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The Guardian
4 days ago
- Lifestyle
- The Guardian
‘The hotel had a dog spa': readers' favourite dog-friendly holidays
Recently, Cornwall Council lifted the season-long dog ban on many of the county's beaches, restricting it to just July and August rather than the six months or so it had been previously. The council publishes a list of beaches, with all restrictions listed, that it's important to check before heading out (there are still 11 beaches where dogs are banned between 10am and 6pm, and there are three protected wildlife areas where they are banned at all times). One of the best beaches, we think, is at Gunwalloe where visitors can stay at the National Trust holiday cottage right by the beach and the cafe has water bowls for dogs. Church Cove is restricted for dog owners in July and August but Dollar Cove next door is dog-friendly at all times. The coast path runs right along the beaches and takes you over to Poldhu or Porthleven, so there are plenty of options for Astley Guardian Travel readers' tips Every week we ask our readers for recommendations from their travels. A selection of tips will be featured online and may appear in print. To enter the latest competition visit the readers' tips homepage - The four-star hotel Inn on the Square (doubles from £100 B&B) in Keswick is very dog-friendly. It provides a dog spa – very useful after a lovely walk in the fells – dog beds, and tips on green spaces for dogs to do their business. Keswick is a beautiful town with fantastic pubs on gorgeous Derwentwater. The hotel charges a nightly supplement of £25 a dog. Up to two dogs can stay in your North Firbank Cottage (from £700 a week, sleeps four) in the Culzean Castle and Country Park Estate near Maybole is a delightful cottage with two sizeable secure gardens for your dog. It is owned by the National Trust for Scotland and is on a short private road that leads only to a couple of rentable cottages. A few minutes' walk in one direction is the estate's public car park, lake, cafe and children's adventure park, while a few minutes' in the other is the huge sandy Maidens beach (dogs welcome all year) with views of Arran and Ailsa Craig. Included in the price are miles of footpaths in the Culzean Estate and admission to the castle (but no dogs inside).David Gilmore The Isle of Man has miles of lead-free walking around the sandy beaches at the top of the island. There are 18 preserved national glens all suitable for off-lead walking – with clean rivers to splash in – and several have a lovely beach at the end. Dash around Gansey Bay beach (dogs welcome all year) in the south, then sit with your well-behaved dog in the bar of the Shore Hotel overlooking the East Ruston Cottages in north-east Norfolk are totally devoted to dogs, providing everything you need for you and your dog. All cottages take at least three dogs. The cottage we stayed in earlier this year had a dog shower and toys, towels, treats and even a birthday card for our border collie. It was lovely for us as well. The company will even provide dog sitters if needed. Margaret Dennis Ynys Môn (Anglesey) is the sort of place where you wake to gulls not traffic. We booked a cottage above Red Wharf Bay then spent each tide-out morning striding sand to Traeth Lligwy, dogs off lead (there are no dog restrictions there) and noses full of salt. Lunch meant fish and chips outside the Ship Inn where water bowls appear before menus. For rainy days there is the dog-friendly cafe at the Oriel Môn museum and arts centre or woodland walks in Newborough Forest where red squirrels flit overhead. Every evening our spaniel snored beside the log burner while we planned tomorrow's ideal beach. Pamela Sign up to The Traveller Get travel inspiration, featured trips and local tips for your next break, as well as the latest deals from Guardian Holidays after newsletter promotion Explore ancient oak woodlands and secret beaches at The Little Retreat in Lawrenny (domes sleeping four from £120 a night), Pembrokeshire. Nestled in the walled garden of a 12th-century castle, these luxury domes are fully dog-friendly and overlook the Daugleddau estuary – perfect for wild swims and kayak adventures. Nearby, stroll to hidden coves or visit Carew Castle's dog-welcoming (on the lead) grounds. It's a wildly peaceful escape packed with history, beauty and We really enjoyed a visit to the De Vere at Cotswolds Water Park with our dog. Our ground floor room had doors opening out on to a wide wetland panorama and a boardwalk to pootle along with the dog. The usual extras (beds etc) are provided, you can take your dog to breakfast and use the spa. Nearby towns such as Cirencester are fantastic for dogs, and the biggest hit of all was the Cotswold Wildlife Park nearby, a superb dog-friendly (dogs must be kept on a lead) animal