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WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has cleared the way for the Trump administration to build a border wall through the scenic and rugged Big Bend sector of west Texas.

The justices on Monday granted an emergency appeal from Trump’s lawyers and set aside a judge’s order that had paused further construction along a 517-mile section of the Rio Grande.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented alone and without an explanation.

In an unsigned opinion, the court said federal courts did not have the authority to stand in the way and block efforts along the border.

“The balance of the equities also favors the government,” the court said. “Construction in the Big Bend Sector will diminish the [plaintiffs’] ability to use and enjoy the area. But Congress’s enactment of [the special law] — which permits the Secretary to waive the requirements of environmental protection and other conservation laws — reflects a clear preference for expeditious border construction over the very harms” cited by the opponents.

A broad coalition of environmentalists, cattle ranchers, farmers, river boat guides, outdoor activists and church leaders had gone to court in El Paso seeking to stop the construction.

“The Trump administration and its contractors are hellbent on destroying one of America’s greatest national parks, and the Supreme Court just gave them the green light,” said Laiken Jordahl, national public lands advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “This horrific decision clears the way for contractors to bulldoze pristine desert and dynamite canyon walls before the courts have even decided whether this destruction is legal.”

But Trump’s lawyers pointed to unusual measures adopted by Congress that gave the Department of Homeland Security broad authority to construct border barriers “to deter illegal crossings in areas of high illegal entry.” One provision authorized the department’s secretary to “waive all legal requirements” that stood in the way, including environmental protection measures.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said it does not plan to build a border wall in the Big Bend National Park, with its steep canyons, but said new patrol roads and vehicle barriers would be added.

However, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone, an appointee of President George W. Bush, issued a preliminary injunction on Oct. 2 to halt further work on the border barriers. She said the government’s own evidence showed illegal entries and drug smuggling were much less common in the Big Bend sector.

“For ‘high illegal entry’ to impose any limit, it must at least mean, not ‘the lowest rate of illegal entry,’” she said. “The Bend Sector has the lowest rate of illegal entry along the entire U.S.-Mexico border.”

Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer filed a fast-track appeal at the Supreme Court and urged the justices to set aside her order and to rule on the underlying legal question. He cited evidence that over four years, there were 89,000 apprehensions of illegal migrants in the Big Bend sector which covers nearly one-fourth of the U.S.-Mexico border.

“The Sinaloa and Juarez cartels operate south of this sector across the Mexico border and seek to exploit any vulnerabilities in United States border protection to traffic humans, drugs and weapons across the border and infiltrate the United States,” he told the court. “Leaving a 300-plus-mile gap in border defenses would act as a dangerous magnet for cartels and other bad actors to exploit as other routes close off.”

Grammy Award-winning artist Macklemore said he is getting pushback from concert venues as he brings his Free Palestine benefit concerts to the U.S.

The rapper behind hits including “Thrift Shop” and “Can’t Hold Us” said on Instagram that nine U.S. venues told him in mid-September that they had available dates for concerts, but “once they found out these were my benefit shows for Palestine, those dates were suddenly off the table. The doors were closed.”

Macklemore performs in 2024 in Australia.

(Morgan Hancock / Getty Images)

The nine venues include Inglewood’s Kia Forum, L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena and Madison Square Garden in New York.

Earlier this year, Macklemore said he was removed from Ed Sheeran’s Loop tour after venue owners told Sheeran they would not host him at their stadiums if Macklemore was still part of the concert. Sheeran has said his promoters made the decision, according to the BBC.

Macklemore launched his Free Palestine tour in October, playing in Dublin, Paris and London. The concert proceeds benefit organizations supporting the Palestinian movement, according to the tour’s website.

Fans pose as they make their way into the “Macklemore & Friends “Free Palestine” Tour last month at Wembley Arena in London.

(Alberto Pezzali / Getty Images)

Representatives for the Kia Forum and AEG, which owns Crypto.com Arena, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

MSG Entertainment, which owns Madison Square Garden, said that Macklemore is “not an arena level act.”

“We have some of the busiest venues in the world with extremely limited availability,” MSG Entertainment, said in a statement.

Spokespeople for the talent agency that reps Macklemore did not immediately return a request for comment.

Weighing in on the Palestinian issue can be a sensitive subject in Hollywood, as some people in the entertainment industry have received backlash on their social media posts on the topic.

Aerial view of Crypto.com Arena and the L.A. Live sports and entertainment district.

(AEG)

In 2023, a prominent agent at Creative Artists Agency stepped aside from her leadership roles at the company after she reposted inflammatory comments on Instagram calling Israel’s response to Hamas “genocide.” That same year, actor Melissa Barrera was dropped from her role in “Scream VII” after she shared pro-Palestinian statements on Instagram.

El Cerrito High School in the Bay Area has canceled the remainder of its football season following a month-long police investigation into allegations of hazing and sexual assault involving at least 22 athletes over the last three seasons.

The probe stems from “a mandated reporter” on Oct. 2 telling police that members of the football team were engaging in bullying and hazing, the El Cerrito Police Department said in a statement. A mandated reporter in California is someone who has responsibility for children through their employment or volunteer status and is legally required to report suspected child abuse.

The alleged victims were other members of the football team. Detectives interviewed them along with school staff and witnesses. The West Contra Costa Unified School District, in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, said the alleged incidents were said to have occurred between September 2024 and October 2026.

The police said they are investigating allegations of battery, sexual battery, assault, false imprisonment, dissuading a victim, conspiracy and stalking.

Detectives have obtained video evidence that corroborated the allegations, although police officials said they would not release details because of “the sensitive nature of an ongoing investigation that involves juvenile victims, witnesses and suspects.”

El Cerrito head coach Tim Johnson was placed on leave, and the team’s regular-season finale Friday against El Sobrante De Anza High was canceled. El Cerrito has a 6-3 record but will not participate in the upcoming playoffs to defend their title won last year.

The school district said it is conducting its own investigation under Title IX.

“No child should ever experience what our students have described,” District Supt. Cheryl Cotton said. “While we have worked to focus on accountability for the actions of individual players up until this point, new information has led to new decisions.

“We must now make the very tough call to immediately suspend the El Cerrito High football program in order to prevent any further harm and restore a safe learning environment for our students.”

Cotton said the district is “providing resources for all impacted and involved students” through classroom instruction on anti-hazing and bystander education.

