If you book a stay at selected four or five star hotel, on the Show and Stay website, until 31 July 2008 you'll receive free tickets for a top West End show. This could save you as much as £110 for two guests as tickets are for stalls or dress circle seats. Prices start at £70.50 per person based on two guest sharing a room at the four star Millennium Bailey's Hotel. You must book by 24 July 2008. Shows such as We Will Rock You, Grease, Chicago and Blood Brothers. However the offer is only valid for evening shows from Monday to Friday.

I did a quick search on a couple of dates and the cheapest hotel which came up with the free tickets offers was £93.50 per person for a stay at the Holiday Inn at Regents Park, so a total of £187 for room, breakfast and theatre tickets. I found a double room on the advance purchase rate including breakfast for £151 at the Regents Park on the Holiday Inn site.. This would come to a total of £261 for room, breakfast and tickets, assuming that you had to pay the full price of £110 for the theatre tickets. Therefore it does look like the free tickets offer is still a good deal if you want to stay in a 4 - 5 star hotel.

My advice is to always do some research and compare prices between a theatre package and purchasing the element separately.

Isango ,which features a host of travel experiences all over the world. have £500 in holiday credit up for grabs. All you need to do is submit your description of a "perfect holiday". Your entry should be about where you would go, what you would do and who'd be your travel companion(s), with a maximum of 200 words, to be in by 27 July 2008.

So get on your creative thinking caps and get writing. Now I think that you'll have to come up with something original, amusing and even zany to stand a chance of winning. I'm thinking of entering but I'm not sure I can come up with anything exciting or original enough. For me a big part of being on holiday is being away from the computer and spending time with my husband which is hardly earth shattering material.

Paul McCartney is to be the star attraction at a free concert to be held on the 20 July 2008 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the city of Quebec. The concert will also feature local music and classical music. I wonder how much McCartney is being paid for his bill topping appearance but it's great news for fans that the concert in free?


© David Paul Ohmer

The concert will take place in the Plains of Abraham park, the historic city park which was the site of battles between the British and the French in the 18th century. The park celebrated its 100th birthday earlier this year.

Personally I think that Quebec should have a Canadian singer topping the bill, maybe Bryan Adams or Celine Dion (I can't think of any other Canadian starts) but I don't think that any Canadian stars have quite the pull of McCartney.

I was rather intrigued when I spotted a press release about gourmet hiking with a view at the Solis Cambiran Hotel & Spa in Adelboden, Switzerland. Gourmet hiking seemed a bit of contradiction in terms and I had visions of a chef slaving over their camping stove to reward the hungry hikers when they reached the mountain top.


© allspice1

However it would appear that the gourmet applies to the picnic that you're given to keep up your strength and spirits during the hike. The picnic contains items such as regional cheese, salami, bread, fruit and a small bottle of schnapps. Unfortunately you have to carry your gourmet picnic in your backpack (unless you can find a mule for hire).

The Gourmet Hiking Package costs 990 Swiss Francs, (around £500) based on two sharing or 770 Swiss Francs based on a single room and includes two nights in a deluxe room with mountain view, two breakfasts, dinner on one night, parking, use of leisure facilities and your "opulently" filled backpack.

The US Scenic Byways programme is an initiative funded by the Department of Transport to preserve and promote routes which are deemed to be worthy of recognition as exemplifying the diversity of the natural and man made landscapes throughout the US.


Wolfgang Staudt

Their website is packed with information about the 126 scenic routes, there are maps, photos, podcasts, news and information about events such s the Small Towns Festivals taking place along the routes. There is also an interactive element to the site where you can submit your trail stories and photos.

I think that following a Scenic Byway would be a great way to see America and I wish I'd the time and money to traverse the country along the byways. Have you followed any of the byways?

You can take a two day mini cruise from Harwich to Esbjerg in Denmark for only £79 a person on selected departure dates during July and August 2008. This price covers your accommodation in an ensuite cabin. You have to pay separately for any meals which cost 14 euro for a breakfast buffet and 31 euros for dinner, with a 15% discount if you book your meals in advance.


© MysteryBee

You'll have an afternoon on terra firma to explore the lovely city of Esbjerg. It takes around 15 minutes to walk into the city from the port. You could visit the Water Tower, the Amber Museum or some of the historic churches.