My first visit to Sichuan was in 2006 to research a magazine story. I was instantly drawn to the places beyond the big cities: the ancient towns scattered across the Sichuan basin and mountain valleys, where old wooden houses, riverside teahouses and stone-paved lanes defined the vibe…

I first travelled to Sichuan in 2006, and my immediate reaction when I stepped out into Chengdu was a slightly bewildered: “Two thousand or so years of history… where is it?” On the surface, the concrete sprawl had seemingly swallowed the past. But it didn’t take long to realise that the history wasn’t in preserved monuments – it’s most alive in the neighbourhoods…

When I say “I’m going to Yunnan”, even super well-travelled people look quizzical. “Where’s that?” they ask, and fair enough too. After all, when people think of China their minds instantly click to the Greatest Sino Hits… adorable pandas, the Great Wall, Terracotta Warriors, The Bund, the Summer Palace, Forbidden City and maybe even…

Yes Auschwitz, yes the Salt Mines, and yes Zakopane, the quaint town in the Tatra mountains that’s a popular side-trip. These iconic places might already be on your must-see list if you’re bound for Kraków, but this city, an architectural and cultural gem that effortlessly balances medieval history with dynamic…

Here’s the second part of my recent journey to Prague—a city I loved so much, I’m already planning my next visit. If you’re at all keen on exploring the city of Mucha, Pilsner, classic cafés, and a million golden buchty, you might find a few travel ideas here. (By the way, I can't recommend Richard Fidler’s brilliant book The Golden Maze enough…

Prague is a place I’d wanted to visit for the longest time, but knowing it’s so touristy always put me off. Ever the chirpy optimist (not really!), I took a punt that there would still be real magic in the quieter streets, lesser-known sights, and local’s favourite spots, despite the 7.5 million (or so) annual visitors. I’ve written a day-by-day…

Budapest is a city of many layers. And not just the kind you spot in its Baroque, Neo-Gothic, and Art Nouveau facades (although, wow), but the kind that blend a palpable sense of history with a busy, modern charm. Yellow trams rattle down streets and traffic zips by at a fearsome pace (this is no place to jaywalk) – except on famous…

Rebecca (Becs) Caughey spent 15 years in the music industry as a band manager and publicist, spending over a decade managing top Kiwi artists Ladi6 and Shapeshifter. After having her second child, she changed careers and co-founded Cook & Nelson with her husband Nick, marketing and distributing innovative food and beverage brands from across the globe, including…

Nicky Pellegrino is an award-winning journalist, writing about health, science and lifestyle – she also tops the New Zealand best-seller charts with her popular novels. Raised in the UK, she now lives in Auckland...

Leanne Kitchen, co-founder of the LSC and a seasoned food and travel writer, has ventured far and wide across Asia, Turkey and the Middle East. Currently she’s fixated on the flavours and old-world charm of Europe...

Antony Suvalko is half of the team that started the wildly successful community and website, Lazy Susan. With a background in professional cooking and a keen instinct for content creation, the digi and publishing world is his playground...

You’re in HCMC (Sài Gòn) and the first thing you want to eat is probably a fragrant bowl of phở. Absolutely fair enough. But famous phở is just one soup noodle dish you can expect in Ho Chi Minh City – there are plenty more. When you get there, as alluring as endless bowls of the superlative phở are, leave time and stomach capacity to explore the complex world of HCMC's other soup noodle offerings...

If you’ve been keeping up you’ll note we recently delved into Seville, giving just a few reasons to love this luscious Andalusian city. Dripping with history, oozing charm and marinated in up-beat, tapas-fuelled vibes, it’s the kind of place that gets right under your skin, with a single visit barely scratching its alluring surface. Never mind the day trips! Here are a few more reasons to dream of visiting lovely old Seville…

Is it our imagination, or are All The Lucky Bastards travelling at the moment? No matter where we look on social media, our feeds are flooded with Tuscany this, the Greek Islands that and Maldives, regional France and Prague the other. Not that we’re jellie or anything. Nah, not us. Never…

Itching to get to Morocco? You’re not alone. According to the Trading Economics website, the Kingdom is expecting as many as 12 million tourist arrivals in 2024. Last year I was one of them, lured by the promise of ancient medinas, gorgeous architecture and gallons of mint tea, and with snippets of Paula Wolfert’s iconic food prose rattling around my head…

Barcelona gets all the buzz, but most Spain cliches actually belong to Andalusia, the country’s second largest comunidad autónoma (region). Bordering the expansive southern coast, the capital is Seville and it’s a seductive place, famous for flamboyant holy week processions, a gob smacking cathedral…

Itching to get to Morocco? You’re not alone. According to the Trading Economics website, the Kingdom is expecting as many as 12 million tourist arrivals in 2024. Last year I was one of them, lured by the promise of ancient medinas, gorgeous architecture and gallons of mint tea, and with snippets of Paula Wolfert’s iconic food prose rattling around my head…

Missing Singapore? Yeah, us too. For all its spit and polish, its Gardens by the Bay, its posh high teas and those eye-popping luxury chattels on Orchard Road, it’s to the humble hawker centres we high-tail when we’re there. So do the locals, despite all those shiny…

What do Spaniards love more than a tomato? Not much. Per www.statista.com, in 2021 tomatoes were Spain’s most eaten vegetable (OK, so technically they’re a fruit, but go with this). Spanish-grown tomatoes make up 35 percent of European tomato consumption, making them a vital export crop too…

If you’ve ever been to Venice, you’ll understand how it gets under your skin. Sure, the crowds and tourist traps are annoying but if anyone has an overall ‘meh’ response to Venezia, I’d challenge them to locate their pulse. Srsly. You need to be fully dead to not appreciate this gorgeous place. And if you read Part One, you’ll have seen the…

How much do we love George Town? Let us count the ways. Charming, a bit crusty around the edges and with a very human scale, the UNESCO-protected heart of Penang’s capital is a gem. It might not have the glossy nightlife, restaurants or Insta-opps of, say, Bali, but we couldn’t give a flying flip…

There are plenty of reasons to love Sichuan – pandas, food, the local opera, extraordinary natural beauty, and glimpses into Tibetan culture. But honestly, you could ditch the sightseeing, decamp to a teahouse, sit with locals, break out the melon seeds and be perfectly happy. You’ll be embracing the local modus operandi if you do: namely, to slow down, chill out and enjoy life.

Venice. You know you want to. Or do you really? The over-tourism. The queues. The heat. The mozzies. The expense. It’s all a bit off-putting. I found myself in Venice in June for the very first time and as a fan of shoulder and off seasons, it wouldn’t have been my pick of months to go…

We love pounding BKKs hot pavements for street food bargains and the city is heckin’ jammed with them. Sitting in grungier corners and inhaling pad thai with a side-serve of tuk tuk fumes is one of our City of Angels highlights. And we love the thrill of a chugging ferry ride to an obscure, river-side alley for some rumoured, X-factor hawker stall, then feeling incredibly proud when…