Country Life’s top 10 travel articles of 2020, from desert islands to a motor tour of the Cotswolds

Travel plans were thrown into chaos this year — but being able to escape around the world via a computer or tablet screen proved popular, as did planning for 2021. Here are our most-viewed travel stories of 2020.

If you’re looking for more inspiration for 2021, the 30 December 2020 issue of Country Life is our annual travel special, full of adventures and ideas.


10 of the best beaches in Britain and Ireland, from sandy spaces for families to places of exquisite natural beauty

Credit: Alamy

With staycations the only reliable travel plan this summer, our travel editor Rosie Paterson picked out 10 of the very best British and Irish beaches.

Read the full article.

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Gokarna: A trip to India’s new Goa

Credit: Getty

Harriet Compston found a place that’s ‘a kaleidoscope of colour with diamond-white beaches and azure seas’

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Bucket List dreams for life after lockdown

Credit: Rosie Paterson

Back in April we asked adventurers, artists and those who’ve spent their whole careers obsessing over seeing the world about the places they want to visit when travel restrictions lifted.

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Nine novels which will transport you around the world

Credit: Alamy

As we began to look beyond lockdown in June, this collection of destinations from classic novels was another way to inspire your post-lockdown travel plans.

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If you only climb one mountain in your life, it should be this one

Credit: Getty

Fiona Reynolds picked out Cnicht, Snowdonia, as her all-time favourite National Trust trail.

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Bath unwrapped: Where to stay, what to do and what to eat in one of Britain’s most iconic and historic cities

Credit: Andy Fletcher Photography / 

Emily Anderson explored the best of Bath, from the iconic Roman baths to it’s eccentric comedy walking tours.

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A dog-friendly London luxury hotel whose architect created the First Class dining room on the Titanic

Credit: Kimpton Fitzroy

The Kimpton Fitzroy is a central London hotel full of history that’s perfect for an opulent weekend in the Big Smoke. Kathryn Bradley-Hole paid a visit.

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10 award-winning hotels, from a lochside retreat to a Georgian mansion

Credit: Alamy

Bonnie Friend of the Good Hotel Guide picked out some of her favourite award-winning hotels.

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The hotels that found fame on the silver screen

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Places to stay that came to prominence — with a little help from James Bond, Marilyn Monroe and more.

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A driving tour of the Cotswolds

Credit: Alamy

Chickens, sheep, and dry-stone walls as long as the Great Wall of China, as discovered by Freda Lewis-Stempel.

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