Oktoberfest is a celebration of all things beer and Bavaria, its origins date back to 1810 and a royal wedding between Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. The meadow in front of Munich’s city gates was named Theresienwiese in her honour, and it remains at the epicentre of all the Oktoberfest.
The Bavarian charm has spread far and wide, however, and most of us can enjoy a special Oktoberfest Mass or two without even hopping on a plane. But that’s no fun, really. So we say, why not mix it up a little and visit one of the world’s other great Oktoberfests instead?
Blumenau, Brazil The (joint) second-largest Oktoberfest in the world is held in the Brazilian city of Blumenau. Having been founded in 1852 by German colonists, the city’s heritage is still clear to see in its architecture, restaurants and—you guessed it— beer. The area is frothing over with exceptional breweries, so you might need to work on your bar crawling stamina in advance.
Festivities at the 19-day event serve up everything you could hope for, with Lederhosen, beer tents, parades and live music all on offer. Plus, there’s an added splash of Samba to spice things up. But it can also get slightly surreal at points. Just know that you’re not imagining things if you spot a giant herring named Rollmops presiding over a herring-eating competition.
Blumenau will undoubtedly transport you right back to Munich, but no matter how much you like beer, you probably aren’t going all the way to Brazil just to drink a pint.
Right on its doorstep is the Spitzkopf Ecological Park, where you can sweat off the hangover with a hike along rainforest trails towards panoramic views, before a refreshing dip in a river or waterfall. Keep your eyes peeled for protected species, like the white-bearded antshrike, white-necked hawk, cougar and margay.
Kitchener-Waterloo, Canada Also in the running for second place after Munich is the Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest in Ontario, Canada. This is another area with deep German roots, having been settled by German Mennonite farming families from the early 1790s. In fact, until a referendum in 1916, Kitchener was actually called Berlin.
Known as the Twin Cities, Kitchener and Waterloo both take Oktoberfest seriously. What started out as a modest trial run in 1969 has become three weeks of partying, feasts, and family-friendly fun across the two cities.
The official keg tapping is the ceremonial opening event, but it’s the Oktoberfest Thanksgiving Day Parade that really gets attention. The floats, marching bands and dancers make up the nation’s only Thanksgiving parade, drawing thousands come rain or shine.
If you are thinking of visiting Japan in 2024 there are a couple of extra-special events in the calendar.
Our trip to the Sapporo Snow Festival returns, with departures in February ’24. Visit this fascinating festival to marvel at enormous snow and ice sculptures in the shape of cute characters, ice caves and architectural landmarks. Combine this with bullet train journeys through wintery landscapes and an ice-breaker cruise for a unique take on Japan – a great way to experience Japanese culture for the first time, or for an alternative view if you’ve already seen Japan in the warmer seasons.
Or, if springtime is more your season, did you know Japan is famous for its cherry blossom? In 2024 the blossom trail is expected to start from mid-March and run until early April. Join one of our bestselling Japan trips at this to be treated with a spectacle for the eyes, with landscapes blooming in pink and white as you explore this fascinating country.
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Forget the 1970s stereotypes — package holidays deliver all sorts of experience, from fly-and-flop to stirring adventure. Here’s what you need to know
Sales of package holidays are soaring in 2023 thanks to the cost-of-living crisis and post-pandemic anxiety about securing a refund if things go wrong.
Over 80 per cent of 2,000 people polled by the UK’s largest tour operator, Jet2, said they were now considering a package because of the current economic climate. Jet2’s summer 2023 programme will be the biggest ever — it has just added flights to Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Larnaca, Majorca, Tenerife, Faro and Malaga.
Meanwhile, travel trade association Abta has revealed that 29 per cent of Brits are planning on taking an all-inclusive holiday this year to keep costs under control.
Still think this style of trip is just not for you? Here are eight popular myths about package holidays that you shouldn’t believe.
A mural in Buenos Aires, Argentina (Alamy)
1. Package holidays involve two weeks in Spain, eating at the same restaurant every night
Forget that 1970s fly-and-flop stereotype: packages come in all shapes and sizes. Any type of trip, from trekking through Bhutan to exploring the vineyards of California’s Napa Valley on horseback can be a package holiday. The definition of a package is simply that a travel company has put at least two elements of your trip together for you, such as flights, accommodation and car hire. Check out Aito, a brilliant site for sourcing every style of holiday, in destinations from Argentina to the Azores, offered by independent and specialist travel companies.
