A freelance travel writer since 1998, Christian has written or co-written some twenty guidebooks, two travel apps and a host of related articles for magazines, travel websites and UK newspapers. Clients have included Rough Guides, Dorling Kindersley, AOL, Tripadvisor, Ink Media and UK newspapers The Telegraph, The Independent and The Sunday Times. In North America he's covered much of Canada (particularly the Rockies) and Colorado; in Europe he has focused mainly on Germany (particularly Berlin), Austria, Scotland and Tenerife. Even when not working he likes explore, usually on one of his ten bicycles.
Canada’s capital Ottawa is as modest, organised, well-mannered, tidy and likeable as much of the electorate that its parliament represents. It’s also Canada’s most comfortably bilingual place (a fifth of its 1.2 million-strong metro area lives in Quebec) and one that’s completely at ease with being cosmopolitan, thanks to the presence of many immigrants and dozens of diplomatic missions. Add...
Eastern Ontario occupies a rough triangle between three cities: Montreal, Ottawa and Kingston. Montreal might be the region’s great hub, yet its location in Quebec makes it rather more distant. Instead Canada’s capital Ottawa is the region’s shining light, over Kingston, an attractive mid-sized university and military town on Lake Ontario, whose small downtown and adjacent waterfront area both have...
In the United States eight states together make up their Great Lakes region. North of the border this role is fulfilled by a single Canadian province: Ontario. Fresh water probably defines this giant province as much as anything. Not only does the provincial name come from the Huron word for “great lake,” it also contains 250,000 lesser ones. So it’s...
While the beauty of Canada’s Rockies generally rests in giant mountains cradling small lakes, just west, in British Columbia’s Kootenays, things are the opposite way around, yet the effects every bit as fantastic. Here large lakes dominate, making majestic mountains more just a backdrop that you contemplate as you wait for the next ferry. While it’s many of the same...
Travel around British Columbia (BC) and talk to locals and it seems like many more Canadians have relocated here from elsewhere in Canada than in any other place. It’s easy to see why. Between its immense mountains, idyllic lakes, lush forests and sandy beaches the province has just about every landscape you could desire – and all within fairly easy...
The Canadian Rockies are Canada’s greatest tourist attraction and subject to quite a bit of hype. So it’s a relief to find that its landscapes really are sublime: the iridescent emerald lakes are every bit as vivid as they are on postcards, while the craggy glaciated mountains do appear to soar overhead. The opportunities to explore this great outdoors are...
Edmonton, Canada’s northernmost big city, lies in a dull and thinly populated region with harsh winters, to which it has defiantly responded by building one of the world’s largest indoor malls for shelter and filling its summer with festivals. The two provide the best reasons to visit the city; the mall for its astounding proportions and sheer variety, the festivals...
Largely built from scratch on prairie grasses in the last sixty years, Calgary’s gleaming glass-and-steel downtown stands as a testament to the might of oil wealth. These impressive results are thoroughly corporate, conventional and safe, but the million-strong city loves to balance it with a wild annual celebration of its Wild West roots. The event, called the Calgary Stampede, and...
The first thing to know about Banff National Park is that it’s Canada’s leading tourist attraction, so be prepared for summer crowds. Make the effort to walk, bike or paddle away from the main hubs and you’ll readily find a rugged park with unforgettable landscapes, scenic trails and abundant wildlife. The park’s focal point is the cheerful commercial town of...
Alberta has a split personality. The Canadian Rockies are easily its greatest and most famous asset, yet only cover a western sliver of the province. About half of the rest is given over to “cowboy country” — ranches and farms in rolling foothills and on the great Canadian prairie of Southern Alberta. Meanwhile the northern half of the province lies...
Many of the 5 million annual visitors to Alberta have their “Now, this is Canada!” moment in its portion of the Canadian Rockies, and particularly in two giant National Parks: Banff and Jasper. These are are world-famous for those most quintessentially Canadian landscapes of all: pretty turquoise lakes cradled by gorgeous mountains whose craggy summits poke from a blanket of...
In case no Canadian has ever boasted to you, know that Canada is the second largest country on earth. And like Russia (the largest) the vast majority of the population is concentrated in one zone. In Canada this is along its southern border with the United States. Some ninety percent of Canadians live within 160km (100 miles) of the U.S.,...
In travel the greatest surprises and excitement generally lie in the unknown, so places that I knew little about or had the lowest expectations of were often the most remarkable.
A week long stay in a Tanzanian village stands out: the accommodation ended up being a solo stay in an old missionary house looked after by a maid who cooked amazing dishes over an open fire and seemed determined to seduce me. Better still, two locals who took me under their wings to show me around: a monkey colony; various waterfalls; the country’s oldest man (124!); a cow being slaughtered by hand; and the questionable delights of banana beer. They also helped stop me falling through a wooden bridge at night, which was every bit as unexpected as the rest!
Many underrated places are less than a day trip away. Often finding a new activity in them is enough for a fresh perspective and experience. In terms of countries, Germany’s the most underrated: travel is easy and there’s a little of everything there.
Bicycles travel at the right speed to fully appreciate everything: every breeze, hill and sight. You can to stop for photos at a moment’s notice; easily get off the beaten track; enjoy justifiably pouring over maps and earn a sense of achievement. And by the end of the day you’ll deserve a big meal and probably have a good night’s sleep waiting too.
It’s me that’s foreign.