There’s a reason January is the month when our thoughts turn to holidays and escape — the days are short (and cold), and summer feels a very long time away. But what does travel look like in 2024? Experts are predicting more extreme heat — meaning areas like northern Europe and the Baltics will see a boost in tourist numbers — and there will be new EU entry rules to contend with come autumn. That’s why we’ve searched for the very best trips to maximise your holiday this year, whether that’s a new flight route to Machu Picchu, exploring Cambodia at the right time to avoid the crowds or luxuriating in a new train route from Paris to Portofino. There are 89 ideas in total, so bookmark this page to come back to it later in the year. Happy travels!
This article contains affiliate links, which can earn us revenue Alfama in Lisbon GETTY IMAGES It’s nice to see a new hotel opening in Lisbon. Seriously: while short-term rentals force locals out, push up rents and kill local services in any tourist city, hotels provide employment, protect livelihoods and support the local economy. So hurray for the AlmaLusa Alfama: a 25-room boutique property that opens this month in the riverside Campo das Cebolas area. It’s set in a 12th-century tavern, itself built on the site of a Roman villa — bits of which are preserved within the property. You’ll find few places more wildly located, more comfortably appointed or more utterly appropriate for a Burns Night gathering than Cape Wrath Lodge, 100 miles north of Inverness. Two miles from Durness, right beside the Cape Wrath foot ferry and overlooking the dark waters of the Kyle of Durness, this grand old hunting lodge has eight bedrooms. There’s also a snooker room, a cinema room, two sitting rooms, a bar and a kitchen big enough to cook a haunch of venison, not to mention haggis and neeps. More adventurous folk might take the ferry to the Cape for a night that’s wild — in every sense — at the beachside Kearvaig Bothy. Something more meditative? Reach for the binoculars and watch eagles soar from one of the window seats, pull up a chair beside the wood-burner, or sweat it all out in the sauna. The Engadin Valley ALAMY Switzerland’s Romansh-speaking Engadin Valley is little-known in the UK, even if everyone has heard of the 3,312m (10,866ft) peak of Piz Buin, in the Silvretta Alps. You need to travel beyond the tourist traps of St Moritz and Davos to find the magic — either east towards Scuol or south to Sils: a valley village surrounded by snow and gneiss rock that sits pretty between two lakes. It suits both skiers and non-skiers, and the former can enjoy cross-country (140 miles of trails) and downhill, while there’s winter walking (90 miles), snowshoeing, tobogganing, horse-drawn sleigh rides and ice skating in the offing for the latter. Getting around? The local Post Bus service is cheap and reliable. A decent base for the week is the Hotel Privata; and you should try the local venison. If you ever wondered why salsa — which means “sauce” — is so named, consider the ingredients. African drums, Taino movement, Spanish guitar, jazz improv and European formality — all emulsified in a warm Caribbean night. And as long as you can count uno dos tres, cinco seis siete, you can learn it. Check into a Cuban homestay for this seven-night small group trip, which comprises 15 hours of tuition at a Havana dance school and teams each student up with their own dance instructor. Learn by day, show off by night — but do try not to get all Strictly with your partner. Bureh beach in Sierra Leone — the West African country is aiming to re-establish itself as a tourism destination GETTY IMAGES Last year saw the beginning of Sierra Leone’s campaign to re-establish itself as a tourism destination. There’s a new airport terminal, rumours of international hotel investment and a sense of optimism that a country with wonders that could easily fill a couple of episodes of Planet Earth might finally have left the dark years far behind. Adventure and beach tour operators are catching on to the West African nation’s attractions but Rainbow Tours, which has long had a programme here, knows Sierra Leone better than most. This ten-night tour is one for explorers, travelling to the little-known Upper Guinean forest ecosystem in search of rare primates, tiny antelopes, pygmy hippos and staggering bird life. Accommodation — in lodges and B&Bs — is simple, as befits such an expedition. A typical day at Chamonix’s Our Retreat begins at 7am with an hour’s meditation, flow or Pilates, followed by breakfast at 8am and a place at the front of the lift queues at 9am. After a full day on the pistes, broken only by a picnic lunch, it’s back to the chalet for tea at 5pm, then an hour of stretching and Yin yoga, followed by an organic dinner and, presumably, bed. It’s a far cry from the drunken hedonism of the traditional ski holiday, but aren’t you too old for all that anyway? Southern Ocean Lodge GEORGE APOSTOLIDIS Southern Ocean Lodge, perched southwest of Adelaide on Kangaroo Island, was once regarded as one of the world’s great wilderness hotels, with views across Hanson Bay that went on until Antarctica. The property was destroyed in the 2019 wildfires, but in December it rose, phoenix-like from the ashes: bigger, better, and definitely more fireproof. A stay here might be the highlight of an exclusive South Australian conservation safari that combines extraordinary luxury with activities that might range from echidna research and citizen science programmes to a Murray River cruise on a solar-powered houseboat. You’ll also learn the meaning of the botanical term “koala’ed”. ● More great places to visit in January Travelling by rail isn’t just about opting for a low-carbon alternative to flying, it’s also about holidays where the journey is as important as the destination. This two-week trip to Pocinho, at the end of the beautiful 99-mile Linha do Douro in Portugal’s northeast, involves two nights each in Nîmes and Madrid and three in Porto. There’s a pause-day spent exploring the Douro River, and then two nights each in Vigo, Santiago de Compostela and San Sebastian, followed by a final night in Bordeaux. Eurostar, TGV, AVE and regional services combine to get you there. A sunset scene in Paris, with the Eiffel Tower in the distance GETTY IMAGES Head to the City of Light in February for four days in the company of the opera expert Patrick Bade, travelling on foot and by Metro. The evenings take centre stage, beginning with Adriana Lecouvreur by Cilea at the Opéra de la Bastille, the modern performance venue that Paris has refused to love. On the second night it’s Handel’s Giulio Cesare at the Palais Garnier, because, well, you’re worth it. For the final night, it’s back to the Bastille for Beatrice di Tenda, Bellini’s tragedy of politics and betrayal set in 15th-century Milan. And the days? Gallery exploration and Bade’s favourite restaurants are on the itinerary. Historically, the first snows of winter fall