
Travel, insight, images
Riveted by a friend’s tale of hearing Elton John’s Candle in the Wind '97 set to reggae in the back streets of Santiago de Cuba, and knowing Pope John Paul II had asked Fidel Castro to reintroduce Christmas Day as a public holiday, I left for the Caribbean.
I arrived in Havana a few days before Christmas 1998 with a Mum-made Christmas cake. Cuban customs insisted the cake went through X-ray, quizzed me about its cultural connotations, and gasped at its monster weight. I’ve been returning to Cuba ever since.
I write for The Telegraph, The Independent, The Guardian, BBC Travel and The Times. Magazine bylines include The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, Wanderlust, Condé Nast Traveller, Time Out, Travel&Leisure Asia and National Geographic Traveller.
I've penned guidebooks to Cuba, Guatemala, Morocco, Vietnam and Laos. My latest guide, the award-winning Havana Pocket Precincts, is published by Hardie Grant. I project managed and edited dozens of city and country guides while working for publishers Time Out, Michelin and Footprint.
My images have appeared in international magazines, newspapers, guides and illustrated books.
I've worked with US, Australian and British tour companies as an itinerary designer, fixer, guide and tour manager in Cuba bringing my 20 years' experience on the island to these roles.
I'm the Cuba expert for bespoke travel curator Essentialist. www.insidecuba.co is dedicated to Cuba stories, and to trip planning.
Cuba stories
Press features
- Cacique Magazine Life on the Isle of Youth
- StartUp Cuba Havana's hottest new stays
- Love Cuba Hidden gems to discover in Cuba
- Cacique Magazine Cuba's Curious Creatures
- Love Cuba Vegetarian and vegan friendly restaurants in Cuba
- Love Cuba 10 of the most beautiful areas in Cuba
- Love Cuba Top 10 things to do in Havana
- Solo Magazine In the studio with X Alfonso: Cuba's genre-pushing, grammy-winning musician
- Love Cuba The best bars in Havana
- Cacique Magazine Let there be Light Havana's vintage neon signs glow anew (pdf Cacique Havana neon)
- BBC Travel Isla de la Juventud - Cuba's remote nature paradise
- Bucketlisttravels.com Havana destination guide
- Love Cuba The best restaurants in Havana
- Flash Pack How 160 years of cocktail making is still shaking up the bar scene today
- Indy Travel Cuba travel guide: Everything you need to know before you go
- Weather2Travel Why Santa Clara is Cuba's capital of culture
- Cacique Magazine Cuba's Movers (pdf Cacique15 Cuba)
- Weather2Travel Sun, sea & sugar-soft sands: 5 of Cuba's very best beaches
- Wanderlust WanderSleeps 8 Distinctive Stays in Havana
- Startup Cuba Cuba's shark paradise The Gardens of the Queen wins top conservation award
- Startup Cuba Central Cuba travel itinerary
- Independent Painted snails, cocoa and vegan pioneers: Exploring Baracoa, the real old Cuba
- Telegraph Travel How to find the thrillingly authentic Cuba
- Culture Trip The Best Scuba Diving Spots in Cuba
- Times Travel Havana travel guide
- The Times The Best Hotels in Cuba
- Startup Cuba Did you know there's a Cuban birdwatching scene?
