Ed Cunningham

With an impressive 300 days of sunshine annually and 29 miles of pristine sandy shoreline, it’s no surprise that Santa Cruz has earned its reputation as one of the USA’s finest surf destinations. But beyond the surfers riding those towering waves, Surf City holds a treasure trove of attractions, from its iconic boardwalk to the nearby redwood forests. When planning your Santa Cruz adventure, it’s important to find a comfortable place to call home during your stay. Luckily, the city has loads of fab hotels to choose from, from upscale resorts to beachfront inns. To simplify your search for the perfect digs, we've rounded up our top picks of the best hotels in Santa Cruz. Whether you're a solo traveler seeking the thrill of riding the area's famous waves or a young couple planning a romantic getaway in nature, we're sure you'll find something to suit your individual taste and budget in our extensive list. So, pack your bags, soak up the sun, and get ready to experience the unique blend of natural beauty and coastal culture that Santa Cruz has to offer.  RECOMMENDED: 🏠The best Airbnbs in Santa Cruz🏖️The best things to do in Santa Cruz🇺🇸The best things to do in California Who makes the cut? While we might not stay in every hotel featured below, we've based our list on top reviews and amenities to find you the best stays. This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines.

It only took about 70 years, but television is finally getting some respect. In the decades leading up to this point, TV was largely considered among the lowest forms of entertainment. It was smeared as ‘the idiot box’, ‘the boob tube’. Edward R Murrow referred to it as ‘the opiate of the masses’, and Bruce Springsteen even wrote a song about the malaise of fruitless channel surfing. Was its poor reputation deserved? Certainly, the ratio of garbage to gold was high, and though it’s hard to quantify if it was worse than any other artistic medium, the fact that it was all being beamed directly into your living room made the dreck much harder to avoid.  That’s all changed. Television is now the dominant medium in basically all of entertainment, to the degree that the only thing separating movies and TV is the screen you’re watching on. The shift in perception is widely credited to the arrival of The Sopranos, which completely reinvented the notion of what a TV show could do, and the advent of streaming has made it so that hundreds of new shows are now continually flipping the script every few years, if not months.  But that doesn’t mean everything before 1999 is pure dross. Far from it: television has been popular since World War II, after all. And while this list is dominated by 21st century programs, there are hundreds of shows that deserve credit for pushing TV forward into its current golden age. Chiselling them down to a neat hundred is tough, so we elected to leave off tal

Atlanta’s the largest city in the South, so of course it’s absolutely packed with things to do, see, eat, and drink. From exploring ATL’s phenomenal civil rights institutions to diving into the endless aquatic wonders of the Georgia Aquarium, this is a city primed for bustling tourists and brimming with some of the best cultural stuff in the entire US of A. If you're planning on taking a summer vacation to Atlanta, be warned, the summers can be sweltering and humid. Our hair is frizzing up as we speak. So of course, it's essential to find an Airbnb with a pool allowing you to cool down whenever you want, but also because it's fun to splash around. So whether you're coming for the city’s finest attractions, its unmissable bars, its enviable foodie culture, or its unbeatable nightlife, we’ve got you covered. For couples, families, friends, and the rest, here are the best Airbnbs with pools in Atlanta.  RECOMMENDED: The best hotels in AtlantaRECOMMENDED: The best luxury Airbnbs in Atlanta This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, click here.

It’s sometimes said that we in the UK don’t have much of a rep for romance. And while, sure, we can’t claim to have the finesse of the French or any of that effortless Italian charm, we’re still romantic. In fact, the UK is romantic AF – and we can prove it. From charming seaside towns packed with homely pubs and quaint rural villages populated by cute cottages to the UK’s historic and glamorous cities, this small country boasts countless destinations that are perfect for a romantic getaway (complete with all sorts of romantic restaurants too). And while, no, we aren’t all Hugh Grants, we’re still a pretty solid bunch, if we say do so ourselves. If you’re planning a loved-up weekend break with your special one, here are our essential spots: the best and most romantic getaway destinations in the UK. RECOMMENDED:🏰 Amazing UK castles you can actually stay in🤏 Tiny but perfectly formed UK hideaways🏠 Cabins and cottages to book now for autumn🌳 Amazing treehouses in the UK you can actually stay in⛰️ Outdoorsy UK getaways to help you reconnect with nature❄️ The cosiest places to stay in the UK this winter.

