Caitlin Barr

Ah, September. In the northern hemisphere, summer is drawing to a close, but in the south, spring is only just beginning. It’s a time between the mid-year travel peak and the busy festive season, and that means it’s a solid time to get away.  It’s also cheaper, the weather is more temperate and there’s a cracking roster of festivals and local traditions scheduled for this time of year, from region-wide book fairs and rock music festivals to scenic annual wine tours and massive flea markets. So, no matter the vibe you’re after this September, our list of the best places to travel will have something for you. RECOMMENDED:✈️The best places to travel in October🗺️Full guide to the best places to travel🛍️The world’s coolest neighbourhoods🎭The best cities for culture right now At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines and check out our latest travel guides written by local experts. This guide includes affiliate links, which have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines. 

Europe is incredible for festivals, make no mistake about it. And what could be better? Travelling to festivals abroad means getting to explore somewhere new and see a bunch of cracking artists, as well as maybe – just maybe – enjoy better weather and cheaper beer. Europe is certainly not in short supply of some really brilliant places to party, from tiny, lesser-known spots in the Azores to your classic, mega, headliner-packed fests in France and Netherlands and Alpine jazz weekends. So, here’s a roundup of our top picks for 2025.  What is the largest festival in Europe? Glastonbury festival in the UK is normally thought of as the biggest festival in Europe (if not the world). But though it’s certainly the most well known, in terms of numbers, it’s not even the the biggest in the UK! The biggest in Europe is actually Donauinselfest in Vienna, Austria, which sees upwards of two million visitors a year. After that, it’s probably joint between Glasto and Tomorrowland in Belgium.  RECOMMENDED: 🎪 The best UK music festivals🎤 The best music festivals in the world🌃 The most underrated destinations in Europe🌤️ The best European city breaks At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines. This guide includes affiliate links, which have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines. 

There isn’t really a bad time of year to go on holiday, but if, like the majority of us, you plan on packing a bag and heading off on a jaunt in August, we’re here to help. Why? Well, go-to summer destinations can mean copping a sunbed feels more like a military drill, and flights and accommodation teeter at the more expensive end of the scale – hardly relaxing, is it? Fear not, weary traveller. There are in fact plenty of spots across the planet which show their quieter side in August, making it the best time of year to go and appreciate them, from the plains of East Africa to the streets of South America. So, without further ado, these are the best places in the world to travel in August.  RECOMMENDED:✈️The best places to travel in September🗺️Full guide to the best places to travel🛍️The world’s coolest neighbourhoods🎭The best cities for culture right now At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines and check out our latest travel guides written by local experts. This guide includes affiliate links, which have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines. 

Hanging plants, theatre posters and a sketch of a Christ-like figure named ‘Canal Jesus’ adorn the walls of Rosie Barwick’s narrowboat. Tess, her elderly dachshund, occasionally pipes up with a little bark, but apart from that, the spot she’s moored in near Westbourne Park is quiet – a good place for spotting waterfowl and watching cyclists teeter along the towpath.  The 26-year-old has been living onboard for six and a half years after dropping out of university and buying the boat with inheritance money. ‘I’ve always been thoroughly against the idea of just throwing money away to some faceless landlord that I don’t know and isn’t really providing me with a service – I wanted autonomy over my own space,’ she says. Barwick shares the boat with her friend, Tom, who works in the creative industries and became attracted to the lifestyle after being faced with homelessness when his landlord ended his contract a year early.  As a part-time charity worker and theatremaker, living on a boat and not being liable for rent gives Barwick the financial freedom to pursue work in sectors which are notoriously underpaid. ‘This lifestyle has allowed me to actually explore, and become the person I want to be,’ she says. ‘It’s given me the freedom to get it wrong and for that to be fine and for me not to lose my house over it’.  Photograph: Caitlin Barr for Time Out Barwick is a ‘continuous cruiser’, meaning she does not pay for a permanent mooring and is bound to certain regulations when us

Ever since Padella opened in Borough Market, and queues started to snake outside for its simple, affordable pasta small plates, London has become a city of pasta-fiends, lusting after linguine and Instagramming anelli. More and more hip Italian restaurants have opened across the capital serving up stylish, saucy, cheesy and downright-delicious strands of dough and we're also stocking up on perfect fresh pasta from delis like Lina Stores and diving into plates of trad pasta at Ciao Bella in Bloomsbury, as well as bottomless lasagna at Senza Fondo. Here are the finest pasta places in town.  RECOMMENDED: London's best Italian restaurants. 