- JRNY Travel Magazine Exploring the wilds of eastern Cuba
- Time Out 30 of the coolest streets in the world (No.4 Calle San Isidro, Old Havana)
- Startup Cuba Havana's Napoleon Museum is arguably the finest outside of France
- Cacique Magazine Cuba Cool 21 Things to do in Cuba for 2021
- The Times Cuba Travel: the lowdown
- Startup Cuba Did you know that there was a Hershey, Cuba? Yes, that Hershey
- Telegraph Travel Cuba has reopened its capital in time for post-lockdown holidays – here's how to book
- Startup Cuba On the trail of Cuba's first rebel in the backlands of Baracoa
- Telegraph Travel Quarantine free Cuba confirms reopening of whole island - excluding Havana - to tourists
- Telegraph Travel No quarantine, no pre-flight tests – Cuba is your best bet for winter sun
- CubaSí Magazine Dreaming of Havana
- Cubanía Travel blog post Cycling the lush mountains & cigar country of Western Cuba
- Telegraph Travel Cuba’s post-Covid 19 tourism plans
- Cubanía Travel blog post Mi casa es tu casa (top B&Bs in Havana, Viñales & Trinidad)
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine Cuba in 2 weeks
- Prior Trinidad, Cuba Appears Frozen in Time. But Innovation Stirs Within
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine Hot-stuff Havana
- WestJet Magazine Sweet Stays Havana
- Telegraph The Secret neighbourhoods to discover in your favourite cities
- Telegraph How to discover the thrilling side of Havana that inspired Graham Greene
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine Total Caribbean Guide: Cuba
- Essentialist An Air of Havana
- Mail on Sunday Why visitors are discovering a new side to Cuba
- Telegraph Travel What’s new in Cuba for 2019-2020 panel
- Time Out 50 Coolest Neighbourhoods to Visit Right Now _ World’s Coolest Neighbourhoods No39 Havana
- Time Out What to do in Old Havana, Havana’s coolest neighbourhood
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine Paradise for Peanuts
- Guardian Travel Havana food tour – 20 of the best food tours from around the world
- Wanderlust E-biking through Cuba on Revolution anniversary
- BBC Travel Is Havana getting a makeover? Havana’s neon revival
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine Havana to Viñales in a classic car
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine STTM How to do Cuba pdf & syndicated in World Traveller Magazine
- Womankind Magazine Surviving the streets and a medical drama in Santiago de Cuba
- Mail on Sunday 48 Hours in Havana (MoS 48 Hours in Havana pdf)
- Telegraph Ultratravel Say happy birthday to Havana
- Telegraph Travel How to celebrate 500 years of Havana in 2019
- Times Travel 5 of the best ways to explore Cuba: Havana, Varadero and beyond
- Times Travel Why a cruise holiday is the best way to see Cuba
- Telegraph Travel Meet the Cuban photographers who captured Castro’s rebellion
- Guardian Travel 10 of the best places for dance & music in Cuba
- Telegraph Travel Cienfuegos cruise port guide
- Telegraph Travel Santiago de Cuba cruise port guide
- Condé Nast Traveller 10 best beaches in Cuba
- Telegraph Travel Havana cruise port guide
- Telegraph Travel Havana could see cruise arrivals triple as Cuba’s tourism boom continues
- Adventure.com Wild camping? E-biking? Here’s what to expect in post-Castro Cuba
- West Jet Magazine Sweet Stays – Kempinski Havana
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine Cuban designer Idania del Río talks Havana for My Hometown
- SilverKris Magazine From Cuba with Love (From Cuba with Love Silverkris 2018 pdf)