in November in northern Japan, and by the end of the year the region is a winter wonderland. February, though, is the coldest month, with lows of minus 7C and a wind chill that can drop it another ten degrees, thus creating the perfect icy backdrop for the Sapporo Snow Festival. Now in its 74th year, the festival has evolved from six carvings in 1950 to a citywide extravaganza of ice sculptures and full-scale buildings carved from snow. It’s the highlight of a ten-night escorted tour that includes snowscape railway journeys, an ice-breaker cruise on the Sea of Okhotsk and city tours of Tokyo and Kyoto. Godafoss waterfall GETTY IMAGES EasyJet’s new twice-weekly flight from Gatwick to Akureyri puts Iceland’s second city on the map, creating, perhaps, the same buzz as Reykjavik did way back when a band called the Sugarcubes with a singer called Björk came on the scene. The attractions of this north shore city include hiking, skiing, boat trips, free public transport, unexpectedly good nightlife and, at this time of year, the aurora borealis, which seems to prefer Akureyri to Reykjavik. This three-night break, based at Berjaya Akureyri Hotel, includes a full-day tour visiting the Godafoss waterfall and the thermal pools at Lake Myvatn, aurora hunting and the option to visit the local beer spa. How does two islands, seven nights and 45 miles of walking trails in warm winter sun grab you? Combining Tenerife with little sister La Gomera, this trip kicks off in the former, exploring the laurel forests and dramatic coastal scenery of the Anaga Biosphere Reserve and the moonscapes of the Cañadas del Teide National Park. After a 50-minute ferry hop, it’s on to La Gomera to hike the cloud forests of Garajonay National Park. Don’t miss the chance to walk through tiny, silent villages and along empty beaches. The walking is graded moderate to strenuous. Flamingos at Akrotiri GETTY IMAGES In 2022, a rare black flamingo returned to the salt lake at Akrotiri on Cyprus’s southern coast. Melani, as she’s known, was previously seen here in 2015 and, while there’s no guarantee she’ll be back this season, she’ll certainly be easy to spot if she does make a comeback — thousands of pink flamingos call the lake home in winter. They come for the weather: seven hours of sunshine a day in February and highs of up to 18C. Stay at City of Dreams, the five-star hotel complex with a casino, waterpark and designer shopping centre at the top end of Lady’s Mile Beach and close to Melani’s winter sun spot. With the publication of the second Michelin Guide to South Korea in February, InsideAsia is launching a 12-night food tour of Asia’s most culturally exciting nation. The itinerary is described as “a kind of anti-Michelin Guide” trip, taking in much of the incredible “proper” food and drink experiences that the country has to offer — traditional markets and restaurants, makgeolli (rice wine) alleys and food in Busan, tea on Jeju island, traditional pocha tented bars in Yeosu and lots of fried chicken and beer in Seoul. Taj Bekal Resort & Spa JAIDEEP OBEROI February might be the nicest month to descend on the Indian state of Kerala. There’ll be clear skies, light breezes and highs of 30C on the coast, while the heights of the Western Ghats will be spring-like, the air heavy with the aroma of spice and coffee. This 12-day tour starts with three nights in misty Wayanad, the heart of the hill district, before moving for two nights in search of tigers and elephants in Nagarhole National Park and one night cruising the Keralan backwaters aboard a houseboat. A final three nights are spent at the Taj Bekal Resort & Spa, set in a coconut plantation on the beach. ● More great places to visit in February March 22 sees the return of Courmayeur’s Mountain Gourmet Ski Experience, created by Heston Blumenthal. The 2024 edition features a repeat performance from Jean-Philippe Blondet, head chef at the three Michelin-starred Alain Ducasse at the Dorchester, along with Claude Bosi, executive chef of the two Michelin-starred Bibendum. At its heart is a simple concept: a ski weekend in Courmayeur with delicious food. It kicks off with a six-course dinner on the Friday night at Les Dames Anglaises (£230pp) and continues the next day with a more leisurely lunch and après-ski party just across the valley from Mont Blanc at the Rifugio Maison Vieille (£145pp; maisonvieille.com). Machu Picchu GETTY IMAGES Sometime around 1973 in Cusco, someone created maps of the Inca Trail — with instructions to take the bus east to km88 and follow the 500-year-old footpath for 24 miles, where a lost city called Machu Picchu would reveal itself. Anyone with a backpack and an optimistic outlook could have a go. By the early 1990s, commercialisation was creeping in. Now, 40 years later, the 200 permits per day allocated to tourists are snapped up by tour operators when they go on sale the previous October. Post-pandemic, the demand for permits is higher than ever, assisted, no doubt, by the launch of five direct flights week from London to Lima with Latam. If your heart is set on going, plot it now: Intrepid’s 12-day trip takes you from Lima via Cusco along the trail to Machu Picchu with a couple of nights in an Amazon eco-lodge at the end. With safari costs spiralling post-pandemic you may have abandoned all hope of taking the kids to Africa, but this top-value Easter-holiday trip to Kenya might force a rethink. After flying into Nairobi you transfer to the Savage Wilderness Camp in the fast-growing adventure capital of Sagana for hiking, whitewater rafting and rock climbing on Baboon Crag. Once you’ve ridden the 2km zipline in the Aberdare Forest, you have a wildlife cruise on Lake Naivasha, a cycling safari in Hell’s Gate National Park, an opportunity to get involved with the herding and milking at the Maji Moto Masai Cultural Camp and, finally, two nights in the Masai Mara National Reserve, where you can count on seeing elephants, giraffes, buffaloes and zebras, and keep your fingers crossed for lions and cheetahs. Krabi in Thailand ALAMY Remember Thomas Cook? Its Chinese owner Fosun International — which also owns Wolverhampton Wanderers — relaunched the brand in 2020 and is striving to win back our affection. New long-haul flights from Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester have been launched for 2024 to Bali, Goa, Hanoi, Koh Samui, phu*ket, Krabi and Langkawi, flying via Middle Eastern hubs. Winter sun packages now available include a week at Amari Vogue: a five-star resort hotel with a spa on Tubkaek Beach in Krabi, Thailand. At some point on this tour of the parts of Panama you can’t see from a cruise ship on the Canal, you might consider the conquistador Vasco Nuñez de Balboa, who crossed the isthmus on foot in 1513 to become the first European to see the Pacific Ocean. You’ll be in the same rainforests, known simply as the Big House to the resident Embera people, who believe that if they respect nature they’ll get all they need in return. There’s