Guides & Journal
Researched guides built on official statistics, with every source listed.
All guides
Travel hacks, checked against official sources
Fifty popular flight, hotel, cruise, car-hire and money hacks, each given a verdict from official government and regulator pages.
See the verdictsWeather by city, month by month
Average highs and lows, rain, daylight, golden hour and sea temperature for 117 cities, next to how busy each month was.
Pick a cityPublic holidays by country, 2026 and 2027
One page per country: every holiday with its weekday, the ones next to a weekend, and how busy those months were.
Pick a countryDriving in Europe: rules by country
Drink-driving limits in 30 countries as the European Commission lists them, and the rules that apply everywhere in the EU.
See the rulesIs it expensive? Price levels by country
Official price levels for restaurants and accommodation, food, drink and transport in 34 countries, and prices by prefecture in Japan.
Compare pricesWhich months is accommodation dearest?
When the official accommodation price index peaks in each country, and where there is no clear pattern.
See the monthsLong weekends 2026 and 2027
How many public holidays fall on a Monday or Friday in each country, from the official lists.
Count themMidnight sun and polar night
When the sun does not set, or does not rise, in ten northern cities in 2026.
See the datesSummer and winter getaways
Where people from the UK, Ireland, Norway, Finland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand travel in each season, from official statistics.
See where people goWeather and climate hub
Every weather page in one place: 117 cities, winter sun, rain and daylight, sea temperature and seasons.
Open the hubWinter sun: warmest cities
The cities on this site ranked by average daytime high from December to February, from official climate averages.
See the rankingMoney and travel costs
Price levels, tourist taxes, VAT refunds, card rules and customs allowances in one place.
Open the hubJapan through the year
Blossom, autumn leaves, rainy season, typhoons, snow, drift ice, Golden Week and Mount Fuji.
Open the hubDriving in Europe and Japan
Alcohol limits, vignettes, Crit'Air, foreign licences in Japan and car hire checks.
Open the hubTravel glossary
What the terms on this site mean, from arrivals and climate normals to ETIAS and drift ice.
Read itAll guides A to Z
Every page on the site, grouped by type and listed alphabetically.
See them allPre-trip checklist (printable)
Entry rules, health cover, bags, money, roaming, driving and pets: tick what applies, each linked to its guide.
Open the checklistHow long visitors stay, country by country
The official average nights per check-in in 33 countries, and why a whole trip is longer.
See the figuresThe 90/180-day rule, explained
How to count a short stay in the Schengen area, who the rule does not apply to, and the official calculator.
Read itTravel services: what each one is for
Stays, tours, transfers, car hire, eSIM, luggage storage and more, with the official rules to know first.
See the servicesNational parks around the world
National parks country by country, each from its government's own list and used only where the licence allows it, with sources and credits.
See the listsOfficially recognised places in Europe and Japan
Capitals of Culture, Green Capitals, Heritage Label sites, Japan Heritage stories and national parks, from the official lists.
See the listsHow places stack up: rankings by topic
Rank 35 countries, 47 prefectures or 123 regions on seasonality, guests from abroad, stay, prices, occupancy, weather or daylight, or set four places side by side.
Rank themBest-month finder
Choose the daytime high, rainy days and crowd level you want and see which months match in 75 countries and prefectures.
Find a monthSea temperature, blossom and autumn leaves at a glance
How warm the sea is each month near 37 places, and when cherry blossom and maple leaves arrive across Japan.
See the chartsVisual guides: lean seasons, daylight and weather
A heat map of every quiet month in 35 countries and 47 prefectures, daylight and golden light, and crowds against weather. Save or share any chart.
See the chartsWhere to go by month
Twelve month guides: where each month was quietest and busiest across 35 countries and 47 prefectures, with weather and holidays.
Pick a monthPublic holidays 2026 and 2027: one calendar
Every national holiday we publish for 33 European countries and Japan, month by month, with school holidays for four countries.
See the calendarCherry blossom dates in Japan: 2026 and averages
Observed 2026 opening and full-bloom dates for all 47 prefectures, beside the Japan Meteorological Agency's averages.
See the datesAutumn leaf dates in Japan: 2025 and averages
Maple and ginkgo dates by prefecture: the 2025 observed dates beside the averages.
See the datesWhen is typhoon season in Japan?
Typhoon approaches by month and by region, 1991–2020 averages.
See the monthsSea temperature by month
Average sea surface temperature near European capitals and Japanese prefectures, from NOAA's 1991–2020 averages.
See the monthsEES and ETIAS: what changes at the border
The EU's Entry/Exit System is running; ETIAS has no start date yet. What each means, from official EU pages.
Read the guideTravel photography: light, techniques and rules
Golden hour for 74 places, a light calendar for any dates, 20 kinds of shot and the rules on drones and photographing people.
Open the guideTravel tips that go beyond the usual
Built on official rules: flight and rail rights, customs, tax-free shopping, roaming, medicines and what changed in 2026.
See the tips156 head-to-head comparisons
Italy or Spain, Kyoto or Osaka and more: when each place is busy and quiet, side by side.
See the pairsIs shoulder season worth it?
What Eurostat, UN Tourism and Japan's figures show about travelling off-peak, region by region.
Read the guideUN Tourism's best performers, first half of 2026
Who UN Tourism names among its best performers for January to June 2026, and why that is not a recommendation.
Read the guideOff-season in Europe: 35 countries ranked
Which countries squeeze their year into summer, and which spread it out. Month-by-month figures from Eurostat.
See the rankingOff-season in Japan: 47 prefectures by month
When each prefecture is busiest and quietest, and when visitors from outside Japan come. Figures from the Japan Tourism Agency.
See the prefecturesQuieter alternatives? 12 European pairs checked
Venice or Trieste, Bruges or Ghent, Barcelona or Valencia: each pair compared with Eurostat's 2025 regional figures, in total and per resident.
See the pairsQuieter towns? 32 European towns checked
Hallstatt, the Cinque Terre, Bled, Positano, Amsterdam and more, set against other towns: tourist nights per resident from each country's statistics office.
See the townsJapan's least-visited prefectures
All 47 ranked by nights spent by guests from outside Japan, and per resident. Figures from the Japan Tourism Agency and the 2025 census.
See the rankingWhen do international visitors arrive?
The busiest and quietest months for visitor arrivals in eight countries, from each government's 2025 figures.
See the months