10 bargain festive hotel stays

Hotels charge a fortune for Christmas and New Year - so slip in between them for a Twixmas bargain. We show you how

The top 10 wacky festive events

The co-author of Wacky Nation picks his ten favourite madcap events in Britain and beyond

The Coaster: windsurfing at Poole

The harbour is an excellent place for novices and experts

The 20 best new year party places to stay

Spend new year holed up in a castle, cottage or riverboat in the UK or hire a large property to stay further afield

The UK and Ireland's 25 best Christmas events

There’s skating, carols, mulled wine and sprinting Santas in Vincent Crump’s advent calendar of festivities

Lime Wood: the new English country house

It's a £30m gamble in the New Forest, a country property with a name-dropping team and packed with antiques

Out there: what’s on this weekend and beyond

From top cats to tap-dancing, here are some of the nation’s best events over the weekend and coming days

Great grasses for every garden

Don’t write off ornamental grasses as space fillers. These versatile plants can add depth, colour and movement

Great British Weekend: Grange-over-Sands

Grange has tearooms, grocery shops, butchers, bakers, ornamental gardens and jewellery and porcelain figurine shops

A rutting nuisance...

Stags are being put off rituals by army of nature lovers

10 classic UK walks for winter

Don’t hibernate. Go for a bracing stroll instead. Here are 10 of the best, with a historical twist and a pub at the end

Great British Weekend: Bridport, Dorset

Wide streets, handsome buildings and a busy arts and food scene among this town's eclectic charms

Best British days out: November 14-15

Ice skating, pop-up stalls, markets and more

Holy cow, what’s Chrissie’s beef?

The Pretenders’ lead singer is back on the milk run, explaining why dairy cattle should be at the centre of all our lives

The Coaster: on the Scillonian island of Bryher

Hell Bay Hotel is a vision of beauty

Where to celebrate Guy Fawkes and Remembrance Day

Our list of fireworks, Remembrance Day parades and Christmas crafts will get you in the celebratory mood

The six best UK foodie breaks

Six top British chefs reveal the best gastro getaways for sampling local produce, browsing farmers' markets and dining in style