Travellers' ChecksMark Twain's guides to world travel; upmarket Lijiang

As a budding travel writer, it was Mark Twain's intention to "suggest to the reader how he would be likely to see Europe and the East if he looked at them with his own eyes instead of the eyes of those who travelled in those countries before him". In other words, no bland descriptions of museums, markets and monuments, but plenty of wry observational humour. This was groundbreaking stuff when The Innocents Abroad was published in 1869, and it became his most popular work during his lifetime, outselling both The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885). Twain's dry blend of self-deprecation and undisguised contempt for his fellow travellers remains an enduring style template for popular travel writers today. American Vandal: Mark Twain Abroad, by Roy Morris Jnr, is a new book that follows "the father of American literature" during the dozen years he spent travelling and compiling The Innocents Abroad, A Tramp Abroad (1880) and his most ambitious travel book, Following the Equator (1897). All three are available for Kindle on Amazon.com free of charge, while American Vandal (named after Twain's unflattering description of the first American mass tourists) will be available to order in hardback from Tuesday.

Raffles Hotels and Resorts is offering bonus nights with restaurant and spa credits at 12 of its properties for stays until April 13. A third free night is offered at hotels in Beijing, Hainan, Manila, Jakarta, Siem Reap, and Phnom Penh, fourth nights are free in Paris, Dubai, Istanbul, Singapore (above) and the Seychelles, and a fifth night is on the house should you wish to stay that long at the Raffles Makkah Palace, in Saudi Arabia. Credits range from US$50 to US$100. For further details, visit www.raffles.com and click on "The World and You, with Raffles" link.

The scenic and historic town of Lijiang, in Yunnan province, is going rapidly upmarket this year, first with the rebranding of the Crowne Plaza Lijiang Ancient Town into an InterContinental last month, and this month with the opening of the long-awaited Amandayan. The third Aman property in China (joining Aman at the Summer Palace, in Beijing, and Amanfayun, in Hangzhou), Amandayan is likely to be the finest of a smattering of luxury properties that started opening in Lijiang after the arrival of the Banyan Tree, in 2006. It comprises 35 suites in three styles contained within traditional courtyards, and provides impressive town and mountain views (top). A restaurant serves Yunnan and Cantonese food, including dim sum, and there's a spa with the accent on Traditional Chinese Medicine. For a closer look, and opening rates, go to www.amanresorts.com.

Anantara Phuket Layan in, not surprisingly, Phuket has just installed a Thai boxing ring (above) in which guests can hitch up their baggy silk shorts, pull on a pair of muay thai boxing gloves and work off the stresses and strains of holidaying. One-hour classes start from 2,500 baht (HK$600) or you can sign up for five days of lessons from 12,500 baht. Prices are slightly cheaper for couples, and family packages (with children aged 4-12) are also available. Find out more at phuket-layan.anantara.com.