Blue Dog Jewellery looks at weekend breaks for 2009
This travel article which appeared in today's Sunday Times will help you make the most of every weekend in 2009. Enjoy!
A break for every weekend in 2009
We've 52 mini-adventures for every week of 2009, devised and brought to you by Chris Haslam
Revellers frolic in grape pulp during an annual grape battle in the village of Binissalem on the Spanish island of Mallorca
A forgotten brainwave of the French revolution was the ill-fated Charles-Gilbert Romme’s decimalisation of time, which proposed 100 decimal seconds in a minute, 100 minutes in an hour and 10 decimal hours in a day.
Then Romme hit a snag. The logical extension was the 10-day week, and, since he couldn’t alter the astronomical calendar, that meant there would be just 36 weekends in the year.
The idea of less time off was simply too revolutionary for the revolting French peasantry, so Romme was condemned to death and his calendar was abandoned. All that remains of his dangerous experiment is the lobster thermidor, named after the revolutionary summer month of lobster, and thus it is the sans-culottes we should thank for our 52 weekends.
Unless stated, prices are per person for two nights, B&B, including rail or air fares and transfers, and are guaranteed by suppliers for the whole of 2009. Flights are from London and include taxes and charges.
JANUARY 9-11 Lose the gut in Cornwall Who ate all the pies this Christmas? Who vowed to sweat it all off, join a gym and build up a six-pack in 2009? No use denying it, we all heard you, so off you go to the Retal-lack Resort (01637 882400, www.retallackresort.com), in Cornwall, for its fitness kick-starter. For £149, you get a fitness assessment, nutritional advice, personal training sessions on the beach, use of the spa and no pasties.
JANUARY 16-18 Be avalanche-aware in Chamonix This winter season is looking like a record-breaker for snowfall, but there’s no point turning up with your fancy snow shovel and transponder if you don’t know how to use them. Essential for serious off-pisters, this short course could save your life. All equipment is provided, and you’ ll bring back a certificate that, while perhaps not quite as flashy as that £600 jacket with the built-in avalanche beacon, is probably slightly more useful. The price is £699 with 20 Days (07968 478782, www.20days.co.uk).
JANUARY 23-25 Lost masterpieces in Brussels I’m not guaranteeing that you’ll find a lost Bruegel at this sprawling indoor antiques fair, but inside information from the continental antiques trade suggests that the market is awash with rare finds and outright bargains at the moment – the result of frantic attic-cleaning in cash-strapped European homes. Entrance costs £17.50, with two nights at the Conrad Brussels (00 32-2 542 4242, www.conradhotels.com ) starting at £189 for two if booked in January. Return tickets from London St Pancras to Brussels on Eurostar (0870 518 6186, www.eurostar.com ) start at £74.
JANUARY- FEBRUARY 30-1 Winter sun in Dubai Your job is no longer safe, your house is worth less than your car and the Christmas credit-card bill has arrived, so you’ll need a solid-gold excuse for splashing out on a jolly to the Atlantis The Palm resort in sunny Dubai . . . and here it is: seasonal affective disorder affects four times as many women as men, and the only cure for the depressive effects of decreased serotonin is immediate exposure to bright sunshine. And shops. Two nights cost £749 with Virgin Holidays (0844 557 3861, www.virginholidays.com ). File it under medical expenses.
FEBRUARY 6-8 Winter thrill in the Cairngorms Treacherous and unforgiving to the unprepared, the ice-capped peaks of the Cairngorms are also a place of spectacular, secret beauty, unknown to the hordes. Learn the techniques necessary to enjoy their magnificence at Glenmore Lodge (01479 861256, www.glenmorelodge.org.uk ), where a two-day residential Winter Skills course will teach you the basics of survival. The prices is £205; return tickets from London Euston to Avie-more start at £74, with First ScotRail (www.scotrail.co.uk ).