There wasn’t much cause for celebration in 2020, when Covid was rife and Londoners could no longer properly enjoy the culinary delights of the capital. That was, until restrictions finally loosened in the summer, and many boozers and restaurants threw their doors open again.  In Soho, dining and drinking spilled out onto the streets as part of the ‘Soho Summer Street Festival’, set up to encourage guests back into the square mile for alfresco dining. With many streets closed to traffic, the scheme, which ran again in the summer of 2021, breathed life into an area which had been deadly quiet throughout the lockdown.  Now, according to intel from the Times, ‘Alfresco Soho’ could return. The newspaper has apparently had access to a letter penned by two of Sadiq Khan’s deputies, Howard Dawber and Justine Simons, urging London’s boroughs to ‘do what you can to support popular and exciting ideas like alfresco dining and late-night openings’ as evenings get warmer throughout the spring and summer months. The letter also encourages boroughs to act soon, before the Mayor’s pilot scheme allowing him to override licensing decisions made by individual authorities comes into effect.  Since the Soho scheme’s success during 2020 and 2021, campaigners have been calling on Westminster City Council to bring back pavement dining. When it was announced in November that Oxford Street is being eyed for pedestrianisation, local group Soho Business Alliance (SBA) urged City Hall to include Soho in

Cruising the sea on a megaship is a majorly good holiday option if you want to hit up multiple sunny spots with ease. UK cruisers have historically had few options for hopping aboard the biggest ships, though, as many of our seaside towns simply don’t have the capacity. Forget a bigger boat – you’re going to need a bigger port. But now, thanks to construction work over the white cliffs of Dover, Brits have more cruise options. A major upgrade project means that Dover’s two passenger terminals can now welcome the world’s largest cruise ships, opening the door to a new wave of tourism (and some seriously massive boats). The port’s £6 million revamp includes a deeper harbour and upgraded terminal facilities, making it possible for mega-liners to drop anchor right on the Kent coast. It’s a game-changer for both the town and the UK cruise scene, and it could bring thousands more visitors to the region and the nation as a whole. Before the renovations, cruise ships bigger than 320 metres long weren’t able to dock at Dover, but now the port will be open to any ship measuring 350 metres or less, opening up opportunities for bigger cruise ships operated by the likes of Disney and Norwegian.  The port was already welcoming around 200,000 cruise passengers per year, and that number is now expected to skyrocket. Cruise ship titan Viking’s huge Vela vessel has already stopped off in the Kent port on the new boat’s first UK call, with three more Viking ships set to collect passengers in D

Getting on a train at London’s St Pancras International and arriving in Paris, Brussels or Amsterdam within a few hours feels like it shouldn't be possible, especially when you think too hard about trains going underwater. Even 30 years after the Channel Tunnel first opened, having several of Europe’s top city breaks just one train away remains a thrill.  That said, high prices can put some travellers off booking rail tickets, especially in the UK where we’re used to shockingly high fees and poor services. Which is why a new development is so exciting – a recent report reckons that cross-Channel travel could be about to get a whole lot cheaper.  So, why could cross-Channel rail travel get more affordable, and by how much? Here are the deets.  Why could UK-Europe train fares soon be lower? The aforementioned report was commissioned by London St Pancras High Speed and conducted by infrastructure consultancy Steer, and it says that we could soon see a potential tripling of passengers using the Channel Tunnel each year, which could lead to a reduction of up to 30 per cent in fares. The research predicts that passenger numbers could rise from 11 million to 35 million annually by 2040 – and that, in turn, operators will have to lower prices in order to attract customers to their services.  The projections come after news that a fifth operator – Italy’s FS Group – will combine with Spanish company Evolyn to compete with brand new UK-owned company Gemini Trains, German operator Deut

