DANNY ROBINS' INDIE TRAVEL GUIDE TO...REBEL HOLIDAYS

So, it's Guy Fawkes night on Friday and to mark his bid to blow up the Houses of Parliament, kill the King and bring about a revolution, the Indie Travel Guide this week has a distinctly anti-authority, counter-culture, 'stick it to the man' feel as I give you my rundown of 5 ideas for 'Rebel Holidays'.

Gonzo-Trippin'

Kicking us off, one of the counter-culture legends, a genuine rebel Hunter S Thompson; the crazy maverick journalist and author who was immortalised in the film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas starring Johnny Depp.

You can follow the journey he made by driving from LA to Vegas - read the book of Fear and Loathing as you go, head past Barstow on the edge of the desert where the book begins with him hallucinating a plague of bats and then you'll come to Sin City. Whilst in Vegas never forget the great man's words: "Order some golf shoes... Otherwise, we'll never get out of this place alive..."

After you've done your thang amongst the roulette wheels, the bars and the seedy motels, keep driving 1600km through the deserts of Nevada and Utah until you come to Pitkin County in the mountains of Colorado. Thompson stood in the election to be sheriff here in 1970 on a 'Freak Power' ticket with a manifesto that was "pro-hippie, anti-development" - he nearly won too. He even shaved his head for a televised debate so he could refer to the Republican candidate who had a crew-cut as 'my long-haired friend'. You can visit the town of Woody Creek where he lived most of his life.

If you time your trip right you could stop off at an event in the Nevada desert that I don't think HST ever went to but he would certainly have approved of - The Burning Man Festival. Burning Man's organisers say "trying to explain what Burning Man is to someone who has never been... is a bit like trying to explain what a particular color looks like to someone who is blind." I'll try though...

It's basically a huge great whoop-up in the desert (so really hot) where people leave behind their normal lives and shed all the trappings of capitalist conformist society. No money is allowed - you take what you need and anything else you have to barter for. Clothing is optional and a policy of 'radical self-expression' is encouraged - that could be through art, dance or perhaps just wondering around in the nuddy. It's basically America's finest living example of the hippie counter-culture spirit and Hunter would have loved it. Oh, and they burn a giant wicker man. Get in.

The next one is August 29th - September 5th 2011. Tickets go on sale on January 19th.

Be a Martyr

From the Nevada desert to rural Dorset, and more specifically, the brilliantly named Piddle Valley, which is home to the tiny village of Tolpuddle (formerly known as Tolpiddle apparently but the Victorians changed the name because it sounded rude).

So, why should you visit Tolpuddle? Well, it's nice and picturesque with lots of cottages with thatched roofs, but the real reason to go is that it is where the modern trade union movement was born thanks to a group of men known as the Tolpuddle Martyrs.

For bonding together to try and make sure their wages weren't reduced, the six men were arrested, tried and then given the worst punishment possible - being sent to Australia. They became popular heroes and due to a public outcry were released and sent back home.

They're still heroes of the trade union movement today. If you visit Tolpuddle you can go to the Tolpuddle Martyrs Museum (www.tolpuddlemartyrs.org.uk) and visit the tree under which the Martyrs met.

Every third week of July, the village hosts a Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival - Tony Benn always speaks and Billy Bragg usually plays.

Havana good time

Let's face it - Dorset can be a bit cold and wet at this time of year, so let's head somewhere that combines sticking it to the man with getting a sun tan... Cuba. Anybody who's ever had a Che Guevara poster or T-shirt knows that it don't get more rebel icon counter culture cool than that.

Of course, Huey can't legally travel there, but you can and it's well worth doing if you like your revolution mixed with mojitos, cigars and salsa.

You can take a guided tour that takes you round all the important revolutionary sites in 2 weeks but if that all seems a bit conformist and 'capitalist lackey running dog' then you can put together your own itinerary.

You need to be looking at taking in things like Castro's command post of 'La Plata' in the Sierra Maestre mountains where the 'companeros' holed up during the fight against President Batista, Che's Mausoleum in Santa Clara (a site of pilgrimage for Che fans - surely the place to buy your 'Che beret'), the Bay of Pigs of course - scene of the failed American invasion in 1961 and the spark for the Cuban Missile crisis and finally Havana - a cool city to be in anyway and home to the Revolutionary Museum.

After all that revolutionary traipsing about, you'll need a drink. The Hotel Nacional do a particularly fine mojito with real sugarcane. And, if you really want to get like Che and Fidel you'll need a genuine Cuban cigar.

Lithuania - my secret travel tip

You probably haven't been to Lithuania. You probably weren't planning to, but can I take this opportunity to heartily recommend it?

The reason it's on my list of 'rebel holiday' destinations is that is that on 11th March 1990, Lithuania became the first Soviet Republic to declare independence, thus bringing about the chain of events that would see the end of the Soviet Union.

The Soviets didn't let go lightly and there were some actual martyrs here when troops shot on civilians.

Today, though Lithuania has left behind that past and is basically just a really great place to visit. You might be thinking, like I did before I went, that it'll be a bit grey, utilitarian and post-Soviet, but the countryside is stunning and the capital Vilnius is beautiful - a bit like Prague with a truly lovely old town but without the crowds. It's cheap, everyone's really friendly, the food's good and so is the beer.

The former KGB headquarters has been turned into a museum - it's a bit eerie and a reminder of what people had to go through in the Soviet days.

They haven't given up on the spirit of revolution there, one area of Vilnius - Uzupis - has declared itself an independent republic. It's an arty, bohemian area and it's even got its own constitution which includes such great bits of legislation as:

"Everyone has the right to die but this is not an obligation.

Everyone has the right to love.

A dog has the right to be a dog.

A cat is not obliged to love its owner but is obliged to help in times of need."

I made a travel programme there about a year ago, so I now bizarrely get lots of fan mail from Lithuanians - long may it continue! But seriously, I was really won over by the country and Vilnius would now be one of my big tips for a long weekend jaunt - it won't cost you a lot and you can surprise your other half/mates with where you're going. For more info check out this.

To see me in action in my other life as a TV travel presenter have a look at this - you'll be able to see the KGB museum and Uzupis:

And finally...

What about actually following in Guy Fawkes footsteps by visiting the House of Parliament (okay, this wasn't the one he was trying to blow up as it was built between 1840 and 1870).

A lot of people don't know that you can go on a guided tour. You need to write in advance to your MP or a Lord (if you know one!) and you go on a waiting list. It can take up to 6 months, and you probably have to prove you're not a threat to national security, but the tour is well worth it. I've done it and I think it's one of the most interesting tours of anywhere in the UK and quite a buzz to glimpse behind the scenes of the seat of power. The man who gave me a tour is now one of the actors in The Thick of It - Alex Macqueen who plays Julius Nicholson - in a nice example of art imitating life.

• Bookmark with:
• del.icio.us |
• Digg |
• Newsvine |
• NowPublic |
• Reddit
• - What's this?