Seriously, who hasn’t thought themselves capable of fighting a tiger while dressed in a miniskirt? If this sounds like you, consider a) getting some professional help, or b) travelling immediately to the Italian capital and enrolling in Scuola Gladiatori di Roma, otherwise known as Gladiator School.
Here, in the rough-and-ready surrounds of a re-created Roman barracks somewhere on the ancient Appian Way in the heart of the Eternal City, you’ll be taught such useful things as basic hand-to-hand combat, the essential techniques of gladiatorial sword fighting and how to use a large net and an oversized fork to really ruin someone’s day. For those who like to get a bit of education with their ancient ultimate fighting classes, a guided tour of the Gladiator Museum and a horrible history lesson is included in the price. Gladiator School can also be arranged through the Rome Cavalieri, a luxury resort, two miles from the Vatican.
Iceland braved a beer ban until 1989, but boy oh boy, have they made up for it in the years since. The cool, vintage-styled Kex Drinx, tucked away in a former biscuit factory in downtown Reykjavik, is the place to go for frosty pints of local beer. Find your inner Rocky and get a good ol’ workout with the boxing bag, browse a wine crate stacked with well-loved books, or go for some Jack Daniel’s in a serving of chocolate mousse.
The bar is part of a hostel right by the sea, so you won’t have far to travel if you down a few too many brews to brave the outside chill. And don’t let the hostel part put you off – locals drink here too. Besides, any backpacker who has travelled this far is sure to have a bevy of tales to tell.
Free falling with cables and parachutes is for wimps. Take the 24-metre plunge into the icy Neretva River with nothing but your Speedos for comfort. Leaping off Stari Most (it translates to Old Bridge) in the city of Mostar gives thrill-seekers the ultimate chance to prove what they’re really made of.
And there’s a lot more at stake than your average adrenaline rush. Your life – not to mention your ego – is on the line as you plummet head or feet first into the teal-blue water with bone-shattering force. The dive has been a rite of passage for young local boys seeking to impress the ladies for generations, and every July the bravest – or stupidest – face off in the Ikari bridge-jumping competition. Tourists can take part, but be warned, deaths do happen.
Saved from abandonment on Antwerp’s docks, this collection of shipping containers has been revamped and artfully furnished for a new life as a roaming hotel. The four-room pop-up container village boasts everything you’d find in a traditional guesthouse – a comfy bed with luxury linen, air-conditioning, iPod docking station and a bathroom complete with a rain shower – all squeezed into a 20-metre box.
There’s a separate lounge container for breakfast in the morning and a glass of red before you slip off to bed, and plans for a sauna are hot in the works. So far the hotel has graced the city’s riverfront and partnered with a pop-up restaurant called Glow, but its future destinations are at the behest of public votes.
Be swept up in your own magical fairytale at this Hobbit-meets-Game of Thrones-meets-Star Trek oddball. At La Balade Des Gnomes (the Walk of Gnomes) you can throw yourself into the narrative of your choice in one of 10 peculiar handcrafted rooms. Each is made from natural materials – think mud, lime and straw – and sculpted into an otherworldly masterpiece.
Nab the Trojan Horse suite, complete with a drawbridge entrance and built within (you guessed it) a giant wooden horse, bunk down in the troll’s lair – with running stream and goldfish – or beam yourself up into a spaceship odyssey. One of the rooms even has a mermaid to keep you company.
Add a little quirk to your holiday album and squeeze in a night in a colossal colon at CasAnus. Reminiscent of an oversized slug, this distal digestive tract is plonked on an island in the 30-acre Verbeke Foundation Sculpture Park. Windows illuminate the anatomically correct intestine, while the puckered rear boasts a porthole view.
The bowels of the polyester apartment house a double bed, shower and toilet, as well as a heater to keep you toasty warm. If you’re feeling social, the onsite bar-cum-cafe is full of art lovers looking for a gasbag. While other accommodation options might give you the arse, we’ve got a great gut feeling about this place.
This alpine hideaway blends traditional Austrian charm with minimalist design – think untreated wood, natural stone, exposed concrete and vast panes of glass. Located two hours outside of Salzburg, owners Sepp and Martina Kröll have transformed what was Sepp’s great-grandmother’s guest house into a chic mountainside retreat.
Tumble from the huge, freestanding tub to a cozy spot by the fire then into bed, without ever losing sight of the mountains outside. Devour a book under the warm glow of hand-blown glass chandeliers or share a glass of wine in the hot tub on the terrace (if you’re in one of the garden suites). The restaurant has several intimate dining areas and much of the produce – meat, eggs, herbs and vegetables – is grown on the hotel’s farm, which will come as a deserved reward after a day of biking, hiking or skiing in the mountains.
Want to know a secret? Getting to The King of Ladies Man is like opening a Russian matryoshka doll inside a time machine. Within The Breakfast Club, a 1950s all-day cafe and brunch bar, is a kitsch, bamboo-clad ’80s launderette complete with a fake wall. Slide back the faux panel and – voila! – you’ll be stepping inside a ’70s-style bachelor pad to snag a date with The King. Think pink flamingos, bronzed mirrors and vintage Playboy mags. In the glow of a stained-glass window etched with, well, a penis, bartenders rocking Hawaiian shirts and porn-star moustaches serve up ‘disco drinks’ like Pina Coladas and Mai Tais. For something less sweet, order from the rotating list of craft beer and pair with a toastie fit for royalty.
Sidle up to this trendy inner London bar expecting a quaint English pint and you’ll be sorely disappointed. JuJu is one of London’s hippest cocktail bars, whose extensive drinks menu is a roll call of Stolichnaya and Laurent Perrier, not stout and lager. Make sure you dress to impress; this upmarket venue is owned by celebrity couple Lee Chapman and Leslie Ash.
Perch yourself on one of the dark leather lounges, soak up the candlelit ambience and check yourself out in the mirrored ceiling. The porn star martini is to die for, darling, and the Asian tapas will delight your tastebuds.
It may be constructed from salvaged materials, but this beer garden is as cosy as they come. It’s a bohemian hotspot with a beachy vibe, live music and an up-close view of Amsterdam’s busy waterways. You can even moor your boat right out front. Try their organic food or the evening barbecue.
Depending on the day, you might be able to join a craft workshop or yoga class, or scour the onsite vintage market. Chill out in a hammock on the rooftop terrace or claim an armchair by the fire when it’s frosty outside.
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