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It takes quite a lot for a hotel to become as iconic as the city where it is located. Especially if that city is Rio de Janeiro.

The Brazilian hub is blessed with it all, soaring mountings, lush forests, a necklace of golden-white sands and brilliant blue water and a population of beautiful, gregarious cariocas (as the residents are known).

And one glistening whitewashed building stands out on one of the city's most famous beaches - the Belmond Copacabana Palace, a glorious throwback to Rio's glamorous heyday.

With golden sands, lush mountains and even a National Park, Rio de Janeiro is quite rightfully known as the Marvellous City

The Copacabana Palace is the most iconic hotel in South America and is steeped in history and glamour

Opened as South America's first luxury hotel in 1923, the gleaming Copacabana Palace was a beacon of luxury for the Hollywood elite, who flocked to the exotic climes of Brazil for sun sea and sand.

In its time, the hotel has hosted everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Madonna and Princess Diana and was immortalised in the 1933 film Flying Down To Rio starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers.

And not everyone has been well-behaved during their stay. Stories abound of Orson Welles throwing a desk out of his window in 1942, Errol Flynn reportedly danced naked down the halls in 1939 and Jayne Mansfield allegedly sunbathed topless by the pool, causing something of a stir in the Sixties.

Looking out over Copacabana Beach, the hotel adds a stylish element to an area that has been somewhat overtaken by other beaches, such as Ipanema

Jayne Mansfield allegedly sunbathed topless by the pool of the Copacabana Palace, causing something of a stir in the Sixties

Today, the white facade gives way to a cool marble interior, Baccarat crystal chandeliers, display cases documenting the hotel's history and smiling staff with impeccable English.

The true VIPs stay on the sixth floor, where the most luxurious suites are and such is the hotel's reputation for service, that some wealthy Brazilians will splash out the substantial room rate (from £1,800 a night for a suite and a more modest £284 for a room) for frequent weekend stays.

A documentary last year followed the likes of celebrity hairdresser Marco Antonio di Biaggi, who is based in Sao Paolo but flies up to Rio each weekend to enjoy a luxurious stay at the hotel.

Every morning and evening, cariocas take to the beach to exercise, with a dedicated running track along the beachfront, workout equipment and endless games of football and footvolley

He explained: 'I was born very, very poor and I remember when I was a teenager, I saw Copacabana Palace from the front, and thought: "One day, I'll stay here."'

European and American guests also make up the lion's share of guests, relaxing away from the hubbub of the beach by the serene courtyard pool, playing tennis on the court on the roof and tucking into stylish meals at the on-site Cipriani. Although, if you want a more authentic Brazilian experience, try the feijoada - a traditional black bean stew with pork - served at the Pergula restaurant.

Those lucky enough to have a suite overlooking can sea can wake up the the sun streaming in and a view of energetic cariocas indulging in their morning exercise on the beach, whether that is running, using the public exercise machines or playing footvolley - the uniquely Brazilian sport which, as the name suggest, combines football and volleyball into a creative game of batting a ball over a net without using your hands.

The Santa Teresa neighborhood is perched up in the hills of Rio de Janeiro. Despite transport issues to reach the area of the city, it is well worth it for spectacular views, cobbled streets, great eateries and art galleries

Be careful walking around Santa Teresa at night, but make sure you visit the artists' retreat to soak up the atmosphere

Copacabana as an area has seen better days, certainly if you walk a few blocks back from the beach, where rundown tourist shops blend into everyday Rio life, but the hotel and the beach it graces are still favourites with visitors and locals. And if you want to experience the old-school glamour of the city, it's worth a stop-over at the Copacabana Palace, if only for one night.

In the Sixties, bossa nova music and one particular song - The Girl From Ipanema - turned Copacabana's neighbouring beach into a new stylish hangout. Ipanema's charm remains today, with the city's most beautiful inhabitants flocking to the sands on weekends, where there is always music playing, a football being kicked, and crowds thronging the food stalls.

Head inland from the beach for stylish boutiques, big brand names, restaurants and buzzing bars. It is in one of these bars where composer Antonio Carlos Jobim and poet Vinícius de Moraes's were said to be so enamoured with passing 18-year-old Heloisa Eneida Menezes Pais Pinto, they penned a song about her on napkins.

Rio Scenarium is one of the most popular gafieras (dance halls) in the Lapa district of Rio, where tourists and locals dance the night away to samba, choro and forró beats

They were sat in Veloso Bar, which has, of course, now rebranded as Garota de Ipanema (The Girl from Ipanema) and is filled with stylish young people looking for a cool Brahms beer in the heat of the day.