Singapore has a reputation as one of the most expensive cities in the world – and quite rightly so. But that's not to say the bustling metropolis doesn't have its fair share of affordable places to stay. Whether for staycations or wider travels, you can still find plenty of ways to do the city on a budget. You’ve just got to know where to look. Luckily enough, we do know where to look and, what’s more, Singapore’s bargain hotels still manage to be very luxurious indeed. Some even include swimming pools and fitness centres, all conveniently located within the city limits. So what are you waiting for? Dive into our favourite of Singapore’s finest cheap hotels. RECOMMENDED: The best cheap things to do in Singapore with kidsRECOMMENDED: The best boutique hotels in Singapore This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, click here.

The grand New York City is full of iconic, well-loved landmarks. People flock from all around the globe to spy on classic attractions like the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State, and Central Park all the way to the Yankee Stadium and Birdland. NYC is the hub for all things historical and of cultural importance, so naturally, you'll want to follow the experience to a hotel that matches the vibe. There are a lot of hotels that are considered attractions in themselves. From the architecturally breathtaking to the places that famous people venture to or even ones that were once the site of a historical event. Many are also exceptionally luxurious and considered among the top hotels in the entire country – but even if you're just looking, they're certainly worth a visit. And if you can afford to stay there? They're totally worth it, obviously.  RECOMMENDED: 🗽See our full guide to the best hotels in NYC🏨Check out best hotels with a view in NYC 💘Stay in the most romantic hotels in NYC Who makes the cut? While we might not stay in every hotel featured below, we've based our list on top reviews and amenities to find you the best stays. This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines.

Glamping is a best-of-both-worlds kind of holiday. On the one hand, you get the full benefit of the great outdoors: fresh air, flowery smells and a huge variety of ways to get active. On the other, you don’t have to muck it out in a grimy, leaky old tent with soggy bog roll and crummy facilities. Glamping offers an unbeatable combo of comfort and healthiness. Pretty sweet, we know. And the UK is a fabulous place for a glamping holiday. Not only does the country have everything from chilly wild swimming spots and picturesque national parks to multi-day hikes through areas of spectacular natural beauty, but it’s also crammed with places that offer much more luxurious alternatives to the usual camping affair. Bougie bell tents, decked-out tipis, wood-fired hot tubs... when it comes to properly lush glamping, the UK really does have it all. If you’re looking to ditch musky sleeping bags and broken tent poles for something much, much comfier, here’s where to start: the very best glamping sites in the UK according to us. RECOMMENDED:💕 The best romantic weekend getaways in the UK🏠 Amazing cabins and cottages in the UK🌳 11 incredible treehouses you can book in the UK🧘 The best wellbeing breaks and yoga retreats in the UK🏞️ The most beautiful national parks in the UK

A country of the kind of extremes that really, truly boggle the mind, in Japan you’ll find everything from rugged mountains and arid deserts to lush rainforests and vast, vast concrete cities. It’s somewhere you can visit countless times – that you can live in, even – and constantly find new stuff to see, do, eat and drink.  In other words, Japan has an enormous number of fantastic destinations, but most visitors will simply pass over them on their first trip. So, beyond the country’s most obvious travel spots – the likes of Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima, Kanazawa, the Japanese Alps and so on – which others are most worth visiting? I spent nearly three months travelling around Japan earlier this year to find out. Beyond the classics and those covered in our own two-week rail itinerary, these cities, towns and nature spots justify a second, third or fourth trip to Japan. Here are Japan's 16 most underrated destinations, worth heading back for again and again. RECOMMENDED:⛰️ The most beautiful places in Japan📍 The best things to do in Japan🏨 The best hotels in Japan🏘️ The best Airbnbs in Japan This article was written by Time Out Travel writer Ed Cunningham. 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.