- Wanderlust Off the beaten tracks: Exploring Cuba by train (Cuba train journey Wanderlust pdf)
- Independent Travel 48 hours in Havana
- Weather2Travel See Havana in style: A classic car tour of Cuba’s capital
- Telegraph Travel Prices halved for holidays to Cuba as island feels impact of Trump and Irma
- Independent Travel hotel review Hotel Manzana Kempinski Havana review
- Wanderlust 25 Cuba Adventures (pdf Wanderlust_Cuba)
- Weather2Travel Get to know Varadero
- Telegraph Travel Exploring Gibara’s caverns, culinary scene, and cinema
- Guardian Travel Taking the Hershey train along Cuba’s north coast
- Telegraph Travel Flight confusion for Brits on direct US-Cuba flights
- Amexessentials.com 24 Hours in Havana guide
- Telegraph Travel Why Cuba began to change long before Castro died
- Telegraph Travel Following in the footsteps of Fidel Castro: 10 must visit sights in Cuba)
- Sunday Times Travel Magazine Connoisseurs’ Cuba (Dec 2016)
- Millennia Magazine feature Havana city guide (pdf: havana-rising-millenia-magazine)
- Skift news Cuba’s latest hotel & golf developments
- Skift news Cuba’s accommodation crisis
- Telegraph Travel Santiago de Cuba and its carnival (Santiago de Cuba pdf)
- Guardian Travel Off-the-beaten-track B&Bs and farmstays in Cuba
- Guardian Travel Travel advice for independent travellers in Cuba
- The Holiday Place Burial of Pachencho (2017 LATA Blog Post of the Year Award)
- Banyan Tree Hotels magazine Havana Dream
- Skift news Cuba’s dramatic 2015 tourism boom
- Condé Nast Traveller What’s New in Cuba, 2016 (Pdf: Condé Nast Traveller Islands issue Cuba)
- Drift Magazine Drift Magazine Havana edition
- Brides Magazine US Cuba honeymoons Feb/Mar 2016
- Condé Nast Traveller cruise supplement StarClippers in Cuba Condé Nast cruise supplement
- National Geographic Traveller Independent Cuba travel advice
- Telegraph Travel Starclippers cruise along Cuba’s Caribbean coast
- Telegraph Travel Santiago de Cuba – Top 20 Destinations to Visit in 2015
- Guardian Travel the new entrepreneurs of Old Havana
- Telegraph Travel Che Guevara’s son launches Harley tours of Cuba
- The Independent Las Terrazas, Cuba’s pioneering eco-community
- Telegraph Travel Cruising to Cuba: Havana guide
- Guardian Travel Top 10 apartments in Havana
- Guardian Travel Cuba’s Treasure Island, the Isle of Youth
- Independent A visit to Cuba: Viva La Revolución
- Lonely Planet Top 10 Things to Do, Trinidad, Cuba
- Odyssey Magazine for Noble Caledonia Cruises Cruising Cuba)
- National Geographic Traveller St Lazarus pilgrimage, Havana
- The Independent 1950s Havana: Play your cards right in Cuba’s capital
- Guardian Travel Havana’s Art Deco heritage
- Time Out magazine Insider art tours in Havana Cuba without the clichés pdf
- Wanderlust Learning street photography, Trinidad, Cuba (pdf: Capturing Cuba, Wanderlust)
- Take Better Travel Photos magazine Capturing Cuba, Take Better Travel Photos
- The Independent On the Road in Baracoa, Cuba
- Homes & Antiques Havana homes & heirlooms + vintiquing
- Wanderlust East to Eden. Exploring the beauty of Baracoa (pdf)
- The Independent Santería cleansing ceremony in Santiago de Cuba
- Cuba Absolutely The British Taking of Havana in 1762
- Cuba Absolutely Talking Edible Art with Stainless, Havana
- Martinair National Treasure Alicia Alonso, founder of Ballet Nacional de CubaAn Air of Havana
Copywriting & Consultancy
- Cuba Travel Network
- Cuba Private Travel
- Esencia Experiences
- Thomson Holidays
