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Chioggia town in venetian lagoon, water canal and church. Veneto, Italy, Europe. Photo: Getty Images
Tourism

3 travel alternatives to Venice, Barcelona and Dubrovnik with fewer tourists

Avoid the crowds in Venice by visiting Chioggia, give Dubrovnik a miss and head to Sibenik, or skip Barcelona and try Tarragona.

Tourism

Downtown LA goes from best avoided to accessible as Fifa World Cup fans descend

Food and Drinks

The Hong Kong chef who quit teaching to wow Paris diners with Cantonese food

Tourism

‘Really powerful’: how Yoko Ono’s Wish Trees are helping US city voice hopes

Wish Trees for Los Angeles invites people to jot down their hopes on paper tags and tie them to the trees, drawing as many as 800 a day.

A visitor ties a paper tag bearing a wish onto a tree in the courtyard of The Broad in Los Angeles, California, part of Yoko Ono’s Wish Trees for Los Angeles installation. Photo: TNS
A visitor ties a paper tag bearing a wish onto a tree in the courtyard of The Broad in Los Angeles, California, part of Yoko Ono’s Wish Trees for Los Angeles installation. Photo: TNS
SCMP Highlights

TCM for a new generation, Dragon Boat Festival picks: 7 Lifestyle highlights

From ancient Chinese healing in the social media age to sticky rice recommendations, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.

Tourism

Trouble in paella-dise: how not to eat the Spanish speciality in its home city

Paella is very important in Valencia, where the dish is communally consumed and the city’s World Paella Day attracts chefs the world over.

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Tourism

How Marilyn Monroe owned her beauty and sexuality with pioneering boldness

Marilyn Monroe’s inspiring efforts to create and shape her public image are being celebrated at LA’s Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.

An exhibit is seen during the Exhibition Preview for “Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon” Hosted by The Academy Museum at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, in Los Angeles, on May 27, 2026. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP)
An exhibit is seen during the Exhibition Preview for “Marilyn Monroe: Hollywood Icon” Hosted by The Academy Museum at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, in Los Angeles, on May 27, 2026. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP)
European travel

What’s under Notre-Dame? History unearthed from 1,700 years ago

Roman artefacts, medieval houses, old latrines – history is being uncovered as the front of Notre-Dame Cathedral gets a revamp.

Asia travel

Best things to do in Wuxi, China’s lakeside city of gardens and sweet cuisine

Nestled on China’s Lake Taihu, Wuxi, with its industrial heritage, serene gardens, temples and decadent cuisine, is great for a weekend trip.

SCMP Highlights

Tokyo Sézanne’s missing stars; beating arthritis at 68: 7 Lifestyle highlights

From a little-known haven on Hokkaido island to how optimism make you live longer, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.

Sézanne at Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi, Japan. The restaurant has been quietly stripped of its three Michelin stars. Photo: Sézanne
Tourism

‘It’s a Trojan horse’: how the Obama Presidential Centre is dividing Chicago

The presidential museum that opens on June 19 is a bold addition to Chicago’s iconic skyline, but not all local residents are impressed.

videocam
The Obama Presidential Centre, in Chicago’s South Side, towers over the surrounding area. Photo: TNS
The Obama Presidential Centre, in Chicago’s South Side, towers over the surrounding area. Photo: TNS
Asia travel

What to do in Furano, a little-known summer haven on Japan’s Hokkaido island

From beautiful lavender fields to amazing local produce, there’s plenty to see and eat in Furano during the summer holiday months.

SCMP Highlights

‘Dying’ Chinese takeaway; ex-smoker’s fitness journey: 7 Lifestyle highlights

From a ‘dying’ Edinburgh Chinese restaurant to an ex-smoker joining an ultra-marathon, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.

Chinese culture

How China’s ‘Excalibur of the East’ souvenir swords sparked airport warning

Tourists with replicas of the ancient Sword of Goujian, from the Hubei Provincial Museum, were told not to hand-carry them onto planes.

