2/6/2020 – Karen Grigoryan has only been living in Spain for a couple of months, but the Armenian GM has already gained more than 100 ratings points since and won no less than five tournaments in Portugal — most recently the big open and ensuing rapid in Lisbon. STEFAN LOEFFLER reports. | All photos: Portuguese Chess Federation

12/22/2019 – The Chess Train tournament launched in 2013 in various years covers the Czech Republic, parts of Germany, Austria, Poland and Slovakia. Now a similar idea is launching in India from January 26th to February 2nd, 2020, in the state of Kerala: A Chess Houseboat tournament! Every day double-rounds will be played, each round consisting of 20 minutes per player, inside a houseboat in various scenic locations. A total of €5000 prize fund is up for grabs and only first 100 registered players will be able to participate. This is your unique chance to combine chess with sight seeing in one of the most beautiful destinations in India. | Photo: Official site

9/10/2019 – The region of South Tyrol beckons European tourists in the autumn with beautiful hiking and other outdoor adventures. For chess fans who prefer to stay indoors, (in this case even subterranean) there is also the small and unique weekend tournament held in the wine cellar of Kaltern am See from October 18-20. | Photos: Gerhard Betrtagnolli

9/7/2019 – Certainly you have noticed the big "H" in the headline for this post. And indeed, ALINA L'AMI is alive and well, reporting on a chess tournament in the Norwegian village "Hell", which lies about 40 km east of Trondheim. And as always, Alina managed to create magical photos, not to mention the obligatory photo with the providentially humoristic sign; “Gods Expedition” — in fact the archaic spelling for cargo handling. | Photos: Alina l'Ami

8/13/2019 – As summer begins to wane, fans of southern Italy can look forward to a September holiday destination. DIANA MIHAJLOVA offers a pictoral report with annotated games about the Amantea Chess Festival in Calabria, Italy, which was won last year by GM Pier Luigi Basso. It is meant to introduce a little known but rich chess destination that is Calabria. The actual Amantea Chess Festival will resume its activities, as usual, from the next year, but for now, during its traditional term, 9- 15 September, another Calabrese chess historical town, Cutro, in the Amantea’s vicinity, will celebrate a jubilee 25 year of the International Chess Festival ‘Leonardo di Bona’. | Pictured: The rocky Tyrrhenian coast at a sunset: On the outskirts of Amantea lie the enchanting Isca rocks, supposedly described by Homer in the ‘Odyssey’. All photos: Diana Mihajlova

1/7/2019 – About halfway between Milan and Venice lies Lake Garda, with the town of Arco at its northern end, once again the venue of a small but festive amateur tournament between the Christmas and New Year celebrations. The 9th edition of this tournament ended in a dead heat between four players but FM Alessio de Santis from Italy was the lucky winner in the end. Gerhard Bertagnolli sends these highlights — suitable for beginners — and photos from an attractive winter holiday destination.

12/12/2018 – Most chess players who have visited Iceland have stayed and played in Reykjavik. Northern Iceland is another story, quite different from the capital area. This spring there is a chance to visit an exotic part of the country to play in an international tournament – in beautiful surroundings and excellent conditions. The Icelandic Open 2019 will take place from May 25th to June 1st in Akureyri, just 60 km south of the Arctic Circle. Plan it in.

12/6/2018 – The Sunway Sitges International Chess Festival returns next week for a 5th edition in Sitges, Barcelona, Spain from December 13th to the 23rd. There are still a few places available in the tournament which is rapidly becoming one of the strongest open events in the chess world, and this year will feature Russian GM Dmitry Andreikin, Ukrainian GM Vassily Ivanchuk and Indian super-talents GM Nihal Sarin and GM R. Praggnanandhaa. | Photo: Sharath Elumulai

11/3/2018 – One month from today, and a decade after the inaugural Penang International Chess Open in June 2009, the 10th edition of the Open returns in the Malaysian state of Penang! It is bigger and richer. How much richer? How about USD $12,000 in total prize money! | Pictured (left) Penang has been recognised as a World Heritage site since the year 2008 / (right) Filipino GM Darwin Laylo is one of the registered grandmasters. | Photos: Penang Chess Association

10/1/2018 – Playing a chess tournament in an almost mystical wine cellar. Impossible you say? Not quite: in the wine village of Kaltern in South Tyrol an unusual tournament will be played next month for the third time. Appealing ambience and of course wine tasting included. A brief preview.

