Greenland spent decades funnelling every visitor through an old American airbase, and that has just ended.

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Greenland spent decades funnelling every visitor through an old American airbase, and that has just ended. Every international arrival used to land at a former military strip far inland, then transfer to a small propeller aircraft. Now a runway built for jets serves the capital directly from Copenhagen, Reykjavik and Newark, a second airport has opened in the south, and a third is due at the icefjord town. With all three running, most of the country sits within about ninety minutes of one connection. That rebuild is the reason to look now. Check whether the northern airport is operating before planning around it, since the opening has moved more than once, and expect prices that reflect a place where almost everything is imported. Beds are few and fill fast in the short summer. Compare flights and hotels for Greenland at https://destination.chat and build in spare days, because weather cancels flights here as routine rather than misfortune. The icefjord is the headline. A glacier that ...
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Cologne rebuilt almost everything after the war, but the cathedral never came down.

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Cologne rebuilt almost everything after the war, but the cathedral never came down. The old town around it was flattened, and the Gothic church took direct hits and kept standing, blackened and battered, above the rubble. That is why the city reads as it does today: postwar streets and modern shopfronts arranged around one immense survivor, listed by UNESCO, which took centuries of stops and starts to finish and waits directly outside the station door.

The airport reaches the centre by direct train in about a quarter of an hour, and the main station is one of Europe's better connected, with fast services to Brussels, Amsterdam, Paris and Frankfurt. Two periods fill the city completely: the carnival week before Lent, and the Christmas markets. Compare flights and hotels for Cologne at https://destination.chat and avoid both unless you are coming for them.

Start with the cathedral, but know that it changed recently. After centuries of free entry, tourists are now charged to visit the nave, while those attending a service or coming to pray enter without paying, and the tower climb and treasury were always ticketed separately. Around it, the Roman city surfaces in a museum and in remains beneath the streets, a dozen Romanesque churches stand through the old town, and the Hohenzollern bridge carries its weight of padlocks and trains across the Rhine.

Where you stay sets the tone. Around the old town and the cathedral, mid-range hotels put you a minute from the station and the river. In the Belgian Quarter, boutique hotels and apartment rentals sit among independent shops and bars. Across the water in Deutz, modern business hotels look straight back at the cathedral from the far bank, while out in Ehrenfeld, guesthouses and apartments gather near the old Helios lighthouse in the city's most creative district.

Leave the car at home. Trams, trains and buses run on one ticket, the centre walks easily, and parking is a nuisance. What deserves booking is the tower climb, a brewery walk through the old taverns, and a train out to Aachen with its imperial chapel, to Bonn, or to the palaces at Brühl. You can check guided tour and day trip prices at https://destination.chat and leave an evening entirely free.

That evening belongs to Kölsch. The local beer arrives in small straight glasses, and the waiter will keep replacing them the moment they empty, without asking, marking each one on your coaster. The only way to stop the flow is to lay the coaster flat on top of your glass. Order the other city's beer here and you will be corrected, cheerfully but firmly.

Q: Is Cologne Cathedral still free to enter?
A: Not for tourists. After centuries of free entry, a visitor admission charge now applies to the nave, while people attending a service or coming to pray are exempt. The tower and treasury are ticketed separately.

Q: How do you order beer in Cologne?
A: Kölsch is served in small straight glasses and replaced automatically as you finish, each one marked on your coaster. Put the coaster on top of the glass when you have had enough.

Q: Do I need a car in Cologne?
A: No. A direct train links the airport to the centre in about fifteen minutes, one ticket covers trams, buses and local trains, and the old town is walkable.

Q: When is the best time to visit Cologne?
A: Late spring and early autumn are the most comfortable. Carnival before Lent and the Christmas markets are spectacular but fill the city, so book far ahead or choose other dates.

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