A new year brings fresh travel opportunities. Top of my list is the benign consequence of engineering work on the West Coast Main Line. The intercity rail link between London and Glasgow has slammed shut in Cumbria to enable Network Rail to replace an ageing bridge over the M6 motorway. So big and complex is the operation that the line will not reopen until 15 January. For the next two weekends, starting at 8pm tonight, the M6 itself will close to motorists (reopening at 5am on Monday, with the same pattern of closure from 9 to 12 January). How, you may wonder, will those rail-replacement buses get through?The happy new year news is that Avanti West Coast is providing a glorious workaround: a scenic train diversion along England's most beautiful line, the Settle-Carlisle Railway. Passengers on today's northbound 9.18am from Crewe will view the usual lineside scenery as far north as Wigan. But shortly after entering Lancashire, the express eases eastward and heads for the hills. The line shadows the River Ribble through Blackburn and Clitheroe, then clambers into North Yorkshire to reach the magnificent Ribblehead Viaduct. Twenty-four stone arches hoist the railway above a highland wilderness: nature and humanity combining to create beauty from mobility. The train climbs further over the moorland to England's highest railway station, Dent. It's all downhill from here to Carlisle, trundling beside the gardens of the Eden Valley.
"It will certainly be a different and memorable view out of the window for customers who choose to travel with us," Avanti West Coast managing director Andy Mellors told me. "It's the first time this century we've seen a diversion of this nature. This has been a huge collaborative effort across operators, not just Avanti West Coast, working closely with Network Rail to do the right thing for our customers. A joined-up railway." Want to try it? A ticket for next Friday morning's Crewe to Carlisle run is currently just £20.50 – bestowing a priceless reminder of the joy of train travel.
Eurostar chaos: 25,000 passengers see their New Year journeys cancelled
MH370 search: Hunt resumes for the Malaysia Airlines jet lost in 2014 Passengers hurt: Ryanair flight from Birmingham to Tenerife hits turbulence Safety review: How airlines fared in 2025 |
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Pretty intercity: Network Rail photo of an Avanti West Coast express crossing the Ribblehead Viaduct in North Yorkshire |
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| From cottages to cruise cabins, the team has shared the accommodation that wowed them last year. Read more. |
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| As one of America's oldest cities, Philly is worth a trip – especially if you follow your tastebuds. Read more. |
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| Far from the big resorts, there are stretches of sand where you can kick back away from the crowds. Read more. |
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Essential listening: Independent travel podcasts |
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| Price hikes are popping up all over the place this month. If you happen to be reading this in a hotel room in the Netherlands, you may already know that the rate of VAT on rooms increased literally overnight – making rooms 11 per cent more expensive. You can't dodge the tax rise by staying in an Airbnb, either; the Dutch government specifies it also applies to "accommodation rented through platforms", as well as backpacker hostels. To swerve the increase: camp your way around Holland. Staying under canvas remains the same price. Pitching a tent in one of the top US national parks will prove far more expensive for British travellers this year. In Yosemite, the basic camping fee of $10 per person per night remains the same, as does access for a car and its occupants of $35. But the park authorities say: "Non-residents (16 and over) must pay an additional $100 per person fee". The new surcharge applies to a further 10 of the big hitters in America's Great Outdoors, including the Everglades, Grand Canyon and Yellowstone. If you plan to visit several US national parks, you could buy the snappily titled America The Beautiful Non-Resident Annual Pass, price $250. Or just go to Canada instead. In Paris, admission to the Louvre is set to rise on 14 January for those of us who enjoy the status of "third-country nationals". A ticket jumps by 45 per cent to €32. The rate for EU citizens remains at €22 (or zero, for those aged under 26). But you can get in free between 6 and 9pm on the first Friday of every month except July and August, or all day on 14 July. Across in Germany, the Deutschlandticket for unlimited rail travel is nine per cent more expensive this year. Yet it remains the greatest transport bargain of any major European nation (Luxembourg goes one better with entirely free public transport). For just €63 (£55) per calendar month, or under £2 per day, you can roam anywhere in Germany on all but the fastest trains. Explore from the Baltic coast to the Black Forest; search out spectacular scenic railways; and visit great cities such as Cologne, Munich and Berlin. The ticket also covers unlimited local transport, including trams, buses or even ferries where they are part of the transport system, as in Hamburg. As with Interrail, there is no need to plan in advance – travel where your hopes or your heart lead you. |
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US National Parks: Would you pay the higher fees? |
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In today's newsletter, we're asking: Would you be willing to stump up the extra cash to access National Parks in the US? Or would you choose to give them a miss? Vote using the buttons above. The results from last week are in – and readers were split. While 36% of voters opted for Alicante, the majority chose Faro, suggesting Portugal's Algarve has the edge when it comes to where readers would rather head next summer. |
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Make the most of the Rail Sale |
The latest Rail Sale begins on Tuesday 6 January, offering some really cheap tickets such as Exeter to London Waterloo for £10 and Manchester to Blackpool for £3.50. The booking window is 6-12 January for journeys between 13 January and 25 March, but experience shows that many of the best bargains will sell out swiftly. Almost all of the fares in the sale are for Advance tickets, where you commit to a specific train and time. The saving is typically 50 per cent or more. While normally Advance fares increase in line with demand, the Rail Sale involves a set number of tickets at a fixed price; once they're gone, they're gone.