- Consultant, meeting organiser, and tourism and economy report writer for NGO Fauna & Flora International
- Adviser and fixer to journalists and photographers
Guidebooks
- Lead author Lonely Planet Cuba 11 (Forthcoming 2023)
- Lead updater DK Eyewitness Cuba (2022)
- Updater, Insight Guides Cuba (2022)
- Author, Havana Pocket Precincts: A Pocket Guide to the City’s Best Cultural Hangouts, Shops, Bars and Eateries 2020
- Contributor, Lonely Planet Secret City (Old Havana) 2020
- Contributor, Lonely Planet Global Chocolate Tour (Baracoa, Cuba) 2020
- Contributor, Lonely Planet Guide to Life (Cuba) 2020
- Contributor, Lonely Planet Amazing Train Journeys (Hershey Railway, Cuba)
- Contributor, Lonely Planet Global Coffee Tour book (El Café, Havana)
- Author, Frommer’s EasyGuide Cuba (2015, 2011, 2009 (6th, 5th and 4th edition)
- Writer + principal updater, Dorling Kindersley Eyewitness Travel Cuba (2015, 2013, 2011)
- Writer, Lonely Planet Best in Travel 2014 (Trinidad, Cuba, in 2nd place in Top 10 Cities to Visit)
- Writer, Lonely Planet Cooks, Clowns and Cowboys (Learning Rumba & cigar-making)
- Writer, Rough Guide Cuba (2013)
- Author, Frommer’s Cuba Day by Day (2010), 1st edition
- Writer, Michelin Must See Havana (2012), 1st edition
- Writer, Footprint Cuba (2010, 2004, 2002, 2000) 5th, 4th, 3rd & 2 edition
- Contributor, Time Out Havana & the Best of Cuba (2007), 3rd edition
Radio, reviews, interviews & awards
- Runner-up 2023 LATA Media Awards Best Latin America Travel Feature - Newspaper (The wildlife & nature of Cuba's Isle of Youth)
- Bronze Award Winner 2022 AITO Travel Writer of the Year
- Winner of the 2022 Travel Media Awards Specialist Writer of the Year (Cuba)
- Winner of the 2021 Travel Media Awards Best Guidebook of the Year for Havana Pocket Precincts
- Shortlisted for the 2021 Travel Media Awards Specialist Writer of the Year (Cuba)
- Awarded the 2020 LATA Media Awards Top published Latin America photo
- Shortlisted for British Guild of Travel Writers' Travel Writer of the Year Award 2020 for a portfolio of 4 stories on Cuba & Laos
- Shortlisted for British Guild of Travel Writers' Travel Feature of the Year 2020 non-UK Award
- Shortlisted for British Guild of Travel Writers Transport Feature 2019: A Cycling Revolution. E-biking Cuba
- Quoted in Telegraph Travel Is Donald Trump about to spoil Cuba’s party?
- Awarded 2017 Latin American Travel Association top prize for best online blog post about the faux funeral of a man in Cuba: Burial of Pachencho
- Quoted in Telegraph Travel Tourism boom has turned Cuba into ‘Piccadilly Circus’
- Quoted in Cigar Aficionado Americans are flocking to Cuba but is the island ready? Aug 2016
- Skift quote European Tour Operators in Cuba Mull How U.S. Thaw Will Change Competition April 2016
- Talking on NPR’s OnPoint with Tom Ashbrook Travel to Cuba Feb 2016
- Quoted in Wanderlust magazine Cuba to phase out dual currency Oct 2013
- Quoted in Guardian Travel Entrepreneurs lead Cuba’s new revolution Dec 2012
- BBC Radio 4’s Excess Baggage. Talking about travel in Cuba with John McCarthy Jan 2010
Trip design & planning
- Essentialist
- Political Tours
- Private clients
Latin America stories
Press features
- Times Travel The thrilling Latin American nation still deliciously under radar
- Guardian Travel High Society: El Alto, Bolivia, steps into the spotlight
- Indy Travel Exploring the Bolivian jungle that inspired Daniel Radcliffe’s latest movie
- Adventure.com Can Jungle movie help save the Bolivian rainforest & ecotourism?