FEBRUARY 13-15 It’s a ball in Venice Not just any ball, but a Lovers’ Ball, on St Valentine’s night, in the most romantic city in the world. Tickets for the costumed event, which takes place on the candlelit Palazzo Papafava, cost £256 through www.carnivalofvenice.com . Return flights with Ryanair (0871 246 0000, www.ryanair.com ) cost £186, and two nights at the fabulous Bauer Casa Nova residence (0871 246 0000, www.bauercasanova.com ) – Casanova, get it? – are £290. If you plan to propose in 2009, I really can’t make it any easier for you.
FEBRUARY 20-22 Ozymandias’s birthday in Egypt The king of kings won’t be there himself – he died in 1213BC – but don’t let that put you off this Indiana Jones-style adventure offered by Explore (
FEBRUARY-MARCH 27-1 Om is where the heart is in the Cotswolds Mindfulness meditation, first practised by the Buddha in the fifth century BC, is the most popular psychotherapy treatment of the 21st century – what goes around comes around, as the fat man would have said. Once you know how to do it, it’s free, and you’ll be losing all that mental baggage quicker than British Airways. Learn the method with HF Holidays (
MARCH 6-8 Biographical references in Somerset Spend a couple of days in the company of some of Britain’s best-known biographers at the suitably historic Castle Hotel, Taunton. Speakers include Anne Chisholm, Victoria Glen-dinning, professor Kathryn Hughes, Jonathan Keates and Charles Nicholl, who, between them, have written the life stories of luminaries such as Lord Beaverbrook, Vita Sackville-West, Mrs Beeton, Handel, Leonardo da Vinci and Shakespeare. The price is £560, including food and wine, with Pride of Britain Hotels (
MARCH 13-15 Make it big in Hollywood Spike Lee, Quentin Tarantino, Jane Campion and Robert Rodriguez all hit the big time with their first film script, so jump on the bandwagon by attending the self-explanatory Write and Sell the HOT Script course run by Raindance (
MARCH 27-29 The Painters’ Trail in Essex True story. Tour guide at the National Gallery: “This is Constable’s Hay Wain.” American tourist (staring at figures): “Which one’s Wayne?” Get yourself and your bike on a train from Liverpool Street to Manningtree and in less than an hour you could be cycling through Constable country, following the Painters’ Trail (maps £3.50, from www.realessex.co.uk ) through a landscape virtually unchanged since Wayne was painted with his cart at Flatford Mill. Doubles at the Sun Inn (
APRIL 3-5 Landscape photography up north True photographers are rarely happy with their work — the more you know, the harder it gets — but this advanced course, in the dramatic surroundings of rural Northumberland, might put a smile on your face. Taught by the award-winning landscape snapper Mike McFarlane, it costs £150 through Fifiefofum (
APRIL 10-12 Easter in Wales Release the kids to run themselves ragged with a bargain Easter- weekend break at the Bluestone resort (
APRIL 17-19 Scarecrows of Moringhem Every April, the village of Moringhem, in Nord-Pas-de-Calais, is invaded by a zombie army of thousands of scarecrows. They loiter in alleyways, hide under bridges and watch you from behind the hedgerows, as if in some dark Doctor Whovian nightmare. Why are they there? What do they want? Stay at Château Tilques to find out. You’ll be safe there. Probably. The price is £240pp, including ferry crossings, with SeaFrance Holidays (
APRIL 24-26 Sabrage in the New Forest Never mind your prowess with the ladies or your skills behind the wheel — you can’t really call yourself a chap until you’ve become adept at opening a bottle of champagne with a sabre. Astonishingly, the essential social skill of sabrage has gone the way of whistling and letter- writing, but the New Forest oenophile retreat Terravina (
MAY 1-3 May Day in Marrakesh The last time they held a grand prix in Morocco, back in 1958, it was won by Stirling Moss. Now motor racing is back, and this weekend the muezzin’s call will be drowned out by the snarl of high-octane engines as the red city hosts the World Touring Car Championship on a brand-new, high-speed street circuit — think Monaco with added camels. With The Best of Morocco (