First class is available on some operators for a premium between 50 and 150 per cent (the latter particularly on LNER on the East Coast main line, which provides generous food and drink). Railcard discounts do not apply, but children aged 5-15 travel half-price. |
Drop-off fees surge at UK airports |
Passport? Tickets? Drop-off fee? Next week, London City ceases to be the only major UK airport not to charge motorists who drop off airline passengers outside the terminal. The Docklands airport will apply an £8 charge from Tuesday 6 January, "to encourage more travel to and from the airport via public and sustainable transport modes". On the same day Gatwick's drop-off fee rises from £7 to £10. The new fee represents a doubling in less than five years; the charge was £5 when first introduced in April 2021. Heathrow's fee went up by £1 on New Year's Day to £7. |
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Best-value business class airfares to Asia? |
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| We plan a three-week tour of east Asia starting in early November, taking in Cambodia, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Bangkok. The regional flights are as cheap as chips and I can book separately – it's just the longhaul section that I'm unsure about. We want business class from Heathrow (but I'll accept Gatwick at a push). What do you advise? |
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My advice is: wait a while, unless there are some outstanding deals in New Year flight sales. The reason: November is the best possible time in terms of low demand and therefore cheap tickets. In your position I would start looking in late August, which is typically when seat sales begin. I recognise, though, that my "relax, it will be fine" attitude does not suit everyone – and that at this time of year the idea of looking ahead to business-class comfort to Asia appeals. So structure your itinerary to make logical geographical sense: arriving in Hong Kong, departing from Bangkok, with Vietnam and Cambodia in between.
British Airways will happily sell you an "open-jaw" itinerary (out from Heathrow to Hong Kong, back from Bangkok to Gatwick). But that is currently looking at over £5,000 each in Club World. You could fly on excellent Turkish Airlines to and from Heathrow via Istanbul for less than half as much. Add in a stopover of at least 24 hours in beautiful Istanbul, and your air passenger duty (APD) liability falls from £253 per person to just £32. The saving will pay for a night or two in an excellent hotel in Turkey's biggest city. A good travel agent can arrange it all, and may also be able to add intra-Asian flights on classy airlines for no more than the budget carriers are charging. |
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"At The Independent, we've always believed journalism should do more than describe the world – it should try to improve it.
This Christmas, we're asking for your help again as we launch our new campaign with the charity Missing People – the SafeCall appeal.
Every year, more than 70,000 children in the UK are reported missing. The misery that follows – for the child, for the family, for the community – is often hidden. Too many of these young people have nowhere to turn when they need help most. SafeCall will change that. Our goal is to raise £165,000 to help Missing People launch this new, free service – designed with the input of young people themselves – offering round-the-clock support, advice and a route to safety."
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| Hit the slopes and save big with these Crystal Ski deals. Enjoy incredible savings on trips departing in the next six weeks to stunning destinations like Val Thorens, Grindelwald, Whistler and more. Various dates, durations and departures available. T&Cs apply. Learn more. |
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