Tue 5 August, 2014 Travel SupplemenT: HIGH SUMMER Summer’s beginning to ebb away, there’s a bank holiday on the horizon, some hot international openings and new direct flights: here at UJ, we’ve got some serious wanderlust. From a sandy Portuguese getaway and American city break to an unexpected culinary destination, we've got it covered. But for those who want to stay closer to home, Somerset is calling. Happy travels! Sandy Break: Herdade da Comporta, Portugal First up, a sandy escape an hour from Lisbon in Herdade da Comporta. The thatched cabanas, sandy tracks and beat up old buggies, mixed with an under-the-radar bar, restaurant and hotel scene has been attracting the Portuguese elite for years now, and more recently an international pedigree (Mario Testino, Patrick Cox, Christian Louboutin and Farida Khelfa…). Dive into the bleached-wood barefoot scene and tuck into the catch of the day at fisherman-owned shack Restaurante Dos Pescadores. For a more up-tempo lunch, try the Sal Comporta before spending the rest of the day at its adjacent bar. Stay at the freshly opened Sublime Comporta, part of the new wave of boutique boltholes dotting the coast, or make like a seasoned Comporta visitor and rent a private villa. Sublime Comporta, 261-1,Muda, 7570-337 (+351) 269 449 376, rooms from €160 Fly Direct: Austin, Texas The launch of direct BA flights to the Lonestar state earlier this year means a short(ish) live music pilgrimage is suddenly on the cards. Head over early October for the Austin City Limits festival, a different slice of pie to SXSW that hits Zilker Park for a three-day bash (Outkast, Major Lazer, and Sam Smith will play). Stay at Hotel San Jose, a once sordid motel that has been given a new lick of paint and is now part of the Austin music ‘scene’, with many a muso checking in during festival season. And it wouldn’t be a trip to the neon-lit city without a fill of barbeque. For the city’s best, try Franklin (expect lines: people start queuing at 9am). Otherwise, break away from table service and do the rounds of Austin’s food trucks – there are 1,500 in total. We say make a pit stop at Ms P's Electric Cock and have yourself some authentic chicken and waffles. ACL Music Festival, October 3-5 & Oct 10-12, Tickets from $90 Rediscover: Paris, France Yes, we know… Paris… how original. But the re-opening of the Piscine Molitor, and its transformation from chic Art Deco lido to glamorous hotel, has us upping sticks to the 16th arrondissement. With its rooftop terrace boasting views of the Eiffel Tower, a Clarins spa, and of course, the two swimming pools (indoor and outdoor), you’ll be hard pressed to leave the yellow striped sun loungers. If you want a stay that's less fashion more upmarket, try the newly opened Peninsula Paris and expect the brand's usual high-octane trimmings. On the activities front, make time to visit Pont Alexandre III and sample a taste of the latest Parisian scene. Feast at food trucks (a relatively new trend in Paris), before heading to new bar Faust, where the PYTs of the French capital swing their hips to bobo DJs (last week saw Pigalle hit the decks). And in the pipeline? Come September, Le Pompon, the Parisian club for the cool kids, will be taking up its new residency at Le Pont. Oui oui! The Peninsula Paris, 19 Avenue Kléber, 75116 Paris, France, rooms from €795 Piscine Molitor, 13 rue Nungesser et Coli, 75016 Paris, rooms from £260 Art in Somerset: Bruton, England London, Zurich, New York… Bruton? The Somerset town in which the latest Hauser & Wirth gallery has sprung may seem slightly incongruous but it does makes sense. From the bourgeois bohème locals (Phoebe Philo, Sam Taylor-Johnson, Susie Forbes, Richard Pomeroy, Helena Drysdale…), to the boutique wine stores, bakeries and restaurants (At the Chapel combines all three), the gallery was in fact the missing piece to turn the country town into a destination. Durslade Farm is a futuristic gallery with five exhibition spaces to be taken over by big name artists (Martin Creed, Phyllida Barlow and even Paul McCarthy), a garden designed by Piet Oudolf (he who designed New York’s High Line) and a bar and restaurant (Roth Bar and Grill) designed by Luis Laplace, this is now the country escape of the year. Hauser & Wirth, Durslade Farm, Dropping Lane, Bruton, Somerset, BA10 0NL On the up: Malta Bypass Sicily and instead head to the Mediterranean underdog, Malta. Aside from its UNESCO-listed capital, unspoilt coast and cerulean waters, the once package-tour