park and We spent our childhood summers at Rita's chalets in Portsalon in County Donegal. The accommodation was basic and cheap. There was no heating, TV or shower but they allowed Sandy, our faithful dog, to stay every year. We still go back but the accommodation, now called the Pier Apartments (from €310 for two nights, two apartments, sleep 5 each) has been massively upgraded. But some things have stayed the same. The harbour is still full of kids jumping into the sea from the pier. The views are as spectacular as ever, and dog-friendly Ballymastocker beach is still the best in the world. And Sandy has been replaced by The Isle of Mull is the most dog-friendly island I've ever had the pleasure of visiting. George the labrador was welcomed with open arms on the ferry crossing from Oban – where they even had a special dog seating area with bowls of water and treats available. All the beaches are breathtaking, and dogs can roam off-lead to their hearts' content. We even managed to take him on the tiny foot ferry over to The Boathouse restaurant on Ulva, where he made best friends with celebrity pooch Grampa, owned by the well-known interior designer Banjo Sedgwick
The Guardian
09-05-2025
- The Guardian
‘The softest white sand and crystal-clear water': readers' favourite beaches in Europe
While staying on the northern Pelion peninsula in Greece we made our way by foot along the coast path to Paralia Fakistra beach, which is only accessible via a walk in from local villages along the coast. The white pebble beach is backed by a freezing cold waterfall, which cools you down after the dusty, challenging coast path route. The crystal-blue water is home to lots of sea life and snorkelling was joyous. One of the attractions that keeps visitor numbers down is that there are no cafes or bars or even shade, so I recommend taking a light parasol and some cool drinks, but keep your load light as the walk can get hot, especially along the coast path from nearby Damouchari, another great beach spot on the Astley Our favourite beach in Europe is Plage de Péru in Corsica. It can be reached by a pleasant downhill walk from the Greek village of Cargèse. However, we were lucky enough to have direct access from the Hotel Thalassa, a simple and sleepy hotel with balconies and a leafy garden facing the turquoise waters. There may be better beaches in Corsica but we love this one as it's perfect for swimming and never seems to get busy. You can spend a day walking from the beach to the local Genoese tower, then return and grab a seat at one of the beach pailottes where you can eat or drink watching the Guardian Travel readers' tips Every week we ask our readers for recommendations from their travels. A selection of tips will be featured online and may appear in print. To enter the latest competition visit the readers' tips homepage - The Cyclades island of Naxos has stunning beaches everywhere but there's nothing like Kastraki. It has the softest white sand, which extends under the stunning, crystal-clear water that sometimes is the lightest blue, and sometimes turquoise. Perfect for swimming as it's never too still to be boring, rarely too wavy to be dangerous. The best thing about Kastraki is that depending on where you want to be, you can have wild and deserted or you can have busy. Go towards the south - but this applies to most of the beach really - for several miles of glorious peacefulness, where you'll hear nothing but the sea. If you like good low-key services, go to the north bit, right next to the little headland. You'll find some sunbeds and a great taverna right on the sand. The whole place is pure bliss; the only way you can top it is if you stay to watch the sunset, then catch some cocktail vibes in the beach bar 100 metres back next to the marsh, then dinner in the beach's little We had a wonderful week in Les Sables d'Olonne in the Vendée last year. The town has plenty of sites to see - the shell museum was well worth a trip – and there are many seafood restaurants to choose from and everything you'd expect from a well-loved, mainly French-visited seaside resort. The main beach (La Grande Plage) is extremely popular with everyone, and has beignet- and glace-sellers and beach volleyball. However, we found ourselves gravitating to the less busy Plage de la Paracou, smaller and more rugged with no tourist trappings and the most wonderful sunsets where we were at times one of only a handful of people on the sands as far as could be seen. There was also a fantastic small open-air bar just over the dune, which had great live acoustic music and drinks a few nights a week. Dolly From the classic hilltop town of Motovun in the beautiful Istrian countryside it's a relaxed 40-mile (60km) drive to Brestova and the winding, sloping road to the slipway. Sea-spray on the brief ferry-ride across to Porozina on Cres