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- Bored with Europe? Try the 'new Europe'
- Langkawi: Malaysia's ecotourism hotspot with an eerie past
- And the priciest place to stay in Europe this summer was ... ?
| Bored with Europe? Try the 'new Europe' Posted: 05 Sep 2013 11:00 PM PDT Move over jaded European hotspots, there are some new towns in town  When helmet-haired 18th-century diarist Samuel Johnson was asked if he could ever become bored with Britain's bustling capital, his conclusion was grim: "When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life," he said. Johnson, of course, lived in a charmingly compact version of the metropolis we know today. Had he experienced modern London's snarled transport network, its costly restaurants and its ironically mustachioed youths, he might have bailed a lot sooner. But to where? It takes a lot to best such great cities as London. But often the search for a replacement -- the new Paris, Barcelona or Berlin -- reminds us of what we loved about the originals. The new London: Bristol
Why? Bristol rivals London's contribution to Britain's development as a cultural and industrial powerhouse. It boasts landmarks, such as Clifton Suspension Bridge, by top-hatted engineering genius Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and a modern arts and music scene that has given us the likes of Banksy, Massive Attack and Portishead. Its urban center contrasts with the surrounding cider orchards of Somerset, where Bristol's creamy dialect churns into pleasingly buttery tones. Visit: The Fleece (12 St Thomas St.; +44 0 117 945 0996), great venue hosting the city's next big musical names. But: Sometimes insular small town vibe lacks London's expansive world city feel. More information at Visitbristol.co.uk. The new Paris: Marseille
Why: Parisians are less rude these days but still seem strangely annoyed by the fact that the whole world is in love with their city and is willing to splash big euros on tiny meals, tinier hotel rooms and appalling service. Marseille, named Europe's 2013 culture capital, is friendlier and less stuck up yet still lays claim to spawning France's hip hop scene and some of its best soccer and seafood. It also has a Louvre-baiting new art museum called MuCEM, which bills itself as a "museum for Europe and the Meditteranean." Visit: Architect Le Corbusier's Unité d'Habitation (280 Boulevard Michelet; +33 04 91 16 7800), an uncompromising but revered vision of communal living. But: High crime rates, exacerbated by recent drug wars, also rival Paris. More information at Marseille-Tourisme.com. The new Rome: Bologna
Why: Rome has been around for 2,500 years, so it's long overdue a rest, particularly with the price of gelato hitting the $85 mark. Unless you're hellbent on following in the Vespa fumes of Audrey Hepburn, Bologna should tick all the Roman holiday boxes. There's great cuisine, cherished ancient architecture and reasonably priced gelato. The world's oldest university town also has a strong underground music scene -- Bologna hosted the influential but now defunct "Homesleep" label, which published successful Italian indie acts such as Julie's Haircut. Visit: The Gelato Museum (Via Emilia, 45, Bologna; +39 51 650 5306). It can't be licked. OK, it can. But: Student-seeking dope dealers make parts of the city intimidating at night. More information at BolognaWelcome.com. The new Berlin: Dresden
Why? While Berlin scenesters have started to overcook their communist legacy, pushing up prices in once-accessible Kreuzberg, Dresden's boho hangouts in the lively and eclectic Neustadt district have yet to be sucked into the black hole of yuppiedom. There are all the cultural trappings, including an esteemed music festival, of a classic European baroque city, albeit one recreated from the rubble of World War II. Visit: The Transparent Factory (Lennestrasse 1; +49 351 420 4411): a striking modern structure that lays Volkswagen's production process bare. But: Dresden's efforts to cover its battle scars have left it lacking Berlin's grittier appeal. More information at Dresden.de. The new Barcelona: Bilbao
Why? Petty annoyances and rip-offs are too often the price paid to enjoy Barcelona's rich culture and nightlife. Less so in Bilbao, which has spent the past two decades reinventing itself from decaying industrial center to tourist playground, replete with shining Guggenheim outpost, stylish new metro system and a scrubbed-up old city center. The tapas, known here as pintxos, are better, too. Visit: The Museo de Bellas Artes (Museo Plaza 2; +34 944 396 060): less fun to look at than the Barcelona's Guggenheim, but better inside. But: Bilbao may have polished its heart, but its outer industrial layers are still unappealingly rusty. More information at VisitBilbao.info. The new Amsterdam: Utrecht