a lot more to pack into this nine-day tour, including a hike along the Camino de Cruces; an ascent of the Baru volcano; and kayaking among the mangrove islands of the Gulf of Chiriqui. A tea plantation in Haputale You can’t dispute that this 13-night whirl around Sri Lanka is luxurious. The five-star hotels, on beaches, in paddy fields, beside rivers and close to ancient wonders, are architectural masterpieces. The dining is exquisite, the guiding expert and the experiences exclusive. You’ll hike the new Pekoe Trail through tea country; be shown the secrets of the Dambulla cave temples; climb Pidurangala rather than Sigiriya, or Lion Rock, because it’s hardly visited and the views are better. Then there are dawn explorations of the jungles and waterfalls of Horton Plains; and you’ll maybe travel on the train through the Hill Country. What you might not notice is that everything on this trip is designed and chosen for its sustainability. Puffins, like penguins, are believed to be monogamous, pairing up young and raising a single chick together each year (disclaimer: all puffins look rather similar, so who can be entirely sure?). In mid-March, thousands fly back to the Channel Islands for breeding season and thanks to a quartet of new routes launching this month with Guernsey airline Aurigny — from London City, Stansted, Liverpool and Newquay — you can jet over to catch sight of them. Take a 20-minute ferry ride from St Peter Port to Herm to see the colony feeding off Shell Beach (£16 return; herm.com). Stay at the cosy Les Rocquettes Hotel in St Peter Port. ● More great places to visit in March Monument Valley GETTY IMAGES American photographer Ansel Adams died 40 years ago and this new road trip takes you through 909 miles of the red-rocked state he snapped in black and white in 1941. His shots of the Grand Canyon are the most famous, but don’t miss the awe-inspiring desert landscapes of Walpi, Canyon de Chelly and Sedona. A friend who drove this route in April 2022 didn’t take a single picture. After seeing Adams’ photographs at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tuscon (free; ccp.arizona.edu), she said there didn’t seem much point. Late April is an inspired time to explore Scotland; it’s one of the driest months of the year, visitor numbers are low, the midges have yet to appear and long days make summer feel closer. This small-group Castles and Gardens tour by rail begins in Edinburgh before crossing the Forth Bridge for a night in Blair Atholl. From here, roll north through the Highlands to Inverness, Attadale, Plockton and Skye; before taking a seat on the Jacobite steam train from Mallaig to Glencoe. The tour ends in Glasgow, where guests can stay a while to explore. Arosmari Village Hotel ANTHEA YABSLEY Who could resist spring in the southern Aegean? Crete in April is carpeted in wild flowers and also in the midst of Orthodox Easter celebrations. Cretans have spent weeks, sometimes months, preparing for the moment when Christos Anestis — Christ is risen — is announced, and that’s when the party starts. Check into the Arosmari Village Hotel, in the White Mountains village of Vamos, and you’ll get the chance to learn Easter recipes, dye eggs and witness the solemn tradition of the church’s Epitaph being decorated with those wild flowers. Climate change is turning the Easter ski holiday into a mountain mud bath — but not if you look north. Scandinavia may not have the same Alpine ambiance, but it does have snow, and with many winter sports specialists now expanding into Norway, Sweden and Finland, the choices are increasing. Hemsedal is Norway’s second-biggest ski area, with 51 pistes and 20 lifts. A ski pass costs £355 and ski rental is around £70 for one week. The Fyri Resort is a ski-in, ski-out five-star lodge with a pool, spa and log fires — with a button lift to the resort centre. Jale Beach REX Albania hasn’t quite reached mainstream status yet but, with its alluring combination of dramatic land and seascapes, unspoilt natural attractions and astonishing value for money, it won’t be long. A new itinerary from the pioneers of Albanian hiking, Walks Worldwide, lets you discover the Ionian Coast route on foot. Over a week, you’ll travel nearly 40 miles along shepherds’ paths through the Llogara National Park, mixing pine forests and coastal mountains with remote villages and beaches accessible only by walkers. It’s not too taxing either; the longest day’s walking is just seven miles, and your luggage will be waiting at the next hotel. White horses, waterfalls and wine are among the highlights of this small group escorted tour of Slovenia — a nation of staggering beauty and fascinating history that has somehow remained largely off the radar, despite being right next door to Italy. Other tour delights include the Skocjan Caves, the largest known underground canyon in the world; a railway journey to pretty Lake Bled; a cable car ride to a mountain picnic; and two nights at the Sibon Wine and Spa Resort in Jeruzalem, in the country’s northeast. The Fortress of Shalil GETTY IMAGES When you first glimpse Siwa Oasis, 350 miles west of Cairo on the shores of the Western Desert’s Great Sand Sea, you might think its greenery is a mirage. But this fabulous spot, thought by some to be the resting place of Alexander the Great, is for real: a natural water park of some 300 springs feeding lakes, swimming holes and salt pools that, like the Dead Sea, won’t let you sink. This seven-day private guided adventure takes you through the dunes from Alexandria to swim in Cleopatra’s Pool, explore the Fortress of Shalil, climb the Mountain of the Dead and waste a day loafing on tranquil Fatnas Island. Want tropical weather for Easter but don’t want to pay Caribbean prices? Try Sabah, the Malaysian part of the island of Borneo, home to orangutans and some of the most biodiverse first ecosystems on the planet. Stay at the Shangri-La Rasa Ria, a big, family-friendly resort lying between a 64-acre jungle reserve and two miles of private beach at Kota Kinabalu on the South China Sea. There’s a spa, golf course and kids’ club, six restaurants and four bars — and, if you want to explore the interior, Borneo Eco Tours has day trips from £35 (borneoecotours.com). Bukhara GETTY IMAGES When Joanna Lumley navigated the Silk Road for her 2018 TV adventure, she left many wanting to recreate her Uzbekistan trip. A journey along the ancient trading route is one of wonder, with sights and sensations that will stay with you for life. This ten-night tour for solo travellers, which guarantees sole-use rooms and no single supplement, takes in Tashkent, Khiva, the eerie Tower of Silence at Chilpyk-Kala, the medieval city of Bukhara and the Islamic jewel box that is Samarkand. ● More great places to visit in April Queen Anne is Cunard’s 249th ship and becomes sister vessel to fellow queens Elizabeth, Mary 2 and Victoria. Such is public hunger to step aboard the Queen Anne first, Cunard has introduced multiple