Of all the many things that the last few years have upended, office life is one of the biggest. Tools like email and video chat apps have (at least in theory) untethered many of us from the workplace, meaning there may be very little need for many restless workers to stay rooted in one place. And that makes moving somewhere sunnier, cheaper or just more fun sound incredibly tempting. As nations around the world have reopened their borders to travellers, many popular destinations have emphasised longer-term stays over short-term breaks. And at the very extreme end, some are even trying to sell themselves as idyllic remote-working spots, with new ‘digital nomad’ visas that would allow you to live and work there for up to a year – or sometimes even longer. Here’s a guide to the countries offering digital nomad visas right now, and how you can qualify. And here’s what it’s actually like to be a digital nomad – and how to become one yourself.

I moved to this city in the deep, dark depths of the pandemic. My first flat was, obviously, awful. The landlord was dodgy (shock). It was full of mold. The shower was next to the kitchen and had no door. Still, though, I look back on those days fondly. One rare sunny afternoon we climbed out of my flatmate’s window to sit on the roof, drinking homemade Bloody Marys and blasting the Bad Boy Chiller Crew from a box speaker into the sticky, polluted air of Kingsland Road. We got quite a few glares from passers-by, but also a fair amount of smiles.  Whether you’re moving here for study, work, family, or another reason, your first months in London will be challenging, but you’ll probably look back on them with such fogged-up rose-tinted glasses it will hardly matter anyway. Use this time to meet as many new people as you can and to make mistakes. Be broke, go to M&M world (don’t actually), get lost on the tube. That said, there are some things I wish I’d known before coming here. Hindsight is a blessing, as they say. But we’re not gatekeepers, so we asked Time Out staff to share their top tricks and tips for anyone moving to the capital. Some of these folks have been born and bred here. Others are adopted Londoners, like you might well be one day. Listen up, take note, and good luck. 

It’s time to don some practical clothing, slip on your hiking boots, and prep some mid-trek snacks – Yosemite National Park is calling. One of the most spectacular areas of natural beauty in the entire US of A, Yosemite has everything from glaciers and waterfalls to vast lakes and eerie giant sequoia groves. Whether you’re a nature-mad adventurer or simply a curious explorer, the California park is an essential bucket list stop. When visiting Yosemite, there are quite a few options for accommodation, from glamorous hotels and cozy cabins to back-to-basics camping. For comfort, independence and practicality, however, there are few better ways to truly make the most of Yosemite than by renting yourself an Airbnb.  One of the most popular areas to stay when visiting Yosemite National Park is, naturally, the rental community inside the park’s boundaries – Yosemite West – but there are plenty of other options. From facility-heavy areas like Oakhurst to Ahwahnee in Yosemite Valley or the further-out likes of Mariposa, Yosemite’s surrounding area is littered with fabulous rentals. Below are the ten best Airbnbs in Yosemite and its nearby towns. RECOMMENDED:🌳Read the best time to visit Yosemite🏕Stay at the best campgrounds in Yosemite 🥾See our list of the best hikes in Yosemite Who makes the cut? While we might not stay in every Airbnb featured, it’s our mission to help you make your trip as smooth sailing as possible. For this, we've based our list on top reviews, hosts and amen

NYC can be a very, very expensive place – but it doesn’t have to be. And you don’t have to sacrifice style or quality for cheap prices, either. If you know where to look, NYC is packed to the brim with chic, cozy hotels at prices that won’t make your eyes water. So whether you’re hunting for a historic hideaway, a room with a view, or simply a hotel with an uber-convenient location, we’ve got you covered. Below we’ve rounded up NYC’s finest cheap hotels, helping you leave plenty of room in your wallet to splurge on the rest of your trip. RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best hotels in NYC Who makes the cut? While we might not stay in every hotel featured, we've based our list on top reviews, hosts and amenities to find you the best stays. This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines. 