The El Cerrito football program is two years removed from a controversy that allegedly coincided with the beginning of the hazing. Six games were forfeited by the Gauchos in 2024 and their coach at the time, Jacob Rincon, was suspended for breaking rules prohibiting undue influence and athletically motivated transfers. Several players were deemed ineligible, and the program was placed on probation for two years.

Some parents and advocates of the program were outraged by the school’s action, calling on Rincon to be reinstated and then-principal Malcolm Norrington to be fired. More than 100 students engaged in a walkout, waving homemade posters and chanting “Free Coach Jake,” and “No More Norrington,” according to digital news site Richmond Confidential.

Parents gathered more than 2,000 signatures in a petition to fire Norrington, who left the district in 2025. Rincon was dismissed and replaced last season by Johnson, who led the team to a 13-2 record and the school’s first State Division 4-A championship.

According to the police, however, the hazing and sexual assaults continued in 2025 and into 2026.

Similar allegations have marred prominent high school football programs in Southern California in recent years.

A lawsuit in 2024 details a sexual assault against a sophomore football player at Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Rancho Santa Margarita that triggered a police investigation and left the boy with post-traumatic stress disorder, severe depression and anxiety. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department investigated after the boy went to a hospital emergency room and alleged he had been sexually assaulted.

Santa Margarita principal Cheri Wood admitted in emails obtained by the Orange County Register that “at least 8” other players were allegedly assaulted by their teammates in a similar manner. The lawsuit was dismissed after a confidential out-of-court settlement was reached. The coach at the time was replaced by former NFL quarterback Carson Palmer, and Santa Margarita won a state title in 2025 and currently sits atop The Times’ high school football rankings.

A Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos High football player placed in a chokehold and whipped with a belt by two older players in a locker room in 2023 was initially described by Chaffey Joint Union High School District officials as “horseplay.” However, a video of the victim begging and screaming was circulated widely online and the district reversed its position, reclassified the event as prohibited hazing and issued undisclosed student disciplinary measures.

A 2021 lawsuit shined a light on players at Santa Ana Mater Dei High — one of the most celebrated football programs in the nation — being severely beaten by other players in a brutal hazing ritual called “bodies.” The family of a victim who suffered a traumatic brain injury and a broken nose filed a lawsuit against Mater Dei and the Diocese of Orange, alleging the Mater Dei administration covered up the incident.

“You drop your kids off at school and give them a kiss goodbye … and you feel like you’re putting them somewhere they can be safe,” the victim’s mother told The Times. “I felt like Mater Dei had the highest protection, I felt my kid would be safe there. Then for them to turn a blind eye and be so unsupervised. … It’s like, you failed my child.”

In the race to become Los Angeles’ next mayor, City Councilmember Nithya Raman holds a three-percentage-point lead over incumbent Karen Bass, according to preliminary results released by county officials Wednesday.

Early leads may change as the vote count continues. So far, Raman leads with 51.7% of the vote, while Bass trails with 48.3%.

The precinct-level results include more than 730,000 votes in the mayoral race counted as of 3 a.m. on election night. The county’s latest update totals to more than 784,000 votes.

The map below shades each precinct by the leading candidate. Deeper green or orange indicate a wider lead. Precincts with more votes cast per square mile appear more solid, with areas with lower voter density fade to white. Hatched areas had 10 or fewer votes.

With the county’s latest returns, about 66.6% of the expected vote is in. The Associated Press, which estimates the voter turnout, has not called the race.

Election results will be finalized by the California secretary of state in early December.

Oakland, California – Protesters dressed as cardboard robots chanted and danced to a drumbeat as they protested against new data centres outside Oakland City Hall last month.

Their concerns largely focused on how the centres — which process large amounts of digital information — might strain the energy grid.

The result, they argued, would not only be environmental harm but also sky-high electricity bills for local households.

“Power prices have gone up so much in Oakland that some people are thinking of shutting off their power,” said Carlos Gutierrez, an activist for Communities for a Better Environment, an environmental justice group.

“And the city is planning to provide power to a data centre instead.”

Opposition to data centres is growing across the United States, as residents express concern about their rapid expansion.

More than 3,000 data centres already operate in the country, with more than 1,500 others in development, according to the Pew Research Center.

But the backlash is perhaps most striking in California’s San Francisco Bay Area, a region considered to be the heart of the artificial intelligence (AI) boom.

Major AI companies such as Anthropic, OpenAI and Meta are based in the Bay Area, and the industry’s growth has been credited with fuelling a local economic renaissance.

Data centres house the advanced computer chips and servers needed to run AI-powered services such as Anthropic’s Claude and OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

But they also require 24-hour power and a large supply of water to cool their processors.

Even with such cooling technology, data centres are notorious for emitting heat, leading to an increase in land surface temperatures as high as 9 degrees Celsius (16 degrees Fahrenheit).

A midterm election issue

Concerns about the cost of rapid data centre growth, both environmentally and financially, have catapulted the issue into the discourse around Tuesday’s midterm elections.

In the final two months before the vote, at least seven Bay Area cities, including San Francisco and Richmond, have passed temporary moratoriums on data centre construction.

They include Oakland, which passed a data centre moratorium on October 6, after days of protest.

Local politicians competing in Tuesday’s midterms have also used the topic as a wedge issue, to rally support among certain pockets of voters.

One of the most closely watched races in the Bay Area is for the seat left vacant by longtime Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi. After 39 years in the House of Representatives, Pelosi is retiring at the end of the year.

Two Democrats are competing in Tuesday’s election to fill her position in Congress: San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan and state Senator Scott Wiener.

Each one has staked out a different position on AI data centres. Wiener, for instance, opposes any ban on data centres.

“A blanket data centre moratorium could undermine AI regulation,” he told the publication Mission Local.

Chan, meanwhile, has pledged to seek a nationwide moratorium on data centres, at least until responsible AI regulation is put in place.

“Let’s start with a moratorium on data centres. Allow us to have that moment to regulate artificial intelligence,” she said at a debate in October.

Chan played a leading role in passing San Francisco’s moratorium in early October.

A poll from the University of Southern California showed Wiener leading Chan 47 percent to 41, as of mid-October.

Navigating public backlash

“Right now, data centre opposition is an issue that unifies the US public like no other,” said Shum Preston, a political analyst based in San Francisco.

So far, there has been relatively little opposition to the data centre moratoriums in local hearings. But he speculates that there may be several reasons for the lack of pushback to the bans.

Among them are the surveys indicating widespread public backlash to data centre creation.

An October CNBC poll found that 63 percent of registered US voters oppose building data centres within 16 kilometres, or 10 miles, of their homes.

