Matouring is very happy to present our newest partner, 12 Travel.ch. 12 Travel.ch works with over 140 tour operators such as Neckermann Reisen, FTI Touristik Reisen, Alltours Reisen, Jahn Reisen, Dertour, Meiers Weltreisen, ITS, Thomas Cook. 12 Travel.ch / 12 Travel.de / 12 Travel.at searches and finds for you, from the confusing and seemingly endless holiday offers of the tour…
A floating church has moored in East London. The work of locally-based architecture studio Denizen Works, this innovative project brings together architecture and boat building, religious, community spaces and practice, and contemporary design. The project was spearheaded by the Diocese of London for the St Columba East London community, and has been created in close collaboration with Turks Shipyard and…
Maybe not exactly what you were hoping for . . . The chaos of COVID-19 was sure to forge new ways of working, but here’s one you probably wouldn’t think of: a work-from-home theme park. Last week Yomiuriland, a Tokyo amusement park, began offering a “workcation” package that allows people who work from a laptop to do so by a…
We’re really excited to announce our newest partner, Cruise118.com, the world’s largest cruise retailer offering cruises from all the major cruise lines. Cruise118.com has access to the best deals and discounts on a wide variety of cruises, and can tailor any package to meet your needs. Their expert Cruise Concierge team are on hand to help plan your holiday, so…
Step into synaesthesia’s visual soundscape, built with the music of John Coltrane. The Israeli animator and artist Michal Levy is among the roughly 3 per cent of people who experience synaesthesia – a neurological condition in which people have a recurring sensory overlap, such as ‘tasting’ words or envisioning letters and numbers each with their own inherent colour. Levy possesses…
There is something evocatively beautiful about an old, rusted car. In your mind’s eye, you can see the majesty they once were. And perhaps in some cases, with a few patches to cover where holes now gape, they could return to their original glory. For others, the dilapidation becomes part of the tableau, tall weeds defying usual patterns by growing…
Cabin fever: tickets for meal onboard Singapore parked plane sell out. Diners paid up to £360 to eat onboard in latest sign of public appetite for aircraft experience. Diners have rushed to pay up to £360 per head to eat a meal on a stationary plane, in the latest sign of public appetite to recreate the onboard experience without travelling.…
Fifteen places in the US that feel like a completely different country. In the 1960s, the people of Leavenworth transformed their city into a Bavarian-style village to promote tourism. Almost 60 years later, that vision is still alive and well. With Alpine architecture, a mountain backdrop, and plenty of sauerkraut and bratwurst, it’s surprisingly easy to imagine you’re in Germany.…
In Persian, the word often translated into English as ‘manners’ or ‘etiquette’ is adab. However, adab is about far more than politeness or ethics even. It means proper social and aesthetic form and, across Persianate culture, form conveyed substance and, by extension, meaning. From the 13th to the mid-19th century, Persian was the language of learning, culture and power for hundreds of millions of…
Before I go into the best national heritage Hotels of Spain, I thought it might be interesting to know a little background on this wonderful initiative. It was in 1910 that the government entrusted Marqués de la Vega Inclán the project of creating a hotel network, practically non-existent in the country at the time, which would provide accommodation for tourists…
The Book of Days (1864) by the Scottish author Robert Chambers reports a curious legal case: in 1457 in the town of Lavegny, a sow and her piglets were charged and tried for the murder of a partially eaten small child. After much deliberation, the court condemned the sow to death for her part in the act, but acquitted the…
Drone Awards is the most important worldwide competition about aerial photography and video. It’ a project of Siena Awards, dedicated to a different photographic genre deliberately separated from being compared to traditional photography. The competition is opened to the aerial photography and videos whose platforms also include fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, balloons, blimps and dirigibles, rockets, kites, and…
In keeping with the current trend of providing people remote-work visas, Caribbean country Antigua and Barbuda has become the latest nation to open its doors for people looking for a change of scene. According to The Independent, the country is willing to welcome digital nomads amid the pandemic — which has made it clear that for many jobs, one does…
A trend has popped up for those missing travel amid the coronavirus pandemic—flights to nowhere—and one AFAR editor has some feelings about it. “Why would anyone want to do that?” That was my first thought when I heard that flights to nowhere were popping up in different locations around the world. A flight to nowhere is exactly what it sounds…
My gosh, we’d really like to go off-grid right now. Somewhere isolated. Somewhere barren but still beautiful. Somewhere where you almost feel like you’ve reached the very edge of the planet. The island of Hamneskär, off Sweden’s western coast, is just that sort of place. For decades, this rocky island has been home to a lighthouse, a few random outbuildings and…
When you’re itching to travel, sometimes the most difficult decision is simply settling on a destination that fits your budget. United Airlines has launched a new search tool to help customers peruse all their flight options in map form. The new Map Search feature takes into consideration departure city, budget, and what type of destination you’re considering (national park, ski resort, cultural…
It was a historic throne speech. On Sept. 16, Her Excellency Gov. Gen. Dame Sandra Mason told the world Barbados was removing Queen Elizabeth as its head of state. “Having obtained independence half a century ago, our country can be in no doubt about its capacity for self-governance,” Mason said. The small island nation in the Caribbean was one of…
Absinthe is historically described as a distilled, highly alcoholic beverage. It is an anise-flavoured spirit derived from botanicals, including the flowers and leaves of Artemisia absinthium, together with green anise, sweet fennel, and other medicinal and culinary herbs. In Paris, during the 1920’s, it became the favourite beverage of choice for artists, musicians, debutantes and gadabouts. Famously strong, it was…
Matouring is pleased to join up with travel experts GetYourGuide. As the name implies, they specialise in finding ideal activities for you when travelling. Look for their offers and advertisements throughout the site. “We’re on a journey to transform ordinary trips into extraordinary ones. We are your guide, bringing you personal experiences. Wherever your travels take you, we’ll show you…
The Wuppertaler Schwebebahn (Wuppertal Suspension Railway) is a suspension railway in Wuppertal, Germany. Its original name is Einschienige Hängebahn System Eugen Langen. It is the oldest electric elevated railway with hanging cars in the world and is a unique system in Germany. Designed by Eugen Langen and offered first to the cities of Berlin, Breslau and Munich who all turned it down,[2] the installation with elevated stations was built in Barmen, Elberfeld and Vohwinkel between 1897 and 1903; the…
