Escape with Ellie — Luxury Travel Specialist
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City Breaks Built Around What You Actually Want to See

I plan the itinerary, book the hotel in the right neighbourhood, sort the restaurants and tours worth doing, and book the flights at the right times. You walk straight out of the airport and into the trip.

Plan a City Break Talk to Ellie

What a city break with me looks like

Most people Google a city, read three blog posts, get overwhelmed, and book the first hotel they recognise. A city break with me skips that bit.

  • Choose the right neighbourhood to stay in. Every city has good areas and tourist-trap areas. Sometimes the famous postcode is the worst one to sleep in. I'll tell you why.

  • Book the hotel. Properties I know or trust, sized to your trip length, location-first. Where I have a supplier relationship, you get the upgrade or the extras.

  • Build the itinerary day by day. What's worth doing, what's worth skipping, what's worth booking in advance. The Vatican and the Anne Frank House are not walk-ins. The Eiffel Tower at sunset is not a queue you want.

  • Book the restaurants. The good ones in any city are reserved out two to four weeks ahead. I book the ones I know are worth it, at the right time of evening, on the right day of the week.

  • Sort the experiences worth booking ahead. Cooking classes, sidecar tours, opera tickets, sport, day trips, sunrise viewing platforms. Whatever the city has that needs pre-booking.

  • Arrange flights and transfers. Sensible flight times. Transfers to the door if you want them, or a train if it's faster (some cities, it is).

More than the highlights reel

Anyone can send you to the Eiffel Tower. I put together itineraries that go further than the obvious, built around what you're actually interested in.

I've done filming location tours for Virgin River fans in British Columbia, food trails through New Orleans with chefs you'd never find on a tourist guide, and a five-week route through Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and Bali that went from city to rainforest to beach in the same trip without a wasted day.

Tell me what matters to you. Architecture, food, history, music, shopping, a TV show you love, somewhere your grandparents lived. I'll build the itinerary around it.

Plan a Custom Itinerary

Cities we love

Somewhere on this list is your next trip. Don't see it? Ask anyway.

ABTA & ATOL Protected

ABTA no. P7384

Nashville Broadway lit up at night

Nashville

Live music, great food, and a city that gets better the later it gets. I've sent everyone from couples on an anniversary to eight lads on a stag, and they all come back with stories. Stay in The Gulch, eat hot chicken, book the Grand Ole Opry.

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New Orleans French Quarter architecture

New Orleans

Jazz, Creole food, and the French Quarter at night. A city with a personality unlike anywhere else in America. I book hotels in walkable parts of the Quarter, food tours that go past the obvious, and a brunch with a brass band if you want one.

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Live music venue with crowd and stage lights

Memphis

Beale Street, Sun Studio, Graceland. The birthplace of rock and roll, and a city worth a long weekend on its own rather than a stop on a bigger trip. Often paired with Nashville for a music-lover's week.

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Paris rooftops and landmarks at dusk

Paris

Three nights is the right length. I pick the hotel, sort the restaurant, and make sure you don't waste a single hour on the wrong Metro line. Most clients leave with a list of places they want to go back to.

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Dubrovnik old town walls and harbour

Dubrovnik, Croatia

Walk the walls, swim in the Adriatic, eat seafood with a view of the old town. One of the best city breaks in Europe, full stop. Better in May or September than peak August.

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Singapore skyline at night with Marina Bay Sands

Singapore

Often used as a stopover, but a city that deserves a stay of its own. Gardens by the Bay, the hawker centres, the rooftop bars, a skyline that's genuinely impressive. Pair with Bali, Australia or New Zealand for a longer trip.

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Tokyo street scene at night with neon signs

Tokyo

A city that does not feel like anywhere else. Food in places the size of a cupboard, neighbourhoods that change personality every five minutes, and a public transport system that actually works. Five to seven nights is right for a first visit. I'll plan the jet lag in.