Why? Ignore the fact that there has already been a New Amsterdam -- the city we now know as New York. If you want canals, Gothic architecture and waxy cheeses without having to dodge British bachelor parties yakking regurgitated Heineken onto your souvenir clogs, Utrecht beats the old Amsterdam hands-down. Visit: The Inkpot (Moreelsepark 3): a railway HQ that's the Netherlands' largest brick-built building. And it has a flying saucer parked on the roof. Who needs drugs? But: The Miffy exhibition is cute, but hardly compares to the revamped Rijksmuseum. More information at Holland.com. The new Athens: Heraklion
Why? Hot, grubby and congested Athens has the Acropolis but little else to keep visitors from catching the first ferry out of Piraeus. Heraklion combines its history -- the millennia-old palace of Knossos -- with decent beaches and a cheap but lively nightlife and cultural scene. Visit: Lychnostatis (Limenas Chersonisou, Thesi Plaka; +30 289 702 3660): not a disease but an outdoor folk museum that's an antidote to Greece's usual stuffy galleries. But: Heraklion can be hotter, grubbier and more congested than Athens at times. More information at VisitGreece.gr. The new Prague: Brno
Why? Prague has become such a Gothic playground for moviemakers and beer-swilling backpacker parties that it's a wonder some of the focus hasn't spilled over into equally delightful but trickier to say Brno (it is pronounced bur-noh). Not only is Brno blessed with citadels and cathedrals to rival the Czech capital, it has a great tradition of modernist architecture. Plus it's generally cheaper, and hosts an incendiary international fireworks competition. Visit: St James Church Ossuary (Jakubske namestí 602; +42 054 221 2039): macabre underground bone collection. But: Brno's folksy provinciality is often compared unfavorably to livelier Prague. More information at CzechTourism.com. The new Krakow: Wroclaw
Why? With Krakow getting as crowded as Prague, it makes sense to turn to another tricky to say (it's pronounced vrot-swov) and largely ignored alternative. Wroclaw centers on a sweeping market square lined with cafes and bars where you might find yourself the only tourist. There's an attractive litany of parks, museums and shops, but the square is where it's at, especially at night. Visit: Wroclaw town hall (Rynek Place; +487 1347 1693): a vast complex 250 years in the making that has its own brewery. But: Industrial zones beyond the center can detract from its overall beauty. More information at Visit-Wrocklaw.eu. The new Brussels: Ostend
Why: Admittedly there isn't a pressing need for an old Brussels let alone a new one, but Ostend makes a strong case. Spared the EU bureaucrats that throng the Belgian capital and the saccharine feel of Bruges's medieval theme park, Ostend is cheaper but still has good brasseries and bars. Off-season its faded seaside glamor is gloomy but oddly restorative -- as soul legend Marvin Gaye found during an unlikely early 1980s sojourn. Visit: The Marvin Gaye midnight lover tour (Tourist office, Monacoplein 2; +32 5970 1199). But: Ostend doesn't enjoy Brussels' swish Eurostar rail escapes to London and Paris. More information at VisitOstend.be. Tags:      |
| Langkawi: Malaysia's ecotourism hotspot with an eerie past Posted: 05 Sep 2013 03:00 PM PDT Listing as a UNESCO Geopark has stopped developers overrunning this wildlife-rich island cluster on the Andaman Sea  One of Malaysia's top beach and eco resorts has a pretty freaky back story, if you're the superstitious sort. Located near the border of Thailand on the Andaman Sea, the main island (called Langkawi, as is the whole district of 99 islands) was supposedly cursed in 1819, when a beautiful woman named Mahsuri was executed for alleged adultery. Seems her real "crime" was rejecting the advances of the village chieftain who ordered her death. Right before she died, she hissed with her last breath: "There shall be no peace and prosperity on this island for seven generations." Why only seven, when she could have cursed them for eternity? Who knows? But two years later Langkawi fell to the invading Thais and many locals died of starvation. Breaking the curse?
