Inspiring Travel Writing from Ben Cooper
Prior to becoming Travel Intelligence's Editorial Director, Ben Cooper had worked in a wide variety of editorial roles. Having started out writing book and television reviews for The Observer, he slipped off to Spain for an 'early sabbatical', working, travelling and writing his way around Andalucia.
Returning from Spain he spent a while editing dictionaries at Oxford University Press, before becoming Editor at leading budget accommodation website, HostelBookers.com. Moving on from HostelBookers.com, he worked as the Web Editor of RoughGuides.com and Traveldk.com until he took up the editorial reins at TI.
A devout hispanophile, you can keep up with his Spain and travel-related Twitter updates at @ben_coop.Articles by Ben Cooper
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Five of the Best Seville Tapas Bars
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Ben Cooper
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Spain
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Andalucia (Seville)
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Seville
From stylish modern eateries and atmospheric old neighbourhood haunts, right the way through to noisy spit and sawdust joints, there are more mouth-watering bars and restaurants in Seville than you could possibly take in on your average stay.So,...
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Moorish Marvel: The Ruins of Bobastro
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Ben Cooper
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Spain
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Andalucia
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Malaga
The road winds, first one way, then the other, though a landscape dominated by massive rock formations; huge monolithic boulders jut out like the tips of icebergs from the dusty earth or sit squat atop massive, bulbous protrusions of smooth ochre....
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Granada: Hidden Highlights
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Ben Cooper
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Spain
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Andalucia
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Granada
For a small city that sees more than its fair share of visitors, Granada actually manages to keep many of its highlights pretty closely under wraps. Concealed by the twists and turns of the Albaicin's alleyways and the crumbling nooks and crannies...
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The Ultimate in Unwinding... Seven of the Best Spa Hotels in England
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Ben Cooper
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United Kingdom
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Yorkshire
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Ripon
It’s January. The year may be new, but you feel worn out and bloated with Christmas excess. 2010 stretches away – a chasm of exercise and self-denial. There’s only one thing for it: leave the hair shirt for later and give in to one last bit of...
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Semana Santa in Style: A Holy Week Itinerary in Andalucia
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Ben Cooper
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Spain
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Andalucia
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Seville
Swirling clouds of incense drift through the night air. A glittering float comes swaying into view. Behind it, row after row of sinister-looking Ku-Klux Klan-like figures hold candles aloft as they advance slowly through the narrow street. The...
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Ten Cosy Hotels in the UK
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Ben Cooper
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United Kingdom
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South West England
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Somerset
Dramatic tales have been dominating the news lately: of the Scottish border town of Hawick being cut off; of abandoned cars littering the sides of roads; of grit supplies running low; of New Year reveller's being stranded in the highest pub in...
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The Weekend Away: Things to Do in York for a Day and a Night
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Ben Cooper
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United Kingdom
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Yorkshire
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York
As you get off the train from a big city like London and stroll around the old centre of York, an odd sensation hits you. Something has shifted. The buildings for one are decidedly quainter, inward-leaning and crooked-beamed; in shops and bars,...
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Six of the Best Places to Stay in Granada
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Ben Cooper
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Spain
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Andalucia
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Granada
'Luxury' is obviously a relative term. And it's one that - for all the city's other many undoubted charms - has rarely come naturally to the Andalucian city of Granada. There's never been too much of a shortage of charmingly knockabout B&Bs and...
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A Dozen Reasons to Visit Malaga
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Ben Cooper
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Spain
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Costa del Sol
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Malaga
Standing outside the Malaga bus station the early signs are, it's fair to say, not terribly encouraging. A grim, suburban wasteland seems to stretch away endlessly in every direction. Strike out eastwards, though, and these quite suddenly give way...
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Kind of Blue: A Stay at the Heure Bleue Palais
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Ben Cooper
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Morocco
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Atlantic Coast
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Essaouira
"A blue taxi to take you to the blue city" the driver said as we clambered into the cab. And to the Heure Bleue Palais he might have added. For that’s where we were headed: away from the heat, dust and noise of Marrakech to the twilight cool of...