Hidden Greece

Whether you choose deserted beaches, fabulous local food, walking or ferry-hopping itineraries, we have the Greek Islands well and truly sorted.

Hiking in Amorgos, Cyclades

As well as the azure bays and its role in Luc Besson’s The Big Blue, Amorgos is also renowned for it's hiking trails, which not only connect the island’s villages but also provide access to ecclesiastical and natural landmarks. Start at Hora, the capital of the island, and walk towards the landmark of Amorgos, the Greek-Orthodox monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa. Built by Byzantine emperor Alexius Comnenus I in the 11th century, this whitewashed monastery is wedged into a cliff face 300 metres above the sea. Climb the nearly 300 steps, walk through the low marble doorway and take the staircase that leads to the chapel where treasures and icons are kept. You will be rewarded with a vertiginous yet panoramic view of the Mediterranean, complimentary rose-flavoured loukoumi (Greek Turkish delight) and psimeni raki (raki with honey and spices) offered by the monks. From there, descend towards the pebble beach of Agia Anna. Here the waves splash against a rock which a chapel of the same name is built on. It’s then time to dive into the deep blue Aegean.

Karpathos, Dodecanese

The largest Dodecanese island is largely unknown to Brits. You can fly there but not directly from the UK. Better to take the ferry from Rhodes or Crete as we did and head for Diafani, where getting around is mostly by boat or on foot. We were enchanted by the lack of tourist trappings as local life carried on around us. As visitors we found ourselves welcomed with gifts of pomegranates, just-caught whitebait and freshly baked bread. While we were drinking coffee at a cafe on the water’s edge, a local fisherman invited us onto his caïque and took us on a spectacular journey to a beach where we found ourselves alone and surrounded by undisturbed centuries-old ruins. As we swam, our boatman fished for octopus, then barbecued it for us, having first shooed the goat from the stone table. Inland we visited Olympos, courtesy of the free loan of our hotel owner’s car. The remotest village on the island, and only recently accessible by road, it’s a place where traditional costumes and customs still persist, and time seemed, like its iconic windmills, to stand still.

Kastellorizo

Kastellorizo, a mile off the Turkish coast, is a colourful and picturesque island with a tumultuous past. Originally colonised by the Dorian Greeks, the island was later occupied by Egypt, Italy and the Ottoman empire, all of which is evident in the capital’s rich architectural legacy. Pastel-coloured Anatolian-style houses are arranged around a small fishing harbour lined with tavernas. Dotted on the hillside are a church and a cathedral, an Ottoman mosque, monasteries and castles. The ruins of an ancient acropolis lies on the western outskirts of town. A promenade on the steep streets and lanes provides abundant delight and surprise as well as breathtaking views of the Mediterranean. A small family-friendly beach west of the harbour is excellent for swimming. The island’s remote location on the fringes of the Dodecanese has left it relatively undisturbed by tourists, making it an ideal getaway centred on food, recuperation and culture. The island is easily reached by boat from Rhodes or Kas.

Abandoned sulphur mines of Milos, Cyclades

There can be no more breathtaking backdrop to a dip in the Aegean than the abandoned sulphur mine of Milos. The stunning bay of Paliorema can be accessed via a dirt road, although the scramble down the cliff to the golden shingle is not for the faint-hearted. Hire a 4x4 to get as close as possible. Once at the beach, you can wander freely around the abandoned buildings, where it appears the miners may be back at any moment to start work. Follow up your visit at the Mining Museum in Adamas, which includes a video about workers in the sulphur mine before it was permanently closed in 1978. Milos’s charms are only enhanced by the fact that it has not relied on tourism for survival like some of its better-known neighbours.

Donoussa, Cyclades

Donoussa is the quietest of the smaller Cyclades islands, hidden behind much larger Naxos. Traditionally described as off the beaten track, it has reinvigorated itself in recent years as younger people move back from Athens to work in family businesses. There are some great new restaurants, such as To Auli in the main (small) village and an organic beach bar at nearby Kedros bay. An excellent new walking guide (in Greek and English) opens up the hills, while a minibus service will carry you back from the other side of the island on the only road. There are regular ferries from Athens but arrive on the local Express Skopelitis from Naxos for the best experience – this ferry also offers lots of short-journey, island-hopping options.

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An insider's guide to the top things to do in London

An insider's guide to the top things to do in London, including the best London museums, art galleries, sightseeing spots and free places to visit, as well as insider tips for top London attractions from the Tate Modern to the London Eye.

Buckingham Palace & Changing of the Guard

Buckingham Palace opens up its Sèvres-china-stuffed, gold-leaf-adorned State Rooms to the public from July to October each year. Expect priceless Rubens paintings, a piano Queen Victoria played, 350 clocks and even the odd secret door. Get a ticket that includes access to the Royal Mews, where the coach that has been used for every coronation since George IV in 1820 is on display. That said, many visitors are happy to settle for watching the Changing of the Guard outside the palace, a free event which typically happens four days a week at 11am.

Contact: Buckingham Palace, London SW1A 1AA 0303 123 7300; royalcollection.org.uk

Nearest underground station: Victoria, Green Park and Hyde Park Corner

Wesminster Abbey

One of the most famous churches in the world, with 1,000 years of history. This is where William the Conqueror and Queen Elizabeth II were crowned and William and Kate exchanged vows. The Gothic edifice, all echoey cloisters, mosaic-encrusted chambers and martyrs carved into the stonework, hosted the funeral of Princess Diana and is the burial ground of everyone from Geoffrey Chaucer to Oliver Cromwell.