“Data centres poll very poorly, and developers probably don’t want to put their supervisor friends in trouble ahead of elections. So they probably let this pass,” Preston said.

He also signalled that the short-term nature of the moratoriums may be a factor.

Certain Bay Area cities like San Francisco, Brisbane and Oakland paused construction on data centres for 45 days, with the option to extend the ban later.

Opponents of the moratoriums “will be more vocal when” the 45 days end, Preston said. By that time, the heat of the midterm election season will also have settled, he added.

“That’s when the hearings will get more contentious,” he said.

Not long enough?

Another hurdle facing the moratoriums is the lack of transparency surrounding data centre construction.

Supervisor Shamann Walton, who sponsored San Francisco’s moratorium ordinance, has argued that the city’s definition of “data centres” is outdated.

Created in 2001 — long before the AI boom — the city planning code defines data centres as “internet service exchanges”, a definition that may not accurately characterise the technology today.

Walton said the outdated language has made it hard for authorities to count how many data centres exist in the city.

Not being able to identify data centres can also prevent city officials from monitoring their power and water usage.

“We cannot use 2001 rules to regulate 2026 technology,” he said in a September 14 statement.

Another issue is the time it takes to carry out the necessary environmental assessments. The moratoriums may not offer enough time for a comprehensive review.

“Forty-five days is hardly enough time to document and study the impacts and then frame regulations,” said Roger Lin, senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, a US environmental nonprofit.

He added that legal barriers limit access to such information from the data centres themselves.

“Data centres often have nondisclosure agreements, so even local air quality boards may not know the impact of data centres on air quality,” said Lin.

Supporters tout economic benefits

Still, AI industry supporters have touted the growth of the data centres as evidence of a flourishing industry, with positive downstream effects for US communities.

Anthropic, for instance, is preparing an initial public offering (IPO) that is likely to raise billions of dollars.

But critics warn that the company’s growth may not translate into an economic boom for the San Francisco Bay Area overall.

Instead, residents fear unequal economic growth that primarily benefits the wealthy. Already, San Francisco faces some of the highest and fastest-growing home rental prices in the country.

At a hearing at San Francisco City Hall, a resident vented their frustrations about the data centres to the supervisors.

“This city is less for humans and more for robots and billionaires,” the resident said.

TeamLab, the Japan-born, tech-heavy immersive art collective, is plotting its first permanent U.S. exhibition in Anaheim. The group, stylized as teamLab, is moving into a 110,000-square-foot space at OCVibe, the 100-acre mixed-use entertainment district currently in development near the Honda Center.

Details are scant, as the TeamLab spot is not estimated to open until 2030, but a press release specifies this will be a new exhibition and not a recreation of one of the collective’s popular international exhibits. TeamLab got its start in Tokyo in 2001, but over the years grew from exhibiting in galleries to building its own museum-like spaces, today having permanent locales in Japan, China and Saudi Arabia.

A TeamLab installation is something of an immersive playground, inviting guests to sometimes take off their shoes to interact with floor-to-ceiling walk-through attractions that split the difference between art and play. One of its showcase facilities, Tokyo’s TeamLab Planets, welcomed more than 2.5 million visitors in 2024, a Guinness world record for the most visited art museum by a single group.

An artist’s rendering of the Anaheim location, estimated to open in 2030.

(OCVibe)

“For teamLab, through art, we seek to explore what perception is and what existence is,” said Toshiyuki Inoko, a founder of TeamLab, in a release announcing the exhibit.

“The artworks change with the presence of people, making them an integral part of the art itself. People immerse themselves with their entire bodies, transcending the boundaries between themselves, the artworks, and the world around them, becoming part of a borderless continuity.”

TeamLab’s Anaheim location is just three miles from Disneyland, which draws more than 17 million people to the area. TeamLab is just one of many immersive art destinations coming to SoCal, as Meow Wolf will be opening a permanent exhibition in the coming months, and firms such as Hopscotch and the Museum of Ice Cream also have area exhibitions on the horizon.

“Anaheim has always been a place where people come to experience something they can’t find anywhere else, and teamLab will expand our appeal to new audiences from around the world. Experiences like this inspire longer stays, repeat visits,” stated Mike Waterman, president and chief executive of the tourism-focused Visit Anaheim.

The deal between TeamLab and OCVibe backers is worth more than $100 million, Bloomberg reported. OCVibe is the vision of Henry and Susan Samueli, owners of the Anaheim Ducks, and it will open in phases. A 5,000 capacity concert hall is set to open next year, followed by a food hall.

The TeamLab building will be visible from the freeway, and is being designed by Smith-Clementi, OCVibe’s master planners. Based on concept art shown, expect a shimmering, scale-like pattern designed to evoke movement.

“This building feels different depending on the direction or pace of your approach,” said Julie Smith-Clementi . “The time of day, or movement of clouds participates in rendering its iridescent cloak, enriching what you think you see. We want the design to leave room for imagination and discovery and, like in nature, to offer something new with each visit.”

OCVibe will also offer office space, residences and two hotels. It’s estimated to be completed by 2033.

The L.A. City Council took modest steps Tuesday to help the homegrown film industry as it struggles to keep production in California.

The City Council passed two film-friendly measures, one that creates free permits for so-called micro-shoot productions and another that limits parking fees on city-owned lots, yards and civic properties and staging areas to $1 a day, regardless of the size of the project.

The city currently charges $450 a day for base camp parking at city-owned parks and $100 to $300 a day for crew parking, according to FilmLA.

“Both efforts advanced today aim to support independent shoots and attract aspiring storytellers to our city,” Councilmember Adrin Nazarian, who introduced the initiatives, said in a statement. “As we work to protect established productions, we must also uphold Los Angeles’ reputation as a hub for the next generation of filmmakers. People need to believe that this is still the town to turn their filmmaking dreams into reality.”

Micro-shoot permits refer to sets with up to 10 filmmakers on site that have a minimal community impact. Under this new ordinance, student filmmakers, documentary crews and ultra-low-budget projects will be able to obtain free permits. City departments soon will report back to the Council on how they plan to implement this.

The idea behind the $1 permits is to turn more areas of L.A. into homes for all kinds of productions.

Nazarian is chairman of the Council’s recently formed Ad Hoc Committee on Film, Entertainment and the Creative Industry, aimed at making filming in L.A. more accessible.

The steps come as film and TV production in the area continues on a downward trend. FilmLA, the nonprofit group that handles film permits for the region, recently reported that shoot days between July and September were down 4.8% from the same period last year and nearly 29% below the five-year average.