Looking to seriously broaden your musical horizons? Colour Green could well be just the ticket. Pitching an evening of tremendously diverse sounds and styles – with a focus on women and non-binary musicians – this brand-new night has a line-up teeming with music from the world over. Camden’s intimate Green Note (our very own ‘London’s Favourite Music Venue 2015’, no less) will be graced by the soaring Latin/jazz/R&B of XATIVA, marvellously textured electronica from Alice Boyd and the studious jazz and South American folkloric music of Delfina Cheb. Musical adventurers, don’t miss it.

London’s Latinx music scene has a lot going on at the mo – and there’s nowhere better to get a taste of it than Alturas, which returns to Stoke Newington’s Doña this January. From the Latin/folk/jazz fusion of singer-songwriter XATIVA and silky, dark pop of Sophie Castillo to the Andean-inflected dancefloor concoctions of ANTIK’ARA and classic bossa nova of Cláudia Marques, revel in a diverse blend of contemporary Latinx sounds. And better yet, the deliciously kitsch Bar Doña will be dishing up its usual array of tacos and mezcal all night.

Despite being tremendously popular in his time, artist and illustrator Louis Wain has been somewhat overlooked of late. Luckily enough, he’s soon to receive the Hollywood treatment, being played by Benedict Cumberbatch in an upcoming film, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain. And while that film is sure to invigorate Wain’s legacy with the respect it deserves, you can get ahead of the curve by heading over to the Bethlem Museum of the Mind. Wain is best known for capturing cats in all their various forms, and the Bethlem’s exhibition is a glorious display of some of his finest illustrations. Expect a vibrant, characterful world of felines, ranging from the anthropomorphic to absurd. Animal Therapy: The Cats of Louis Wain is free, but you can still support both the exhibition and the Bethlem Museum of the Mind by buying from their online shop or via direct donations. The Bethlem Museum of the Mind is open Wednesday to Friday and the first and last Saturdays of month, 10am to 5pm. See the museum’s visitor page for more details

Tracing the exploits of a gruesome serial killer, the Jack the Ripper tours are scary enough as they are. But add a Halloween theme and the opportunity to drink a potentially frightful amount of booze? Even more spine-chilling. A collaboration between Spitalfields cocktail bar Discount Suit Company and walking tour company London’s Walks, the Halloween edition of the Jack the Ripper tour will explore the streets of the East End, led by charismatic Ripper expert Simon Whitehouse. But, vitally, it’ll include booze. Lots of it. Starting off with a complimentary hot punch, the hour-and-a-half-long tour will wind up at the Discount Suit Company itself, where there will be special 'Rocket Lolly' and 'Notorious' cocktails to mark the occasion. Tour guests will also receive a 25 percent discount off their final bill. Tours will start at 12pm, 2.30pm & 5pm

Fun fact: Frock Me was the first vintage fair in London. Back in 1997, founder Matthew Adams started the fair at Kensington Town Hall, which prided itself on a mix of fashion and decorative arts. It then moved to Chelsea Old Hall, taking more of a focus on fashion – but remaining London’s original, most essential vintage fair. For one date in November, Frock Me will be returning to its original venue in Kensington Town Hall. Promising 70 exhibitors with an enormous range of fashion (ranging from the Victoria era through to slightly more modern designer outfits), there’ll also be watches, jewellery and a pop-up café. For the fashion fanatics, preview tickets (11am-12pm) are £10. General admission (12:00-17:30pm) is £5, reduced to £3 with an NUS card.