- Guardian Travel Exploring the Che Guevara Route in Bolivia
- Wild Travel Exploring the wildlife of the Panama Canal
- Wanderlust Foodie Antigua, chocolate, coffee and volcanoes in Guatemala (pdf)
- Wanderlust Exploring the Highlands of Guatemala (pdf)
- The Independent Easter in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala, with Christ and Maximón
- i-escape.com Laguna Lodge
- The Independent Survival of the Fattest, Galápagos Islands
Guidebooks
- Co-author, Footprint Focus Guatemala (2011), 1st edition
- Co-author, Footprint Belize, Guatemala & Southern Mexico (2005 & 2008), 1st & 2nd edition
- Major contributor, Footprint Mexico & Central America (Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras & Mexico) 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2008
- Researcher and writer, Alastair Sawday’s Green Places, 1st edition (2006)
- Author, Footprint Guatemala 1st edition (2002)
Radio, reviews, interviews & awards
- Awarded the 2020 LATA Media Awards Top published Latin America photo
- Shortlisted for AITO Travel Writer of the Year Award 2018 (Feature under 1,500 words) for Exploring the Che Guevara route in Bolivia
Southeast Asia stories
Press features
- New Zealand Herald What's it like to travel the first rail route through Laos
- Wanderlust Magazine Life in the fast lane
- Sunday Telegraph The high-speed train opening up the wonders of Laos
- Telegraph 20 must visit places to see in 2023 (taking the new Lao train)
- Times Travel Hanoi travel guide
- Weather2Travel 9 ways to experience the best of Vietnam
- Times Travel The best trips to Vietnam for 2022
- Independent Journeying along the Mekong on the first eco cruise
- Wanderlust WanderSleeps 8 of the most characterful Hoi An stays
- Wanderlust WanderSleeps Seven of the finest stays in Luang Prabang
- Cruise Adviser Temple run Journey along the Mekong on first eco-cruise on the river
- Telegraph Pork, lemongrass – and the Laos factor Exploring Laos & its fragrant food
- Lao Airlines Magazine Buffalo ice cream and cheese in Luang Prabang
- Telegraph Travel Dream Trips: Cruising Halong Bay
- Lao Airlines Magazine In the footsteps of giants: walking with elephants at Mandalao
- Lao Airlines Magazine Secrets of the Stone Temple, my story about exploring a buried-in-the-jungle unesco wonder in Laos for Lao Airlines Magazine, Wat Phou, Laos
- Lao Airlines Magazine The Brits forging a new path with the Lao Conservation Trust for Wildlife
- Guardian Travel Hanoi & Vientiane food tours: 20 of the best food tours around the world
- Lao Airlines Magazine Rosewood Luang Prabang review
- Travel&Leisure Asia A chef reviving ancient Lao recipes (At The Table Royal Revival pdf)
- Travel&Leisure Asia six design hotels are Millennial-approved
- Travel&Leisure Asia The six best hotels to celebrate a special occasion
- Travel&Leisure Asia Six hotels perfect for a family occasion
- Telegraph Travel Vientiane port guide
- Telegraph Travel Luang Prabang port guide
- Telegraph Travel Mekong River Cruise Guide
- Guardian Travel Tigers forever: a wildlife hike in north-east Laos
- Telegraph Travel Ultimate Laos itinerary
- Guardian Travel Undiscovered Asia
- Wanderlust Magazine Reaching new depths in Laos and the greatest river cave in the world
- (Wanderlust magazine Xe Bang Fai article pdf)
- Weather2Travel.com Why you should visit Phu Quoc island, Vietnam
- Guardian Travel Luang Prabang 3-day holiday itinerary
- Guardian Travel The ‘new’ Vang Vieng in Laos
- Independent First cruise of Vietnam’s Red River Delta with Pandaw; syndicated in The Australian
- Guardian Travel Two-week holiday itinerary in Laos
- Telegraph Travel From soldiers to sunbathers, how Vietnam’s China Beach became hip
- Telegraph Travel Dam threat to last few Mekong River dolphins
- Guardian Travel Top 10 budget hotels in Vientiane, Laos
- Telegraph Travel Exploring the communist cave hideout of Viengxay, Laos
- Guardian Travel Top 10 budget hotels in Luang Prabang
- Guardian Travel Three-day itinerary in Hanoi
