyland collection.

“There were files and files of photographs and employee newsletters — all sorts of weird and interesting things,” Morris says. “I always thought I must be the only weirdo who is interested in all of this, but one day there was another person in there and that person was Ed Sotto. That’s where we met, and I was really surprised, actually, that there was someone else afflicted with the same obsession for Disneyland.”

At Knott’s, Sotto was tasked with reimagining a motorcycle chase ride. Sotto, as recalled in the book “Knott’s Preserved” by Merritt and J. Eric Lynxwiler, took four buttons off a coat and created a mini soapbox car and ran it around a conference table as if it were a Matchbox toy. This would lead to the creation of the Wacky Soap Box Racers, in which the makeshift cars would careen through painted facades of cartoon-ish animals cheering on the guests. The attraction emphasized silliness, taking riders into “Catnip Junction” and through rat-infested sewers.

“He told me that everyone backed away from the project because he was the new kid,” says Merritt. “He got literally no budget. There was an end scene in a fireworks factory and they were making bombs out of rubber beach balls that they spray painted black. There were doing this by hand. And it’s a big hit.”

Sotto in his 13-plus years at Imagineering had an influence on Disneyland. As a concept designer on Indiana Jones Adventure, Sotto, says Baxter, conceived the idea in which the ride vehicles would appear to go through one of three different doors, an illusion accomplished by a rotating wall. Repeat visitors would sense as if the car was moving on an alternate track. Today, the walls no longer move and the effect is attempted via projection technology. “I felt my rolling ball [at the ride’s end] and Eddie’s choice room were the two things that really made the ride unique in terms of, ‘Wow, how did they do that?’” Baxter says.

Sotto ascended quickly while at Imagineering, rising to the position of senior vice president, concept design.

“Eddie just kept sketching and drawing,” Morris says. “He was inspired by Herb Ryman and that was Herb’s motto: ‘Just keep drawing.’ I just think when you have a lot of quick sketching acuity, word gets out. People know. This is someone you want on your team, especially in the early stages, to help concept, bring forth and pitch an idea.”

In the mid-’90s, Sotto realized a dream of many an Imagineer, particularly Morris, of bringing onboard audio onto a roller coaster, specifically Disneyland’s Space Mountain. Today, it’s commonplace for coasters to have synced music or sound effects, but Morris says there were technical hurdles that needed to be solved, most notably related to the engineering of the speaker sets on individual cars.

Sotto pushed it through, but not without some personal touches. An avid fan of rock ‘n’ roll, Sotto tapped surf rock guitar legend Dick Dale for a part of the composition, which heavily pulled from Camille Saint-Saëns’ “Aquarium” section of “The Carnival of the Animals.” The result was otherworldly, but also rooted in a sound associated with riding the Southern California waves. Dale’s riffs, wrote Sotto on his website, “were to be triggered to compliment each twist, turn and drop of your ‘rocket.’”

“He loved Orange County surf guitar music,” says Merritt. “So he hires Dick Dale for this intergalactic soundtrack for Space Mountain. They did some promotional thing where they put Dick Dale standing on Space Mountain playing his guitar. That’s just the audaciousness of Eddie.”

In fact, Sotto wrote on his site, it was the promise to play atop Space Mountain that sold Dale on the gig. Sotto would leave Imagineering in 1999 to soon after establish his own Laguna Beach-based SottoStudios, but not before getting an opportunity with Imagineering to remodel Encounter at LAX. Sotto’s vision was a space-age bachelor pad, a place, he said in 2023, “where George Jetson and Barbarella might meet for a drink,” with lava lamp-inspired pillars and soda fountains modeled in the shape of vintage sci-fi ray guns, complete with sound effects.

Sotto long spoke of the restaurant, which closed in 2013, as one of his favorite projects.

“Theme has to go deep,” Sotto said. “It has be something that’s relevant and exciting to people. I spent weeks putting together 11 hours of music for Encounter. What you were hearing could be a B-side from William Shatner’s space album. Theme has to reward your close inspection at a rich level. That’s why people return.”

SottoStudios over the years was heavily involved in the automobile industry, as Sotto led the design of many car showrooms. Sotto also had a passion for restaurants, and worked on numerous L.A. establishments including John Sedlar’s shuttered but acclaimed Rivera. Sotto’s career would also take him to Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin offices, for which he designed a Jules Verne-inspired rocketship fireplace that doubles as a lobby meeting space.

And his passion for theme parks never wavered, says Baxter, even as his heart issues worsened. At their monthly lunches, Baxter notes that he and Sotto would continue to brainstorm new Disney attractions or alternative directions to what the company was announcing. Sotto, says Baxter, spent his final few days at Orange’s UCI Medical Center, but was given a room with a view of Disneyland’s fireworks, which he looked forward to watching each evening. Baxter recalled a picture of the two of them eating chili cheese dogs at Disneyland.

“He sent it to me, and said, ‘I’m dreaming of a day when we can do this again,’” Baxter says. “That was just two weeks ago.”

In addition to his wife, Deena, Sotto is survived by their son Brian, daughter Venice and her husband, Rocky.

