As concerns over the Zika virus mount with increasing reports about its spread and effects, travel agents are coming up with alternate plans for their clients, especially for so-called babymoon travelers, as pregnant women have been advised to postpone travel to countries where Zika transmission is ongoing. As of last week, cases of the mosquito-borne virus had been reported in …

Dark humorists like to point out that Italian dictator Benito Mussolini’s only worthwhile historical contribution was getting trains to run on time. They may have overlooked another legacy: tourist ambassador. For better or worse, association with Adolf Hitler’s wartime ally is contributing to an unlikely boom for a few Italian destinations. None more so than the west coast island of …

The Liberian city of Robertsport is blessed with four pillars of surfer nirvana: perfect waves, warm water, an empty line up and an exotic locale. And despite being located less than 100km south of the capital Monrovia, the last stretch of road to reach the city passes through lush jungle so reminiscent of Jurassic Park, you almost expect a pterodactyl …

It was just after sunset when the first hazard came dimly into view. Peering through wire-rim glasses into the inky-black waters of Bangladesh’s Buriganga River, Captain Lufthur Rahman shouted, “Starboard right! Man the boiler room pumps!” Sailing completely blind, without shipping lights and only the sonorous blast from a foghorn to help, he implausibly steered a course to avoid a …

Fascinated by mysteries of the deep Last week we were reminded that there’s still plenty to both love and learn about our planet, as news went viral about a 16th-century church in Mexico spookily rising from the watery depths. Abandoned in the 18th Century after a plague swept through the Chiapas region, the Temple of Santiago usually rests about 30m …

By David Farley 6 November 2015 Hainanese chicken rice is the chickeniest chicken dish one can find in the chicken-eating world. Don’t believe me? Picture this: sitting in front of me at the Maxwell Food Centre in Singapore’s Chinatown was a tray filled with a pile of boiled chicken, a mound of rice cooked in chicken broth and a small …

Once, when I was a kid, I was waiting for my grandmother to arrive at New Orleans airport when an airline crew sailed by pulling suitcases on wheels, a new invention back in the late 1980s. There was something exquisite about the way they confidently walked in their starched navy uniforms. The crew’s smiles and casual conversation about New York …

“Pali pali” – meaning “quick, quick” – isn’t just a favourite expression in Seoul: it’s a way of life. South Korea’s capital moves at a pace that rivals the world’s busiest cities, fostering a culture of hard work, service and “just getting stuff done”, residents say. It is the most high-energy, intense city I have ever lived in “It is …

By Tara Isabella Burton 9 November 2015 “We have a saying here in Slovenia,” said Grega Silc, a Hike & Bike Slovenia tour guide, as we cycled around the riotous green of the ridge. “In Bohinj, we’re a day or two behind the rest of the world.” Silc grinned; a day or two is manageable. The lag used to be …

Where to go to escape the stresses of life, the bustle of the workweek and the noise of traffic? To find out, we turned to question-and-answer site Quora, where users have been sharing their opinions on real places that look plucked from a fairy tale. From an enchanting Alpine palace in Germany that rivals Cinderella’s castle to a postcard-perfect English …