Travel podcasts for city break fans. All the historical and cultural background you need to enjoy your visit.
Episodes
Wednesday Sep 01, 2021
Wednesday Sep 01, 2021
More inspiration from three great travel blogs: a Bulgarian city you may not have heard of, (but definitely should not miss), a round-up of Italian cities from the most popular to the charmingly lesser-known, Buenos Aires for beginners and Dubrovnik on the cheap. Plus, of course, a general spirit of wanderlust, appreciation and can-do spirit.
Useful links
our website: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
to find us on twitter: @citybreakscast
to e-mail us: citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
This week's guest websites
Wednesday Aug 25, 2021
Wednesday Aug 25, 2021
Our London Bucket List features a wide range of must-do ideas, some of our own and lots more from our contributors: travel bloggers, historians and a London diarist. Inspiration for all!
Useful links
https://www.aworldinreach.com/?s=london+
https://www.berkeleysquarebarbarian.com
https://anhistorianabouttown.com
https://livinglondonhistory.com/londons-ancient-roman-and-medieval-walls-a-self-guided-walk
https://www.diaryofalondoness.com
City Breaks: all the history and culture you'd research for yourself if you had the time!
Check our website to find more episodes from our London series or to browse our back catalogue of other cities which are well worth visiting: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
We love to receive your comments and suggestions!
You can e mail us at citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
And if you like what you hear, please do post comments or a review wherever you downloaded this episode. That's a big help!
Wednesday Aug 18, 2021
Wednesday Aug 18, 2021
A set-in-London booklist, four reading anthologies based on London and four walking tours focussed on the capital's best-known authors. Plus, a whole selection of snippets of poetry and prose. In short, a comprehensive introduction to literary London and a host of follow-up ideas. This episode brings you everything from Dickens to J K Rowling, from the London of Agatha Christie's 'At Bertram's Hotel' to that of Tarquin Hall's 'Salaam Brick Lane'.
Useful links
https://brightnomad.net/books-set-in-london
https://www.london-walking-tours.co.uk/free-tours/dickens-london.htm
https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/walks-and-itineraries/self-guided-walks-and-trails/shakespeares-london
https://www.london-walking-tours.co.uk/the-sherlock-holmes-mystery-trail.htm
https://www.getyourguide.co.uk/london-l57/london-harry-potter-walking-tour-t390509
https://www.visitlondon.com
Reading ideas
London: An Illustrated Literary Companion by Rosemary Gray
The Blue Guide Literary Companion to London compiled by Robin Saikia
Fictional London: A Guide to the Capital's Literary Landmarks by Stephen Halliday
City Lit London edited by Heather Reyes
City Breaks: all the history and culture you'd research for yourself if you had the time!
Check our website to find more episodes from our London series or to browse our back catalogue of other cities which are well worth visiting: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
We love to receive your comments and suggestions!
You can e mail us at citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
And if you like what you hear, please do post comments or a review wherever you downloaded this episode. That's a big help!
Wednesday Aug 11, 2021
Wednesday Aug 11, 2021
A selection of readings from diarists who have written about London across the centuries and from travel writers who came to visit. Everything from eye witness accounts of the Fire of London and an assassination attempt on Queen Victoria, to those who hated the London fog and pickpockets and those who admired it as a city full of 'all that life has to offer'.
Useful link
https://www.visitlondon.com
Reading ideas
The Diary of John Evelyn
The Diary of Samuel Pepys
The Life of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell
The Blue Guide Literary Companion to London
City Lit London by Heather Reyes
London: An Illustrated Literary Companion by Rosemary Gray
A London Year by Travis Elborough and Nick Rennison
The Traveller's Year by Travis Elborough and Nick Rennison
City Breaks: all the history and culture you'd research for yourself if you had the time!
Check our website to find more episodes from our London series or to browse our back catalogue of other cities which are well worth visiting: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
We love to receive your comments and suggestions!
You can e mail us at citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
And if you like what you hear, please do post comments or a review wherever you downloaded this episode. It helps others to find us.
Wednesday Aug 04, 2021
Wednesday Aug 04, 2021
We bring you another selection of City Break Ideas: Boston, USA on the 4th July; art and bubbling mud pools in Reykjavik; ruin bars and Turkish bathing in Budapest; a tour of New York's Grand Central Station; and what to eat at Eggslut in LA. Plus loads more ideas on each of those cities. Obviously. Also, Stolpersteine, an art and holocaust memorial project found in many European countries which everyone should know more about.