Visitors take photos of the ancient Sword of Goujian at the Hubei Provincial Museum in Wuhan, in central China’s Hubei Province, on May 17, 2026. An airport notice at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport warning not to hand-carry replicas of the sword on board planes has gone viral on Chinese social media. Photo: Xinhua
Tourism

James McNeill Whistler’s Asian muse: Chinese ceramics and Japanese fans

Chinese pottery and textiles and Japanese crafts profoundly influenced James McNeill Whistler’s work, as seen in a retrospective at Tate Britain.

Chinese porcelain appears in Purple and Rose: The Lange Leizen of the Six Marks (1864). Photo: Getty Images
Chinese porcelain appears in Purple and Rose: The Lange Leizen of the Six Marks (1864). Photo: Getty Images
US travel

He got drunk and bought a motel. Stories behind Route 66 motel owners

We meet the owners of three motels who all found themselves running roadside establishments on America’s iconic Route 66.

Art

This digital ‘puppet’ critiques a screen-obsessed world at Venice Biennale

Li Yi-fan, a video artist from Taiwan, is making waves with his creepy and funny avatars that question the way we see the world around us.

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Tourism

Great holiday escapes to help you unwind and reset your nervous system

These seven destinations will help you calm your mind and body through nature, science, scenery and a slower pace of life.

Norrona’s Canvas Telemark experience in Norway is for travellers who find their calm in wild places and do not mind a bit of roughing it to get there. Photo: Instagram/norronaadventure
Norrona’s Canvas Telemark experience in Norway is for travellers who find their calm in wild places and do not mind a bit of roughing it to get there. Photo: Instagram/norronaadventure
United States

Is the US unsafe and unwelcoming? Trump’s tourism chief addresses ‘myths’

Donald Trump’s former pick for ambassador to Malaysia takes the helm of an ambitious US travel recovery effort.

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Tourism

Checklist tourism trends as travellers go for selfies over ‘real stories’

From Paris to Turkey, tourists blitzing through sites for social media snaps are causing crowding and concerns that they’re missing the point.

Art

How Asian artists at the 2026 Venice Biennale are making their voices heard

Using everything from baby dolls to tapestries, Asian artists’ perspectives are strongly reflected in a number of memorable exhibitions.

Japanese-American artist Ei Arakawa-Nash holds two of the 208 baby dolls that are part of their exhibition “Grass Babies, Moon Babies” at the 2026 Venice Biennale’s Japan Pavilion. Photo: Uli Holz
China travel

Saunas, sure. But sleep? A couple stays overnight at a 24-hour spa in Shenzhen

A writer and her husband visit Shenzhen’s Tenz spa to see what it offers besides massages and how easy it is to get a good night’s rest there.

The Himalayan salt room is just one of the relaxing features at Tangqi Tangquan Life Tenz spa in Shenzhen, where a Hong Kong couple spent the night to see what else is on offer besides massages and pools. Photo: Ginny Wong
The Himalayan salt room is just one of the relaxing features at Tangqi Tangquan Life Tenz spa in Shenzhen, where a Hong Kong couple spent the night to see what else is on offer besides massages and pools. Photo: Ginny Wong
Art

Once an Indonesian guerrilla fighter, she’s now a ‘quantum ghost’ in Venice

Len Karamoy, a leader of an Indonesian rebel movement, is the focus of Natasha Tontey’s video installation at the 2026 Venice Biennale.

Tourism

From Hong Kong to London, travellers have a plan B lined up for summer 2026

War in the Middle East and the rising cost of air travel and fuel have pushed many to plan shorter, more local and flexible holidays.

Art

Sex, desire and intimacy explored in Singapore art exhibition for over-18s

‘Passion is Volcanic’ at National Gallery Singapore focuses on the artistic expressions of sexual pleasures.

Dissolving into the Same Breath #3 (2024), by Taiwanese-Singaporean artist Lavender Chang, used long-exposure photography to capture two people engaging in intimacy. The piece is one of more than 70 works in National Gallery Singapore's “Passion is Volcanic" exhibition. Photo: National Gallery Singapore
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