Marriott Bonvoy® American Express® Card (Representative 53.3% APR Variable, Annual fee applies, 18+, Subject to status, terms and conditions apply)
For most of us, taking pictures of a gleaming paella, Vietnamese pho or a display of lavender macarons is a huge part of being on holiday. Looking at the shots on our phone screens brings back not just the memory of a taste, but the place, the time, a soundtrack of conversations and emotions of that particular moment, a sensory souvenir of that pastel de nata in Belém or the crispy, wavy filo on the delicious spanakopita – the classic Greek spinach and cheese pie – at my friend Orfeas’s home on Cephalonia.
As a travel writer, food underlies so much of what I write about since it opens up the culture and history of a destination through local ingredients, preparation and cultivation. The photos represent a nostalgic trip back to the people I met and their stories. My dream travel experience, essentially, is discovering gastronomic gems and taking shots of the food, tucked-away restaurants and fresh produce markets I encounter along the way.
Jon Bryant: ‘Food opens up the culture and history of a destination through local ingredients, preparation and cultivation’. Photographs: Rebecca Marshall/The Guardian
And I’m not alone in my enthusiasm – food, particularly sampling the local cuisine, is an important consideration for many holidaymakers. And if you have a Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card you can gather points while savouring local dishes on your gastronomic adventures. Cardmembers earn two points for every £1 spent using the Card, which can then be redeemed at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy on future stays and dining, adding more new dinner experiences to your list.
My favourite food destination is Genoa and the Ligurian coast in northern Italy. The city, renowned for its pesto and panissa, has an Eataly food hall in the revamped port with huge racks of tomato paste, farinata, pasta and cheese.
Down on Via XX Settembre, one of the main thoroughfares in the centre of the city, is the Mercato Orientale, a fresh produce market with glistening fish and stacks of artichokes. A little farther down the boulevard is the Cremeria Gran Sasso ice-cream parlour, safekeeping its fior di latte and fruity gelato inside steel canisters.
Sometimes you stumble across a restaurant on your way to somewhere else. In Genoa, I was heading to the Castello D’Albertis on a hill above the city and came across Osteria Carabàs on Vico Tana. The tiny restaurant serves the most amazing Ligurian cuisine, such as homemade trofie al pesto, tuna seared with a pistachio crust, and black spaghetti with seafood. Meanwhile, at the AC Hotel Genova, you can enjoy beautiful views as the sun goes down during dinner on the terrace.
Enjoy top regional dining at the AC Hotel Bologna and AC Hotel Genova
Head inland, travelling east to Bologna, for more photogenic local produce and aromatic snack bars. Stay at the AC Hotel Bologna, just a few blocks from the Trattoria di Via Serra – a great place to experience Bologna’s superlative pasta dishes. Back at the hotel, perks include a free fitness centre and meeting rooms for business travellers, plus Marriott Bonvoy® American Express® Cardmembers will quickly amass points during their stay. Cardmembers gain six points for every £1 spent at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy, which can go towards room upgrades and free stays for their next culinary trip.
Across the border in France, Nice has developed into one of the country’s foodie hotspots in the last five years, with a huge selection of traditional and fusion fare, and eight Michelin-starred restaurants. Nice also has a popular cooking school, Les Petits Farcis, which offers classes in English and tours of the excellent fresh produce market on the Cours Saleya.
AC Hotel Marseille Prado Velodrome’s on site restaurant offers Mediterranean-inspired dishes. Photograph: Marc Rabaux/Studio BaALT
Marseille is another French city with a burgeoning food scene, renowned for its beloved bouillabaisse (Provençal fish soup). The AC Hotel Marseille Prado Velodrome, set alongside Olympique Marseille’s futuristic football stadium, is perfectly placed to enjoy the city’s growing gastronomic reputation, and also has a restaurant on site, Oh Massalia, offering Mediterranean-inspired dishes.
Food and photography can offer a deep insight into a new city, and I often find myself walking miles during my trips, locating food markets, tracking down recommended restaurants, and finding the best places to sample the local delicacies. It’s common to eat dinner later in France and Italy, than in the UK. For a more relaxed start in the morning, your Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card automatically gives you Silver Elite status at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy, making you eligible for Priority Late Checkout (subject to availability). You can upgrade to Gold Elite status with even more benefits when you spend £15,000 in a year as a Marriott Bonvoy® Amex® Cardmember.
