The Monte Carlo Bay Hotel and Resort reflects old-school glamour on a large scale. Passes cost €17.50 (£12.50), and are available from venues across the city, as well as from tourist offices. Spa time in Monaco A pleasurable winter sojourn in the small and glitzy principality of Monaco need not be limited to a flutter at the Place du Casino or an afternoon spectating at the Grand Prix. Those participating will be open between 7pm and 2am and will be instantly recognisable in the street, as each one will be spotlit by colourful shafts of light. An eclectic selection of institutions across the artistic spectrum will be opening for the event, from the traditional Van Gogh Museum ( www.vangogh museum.nl) to FOAM, ( www.foam.nl), the modern photography museum, where visitors will be able to view permanent collections and take part in special events, from dancing to debating.
Up all night in Amsterdam Visit the Dutch capital next Saturday and you will see another side to Amsterdam - one far removed from the usual round of bars and restaurants. Around 40 museums will be extending their opening hours into the small hours for the fourth annual Museum Night (00 31 2020 18800; www.n8.nl). But today no area of the performing arts is excluded from the festival schedule, from song and dance to film and theatre. The Archa Theatre (00 420 221 71 63 33; www.archatheatre.cz) gets things started this year, on 25 November.
A number of nightclubs join in with suitably eclectic events An original cultural experience is guaranteed. When it was established more than 10 years ago, the festival was primarily for alternative musicians. Alternative arts in Prague A winter trip to the city of perfect spires and snow-dusted streets should not be confined to strolls and cut-price beer festivals. Every year, the avant garde of the artistic world gathers in Prague in November and December to take part in the Festival Alternativa, a celebration of all things experimentally artistic (00 420 222 24 09 01; www.alternativa-festival.cz).
