Author: Michael Edwards

Cotswold Grange is quintessential Cheltenham. Created from light honeyed Cotswold stone in 1856, for its affluent merchant owner to enjoy its high ceilings and spacious dimensions, the house’s grand facade captured the confident style of the mid-Victorian era. Located within a peaceful conservation area close to Pittville Park, today Cotswold Grange is an independent boutique hotel with just 20 rooms, lovingly run by Nirav Sheth and Julee Fletcher-Sheth.

Although the Regency era was already history by the time Cotswold Grange’s foundation stones were laid, an aura of Bridgerton lingers on beyond the symmetry of the architecture; and a feeling that Jane Austen and her quill could easily have found a quiet corner to write in. 

Cheltenham is the gateway to the tranquil Cotswolds’ quaint villages and rolling hills, recognised as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Once a Regency spa town, Cheltenham is now the Cultural Capital of

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Half-way through this European Waterways seven days / six nights cruise, pampered passengers, enjoying a bon viveur lifestyle, know that more unique excursions await. Confident that Captain Craig will introduce us to more fascinating people, sights and tastes that capture the very essence of Burgundy’s rich history. 

Leisurely cruising along the Burgundy Canal, we are settling into the sedate rhythms of life on the water. Hearing only birdsong as we make themselves an early morning coffee in this quiet corner of France.

Later in the day, perhaps walking on for a lock or two as La Belle Epoque sedately cruises, at around 5 kmph, between lock-keepers’ houses. Or taking one of the barge’s bikes to cycle along the immaculately maintained towpaths. 

Slow travel provides an opportunity to relax, to savour a region that is quintessential France, on a cruise with aristocratic flavours.

Day 4

Craig drives

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Cruising slowly along the Burgundy Canal, connecting the rivers Yonne and Soane, the 12 berth La Belle Epoque, from European Waterways, explores an almost forgotten French idyll. 

It is an intimate cruise with many privileged moments: lunch at the chateau hosted by the Baron and Baroness, a Chablis creator hosting a private tasting, and an exploration of the spiritually serene Abbaye de Fontenay. 

For six nights, this former log barge, first launched in 1930, provides a luxurious French voyage through the very best of Burgundy living: champagne, chateaux, cheese, culture, gastronomy, history and wine. For Francophiles, this is the ultimate Burgundian education. 

Our week, boarding on Sunday and disembarking on Saturday, is a hotel cruise with guests, usually English-speaking, booking from across the planet. Then getting to know each other for a joyously indulgent boat party.

Though friends and families are increasingly booking the entire barge

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Inspired by the ambitions of Egypt’s Great Pyramids, Rixos Bab Al Bahr thinks big. This 715-key, 5-star resort is situated by a shallow Persian Gulf lagoon in the quiet Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. Built on Ras’ first manmade island of Al Marjan, the resort incorporates the Arabic architecture of the traditional wind-catching Barajeel towers.

On first impressions, the grand marble pillars of reception with its ornate friezes and elaborate flower displays seems like the ultimate grandiose palace. But beyond the crystal chandelier, beyond the violinist playing the grand piano, everyone’s having fun in the sun.

Ras Al Khaimah, translating as “head of the tent” may be Dubai’s quieter, less blingy cousin, but the huge grounds of the Rixos could claim to be another Emirate of fun in its own right: 8 swimming pools, 7 bars, 7 restaurants, 2 showcase stages, basketball

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Take a look at any league table on travellers’ aspirational destination and the Maldives are up there.  Crystal clear seas caressing sugar white beaches, across an archipelago nation of almost 1,200 islands. The Maldives will always appear as one of the world’s dream destinations: pristine Robinson Crusoe landscapes meet contemporary luxury living.

Veligandu Maldives Resort Island, a micro isle of lush green jungle fringed by soft-sand beaches, has upgraded paradise. Closed for 18 months, the resort has been reinvented as 5* luxury.

“Natural. Seclusion. Luxury.” Veligandu’s new mantra seductively chants. It’s a quiet, almost impossibly beautiful corner of the planet for honeymoons or simply escaping to paradise.

The welcome

Fly into Malé International Airport and then transfer through the neighbouring seaplane terminal. Guests bound for Veligandu relax in the air-conditioned business lounge, with inclusive food and drink, before boarding for the 20 minutes flight across the

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“Everything is for sale in your room and in the hotel,” says George, Manager of the Ginger House Museum Hotel. “If you like the bed we can ship it back to England for you.”

For two centuries, until 1990, this was the site of a Mattancherry ginger warehouse. Then it found another life as part of the Ginger House Museum Hotel complex which includes 80,000 square feet of an antiques emporium and a restaurant too.

Though George exaggerates. The 142 year old, 100 foot long snake boat, displayed in the antiques emporium, isn’t for sale. For hotel owner Majnu, it is an essential symbol of the Heritage Museum and of Kerala culture. Nor is the cannon on the lawn, worryingly pointing at my suite’s window, for sale either. Selling such weapons is too bureaucratically complex.

Currently, the unique Ginger House is a boutique

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Fly into Bologna or Milan to take an epic road trip along the ancient Via Emilia that hosts a string of beautiful Italian cities. In the heart of Emilia Romagna lies Italy’s Food Valley. Make sure that you stop along the way for dishes and wines that have received worldwide acclaim.

Hot, hot summers and cold winters, with moisture trapped by the Apennine mountains, coalesce for perfect growing conditions for food that has become legendary: globally.

Michelin-starred restaurants

Such is Emilia Romagna’s prominence in Italy’s gastronomic scene that Modena recently hosted the Michelin Guide 2025 Awards: essentially Italy’s foodie Oscars. In addition, Emilia Romagna will also host the awards for 2026 and 2027.

Amongst the culinary rock stars at the awards, Massimo Bottura is a God of the industry. The success of his 3 Michelin star Osteria Francescana in Modena, sometimes lauded as the World’s Best

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Foodies talk of Emilia Romagna‘s produce with religious awe. Cathedrals of cheese. Heavenly wine cellars. God-given truffles.

Tastes that have endured for centuries, sometimes millennia: balsamic vinegar, prosciutto, parmigiana reggiano, lambrusco, pasta, tomatoes and truffles. A gourmet’s directory of 26 food museums, 24 DOC wines, plus numerous festivals of prosciutto, truffles and more.

Throw in the dramatic architecture of Bologna, Modena and Parma, with an operatic soundtrack, and Emilia Romagna is a dream destination for the ultimate foodie road trip.

Balsamic vinegar

Drop the vinegar. They simply call it balsamic round these parts as it is a balm that soothes and restores: albeit at a price.

True balsamic, like a fine wine, has a protected origin, a DOC. If you’re putting a bottle of balsamic vinegar in your supermarket trolley, to serve as a salad dressing, it’s unlikely to be one of the region’s finest.

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