The view from Manhattan Bridge of New York’s Chinatown (Getty Images)
2. Packages are more expensive than booking hotels and flights separately
Not necessarily. You may think you’re getting better value for money by going it alone but for traditional seaside summer holidays in destinations such as Greece and Portugal package holidays will generally be cheaper than DIY trips, and you won’t run the risk of losing your holiday if your airline or hotel goes bust.
Even city breaks can be cheaper when booked as a package: BA Holidays has some great hotel and flight deals especially off season. Short-haul trips tend to offer fairly modest savings, but long-haul deals can be incredible bargains if you strike lucky: a three-night trip to New York from Gatwick, staying at the plush Indigo Hotel on the Lower East Side in mid-March was £565pp if two people are sharing a room, saving an astonishing £2,275 on the cost when booked separately.
Dining out at Oliva Restaurant, Ikos Aria, Kefalos, Greece (Ikos Resorts)
3. All-inclusive holidays are all wristbands, cheap booze and dodgy food
All-inclusive holidays have always been a brilliant way of keeping spending under control and according to Abta, 40 per cent among those aged 44 and under and 57 per cent of young families are planning to take one in 2023 to manage their finances.
All-inclusives cover all price points and if the cheap and cheerful doesn’t appeal, a new breed of high-end all-inclusive has redefined the experience. Five-star Ikos Resorts (with resorts in Greece and Spain) offers the “Infinite Lifestyle concept”, including restaurants with Michelin-starred menus, cocktails designed by top mixologists, 24-hour complimentary room service, kids’ clubs and a dine-out option that means that guests can try local restaurants. Book through tour operators such as Jet2Holidays.com, trailfinders.com and britishairways.com.
4. It’s quicker and easier to book everything myself
The internet can be a wonderful resource but planning a complicated trip online will be time-consuming and can be stressful and confusing. Book through the right travel agent or tour operator and their staff will be on top of the logistics; they’ll have been on the excursions, stayed in the hotels, eaten in the restaurants and know the right time of year to travel, so you shouldn’t get any nasty surprises.
The Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque in Beirut (Getty Images)
5. An escorted tour means endless coach travel and a big group wearing name badges
Small group escorted tours have soared in popularity in recent years, partly because they’re a brilliant option for solo travellers. They’re led by expert guides (whose services would cost a fortune if booked privately) and often include packed itineraries and experiences that would be impossible to arrange privately, in off-the-beaten track destinations that can be daunting to navigate for newbies. Group sizes are often no more than 12.
Explore! for example, whose average group size is 11, has a week-long Highlights of Lebanon tour including crusader castles and Phoenician ruins, and a sobering reminder of the civil war on a walking tour of Beirut. Some operators offer different grades of comfort and pace: Intrepid, whose new trips for 2023 range from communing with penguins in Patagonia to hiking and biking through Morocco, has four, ranging from “Basix” itineraries for those on a budget to “Premium”, with top-notch accommodation, many meals and tips included.
On the Danube cycle path (Alamy)
6. Packages are a one-size-fits-all trip
Many tour operators offer tailor-made trips so that you can explore at your own pace, stay in exactly the sort of hotel that suits you and eat when and where you want. Exodus, for example, has a self-guided seven-night cycling holiday starting in Vienna that meanders along the Danube and includes cycling in three countries in one week, with stays in four-star hotels, luggage transfers and flights from £1,299pp. Tailor-made trips can also include insider access: try Abercrombie and Kent, whose little black book of contacts will get you an exclusive pre-opening tour of the Grand Egyptian Museum in Cairo if you book a wider itinerary.
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A dramatically active volcano lies next to this scenic little town and gardens where you can swim in hot, mineral-rich water that bubbles up from deep within the earth.
A spectacular caldera and a pair of hauntingly beautiful crater lakes that are entangled with local myths and legends. Ethereal and mystical, the area makes for some of the best hiking on the islands.
This wild headland only reared out of the sea split-seconds ago in geological time, though it first emerged in 1957. An enthralling museum is found within the lighthouse, which is still half-buried under volcanic ash.
This local landmark sits on Ponta Delgada waterfront. It has great views over the harbour and some of the finest dining on the island at Balcony restaurant
This is a maritime-themed four-star hotel is by the Horta marina. It has legendary status in Faial’s seafaring history and was once an overnight stop for passengers on the Star Clipper flying boat between Lisbon and New York.
