Alastair Donnelly, Author at A Luxury Travel Blog : A Luxury Travel Blog

Luxury boat trips in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos

By Alastair Donnelly on May 31, 2018 in Asia, Cambodia, Cruises & Boat Travel, Food and Drink, Laos, Leisure Travel, Regions, Speciality Travel, Travel Miscellany, Vietnam

The network of waterways in Southeast Asia chop and change as you follow the current. Between hives of activity with clusters of houses and hardworking fishermen, there are stretches of untouched countryside, mountains thick with jungle and towering limestone karsts. Not only do these waterways offer an insight into local life – a springboard to

5 luxury food experiences in Japan

By Alastair Donnelly on Apr 20, 2018 in Asia, Food and Drink, Japan, Regions, Travel Miscellany

Japanese cuisine is revered the world over – it’s not difficult to see why. There are informal yatai (street food stalls) selling yakitori (skewered chicken) and okonomiyaki (savoury pancakes), high-end establishments with delicate kaiseki multi-course meals, and sushi made by master itamae (sushi masters)… and that’s not even starting on those hearty bowls of ramen

Guide to seeing the cherry blossom in Japan

By Alastair Donnelly on Mar 15, 2018 in Asia, Attractions, Events, Going Out, Japan, Leisure Travel, Regions, Speciality Travel, Travel Miscellany

Up there with geisha, samurai and Tokyo’s towering skyscrapers, sakura (cherry blossom) is one of the most recognisable and much-loved symbols of Japan, inspiring poetry, painting and many a picnic. Whether framing Mount Fuji’s snow-capped summit, forming a sea of pink around a samurai-era castle or trailing around the gardens of Kyoto’s many temples, those

5 reasons to travel solo in Japan

By Alastair Donnelly on Nov 13, 2017 in Asia, Japan, Regions

Whether you’re running a finger over a map searching for your next solo holiday destination, or you’re daydreaming about travelling alone for the very first time, there’s a cluster of islands with rich culture and history, delicious food and kindly people. A country perfect for every kind of solo traveller. Japan, a place with diametric

5 luxury honeymoon experiences in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos

By Alastair Donnelly on Oct 15, 2017 in Air Travel, Asia, Cambodia, Honeymoons, Laos, Leisure Travel, Regions, Speciality Travel, Vietnam

Planning a wedding is stressful, there’s no two ways about it. But planning a honeymoon should provide respite. No table plans to navigate, caterers to negotiate with, or photographers to sift through. This first holiday as a married couple should be the perfect tonic after a frantic few months. With a relaxed pace of life,

Top 5 things to do in Luang Prabang, Laos

By Alastair Donnelly on Sep 18, 2017 in Asia, Attractions, Events, Food and Drink, Going Out, Laos, Regions, Travel Miscellany

In between Vietnam and Thailand, Laos is lesser-known and lesser-discovered, but no less interesting than its pair of famous neighbours. As a long thin country that also touches China to the north and Cambodia to the south, the landscape varies wildly; from thickly-forested areas to more tropical surrounds with plunging waterfalls and thousands of islands.

5 top tips for getting tailor-made clothes in Hoi An, Vietnam

By Alastair Donnelly on Aug 15, 2017 in Asia, Clothing, Regions, Travel Equipment, Vietnam

Still waters, saffron-coloured buildings and streets untouched by the modern world; no trip to Vietnam is complete without a few days in the beautiful town of Hoi An. Nearly as famous as its well-preserved old quarter is a reputation for top-quality tailors. It’s impossible to amble down narrow roads without spotting countless shops with jumbo

5 reasons to stay in a ryokan (traditional Japanese inn)

By Alastair Donnelly on Jul 18, 2017 in Accommodation, Asia, Bed & Breakfasts, Food and Drink, Hotels, Japan, Regions, Travel Miscellany

What is a ryokan? Perhaps you’ve heard the term ryokan bandied around when planning a trip to Japan, but what exactly are they? In ancient times ryokans provided lodging for passing travellers, so the closest comparison would be an old fashioned inn. These days they provide so much more than a bed for the night

The best 5 beaches in Cambodia

By Alastair Donnelly on Jun 08, 2017 in Asia, Attractions, Cambodia, Going Out, Leisure Travel, Regions, Speciality Travel

Cambodia has some of the most incredible temples and fascinating history in the whole world. You can happily spend days marvelling at jungle-clad temple Ta-Prohm, or the intricate pink bas-reliefs of Banteay Srei. But if you’d like to swap shrines for the seaside, just for a little bit, Cambodia is also home to a collection

6 great reasons to go skiing in Japan

By Alastair Donnelly on May 16, 2017 in Asia, Food and Drink, Japan, Leisure Travel, Regions, Speciality Travel, Travel Miscellany

With a landscape that is 70% mountainous, it’s unsurprising that Japan’s terrain has some of the best skiing conditions in the world – just look at snow-topped spectacle Mount Fuji. Unique weather conditions teamed with a unique culture make Japan a destination well worth packing your skis for. 1. Powder snow If snowball fights are

8 beautiful places to visit in Laos

By Alastair Donnelly on Mar 14, 2017 in Asia, Attractions, Going Out, Laos, Regions

Laos flies below the radar for most tourists – and perhaps that’s a good thing. This little-known, landlocked country is a beautiful land of ancient Buddhist temples, tropical jungle, beautiful river cruises and softly spoken, laid-back people. It the kind of place the phrase ‘hidden gem’ was coined for, so shhhh – don’t tell! 1. Luang

Top 8 hot springs in Japan

By Alastair Donnelly on Feb 18, 2017 in Asia, Attractions, Going Out, Japan, Regions

In Japan, hot-spring bathing isn’t just a favourite pastime – it’s a national obsession. Straddling two bucking tectonic plates on the Pacific’s infamous ‘Ring of Fire’, Japan is extremely volcanically active – and this proliferation of geological activity has one very fortunate side-effect: hot springs. There are thousands of hot springs (onsen) in Japan, and

3 little-known places to visit in Burma

By Alastair Donnelly on Jan 13, 2017 in Asia, Attractions, Going Out, Myanmar, Regions

It’s no secret these days that Burma is one of the friendliest and most unspoilt of all the countries in Southeast Asia. The plains of Bagan have become one of the most recognisable images in travel, and the charms of Shwedagon Pagoda and Inle Lake are well-known to adventurous travellers. But though tourists have cottoned

5 amazing boating experiences in Burma

By Alastair Donnelly on Dec 12, 2016 in Asia, Cruises & Boat Travel, Myanmar, Regions, Speciality Travel

It’s not difficult to find incredible destinations in Myanmar; the hard part, in a country where the public transport network is still in its infancy, is getting to them. But there is a way to get to those untouched places that aren’t yet accessible by road or rail, and it just so happens that it’s

5 great hiking destinations in Burma

By Alastair Donnelly on Nov 08, 2016 in Asia, Myanmar, Regions

Shut off from the world for decades and untouched by mass tourism, Burma is one of the most unspoilt and wild of all the countries in continental Asia. Though the country has been open to tourism now for several years, there are so many regions that are yet to be explored – so many new

5 reasons to travel to Burma in the green season

By Alastair Donnelly on Oct 11, 2016 in Asia, Myanmar, Regions

Burma’s rainy season (or ‘green season’, as we prefer to call it) is often treated as a time to avoid, but there are plenty of reasons to consider off-peak travel to Southeast Asia. In Burma, the green season runs from May until October, and conditions can vary quite considerably depending on where and when you

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