Bank becomes Bristol hotel
For a great new urban escape, take a look at Bristol Harbour Hotel, which opens on October 1 in the city’s former Lloyds Bank building. Behind the ornate façade are 42 contemporary bedrooms with city views and roll-top baths, and a buzzy restaurant and bar. The former bank vaults will become a spa, due to open next spring. Rooms cost from £145 a night, B&B (bristol-harbour-hotel.co.uk).
Go solo with Saga
More good news for single travellers: Saga (saga.co.uk), which already runs river cruises exclusively for solo travellers, is taking over a hotel on the same basis in Croatia this October. Hotel Osam on the island of Brac has an outdoor pool and views of the Adriatic. You can stay there for seven nights, all-inclusive, from £769pp based on one person to a room, with flights from Gatwick to Split on October 8 or October 15. There will be more single-traveller departures next year.
Vineyard stay in West Sussex
Who doesn’t want to stay on a vineyard, just a stumble away from a tasting room and surrounded by vines? The sleek new wooden lodges at Tinwood Estate in Sussex, which produces English sparkling wines, come with a hot tub for two with TV, a cork-filled wall and a fridge full of wine. Take a tour of the vineyard, enjoy the wine barrel-shaped sauna, then head to the viewing platform for sundowners over the vines. In the morning, a breakfast hamper comes straight to your door. A night for two costs from £185, B&B (tinwoodestate.com).
Cooking with tots
Forget the kids’ club and head off on a foodie family adventure, including truffle hunting and a Roman-themed cooking session on this break in Italy’s Le Marche. It’s the first of a planned series by the family specialist Tots Too, whose founder, Emma Spitzer, was a MasterChef finalist. The Italy break runs from October 23-29 and costs £4,595 per family of four, including flights from Stansted to Ancona, six nights at the Villa Panorama and all meals and activities (totstoo.com).
New flights to Romania
If you’re looking for a new budget travel destination that you can’t pronounce, Suceava (pronounced “soo-chava”) in Romania might be the place. Wizz Air (wizzsair.com) started flying there yesterday from Luton, with one-way fares from £24.99. Why go? Apart from the city’s medieval fortresses, there’s fantastic hiking in Ceahlau National Park, and the Painted Monasteries of Bucovina, such as Humor, pictured.
