Revival is a bit of a theme this weekend, with the cities of Beirut and Istanbul marked out for special treatment as they recover from past tribulations and once again embrace tourism. There’s also a new category in the form of Cheat Sheets – look here for good overviews on Turkey and Munich. The other categories are City, Escape, and Outdoor/Adventure, the latter of  which contains two articles on the joys of snowshoeing…perhaps it’s the next big thing?!

CITY

• Jamil Anderlini of the FT thought Christchurch was nothing more than ‘a necessary pit-stop on journeys into other parts of the South Island’s breathtaking scenery’ but has his mind changed by the venerable Otahuna Lodge, The legacy of a noble New Zealander, the New Zealander in question being Sir Heaton Rhodes: “From the sumptuous bathrobes to the chocolate brownies that magically appeared in the cookie jar by our bed every time we left our room, the service and surroundings were flawless. The native timber in the interior of the house exuded antiquity and grandeur and I found myself looking around for signs of secret passages or false bookshelves.”
• Utrecht is A Dutch Town That Nurtures Its Quirks according to Joel Weikgenant of the NY Times, who urges us to look beyond the half-day visit and explore the new creative and musical ventures that are springing up around the city: “the Oudegracht has kept a quirky charm. The balcony at Kafe Belgie, for example, is one of the best places in the city to watch the parade of bikers and strollers while sipping an Orval Trappist ale. Down the block, Tabou Haar en Jazz, a combination hair salon and record store, offers an extensive collection of Dutch jazz artists.”
• The Independents’ David Ryan thinks you should Try a villa in the land of the mighty Minoans – where he learns all about Crete’s history, spanning from Minoan civilisation and the legends of Icarus, Daedalus and the Minotaur, to key battles during the Second World War. Of course, you could do as his wife does and just go for the sun, surf and sand…

ESCAPE

• Andrew Jefford at the FT enjoys The watery pleasures of Perth despite battling for space with everybody else – “We took our two little boys down to Cottesloe beach at 6am, thinking it would be empty. In fact, we got a dazzling demonstration of human interaction with seawater. Some strode the shallows purposefully; others stood to paddle boards across the waves like insects scuttling over a pond.”
• Jane Knight of the Times visits four of the most child friendly islands in The Maldives for families, including one resort which has beauty treatments specifically geared at children: “later, in the Ice Cream Spa, which is attached to the recently added kids club, my son is given the choice of his first beauty treatment. Will it be a massage like mummy or a facial? He settles on a tattoo and leaves proudly admiring the gecko and dragon on his arms. “
• The Guardian’s Gemma Bowes admires the simplicity of Feynan Lodge community project, Jordan, an electricity and alcohol-free vegetarian eco-lodge in the middle of the Wadi desert – “The sight of the lodge on our return from watching the sun set was jaw-dropping. Illuminated only by stars and flickering flames, it looked as impenetrable as the crusader forts we had visited all over Jordan, with similar slit windows and a heavy wooden door, decorated with dozens of ornate knockers.” Despite the lack of mod-cons Bowes finds plenty to do, visiting Roman ruins, and exploring the local landscape.
• Imogen Carter from the Guardian goes luxury Camping in Rajasthan to experience the desert, Maharajah style: “Each standard suite in the camp is pitched on a base of golden Jaisalmer stone covering more than 1,000sq ft, and features a sitting room, a bed the size of a judo mat and a bathroom with a plumbed toilet, twin sinks and shower…Four suites also have private sunken pools, while the Royal Suite comes with its own butler.”