If you ask us, sea air can used to be prescribed as a cure-all for pretty much any malady. Cutting about a coastal town with an ice cream, soundtracked by seagulls and lapping waves, is a surefire bet for a solid, good vibes getaway.  Being based across two islands, needless to say that the UK has a lot of sensational seaside towns to choose from. Bustling Brighton, fancy Salcombe and beautifully isolated Nefyn in Wales are some of Time Out’s top picks for Britain’s toop beach breaks. But where should you go if you want to feel the sand between your toes year-round?  If you’re looking to permanently relocate to the coast, luggage transportation company MyBaggage has done some heavy lifting to lay out your options. The company put together a report taking into account a wide variety of factors including average house price, median salary, sunlight, rainfall, wifi connectivity, and restaurants per 1,000 people. Basically, everything you’d need to know before you decided to up sticks and move somewhere.  What is the best British coastal town to move to in 2025? MyBaggage’s top 10 puts Margate in Kent at number one, with a near-perfect relocation score of 98.83. The popular, ever-trendy southeastern town gets around 1,846.03 hours of sunlight each year, with the average property costing £333,025.02. Millions flock to the town’s attractions every year, including the famous Shell Grotto and Dreamland, but there’s plenty to enjoy even in the off season. The Turner Contemporary boas

Londoners are spoilt for choice when it comes to food markets. From the historic, splendorous Borough Market and bougie Spitalfields to the Southbank Centre’s food offerings, the capital has plenty of places where you can pick up all sorts of dishes under one roof.  And now we’re getting another one. TBC.London, a new workspace being developed by real estate investment firm FORE in an old office block near Tower Bridge, has leased 16,000 square feet of its ground floor to Blend Family for the company’s first London food hall. The development next to Tower Bridge will host 13 food vendors and operate at net zero carbon, using fully electric systems rather than gas cooking. Blend Family, which already runs food markets in Cambridge, Manchester and Sheffield, prides itself on championing independent chefs from a wide variety of cuisines. Its Cambridge market won ‘Best Food Hall’ at the 2024 British Street Food Awards.  Matt Bigland, CEO of Blend Family, said: ‘Our food halls offer guests a trip around the globe one dish at a time. In each of our spaces, we create a diverse and vibrant community hub. We are looking forward to welcoming people in and are so excited to be bringing this experience to such an iconic London location, next to Tower Bridge. We can’t wait to contribute to TBC.London’s mission, to strengthen ties within the neighbourhood.’ TBC.London will also feature a cultural hub adjacent to the food hall, as well as office space across its three-floor, 110,000-square-

Just a few years ago, Sephora’s iconic black and white striped bags were nowhere to be seen in the UK – unless you had a mate who’d hopped on a plane and stuffed their suitcase with makeup. For two decades after the brand left the UK in 2000, fans had to order online, risking the heartbreak of a dodgy colour match. Since March 2023, that’s all changed. Brits have so far been blessed with seven physical Sephora stores across the country, and soon one of the nation’s glammest cities will join the fun. Liverpool will soon be home to Sephora’s eighth UK shop, with the city’s first outpost from the beauty chain opening next month.  Scouse slap-aficionados are in luck: Liverpool’s Sephora will launch on May 22 in the Liverpool One shopping centre.  Visitors will be able to shop exclusive brands including Makeup by Mario, One/Size by Patrick Starr and Lady Gaga’s Haus Labs, alongside Sephora’s own collection and beauty favourites like Glossier, The Ordinary and Sol de Janeiro. The store will also offer bookable treatments spanning makeup, skincare, hair and brows.  Last November, Sephora’s CEO announced plans to expand to 20 UK stores by 2027. The brand opened three stores in the north last year, in Manchester, Newcastle and Gateshead, alongside shops in Kent’s Bluewater and Birmingham’s Bullring, joining the two London stores which opened in 2023.  Sephora UK’s MD Sarah Boyd said: ‘We have had immense demand from our fans in Liverpool to open a store in their wonderful city, and w