Clockwise from top left: the W Barcelona and its stylish rooftop pool; Barcelona’s rowdy and colourful Mercat de la Boqueria; fresh artichokes in Rome’s Mercato di Testaccio. Photographs: Andrea Federici/Shutterstock; Factofoto/Alamy
A joy for any photographer is always the fresh food markets with their piles of spices, cured sausages, cheeses, pastries, and fruit and vegetables. Having drifted through the aisles of many of France’s most celebrated halles as well as the English market in Cork, Atarazanas in Málaga, Markthal in Rotterdam and Rome’s Mercato di Testaccio, the most picturesque is Barcelona’s Mercat de la Boqueria. Packed with locals and visitors, it’s rowdy, colourful, majestic and, set in a cavernous hall from the 1830s, is enticingly photogenic.
Wherever you end up, in a few months’ time, you’ll look back at your photos, linger over those mouth-watering piles of cheese and pastries, and start planning your next food-based adventure.
How does the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card work?
For every £1 you spend on your Card, you’ll receive two Marriott Bonvoy® points. If you’re using your Card at a hotel participating in Marriott Bonvoy, you’ll receive six points per eligible £1 spent. Points can then be redeemed to explore 9,500 properties across more than 30 leading brands in 144 countries and territories, and on more than 150 airlines.
The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card is also well suited to regular travellers. All Cardmembers start with Silver Elite status, and they are eligible for a Free Night Award after spending £25,000 in a year.
Search for Amex Marriott Bonvoy for more information
Representative 53.3% APR Variable, Annual fee applies, 18+, Subject to status, terms and conditions apply.
Important Information
You will receive 6 Points from American Express for each full £1 of eligible purchases made on your Marriott Bonvoy® American Express® Card at participating Marriott Bonvoy® properties. You will be awarded 2 Points for every full £1 you spend on purchases. Points are not earned on balance transfers, cash withdrawals, American Express Travellers Cheques purchases, foreign exchange transactions, interest, any spending in excess of your credit limit, changes for returned payments, late payments, referral charges, or American Express Credit Card finance charges. Written details are available on request.
Redemption level at or under 25,000 Points at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy ®. Certain hotels have resort fees. If you reach £25,000 in net purchases charged to your account in any Cardmembership year, you will earn a Free Night Awards, redeemable within one year for an available single-or double-occupancy standard room at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy. Account must be in good standing. On the annual reset date, the amount of annual net purchases resets to zero. Additional Terms and Conditions apply. Free Night Award and no blackouts apply to standard rooms only as defined by each participating property; contact the property before booking to check availability. To view the full Terms and Conditions, visit marriott.co.uk.
You will receive complimentary Marriott Bonvoy ® Silver Elite status with your Marriott Bonvoy ® American Express ® Card. This complimentary Silver Elite status benefit is only available to the Basic Cardmember. If your Card is cancelled for any reason, your complimentary Silver Elite status provided with the Card will be cancelled.
If you reach £15,000 in net purchases charged to your Account in any Cardmembership year, you (the Basic Cardmember) will be enrolled for at least 12 months in the Gold Elite tier of the Marriott Bonvoy ® loyalty programme (unless you are already enrolled in an equivalent or higher level – Marriott Bonvoy ® associates excluded). Please allow 12-16 weeks after your eligible spending equals or exceeds such amount for the applicable year for enrolment to become effective. On the annual reset date, the amount of annual net purchases resets to zero. Additional Terms and Conditions apply.
Your upgrade to Gold elite Status is valid for the remainder of the calendar year in which it was earned and the subsequent calendar year. Your enrolment will expire after that subsequent calendar year unless your eligible purchases during the next calendar year again qualify you for enrolment, or you qualify for Gold Elite Status under Marriott Bonvoy terms. You cannot receive enrolment in Gold Elite Status through Marriott Bonvoy if you are already enrolled at Gold Elite Status or any higher status.
15 Elite Night Credits: Upon opening your Card account, a maximum or 15 Elite Night credits will be credited to your Marriott Bonvoy ® Member Account within 60 days. On or before 1 March of each subsequent calendar year, a maximum of 15 Elite Night Credits will be credited to your Marriott Bonvoy Member Account operated by Marriott International, Inc., in accordance with Marriott Bonvoy terms and conditions To be eligible to receive the 15 Elite Night Credits with this Card, you must be the Basic Cardmember, your Card account must be in good standing at the time of the 15 Elite Night Credit deposit, and you must have an active Marriott Bonvoy ® programme Account. To receive the 15 Elite Night Credit deposit, your Card account must be linked to a Marriott Bonvoy ® programme Account in your name. You will receive a maximum of 15 Elite Night Credits per calendar year even if you have more than one Marriott Bonvoy ® Credit Card account or have more than one Marriott Bonvoy ® programme Account. American Express is not responsible for fulfilment of this benefit. It will take approximately eight weeks from the Card account approval date for the credits to be applied to your loyalty account.
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