“The stark reality is that California is on the brink of losing its position as the nation’s premier destination for production spending,” Nazarian said during a City Council meeting this month. “While we retain the Hollywood name, the data makes it urgently clear, crisis-level clear, that Los Angeles is fast losing its footing as the center of film and television production.”

ARE you racking your brain for new ways to entertain the kids this half term, especially given the unpredictable weather?

Do not fear – here we’ve collated a full list of some of England’s best attractions in EVERY county in the UK, from walks in the rolling countryside, to electrifying museum exhibitions, donkey sanctuaries and even a tour of an enormous board game collection.

Bedfordshire

Stockford Discovery Centre, Luton

Discover charming gardens, engaging interactive exhibitions and one of Europe’s largest carriage collections.

Dunstable Downs, Dunstable

Soak in the stunning views of the Dunstable Downs, lovingly sculpted by nature over hundreds of years. Miles of circular walks and beautiful nature make it the spot for an afternoon amble.

Berkshire

Reading Museum, Reading

Learn all about Reading’s fascinating history by exploring an assortment of exhibitions, with everything from biscuit tins to beetles, Romans and Rodin. The museum also boasts it’s very own version of the Bayeux Tapestry – painstakingly recreated in full by Victorian embroiderers, and a great option if you’ve not been able to get tickets for the sell-out British Museum exhibition.

The Museum of English Rural Life, Reading

With nine distinct themed galleries, the museum walks you around the most comprehensive collection of rural artefacts ranging from huge steam trains to ancient farming tools.

Bristol

Banksy free walking tour, Bristol

Bristol is the hometown of the street artist Banksy. Take a self-guided tour through the artist’s very own stomping ground and admire some of his most famous works.

M Shed Museum, Bristol

The 1950s transit shed, originally called M Shed offers visitors a whistlestop tour of the city’s history.

Buckinghamshire

Wycombe Museum (the chair museum), High Wycombe

Quaint grounds holding a collection of local art and furniture from the 17th to the 21st centuries.

Coombe Hill, Dunsmore

Walk from the town base up to the prominent monument for panoramic views across the Chiltern Hills.

Cambridgeshire

The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

View huge collections of global antiquities, master paintings, pottery and a sprawling number of historical artefacts.

The Museum of Zoology, Cambridge

Enjoy wandering through the vast array of animal specimens, skeletons, fossils, and taxidermy, as well as several exciting educational displays.

Cheshire

Cheshire Story House, Cheshire

More than just a theatre, this beloved venue on Hunter Street offers free family craft sessions run every weekend.

Walk the city walls, Cheshire

Bring a brolly and good set of waterproofs and set off scaling Cheshire’s historic city walls, which includes two miles of Roman gates, medieval towers and stunning views across the city and Welsh hills.

City of London

The British Museum, Great Russell Street

The UK’s biggest museum, with the world’s largest collection of works – eight million pieces exploring human history, art, and culture. 

The Natural History Museum, South Kensington

One of the UK’s most popular museums with 80 million items, including the famous blue whale skeleton.

Cornwall

Falmouth Art Gallery, Falmouth

View a rotating fine art collection and family exhibitions inside the municipal buildings.

Healeys Cornish Cyder Farm, Penhallow

Visitors can access farm animal areas, historic farming equipment, jam kitchens, and even enjoy some free tasting sessions.

Cumbria

Kendal Castle, Kendal

Bring the dog and pack a picnic to enjoy a scenic stroll around Kendal Castle ruins with stunning views of the town.

Cookhouse Gallery, Windermere

A family run gallery with a wide selection of gorgeous paintings inspired by the local natural beauty.

Derbyshire

Derby Museum and Art Gallery, Derby

Home to the world’s largest collection of works by Joseph Wright of Derby, it features a range of historic artefacts and stunning artworks.

Pickford’s House, Derby 

Pickford’s House is located in a Georgian townhouse and features exhibitions of domestic life from the 18th to 20th centuries.

Devon

Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery, Exeter

Explore free galleries covering local history, natural history, world cultures, and an Egyptian tomb.

The Donkey Sanctuary, Sidmouth

Enjoy cuddling the 500 donkeys and mules looked after by cheerful charity workers.

Dorset

Tyneham Village, Wareham

Amble through the abandoned village of Tyneham, which was evacuated in December 1943 during WWII and still looks the same as it did 80 years ago.

Gold Hill, Shaftesbury

Walk down the iconic steep cobbled street featured in the Hovis advert. Enjoy incredible views of the sloping countryside, as well as the village’s quaint shops and cafes.

County Durham

Durham University Oriental Museum, Durham

Discover extensive art and archaeology collections from North Africa and Asia.

Locomotion Rail Museum, Shildon

Home to Europe’s largest undercover collection of historic rail vehicles.

East Riding of Yorkshire

Arctic Corsair, Hull 

Dive into Hull’s deep-sea fishing industry at this museum that includes a historic deep-sea trawler built in 1960.

Ferens Art Gallery, Hull 

A fine art collection with everything from Viking swords and Roman mosaics to a full-sized Woolly Mammoth.

East Sussex

The Laines, Brighton

Wander the historic laines of Brighton, with winding cobbled streets that lead to endless jewellers and quaint trinket shops.

Hastings Fishermen’s Museum

A small but mighty museum exploring the history of Hastings‘ fishing industry, featuring boats, videos, and a small shop.

Essex

Clacton Pier, Clacton-on-sea

Europe’s largest pleasure pier has something for all ages, from exhilarating rides to mountains of arcade machines and gorgeous sea views.

Pets Corner, Harlow

Pet, stroke and feed the animals at pets corner, with dozens of farmyard friends and even some exotic extras.

Gloucestershire

The Museum of Board Games, Newent

Explore the unique museum’s 600 collection spanning the 19th century through the mid 20th century, including early linen-printed history boards and 1950s TV-themed games.

Forest of Dean Sculpture Trail

Enjoy a 4.5-mile stroll through beautiful forest, stopping to enjoy the spectacle of woodland sculptures.

Greater London

Myddelton House Gardens, Enfield 

Former home and gardens of the horticulturist, Edward Bowles. 

William Morris Gallery, London 

Step inside the famous textile designer’s former home and learn about his influence on the design industry.

Greater Manchester

Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester

Home to 250 years of innovations across science and technology, as well as UK’s oldest surviving train station.