island gives way to a heat-hazy road-cruise down the island, crossing on to Lošinj over the rotating bridge at the impossibly pretty village of Osor (population 26). Heading south another 12 miles or so we reached pine-shaded Mali Lošinj for basking on rocks and plunging from them into deep, clear de Brunner Either side of Ystad (of Wallander fame) on the southern tip of Sweden, you'll find several unspoiled stretches of soft white sand. To the east is Sandhammaren, a seemingly endless ribbon of gold fringed by forest. To the west, there are shorter stretches of sand punctuated by the odd restaurant or cafe for fika and separated from civilisation by grassy dunes. One day last August, my boyfriend and I cycled (along dedicated cycle paths) from Ystad to the wonderful Skateholm Strand, stopping off at several more beautiful beaches along the way. As the Swedish school holidays had finished, we practically had the place to Sign up to The Traveller Get travel inspiration, featured trips and local tips for your next break, as well as the latest deals from Guardian Holidays after newsletter promotion One of the best beaches for adventurous souls has to be Playa de Güigüí on the west coast of Gran Canaria. It has wild, remote beauty and is only reached by a long, invigorating hike through steep, rocky terrain. Be sure to set off early with lunch and plenty of water packed as there is nothing close by at all. After the trek with stunning views, you will be rewarded with clear, gentle waves for a much-needed swim and stretches of secluded sand all to The beaches of the town of Tropea are framed by the Sanctuary Santa Maria dell Isola and cliffs and houses high above. The turquoise water is the clearest I've seen in Calabria. Tropea is so friendly, beautiful, delicious, affordable – what a delight. The B&Bs we've stayed in there all are full of warm Italian hospitality. Eating out is reasonably priced and restaurants offer superb menus, as always. David innes-wilkin I've been lucky enough to spend several summers at Kadikalesi beach, tucked away on the Bodrum peninsula. Easy to reach by dolmuş (minibus), it's a peaceful hideaway. Mornings drift by with gentle swims and coffee sips by the water's edge, and I like to spend afternoons lounging under olive trees to the lull of soft waves. Local cafes serve fresh lahmacun and pide (a kind of Turkish pizza), kofte (meatballs) and frothy ayran (yoghurt drink). Best of all are the evenings, when the sky blushes pink and orange over the Aegean, and the whole world seems to slow down – I can't imagine a summer without Ann The train from Barcelona deposits its passengers right on the shore of Sant Pol de Mar's harbour. The sound of gently bobbing rigging and the whiff of seafood drifts somewhere from the village, where the promise of a splendid lunch awaits. The Playa el Morer is reached on foot along a curving bay after which frazzled city-dwellers dig their heels in that hot, inviting amber sand and bliss out with siestas and the occasional dip. Sant Pol, it seems, exists to mend broken hearts, heal the soul and is a place where all is well in the
The Guardian
14-03-2025
- The Guardian
‘Spring sings with birdlife and wildflowers': readers' favourite UK trips of the season
Late spring is the best time to see the cliffs in colour as the bluebells, thrift and gorse battle it out for best in bloom on the Lizard in Cornwall. Walking the couple of easy miles along the coast between Kynance and Lizard Point will offer you a variety of exceptional, eye-catching and, in some cases, rare plants including Erica vagans, a variety of heath only found on the Lizard peninsula. Wildlife thrives here and in late spring your walk is likely to feature the soundtrack of Cornish choughs overhead. You may even see an adder or catch a glimpse of seals 'bottling' (bobbing) in the Atlantic, enjoying the Cornish spring sunshine. Layla Astley A spring trip to Knaresborough is a must. Take a wander around this Yorkshire market town before dropping down to the gorge below, through the beautiful blossoming castle grounds. Hours can be whiled away at the Riverside Cafe, and from here you can hire a rowing boat or simply watch those already on the water, slow motion collisions and all. When it's time to walk off the cake you can wander along the Nidderdale Greenway – it's four miles to Harrogate along this old railway line. Nidderdale is also home to Mother Shipton's Cave, worth a visit, but don't get petrified!Hannah Guardian Travel readers' tips Every week we ask our readers for recommendations from their travels. A selection of tips will be featured online and may appear in print. To enter the latest competition visit the readers' tips homepage - Cycle the Tarka Trail in north Devon for a serene spring adventure. This 180-mile route winds through lush woodlands, rolling countryside, and