9/24/2018 – The name of the tournament sounds like music. On Tenerife, the "1st Torneo Internacional de Ajedrez San Cristobal de la Laguna" was held, fittingly in an old convent. The guests met a chess-loving population, young and old. Venezuelan IM Daniel Pulvett emerged the winner a half point ahead of Grandmasters Ilja Zaragatzki and José ("Pepe") Cuenco Jiminez and FM Makan Rafiee who tied for second place. | Photos: Melik Kramer

9/20/2018 – Having had the time of his life at the Faroes Open 2017, GM SRINATH NARAYANAN couldn’t resist an opportunity to go back to Europe’s best keep secret of Summer once more. He had no reasons to regret, as apart from the wild winds, warm people, fresh locations, he also won the Faroes Open for the second time. This year’s starting list was headed by GM Gawain Jones and was a strong tournament that had 17 titled players out of 36 players. The tournament included 7 GMs, and 5 IMs, making it a field made up of almost 50% titled players and 33% of them above the International Master title. | Photo: Jógvan Martin Joensen

9/20/2018 – As we count down the last days of (Northern) summer, we take a look at another highlight from the open season that was. Think of the Strasbourg Open as a real insider tip for all chess fans: Take the road to picturesque Alsace. MANFRED MENACHER did and was enthusiastic about the organization of the Roos brothers as well as the beautiful scenery. | Photos: M. Menacher

9/12/2018 – The Serbian capital, Belgrade, is recovering from 20th century conflict, and DIANA MIHAJLOVA takes us on a brief photo tour, following the chess tournament (part 1). | Pictured: Saint Sava Temple with a statue of Karadjorgje, the founder of modern Serbia. He led the First Serbian Uprising of 1804–1813 fighting for independence from the Ottoman Empire. Saint Sava and Karadjorgje (Karađorđe) epitomize the Serbian national identity. | Photos: Diana Mihajlova

8/20/2018 – When I spotted a tournament in Gold Coast, I was only too happy to tick my 3rd continent out of 7. With a population of mere 6,00,000 and an Air Quality score of 18, Gold Coast is one of those ideal escapes. It’s a unique place where one can spot Kangaroos hopping about in the midst of one’s games. In an exciting tournament with just 37 players, 17-year old Teymur Kuybokarov came out on top with 7.5/9. GM Anton Smirnov finished 2nd with 7/9. Former World Under 12 Champion IM Bobby Cheng, who’ll soon be a GM was the first among equals in a group of players sharing the 3rd place. | Photo: Kgbo [CC BY-SA 4.0], via Wikimedia Commons

8/17/2018 – The Bruges Masters (or Brugse Meesters in Flemish, if you prefer!) ran from August 12th to 16th in the picturesque Belgian town known for its old-fashioned streets, peaceful canals, world-class chocolate and — once a year — an international open chess tournament. This year's winner was GM Oleg Korneev, the 49-year-old Russian who now lives in and plays for Spain. Korneev stormed through the field winning all of his games before acquiescing to a draw in the final round. | Photo: Meri Grigoriyan

8/5/2018 – The fourth edition of the Wine Open took place in Hourtin, near Bordeaux. The traditional prices in this unique event are bottle of wines delivered according to the winners' weight. 15-year-old Antoine Bournel took first place and took home 51 bottles after the weigh-in was made. | Photos: Eva Maria Zickelbein, Jean-Luc Feit, Paula Nenciu Lazar

8/4/2018 – The small peninsula Paleochora in Crete has two coasts with a beach. Sea breezes are urgently in the face of high temperatures, where the games of Paleochora Open began logically in the late afternoon. Hristos Banikas won the tournament and the handsome first prize, while our author GM JAN WERLE, finished in 11th price. | Photo: Jan Werle

7/11/2018 – Would you be able to sit in a dark quiet room for, say, two months, with nothing to read, nothing to do, nothing but your own thoughts? According to (I think it was) Goethe, that's the veritable test of a true man. But as a chess player, and under the influence of Stefan Zweig's "Schachnovelle", my surmise is that we could all do it! Philosophers should rebuild their furnace because the supreme test for a grandmaster — and an amateur alike — is to play (and play well!) at the Hersonissos Open. | Photos: Alina l'Ami