MAY 8-10 Mating season on the Isle of Wight Heritage trails, family treasure hunts and ghost walks feature at the annual Isle of Wight Walking Festival, but the most eagerly awaited event, honest, is the Speed Dating Walk. Three couples who met at last year’s event are married or engaged, and this year it could be you. It costs £12 to register at www.isleofwightwalkingfestival.co.uk , and a self-catering weekend break starts at £88, including ferry crossings, with Wightlink (
MAY 15-17 Return to Manderley The Daphne du Maurier Festival of Arts and Literature (www.dumaurierfestival.co.uk ), in Fowey, Cornwall, is a delightful blend of star names, guided walks, talks, drama and free entertainment. The headline acts this weekend include Nick Lowe and Morse man Colin Dexter. Stay at the heart of the action in the Garden Apartment, a luxurious Regency retreat that sleeps six and is yours for £444 through Classic Cottages (
MAY 22-24 Take the road to Damascus “She has looked upon the dry bones of a thousand empires and will see the tombs of a thousand more before she dies,” wrote Mark Twain of a city where history lies so thick on the ground that it drags at your feet. As-sabr miftah al-faraj, as the locals say — which means “patience is the key to happiness” — so it’s best to take your time exploring. A three-night weekend over the bank holiday, costs £896, including a visit to a hammam and a private guided city tour, with Abercrombie & Kent (
MAY 29-31 Ashburton Blues Festival The problem with Glastonbury and Reading and all those other festivals is that you can’t hear the words. And it’s not music, it’s noise; so disgruntled dads should head instead to the equally ancient Dartmoor town of Ashburton, for three days of proper music that you can tap your feet to. Headlining on the Saturday are Nine Below Zero, while Sunday sees 1960s favourites the Animals rocking out. Tickets for the weekend cost £70 (www.ashburtonbluesfestival.com ); doubles at Gages Mill Country Guest House (
JUNE 5-7 Lucky heather, sir? Ever dreamt of packing in the job, selling up and taking the family on the road in a horse-drawn caravan. Here’s your chance to test the fantasy. The tourist board of Franche-Comté (
JUNE 19-21 Orchid-hunting in Hampshire The chalk downlands of Hampshire are home to some of the most exquisite orchids in England. The rich pink early marsh, the common spotted and the slender mauve Pugsley’s marsh orchid are among dozens growing here, but you’ll need a good guide to find them. That guide is the botanist Jon Stokes, who leads this two-day, in Alton, it costs £265 with Naturetrek (
JUNE 26-28 Learn the ropes in Devon Can’t sail? Head to Devon to rectify your nautical shortcomings on the safe waters of the Salcombe and Kingsbridge estuary. ICC Salcombe (
JULY 3-4 Ride a white horse in Slovenia It was in 1580 that Archduke Charles II brought his Spanish steeds to Lipica, in Slovenia, and the stud is still breeding the powerful, intelligent greys called Lipizzaners. Spend a couple of days riding the horse of emperors through the fairy-tale landscape of the Soca Valley — think waterfalls, dappled glades and diamond mines run by dwarfs — for £447 with Just Slovenia (
JULY 10-11 Weave your own coffin in Somerset Winner of the Haslam award for the weirdest weekend of 2009 is the casket-weaving workshop at Musgrove Willows (
JULY 17-18 Run wild on Raasay Fancy an early-morning paddle along the shore, a r a m b l e t h r o u g h a n ancient forest, a picnic lunch and an afternoon sailing in a wooden-hulled sgoth, before watching the deer come down to munch on seaweed as the sun sets over Skye? The location is Raasay House (
JULY 24-25 Eco-retreat in the wilds of Ireland Far from the fiddle-de-dee, stout-soaked Ireland of the craic dealers, you will find the luxury Ard Nahoo retreat (
