Florence in five places

Throughout history, the “workings of money have rarely been understood”, says Stephen Pimentel. The Medici of Florence, the family that ruled the city and, later, Tuscany for most of the period from 1

It’s more than 350 years since Marrakech last held the title of Morocco’s capital, but in many ways it still feels like the heart of the country. International designers and bohemians have been drawn to the city for decades. And though Marrakech’s fortunes have ebbed and flowed over the past millennium, tourism is booming right now. It’s the mix of old and new that tends to captivate: art galleries sit alongside ancient tombs, while crumbling, labyrinthine alleys lead to gilded coffeehouses and chic garden cafes — all framed by the Atlas Mountains. Luxury hotels have sprung up on the city’s outskirts like glittering palaces, but there’s nothing quite like staying within the amber-hued walls of the 11th-century medina, where riads (traditional townhouses) offer memorable retreats.

The gargantuan, bewildering Louvre

Our Morocco expert delves into her adopted homeland’s cultural and religious heart

It’s always a thrill to explore new places, and like many others, we have previously visited the northern Italian hotspots in Lombardy, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna. This time, we wanted to dig a little

I had watched Richard III meet a bloody end at Bosworth, come face to face with a plague victim, stood in the shadow of a mighty trebuchet, and been put on trial for my life. And it was barely lunchti