- The Independent Vietnam’s new UNESCO World Heritage Site at Trang An
- Daily Telegraph Bai Tu Long and Halong Bay by boat and seaplane
- Guardian Travel Three-day itinerary in Saigon
- i-escape.com An Lam Saigon River
- i-escape.com An Lam Ninh Van Bay
- Guardian Travel Top 10 budget hotels in Ho Chi Minh City
- National Geographic Traveller City Life: Ho Chi Minh City
- The National Hotel insider: Amano’i, Nha Trang
- The National Exploring Nui Chua National Park & Amano’i, Vietnam
- Guardian Travel Top 10 boutique hotels in Hanoi
- Independent Slice of the City: Vientiane as Laos marks 60 years of independence from France
- Traveller My culinary faux pas under the railway arches, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Wanderlust What else is new in Vietnam and Laos
- Wanderlust The last of the wild-elephant catchers in the Central Highlands, Vietnam (pdf)
- Wanderlust First 24 hours in Ho Chi Minh City
- The Independent Communist cave hideout, Vieng Xai, Laos
- Time Out Stalking rhinos on elephantback in Nepal pdf
- Pathfinder Visiting Xeo Quit, Viet Cong subterranean base, Mekong Delta, Vietnam
- Scotsman Voluntourism – Building homes for the Kamaiya in Western Nepal
- i-escape.com La Folie Lodge, Laos
Guidebooks & Apps
- Writer, InterContinental Hotels in Laos, Vientiane description
- Author, Footprint Vietnam Dream Trip (2013), 1st edition
- Author, Footprint Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos (2013), 4th edition
- Co-author, Footprint Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos (2010, 2008, 2005), 3rd, 2nd and 1st edition
- Author, Footprint Vietnam (2011, 2008), 6th edition and 5th edition
- Author, Footprint Laos (2010), 6th edition
- Editorial consultant and contributor, Dorling Kindersley Cambodia & Laos (2011), 1st edition
- Co-author, Footprint Southeast Asia (2012, 2010, 2009), 3rd, 2nd & 1st edition
- Writer, Time Out Adventure! (2009), 1st edition (Rhino safari on elephantback, Nepal)
- Editorial consultant and contributor, Dorling Kindersley Vietnam & Angkor Wat (2007), 1st edition
- Co-author, AA/Fodor Key guide Vietnam/See it Vietnam (2005), 1st edition
- Co-author, Footprint Thailand (2005), 5th edition
- Contributor, Footprint Laos (2005)
- Contributor, Footprint Vietnam (2004), 4th edition
Radio, reviews, interviews & awards
- Shortlisted for The Best British Travel Writing of the 21st Century to be published in March 2022 for my Lao food journey for Telegraph Travel
- Shortlisted for British Guild of Travel Writers' Travel Writer of the Year Award 2020 for a portfolio of 4 stories about Laos & Cuba
Morocco stories
Press features
- Wanderlust 8 best sleeps in Marrakech
- Condé Nast Traveller magazine Best places to stay, eat and drink in Fez, Morocco
Guidebooks & Apps
- Writer & commissioning editor Time Out Marrakech (2014, 4th edition)
- Writer, Time Out Morocco: Perfect Places to stay, eat & explore (2008), 1st edition (Fès, Meknès, Rabat, Middle Atlas and Taza)
- Photographer, Time Out Morocco: Perfect Places to stay, eat & explore (2008), 1st edition
- Co-photographer, Footprint Marrakech (2004), 1st edition
UK stories
Press features
- Discover Britain Magazine The American 'Friendly Invasion' in East Anglia during World War Two
- i Paper Felixstowe: the south-facing Suffolk seaside town with award-winning beaches and a box park
- Telegraph Travel The Suffolk coast by bike
- Telegraph Travel 10 Great Ways to Discover England's Coast
- Wanderlust Magazine British Break Suffolk Coast
- Discover Britain Magazine On the trail of the self-styled Witchfinder General of 17th-century England
- Condé Nast Traveller: Restaurants with rooms (Retreat East & new Sur-Mer at The Suffolk, Aldeburgh)
- Indy Travel The best hotels in Suffolk for boutiques stays and seaside cool
- Telegraph Travel Move over Southwold – there's a new jewel in Suffolk's coastal crown
- Times Travel Take the road less travelled: cycling Norfolk's country lanes
Latest news

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