Helvetic Airways was operating three services a week between the cities last winter, with a stop in Bristol.

BBC: Swiss airline Helvetic ends Cardiff winter flights

Air quality in Beijing and other Chinese cities reached hazardous levels during the winter, sickening residents and prompting many to wear masks.

WSJ: Dead Pigs Worry Shanghai

By then, England was the first country in the world where the majority of the population would be living in cities (albeit riddled with tuberculosis, for which a winter visit to the Alps in due course became de rigueur).

ECONOMIST: Mountaineering lore

With winter not even three weeks old, flu season has packed a wallop on cities in the northeast.

FORBES: Boston Declares Public Health Emergency; Flu Vaccines Run Dry

Cities seem more romantic when you share them with locals, and during the Roman winter, the intimate enotecas, or wine bars, are not teeming with tourists.

BBC: Cruise ports of call: The Mediterranean for couples

Last week the temperature dropped to seven below zero in the Twin Cities, which is one reason many Midwesterners head to Florida or Arizona for the winter.

WSJ: Review & Outlook: Minnesota's Snowbird Tax