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

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 ...

Strasbourg is listed twice over, once as a French city and once as a German one.

Strasbourg is listed twice over, once as a French city and once as a German one. The UNESCO listing began with the Grande Île, the medieval island of lanes and half-timbered houses around the cathedral, and was later extended across the river to the Neustadt, the imperial quarter of wide avenues laid out under German rule. Two opposed ideas of a city, minutes apart, because this place changed hands so often that both sides left a plan behind.

Fast trains reach Paris in under two hours, the small airport connects to the centre by shuttle train, and a tram line crosses the Rhine into Germany. Two things squeeze the rooms here: the weeks when the European Parliament sits, and the Christmas market, which opens on the fourth Friday of November and books the old town out months ahead at much higher prices. Compare flights and hotels for Strasbourg at https://destination.chat and check both calendars before choosing dates.

The cathedral sets the tone, built in pink Vosges sandstone with a single soaring spire, an astronomical clock that still performs and a climbable platform over the rooftops. West of it, La Petite France keeps the tanners' houses along the canals, with the covered bridges and the Barrage Vauban terrace above. Across the water, the Neustadt opens into imperial boulevards around the Place de la République, and beyond that sit the European Parliament and the Council of Europe.

Where you stay is a choice of century. On the Grande Île near the cathedral, boutique hotels occupy timbered buildings in the pedestrian lanes. In La Petite France, small historic hotels look onto the canals and the covered bridges. Over in the Neustadt, mid-range hotels stand along the imperial avenues at calmer prices, while around the main station, budget and mid-range hotels suit early trains and short stays.

Everything works on foot, by tram or by bicycle, in one of the best cycling cities in France. Leave the car behind entirely. A boat trip on the Ill circles the island and passes the European quarter, and the Alsace wine route is the day out worth booking, with Colmar, Riquewihr and Eguisheim reachable by train or tour. In the market weeks, go on a weekday and watch your pockets in the crowds around the cathedral. You can check boat trip and wine route tour prices at https://destination.chat and keep an evening free for a winstub.

The food here is Germanic, and that surprises people. Expect choucroute heaped with pork, tarte flambée with cream and bacon, and long shared tables in a winstub rather than anything delicate. The wines are the other correction: Alsace whites are mostly dry and aromatic, not the sweet bottles their labels suggest abroad.

Q: Is Strasbourg French or German?
A: French, but it changed hands repeatedly between the two, and Alsatian culture reflects both. The architecture, food and dialect sit far closer to the German side than the rest of France.

Q: When is the Strasbourg Christmas market?
A: It opens on the fourth Friday of November and runs to around Christmas, in a tradition going back centuries. Rooms in the old town book out months ahead and prices rise sharply.

Q: Do I need a car in Strasbourg?
A: No. The city is compact, the tram network is excellent and it is one of the best cycling cities in France. Trains and tours cover the wine route.

Q: What is Alsatian food like?
A: Hearty and Germanic. Choucroute with pork, tarte flambée, pretzels and rich stews, served in traditional taverns, with dry aromatic white wines rather than sweet ones.

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