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Cape Town with Table Mountain behind the city

Cape Town

City breaks usually mean cities. Cape Town gives you the city plus Table Mountain, the wine lands, the beaches and the coastline. Four or five nights, hotel in the V&A Waterfront or Camps Bay, day trips out to Stellenbosch and Cape Point.

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What you actually get from booking through me

"Stress-free" gets used a lot in travel. Here is what it means for a city break in practice.

You send me the city, the dates and a sense of what you're after. I come back with two or three hotel options, a draft itinerary, and pricing. You say yes or tweak it.

From there:

  • I book the flights, the hotel, the airport transfers, the restaurant reservations, the tour tickets, the experiences.

  • I send you one document with every confirmation number, address, timing and contact in it. Plus a day-by-day plan you can ignore if you want, or follow if it helps.

  • I deal with the airline if a flight changes. I deal with the hotel if the room is wrong. I handle name corrections, seat requests, baggage queries.

  • I'm the one number you call if anything happens while you're away.

  • If you want to add a tour, swap a restaurant, or extend a night mid-trip, you message me and I do it.

The bit clients notice most on city breaks is the restaurant booking. Two-night and three-night trips work or fail on the food. I book the tables before you fly. You don't waste an evening walking around looking at full restaurants.

How long should a city break be

Depends on the city, but as a rough guide.

  • Two nights: Edinburgh, Dublin, Amsterdam, Bruges, Copenhagen. Small enough that a long weekend covers the core.

  • Three nights: Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Lisbon, Prague, Budapest. Enough time for the main sights, a decent dinner, a half-day not on tourist mode.

  • Four nights: New York, Berlin, Istanbul, Vienna, Marrakech. Bigger cities or ones with more to unpack culturally.

  • Five to seven nights: Tokyo, Singapore, New Orleans, Buenos Aires. Long-haul or layered cities where the flight time and the depth both justify staying longer.

Ask if your timing is awkward. Plenty of trips work as three-and-a-half nights or five nights instead of the obvious four or six.

Three steps from idea to itinerary

1

Tell me the city, or ask me to suggest one.

Dates, who's going, what you want from the trip. A quick message works. You don't need a plan.

2

I build it.

Hotel options, draft itinerary, restaurants, what's worth booking ahead. Sent over for you to say yes or tweak.

3

You travel.

Everything booked, one itinerary document, one number to call if anything shifts.

Most city breaks are booked within a week of the first message.

Booked with full protection

Every flight-inclusive city break I book is ATOL protected. Every package booking is ABTA covered. My ABTA number is P7384.

If a supplier collapses or a major disruption hits, your money is protected.

Common city break questions

The ones I hear most often, answered plainly.

Two to four months for European cities. Four to six for the US or long-haul. Last-minute (a few weeks) still works for most European cities if you're flexible on hotel choice.
No. Suppliers pay me commission. You pay the same as if you booked direct.
Yes. Restaurants, day tours, museum entries, opera and theatre, sporting events, food tours, cooking classes, sidecar tours, anything that's bookable. The good restaurants in any city are reserved out weeks ahead, so this is one of the most useful things I do.
Tell me what you want from the trip (food, walkable, warm, short flight, somewhere new, romantic, group-friendly, particular budget) and I'll come back with two or three cities that fit. Plenty of clients start there.
Yes. Couples and friend groups are the bulk of what I do. Groups of six or more, send the rough numbers and I'll come back with options that work for the size.
Yes. Two-centre trips are common (Singapore + Bali, Paris + Amsterdam, New York + Boston). I plan the transfer between them and time the dates so the flight back doesn't waste a day.
No. I book from any UK airport (Heathrow, Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham, Gatwick, Stansted) and any Eurostar departure. Where you fly from often affects the price more than which city you fly to.
I'll tell you what's required and point you at the right service. ETAs for the US and Canada, eVisas for India and Turkey, full visas for places that still need them. Build the timing into the trip so nothing rushes.
You message me. I rebook with the airline, sort the hotel if the dates need to shift, and update the rest of the trip.

Have a city in mind?

Get in touch and I'll put together an itinerary. No obligation, no pressure, just a good trip.

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