People’s History Museum, Manchester 

Learn about the history of the working class in the UK, with displays on the Peterloo Massacre and the women’s suffrage movement. 

Hampshire

New Forest National Park

Walk or cycle through the magical New Forest countryside. Pause to watch the friendly free-roaming ponies and spot the cattle and deer munching away in the meadows.

Fort Nelson, Fareham

Explore the huge Victorian fort and view over 700 artillery pieces with free admission via the Royal Armouries.

Herefordshire

The Cat’s Back trail, Craswall

Take a dramatic ridge walk along the border for stunning valley views.

Longtown Castle, Hereford

Explore the overgrown medieval ruins and clamber over rugged stone walls.

Hertfordshire

Natural History Museum of Tring

Enjoy quirky Victorian zoological collections and fossils. The museum houses one of the finest collections of mammals, birds, reptiles and insects in the UK.

North Hertfordshire Museum, Hitchin 

Take in a delightful selection of local history galleries and art, including a woolly mammoth tusk to a pair of Stanley Matthews’s football boots.

Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary, Ventnor

Home to rescued donkeys and ponies, a great day out for animal lovers. Visitors can relax afterwards at the cafe or enjoy browsing the gift shop packed with pony-themed trinkets.

The Isle of Wight Bus & Coach Museum, Ryde

Enjoy free entry and browse and climb aboard vintage buses and coaches. The museum is home to impressive collection of Island buses and coaches dating from 1927 to modern day models.

Kent

Maidstone Museum, Maidstone

Collection of more than 600,000 artefacts and specimens, exploring fine art, human history, and textiles.

The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge, Canterbury

Housed in a Grade II listed building, the museum is home to some of Canterbury’s best artworks.

Lancashire

Harris Museum and Art Gallery, Preston 

Discover art, culture, and history, with displays on printed textiles, the remains of an elk, and glassblown scent bottles. 

Samlesbury Hall, Samlesbury 

A stately home dating back to 1185 with a cafe, shepherd huts and UK’s first wafflery.

Leicestershire

New Walk Museum and Art Gallery, Leicester 

Displays include a 15-metre Rutland Dinosaur and stories about Leicester’s achievements and obstacles.

Newarke Houses Museum, Leicester 

Built in 1511, with exhibits on the Leicestershire Regiment and Tudor objects.

Lincolnshire

Lincoln Museum and Usher Gallery, Lincolnshire 

Showcases everything from artefacts from the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages, to works by Turner, as well as forensic processes of the Anglo Saxons. 

Museum of Lincolnshire Life, Lincolnshire 

Home to 250,000 items dating back to 1750, including a World War I tank, as well as a museum trail and playground for kids.

Merseyside

Victoria Gallery and Museum, Liverpool 

Uncover artworks across different eras, including archaeological items and oceanography displays. 

Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool

National gallery of the North, with paintings and sculptures from Rembrandt, David Hockney and Rodin.

Norfolk

Crabbing in Wells

Grab a pack of bacon and your crabbing gear and set up camp at Wells’s famous crabbing quay.

Norwich Cathedral

Explore the 44-acre close and join free hourly guided tours from Monday to Saturday.

North Yorkshire

Dorman Museum, Middlesbrough

Discover the town’s history with dinosaur installations and a slice of meteorite from space.

Northamptonshire

Northampton Museum and Art Gallery, Northampton

Tour the quaint museum’s fascinating array of displays, including its shoe collection, fine and decorative art and local heritage artefacts.

Wellingborough Museum, Wellingborough

Traverse through Wellingborough’s local social history. Includes artifacts and rotating family-friendly community exhibits inside a distinctive Victorian building.

Northumberland

The Grace Darling Museum, Bamburgh 

A unique museum that teaches visitors about the life of Victorian Britain’s greatest heroine, Grace Darling, who risked her life to rescue nine survivors from the wrecked SS Forfarshire in 1838.

Hardian’s Wall, Brampton 

Explore one of England’s national treasures, Hadrian’s Wall, the most heavily fortified and best-preserved land frontier of the ancient Roman Empire.

Nottinghamshire

Sherwood Forest, Mansfield

Wander the forest once home to Robin Hood and discover the history of the legend of the archer and his Merry Men who stole from the rich to give to the poor.

Green’s Windmill and Science Centre, Nottingham

Climb a working 19th-century windmill and explore interactive science exhibits dedicated to mathematical physicist George Green.

Oxfordshire

Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

The world’s first university museum, featuring vast art and archaeology collections opened in 1683 thanks to gifts from Elias Ashmole.

Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford

Famous for its dense Victorian-style cabinets filled with global anthropological and archaeological artifacts. Connected to Oxford’s Museum of Natural History, which is also free.

Rutland

Rutland County Museum, Rutland

More than just your run-of-the-mill museum, Rutland offers interactive family-friendly exhibits like an AR iSandBox and a Jurassic Sea Dragon virtual reality experience.

Oakham Castle, Oakham

Travel through time as you explore the 12th-century Norman Great Hall in famous for its unique collection of more than 200 ceremonial horseshoes, and plenty more historic gems.

Shropshire

The British Ironwork Museum, Oswestry

Home to a selection of sculptures, awe-inspiring artworks, and stunning trial walks. Offers free entry during off-peak periods, such as Tuesdays to Fridays during September to February.

Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery, Shrewsbury

Set in a Victorian music hall, Shrewsbury museum features local and international artefacts and art.

Somerset

The Museum of Somerset, Taunton 

Explore 400 million years of Taunton’s history across nine galleries, including an 80,000-year-old Banwell Bear Ice Age skull

Visit Cheddar Gorge

Explore the nation’s biggest gorge on foot, enjoying dramatic limestone cliffs and hiking trails.

South Yorkshire

Kelham Island Museum, Sheffield 

Learn about life in Victorian-era Sheffield, with artefacts including a 1760’s chocolate pot and Metrovick milk float.

Millennium Gallery, Sheffield 

All things art and design in Sheffield, including one of the finest collections of metalwork in the world. 

Staffordshire

Samuel Johnson Birthplace Museum, Lichfield 

Learn about the first lexicographer Samuel Johnson, who created A Dictionary of the English Language.

Stafford Castle, Stafford 

Step back to 1100 AD with archaeological artefacts and learn about the history of the castle.

Suffolk

Christchurch Mansion, Ipswich 

Tudor brick mansion featuring collection of items from the Tudor period including clothing, children’s toys, and musical instruments. 

Nowton Park, Bury St Edmunds

A 200-acre park featuring a maze, a totem pole, wildflower meadows, and a large arboretum.