Cheap booze and beautiful beaches? You'd think Mahathir was setting the island up for tourist ruin like many other regional beauties before it. (Sorry Bali and Phuket, we mean you.) Langkawi's growth has indeed been strong, with high-profile luxury resorts now dotting its sandy shores and the construction of an international airport in 2003 making it a holiday hotspot. According to reports in June, the island is on track to meet its 2013 target of 3 million visitors. But the UNESCO listing of Langkawi as a Geopark has kept huge plots of uninhabited land on the 475 square kilometer main island -- where all the infrastructure, hotels and restaurants are found -- from being taken over by developers. Today Langkawi remains one of the world's most accessible ecotourism destinations. During the span of a recent four-day visit this writer came across everything from great hornbills and monkeys to wild boars. And that was before she even left the resort. For suggestions on how to take in some of Langkawi's top natural offerings, read on. Fertility-granting powers
Though the entire archipelago of 99 islands, surrounding waters and marine ecosystems make up the Geopark, it's the protected "Geoforest" areas that really impress. These are the 400-million-year-old Machinchang mountain ranges, the karst limestone formations of the Kilim Karst Geoforest Park and the Dayang Bunting Marble Geoforest Park. The latter is best known for the body of water at its center, the Lake of the Pregnant Maiden. The tale goes that a goddess bore a child to an earthly prince, lost the child, buried it where the lake now stands and blessed the waters with fertility-granting powers. Bear that in mind before you dive in. The best way to see the Machinchang range is via Langkawi's famed cable car, which takes passengers on a 2.2-kilometer-long ride almost to the top of Machinchang mountain. At the top there's a 125-meter-long SkyBridge suspended 100 meters above ground (Panorama Langkawi, Burau Bay, +60 4 959 4225). Wildlife in the mangroves
You drift down a watery brown trail, eyes straining as you stare into the trees in search of wildlife as the sun beats down overhead. At the end of it all, you scroll through your photos to find 20 shots of exposed tree roots and the odd blurry mudskipper. No offense to mudskippers, but nobody travels thousands of kilometers to see them. The same can't be said of a trip through the mangroves of the 100-square-kilometer Sungai Kilim Nature Park. Most visitors report seeing wildlife as diverse as snakes, sea otters, wild dogs, monkeys and eagles. And yes, mudskippers. Junglewalla, a well-regarded tour company led by a group of dedicated naturalists, offers a four-hour mangrove cruise that includes birdwatching, wildlife observation and cave visits. Another reputed company is Dev's Adventure Tours, which has a five-hour tour of the mangroves by kayak for the truly ambitious. More on CNN: Insider guide: Best of Langkawi Langkawi island-hopping
Not a bad option -- they all offer incredible natural sights and wildlife -- but if you're willing to shell out some extra cash you may want to consider chartering a boat for the day. Among the reputable boat charter companies running out of Langkawi are Crystal Yacht Holidays, Damai Indah, Blue Water Star Sailing and Stardust Yacht Charter. All offer itineraries ranging from short day trips of Langkawi's highlights to overnight tours of the islands and beyond. Perks of booking a private cruise include tailoring the itinerary to personal interests (bird watching, beach bumming, snorkeling, etc) and being able to choose onboard meal menus. At the end of the journey your memories might be foggy after too many visits to the open bar, but that's what cameras are for, right? Diving in Pulau Payar
This uninhabited area is made up of four pretty little islands. Under the surface are waters famed for a quality mix of black tip sharks, barracuda and colorful corals -- divers will be spoiled for choice. Wreck divers will want to head east of Pulau Payar to Pulau Kaca, where a bunch of fishing boats have been sunk in the area to create artificial reefs. For snorkellers, it often gets crowded on the main marine park beaches and offshore pontoon. Visibility is also hit and miss in these areas. There's no accommodation on Pulau Payar due to its marine park status so most visitors stay on the main island of Langkawi and cruise in for the day. Tours can be booked directly through most Langkawi hotels. For more on the top Pulau Payar dive sites check out Asiadivesite.com. More on CNN: 10 best islands for a Malaysia holiday CNN Travel's series often carries sponsorship originating from the countries and regions we profile. However, CNN retains full editorial control over all of its reports. Read the policy.
