Recently Insider has been attending the Fete de Citron in Menton and the Nice Carneval both at the Cote D´Azur as well as various Carnival processions in Switzerland amongst them the famous Basler Morgenstreich.. There were coulourful bands, amazing artists, beautifully designed floats, masses of confetti and thousands of spectators. So why then is Carnival dead? The answer is very simple and has nothing to do with cultural sensitivities, religious connotations or concerns about safety in a world where too many joyfoul celebrations are cruelly cut short by attacks. Festivals and events like these live from the interaction between the spectator and the performer - the clapping and cheering, the back and forth of confetti throwing, the looks of wonder and excitement at the colours and sounds and the creativity of the display. There has to be eye contact, smiling and jocular exchanges to show the crowds appreciation. Instead there is this....

Tomorrow I will publish my video on the Berner Oberland containing a sumptious autumn recipe of onion tart. The region contains some of the most iconic mountains in the Alps (Eiger - Mönch - Jungfrau) as well as the Aletsch glacier, famous waterfalls, deep lakes & caves, gorges and the most photographed village of them all - Lauterbach. It was shot just after the corona crisis when it was possible again to travel within the country. There were no foreign tourists and few Swiss ones at that. As you can see, no crowds, no queues, and above all no disrespectful visitors / influencers and no need for mountain rescue to pick off scantily clad hikers from the mountain paths. It was a delight to be out and about and enjoy the peacefulness of these majestic mountains. Sure, the shops on the Jungfraujoch selling Swiss watches, Swiss chocolate and Swiss army knives were still there but there was no throng of people jostling for these luxury goods whilst ignoring the breathtaking nature around them.

If you are interested in finding better, more sustainable ways to travel, ways that do not stress the host nor the traveller you can now support our new research project on Go Fund Me here https://gofund.me/e2f9b92d The aim is to investigate if it is possible to travel in a more sustainable way even to destinations where visitors would normally only fly to. Is it realistic for visitors to slow down and what are the benefits of this type of travel to both the host and the visitor. The first project will take Nell to the North of Denmark and on to the Faroer. From there she will travel to Iceland and explore this fascinating place to see how the impact of tourism could be managed better. How can slow travel support mental health and alleviate environmental concerns? Frequent blogs, contributions to travel publications and later on new books invite you to get engaged in this project. We are also happy to hear from any sponsors with an interest in this matter.

Recently I took a flight to Riga. It was my first fast travel experience in a while. Here is what happened:

In 2022 I wrote my first travel guide in praise of small places in German. I wanted to show alternatives to days out in crowded places like Venice, Paris, Barcelona and other hotspots and encourage people to explore hidden gems both in their home and their holiday region.I was looking for a professional publisher because I wanted a professional look for my product and also access to distribution network that was not solely online. In addition, I was also looking for advice and guidance from their professional editing staff. Alas - I was told that there simply was no market for a travel guide for small destinations, people would simply ignore it. Really? Maybe I was simply 2 years ahead of time as trying to divert visitors to lesser known places seems to be one of the solutions the authorities of overcrowded destinations are looking to to alleviate the stress and negative affects of mass tourism.

Click on any video, blog or account offering travel tips, insights and stories and immediately you will be confronted with a talking head barging their way through crowds without as much as Scusi whilst cheerily pointing out their unique travel experience made possible by their multiple sponsors. The camera barely leaves their face to cursorily pan over some yachts bobbing in a marina or a historic town square packed with people taking selfies whilst scaling fountains and statues to get the best shot. And that is the best case scenario. At worst the amazing places this earth has to offer in all their natural beauty are almost wholly obscured by the Barbie Bottoms.These wriggle around in the centre of the photo showing off some skimpy designer creation. Who in their right mind wants to see this person you don´t even know spoil an impression of the place they are visiting?

This year there have been protests in many popular holiday destinations by locals being fed up to their back teeth by over-tourism. They can´t find affordable places to live, shops they need close in favour of yet more boozers or nightclubs, rental cars clog up the roads and increasing damage is done to property and nature as well as resources being depleted and wasted. One of these places is Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Island off the coast of Africa.

It`s a well-known secret that Switzerland is an expensive place to live and to visit . As someone who does both and is time-rich and money-poor it is very tough to explore all the spectacular sights this small country has to offer. A trip up the mountain by cable-car, a sunset turn on the lake by boat, an ordinary meal with a very small glass of wine or even visiting a museum could see you having spent your weekly income. And no - not all Swiss people are rich. In fact, Pro Familia and Pax revealed in March 2024 that almost half of all Swiss families are unable to save anything off their income for unexpected expenses.