Would you ever imagine that a mere 33 metres below Clapham High Street, there lies one of the UK’s most cutting-edge urban farms? Us neither, yet that’s where you can find Growing Underground, a farm fashioned out of a former Second World War bomb shelter. Cultivating veggies using LED tech and hydroponic systems, the farm produces pesticide-free, carbon-neutral and nutrient-rich greens that taste delicious. Snoop around and discover more about the history of the tunnel and the farm’s sustainable credentials during a 75-minute tour, which includes a fresh micro herb salad to take home with you. Green in more ways than one. 

As the home of one of the city’s OG shoppers’ paradises, Brent Cross holds a special place in many Londoners’ hearts. Right now, much of the best stuff to do in the area remains centred around that ginormous, legendary shopping centre – but that could all be about to change. A brand-new rail station called Brent Cross West is set to open by the end of 2023. Spread over 7,000 square metres, the project is being billed as ‘London’s newest mainline station’ and the capital’s biggest new station in over a decade. The new station sits on the historic Midland Main Line between Cricklewood and Hendon, and it’ll have a direct link to St Pancras that will take as little as 12 minutes. Brent Cross West won’t be a tube or Overground station but operated by Thameslink, with links to both Farringdon and Luton Airport. And that isn’t all. Brent Cross West is being designed as a gateway to a new neighbourhood called Brent Cross Town and is part of a massive £419 million project by Barnet Council and the UK government. Here are a few more renders of what Brent Cross West is expected to look like. Image: Brent Cross West Image: Brent Cross West Image: Brent Cross West   And here’s a ‘first look’ video of how the station is shaping up. Exciting, eh? The exact opening date of Brent Cross West hasn’t yet been announced, but you can find out more on the project website here.  Time Out and London train travel  We’re train-mad at Time Out: from seasonal stuff like the Santa Steam Express t

Hundreds of thousands of new homes are built in the UK every year. And while plenty of those are no doubt pleasant enough, from towering skyscraper apartments to no-frills small-town estates, how many of them are bona fide architectural masterpieces? That’s what the Royal Institute of British Architects’ (RIBA) ‘House of the Year’ prize is all about: finding the boldest, most beautiful new homes built in the UK. Following last week’s announcement of the winner of the Stirling Prize (which concerns the best new buildings in general – read more about that here), RIBA has revealed its shortlist for the UK’s six best new homes of 2023. The houses range from an old cowshed in Devon to a building made out of crushed TV screens on the bank of a Scottish loch. Needless to say, they’re all pretty special. The winner of the RIBA House of the Year prize will be announced on November 30. Before that, here are some pics of the shortlisted projects. ‘Cowshed’ by David Kohn Architects (south Devon) Photograph: Max Creasy   ‘Green House’ by Hayhurst & Co (Tottenham, London) Photograph: Kilian O'Sullivan ‘Hundred Acre Wood’ by Denizen Works (Argyll and Bute, Scotland) Photograph: Gilbert McCarragher / Denizen Works ‘Made of Sand’ by Studio Weave (Devon) Photograph: Jim Stephenson ‘Middle Avenue’ by Rural Office (Farnham, Surrey) Photograph: Jim Stephenson ‘Saltmarsh House’ by Niall McLaughlin Architects (Isle of Wight) Photograph: Nick Kane You can find out more about each nominee

S Club fans of all generations, time to get pumped. The group’s Good Times tour, which is celebrating their 25th anniversary, stops by London for not one, not two, but three shows this week. The singers of number one singles ‘Bring It All Back’, ‘Never Had a Dream Come True’, ‘Don’t Stop Movin’, and ‘Have You Ever’ are sure to roll out throwback shows for the ages at Greenwich this Friday and Saturday. Five S Club members are touring: Rachel Stevens, Tina Barrett, Jon Lee, Jo O'Meara and Bradley McIntosh. From doors and timings to ticket availability, here’s everything you need to know about the shows. When are S Club playing at London’s O2 Arena? The pop group’s three shows are on October 27 and October 28. There are two shows on October 28 – one in the afternoon and one in the evening. What time do doors open? For the evening shows, doors open at 6:30pm. For the matinee/afternoon show on October 28, doors open at 12:30pm. What time will S Club come on stage? S Club haven’t revealed official set times for their three shows. However, we can expect them to come on stage at 8:30pm for the evening concerts and at about 2pm for the matinee. Who is supporting the band on their The Good Times tour? Support comes from Now United, a pop group formed in Los Angeles that consists of members from all over the world. What’s the potential setlist? There’s no official setlist. However, according to Setlist.fm, the group played these songs at Manchester’s AO Arena. S Club Party Love A