maiden voyages to different destinations. It’s marketing genius, right? On May 24, after her first sailing to Lisbon and the Canaries and another maiden voyage to the western Med, this £495 million, 1,397 cabin, 113,000 tonne vessel will leave Southampton on a 14-day circumnavigation of the UK, calling at ports including Edinburgh, Kirkwall and Belfast, and cabins are still available. Santiago de Compostela ALAMY The trails that lead to Santiago de Compostela are busier now than at any time in the Camino’s 1,300-year history. All but the oldest one, that is: the Camino el Origen, which traces the journey taken by the remains of St James in AD44. It’s easy enough to do independently and can be completed in a long weekend. Start in Pontevedra, in northwest Spain, following the Variante Espiritual 12 miles to overnight at the Pousada de Armenteira (B&B doubles from £89; eurostarshotels.com). Day two follows the Ruta de Piedra y Agua for 14 miles to the beach town of Vilanova. Bed down at the A Corticela pilgrim hostel (room-only doubles from £16; acorticela.com) then board the Barca del Peregrino for the Translatio, as this delightful, 90-minute boat trip up the Ulla River to Pontecesures is known (£20; labarcadelperegrino.com). From here, follow the Camino Portugues for 15 miles to Santiago de Compostela. Richard Sommer planted vines in Willamette Valley, Oregon, in 1961, but it was 1967 before he could harvest enough fruit to launch the state’s wine industry. Soon, other optimists joined him, defying warnings from locals that “they would grow fungus between their toes, the rain would rot their clothes off, and there was no way in hell they would be able to grow great grapes”. More than 60 years later, Oregon wines — mainly pinot noir and pinot gris — are celebrated as the closest you can get in the US to Burgundy, but with a unique character you won’t find in Europe. May is Oregon Wine Month, with events across the valley, and eight days is just enough time to squeeze the juice out of the region. Paradisus Salinas Lanzarote The Paradisus brand from Spanish hotel giant Melia offers a gear change for the Canary Islands hotel scene, upgrading the luxury all-inclusive model to include excursions and experiences, sustainable design and a focus on local cuisine. Paradisus has been unrolled by Melia in Mexico and the Dominican Republic, and now it’s on offer at the Salinas Lanzarote. This revamped adults-only beachside resort has 282 rooms, is set in gardens designed by the artist Cesar Manrique and has a spa and huge, boulder-lined pool, as well as four restaurants. Imagine if you’d booked a highbrow cultural tour of Umbria, taking in the art-filled, historic hill towns of Arezzo, Sansepolcro and Gubbio, stopping for wine and olive oil tasting, for gourmet picnics and banquet-style dinners and to watch the Palio della Balestre crossbow contest, and all with a persistent fascination for the works of Piero della Francesca. Now imagine that the luxury coach common to such trips has broken down and you have to walk. That’s the deal here. This self-indulgent, eight day, expert-led, small group holiday walks the pilgrim trails of Umbria, staying in three gorgeous hotels. The hikes are short — between four and 12 miles — but a modicum of fitness is desirable. MV Memories has 19 cabins This seven-night luxury sail aboard the MV Memories liner takes passengers from Split to Dubrovnik. What’s on the sightseeing menu? The Krka Waterfalls National Park, the time-warp island of Vis, wine tasting in sunny Hvar, a guided walking tour of Korcula Town, oysters in Ston and, of course, Dubrovnik. MV Memories is a small ship, with just 19 cabins and a 38-passenger capacity, and if you fancy a rest and relax holiday rather than a cultural tour, simply pass on the day trips and lounge on board. Stone the crows: QL has dumped the shorts, singlet and stubby for linen, loafers and a lightly chilled rosé in a bid to appeal to the luxury market. Brisbane fancies itself as a contender for Sydney’s tourism crown and Townsville, where not so long ago a random taxi driver took me to his house to talk his wife out of leaving him (outcome unconfirmed), is making a particular effort at gentrification with two new luxury resorts. There’s the exclusive-use, £10,000-a-night Pelorus Private Island and the £46 million, 132-room Ardo Hotel on the city’s waterfront. Between the two, and combining the best of both, is sister resort Orpheus Island: 14 luxury bungalows on an island surrounded by the Great Barrier Reef with free daily guided snorkelling and hiking and a drinks list that, reassuringly, still contains beer. Spend six nights here and four in the Calile in Brisbane. ● More great places to visit in May Tretawny cottage in Bolingey Tretawny is, without question, the prettiest cottage in Bolingey, on Cornwall’s north coast. This thatched wonder lies just a mile inland from the magnificent sands at Perranporth — so nearly The Times and Sunday Times Beach of the Year so often — and it takes just 20 minutes to get there on foot (go uphill and along Hendrawna Lane to find the footpath). One of several new properties on Classic Cottages’ books for 2024, Tretawny is dog-friendly and has three bedrooms, a beamed sunken sitting room, a barbecue on the patio, and the Bolingey Inn just 100m away. Judging from the dozens of new walking itineraries that tour operators have introduced, it’s fair to say that pilgrimages are back in fashion in these turbulent and uncertain times. The opportunity to escape the news cycle to spend days in quiet contemplation in nature seems more attractive than ever — and even more so when you can sleep in medieval churches for £20 a night. The Golden Valley Pilgrim Way is a new six or seven-day walking — or cycling — route starting at Hereford Cathedral and circling 60 miles through the county; a shorter three or four-day route has also been mapped out. Overnight in churches in villages such as Dorstone, Tyberton, Madley, Clodock and Ewyas Harold; most have adjacent pubs. Pounda Paou hotel If all you crave is a family-owned Greek seaside hotel with simple rooms and a warm welcome, then consider Pounda Paou, owned by Maria Triantafyllou, on the sunset side of the Pelion peninsula in Thessaly in the country’s north. There are sunny terraces, a pool and steps down to a swimming jetty in a sheltered cove and little that needs doing apart from swimming, walking, reading and sleeping. It’s hard even to fantasise about dinner when the chef rarely knows what he’ll be cooking until the boats come back. If you need an outing, rent a boat to visit a taverna in Chorto for lunch, or ride the Pelion Train, a narrow-gauge track running from the seaside village of Ano Lechonia to the mountain hamlet of Milies. In June, when it’s wet in the Maldives and windy in the Seychelles, Zanzibar is warm and dry with gentle breezes and the clearest waters, but still in the shoulder season. That means room rates are lower and the summer crowds