Surrey

Mercedes-Benz World

See up to 100 rare and exotic cars up close, while also stopping to absorb the electric atmosphere from the track.

Guildford House Gallery

Browse free rotating art displays and local craft exhibitions, including  antique furniture, fine plaster ceilings, a unique painted closet. 

Tyne and Wear

South Shields Museum and Art Gallery, South Shields 

Discover the history of South Tyneside inside this historic building with a Victorian tea room, served by costumed staff.

OuseBurn Farm, Newcastle upon Tyne 

Located in the heart of Newcastle, the working city farm includes animals, gardens, fields for strolls, and a sensory trail.

Warwickshire

St Nicholas’s Park, Warwick

Parked next to Warwick Castle, the iconic park offers large open green spaces, a great children’s playground, and scenic riverside walks.

Rugby Art Gallery and Museum

Explore a mix of local history and contemporary art. The museum and gallery is home to 220 pieces of 20th-century and contemporary British art and interaction displays of Roman artefacts.

West Midlands

National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas 

British site of national remembrance with over 400 memorials and 25,000 trees. 

Aston Hall, Birmingham 

Grade I-listed Jacobean house with a beautiful public park, as well as collections from the Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery. 

West Sussex

Petworth Park, Petworth

Explore 700 acres of free landscaped parkland and spot its historic herd of fallow deer.

Chichester Cathedral

Step inside the 950-year-old landmark and soak in the history, but don’t forget to look out for the resident peregrine falcons.

West Yorkshire

Royal Armouries, Leeds

Historic weaponry and armour, from Japanese samurai swords to modern warfare including Henry VIII’s armour.

Bolling Hall Museum, Bradford 

Learn about the lives of the families that lived in Bolling Hall over different time periods. 

Wiltshire

Longleat House, Warminster 

Explore an Elizabethan manor house with 900 acres of parkland. It features featuring fine art, period furnishings, and 19th-century Crace interiors.

Avebury Stone Circle, Marlborough

Explore the famous standing stone monument and 17th-century stables housing a museum to the iconic monument.

Worcestershire

Malvern Hills

Wander iconic hills, famous for being home to fresh spring water, and enjoy panoramic views of the sloping countryside.

Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum, Worcester

Enjoy local-history displays, fine art and relics in a Victorian-era brick building with gift shop and cafe.

Even as recently as a decade ago, Las Vegas hotel concierges and plenty of locals would have described the gap between the Strip and Fremont Street as something of a dead zone. This was a ragged corridor of old warehouses and auto shops, with more boarded-up storefronts than open doors.

“You couldn’t park your car and not worry,” remembers artist Gem Jaxx, who moved to Vegas in 2006 from Monterey County, Calif. “You couldn’t even walk the streets.”

Yet the idea of an arts district had been taking shape since the early ’90s, when the city identified an 18-block area south of downtown as ripe for creative development. Loosely framed by Hoover Avenue to the north and Colorado Avenue to the south, with Commerce Street and Fourth Street marking its west and east edges, this region became known as the 18b Arts District. First Friday, launched by a small group of artists and gallery owners in 2002, started pulling crowds into the neighborhood. Sometimes tens of thousands at a time, if only once a month.

The regular influx of visitors (combined with cheap rents and plenty of retail space) drew a wave of interesting tenants: antique dealers, secondhand clothing boutiques, microbreweries, cocktail bars. As the mix of businesses grew, 18b began to matter less as a set of boundaries and more as an identity.

“Very quickly it changed,” says Josh Kellman, president of the Arts District board. “Businesses here were saying, ‘Hey, I want to be in 18b.’ No one wants to feel like they’re outside the neighborhood.”

Today, the Las Vegas Arts District is a low-key alternative to the Strip for dining, drinks, art, shopping and beyond. Centered on Main Street, but with plenty to explore on neighboring Commerce Street and Casino Center Boulevard, it’s easy to spend an afternoon browsing vintage shops and gallery spaces, catch live music or a stage show, grab dinner, coffee and craft beer — and still have money left for tomorrow.

But the neighborhood is at a crossroads. After a tragic shooting happened earlier this month during First Friday, the monthly arts festival is now on hold as organizers and city officials consider how to move forward. Meanwhile, a proposed Business Improvement District intended to fund additional safety measures and neighborhood services has stirred debate over how to improve the area while preserving the independent spirit that made it a destination in the first place.

As questions swirl, fans of the Arts District hope it holds on to what makes it such a distinctive place. At a time when Las Vegas can feel increasingly engineered around sky-high bottle service, celebrity-chef tasting menus and cocktails edging toward $30, the neighborhood remains one of the places locals actually hang out and where tourists can experience Sin City beyond the slot machines. Here are 11 worthwhile stops on a visit to the creative hub.

Israeli forces detained U.S. Democratic congressional candidate Brad Lander on Wednesday as he helped Palestinian farmers harvest olives in the occupied West Bank, releasing him hours later while dozens of other volunteers, including a group of American rabbis, remained in custody.

The incident was the latest in an annual olive harvest that has been marked by violence between Israeli settlers and Palestinian villagers attempting to gather their crops.

The Israeli military said the farmers and volunteers had failed to seek prior approval for the harvest and were detained “due to the security risk posed by conducting an uncoordinated harvest near an Israeli community.” It later added that it viewed “the arrival of dozens of activists as an act intended solely to provoke, which undermines the harvesting process.”

Lander is running in the U.S. elections on Nov. 3 to represent a heavily Democratic New York district in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“The occupation is a crime under international law,” Lander wrote on social media after he was detained. “Harvesting olives isn’t a crime under any law I know.”

“These detentions by the IDF are one more attempt to undermine Palestinians’ right to harvest their olive groves, travel on their roads, and live in their homes,” he added in a post after his release.

This year, Palestinians have been required to coordinate with the Israeli military to access more of their privately owned farmland than in previous years. The anti-settlement group Peace Now said last week that the army had expanded by nearly 30% the area of farmland that Palestinians cannot enter without prior approval, to 34 square miles. The Israeli military declined to comment on the exact figures but said Palestinian farmers must coordinate access to areas under Israeli security control.

The detained volunteers were taken to a police facility. Lander was among them but “released after it became known that he was a congressional candidate,” the Israeli police said in a statement.

Israeli rights group Yesh Din and the Palestinian Farmers’ Union have said the 2026 harvest has been the most violent in recent history, with hundreds of reported thefts, clashes and arson attacks.

