Get beyond the gates of the Castle to see a side of Windsor you never knew. This thriving, bustling town may have been the home of the Royal Family for almost 1,000 years, but it is generations of local residents who have made Windsor a truly special place to be. In this book, locals and travellers alike will delight in tales that explore the mysterious, mythological and also mortal side of Windsor, weaving through tales of deceit and scandal, heroism and genius, to paint a picture of a town that is breaking away from its Royal connections and emerging as a world-class destination in its own right.
Learn how an emerging craft beer scene is bringing brewing back to Windsor. Discover local characters who have created museums and art galleries in the most unlikely ways. Explore the hidden histories of everything from a pub with a tombstone in the saloon, to a café in an old ticket office, to the world’s first augmented reality mural. If you thought Windsor was just the Castle, the Great Park, Eton College and Legoland, you’re in for a surprise.
The hidden art of London is for the ever-curious roamer of both the back streets and the familiar places you never quite see – churches, gardens, graveyards, pubs. What little garden finds the poet John Keats sitting in the corner of a bench? Which abandoned building tells the story of a great Roman Road?
There are always marvels hidden in plain view – the back corner of a museum containing great sculptures by Rodin or the naked, street-corner golden boy, who marks where the Great Fire of London finally petered out. A famous literary cat or a painting by Hogarth on the bend of a stairs in an ancient hospital.
This guidebook takes you exploring London beyond its most famous sights to find the art we have never quite noticed before: the hidden statues, paintings, and murals that have escaped from the official museums, and often live unnoticed lives in tucked away places.
Mixing Roman and medieval roots, Chichester sits at the heart of a storied landscape where South Down hills dotted with idyllic hamlets ripple back from a shoreline mixing wild dune-backed beaches with old-school seaside resorts. Reminders of smuggling and war add spice.
But a thrilling thread of modernity runs through this slice of West Sussex too. Chichester’s modernist Festival Theatre provided the foundation for London’s National Theatre, while masterpieces of contemporary architecture that draw admirers from around the world include Sea Lane House in East Preston and The White Tower in Bognor Regis.
Evocative ancient memorials abound. Chichester is blessed with the only English cathedral visible from the sea, while England’s largest castle rises above the ravishing – and cosmopolitan – riverside town of Arundel. Ancient yew trees mark the burial spots of Viking warriors in an idyllic Downland spot. And it’s a land vibrant with creative imprints: poets, painters, composers, from Blake and Keats to Joyce and Chagall.
This guidebook takes you exploring Chichester and its surroundings to find incomparable natural beauty, hidden secrets, astonishing history, art of all kinds, and much more.
Cornwall is known for its spectacular scenery, tiny fishing harbours, sandy beaches and surfing. Outside the tourist hotspots it has an intricate landscape full of life, where the ancient meets the modern. This guide takes you deep into this landscape, to old forgotten places and new exciting venues, from Land’s End to the Rame Peninsula, from Lizard Point to Bude.
Come with us from the old – to where Excalibur was thrown into the lake hundreds of years ago – to the modern – to the settings for the Poldark TV series. Come with us from the tiny – the tombstone of Alfred Wallis – to the huge – the intricate folded rocks on Millook beach. Join us from the noisy – Trevithick’s Puffing Devil – to the quiet – the tranquil Japanese garden.
Cornwall has changed. It is an intriguing mix of modern gastronomy, mining heritage, ancient ruins, literary festivals, traditional dances and brand-new technology. This guide is a personal selection of the best places, a mix to cover all tastes; please join us on our journey.
Space City. Bayou City. Hustletown. Clutch City. Crush City. What’s the story behind all these nicknames? 111 Places in Houston That You Must Not Miss is your guide to the hidden stories behind the city’s monikers, stereotypes, and statistics. As America’s most diverse city, this book provides 111 different ways to explore Htown.