JULY-AUGUST 31-2 Festival de Flamenco in Gaucin If you want to find El Duende – the devilish spirit said to be responsible for wringing the most heartbreakingcante jondofrom the Andalusian soul – then forget the tourist shows of Seville and Granada. Head instead to Gaucin, high in the Serrania de Ronda, behind the Costa del Sol, where the annual flamenco festival showcases the newest and darkest talent. Fly to Malaga with EasyJet (
AUGUST 6-9 Opera festival in Verona How much opera can you manage in a long week-end? Move fast on this short break from Kuoni (
AUGUST 14-16 Palio in Siena The cheapest tickets for Siena’s historic horse race are a ludicrous £400 each, which is a bit rich. The wiser option is to join the locals on the piazza, where entrance is free and, if you get there early enough, you’re guaranteed a view of the track. Fenced in for the proceedings – which, although the actual race lasts just a few minutes, take about four hours – you’ll need sharp elbows, water and a hat, but it’s worth the effort. Sunvil Discovery (
AUGUST 21-23 Dog day afternoon in the Lakes Spoil your best friend with a weekend of canine indulgence at the Holbeck Ghyll Country House Hotel (
AUGUST 28-31 Bank-holiday cruise on the Llangollen Canal The words “spectacular” and “adrenaline rush” are rarely used in the same sentence as “narrow boat”. Unless, of course, you’re cruising the Llangollen canal, in north Wales, where the magnificent Chirk and Pontcysyllte aqueducts put you in the bizarre and hair-raising position of steering a boat across bridges 70ft and 126ft above the rivers Ceiriog and Dee respectively. Rent the five-berth Lowri for £634 from Maestermyn (
SEPTEMBER 4-6 Foraging in Pembrokeshire Learn how to forage at the St David’s Really Wild Food and Countryside Festival, a celebration of food and crafts that originate in the wild. There’ll be cookery and craft demonstrations and stalls, country and shoreline food forages, plant identification and bushcraft skills. Coastal Cottages of Pembrokeshire (
SEPTEMBER 11-13 Bestival on the Isle of Wight It’s still too early to say exactly who will be performing at this year’s Bestival, but organisers have confided that the fancy-dress theme this year is A Space Oddity, in honour of David Bowie’s space flight in 1969. That gives you nine months to knock up something out of this world to wear, and you can keep it clean, mud-wise, by booking a room. Wightlink (
SEPTEMBER 18-20 Art in Vilnius The capi t a l o f Lithuania is one of the European Capitals of Culture in 2009, and among the eccentric events scheduled is Art in Unusual Places – an intriguing game of artistic hide-and-seek in which visitors are invited to explore back-streets, abandoned warehouses and hidden courtyards in search of installations, exhibitions and performance art. Fly there with Air Baltic (www.airbaltic.com ; from £190) and stay at the family-run Apia Hotel (
SEPTEMBER 25-27 Crush a grape in Mallorca The Festa des Vermada is the annual celebration of the end of the grape harvest in the Mallorcan wine capital, Binissalem. You’ll know it’s started when you hear a rocket go off – moments later, you’ll be swept along in a throng of overexcited locals following a pie-eyed piper to a field, where the whole town will pelt each other with grapes. You can guess how it ends – sleeping it off in the incongruously genteel Scotts Hotel, where Mallorca Farmhouses (
OCTOBER 2-4 Gourmet break in Blackburn That’s not a joke – according to Harden’s UK Restaurant Guide, the north triumphs over the south in provision of gourmet fare at realistic prices. The top spot is Northcote (
OCTOBER 9-11 Learn to paint in north Devon “Painting is easy when you don’t know how,” said Degas, “but very difficult when you do.” Take a gentle step towards learning the art of landscape painting in oils and acrylics on the wave-lashed Hartland peninsula. The courses start at £295,full-board, including the obligatory cream tea, through Hartland Peninsula Arts (
