01 / Escape
Somewhere quieter than here
Islands, secluded coasts and places far from the crowds.
Escape is the oldest reason to travel and still the best one. Not a checklist, not a schedule you have to keep, just a place where the noise drops away and the days get their shape back.
The guides in this section lean towards islands, long empty beaches and coastal towns that never quite made it onto the main tourist route. Some are famous places approached from a quieter angle, others are simply harder to reach, which is usually why they stay calm.
Guides
7 ways to escape
Escape
The Quiet Side of Madeira
Funchal gets the visitors. The north coast gets the weather, the waterfalls and the silence.
Read the guide →
Escape
How to Escape to the Azores
Nine green islands in the middle of the Atlantic, where the weather changes every hour and nobody minds.
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Escape
Formentera and the Art of Slow Island Days
The smallest Balearic has no airport, one road and water the colour of a swimming pool.
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Escape
The Outer Hebrides, When You Need Space
White beaches, empty machair and a light that photographers travel a long way to stand in.
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Escape
Zanzibar Beyond the Beach Crowds
Stone Town, spice farms and the east coast villages where the tide still runs the day.
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Escape
An Off Season Escape to the Algarve
Between October and April the coast empties, the cliffs stay gold and the walking is superb.
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Escape
Koh Lanta for People Who Do Not Like Resorts
A long, low island in the Andaman Sea that never quite got around to becoming Phuket.
Read the guide →
Your next escape starts somewhere.
Tell us the kind of getting away you have in mind and we will point you at the places, the season and the reading to start with.
Plan Your Escape →