have yet to arrive, promising a sunny week that might feel stolen. The five-star LUX* Marijani Zanzibar on east-facing Matemwe beach offers what it calls “positive luxury”, seeking to benefit locals and the environment as much as it pampers its guests. There’s yoga on a low-tide sandbank at dawn; cinema shows on the beach at night, and, once a week, a pop-up bar serving the local tipple konyagi — aka the tears of the lion. Treehotel in Boden GRAEME RICHARDSON/LAPLAND TRAVEL Swap the hassle of flying for the joy of the train and suddenly you need a lot longer off work to get anywhere. Oh well. Pencil in three weeks for this magnificent railway journey from your local station, via Cologne, Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Andalsnes, Trondheim, Bodo, Svalsaer, Narvik and across the Swedish frontier to Kiruna — where you’ll spend one night only at the 365 Ice Hotel in Jukkasjarvi. From here, continue across Swedish Lapland to Boden, home of the Treehotel and Arctic Bath hotel, for two nights, before heading south via Stockholm, Malmo and Hamburg to the station you started from. Why June? Because that’s the month of the midnight sun. This new six-night small-group guided tour of the Scottish Isles focuses on the Inner Hebrides. There’s a first night in Glasgow; then two on Islay, where you’ll learn about clan lore, natural history, tweed and peaty whisky. Mull awaits, via the CalMac ferry by way of Jura and Colonsay, for three days spent exploring the island, visiting the holy sites on Iona and embarking upon a whale-watching tour in the Sound of Mull. The ending? A spectacular scenic finale on the West Highland Line back to Glasgow. Bike the Camino Primitivo LIGHT TRAPPER PHOTOGRAPHY The Camino Primitivo from Oviedo is shorter, prettier and much quieter than the better-known Camino Frances, but I wouldn’t fancy doing it on a bicycle — especially the climb up the Alto de Montouto. But a new eight-day electric-mountainbike (eMTB) itinerary from Saddle Skedaddle takes the torment out of the ascents, and if the purists whinge that you’re not taking the Camino seriously, you could argue that the hellish nature of some of the descents are penance enough. As part of a guided group, you’ll ride between 25 and 35 miles a day on terrain ranging from tarmac roads and forestry trails to single-track paths and switchback mountain routes. Accommodation is simple but comfortable, and if you haven’t got your own eMTB, you can rent one for about £475 — typically an MMR X-Bolt 140 with a Bosch motor. The Loita Plains in Kenya’s Southern Rift Valley remain perhaps the most intriguing and traditional of the Masai homelands. This one-week trip eases you into the Rift with three days of traditional game drives before ascending to the Loita for a three-day hike into a secret corner of east Africa where humanity still co-exists with buffalo, elephant, leopard and lion. Guided by Masai, you’ll trek the deep Ol Lasur Valley, pass through the towering Naimina Enkiyio, or Forest of the Lost Child, climb to Oltyiani for massive views of the Rift and descend the Nguruman, sleeping in comfortable, but remote, fly camps en route. Splendido hotel in Portofino It seems such an obvious journey that you wonder why it’s taken so long, but this summer, for the first time, the luxury train operator Belmond launches a short but intensely sweet trip from the Gare de Lyon through the sultry summer night via Dijon, Lyons and Avignon, with co*cktails in the Bar Car, dinner in one of the three dining cars and dancing along the riviera to the swing, jazz and calypso of the onboard band. Dawn brings Cannes, Nice and Monte Carlo, then Ventimiglia, Savona, Genoa and the terminus at Santa Margherita Ligure. But the extravagance doesn’t end here: there are still two nights to come in Portofino’s Splendido hotel. ● More great places places to visit in June With climate change pushing us towards the biggest shift in travel habits since the popularisation of the Spanish costas in the 1960s, destinations offering more clement summer weather are becoming increasingly attractive. So forget the Med and head instead to the Archipelago National Park: a labyrinth of more than 40,000 islands off Finland’s southwestern coast. Here you’ll find Project O, a luxury six-bedroom house that’s the only building on the forested islet of Skyulskaret. It has a beach and jetty, indoor and outdoor kitchens, a sauna and hot tub, wi-fi and hammocks and, crucially, a motorboat for exploration. There’s a restaurant a couple of miles west on the island of Oro. A cove in the Karaburun-Sazan Marine National Park ALAMY Albania, they say, is the new Greece. Or the new Croatia. It’s a land of rugged, natural beauty with an unspoilt coast, a largely unexplored hinterland and a culture as yet untainted by the odour of mass tourism. This eight-day family adventure begins in Tirana before heading south to Gjirokaster, Albania’s Unesco-listed city of stone, and on to the Vjosa Wild River National Park to raft on the last truly wild river in Europe. From here make for the coast to explore the intriguing Ali Pasha fortress and discover the hidden coves of the Karaburun-Sazan Marine National Park by boat before visiting the ancient site of Apollonia en route back to Tirana. The French seaside town of St Cyprien, at the foot of the Pyrénées-Orientales, is just 15 miles from the Spanish border but remains largely unknown to British tourists — probably because it’s an 11-hour drive south from Calais. Close to Perpignan, the summer home of rugby league giants the Catalans Dragons, St Cyprien has four miles of sand on the sheltered waters of the Golfe du Lion and is also the location of the new “premium residences” from Pierre et Vacances. The property comprises 150 villas and apartments, a pool, bike trails and all the usual sporting activities — and is a 15-minute walk through the marina to the beach. Stockholm GETTY IMAGES The tourism industry is quick to adapt to a changing world and the direction of travel for summer 2024 is unwaveringly north — away from the heat, the drought and disasters of the warming Med. This 12-night Baltic cruise from Oceania Cruises is a trailblazer for the routes the more mainstream lines will inevitably follow if or when their eastern and western Med itineraries become too hot for comfort. The 670-passenger Nautica — four restaurants, eight bars and a spa — departs Stockholm on July 23, calling at (count ’em) Helsinki; Saaremaa in Estonia; Klaipeda in Lithuania; Gdansk; Berlin; Amsterdam; Bruges; Portland in Dorset; and Fishguard in Pembrokeshire. The cruise ends in Dublin. The concept isn’t new but the choices are, with Eurocamp expanding its portfolio to offer 57 new options for 2024. The debutantes include Villaggio San Francesco on Italy’s Adriatic coast, with seven waterslides, a whirlpool and beach access; the car-free El Pinar at Blanes on Spain’s Costa Brava (leave the motor outside); and Portosole, on an exquisite cove in Vrsar in