Much of the violence has unfolded on land outside Palestinian villages, where Palestinians have historically harvested olives and Israeli settlers have increasingly erected outposts without authorization from Israel’s government.

But there were no clashes before Israeli forces arrived Wednesday, according to Beck Strober, a spokesperson for Protect the Harvest, the advocacy group that organized the volunteers at the grove.

Jill Jacobs, one of a dozen American rabbis detained, condemned the Israeli government restricting the ability of Palestinians to harvest freely.

“The Israeli government is actively advancing the forced displacement of Palestinian communities across the West Bank, using its military to deny Palestinians access to their land and intimidate those who stand alongside them,” Jacobs, chief executive of T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, said in a statement.

Lander, who was endorsed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, defeated U.S. Rep. Dan Goldman in a primary for New York’s 10th congressional district. The race was viewed as a referendum on the Democratic party’s support for Israel. Both candidates are Jewish and have criticized Israel, but only Lander called the war in Gaza a genocide.

Lander was not the first U.S. politician detained in the West Bank this year. U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, said Israeli forces detained him during a visit in July.

NEW YORK — Mayor Zohran Mamdani and top New York Democrats are calling on the owners of private parking lots to block federal immigration officers from using their properties as staging areas, days after immigration officers shot a man in the city.

In a Friday letter, Mamdani, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and dozens of state and local lawmakers told lot and garage owners that the city needs their “help at a critical juncture.”

“In solidarity with immigrant New Yorkers and in our shared commitment to the City we love, we ask that you do not rent, lend, or otherwise make your property available to ICE as a staging area for its enforcement operations,” the letter reads. “Make it known to ICE that it is not authorized to use your garages and lots.”

The plea came after immigration officers shot 28-year-old Dominican national Oscar Belgal during an arrest last week as he rode in a car with his young son. The shooting sparked protests and drew renewed attention to the federal government’s immigration crackdown.

The federal officers had been using a nearby private parking lot as a staging area before the shooting, according to Friday’s letter.

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security slammed the letter in a statement that read: “Mayor Mamdani should be grateful to our brave law enforcement officers for cleaning up the streets of NYC since he won’t. Luckily, no terminated parking will stop ICE from deporting criminal illegal aliens to make New York safe again.”

Federal officials maintain the immigration officers believed their lives were in danger and opened fire only after Belgal smashed his car into two government vehicles and accelerated toward them.

New York City has previously barred outside law enforcement agencies such as DHS from setting up staging areas on city property unless they have a judicial warrant or qualify for certain “limited legal exceptions,” according to the letter. “But these laws govern City property, not the private lots and garages that you operate,” it adds.

Private businesses have at times found themselves in the middle of tense political fights over President) Trump’s administration’s immigration enforcement push.

In one instance, a Minnesota hotel that refused to let immigration officers stay there in January apologized after public criticism from DHS, saying the decision violated its internal policies. In another, protesters occupied the lobby of a Manhattan hotel they said was housing some immigration officers.

Izaguirre writes for the Associated Press.

ROMA, Texas — Standing on a high bank of the Rio Grande, Army Lt. Col. Ray Richards points to a stretch of river that was, until recently, one of the busiest spots for illegal border crossings from Mexico.

But on a recent afternoon, the area is quiet. American soldiers gather at a border monitoring post in Roma, Texas, where an infantry vehicle with camouflage netting sits between houses. A Blackhawk helicopter drops soldiers onto an island in the river, while U.S. Border Patrol agents breeze by on fan-propelled boats.

“At any given time, there would be multiple rafts full of people trying to get to this side,” Richards said of the area before U.S. forces made it a priority last year.

The Army has been inviting reporters to the Rio Grande Valley as it deploys hundreds more soldiers to the region this month by shifting some of the thousands of troops already serving along the 2,000-mile border. U.S. officials said the troop surge follows signs of elevated activity from drug cartels and has been accompanied by increased cooperation from the Mexican military. The U.S. Coast Guard said it recently encountered gunfire from the Mexican side of the river, prompting the Americans to fire back.

In this small patch at the southern edge of the United States, a slow saga is playing out — a curious mix of policing, policy and politics.

Some question a troop surge just weeks before midterm elections

While Republicans face increasing headwinds because of President Trump’s unpopularity, persistently high prices and the fallout from the war in Iran, border security has remained a relative bright spot in Trump’s polling numbers, with about half of Americans saying they approve of his performance there.

But some experts have questioned the need for such a large military presence. They suggest it’s less about effective strategy and more about political theater.

Illegal crossings have plummeted due in large part to asylum restrictions that began before Trump returned to the White House. Meanwhile, a large percentage of the fentanyl, cocaine and heroin seized along the border was being smuggled in cars and trucks passing through checkpoints, not the areas in between.

David Shirk, a University of San Diego political science professor, said the Trump administration wants to remind voters it’s been very aggressive on border security.

“I don’t dispute there’s some benefit to having personnel in areas at risk for people smuggling and drug trafficking,” Shirk said. “But the vast majority of that is now happening at ports of entry.”

Dessa Bergen-Cico, a professor of public health at Syracuse University who studies drug trafficking, said street prices for cocaine and fentanyl are still low, suggesting the drug flow remains unimpeded.

But Army Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, who commands the military’s southern border task force, said the work has been vital and effective, particularly for targeting human trafficking.

The moral argument for the Army’s mission is “dismantling this marketplace of human trafficking that is bringing people into the border,” Taylor said. “An added benefit of that is there’s an awful lot of drugs moving with that human trafficking.”

Efforts to secure a former epicenter of illegal crossings

Roma, a city of about 10,000 people, lacks a border wall in some places because homes sit close to the steep slopes along the Rio Grande. Directly across the water is Miguel Alemán, a town in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas that’s been plagued by decades of cartel violence. From Roma, it’s a football field’s distance across the river at best and much less in some places.

In 2021, Roma became a center of illegal crossings when thousands of families and unaccompanied children arrived each day to seek asylum. Border crossings fell sharply after President Joe Biden introduced severe asylum restrictions in 2024 and dipped after Trump suspended asylum at the border.

After Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, the Army and Coast Guard expanded operations to back up the Border Patrol, which remains the lead agency for border security. The Army now commands some 8,000 U.S. troops along the entire border, while the U.S. Coast Guard and Texas law enforcement have brought in more personnel.

Army officials said people still try to cross into Roma despite multiple obstacles. A barrier of strung-together buoys, each the size of a hay bale, stretched along the river. Concertina wire lined the U.S. river bank, while a surveillance blimp hung in the sky. A river island was recently cleared of trees that hid people trying to cross.