When it was announced last month that one-day Travelcards were set to be scrapped, plenty of rail travellers were – understandably – a bit miffed. The tickets were the easiest and most cost-efficient way for plenty who live outside London to take day trips into and around the city. Axing them could increase the cost of day trips to the capital by a whopping 16 percent. As of yesterday (October 24), however, there have been some positive developments. Following an agreement between Transport for London and the Rail Delivery Group, one-day Travelcards have been saved. From January, day-trippers will still be able to take all the trains, tubes and buses they wish with a single ticket.  There is, however, a bit of a catch. The price of the Travelcard will be subject to a pretty substantial price increase. On top of the annual rail fare rise (which could be as high as nine percent in 2024), the cost of one-day Travelcards could increase by another three percent. That’ll come into effect in March 2024. So, some good news and some not-so-good news. But even with higher prices, it’ll likely still be cheaper to use a one-day Travelcard than not, plus they do make travelling around London substantially simpler. And when you’re in London on that day trip, who better to guide you around than Time Out? We’ve been on top of all the best stuff to see and do in this city since 1968 – from our lists of the best attractions and finest museums to delicious restaurants and dazzling bars. Did you

If you’re a Londoner whose employer has signed up to paying the ‘London Living Wage’, we’ve got good news: you’ll soon be getting a ten percent pay rise. Living Wage Foundation, the charity that decides the London Living Wage (LLW), has announced that it’ll soon be rising from £11.95 to £13.15 per hour. In other words, a whole load of Londoners are about to get a pretty decent pay rise. Over 130,000 city residents are apparently on the LLW (spread across 3,500 employers), and they can each expect a total annual pay rise of up to £5,323.50. All of which is undeniably good news for a huge number of Londoners. But with rising bills, soaring household goods prices and the continuing cost-of-living crisis, it’s the least many in this city need right now. Plus, it’s worth noting that plenty of Londoners aren’t on the London Living Wage. Unlike the National Minimum Wage, it isn’t legally binding – many workers are still on the NMW of £10.42, which was introduced last April. It isn’t just in London that the Real Living Wage is rising. In other parts of the UK, the Living Wage Foundation is rising the hourly wage from £10.90 to £12. All over the country, hundreds of thousands of workers are getting a pay increase to help cope with the increasing cost of living. As for when this pay rise will come into effect? Well, that’s up to your employer. Companies signed up to the LLW scheme have until May 1 2024 to implement the increase. Did you see that two London tourist attractions have been

If you regularly ride the tube, you likely spend a lot of time staring at tube maps. After all, with little phone signal, what else is there to look at to be totally sure you don’t make eye contact with anyone?  Plenty of us should know tube maps pretty damn well. And now there’s a game that tests just how much you’ve memorise of the London Underground’s sprawling lines. Called ‘Metro Memory’, it’s designed to see how many stations on London’s Underground, Overground and Elizabeth line networks you can name. Sound intriguing? Here’s everything you need to know about ‘Metro Memory’.   What is the Tube Map Game? Officially titled ‘Metro Memory’, the game sees users try and remember how many London tube, Overground and Elizabeth line stations they can name from memory. Why is it called the Metro Memory Game? We’re guessing it has something to do with the tube being what other cities might called a ‘metro’, and that you’re testing your memory by attempting to remember all the stations. How to play the Tube Map Game It’s pretty simple. You go on the website, type in station names and see what percentage of the 416 stations you can remember. You can play at this link. Who created the Tube Map Game? The game was created by software engineer Benjamin Tran Dinh, who released it last Friday (October 20). In recent days, it has apparently had over 100,000 players. Did you see that London now has an entire gallery dedicated to transport posters? Plus: two London tourist attractions hav

