LIVE: our fat bloke at fit camp in Devon

Daily updates from Mark Barber on his quest to shed stones at a boot camp on Exmoor

• Reclaim Your Self, Marrakesh

Grand Hotel Excelsior, Malta

A lacklustre stay at a big-scale hotel where the spa has a huge menu but crowded rooms

• The Fortina Spa in Malta

Cruise passengers say: ‘We’ll tip when we want to’

Regulars increasingly hostile to a system that is more mandatory than discretionary

• 'Cunard wanted £600 in tips'

Chalet Chef 2010: The final shortlist

We name the six chalet companies that will go through to a cook-off in mid-November

We discover Italy's secret ski resort

Is it impossible to find epic pistes without epic crowds? Yes — and it’s called Moena, says Sunday Times ski editor Sean Newsom

A Scottish monastery retreat

After renouncing the pleasures (and stresses) of modern life, a week of silent contemplation cured our man

• Top 5 exotic detox retreats

The dawn chorus at Glastonbury Tor

One of the world’s great wildlife shows is a starling migration that gets under way in no more exotic a place than Somerset

'Thrifty wants to charge me for storm damage'

The car rental firm wanted to keep Pete Sharpe's €1,000 deposit after hail stones left dents

Visit Berlin’s brave new world

Two decades after the fall of the Wall, Berlin’s streets are buzzing with confidence – but clues to a divided past are never far away

The world's oddest airport lounges

Lounges for dogs and children sound bizarre but not as odd as Finnair's new facility

SkyTeam, Alitalia open new terminal facilities

Alliance gets common check-in at Heathrow while Italian carrier gets a dedicated terminal in Rome

10 cosy British inns

Roaring fires, first-rate food, fine ales — here are some favourite pubs and inns for a countryside escape

A female going solo in Tajikistan

Intrepid reporter Caroline Eden negotiates the 'Roof of the World' – Tajikistan and the High Pamirs in Central Asia