Lots of houses around the UK have slightly dubious links to famous writers: places where they drank a cup of tea or that are referenced fleetingly in a line of a novel. One such residence is Ashe Park House near Basingstoke, which Jane Austen wrote about in several letters to her sister. Now, nearly 250 years after Austen committed it to paper, the house has been granted permission to be knocked down.  Smallwood Architects have been given permission by Basingstoke and Deane borough council to destroy the house, which was bought for £17 million in 2022. A group of around 20 local residents have objected to the plans to rebuild the home as a two-storey country house in the Queen Anne-style, complete with a swimming pool and orchard. Campaign group SAVE Britain’s Heritage said the destruction of the original house would lead to ‘the erosion of the area’s historic richness and distinctiveness’. But is the building really significant to the writer’s history? Austen referenced Ashe Park House in a number of letters to her sister, Cassandra, when she lived in nearby Steventon where her father was a rector. She attended balls and social events on the estate, and wrote of its ‘well-proportioned’ rooms.  It’s unlikely that any of those rooms are still there, though, as the home has been remodelled frequently since Austen wrote about it over 200 years ago.  Historic England refused to give the building immunity from being listed last year, as they say the estate has been ‘heavily and re

Puffins might just be the most vibrant birds native to the UK – and if you’ve ever wanted to see one in the wild, you’re in luck. Around 50,000 pairs of them fly to the Farne Islands, a designated National Nature Reserve just off the Northumberland coast, each spring, and the National Trust have just reopened the site to visitors.  The archipelago of 28 islands has been in the Trust’s care for 100 years, and is an internationally significant sanctuary for 200,000 seabirds including puffins, Arctic terns and kittiwakes as well as a colony of adorable grey seals.  Inner Farne, the only island which welcomes visitors on land, is particularly good for spotting the colourful puffins, who stick around until the end of the summer months when their chicks tend to fly the nest.  Bird flu hugely affected the returning seabirds in 2022 and 2023, killing just less than 10,000 in the two year period. But there was no disease recorded on any of the islands in 2024, so it’s hoped that the puffins and their avian neighbours are building up immunity to the disease.  Laura Knowles, Visitor Operations and Experience Manager for the National Trust, said: ‘We’re excited to announce that Inner Farne has reopened for visitor landings, and just in time, the first puffins have arrived back onto the islands. ‘This is an exciting year for us as we celebrate the centenary of the Farne Islands coming into the care of the National Trust and we can’t wait to welcome visitors and to share the wonderful wild

Vegetable oil is a humble hero of cuisine, great for sautéing, seasoning and salad dressing. And, if you’re lucky enough to live in Kensington and Chelsea, it’ll be fuelling your bin lorries too.  London’s most wealthy borough has announced that 44 of its rubbish collection vehicles will be powered by hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) as part of a planet-focused trial.  The swap could cut carbon emissions by 90 percent, according to the council – that’s around 300 tonnes of carbon saved from being released into the atmosphere each year. Ten percent of the emissions will be cut from the vehicle’s output, and a huge 80 percent at the source of the fuel.  HVO is very different to the average bottle you’d cook with - hydrotreating involves reacting vegetable oil with hydrogen under high temperature and pressure, which produces a fuel similar to diesel. Because of HVO’s similarity to diesel which is what’s generally used to power bin lorries, the vehicles won’t need to be adapted at all to use the new fuel. There also won’t be any increase in costs, and it’s hoped that the switch will actually make rubbish collection cheaper over time.  Councillor Johnny Thalassites, lead member for net zero at Kensington and Chelsea council said: ‘Achieving net zero is increasingly difficult for councils who are rightly prioritising keeping essential services running for residents. By trialling hydrotreated vegetable oil in place of a polluting fuel like diesel, we are innovating without compromis