As most of us know all too well, London isn’t a particularly cheap place to live or work. But it’s expensive for visiting travellers, too. From entry to attractions like the London Eye (from £25.50) and tours of Buckingham Palace (£95) to museum exhibition tickets, seeing all this city’s most famous attractions can put a serious dent in your finances. A recent study by money advice site SavingSpot confirmed that London is one of the world’s most expensive tourist cities. The study sifted through thousands of TripAdvisor reviews for attractions across the globe and noted the number of mentions of the word ‘expensive’, before ranking overpriced destinations. Unsurprisingly, two London attractions featured in the top ten worst value destinations. The London Eye came in at third, while the View from the Shard came in at fifth. Which isn’t much of a surprise, really. The Eye has long been a bit spenny, while the Shard’s viewing platform starts from around £28 per person.  Furthermore, two further destinations that aren’t in London but are still often accessed from the city also featured in the list. The Warner Bros Studio Tour (aka ‘The Making of Harry Potter’) was named the most overpriced attraction in the world, while Legoland Windsor was named second-most expensive. All this is, of course, worth taking with a pinch of salt. Not only is ‘value’ a pretty subjective term, but the methodology might not be so watertight. After all, if you’re searching for reviews mentioning ‘expens

London’s full of all kinds of architectural beauty. From the towering glass giants of the City and elegant cathedrals like St Paul’s and Westminster to world-renowned pieces of design like the Barbican, this city has far more than its fair share of gorgeous, fascinating, awe-inspiring buildings. And now London has yet another building to add to its list of architectural marvels. The Stirling Prize, a prestigious yearly award dished out by the Royal Institute of British Architects’ (RIBA), has named a retirement day centre in Blackheath the best new building in the UK.   The John Morden Centre was designed by London-based architects Mæ and celebrated by RIBA for everything from its sustainable construction process and ‘strong social programme’ to the way that it cleverly uses existing structures. It functions as a daycare centre for residents of Morden College, a charity that has been supporting older people for over 300 years.  RIBA Stirling Prize jury chair Ellen van Loon described the centre as ‘a place of joy and inspiration’. She also said: ‘This building provides comfort and warmth, with thoughtful features designed to prevent isolation. It illustrates how buildings can themselves be therapeutic – supporting care and instilling a sense of belonging. Great architecture orients people so they can thrive, and this building is exemplary at achieving exactly that.’ Here are a few more pics of the John Morden Centre. Photograph: Jim StephensonJohn Morden Centre / RIBA Stirlin

Been doing your business around the centre of town recently and noticed that the place seems a little... fuller? Well, now we know why. New data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that tourist numbers in London have bounced back from the pandemic and are currently at pretty much the same levels they were in 2019. Recently-released ONS data shows that there were 5.3 million visitors to London across April, May and June of this year, which was just 60,000 fewer tourists than the same period in 2019. Meaning our city’s tourism sector has almost – almost – recovered from the past few years. And those visitors aren’t holding back when it comes to splashing the cash. The BBC reports that tourist spending in London reached £4.3bn this quarter. All of which is a good thing! After all, so many London businesses and plenty of the city’s finest attractions rely on overseas visitors to keep going.  But if you’d rather steer clear of the crowds, fear not. At Time Out we’ve got a vast guide to the best secret, alternative and locally-adored stuff to do in London, from strange museums to little-known parks – you can check that out here.   Did you see that two more tube stations now have these iconic maze designs? Plus: London’s Superloop bus network is massively expanding in spring 2024. Listen to Time Out’s brilliant new podcast ‘Love Thy Neighbourhood’: episode 11 with Ania Magliano in Haggerston is out now. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out London newslett

