Laura French

Travel Weekly • 26th January 2023

Float away: Iceland's Blue Lagoon

I’m in another world. I float serenely as bath-warm water laps my skin and the sound of crackling silica soothes my mind. Above the water, my face feels the nip of an icy wind, and I open my eyes to see a crisp cobalt sky peeping through a layer of steam...

Aspire Travel • 13th September 2022

Review: Conrad Maldives Rangali Island

Split across two islands connected by a bridge, this iconic resort sits in the South Ari Atoll and is accessed by a 30-minute seaplane flight from Malé...

National Geographic • 14th August 2022

On the Trail in Valencia

The World Design Capital for 2022 is brimming with striking art and architecture. Here’s how to admire the best of it on foot...

ABTA Magazine • 19th July 2022

White-knuckle winter sports in La Plagne and Les Menuires

“Well this is going to be a doddle,” I think to myself as I collect a bright orange plastic sledge from a ramshackle office in Les Menuires...

Love Exploring • 11th July 2022

48 hours in Denver

From contemporary art galleries to indie craft breweries, colourful music venues to culinary hot spots, the Mile High City has transformed itself over the past decade to become one of America’s trendiest hangouts...

Culture Trip • 24th March 2022

How to Spend Three Days in San Jose

The capital of Silicon Valley and California’s oldest Spanish settlement, San Jose combines culture-rich neighbourhoods and quirky museums with colourful markets and exceptional cuisine...

Travel Weekly • 10th January 2022

Why Oman is Arabia’s best-kept holiday secret

The sand feels soft, hot. I funnel it through my hands – fine specks of powder glide through like silk – and watch as the sun casts its ethereal tint over the surrounding dunes...

Travel Weekly • 3rd December 2021

Diving in the Galapagos

I’m floating, weightless, in a void of deep indigo, as fish glide past in glittering swarms like something from a cartoon film reel – first iridescent parrotfish shimmering pastel pink...

Travel Weekly • 15th July 2021

6 of the best best culinary experiences in Greece

Honed across more than 4,000 years and influenced by the likes of the Romans, Ottomans and Venetians, Greek gastronomy has long been revered...

Travel Weekly • 24th June 2021

A Kenya safari without the crowds

I’m in the heart of the wilderness. Around me lies mile upon mile of prickly, waist-high grass – gold in places, green in others – plus a pair of impalas standing slender...

Travel Weekly • 3rd June 2021

Exploring the Algarve in the Covid era

I’m having a staring contest with a fish – a huge, black, demonic thing curled up like a snake with an eyeball the size of my thumb and a mouth that looks like it’s about to snap shut...

Travel Weekly • 20th May 2021

Review: Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady

Everything on this ship is designed to wow, but the best thing for me was the entertainment. Intensely creative performances ranged from an immersive acrobatics show...

Travel Weekly • 6th May 2021

Walking the Camino

“The Camino is kind of like life – when you start it’s like you’re young. You don’t really know what it’s going to be like, who you’re going to meet or how to make your way. But then you get into a routine..."

Travel Weekly • 21st April 2021

5 of the best Shakespeare stays

The birthplace of the Bard needs little preface, and from catching a play by the Royal Shakespeare Company to exploring the timber-framed house where the playwright spent his childhood...

Adventure.com • 10th February 2021

After the pandemic, can we find better ways to climb Kilimanjaro?

The pandemic has decimated tourism across the world and Kilimanjaro has been no exception. But how can we avoid the over-crowded trails...

Suitcase Magazine • 21st August 2020

Review: Alila Jabal Akhdar, Oman

Alila means "surprise" in Sanksrit, and I'm nothing short of flabbergasted when I arrive at this intensely scenic spot clinging to the side of Jabal...

Travel Weekly • 20th August 2020

Postcard: Niyama Maldives

"Three, two, one – goodbye!” shouts the instructor as the parachute flairs, the rope jolts, and my feet trade in the safe, solid decking of the speedboat for the free, bracing feel of the air...

Travel Weekly • 12th March 2020

Interview: Sir Ranulph Fiennes

Named ‘the world’s greatest living explorer’ by the Guinness Book of Records, Sir Ranulph Fiennes has achieved the seemingly impossible...

Travel Weekly • 2nd March 2020

On expedition: the Galapagos

“We apologise for the delay,” announces the flight captain. “There’s an iguana on the runway.” Welcome to the Galápagos...

Travel Weekly • 30th January 2020

Exploring Colorado's festival scene

“This is one of my favourite places to perform,” says Veronica Swift, a 25-year-old jazz singer from New York who’s spent the past year touring...