Travel News

Memorabilia from the European Capital of Culture 2008's football heavyweights Liverpool Football Club and Everton FC is displayed at World Museum Liverpool this month to March 1st. It's Only a game? will show four Uefa cups and items from George Best, Franz Backenbauer, Bobby Moore and Petr Cech. Stay in one of the cheap hotels in Liverpool to find out more.

Uefa trophies

The Uefa European Championships and Uefa Champions Leagues trophies go on show with the Uefa Cup and Uefa Cup Winners' Cup at the World Museum Liverpool. However, four Uefa trophies will only be together on certain dates, please check the Only a Game? website for exact times.

President of Uefa Michel Platini and three times European Footballer of the Year, said: "I am delighted that Uefa is bringing this exciting exhibition to Liverpool during its Capital of Culture celebrations, a city that loves its football and plays such a big role in Europe's fascination with the game."

Liverpool Football Club

Sleep in a hotel by Anfield to experience the home of one of Merseyside's top clubs. According to the Stadium Guide, Anfield has a 45,400-seat capacity and record attendance of 61,905.

Of the exhibition, Liverpool player Steven Gerrard said: "There is no city in Europe where football means more than it does to the people of Liverpool. So I think it is great that we are having a European football exhibition as part of Liverpool 08."

Everton Football Club

Memorabilia from Everton FC's collection will also be on display in the exhibition, which traces European football back over 50 years. Europe started with Everton in 1962 against Dunfermline in the Inter-cities Fairs Cup.

Check the hotels by Everton football ground for a more extensive look at Goodison Park. The ground is a short ride from Queen Square Bus Station in Liverpool city centre.

Exhibition goals

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Ryanair expects Italy to be popular this autumn, starting six new routes from the United Kingdom each week. Visitors looking for the best hotels in Rome should look no further than the Hotel Mozart in the historic part of the city or the Gladiatori and from there go and visit the exhibitions this autumn.

Rome International Film Festival

The entire city welcomes big stars to the best hotels in Rome for the International Film Festival from October 22nd to 31st. The festival will take place all over the city, including the Auditorum Parco della Musica and the Cinema Village. During the event there will be a focus on Brazilian film and a tribute to Tibetan cinema and documentaries. Special screenings of English-language films include The Garden of Eden starring Mena Suvari and Guy Ritchie's RockNRolla with cast Gerard Butler and Thandie Newton.

Hosting Apollo of Mantua

Museums swap artefacts during Hosting exhibitions and this autumn's is no exception in the Arazzi Hall of the Capitolani Museum. The curators will display a marble status of Green Apollo of Mantua, which dates back to between 117 and 138 BC, as part of an exchange with another museum, until January 6th 2009. Apparently it is such a popular statue there have been several copies made of it, but it was first created in bronze.

Gionvanni Bellini artwork

Feelings and nature are two elements world famous Italian painter Gionvanni Bellini liked to draw most in the second half of the 15th century. More than 60 of his paintings are coming to Scuderie del Quirinale in Rome from galleries all over the world, which make up three-quarters of his collection. The artist was the first to mix light with vision. His altarpiece the Baptism of Christ will be shown for the first time. The exhibition finishes on January 11th.

Ancient cities of Lazio

This exhibition e ... read more

Amsterdam is a mecca for first and second-hand clothes. But do not just jump at the first area you see, some precision planning could have you staying in a shopping mall hotel, cycling round the sites, visiting a huge outdoor market and going into the best second-hand shops, and the rest.

Fill your breaks in canal side coffee shops by the quaint shopping area around Nine Streets, grab a handful of bulbs to take home at the end of a kilometre-long road of shops Nieuwedijk-Kalverstraat, which is open on Sundays and buy 50s bric-a-brac chic in some of the city's best-loved stores.

Stay in a shopping centre

For serious shop-a-holics this Amsterdam hotel is in a shopping mall and would be a perfect place to stay. You do not need to leave the 301-room complex at Hotel Okura to browse jewellery, souvenirs, leather and chocolate in the ground-floor gallery. There is also a health centre, so guests can pamper themselves in five-star style as well as eat the Japanese food on offer in one of the two restaurants.