OUTDOORS/ADVENTURE

• The Times’ Paul Croughton goes on a jungle adventure through the forests of Panama, describing it as “a wonderland. Whatever you like to do, you can do it there: slice through white-water on a raft, fly through trees on a zip wire, hike through jungle, snorkel with sharks, dive with whales, climb the volcano or cycle up and down everything else.” Panama: paradise is open for business
• The Telegraph’s Michael Jacobs and partner undertake a fortnight’s walk along El Cid’s road to paradise, a new tourist route of ‘immense and haunting beauty’ being promoted by the Spanish tourist board. Amusingly they find themselves the unwitting focus of much media attention due to the relative rarity of tourists walking this route: “We were barely prepared for the number of journalists there to greet us, all of whom were anxious to know why two British writers had been drawn to the idea of walking the Camino del Cid. Apparently the tourists undertaking the route were still quite few in number and largely limited to cyclists and motorists. Soon we were flattered into thinking of ourselves as engaged on a mission to revive some of the more forgotten corners of Spain. “
• “With that she pointed herself off the side of the path, crouched down with her poles tight behind and fell off the mountain. In 10 seconds she slid down the piste that we’d spent 20 minutes winding our way up. Louise, a quiet woman, was next. She yelped the whole way down. When she came to a thud at the end of the slide, she lay back, legs outstretched and laughed hysterically.” The Guardian’s Tamsin Omond enjoys goes Snowshoeing in the French Alps, extolling the environmental and aesthetic advantages of snowshoeing over traditional winter sport acitivities.
• The New York Times’ Greg Breining finds that winter snowshoeing amongst the trails and wilderness of Minnesota is the perfect way to go Trekking With Wolves as well as a great escape for those looking to beat the summer crowds of campers and canoeists – “The beauty of snowshoeing is you can do it just about anywhere – over lake and stream, through the woods, on a trail or off…In summer, some quarter of a million canoe campers manage to disappear into the wilderness, paddling down the craggy lakes, carrying canoe and pack down portage trails.”
• Simon Unwin of The Independent takes a trip to Norway for a glimpse of a Green sky at night. Travelling to northernmost Norway, exploring Sámi culture along the way, Unwin finally gets to see the magic of the Aurora: “To the north and then, suddenly, to the west, shape-shifting drapes of jade luminescence shimmer against the indigo sky as solar winds collide with the Earth’s magnetic field. It’s a sobering dance of light that is as unpredictable as it is breathtaking. “
• Mike Unwin goes on a wildlife tour around the Amazon rainforest and Pantanal wetlands in Brazil in a quest to spot the South American big 5 – jaguar, tapir, maned wolf, giant anteater and giant river otter – “ours would have been a memorable wildlife trip even had none of the holy quinity deigned to show up. Whatever your agenda, if it’s simply a ruse to explore Brazil’s extraordinary wildlife riches, you won’t be disappointed. ” Spot Luck: Great wildlife encounters in Brazil

REVIVAL

• Yigal Schleiffer from the NY Times enjoys the cultural resurgence of Istanbul, with its newly opened Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts and the Santral Istanbul, another recent addition on the arts landscape – looks like it’s time for a visit to 2010’s European Capital of Culture. A Revival in Istanbul
• Having lived in Beirut during the war, Richard Beeston from The Times revisits the Lebanese capital city and marvels at The transformation of Beirut – “Where snipers previously took up positions, it is now possible to take a dip in the rooftop pool or sip a Martini in the panoramic Bar ThreeSixty. The basement is no longer somewhere to take cover from shells — it houses the spa.”

CHEAT SHEET

• The Telegraph’s Robin Gauldie takes us on a tour through Turkey holidays: an insider’s guide. Covering its ‘Lost Cities’ as well as the more popular resorts of Bodrum and Kusadasi, this will tell you all you need to know to start planning for that Turkish trip.
• Follow Hugh Ryan’s recommendations in the New York Times about how best to spend 36 Hours in Vieques, the small island off Puerto Rico – amongst the suggestions includes a military base that has been converted to a club and a trip to the bioluminescent bay on the Caribbean side of the island.
• Kate Graham takes us through recent restaurant and museum openings, revealing which neighbourhoods are on the up and up, and which the best places to visit on a visit to Munich as part of the Independent’s City Slicker series. This is City slicker: Munich

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