In the historic London battle of north versus south, east versus west, there has always been one thing that unites us: we have some bloody good green spaces. From Richmond Park to Walthamstow Wetlands, there’s no limit to the mental health stomp locations on offer in the capital.  And now, there’s a ranking to prove just how green we are. Freepik, an AI company, has analysed Google reviews of more than 2,000 green spaces across the world’s 100 most popular cities to create a list of cities with the highest number of well-loved green spaces. London comes in at second, with 78 parks, losing out to Tokyo, which boasts a truly impressive 159. To be fair to us, they’re working with a bit more space: 2,194 square kilometres in comparison to our 1,572. We topped the list for the most searched for green spaces, with an average of 5.18 million searches made each year. The top five searched for spots are Hyde Park, Victoria Park, Finsbury Park, Hampstead Heath and Regents Park. Paris comes in third, with 63 green spaces in its city limits.  To get their data, Freepik mined TripAdvisor’s ‘Nature and Parks’ section of the 100 most popular cities worldwide, eliminated attractions with less than ten reviews, then collected the number of Google reviews and average star rating for the remaining 2,300 green spaces.  Their 78 parks figure for London might not be fully accurate though, as the Greater London Authority put the total number at a whopping 3,000. The GLA also claim that around 20 pe

There is nowhere better than London in spring - cherry blossoms are blooming, pub gardens are packed, and we’re all doing a great job of pretending there won’t be at least three more cold fronts before summer arrives. Life is good.  Or at least, it is, if you’re not part of the unlucky 25 per cent of the population who suffer from hayfever. You’re going to be in big trouble this weekend, thanks to a massive and frankly inconsiderate ‘pollen bomb’ detonating in the capital.  The Met Office has issued a red warning for the pollen count today, and levels will remain high across the weekend and peak again on Monday. Here’s a full rundown: London's pollen count Friday, April 4: Very High Saturday, April 5: High Sunday, April 6: High Monday, April 7: Very High Tuesday, April 8: Very High But why are we being afflicted?  Essentially, warmer weather, which we’ve been lapping up of late, is a trigger for trees to release their pesky pollen into the air. London tends to be warmer than many other parts of the country, plus we’re not on the coast, where pollen counts are generally less. Still, it could be worse – the leafy Home Counties like Surrey and Hertfordshire will be worse affected.  Tree pollen typically sticks around (though not always at quite as high a level) until mid-May, when grass pollen picks up the reins and terrorises hayfever-heads until July. Grass pollen tends to affect even more people than tree pollen does, so if you’re not sneezing up a storm this weekend, you’v

Six years to the month since its fateful closure, we could still be ten years out from Hammersmith Bridge being rebuilt – and plans could involve not using it at all, according to the minutes of the most recent Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce summit.  The 138-year-old Victorian suspension bridge is one of the oldest survivors of its kind in the world. But should it survive as a bridge? Or could it be preserved as an inaccessible ‘monument’ instead – a reminder of when cars, cyclists and pedestrians traversed the crossing from Hammersmith to Barnes in harmony? That’s what officials from the Department for Transport, council representatives, MPs on either side of the bridge, Transport for London, and deputy mayor for transport, Seb Dance, met to discuss at the first taskforce meeting in more than three years, which took place in January 2025.  What are the options for Hammersmith Bridge? Six potential plans were on the table: The ‘Foster-Cowi’ plan, AKA ‘option zero’: reopening the bridge for all users  Bridge closed, but left up as a ‘monument’ (ruled out on cost grounds) Bridge repaired, but only pedestrians, bikes, and two single-decker bus routes allowed  Bridge repaired, but only pedestrians and bikes allowed  Blow up the old bridge and build a brand new bridge with a 44-tonne weight limit (ruled out on cost grounds) A replacement bridge, with the original structure remaining in place (ruled out on cost grounds) Destroying the bridge was mooted, and might have been tricky g