This illustrated guidebook is a readable tour of places representing the distinct personalities that make up the population of the nation’s fourth largest city. Traverse Houston’s massive landscape of strip malls and interstates, and you will find a city that not only embraces diversity, but transforms it into its own culture, where Hindu temples take up office space, an enterprising Vietnamese jeweller supplies the hip hop scene with bling, and one man’s mission to cover his house in beer cans is now a museum.
Whether you’re a native Houstonian or a newcomer, this book serves as both a good read and a resource for getting to know the city – one unique place at a time.
Paris is known as the City of Lights, but it is really the City of Museums. Explore iconic centres of fine art with fresh eyes and dig deeper to uncover a world of museums dedicated to art and artists, science and industry, literature and film and curiosities both unusual and fascinating.
Can you identify all the great artists of French impressionism? Do you know about French contributions to early automobiles and airplanes? Are you fascinated by haute couture? Would you like to visit the ateliers of great painters and sculptors? Do you love music and film? Are you an obsessive collector of something truly peculiar? Or do you simply want to learn about new and compelling things in the world around you?
111 Museums in Paris That You Shouldn’t Miss highlights destinations, both well-known and obscure, where you will discover new treasures throughout this magnificent city.
Winnipeg, a big city with a small-town spirit, is diverse, full of history, and culturally rich. This guide takes you beyond the usual and well-known landmarks and deep into the heart of the city.
Take a bison safari and imagine these enormous beasts thundering across the open prairie centuries ago. Visit the site where bison and fur traders once crossed a treacherous river. Walk through an abandoned monastery. Enjoy a mix of old and new in a campus building featuring century-old storefronts or a restaurant built around an old pumping station. Get a medium reading in a house with an intriguing paranormal history. Find high-quality Indigenous art and a modern bistro rooted in traditional First Nations cuisine.
Discover the creative, unpretentious, resilient, and often quirky nature of The Peg in 111 new ways.
Many people only know Orlando as the home of Mickey Mouse, Harry Potter, and immersive fantasy lands. It is packed with budget chain hotels, chain restaurants, and roughly a billion gift shops. Except the reality of Orlando is equally as enticing as these fantasy worlds, if not more!
Most of the most fascinating aspects of Orlando predate its theme park persona by decades.
111 Places in Orlando That You Must Not Miss reveals the city’s true backstory and dramatic modern face, highlighting how the first settlers survived in the 1830s, and the area’s role as the hub of Florida’s 19th century citrus industry. Explorers will find out what’s left of the city’s front-line Strategic Air Force Base from the Cold War; and the iconic “gator mouth” that has swallowed up tourists since 1949.
Unearth the offbeat sites and hidden gems of The City Beautiful and discover all the ways it didn’t begin – or end – with a mouse.
Explore deep into the heart of Phoenix to find its best kept secrets, natural wonders, and inspiring people – not to mention a few ghosts – and discover the Old Western charm that still permeates the culture here. Visit a giant, golden panda, a gleaming white pyramid on a hilltop in Papago Park, and a curiosity shop on 7th Avenue. You can stargaze on horseback or at the top of a spiral tower resembling the Milky Way. Offer your respects at sites honouring the USS Arizona and the famed Navajo Code Talkers. Revel in the sight of Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture, find true beauty beneath a gorgeous peacock staircase, and ponder why a giant robot is reading a book instead of tapping on its smartphone. From the world’s tallest Kachina doll to a serving of rattlesnake and cactus fries, Phoenix is a haven for those who are adventurous and have a passion the Wild West of yesterday and today.
“… it’s also a book to dip into – for inspiration, for discovery, or simply for the pleasure of armchair exploration.” — Worldwide Writer
Dorset doesn’t have any motorways. Or cities. Or major industries. We do have railways – but don’t expect high speed intercity connections. But these are the reasons why the county is so appealing: The pace of life is slower, the people friendlier, the views more unspoiled. The county is a magnet for creative types: artisan food producers, eco-preneurs, artists and craftspeople who are quietly building businesses in small towns and villages, tucked away in back lanes and converted farm buildings.