For quieter beaches and great food, still further west is Leblon beach. Its distance from the main tourist spots means it is the quieter of the beaches along that popular stretch of Rio coastline and the streets behind the sands have become a culinary hub. 

The street Dias Ferreira is possibly the best street for eateries in Leblon - and Rio - with cuisine from all over the world represented from Spanish tapas at Venga! to Italian at Stuzzi and the well-respected eatery Sushi Leblon.

While it's tempting to spend all day on the beach, before heading to Pão de Açúcar (Sugarloaf Mountain) or the rocky promontory Ponta do Arpoador between Copcabana and Ipanema (where there is a park named... you guessed it Garota de Ipanema) to watch the most spectacular sunsets you'll ever see, there is more to Rio than golden sands.

In fact, head to the city area and you'll discover so much more about Rio and its history. If you want to feel the true samba rhythms of the city, head up to Lapa, a charmingly run-down area that had fallen on hard times and become a red light district, but has been cleaned up in recent years.

In the evening, the colonial architecture just adds to the romance of a district gripped by music, with samba, choro and forró beats seeping into the night air from traditional gafieras - the 1920s-style dance halls which have recently seen a resurgence - as well as plenty of clubs.

Santa Teresa sits high up in the city, set back from the sea, with cobbled streets, colourful buildings and plenty of greenery around. Art galleries, eateries and beautiful views make it a pleasure to stroll around, although be careful at night, and there is no shortage of bars where you can mingle with Bohemian locals and drink artisan Cachaça late into the night. Santa Teresa is a pain to get to - you'll be relying on buses or a taxi to whisk you into the hills since the much-needed trams were taken out of service following a tragic accident that left six dead - but it's worth the climb. 

Sugarloaf not only stands out as an iconic peak looking over the city, but also as a fantastic spot for panoramic views of Rio at sunset

Rio's pacified favelas have become popular for parties and even affordable accommodation as locals set up guesthouses and businesses to cater to tourists looking for a unique place to stay

If you're looking for nightlife, the latest trend is to head to the favelas for funk parties. While it may not always be advisable - the favelas are the slums of Rio, mazes of concrete block houses often perched high in the hills with spectacular views over the city - that hasn't stopped tourists joining locals to party into the small hours.

Police crackdowns have cleaned up a lot of favelas around the city, taking them back from the drug gangs that once controlled them as part of a pacification programme - although that is not to say that they are all safe.

While some tourists opt for organised favela tours - which are encouraged for their potential investment benefits and derided as 'poverty tourism' in equal measure - it seems attending a party in the slums is the latest trend for backpackers.

There is even talk of tourists joining locals for 'laje parties' which take place on the flat roofs of the favela properties, with barbecues and, of course, plenty of music.

For those who aren't sold on the idea of dancing the night away, there are plenty of guest house and rental options for accommodation in the favelas, providing a new income for locals and helping visitors avoid the sky-high hotel prices often quoted in the city. 

One thing the favelas can't be beaten on is there spectacular views. Head out onto one of the lajes (roofs) and look out across the lush greens of Tijuca National Park, the bright patchwork of houses below, soaring peaks and the sea glistening in the distance. 

Suddenly you understand why Rio is known as the Cidade Maravilhosa (Marvellous City).

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Cannes in the South of France hosts the world's most glittering film festival, where the cream of Hollywood and European stars dazzle on the red carpet.

On this year from 13-24 May, the event sets the chic French Riviera town alight and is one of the highlights of the cinematic year. 

With so many stars and their attendant hangers-on in town, hotel prices go through the roof and the town booms in what for many other places along the Riviera is low season. 

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Cannes you believe it? Dirty sea bed of French Riviera

But just yards from the iconic Boulevard de la Croisette, where celebs glitter in their finery on the red carpet, the waters of the Mediterranean are anything but sparkling.

And the extent of the problem has been revealed in a video made by local diver and environmentalist Laurent Lombard.

As he pans the camera across the surface of the sea, everything looks as it should be, with expensive boats bobbing on what looks like a clear azure-blue sea.

Laurent Lombard has been chronicling the state of the town's waters on his Facebook page

It was only when Laurent posted a video of the junk dumped in the waters around the town that the mayor announced a clean up

But then the camera bobs down under the water and things change dramatically.  

The video, which has now been viewed close to three million times since the 37-year old diver posted it on Facebook, shows a shocking picture of marine pollution, which Lombard says is affecting not just the town, but the wider waters of the Mediterranean. 

The problem, says Lombard, who was born close in Cannes, in the town of Fréjus, is one that affects many of the world's oceans that may appear clean on the surface but which below water reveal a dirtier picture. 