destination is getting a shake up. Opening in early September, and set to put the country on the culinary map, is restaurant Terrone, via River Café alum. The bartender, sous chef and head waiter (and trained chef) will be serving up southern Mediterranean dishes with a focus on fresh seasonal ingredients, much like their alma mater. But unlike The River Cafe (where fresh ingredients are flown in daily), here all ingredients will be sourced from the local fish and farmer’s market next door in Marsaxlokk. Make the most of your visit and stay at Grand Hotel Excelsior, if only for its rooftop pool that offers uninterrupted views of the city. Terrone, Triq Il Wilga, Marsaxlokk, Malta Grand Hotel Excelsior, Great Siege Road, Floriana, FRN 1810, rooms from €140 House warming: Chicago, America If you’re a fan of the Windy City and the Soho House conglomerate, than you’ll want to book a mid-August jaunt to Soho House Chicago. Officially opening on August 11, the former Chicago belting factory will share the same vibe as the other Houses. And it will be big, with 40 guest rooms (small, medium and large), a spa, 20-metre rooftop pool and three restaurants. Alongside this opening comes a host of other Chicago buzz launches, from Dove's Luncheonette - a Mexican-inspired soul food diner – and the latest restaurant from Paul Kahan (the face of Chicago dining) to another highly anticipated hotel launch of sorts just south of the river, where America’s first Virgin Hotel is opening this fall. It’s not quite Soho House but if you’re after a ‘functional’ place to rest your head… Soho House Chicago, 113-125 N. Green Street, Chicago Illinois, 60607, rooms from $240. Special member's rates from $100 a night plus taxes between 11-31 Aug Virgin Hotel, 203 N. Wabash Avenue, Chicago LINK TO THIS FEATURE: Travel by CS CONVERSE ANNOUNCES FALL 2014 ALL STAR BACK ZIP COLLECTION New in: Chuck Taylor All Star Back Zip Collection. Think zips, distressed leather details, and pops of colour. And to celebrate the new collection, UJ will be joining forces with Converse… Stay tuned for more information to come, from us. Available from Office and Schuh Belvedere: Legends of the Martini Sponsored listing From a cool new pop up martini experience bar, serving tasting flights (wet, dry and the reverse vesper) to diving into a giant martini glass (see our pics from the opening night), the Legends of the Martini Experience at the Royal Academy is a summer highlight. Check it out before it finishes at the end of August. Legends of the Martini Experience Royal Academy Senate Rooms, Burlington House, Piccadilly, W1J 0BD Free exhibition open every day throughout August Book tickets for the Martini Experience ANNA NICOLE AT THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE Sponsored listing ‘A big, beautiful, busty hit’ Metro ‘Flamboyantly vulgar and fabulously entertaining’ The Telegraph Enjoy a free glass of champagne for everyone in your party when you book tickets for £30 or over for the outrageous and brilliant opera Anna Nicole. A small-town waitress decides to become a stripper, weds an octogenarian billionaire and becomes a Playboy model and celebrity. Yes, it’s the flamboyant life and tragic death of Anna Nicole Smith. Commissioned by The Royal Opera and first performed in 2011, the razor-sharp libretto is by Richard Thomas, co-creator of Jerry Springer: the Opera. Conducted by Antonio Pappano, the music fuses jazz, blues and music theatre with more traditional operatic language. Expect sex, celebrity and scandal. This production includes extreme language, drug abuse and sexual content. Claim a free glass of champagne when you book tickets via Urban Junkies. To book, visit www.roh.org.uk/annanicole select a performance and enter the code urbananna into the ‘Do you have a code?’ box, situated above the seating plan on the booking page, and click ‘update’. Anna Nicole, 13 September at 7pm | 16, 18 September at 7.30pm, £5-£70. Bow Street, Covent Garden, W1U 7PA FOLLOW US! Facebook | Twitter | Instagram See what we've been snapping abroad on Instagram! LIKE SHARE FORWARD PREVIOUS EDITION (c) 2014 Urban Junkies. All rights reserved. Reproductions of any portion of this website only with our express permission. Urban Junkies is a free daily mailer. All listings and features are editorial: We do not receive any payment from venues, artists or promoters. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of information listed but we cannot accept responsibility for errors or omissions.