Whether you’re a local, a seasoned traveller or first-time visitor, beautiful, quirky Dorset will surprise and delight you. This guide will introduce you to 111 off-the-beaten track (and sometimes off-the-wall) locations that make this slice of the West Country a wonderful place to live and a great place to visit.
Pick flowers in the grounds of a ruined abbey. Watch the summer solstice at a mini Stonehenge. Spot badgers in fancy dress. Buy wobbly bread from a post office. Moon-bathe in a beach-side sauna. Or fill your boots at a dry dock.
Liverpool’s unique history as an international port and a cultural melting pot has given it a character all its own. The city has produced music that conquered the world and is home to more historic buildings than any other British metropolis outside London. It features two magnificent cathedrals and many world famous museums. But beyond its renowned exterior, is an eclectic assortment of places hidden and unknown.
This deliciously offbeat guidebook will lead you to a different Liverpool: down tunnels, up skyscrapers, and into secret bars, speciality shops, and disused factories. You will see Balenciaga trainers and vintage planes, rolling bridges and disappearing statues, Liver birds and celebrity suitcases, home-baked cakes and cast-iron churches.
Stroll under the palms in a magical glasshouse, explore a 1950s kitchen or a museum of false teeth. Relax in a hip tea bar with over 50 varieties of tea (loose leaf naturally). Marvel at the world’s most expensive book or largest brick building (27 million bricks!). Go underground to explore a network of mysterious tunnels or a perfectly preserved World War II bunker. Drink in a prison cell, picnic in a graveyard, or stay in the hotel where Winston Churchill and Bob Dylan were guests.
Think you know Liverpool? Think again! Whether you’re a long-time local, a first-time tourist, or a repeat visitor, prepare to be charmed and intrigued by 111 eccentric and unusual spots you’d never expect to find in the city best known for football and the Fab Four.
There is possibly no city in the United States as misunderstood as Baltimore, and yet there are few that can match it in majesty. One of the oldest Great Cities of America, Baltimore is profoundly rich in history and culture. But its character is not only derived from its past: Charm City’s present and future belong to the thousands of artists and innovators who call it home. Baltimore is full of adventure and surprises. You’ll visit the site of one of the most notorious scenes in cinematic history, and the home of the gay divorcée who stole the heart of a king. You’ll hear music performed by future classical music stars, grab a bite at the last old-fashioned Polish smokehouse on the East Coast, and spend a day on a street art scavenger hunt. Whether it’s your first visit or your 20th, and even if you’ve lived here for a lifetime, you’ll embark on a journey of discovery through 111 fascinating spots across Baltimore.
Fife is an ancient Scottish county, proudly known as the Kingdom. Its distinctive, self-contained identity is summed up in the old adage ‘Bid farewell to Scotland, and cross to Fife!’ A compact peninsula shaped like the head of a Scottie dog nosing the North Sea, it boasts magnificent approaches from south and north via the celebrated bridges over the Forth and Tay. Tourists flock to the world-famous golf courses in the old university town of St Andrews. But Fife is packed with all manner of much less-visited treasures, places of stunning natural beauty as well as fascinating monuments of every era, from prehistoric to post-industrial, testaments to its long and eventful past and richly diverse cultural heritage. You will discover a land where generations of the illustrious and the powerful, the humble and the hard-working have all left their mark, from kings and queens to miners and fishermen, from bishops, earls and industrialists to scholars, artists and sportsmen – to say nothing of the internationally famed Fifers whose legacies have changed history. This book will introduce visitor and native alike to a whole host of unexpected and contrasting sites and sights that celebrate the delightful otherness of this unique little Kingdom.
England’s first capital, largest cathedral, and oldest college: Winchester is a city where ancient walls murmur stories of proud warriors and Wintonian pioneers, of brutal crimes and glorious successes.