Laurent Lombard captured the rubbish floating just below the surface of the azure seas

The problem, says Lombard, is that the Mediterranean is a closed sea making the concentration of plastic waste far higher than in the Atlantic

Lombard highlighted the pollution of the sea around Cannes but says the problem affects a lot of the Med coast

Normally pollution like this is unseen by tourists and it is only divers who are aware of how much litter is on the seabed.

But the celebs in Cannes are not the only ones who risk bathing in a host of debris if they take to the sea for a swim. 

The diver has also documented pollution close to the holiday villa of former French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, his camera revealing a sea bed covered with detritus. The waters of Cap Nègre, near to Sarkozy's sprawling Mediterranean home are littered with plastic bags, bottles and paper.

Since Lombard posted his video the Mayor of Cannes has cleaned the town's waters and it is one of the few towns in the world that cleans the seabed every three years.

Glamorous Cannes is on the French Riviera and is famed for its celebrity fans and marina packed with superyachts

A royally good look: Nicole Kidman posing for photographers on the red carpet for the opening ceremony and the screening of Grace of Monaco at the 67th international film festival last year

The problem, says Lombard, is that the Mediterranean is a closed sea making the concentration of plastic waste far higher than in the Atlantic. 

But those who take to the waters have nothing to fear.

'There is no danger to swimmers,' asserts Lombard. 'The most important thing is education. Do not throw anything on the street because with the rain it often ends up in our seas or rivers.'

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Turkish hotel owner Mustafa is recalling the time he woke up to find Hollywood star Russell Crowe outside his bedroom window.

'I opened my curtains and said, "Bloody hell!" I could see a film crew 300 yards away,' he says, pointing towards the hundreds of abandoned stone houses lining the hillside.

We're in Kayakoy, one of the world's spookiest 'ghost towns' near Oludeniz in south-west Turkey, where Crowe filmed scenes for his latest movie The Water Diviner.

The ghost town of Kayakoy was chosen as a location as it has remained largely untouched since the 1920s

Crowe plays Australian farmer Joshua Connor, who travels to Turkey to discover the fate of his three sons, who went missing at the Battle of Gallipoli during the First World War.

Crowe chose Kayakoy as a location as the area has remained largely untouched since the 1920s.

It was once a thriving village but the population exchange agreement of 1923, following the Greco-Turkish war, saw Kayakoy's mostly Greek inhabitants sent to Greece, while attempts to settle Turkish-speaking people from Greece in Kayakoy failed.

Crowe plays Australian farmer Joshua Connor, who travels to Turkey to discover the fate of his three sons, who went missing at the Battle of Gallipoli during the First World War

The lower church in Kayakoy is closed for restoration. When it will reopen is anybody's guess

Although Kayakoy has been a protected archaeological site since the 1980s, there are plans to develop it.

Opponents fear it will lose its authenticity and have set up a Facebook group to save it. Louis de Bernières, whose novel Birds Without Wings was inspired by the setting, is one of those uncertain about the ghost town's future. For now, there are few signs of mass tourism.

A handful of restaurants sit at the entrance to the town, and the only attempts to lure tourists are souvenir stalls and a sign advertising camel treks.

Looking for a nearby beach, try the beautiful heart-shaped sands of the Blue Lagoon in the Bay of Oludeniz

Russell Crowe stayed at the Yacht Classic hotel in Fethiye, in one of its water villas

When my husband and I enter, we discover the lower church, where Crowe filmed, is closed for restoration. When it will reopen is anybody's guess. It has been locked up for months with no sign of work. Locals shrug and say: 'Turkish time.'

We follow a walking map that takes us round the town. It's 9.30am but already the sun is blazing and I feel my heart pounding as we take the steep, rocky path up the hill.

The air is still except for the chorus of crickets. We stop to peer into one of the houses - its roof is missing and a tree is growing inside.

A lizard scurries up one of the walls. It's hard to imagine the lively place this once was.

After an hour of exploring, it's back to civilisation in nearby Fethiye and our luxury hotel, the Yacht Classic, where Crowe stayed in one of its water villas.

Daniel Craig stayed in the penthouse while filming Skyfall and it was renamed the 007 James Bond Penthouse

He's not the only famous guest. Daniel Craig stayed in the penthouse while filming Skyfall and it has been renamed the 007 James Bond Penthouse. 

At nearby Koca Calis beach, where Skyfall's beach scene was shot, every bar claims to be 'the 007 bar'. In reality, the film's purpose-built bar has long since been dismantled. 

Locally, it's worth visiting the blue lagoon at Oludeniz, taking a '12 islands' boat trip, and going to one of newsreader Michael Buerk's favourite restaurants, Oztoklu, in Fethiye. 