OCTOBER 16-18 Cider trail, Somerset A weekend based on drinking cider and walking seems doomed from the outset, but it’s worth a try. On a gentle hike in apple-scented valleys, David Howell leads you through orchards, beech woods and pretty villages, stopping at cideries to sample the output. The price is £301 with Foot Trails (
OCTOBER 23-25 La dolce vita, Rome The wrong way to see Rome is to strap on a backpack and disappear into the herd with the individuality and panache of a migrating wildebeest. The right way is to slip into something stylish and climb aboard a Vespa. The problem is, it’s expensive – a four-hour trip costs about £170pp. You can get a better deal by booking the Roman Holiday package at the Intercontinental de la Ville (00 39-06 67 331, www.intercontinental.com/icrome ) – two nights with a scooter tour for two costs £680. British Airways (
OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 30-1 Hallowe’en in Gotham It could be the plot of a Batman movie: in 1973, a humble puppeteer in Greenwich Village started a Hallowe’en parade that has grown to be the biggest celebration of its kind on earth, with more than 50,000 gruesome participants and 2m spectators. But you didn’t come to watch – be at 6th Avenue, south of Spring Street, at 6.30pm sharp and come dressed to distress. The weekend, including flights and accommodation at the perfectly located SoHo Grand Hotel, costs £719 with Hayes & Jarvis (
NOVEMBER 6-8 Tapas tuition in Andalusia Head to olive-oil country for an intensive course in la cocina Andaluz. Staying at a finca in the village of Los Juncares, on the edge of the Parque Natural de La Sierra Subbetica, you’ll learn how to cook mouth watering local dishes such as cordonices con higos(quail with spiced figs), tarta de limon con miel de lavanda(lemon tart with lavender-scented honey) and proper croquetas. The price is £317, full-board, with Golearnto (
NOVEMBER 13-15 Explore Leptis Magna, Libya Until recently, the magnificent Roman ruins of Leptis Magna, 80 miles east of Tripoli, were off limits to tourists, and if you get there at dawn, you can still have the city to yourself. You’ll find the largest Roman bath complex outside Rome, a spectacular theatre, with its statuary intact, and the recently discovered gladiator mosaic, which as been described as comparable in quality with the Alexan-der mosaic in Pompeii. The long weekend costs £670 with Voyages Jules Verne (
NOVEMBER 20-22 Christmas cooking course at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons Impress your guests this festive season with tips learnt at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons (
DECEMBER 4-6 Smart shopping in New York Forget Fifth Avenue – those in the know head to uptown consignment stores, where this season’s collections go for a fraction of the Bloomingdale’s ticket price. A tour with shopping tsars The Elegant Tightwad (www.theeleganttightwad.com ) costs £35, and the trip is £625, including flights with Virgin and accommodaAP: 10 top cities 2009 tion at the four-star Bentley Hotel, with Bon Voyage (
DECEMBER 11-13 Christmas market in Rothenburg About two hours south of Frankfurt, the medieval town of Rothenburg ob derTauber hosts Germany’s prettiest festive market – a sugar-frosted, cinnamon-infused confection that out-Disneys Disney. Stay at the improbably picturesque Burg-Hotel (
DECEMBER 18-20 Fête de la Dinde in Licques If you’re crossing the Channel to stock up on Christmas booze, go this weekend and you can pick up the turkey, too – and not just any old turkey. In the town of Licques, 15 miles south of Calais, the Knights of the Order of the Turkey proudly parade their free-range, corn-fed, red-label birds through the streets, cheered on by spectators fortified with Licquoise – the potent local Christmas spirit. SeaFrance (
DECEMBER 25-27 Christmas on Skye If you’re handing control of your Christmas to a third party, you need certain things guaranteed, and there are few places that do yule as well as Skye’s Flodigarry Country House Hotel (
Posted by Shona Lockhart, 4th January 2009
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