Army Sgt. Nathaniel Decker said he recently saw people on three rafts set out from the Mexican side at dusk. He reported to Border Patrol that one group had cleared the buoys. They were eventually caught by a house in Roma.

Mexico also has sent more troops

The U.S. has stopped many of the drones used by the cartels to surveil the border and ferry drugs, by electronically jamming or capturing them or shooting them down with a laser.

The U.S. has gotten better at tracking them and coordinating with Mexican officials to locate the drones’ operators. But some still get across.

“We have reduced a lot of the flights,” said Richards, the Army lieutenant colonel, who has deployed with the Massachusetts Army National Guard. “But in the middle of the night, those drones can fly into the U.S. airspace, and that’s a true threat to any soldier on the ground.”

Under pressure from Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has cracked down more heavily on crime than her predecessors. Mexico this month sent 500 National Guard and military officers to Tamaulipas as part of a coordinated effort with the U.S. to prevent drug and human trafficking.

Mexico’s deployment “is based on intelligence gathered regarding the movements of criminal groups,” a federal official in Mexico told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the matter.

As part of the operation, the Mexican Army is using two UH-60 helicopters, drones and anti-drone equipment.

The U.S. Coast Guard has also boosted patrols on the Rio Grande, bringing in more than 300 personnel in October of last year. While assisting Border Patrol in trying to apprehend someone attempting to enter the U.S. illegally, the Coast Guard encountered gunfire from the Mexican side of the water near Garceno, Texas, the service said in a statement. The Americans returned fire. None were hurt.

U.S. Coast Guard Cmdr. Jeff Miller wouldn’t give additional details about the exchange of gunfire, except to say the personnel are “working in a very challenging environment” and are authorized to use force to protect themselves.

On a recent patrol, the scene along the river was quiet. A Coast Guard boat armed with machine guns motored along the greenish water. Two men fished from a small boat. A privately funded border wall, made from galvanized steel, lined the American side. In Mexico, there was a park with soccer goal posts, homes and a woman waving.

A Coast Guardsman driving the boat, who declined to give his name, said he’s seen kids on the Mexican side get excited as if a fire truck were passing. Others have offered the Americans cold beer. Some have reacted with offensive gestures.

Joel Garcia, Border Patrol’s acting deputy chief patrol agent for the Rio Grande Valley, said the agency has proof that U.S. operations have been effective based on the amount of drug seizures, the number of people apprehended and decreasing traffic within certain areas.

“Border security, when done right, if we have truly secured the line, should be boring,” he added. “It should look as if no one is crossing and nothing is happening.”

Finley writes for the Associated Press. AP writers Fabiola Sánchez and Megan Janetsky in Mexico City contributed to this report.

We’ve all been there – booking a flight and hoping for a decent seat. But which spot on the plane should you avoid at all costs? I asked the experts, and they all agreed on one area to steer clear of.

Finding yourself in the wrong plane seat is a surefire way to start off a holiday with a whimper.

I recently found myself wedged next to an increasingly wound-up man on a Ryanair flight. He kept huffing, puffing and angrily texting his girlfriend until, five minutes after take-off, he erupted. “Get your elbow off me, my guy,” he shouted at the man sitting on the other side of him, who understandably looked surprised and confused.

Although shouting at strangers probably isn’t the solution, being in an uncomfortable budget airline seat, wedged between strangers on a hot summer day, is no fun. Which is why choosing the right plane seat can make a big difference to the start of your holiday. From cabin noise to limited storage, an uncomfortable spot can leave you wishing you had booked elsewhere.

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

To help holidaymakers make that choice, we asked travel experts which seats they would avoid. Most pointed to the same area: the very back of the plane, and not because you’re more likely to sit next to angry passengers there. Nicholas Smith, Holidays Digital Director at Thomas Cook, said the rear of the aircraft can be particularly uncomfortable for passengers who are unsettled by turbulence.

He explained: “Seats at the very back are typically less desirable. They are close to the galley and restrooms, service can be slower, food choices may be limited, and it is also the area where movement during turbulence feels strongest.”

Nicholas recommended thinking about what matters most before choosing a seat. Although seat selection often costs extra, it may be worthwhile if comfort is a priority.

He said: “Thinking about your priorities in advance also makes a difference – nervous flyers will be more comfortable over the wings, those with a tight connection should choose an aisle near the front, while couples booking a row of three might secure the window and aisle, leaving the middle free for a chance at extra space.”

Izzy Nicholls, a travel expert and founder of road trip blog The Gap Decaders, also advised avoiding the rear of the cabin. She said: “Seats at the back are best avoided. They’re typically noisier because of engine proximity and galley activity, and you’ll be among the last to board and leave the plane.”

For a quieter journey with fewer interruptions, Izzy recommended sitting towards the front. She explained: “Travellers who want a calmer journey should book seats at the front of the plane. This area is away from restrooms and heavy foot traffic, so you’ll experience fewer interruptions.

“Choosing an aisle seat here also gives you the freedom to stretch your legs and get up easily without disturbing others. Select these placements to make long flights more comfortable and reduce the effects of motion.”

Storage is another consideration, particularly for passengers who board late. Jacob Wedderburn-Day, CEO and co-founder of luggage storage company Stasher, warned that overhead space near the back may be harder to find. He said: “Avoid sitting near galleys and toilets, where staff members often store their things in overhead bins, leaving less space for passenger baggage. The last few rows are a concern because if you board late, the bins above you may be filled, which means you may have to store your luggage several rows away. Also, stay away from seats that are located behind bulkheads, as these spaces often have limited storage.”

Andrea Platania from Transfeero highlighted further drawbacks of the last row, including restricted recline and noise. Andrea said: “The very last row is typically the least desirable: limited recline, proximity to bathrooms, and more cabin noise. Middle seats anywhere are usually least popular unless you’re traveling in a group.”

Passengers looking for extra legroom could consider an exit-row or bulkhead seat, although these options come with restrictions. Andrea added: “Exit-row and bulkhead seats offer more space, but they come with trade-offs: fixed armrests, limited recline, or restrictions for passengers traveling with children.”

For those concerned about turbulence or prone to motion sickness, Andrea recommended choosing a seat over the wings rather than at the back. The expert advised: “Sit over the wings. This area is closest to the aircraft’s centre of gravity, so you’ll feel less turbulence compared to the back, where bumps are magnified.”