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The wellness world is changing. Post-pandemic, we’re looking for far more than a fasting regime and the odd yoga class when we go to a spa or retreat. Many of us are crying out for an ‘emotional overhaul’, too.

Spas and hotels all over the world are scrambling to offer packages that tackle your psyche as well as your cellulite. You could choose stylish spirituality in Spain or Italy. But here in the UK we already have a solid tranche of retreats that are the antithesis of fluffy towels and endless smoothies. These are programmes that pack a hefty therapeutic punch.

They certainly aren’t for everyone, but if you feel the call for a life overhaul, here’s where to start… Read More:

A first-class passenger who was left ‘horrified’ at the ‘unacceptable’ conditions on a £4,000 return British Airways flight is urging travellers to fly with other airlines.

Jarvis Marcos, 37, was flying first-class from Mexico to London with his girlfriend, Kamara Harding, 33, when he experienced the ‘shockingly bad’ standards – which included dripping water from the air-con and ‘sticky liquid’ on tray tables. 

Unimpressed Mr Marcos called the 11-hour round-trip the ‘worst experience’ he’s ever had on a plane after he boarded the jet back in August. 

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It’s not difficult to spot Port Hotel, Eastbourne’s new boutique place to stay. Just look for a coal-black frontage that looms somewhat ominously from the middle of a more traditional, ice-cream-hued Regency terrace flanking the East Sussex town’s pebble beach.

Some locals may have been upset by the controversial paintwork but it’s a clever idea, effectively announcing the hotel’s style and vibe before guests step through the door. We’re here, it says, and we’re like nothing you’ve seen before.

And they’re right, at least when it comes to Eastbourne. The town might now have a few hip, quirky corners but its hotels have barely changed in years. By contrast, the Port feels like something from trendy Shoreditch in East London.

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Fancy the Alps? Try the Peak District instead. Keen for Kenya? Head for the Scottish island of Kerrera. Repeated restrictions on foreign travel — lockdowns, closed borders, pricey Covid tests — have seen staycations become more popular than ever. And tour operators have responded. 

With foreign climes tricky to reach, new domestic adventures have been dreamed up. Here are some of the best…

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Back in 1995, a Texan tourism report declared that Newcastle was the eighth-best party city – on the planet.

After a recent stay with a chum at the brand-new Innside Newcastle hotel on the historic Quayside, I can confirm that this mighty north-eastern citadel has lost none of its joie de vivre.

The evidence? For starters, during our dinner in the hotel’s swanky Gino D’Acampo Quayside restaurant, some of the guests treated the venue as a disco, twirling around to their heart’s content to party-tune remixes pumping through the speakers courtesy of a DJ in the bar area.

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Many of us have fallen in love again with British hospitality. With overseas travel almost impossible for so long, hotels in the UK have swung open their doors — and we like what we see. 

Here at the Good Hotel Guide, we pride ourselves on selecting those small, individually owned properties that offer a truly personal service — the kind of place where guests are automatically given tea and cakes on arrival, where they feel immediately at home and can enjoy good food and wine. We are particularly proud of our César award-winners this year, which include a Scandi-chic thatched hotel on the Isle of Wight and a guesthouse in Scotland that has only three rooms. Revealed exclusively in the Daily Mail, here are The Good Hotel Guide’s top ten deserving winners…

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Culture? What culture? That’s often how people react upon hearing that some benighted town has put itself forward to be a City of Culture — but Wakefield is different.

This former centre of weaving has a long heritage, as evidenced by the 14th-century chantry chapel beside the medieval bridge over the River Calder.

In the 1980s, the community was knocked sideways by the closure of the Yorkshire mines — but it has since made a name for itself thanks to its outstanding museums. One of them, the National Coal Mining Museum, is staffed by former miners, each with a story to tell.

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Britons face forking out £105million a year in airport drop-off zone fees, with the average charge standing at just over £3.50 a pop, according to new research.

From 1 November, Heathrow will become the latest UK airport to slap a drop-off zone fee on motorists, with a £5 charge introduced.

Nearly 14million Britons every year typically use convenient drop-off zones when travelling to the airport, Direct Line Travel Insurance, said.

But, around 90 per cent of airports still provide alternative free drop-off points for passengers, although these are often further away from the main airport.  

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The Sloane Club is a venerable institution (its 100th anniversary is in 2022) near London’s Sloane Square, which still believes in pelmets and sensible shoes.

Not remotely cutting edge, in other words, but much loved by its members, many of whom come in from the shires for a night at the theatre then a visit to the dentist in the morning.

With little fanfare, the club was bought in 2017 by hospitality company Queensway, which launched Sloane Place next door, a 27-bedroom hotel open to non-members, with a contemporary twist.

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Scarborough’s Bike & Boot was designed from the get-go as a dog-friendly hotel. (It’s also surfer friendly, and as you can tell from the name, it was intended to be cyclist and hiker-friendly, too.) Tell reservations you’ll be bringing a hound and the room will be equipped with a vetbed topped with dog treats as well as a chew-toy to take home.

Such doggy extras are now standard fare in any establishment aspiring to attract a canine clientele but, perhaps uniquely, this new hotel on the North Yorkshire coast also has a self-service grooming parlour in the basement. Your mutt’s mucky paws can be cleansed before they get anywhere near the boutique-style rooms and suites on the upper floors.

‘We’ve had more [room] damage from children than we have had from dogs,’ revealed hotel co-owner Simon Kershaw when I recently spent a dirty weekend at the Bike & Boot with my wife and our trainee guide dog puppy, Berry.

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