along tranquil rivers. In spring, the hedgerows bloom with primroses and wild garlic, while otters and kingfishers appear along the River Taw. Stop in charming villages such as Instow for fresh seafood or picnic in a hidden meadow. For an extra thrill, kayak a peaceful stretch of the river at high tide. The trail's quiet beauty and wildlife make it a perfect off-the-beaten-track escape as nature Mid-April to early May are ideal for walking in the Scottish Highlands, before the curse of midges. For a superb vista, take the train to Rannoch station and walk across Rannoch Moor to the recently upgraded Kingshouse hotel at the head of Glencoe. An overnight stay in their bunkhousewill cost £54 a head B&B. Then walk south the next day along the old packhorse track to rejoin the train-line at Bridge of Orchy. Susannah Clark Church Stretton in the Shropshire Hills is a marvellous place to spend a spring weekend. The town itself has a charming high street, with delis, pubs, bookshops and an indoor antiques market, but best of all is the countryside. The Long Mynd looms over the town and offers beautiful walks, wild ponies and spectacular views. The Carding Mill Valley feels surprisingly Alpine, hence the area's nickname of Little Switzerland. There are easy train connections to historic Shrewsbury and foodie Ludlow. We stayed in a delightful wood lodge above town in the trees. Who needs Zermatt? Dan Ashman The Hebridean island of Tiree is blessed in spring because of its mild microclimate. The warming Gulf Stream waters bring in waves that give it the name of the Hawaii of Scotland. Cowslips and crocuses greeted me as I headed to the white sand beaches and stunning views of the open Atlantic – there is nothing between Tiree and the Canadian coast. Spring lambs and rabbits graced the flat fields of bluebells as I marched on for an invigorating walk on the sands. A local crofter suggested a boat tour out to uninhabited Longa Island – telling me spring was the perfect time to see Hebridean nature and wildlife at its best. Soon I was enjoying the company of perky puffins and singing seabirds – after following the farmer's advice to lie on my stomach and imitate the movements of a seal not to scare them. An odd but fun way to welcome spring!Bill Sign up to The Traveller Get travel inspiration, featured trips and local tips for your next break, as well as the latest deals from Guardian Holidays after newsletter promotion The Northumberland coast is unbeatable at any time of year. In spring it sings with birdlife and wildflowers. Visit in May for a chance of puffin-spotting on the Farne Islands. If you're lucky you'll also see dolphins, and grey seals are abundant. Northumberland is home to a wonderful array of flora including, in late spring, wild orchids. Low Newton-by-the-Sea is an excellent base with an atmospheric pub, the Ship, serving local ale and stottie sandwiches, among other delights. Lindisfarne is another must see – just make sure you check the tides before setting out across the If Covid-19 taught me one thing, it was to appreciate how much exploring can be done locally. I was aware that Epping Forest was on my doorstep, but hadn't appreciated the volume of trails, and who knew that Lawrence of Arabia owned 18 acres at Pole Hill, one of the highest points. We also discovered a community nature park, the Paddock, in our neighbouring borough, with clumps of spring primroses and cowslips, and the Parkland Walk, which follows a former railway line. And finally, we hunted down bluebells in Wanstead Park and Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, one of London's 'magnificent seven' of Victorian Jackson Spring is the perfect time to visit Stratford-upon-Avon, when blossoms line the riverbanks and the town's Elizabethan architecture transports you back in time. Start your day on the River Avon with a self-drive wooden punt from Avon Boating (£11pp) – a peaceful way to take in the views. Then, step back in time at Shakespeare's birthplace, or take a walk in the leafy Welcombe Hills. As evening falls, catch a world-class performance at the Royal Shakespeare theatre, and round off the day with a meal at the Vintner, an independent bistro set in a historic building on Sheep Street. Steph Ballycastle has a magnificent beach but was never served by direct trains from Belfast so didn't develop like a resort. It is a very pleasant market town on the coast so doesn't feel desolate outside the summer months. Its ferry serves Rathlin Island and from spring the cliffs at the famous 'upside down' West Lighthouse are covered with puffins. Back at port, dinner at the famous Morton's chip shop will soon get your sea legs back. Ballycastle was poorly served for hotels but this is now changing. The new Salthouse hotel (doubles from £190 B&B) overlooks the town and is worth a visit for the food alone. Eve
