Tim Burford – författare

This new seventh edition of Bradt's Georgia remains the only dedicated guide to this fascinating, budget-friendly Caucasian country, where tourism continues to grow and domestic travel is increasingly straightforward. Thoroughly updated to reflect recent developments, this guidebook includes revised and new listings for hotels, homestays, restaurants, what to see and do, and how to get around by public transport.At the intersection of Europe and Asia, nestled between Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, Georgia is the hub of the Caucasus - a country known for its mountains and Black Sea coast, and its wonderful food, wine and all-round hospitality. With Bradt's Georgia, you can experience the new alongside the old in a country where most cultural and historical sights are free of charge or very cheap. The capital, Tbilisi, boasts a charming, cobbled old town, the centuries-old tiled baths of Orbeliani and numerous cultural highlights, but has also seen major developments recently, including conspicuous new projects such as the Panorama complex. Already famous for the cave monastery of Vardzia and the ancient wine-growing region of Kakheti, Georgia's more remote areas are becoming more accessible. Networks of rural guesthouses and hiking trails (including the increasingly popular Transcaucasian Trail, a volunteer-led project to create two long-distance hiking routes) are being developed alongside a push towards more sustainable and responsible tourism. On the Black Sea, the city of Batumi has developed into a glitzy playground for regional tourism.Appropriately, given that the country is considered to be the birthplace of wine, the Georgian wine industry features prominently, with particular emphasis on the UNESCO-listed natural qvevri wines (made in clay amphorae set in the ground). Also covered are: skiing at Gudauri, Bakuriani and Mestia; cycling; the World Heritage sites of Mtskheta, Svaneti and Gelati; Georgian fusion cuisine (now celebrated in Tbilisi's stylish new restaurants); 5th-century churches and other Christian architecture; cave cities; and Georgian polyphonic singing.Bradt's unique guide to Georgia is the ideal companion for travellers, from serious hikers to wine buffs, high-end culture lovers to winter-sports enthusiasts, and city-break aficionados to backpackers of all ages.

This new, fully updated fourth edition of Bradt's Uruguay remains the only dedicated English-language guide to a country that's small but bursting with character. Bradt's Uruguay provides in-depth coverage of the capital Montevideo, where the once-derelict colonial Old City is undergoing a historic resurgence, plus detailed information on the UNESCO-listed coastal city of Colonia del Sacramento, as well as Punta del Este, where the Buenos Aires glitterati decamp to the beaches each summer. There's advice, too, for active travellers who can rattle their whips on cattle-ranching estancias and spin their sticks in a game of polo or two and for nature enthusiasts keen to watch wildlife in the western wetlands and birds in Cabo Polonio and Santa Teresa. The guide also investigates the Brazilian influences behind Uruguay's music and dance, an active and upcoming food and wine scene, and the country's distinctive Afro-Uruguayan heritage, most noticeable during the world-beating 40-day Carnaval season. In addition, it covers the recent de-velopment of marijuana tours following the legalisation of marijuana.Uruguay caters for all tastes, whether you want to ride with gauchos and spend time on a tradi-tional estancia like La Sirena, visit Fray Bentos and discover the history of the town's former meat-packing plant, or take a tour of the Canelones department wineries. Montevideo's splendid Art Deco architecture and colourful annual Carnaval are covered, and so too are the stunning sandy beaches of boho-chic fishing village José Ignacio and the Termas de Daymán - Uruguay's largest hot baths. Also included are San Javier, an ideal base for bird-watching trips along the Río Uruguay and details of hiking in Quebrada de los Cuervos National Park - a subtropical canyon filled with flowers and birds.Most commonly known for winning the first soccer World Cup, electing the world's so-called 'poorest president', and raising a whole lot of beef on the pampa, Uruguay remains among South America's safest and most stable destinations, replete with interest waiting to be discovered by both leisure and adventurous travellers.

This new, thoroughly updated fifth edition of Bradt's Bratislava remains the only standalone guide from a major publisher that is dedicated to this compact and increasingly popular capital of Slovakia - declared by the legendary Casanova as 'the most beautiful city in Europe' (and he knew a thing or two about beauty). Situated by the mighty Danube River and nestling in the Small Carpathian Mountains, with new downtown skyscrapers overlooking refurbished old buildings, Bratislava is indeed a good-looking city, filled with good-looking people who seem to enjoy life. Bratislava is a city that effortlessly blends history with hedonism, where world-class restaurants have been joined by a clutch of artisan coffee houses and literary tea- and bookshops. Local winemakers are going from strength to strength, with orange and natural wines becoming a speciality, while microbreweries are producing all sorts of dark beers and IPAs as well as pilsners.Split into ten easy-to-follow chapters, Bradt's Bratislava contextualises your visit by summarising local politics and cultural etiquette, then advises on planning, practical information, local transport (including the expanding bike-sharing scheme), accommodation, eating and drinking, entertainment, nightlife and shopping. City walks are also included, focusing on the main sights and beyond, as is sightseeing from castles and palaces to museums, galleries, churches, gardens and parks. Beyond the city itself there are sections on Devín, Cervený Kamen, Ancient Gerulata, Rusovce, the Small Carpathian Wine Route, Senec, Piestany Spa, Trnava and Kosice (in eastern Slovakia). There are also useful reference sections on language (pronunciation and words and phrases) and sources of further information.Bratislava's small size is satisfying: compact and visitor-friendly, it offers many superbly curated museums rivalling those in Budapest and Vienna plus an opera house and the Slovak National Gallery (reopened in 2022 following a lengthy refurbishment). With a range of airlines flying into the city and Kosice, plus the rail link to Vienna being upgraded, Bratislava is the perfect destination for a weekend break, a romantic city break, a family holiday or as a base for discovering the rest of Slovakia. With Bradt's Bratislava you'll have everything you need for a successful trip.

New from prolific travel-guide author Tim Burford is Bradt's Northern Ireland, the longest and widest-ranging standalone guide to the country. A UK-governed part of the island of Ireland that comprises six of the original nine counties of Ulster, there is nowhere in Europe quite like Northern Ireland. From great city breaks to scenic coastal drives, it offers visitors immense variety in a compact package. The warmth of the people and the welcome extended to visitors make any visit here memorable. Belfast has developed an enticing reputation as a city-break destination, with fine pubs, restaurants, music and museums - and Derry/Londonderry isn't far behind. The Atlantic Ocean coast of Antrim is renowned for its land- and seascapes, culminating in the amazing Giants Causeway, where forty thousand interlocking basalt columns thrust upwards from the sea. Strangford Lough is delightful, whilst the country's centre and southwest offers a very green farming landscape of the ilk that no longer exists in most of the United Kingdom.Fans of outdoor pursuits are spoilt for choice, with hikers heading for the Mourne Mountains and cyclists following the Kingfisher Trail. Games of Thrones aficionados can visit both locations and the studio complex in Bambridge. The edible produce of land and sea is justly famous, not to mention the whiskey: why not try a double Bushmills in the tiny Mary McBride's Bar in Cushendun, which measures just nine feet by five?There are prehistoric relics, grand country houses (such as Mountstewart and Castle Ward), a range of churches (including St Gobban's, which is barely bigger than Mary McBride's Bar) plus Downpatrick cathedral (where St Patrick, patron saint of Ireland, is buried), famous golf courses (Royal Portrush and Royal County Down) and striking monuments of the industrial age, most famously the shipyard where RMS Titanic was built. Even the legacy of the Troubles is being reassessed, including through black-taxi tours of Belfast's Republican and Loyalist murals. Perhaps best of all, this fabulous diversity is packed into a country where you can travel from one side to the other within a couple of hours.