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| And the priciest place to stay in Europe this summer was ... ? Posted: 05 Sep 2013 06:30 AM PDT Big European capitals might offer comparative bargains, reading between lines of hotel survey results  What's the most expensive place in Europe for a decent hotel over the summer? Um, London? Monaco, maybe. Zurich? None of the above. The fiercest wallet burner for an August European stay, according to a survey, is Formentera, a tiny Spanish island south of Ibiza. Average nightly August prices for a decent quality hotel there were a whistle-inducing €175 ($230). In second place -- sounding more obvious -- is Edinburgh, with an average hotel price of €157 ($208). Costly and obscureMany of the destinations in the Cheaprooms.co.uk top 20 list of priciest European summer holiday stays are rather obscure. Sylt -- one of the German North Frisian islands, since you ask -- is the third most expensive place in Europe, apparently. Velden (an Austrian market town), Bibione (an Italian seaside resort) and Binz (another supposedly astronomical Deutsch island offender) are other relatively obscure inclusions. More: Most expensive airport-to-city cab fares Other expensive cities and places cropping up -- Biarritz, Oslo, the Antibes and, yes, Zurich -- are less surprising. But of London, Paris, Rome, Brussels and the like, there's no sign in the list of 20 costliest places to stay in Europe. Secret in the methodThe key to these strange-seeming results lies in the survey's method. Cheaprooms.co.uk -- which may lack a classy title, but has a huge volume of rooms on its books -- looked at only three-star or higher-rated hotels, during August, with a TripAdvisor rating of at least average. The accommodation also had to be near the city center or beach. Decoding the results, then, the lesson is that those supposedly exorbitant major European locales -- your Londons, Parises and whatever the plural of Brussels is -- should in fact have plenty of bargains, relatively speaking, in decent three-star and higher hotels. More: America's most expensive cocktails The reason? Sheer competition -- an inter-hotel price rivalry of a kind unlikely to prevail on a North Frisian German island. Speaking of which, lesson number two -- perhaps budget for fewer splash-up meals and hour-long massages on your next Sylt vacation. 20 most expensive places to stay in Europe during AugustThe most expensive August stays in Europe, according to CheapRooms.co.uk, with average prices for a three-star or above hotel, were: 1. Formentera -- €175 ($230) 2. Edinburgh -- €157 ($207) 3. Sylt -- €154 ($203) 4. Heringsdorf -- €147 ($194) 5. Lucerne -- €129 ($170) 6. Zurich -- €127 ($167) 7. Binz -- €125 ($165) 8. Ibiza -- €123 ($162) 9. Velden -- €119 ($157) 10. Bibione -- €113 ($149) 11. Biarritz -- €111 ($146) 12. Elba Island -- €110 ($145) 13. Capri -- €109 ($143) 14. Ile de Ré -- €107 ($141) 15. Bardolino -- €107 ($141) 16. Amalfi -- €106 ($139) 17. St. Moritz -- €105 ($138) 18. Oslo -- €103 ($135) 19. Antibes -- €102 ($134) 20. Bath -- €100 ($131) Tags:    |
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