Whether you’ve called Winchester home for years, recently moved here, or are just visiting for a short time, these 111 places will captivate, enchant, and amaze you. Try the sparkling wine which rivals champagne or the renowned striped ice cream and visit Europe’s first wasabi grower. Feel a shiver in the Red Room, cross the bridge that predicts the weather and find the garden built by a spy. Amble where Russel Crowe rode and the real Countess of Downton Abbey resides. Defend the city against a Viking invasion and meet the policeman who solved the first-ever train murder.
Amid it all, you’ll be immersed in Winchester’s stunning architecture, lively atmosphere, and warm energy – a city no longer ruling a kingdom, yet still brimming with power, scandal, secrets, and life.
Miami and the Keys are the cultural and geographical gateways to the United States; where Latin America gracefully blends into North America, and land embraces the sea. This unusual guide leads you along the fulcrum that is Miami and the Keys, laden with world-class architecture, sandy beaches, pristine waters, nightclubs, and trendy hotels. Beneath the well-polished surface lies a history and culture that strays far from the conventional, bubbling up through unexpected places, like a coral fortress built for a spurned lover, a divey laundromat that serves the sweetest café con leche you’ve ever had, or an enclave of houses built on stilts in the midst of the ocean. Lose yourself in a glass rainforest. Glide over the mysterious waters of the Everglades. Visit your own desert island. Drink the sweet nectar of the Cuban coffee gods. Venture into the “other” Miami, beyond the glitz and glamour, steeped in natural beauty and deep-seeded tradition. See why Ernest Hemingway called the Keys his home. Though teeming with tourists, there are still plenty of hidden gems to be unearthed, you just have to know where to look…
Milan – the epicentre of Italian fashion, art, and finance – awaits you at Expo 2015. 142 countries are participating in this modern world’s fair. 20 million visitors are expected, most of whom will storm the city’s famous sights along with the Expo’s pavilions and exhibits. This unconventional guidebook will tell you how to avoid endless crowds and queues, and instead track down the enthralling and little-known places that are hidden throughout this exciting metropolis: Try the best Italian food – in a supermarket! Explore the private studios of famous designers! Discover a flock of flamingos in a backyard garden! Go beyond La Scala and the Duomo, the Navigli and the Golden Triangle of Fashion, to uncover Milan’s best kept secrets.
Our memories define our lives. So we owe it ourselves to create as many wonderful memories as we can. Travel is great at creating memories and travel adventures create the most ‘memorable’ of memories. As they say: ‘travel is the only thing we pay for that makes us richer’. The world is a big and fascinating place and affordable airfares have made it accessible for all of us. But what will you do when you get there? Will you sit on a beach or will you embark on an adventure that will enrich your life? If you prefer the latter then this book is for you. It took more than 20 years to assemble these adventures. They are not the result of online search; they were discovered the old fashioned way: by trial and error and by luck and happenstance. The one thing they all have in common is that the author has personally experienced each adventure so there is a reliable consistency to these 111 adventures as much as there is an exotic variety.
Newcastle is England’s most northerly city and shares a long history with Gateshead, its neighbour on the south side of the River Tyne. The two, city and town respectively, are a heady mix of the old and new; both were industrial powerhouses during the 19th Century that have successfully embraced recent change, reinventing themselves as vibrant places of entertainment and culture. With this book in hand, journey over and under the Tyne to discover treasures such as the steam turbine ship Turbinia, a sleekly streamlined example of north-eastern mechanical know-how; wander across the wide-open space of the Town Moor, where President Jimmy Carter has the right to graze cattle; take in Saltwell Towers, an eccentric castle in the leafy surroundings of Saltwell Park; then top it all off with a pint in a pub where the ghost of Charles I may well make an appearance. Written by a Geordie, this book will help you explore the quirkier side of both Newcastle and Gateshead, and discover their hidden gems.
They call Yorkshire God’s own country. This is because England’s biggest county is also England’s most epic and most historically exciting. It has everything: unimaginably beautiful countryside, derelict castles, cliff-hugging coastlines, brutally bleak moors, quirkily quaint villages, wondrously winding waterways and industrial monsters of cities. Many of the most interesting episodes in English history have happened here: the Wars of the Roses, the English Civil War, the birth of the industrial revolution, the rise of the Labour movement.