Location, location, location

De Negen Straatjes or Nine Streets shopping centre is a great place to go purchasing because it is in the central canal ring, making the experience more picturesque for that coffee break. De Jordaan is recommended for second-hand wear and antiques while Dam Square has a range of boutiques. Nieuwedijk-Kalverstraat by Central Station is a great kilometre stretch for clothes, finishing in a burst of colour with the Kalverstraat flower market on the Muntplein. You can buy Netherlands tulips here, which are a great gift to take home as bulbs.

Cycle round

Stay at the Bicycle Hotel, which rents bikes for a small charge. Located in multicultural De Pijp, it is one of the cheap hotels in Amsterdam, and there's plenty of world food around the corner. The staff will provide you maps and tips of the best places to shop and visit.

Best outdoor market

The be ... read more

A survey of exhibitors at a recent travel trade show in the UK suggests there has not been any sign of a slowdown in holidaymakers' trips. Despite the economic crisis that has seen lows in sterling and the euro over recent months, half of polled travel companies said there had been no change in bookings

However, as households across the world feel the pinch from rising food, energy and petrol prices, commentators recommend people take budget breaks in eastern Europe to make the most of their money, outside the Eurozone.

Sofia

More Easyjet flights to Sofia are set to come online this December with additional planes from budget company Wizzair too. Among the cheap hotels in Sofia is the centrally located Art Hostel, situated by the blossoming nightlife and bar scene. Guests can choose to share rooms or stay in private rooms or apartments.

Sofia is one of the most hotly tipped destinations in Europe for price. The director of the Institute of Social Trade and Union Research in Bulgaria Lyuben Tomev told the Sofia Echo, the cost of living in 2008 would be about 485 Leva (£192) per month for a single person living alone. The Bulgarian city walls date back to the seventh century BC. It's not far from great mountain ranges to walk and the beaches on the Black Sea coast.

Ankara

Pay £30 a night for the Anittepe 2000 Hotel for all the trimmings. There is a rooftop terrace for visitors to sit back and unwind accompanied by a restaurant that serves traditional Turkish cuisine. The hotel includes conference and meeting room for business travellers and it is centrally located by the rest of the cheap hotels in Ankara.

The old part of the city around Ankara Castle has an Aladdin Mosque which hosts art and wood craft. This area has seen a lot of rejuvenation over the years, with many old Turkish houses being restored ne ... read more

Staying in the best hotels in Paris just got better as a Saudi-based family moved a step closer to investing €141 million (£111 million) in tourism in the city. The Musallam family has held the leasehold to majestic art deco Hotel Prince de Galles in Paris for the last 16 years and now plans to buy the property.

The deal would put Paris on the map for high-end tourism despite the turbulent economic market, said Ed Blum for the company arranging the financing, Molinaro Koger.

Hotel Prince de Galles

Hotel Prince de Galles is one of the best hotels in Paris. It is currently operated as luxury brand by Starwood Hotels with high ceilings, a traditional courtyard and an impressive Art Deco façade. Built in the 1928, the 138-room hotel still retains some of its original charm. It boasts marble floors and gold leaf chandelier features, at least at present.

Purchaser Sheik Ibrahim Mussallam explained: "We are planning to spend a further €80 million on the refurbishment of the property to ensure that the Hotel Prince de Galles continues to be one of Paris' most desirable hotels."

Where can I find it?

It is central to several of the most popular attractions in Paris on the Champs Elysees – one kilometre away from the Eiffel Tower. It is €12 to get to the top. Gustave Eiffel's iconic structure opened a champagne bar on the third floor this summer, so, you can enjoy the view in style within walking distance from your hotel.

A mere 1.6 km away from the Hotel Prince de Galles is the impressionist attraction Marmottan Monet Museum, which boasts housing the largest collection of Monet's work, including iconic paintings The Water Lilies, The Japanese Bridge and The Weeping Willow.

For guests who like more than a stroll, great attraction around Montematre a ... read more