On the Friday night after Thanksgiving, a hotel room on the 17th floor of the Hotel Indigo in Downtown Los Angeles was transformed into a leather dressing room. About a dozen friends crowded around a king-size bed, cracking open Tecates, vibing to techno house music from a portable speaker, and adjusting each other’s harnesses.

The flash of a digital camera went off like a strobe as Yair Lopez documented his friends before their night at an afterparty. They were all there as part of the L.A. iteration of CLAW: a national leather and kink convention that offers workshops, parties and community spaces for people interested in BDSM culture. Founded in 2002, the convention started out in Cleveland, but has also held events in in L.A. since 2021.

As others spent their Thanksgiving holiday with blood relatives at the dinner table, this particular gathering was dubbed “Leather Thanksgiving” — a celebration of chosen family, cobbled together from various corners of L.A.’s queer nightlife. For Lopez and his friends, that sense of belonging is only growing.

“This chain was gifted to me from a friend,” Lopez said as he adjusted the silver around his neck. “Chains with a lock represent that you have a dom and the other person has the key. I’m still waiting for the lock,” he added jokingly, glancing at his boyfriend.

It was a big day for Lopez. Earlier he showcased three of his photos as part of a leather art gallery and attended a screening of “Encuerados,” a short documentary he appeared in, which shadowed a group of Latino men carving out space in L.A.’s leather community. An “Encuerados” afterparty would soon follow.

For Lopez and his friends, leather is less about fetish and more about kinship, safety and visibility, in a city where queer Latino spaces remain scarce.

Lopez has become a visible force in L.A.’s leather underground scene, building community through both his art and the spaces he helps create. He has self-published his work through photos and zines; he also founded Contramundo, a Latino leather night at the Bullet Bar in North Hollywood. His community work even led to a third-place finish in the 2023 Mr. L.A. Leather competition.

He started shooting a decade ago, moving from street scenes and hikes to L.A.’s queer nightlife. That work eventually led him to the Eagle, where he found a muse and a community he didn’t know he needed.

“I grew up in a pretty religious Mexican household in the San Fernando Valley. I was made to feel ashamed of who I was, even my own body, so finding this felt so needed,” he recalled.

Located in Silver Lake, the Eagle is a legacy leather bar that has anchored L.A.’s kink scene for decades. It is also one of the few remaining spaces for this corner of queer nightlife. And while Lopez did feel seen through the leather community, there was still a piece missing.

“It is no surprise that a lot of gay spaces are predominantly white, so finding gay brown community is hard. But that changed when I started meeting other like-minded Latinos in leather,” Lopez said.

One of those Latinos was Leonardo Iriarte, the first Latino Mr. L.A. Leather and co-founder of Payasos L.A., a nonprofit that organizes events and mutual aid efforts to support Latino visibility in the leather world.

The group of friends ran into Iriarte as they made their way to the 18th floor, where he was DJing for the night in a large, dimly lit conference room.

Dressed in black leather pants and boots, Iriarte had “Mr. L.A. Leather 2011” embroidered across the back of his vest. The Michoacán native also happened to be the protagonist of the “Encuerados” documentary and host of the “” afterparty.

“When I moved to the United States in 2001, I didn’t move for the classic American dream of looking for a better life financially,” said Iriarte. “My purpose of moving here was to be free as a gay person.”

And while Iriarte did find that freedom he hoped for, he was not prepared for the racism he would encounter in the leather scene — especially after winning his title.

“I remember a hate campaign and even death threats after I won,” he said. “It was scary, but it opened a door for other Latinos, and this space has grown so much since.”

As it gets closer to midnight, the dark conference room swells with bodies moving to Iriarte’s pulsing techno. Partygoers poured in sporting leather chaps, chest-hugging harnesses, and even tejana hats for a vaquero-leather twist.

Lopez put down his camera to circulate and greet friends from over the years. He bumped into Orlando Bedolla, director of “Encuerados,” who first met Lopez four years ago while filming the documentary.

“I learned about his photography, the zine he was making, all of it,” Bedolla said. “I found him interesting because he is literally a Latino increasing Latino representation in the leather community.”

Bedolla recalled attending CLAW L.A. in 2021 and going to his first Latino party there after getting an invite from Payasos L.A. Inside, he found a room full of mostly Latino men in jockstraps, harnesses and leather. He was struck by the energy of an underground community he didn’t realize existed. That night would become the seed for the film.

On the dance floor, colored lights flashed across Lopez’s visage as he tried to keep track of his room key. His friends borrowed it to run upstairs to their shared room for more drinks — and he wondered aloud about how messy it would be after their two-night stay.

These spaces, low-lit yet overflowing with camaraderie, offer the community something harder to find anywhere else, especially during the holidays: the freedom to be fully themselves.

“When I step into spaces like this, I don’t just see leather,” Lopez said, taking a sip of his vodka soda. “I see people reaching for some kind of joy and connection we’re constantly told is wrong. But we all want to feel touched and seen — and there’s nothing wrong with that.”