Croatia. But given the likelihood of the Med reaching boiling point again this summer, we’ll head to the cooler climes of Brittany and the Domaine d’Inly — just north of St Nazaire — a mile from Plage de La Mine d’Or, with a huge, 5,000 sq m indoor/outdoor pool complex, and a lake for water sports and fishing. The ruins of Kaunos GETTY IMAGES There’s too much to see and do on Turkey’s Turquoise Coast to waste your time on a fly-and-flop, so this ten-day self-guided tour for adventurous families offers the opportunity to squeeze that lemon until the pips pop. Fly into Antalya, pick up the hire car, then drive via the ruins of Phaselis to Cirali for a couple of days on the beach. Next: snorkelling and exploring the rock tombs at Kas; then kayaking over the submerged ruins of Kekova; the ghost village of Kayakoy; a hike on the Lycian Way; a night off in Fethiye; the astonishing ruins of Kaunos; and the secret coves of Kargicak Bay. It’s 62 miles of unbroken magnificence from Cresswell to Berwick-upon-Tweed along the Northumberland Coast Path, combining history, tradition, kippers and outstanding natural beauty. You could do it alone, but better still to walk with a guide who can share local knowledge, look after the navigation and take you to the best pubs. This new guided group hike begins on the eight-mile sands of Druridge Bay, wending north at an easy 12 miles a day via Warkworth for the chocolate; Craster for the kippers; Seahouses for the fish and chips; and Bamburgh for the castle — as well as Lindisfarne and the fascinating border town of Berwick-upon-Tweed. And because you don’t have to move hotels, you only have to unpack once. ● More great places to visit in July Jurmala GETTY IMAGES Lovers of the Norfolk coast will adore the Baltic Riviera: a 15-mile stretch of powdery sand backed by pine forests and wetlands that are half an hour’s drive from Riga. The spa resort of Jurmala is the Riviera’s heart, its neoclassical and art nouveau beach houses built from the timber that surrounds the town. Jurmala likes its culture too: early visitors brought their own orchestras and the tradition of summer concerts continues at the open-air Dzintari Concert Hall. Stay at the Hotel Jurmala Spa, a wellness centre offering four pools and six saunas. And keep your eyes open on the beach, where nuggets of amber are sometimes washed ashore. One day maybe there’ll be other campsites like Bert’s, mixing woodland and wildflower meadow with a stream running down to the sea, with compost toilets and eco-showers; where harmful products are not allowed; where kids can run free; and where there’s yoga, homemade pizza, homegrown veggies, locally brewed beer and powerful co*cktails. In the meantime there’s just this paradise between the village of Trefor, in Gwynedd, and the Irish Sea on Wales’s gorgeous Llyn peninsula. Sites for 20 tents are neatly scythed out of the surrounding wilderness, with enough space between pitches to make it feel a little like wild camping. There are huts too, for softies, as well as a cottage and space in the woods for camper vans. Wapa di Ume hotel Bali is at its busiest in August: the weather is lovely, there’s rarely rain and it’s full of Aussies escaping their winter. Yet just 90 minutes from the airport lies Sidemen, a village that, for the time being, offers a glimpse of Bali unseen since the 1970s. Here, amid the paddy fields and woodlands, overlooked by the Mount Agung volcano, you can hike to jungle waterfalls, raft down the Telaga Waja River and get on your bike to discover warungs (restaurants) selling the kind of exquisite street food that maybe only your dad told you about. Stay at the simple yet luxurious Wapa di Ume hotel on a terrace above a rainforest with views of the volcano. Having reported on the overcrowding and chaos of Scotland’s North Coast 500 road-tripping route, we can’t particularly approve of the new, circular East Anglia 350 route, which takes tourists on a 350-mile coast-and-country round trip. However, if you insist, then do it like this: Wild With Consent allows travellers to wild-camp in gorgeous spots, with landowners’ permission. And for this three-nighter through Norfolk and Suffolk you get use of a Land Rover Defender with a roof tent and camping kit that includes everything from a cafetière to tide tables, although you’ll need your own sleeping bags. You spend one night in a meadow near beautiful King’s Lynn, another in an orchard near Dunwich beach and a third beside the River Glem in Suffolk’s green heart. The cost covers the vehicle hire, but if you’ve got your own wheels you can go Wild With Consent for much less. Ride across Norway’s Lofoten Peninsula The harbour town of Leknes is 105 miles above the Arctic Circle and is the halfway point of a constantly spectacular yet fairly gentle eight-day bike ride across Norway’s Lofoten archipelago. Self-guided, the trip begins with two nights in Svolvaer followed by a 24-mile ride around mountains and over water to Hov, where you could climb Hoven hill to see the midnight sun. From here, it’s 32 miles to Leknes for two nights — go surfing and visit the Viking museum — then the same distance via pretty Nusfjord to Reine for two nights, where you stay in a traditional red fisherman’s cottage and should, therefore, try casting a line from a sea kayak. In August 1896 a trio of prospectors struck gold in the Klondike River in Canada’s northwestern Yukon province. Within two years, 40,000 hopefuls had seized every scrap of adjoining land, but within a decade the lustre had faded. Maybe a couple of hundred of the prospectors had hit the pay dirt, the rest failed, and, by 1912, Dawson City’s population had shrunk from 30,000 to just 2,000. Last September this fascinating region gained Unesco status for the effects of the gold rush on the lives and traditions of the local Tr’ondek Hwech’in, or Han, people. Explore the history and the landscapes on a 14-night Gold Rush self-drive tour travelling in the footsteps of prospectors from Whitehorse through the Rockies to Dawson City and back. Cascais GETTY IMAGES Is Portugal cooler than Ibiza, Greece or Turkey? In terms of its climate — thanks to the Atlantic — and its laid-back, surfed-up, hyper-aesthetic attitude, the answer is yes, making this potentially the one destination in southern Europe that can elicit wide-eyed wonder rather than groans of despair in even the most world-weary teen. Blow their minds by starting with four nights at the family-owned Hotel Lisboa Plaza in central Lisbon — remember that Cais do Sodre, Praca do Principe Real and the LX Factory are where the hip stuff is — then head an hour west for ten nights at the Vila Bicuda resort in the glamorous seaside town of Cascais. Accommodation here is in a two-bedroom villa in a park with pools, a café and a restaurant. The beaches in Cascais are famous for their crowds, but there’s always space on the vast sands of surfy Praia do Guincho, just to the north. Spain’s forgotten coast is on the cusp of a