Contact: 20 Deans Yard, Westminster, London SW1P 3PA 0303 123 7300 westminster-abbey.org

Nearest underground station: Westminster and St James's Park

St Paul’s Cathedral

Prince Charles once remarked that the skyscrapers that surround the second-largest dome in the world are "like a basketball team standing shoulder-to-shoulder between you and the Mona Lisa". The gentle, swollen shadow of Sir Christopher Wren’s 17th-century Renaissance masterpiece does seem all the more exceptional set against the City’s spiky, vertigiousness skyline. Don’t miss the Whispering Gallery where you can hear someone 112 feet away, the Golden Gallery with views over the Thames to Shakespeare’s Globe and the tombs of Ethelred the Unready, Alexander Fleming and James Barry.

Contact: St. Paul's Churchyard, London EC4M 8AD 020 7246 8350 stpauls.co.uk

Nearest underground station: St Paul's

Tate Modern

Controversial and unmissable in equal measure. Entry to the collections is also free (exhibitions are charged). Visitors will find the country’s most important modern art collection in the vast former power station (think everything from Picasso to Lichtenstein), as well as the London’s latest must-see exhibition, often headlined by art colossuses like Anish Kapoor and Ai Weiwei.

Contact: Bankside, London SE1 9TG 020 7887 8888 tate.org.uk

Nearest underground station: Southwark and Blackfriars

The Shard

A noble glass spire that embodies the energy and ambition of London’s financial district, or Qatari Sovereign Wealth Fund petrodollars mutated into thousand-foot dalek with a head that's been subjected to a dodgy pencil sharpener? Wherever you stand on the architecture, London’s highest viewing platform has become one of the city’s most popular attractions.

Contact: 32 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9SG 0844 499 7111 the-shard.com

Nearest underground station: London Bridge

Big Ben

The world’s most famous clock, which features in the film Mary Poppins, on the label of HP sauce and on every London postcard ever made. It is worthy of its nickname (technically it's called Elizabeth Tower; the main bell inside is Big Ben) – the edifice scales 96 metres, with minute hands over four metres long. The only way to visit the tower is to apply as a British resident in writing to one’s MP. However, the clock is undergoing renovation which will last several months in 2017 and tours are currently not taking place. That shouldn't stop people from expressing interest in a visit after the works are complete. In the mean time it remains one of London's most popular monuments for a selfie; #bigben has almost two-and-a-half million Instagram posts.

Contact: Westminster, London SW1A 0AA 020 7219 4272 parliament.uk

Nearest underground station: Westminster

Tower Bridge

London Bridge may have a nursery rhyme named after it but Tower Bridge pips it as a tourist attraction; the formidable Victorian Gothic edifice raised from steel, Cornish granite and Devonshire stone is not just a river Thames icon but also a fun day out in its own right. Visitors can hang out in the glass-floored high-level walkway 140ft above the water, and explore the Victorian engine rooms with its original furnaces and steam engines.

Contact: Tower Bridge Road, London SE1 2UP 020 7403 3761 towerbridge.org.uk

Nearest tube station: Tower Hill and London Bridge

Natural History Museum

A favourite with children and no wonder with the first T-rex fossil ever found and the skull of a triceratops. Be sure to whizz into the Minerals gallery to see the 1,400-pound iron meteorite that fell in Argentina in 1783 and the species that inspired the mermaid legends in the Mammals room.

Contact: Cromwell Road, Kensington, London SW7 5BD 020 7942 5511 nhm.ac.uk

Nearest tube station: Gloucester Road and South Kensington

London Eye

This 443ft 'ferris wheel' with air-conditioned passenger capsules (32 to represent the 32 boroughs of London) offers some of the best panoramas of the city. Rotations last about 30 minutes, and the wheel rotates 26 cm per second, which is actually not as slow as it might seem – three times that of the average tortoise.

Contact: Lambeth, London SE1 7PB 0871 781 3000 londoneye.com

Nearest tube station: Waterloo

Victoria and Albert Museum

Alexander McQueen gowns rub alongside sandals from Ancient Egypt in Fashion Room 410. You’ll also find everything from 500-year-old Persian carpets to Japanese Tokugawa suits of armour and furniture made for Marie Antoinette in Britain’s leading art and design museum.

Contact: Cromwell Road, Knightsbridge, London SW7 2RL 020 7942 2000 vam.ac.uk

Nearest tube: South Kensington and Gloucester Road

Through our extensive network, we are able to offer many additional benefits, such as room upgrades, late check out, unique venues and personalised itineraries.

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United Arab Emirates - Dubai - Abu Dhabi - Gulf of Oman

For most people, the United Arab Emirates means just one place: Dubai, the sci-fi-esque city of iconic skyscrapers, palm-shaped islands, city-sized malls, indoor ski slopes and palatial beach resorts. But beyond the glitter awaits a diverse mosaic of six more emirates, each with its own character and allure.

An hour's drive south, oil-rich Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital, is positioning itself as a hub of culture, sport and leisure. Beyond looms the vast Al Gharbia region, which is dominated by the northern reaches of the Rub' Al Khali desert. Its magical silence is interrupted only by the whisper of shifting dunes rolling towards Saudi Arabia.

North of Dubai, Sharjah does art and heritage best, while tiny Ajman and Umm Al Quwain provide glimpses of life in the pre-oil days, and Ras Al Khaimah snuggles against the mighty Hajar Mountains. For the best swimming and diving, though, head across the range to Fujairah to frolic in the clear waters of the Gulf of Oman.

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