Here the owners take us to the neighbouring fish market to choose our dinner before it is cooked using a family recipe.

Yacht Classic owner Banuhan Argin tells us that Daniel Craig stuck to a diet of sea bass, salmon and spinach during his stay, while Russell Crowe loved a big steak.

'They had different styles,' she says.'Daniel wanted to be alone but Russell had parties with 200 guests. There were wine barrels everywhere. I think they both loved Fethiye because when they were checking out, I saw the smile.'

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These incredible photos show the damage caused by a bird strike to a passenger plane.

The Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul to Nevşehir in Turkey was on approach to land when it was involved in a severe hit with a unlucky bird.

There were 125 passengers on board the Boeing 737-800, and there were not believed to be any injuries suffered on the landing on Tuesday.

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The nose cone was flattened by a sever bird strike as the plane landed at Nevşehir in Turkey

The extent of the damage has surprised many after the photos were posted on Twitter

The pilot relayed the incident to air traffic control, and two other flights scheduled to land had to abort and perform a go-around.

The nose cone, splattered with blood, shows extensive damage, and the aircraft was towed to a hangar for maintenance.

As the photos were shared on Twitter by @Flight-Report, users expressed their shock at the level of damage on the aircraft.

One wrote: 'This is a donkey strike not a bird strike,' while @annispice asked the question: 'What was it a pterodactyl!'

Miran Zagragja was similarly surprised with the photos, writing: 'WHAT? So big damage? Was it a dragon?'

A spokesperson for Turkish Airlines told MailOnline Travel: 'The damage of the nose area (radome) by bird hit is a common incident on civil aeronautical operations.

'The radome area of a plane is constructed by soft materials (composit) to minimalize the impact of such hits.

'Therefore, such standard/normal deformation occurs as a natural result of such incidents.

'One can also state that the critical bird hits in aviation is the ones that occur on the engine area. Any other area of the aircraft than the engine area, such as radome, wings, hull, do not pose a risk when hit by a bird.'

The wing of the Boeing 737-800 was also badly damaged when the plane was hit by a bird-strike

Despite the bird-strike, the plane landed safely on the runway and there are not thought to be any injuries to the 145 passengers on board

Back in April, an Alaska Airlines plane heading from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to San Jose, California, was forced to return to Seattle due to a bird strike.

Spokeswoman Halley Knigge (K-NIGGY) confirmed at the time that Flight 336 departed around 8.50pm and returned about 9.40pm 'out of an abundance of caution' for a full maintenance inspection. She said the bird strike occurred shortly after takeoff.

There were no injuries among the 112 passengers and five crew members aboard the Boeing 737.

She said the passengers were put on another plane for their flight to San Jose.

Flames shoot out of engine after plane strikes birds mid flight

In March, a passenger recorded video of the terrifying moment flames shot out of a Lufthansa plane's engine after striking a flock of birds off the coast of Lebanon.

The bird strike occurred moments after the Airbus A321 took off from Beirut's international airport en route to Frankfurt.

The plane was carrying 144 passengers when it lost power in one of its two engines and was forced to turn around and make an emergency landing in Beirut. 

A Lufthansa spokesman told MailOnline Travel at the time: 'The aircraft landed safe and all passengers left the aircraft over the normal stairs.

'All passengers have been offered hotel accommodation and were rebooked on other airlines and on our scheduled daily services.'

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A plane spotter has captured the heart-pounding moment a Ryanair flight was caught in powerful crosswinds as it approached a runway.

The plane's crew battled to maintain a straight flight path as the Boeing 737 was blown to the side by punishing wind gusts at Leeds Bradford International Airport yesterday.

It created the optical illusion that the passenger jet was hovering over the ground while it was coming in for landing.

Strong winds force plane to land SIDEWAYS at Leeds airport

The plane tilted to one side (left) as it approached the runway at Leeds Bradford International Airport

Footage shows the plane wobbling and tilting to one side as it was battered by high winds at the airport north-west of Leeds.

Despite the extreme conditions the flight crew managed to make a safe landing.

MailOnline Travel has contacted Ryanair for comment.

A 70-second video shot from the ground shows the plane wobbling as it was battered by powerful winds

Despite the extreme weather conditions the plane's pilots managed to make a safe landing

Strong winds have been causing major problems at UK airports over the last two days.

Several flights being delayed or forced to divert as a result of the weather conditions.

This morning a Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to London Heathrow Airport was forced to divert to Stansted Airport due to 'high winds', the airline tweeted.

A passenger tweeted: 'Thanks 2 the pilot of flight DL30 that aborted our landing at LHR & did a safe emergency landing. Feel SO lucky 2 be here!'