ALTERNATIVE bank holiday weekends

editor’s note

At the risk of sounding smug, I’d like to state

MOTOR City

See Dubai outside its skyscraper-spiked centre, in a quarter where people ride bikes, walk dogs and say hi to their neighbours. Local Hayley Skirka shows us around Motor City @hayleyscottie

Munch’s order

Edvard Munch’s The Scream has been endlessly reproduced on everything

US-style sleeps of the A420

WHILE MOTELS ARE GENERALLY associated with US road trips, visitors

¡Arriba, tequila!

Britain’s first gin hotel, the Distillery in Notting Hill, is

Concorde forever

This year marks a trio of golden anniversaries for the

Ice cap, anyone?

ASPIRING ERNEST SHACKLETONS, TAKE NOTE. POLAR EXPLORER Captain Louis Rudd

How many hours away?

Use our visual guide to plot how many hours you’ll need to fly from the UK to reach this spring’s top experiences

Room with a view

A CANAL VIEW IS ALWAYS ON THE WISH LIST WHEN

Split

Eight reasons to choose Croatia’s lively second city for your next weekend break

The Easter egg

Unscrambling the origins of an ancient springtime tradition

Secret Solstice festival

The peak of the summer solstice is an incredibly special

Blue

We reveal the winning images from our Instagram competiton, this month on the theme of ‘blue’

Getting lost

Take a wrong turn, or follow your nose, and anything can happen, from enlightenment or a blissfully early night to communing with semi-wild pigs

Calmer waters

Peter Grunert on seeking out local life in the meandering, uncrowded backwaters of Venice

What I’ve learned... working as a pilot

Hannah Vaughan, 27 is a First Ofcer for British Airways’ short-haul fleet. She qualified three years ago, and has accrued around 2,500 flying hours

YOUR COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE GREEK ISLANDS

Scattered like pearls across the shimmering Aegean and Ionian seas, the Greek islands have lured many with their charms. From the times of Jason and his adventuring Argonauts and Frankish Crusaders to incursions by Mamma Mia film crews, myth and enchantment enfold the islands much like their ribbons of sugar-sof sand. There’s nothing quite like spotting the shoreline from a sun-drenched ferry deck and sailing into a port. And, in Greece, getting there is an essential part of the adventure. There are reckoned to be 227 inhabited islands to choose from (and countless more specks in the sea), so read on to wise up on the fine art of island-hopping, and discover which of the seven main island groups beckons you most…

Pick ‘n’ mix Athens

Greece’s islands get all the glory – but don’t overlook its incredible capital. Whether you deploy it as a hub or a destination in its own right, tailor your trip with our short-break ideas

How to knit a jumper

...and other life lessons from the Inhabitants of Fair Isle, Britain’s furthest-flung Inhabited Island

BIG COUNTRY

National parks were first created in the USA, where their peerless diversity includes Alaskan glaciers, Californian deserts, Floridan mangroves and Hawaiian volcanoes. Our dedicated, updated USA’s National Parks guidebook is published this April, and you’ll find some of its highlights in these pages. Whether you want to join the select number of visitors who try to bag every national park (Alaska’s more remote ones are a real challenge), or work a couple into a great American road trip, you can start to number out your wish-list right here

DEL GRADE RE BORN

A magnet for creatives, and possessed of a wild nightlife, the Serbian capital has been dubbed ‘the new Berlin’ – but dive deeper and you’ll discover the once war-torn city has a personality all its own

WILD AMBITION

Film-maker Alastair Fothergill shares his behind-the-scenes views from the creation of the most ambitious natural-history TV project to date – the new Netflix series Our Planet

Culture in Liverpool

Liverpool’s impressive cultural heritage, dating hack to when it was Britain’s second most important city, is a source of justifiable pride to Scousers. Find o ut why in our guide to its cultural highlights

Best of Jersey

At nine miles by five, Jersey is the largest of the Channel Islands and is big on interest, from, the buzzing capital, St Helier, to superb beaches. Read on to find how to make the most of your time here

Art and design in Oslo

The No rwegian capital is compact, cultured and fun. With our handy guide, explore one of its museums, get to know its booming contemporary-art scene, and marvel at the work of its starchitects

Vegan Berlin

Berlin has embraced plant-based food with religious zeal, and vegan cafés and restaurants serving inspired menus are sprouting up all over town – read on for our selection of the best

Stopover in Muscat

Scenically wedged between mountains and ocean, replete with old forts and excellent museums, the capital of Oman is a joy to visit. Make the most of your time there with our pick of its highlights

South African wineries

Venture inland and, upwards from, Cape Town and you’ll find the best-known wine producers in South Africa. Get yourself a designated driver, and set off on a tour with this guide to our favourite wineries

What on Earth?

1 Which of these waterfalls does not lie on an