tourism boom as the Spanish head north to escape the debilitating heat of 21st-century summers. New tourism businesses are opening to meet demand, turning España Verde into the most dynamic holiday region in Europe. This ten-night, self-drive tour offers a chance to see the wild western region of Galicia — starting on the dramatically beautiful Costa de la Muerte and heading south around the wine and seafood paradise of the fjord-like Rias before going deep into the broadleaf forests of the River Sil. Fill the car boot with Ribera Sacra wines, see the vast, empty beaches of the Costa Lucense and end with a walking tour of Santiago de Compostela. Short driving distances allow time to linger, and accommodation is in gorgeous rural hotels. ● More great places to visit in August Vineyards in Valdobbiadene ALAMY At the bottom of the Colline del Cartizze, in the northern Italian province of Treviso, you’ll find the Osteria Senz’Oste (“wine bar without host”). Effectively a rural honesty bar selling wine, bread, cheese and salami, it’s a delight, but not as much as the prosecco vending machine at the top of the hill that dispenses bottles and chilled glasses. The only drawback is that you’ll need an Italian ID card to prove your age. Luckily, your guide on this eight-day group walking tour of the Unesco-listed Prosecco Hills will lend you hers in return, perhaps, for a small consideration from your bottle. I could also tell you about the vineyard visits, the tour of secret Venice and the amazing views of the Venetian Prealps, but I know I had you at the vending machine. It’s odd that after 50 years in the business Olympic Holidays has only just started offering packages to the Olympic Riviera. Close to Thessaloniki in northeastern Greece, this 45-mile stretch of coast on the Thermaic Gulf, backed by Mount Olympus, has, by some inexplicable oversight, avoided development and remained an unspoilt slice of the real Greece with a history that vanishes into the mists of mythology and, arguably, the best beaches in the country. Be among the first arrivals with a week at the Dion Palace Resort and Spa, a four-star on the beach at Litochoro. Tres Trapi Bay on Aruba GETTY IMAGES Aruba has long been popular with US visitors and the Dutch, who colonised the Caribbean island in 1623. Just 18 miles north of Venezuela, Aruba claims to have the best beaches in the Caribbean, offering the sunset-facing white sands of Eagle Beach as the first exhibit and following up with a dozen more — all irritatingly perfect. You can judge for yourself now that Kuoni has taken advantage of BA’s direct flight from Gatwick to open Aruba to British travellers — the Manchebo Beach Resort and Spa, next door to Eagle Beach, is a good place to start. You know all about Kenya’s first migration: two million wildebeest, zebras and camp followers chasing the rains to find the sweetest grass in the Greater Mara ecosystem. So, start this 12-day trip at Hemingways Ol Seki Mara camp, looking out not only for herbivores but also the big cats who get fat on the migration. Then head 500 miles east to Hemingways Watamu for the migration you don’t know about: big pods of humpback whales heading from Antarctica to Somalian water to give birth. Conveniently, whales and dolphins can often be seen from the hotel bar. End with three nights back in the bush at Ol Pejeta. Thiske monastery in Ladakh GETTY IMAGES September is the best month to visit India’s high point: a 9,600-foot plateau connecting the Karakoram with the Himalayas, with Pakistan on one border and Tibet on another. Why? Because the weather is perfect (temperatures plummet in October); the summer crowds have left; and the roads, historically, are less likely to be blocked by snow or landslides. Stay at the newly opened Thiksey House, operated by Shakti, which specialises in bringing sustainable luxury to backpacker destinations. Guided by a Buddhist monk, the eight-day package includes yoga, meditation, walks in the Himalayan wilderness, rafting, biking, fab Indian food and a pre-dawn visit to Thiksey monastery to join monks in their morning devotions. Bhalil in northern Morocco is a village of psychedelically painted houses scattered across hillsides like spilt pills. The façades hide caves, inhabited for centuries. Your guide is Kamal Chaoui, an evangelist for a place that he believes to be a missed treasure of the Moroccan tourist trail. Beyond the troglodyte dwellings, he’ll lead you into the hills to meet local families and craftsmen, down to the medieval town of Sefrou with its waterfalls, then give you time to hang out on the roof terrace to watch the rhythms of village life. The three nights in this beautiful spot are part of a seven-night itinerary that includes an in-depth tour of Fez, the most labyrinthine city on earth. The Landwasser Viaduct in Graubünden ALAMY The two best times to visit Switzerland are winter’s end and the beginning of autumn. One is a time of delicious anticipation and the other of bittersweet regret as the summer ends, the light softens and every warm day seems more like a gift than an expectation. So go for the latter on this 14-night Grand Tour of Switzerland by rail, travelling from Zurich to Interlaken in the Bernese Oberland; down to Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline; and across to Zermatt to board the Glacier Express to St Moritz and onward aboard the Bernina Express to Tirano. There’s a road transfer to lovely Lugano — try the local salami — then an awesome ride on the Gotthard Panorama Express to Lake Lucerne and back to Zurich. According to legend the round, dry-stone Apulian houses with conical roofs known as trulli were built by medieval tax-dodgers so they could be quickly dismantled when the revenue men came. A builder I met in a bar in Ceglie Messapica estimated that it would take a week to dismantle and disperse even a modest trullo, which proves only that some people will believe anything — or that Apulian tax inspectors travelled in carriages pulled by snails. The Trulli dei Limoni, just outside Ceglie Messapica, is typical of the genre, but with a pool, air con, three en-suite bedrooms and a barbecue. With the grape harvest underway and the beaches empty, late September is absolutely the best time to visit — and don’t miss the fabulous Saturday food market in the whitewashed town of Ostuni, 20 minutes’ drive northeast. ● More great places to visit in September The sun rises over the Taj Mahal in Agra GETTY IMAGES Never been to India? Don’t know where to start? Then this could be the holiday for you: a 15-night tour of the northern and southern regions of the subcontinent that begins in Delhi and climaxes in Kerala. In between, you’ll enjoy the Taj Mahal sunrise; Sariska for the tigers; Jaipur for its marvels of science and architecture; Kochi for dinner with a local family and Munnar for the tea estates — plus Lake Periyar for the wild elephants and Alleppey for a tour of the backwaters by houseboat. October is the best