Compared to plenty of other cities around the world, London’s public transport network ain’t half bad. What we do lack, however, are decent connections between different areas of the outer city. Often, when going between different bits of the outer areas of London you have to go all the way into the city centre just to come straight back out again. The Superloop bus network is out to correct that. First launched back in July, Superloops run speedy, limited-stop services between London’s outer boroughs. And now they’re set to significantly expand. Following public consultations, two more Superloop routes will kick off next spring. Bringing up the total number of routes up to six, the new routes will be the SL2 (in the east and northeast, between Walthamstow Central and North Woolwich) and the SL3 (in the east and southeast, between Thamesmead and Bromley). So outer-east-Londoners, you’ll soon be much better connected! The four routes currently in operation are the SL6 (Russell Square to West Croydon), SL7 (Croydon to Heathrow Airport), SL8 (Uxbridge to White City) and SL9 (Heathrow Airport to Harrow). The exact date that the SL2 and SL3 routes will begin hasn’t been confirmed, though it’ll be sometime in spring 2024. You can see a full map of all current and future Superloop services on the TfL website here. Time Out’s take Cheaper, more environmentally-friendly travel between London’s outer boroughs? Well, that’s most certainly fabulous for everyone involved. Did you see that

When you picture a whisky distillery, what do you have in mind? Probably some kind of huge warehouse filled with giant cylinders and tanks, its basement packed with musty wooden barrels. That is, after all, the classic whisky distillery vibe. What you might not picture, however, is a tall tower – well, until now, that is. The UK’s first vertical whisky distillery has opened in Scotland. Called the Port of Leith Distillery, it stretches up nine storeys and, excitingly, is open to visitors. The project was conceived by wine merchant Ian Stirling and finance director Paddy Fletcher and designed by Glasgow architects ThreeSixty. It produces the Port of Leith whisky and, appropriately, it’s in Leith, a buzzy Edinburgh port district that we recently named one of the coolest neighbourhoods in the entire world. More than just a whisky distillery, though, Port of Leith intends to become one of the area’s biggest tourist attractions and welcome 160,000 yearly visitors by 2025. Crucial to that are its distillery tours, which cost £26, last 90 minutes and include a full lowdown of the production process. Visitors can also reserve a spot at the top floor mezzanine bar, which offers 360-degree views out over both Edinburgh and the surrounding landscape. Here are a few pics of the place. Photograph: Port of Leith Photograph: Port of Leith Photograph: Port of Leith All this opened on October 11. You can find out more about visiting on the official Port of Leith Distillery website here.

In recent years, the Welsh train network has seen some very exciting updates. From rumours of a new high-speed train line from London throughout the south of the country to a glitzy fleet of swish tram-trains, the country (notably in the south) has finally been getting some of the attention it deserves when it comes to investment in rail infrastructure.  And now there’s even more good news for rail services in southeast Wales. Transport for Wales (TfW) has unveiled plans for five brand-new railway stations in the region and launched a public consultation to get feedback on the designs. The new stations are planned for Cardiff East, Newport West, Somerton, Llanwern and Magor and Undy. The consultation aims to give the public the chance to talk about the kind of facilities they’d like to see at each station. Here is a map of the proposed rail network in southeast Wales, with the new stations. Image: Transport for Wales And that isn’t all. The consultation is also getting feedback from the public on new cross-border services between Cardiff, Bristol and Cheltenham Spa. TfW intends to increase services between these stations from between one to two more trains per hour. Exciting times, eh? You can have your say on the new stations and cross-border services at the TfW public consultation here. Time Out’s take Proper investment in UK rail travel that isn’t in London? Well, that can only be a very good thing!  Did you see that after 75 years, this Victorian steam train has returne