But when people think of Yorkshire they also think of the unusual and the unsung: Bettys delightful tea rooms, cricket at Scarborough, the windswept steps of Whitby Abbey, the steam railway of the Railway Children, Mother Shipton’s Cave, and racing at Doncaster and York.
Yorkshire has also given birth to some of the greatest and most talented figures in English history: Brian Clough, Harold Wilson, John Wycliffe, William Wilberforce, the Brontë Sisters, David Hockney and Barbara Hepworth.
Still known as Wool City, Bradford has evolved from its industrial past and diversified into a powerhouse of artistic creativity and diverse attractions. Striking architecture and unique locations helped the city become the first Unesco City of Film, with many places instantly recognisable from film and TV programmes. Saltaire village is a World Heritage Site, dominated by the imposing Salts Mill, and is home to an impressive array of independent shops, galleries, cafés and bars. Haworth is more rural, picture perfect, and was the home of the Brontës, surrounded by miles of rugged moorland immortalised in Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights.
With a history of encouraging people from around the world to live and work here, its diverse heritage forms a major part of Bradford’s rich tapestry of arts and culture, and ensures a friendly welcome for all. Parks, formal gardens and water features breathe life into the city, jostling with galleries, theatres and an array of bars, cafés and restaurants. From Hockney originals to urban street sculpture, world class theatre to the world’s longest running folk club, yorkshire puddings to chicken biryani, this vibrant city will surprise you in the best possible way.
111 Places in Calgary That You Must Not Miss takes you on adventures across a city that is full of secrets and surprises. Walk in the footsteps of Calgary’s most flamboyant, diamond-covered madam. Pay homage at the grave of the region’s first Black cowboy, who became a legendary rancher. And admire an important buffalo hide robe at an Indigenous museum at the southwestern city limits. Learn about the birth of the Caesar – Calgarians know it’s neither an emperor nor a salad, but Canada’s most beloved cocktail. Discover the magic of Stampede Park when the rodeo is not in town. Beware of a ghostly lady who haunts a historic mansion. And find out if you’re brave enough to try a mouthful of prairie oysters.
Grab your toque, your sunscreen, and a friend, and go exploring. Calgary’s true energy is all around you.
Just as its nickname, ‘cream city’, has nothing to do with beer or dairy, the city of Milwaukee itself is fraught with surprises. While it is undoubtedly the jovial land of beer and cheese (and brats, bowling and The Brewers, for that matter) the city is also a centre for world-class art, architecture, culture and innovation, and has been since the 1800s.
Discover Milwaukee’s most unexpected treasures – visit a 15th century French chapel, or a 425 million-year-old tropical reef. Throw a turkey at the nation’s oldest sanctioned bowling alley. Watch an art museum flap its wings, or tour the city’s only urban cheese factory to find out why cheese curds squeak.
Milwaukee, a city both stunning and charming, also possesses a dry, self-deprecating wit and goofy cleverness. Visit 111 amazing places that reveal this unique character, one that keeps Milwaukee’s locals local, and beckons visitors back again and again.
“Good evening. I’m from Essex, in case you couldn’t tell.” Thus spoke the inimitable punk poet of the flat lands, Ian Dury, in 1977. Few other parts of England have so distinctive an identity, sent up by a hundred comedians since the 1990 birth of Essex Man, epitomised by the rise of the ‘Mockney’ radio celeb, and incarcerated through their hideous offspring in TV’s The Only Way is Essex. It’s not just an accent, it’s a way of life, a culture shaped by the Diaspora from London generation after generation, the lure of the sea and powerful Thames estuary, the encroaching of the waters from innumerable creeks and inlets, the dream seaside resort of Southend, the longing for the most succulent of seafood indulgences, the delicious countryside of copses and boughs painted by Constable, but also the threat of invasion by hostile forces repelled by Britain’s most formidable forts. It’s Essex. You can tell.