This is a four-star stay set in luxuriant gardens by the sea and in full view of the Monte Brasil fortress. It is only a short walk to the historic centre of Angra do Heroísmo
Thailand’s currency is the baht, and at the time of writing the exchange rate for ease of calculations is approximately 35 baht to the US dollar. I didn’t take any baht with me to Thailand as I had pre-booked and paid for transport from the airport and our hotel, Trang hotel, takes card payment for meals. The local street vendors seem to take dollars for everything and the ubiquitous 7-eleven stores will take dollars and give change in baht. I did take plenty of US dollars in cash and was able to change it at one of the many currency exchange booths and banks in Bangkok, there are also plenty of ATMs there. Bahts are useful when paying for entrance fees to temples and boat trips.
The local currency in Cambodia is the riel, but here dollars are accepted everywhere and there is no need to change currency or get riel from an ATM. Change may be given in dollars with smaller amounts in riel. Most restaurants and shops do not take card payments. At the time of writing the approximate exchange rate was 4000 riel to one dollar.
In Vietnam it is easy to be a millionaire in Vietnamese dong as there are over 24,000 dong to the dollar. Fortunately most notes are in multiples of 1000 and even a 50,000 dong note is only worth just over 2 dollars. Some restaurants and bars leave the zeros off their prices so that 50,000 dong would be 50. Here again the dollar is widely accepted and change may be given in dollars and dong, there are plenty of currency booths and ATMs available. Card payments are more widely accepted here than in Cambodia.
Vast and cinematic, this famed national park is an absolute showstopper, with bands of red rocks and carved canyon walls as far as the eye can see. No wonder it draws millions of visitors every year. But if you want solo time in nature, you’re in luck. The window of December to February gets only a sliver of summer’s peak crowds. Yes, it’s cold—highs tend to hover around 45 degrees—but this season has its own attractions, like seeing the Canyon’s walls dusted in snow. South Rim trails also stay open for the most part. One good bet: The Hermit Trail tends to stay relatively snow- and ice-free because of its lower elevation and sunlight exposure. Need another reason to come? January is also when the park’s historic photo studio, Kolb Studio, has its art exhibition and sale.
If you’ve got to choose just one place, it may as well be paradise, right? But it’s the locals that really make Fiji, excelling themselves at being friendly. Plus, it can be pretty cheap once you get there, and the sun is usually shining. Sounds awful…
From the moment you arrive in Fiji, you’re made to feel at home. The traditional Fijian welcome song, Bula Maleya, is likely to welcome you everywhere you go, and you may find yourself invited to a traditional welcome ceremony. The ceremony centres around sharing the local drink, kava – just take it easy, it’s potent!
Having travelled so far, it might seem a shame not to live like island royalty and splash out on, say… a villa on a private island? There’s no need, though. Poolside studio apartments only 10 minutes’ walk from the beach go for as little as £29 per night on the main island. A bit more seclusion comes even cheaper, with cottages by the ocean on stunning Matacawalevu Island starting at £26 per night.
Hostelling and home stays cost next to nothing, and then you have the added bonus that your hosts might also offer you home-cooked meals. As a general rule, it’s cheapest to eat in larger towns as opposed to resort areas. What you might not have guessed is that the local catch of the day might catch you off guard when you get the bill, while eating at an Indian restaurant can set you back less than £5.
Every little helps when you’ve got to save those pennies for a sunset coconut and local rum…
Pre-dating even the pyramids in Egypt, Brazil’s pyramids are considered the oldest in the world, having been built around 3,000 BCE. These ones are a lot more mysterious than their African counterparts, though, with no written records of their construction in existence.
The pyramid near Jaguaruna in Santa Catarina State is one of the last remaining in Brazil. It stands 100 ft tall (though researchers think it may have once been much taller) and has a base covering an impressive 25 acres. However, archaeologists reckon there were once thousands of pyramids built along the Atlantic coast of southern Brazil.
And why along the coast? Well, that’s because these pyramids were made using only seashells. As a result, many have been mistaken for rubbish heaps over the years and destroyed to make way for development.
Brazil’s pyramids were built over the course of decades, or even centuries, and appear to have been used for burials and other religious purposes, just like the ones found in Egypt. However, more like the pyramids found in other parts of the Americas, structures were built on top of them.