Useful links
our website: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
to find us on twitter: @citybreakscast
to e-mail us: citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
This week's guest websites
https://retiredandtravelling.com
Wednesday Jul 28, 2021
Wednesday Jul 28, 2021
We cover every kind of London shopping experience, popping into some globally recognised department stores, including Selfridges on its opening day in 1909, dropping by foodie havens, the best areas for a little vintage shopping and the cream of London's bookshops. We also call into London's oldest shopping arcade, first opened in the 14th century, as well as one referred to as 'the newest kid on the block.'
Useful links
https://www.foyles.co.uk
https://www.hatchards.co.uk
https://www.londonreviewbookshop.co.uk
https://www.stanfords.co.uk
http://www.visitbricklane.org
http://www.portobelloroad.co.uk/the-market
https://www.leadenhallmarket.co.uk
https://www.camdenmarket.com
https://boroughmarket.org.uk
https://www.burlingtonarcade.com
https://www.theroyalexchange.co.uk
https://www.coaldropsyard.com
https://www.visitlondon.com
City Breaks: all the history and culture you'd research for yourself if you had the time!
Check our website to find more episodes from our London series or to browse our back catalogue of other cities which are well worth visiting: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
We love to receive your comments and suggestions!
You can e mail us at citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
And if you like what you hear, please do post comments or a review wherever you downloaded this episode. It helps others to find us.
Wednesday Jul 21, 2021
Wednesday Jul 21, 2021
Windsor: a thousand years of English history. We discuss everything from Edward III's Order of the Garter to Edward VII's new bathrooms, via the purchase of 40 Canalettos by George III and Christmas at Windsor for Victoria, Albert and their children. We visit the royal tombs in the chapel, take an idyllic boat trip up the Thames and pop over the bridge to Eton, home of England's very poshest school.
Useful links
https://www.rct.uk/visit/windsor-castle
https://www.frenchbrothers.co.uk (boat trips)
http://johnlogiemotorboats.com (boats for hire)
https://collections.etoncollege.com/museums/museum-of-eton-life
City Breaks: all the history and culture you'd research for yourself if you had the time!
Check our website to find more episodes from our London series or to browse our back catalogue of other cities which are well worth visiting: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
We love to receive your comments and suggestions!
You can e mail us at citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
And if you like what you hear, please do post comments or a review wherever you downloaded this episode. It helps others to find us.
Wednesday Jul 14, 2021
Wednesday Jul 14, 2021
A trip a little way down the Thames for a wander round two of London's classiest areas. Firstly, Kew, with its world-famous botanic gardens and, tucked inside, London's smallest royal palace, namely Kew Palace. Then to Richmond, one-time site of the Palace of Richmond and home today to the capital's largest royal park. History, boating, croquet, it's all here.
Useful links
https://www.hrp.org.uk/kew-palace
https://www.museumofrichmond.com
https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/richmond-park
City Breaks: all the history and culture you'd research for yourself if only you had the time!
Check our website to find more episodes from our London series or to browse our back catalogue of other cities which are well worth visiting: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
We love to receive your comments and suggestions!
You can e mail us at citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
And if you like what you hear, please do post comments or a review wherever you downloaded this episode. It helps others to find us.
Wednesday Jul 07, 2021
Wednesday Jul 07, 2021
Five travel bloggers, four continents, three blogs with intriguing names, this episode offers a goodie-bag of city break ideas, plus the chance to meet an eclectic mix of people including Einstein and Ho Chi Minh. All three blogs take a seize-the-day attitude to travel, summed up by one in Latin - 'Carpe diem' - and translated into English by another: 'Eat the cake, buy the shoes, take the trip'. Inspiration for all!
Useful links
our website: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
to find us on twitter: @citybreakscast
to e-mail us: citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
This week's guest websites
https://caffeinatedexcursions.com
Wednesday Jun 30, 2021
Wednesday Jun 30, 2021
Hear about the great Tudor feasts held at Hampton Court Palace, plus tales of Henry VIII, his various wives, his courtiers and his great friend - and rival - Thomas Wolsey. There are also stories from later eras at the palace, when William and Mary and the feuding Georgian monarchs lived there, plus ideas on what to look out for if you go to visit.
Useful links
https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace
City Breaks: all the history and culture you'd research for yourself if only you had the time!
Check our website to find more episodes from our London series or to browse our back catalogue of other cities which are well worth visiting: https://www.citybreakspodcast.co.uk
We love to receive your comments and suggestions!
You can e mail us at citybreaks@citybreakspodcast.co.uk
And if you like what you hear, please do post comments or a review wherever you downloaded this episode. It helps others to find us.