time of year to explore Portugal’s Douro Valley, with the grape harvest in full swing. See it gently on a seven-day, self-guided tour from Cycling For Softies. How soft? Well, the bikes are electric, enabling riders to make lighter work of the valley’s hairpin ascents, and you’ll travel no more than 26 miles a day. You’ll be delighted, too, with the wine tasting, boat trips and the train ride into Porto. Accommodation is in the Casa de Sao Domingos in Peso da Régua, the LBV House in Pinhao and the Vila Galé Porto Ribeira in Porto. Verona GETTY IMAGES The pace at which high-speed rail travel has caught on is astonishing and this new guided, small-group Grand Tour of Italy’s Lombardy and Veneto regions is a showcase not only of the region’s Renaissance treasures but also of what you’re missing when you’re sitting on a plane. Starting at London’s St Pancras, the ten-day canter heads to Milan via Paris; to Mantua for four nights, with day trips to Verona and Lake Garda; up into the Prosecco Hills; down to the Roman city of Asolo; across to Vicenza and the Villa Emo; into Turin for dinner; and back to London. The wildlife specialist Naturetrek now offers 66 no-flight holidays, ranging from winter weekends watching geese in Norfolk to bear-spotting trips in Spain, and, having been face-to-face with oso pardo, the European brown bear, in Cantabria, I recommend the latter. After a two-night whale-watching crossing to Spain with Brittany Ferries, you’ll embark on three days in search of wolves in the Montana Palentina Natural Park in Castile y Leon. It’s painstaking work requiring long hours and complete silence to catch even a glance of these wary canines. The bears of Cantabria’s beautiful Somiedo Natural Park are easier to see, often spied through spotting scopes on high crags, or, in my case, met unexpectedly on a narrow mountain track. Villa Valtos Apartments VIRGILIOS TSIOULLI The wonders of the Epirus region on mainland Greece are many. There’s the Vikos Gorge — 13 miles long and nearly a mile deep; the stone bridges of Zagoria; enchanting villages such as Papigo and Kipi; the mystical Sanctuary of Zeus at Dodona; and perfect, often empty, beaches. One of the prettiest is Valtos Beach in Parga, just above which lie the newly refurbished Villa Valtos Apartments: each with one bedroom, two bathrooms and a shared pool. The car that’s essential to explore Epirus is part of the package. Rather than heading for the same old Med beaches this October half-term, try the Austrian mountains instead. The stylish Hotel Boglerhof in Alpbach, less than an hour’s drive from Innsbruck, is a family-friendly Tyrolean fairytale dating back to the 15th century. How to entertain the ankle-biters and yourselves? There’s a spa, indoor and outdoor pools, kids’ club, free local bus passes and a weekly activity programme ranging from wine tasting to yoga, kayaking, luging and tubing. Sossusvlei in Namibia SHUTTERSTOCK Namibia is perhaps Africa’s most visually fascinating country, from the sand mountains of the south along the fog-belt of Skeleton Coast, through the fantasy landscapes of the Brandberg Mountain Range and the ephemeral rivers of Kaokoland in the north. And to the east, Etosha National Park: an 1,800-square-mile salt pan wandered by lions, leopards, elephants and oryx. Driving here is mildly challenging: the gravel roads demand low speeds and concentration; you should fill up at every petrol station you pass; and you should carry a ten-gallon jerry can of water — just in case. This 11-night trip takes in Windhoek, the Sossusvlei, Swakopmund, Etosha and the AfriCat Foundation at Okonjima. ● More great places to visit in October Repo is short for repositioning, or the end-of-season sailing from one region of operations to another. In many cases a repo cruise involves a transatlantic crossing, and in most cases they offer extraordinary value for those happy to spend days at sea with a few port visits at the beginning or the end. You can get a 17-day crossing from Southampton to Fort Lauderdale aboard the Sky Princess for as little as £865pp, but you need to buy a flight home. Pricier, but better value, is a 19-nighter aboard the Caribbean Princess that begins with two nights in a hotel in Rome, then sails west via Cagliari, Malaga, Casablanca, Funchal and Tenerife to Fort Lauderdale, with flights at each end. Avani+ Fares Maldives Resort Now is the best time of year to visit the Maldives. The monsoon has ended; the warm, dry weather has returned, the waters are clear and the Indian Ocean’s manta rays and whale sharks have arrived to prey on the plankton trapped in the atolls. The Avani+ Fares Maldives Resort is a new, laid-back, family-friendly 176-room resort at the western edge of Baa Atoll — a biosphere reserve listed by Unesco for its globally significant marine life. So the snorkelling and diving on the house reef is brilliant, with the occasional dolphin sighting possible. The mantas are best seen at Hanifaru Bay, a 20-mile boat ride east. We all know that the carbon-heavy extravagances of luxury holidays are bad for the planet, and that we should all be striving to travel in simpler, more sustainable ways — but that’s not so easy when the former is marketed as a chocolate cake and the latter as a bowl of lentils. But this new holiday from Village Ways might convert you to the soulful joy of so-called ethical hedonism. Far from the air-conditioned hotels, international menus and big tourist attractions of mainstream India, you’ll spend a week in a community-owned guesthouse in the heart of a cluster of seven tribal villages in the state of Chhattisgarh. Walk, cycle, swim, hang out, gossip, watch birds and feel your soul repair. NB: it will contain lentils. See the northern lights in Svalbard GETTY IMAGES The more intense the activity of the sun, the more sunspots appear. The more sunspots, the more solar ejections of matter. The more of that matter, slamming into our atmosphere at 40 million mph and hurled towards the poles, the more impressive the auroras — as you may have noticed as far south as Suffolk last November. It’s all about the solar cycle, and the current one is expected to peak in 2024 or 2025. The further north you go, the better the chances, so head to the Svalbard archipelago — a three-hour flight from Oslo — for a five-day trip spent looking for the aurora in the Arctic wilderness. You’ll explore ice caves too, take a snowmobile trip across the tundra and be led down frozen rivers by huskies, but it’s mostly about those lights. Autumn is absolutely the best time to be in Nepal. The post-monsoon air is crystal clear, the skies are cloudless and the climate like a warm UK spring. Trekking at this time of year is pure joy in a land of almost incomprehensible beauty and scale. This two-week group trip, new for 2024, offers the hiking — five days on the spectacular Mardi Himal, heading east of Annapurna base camp and ascending to 3,500m — but combines it with a tour of the temples of Patan and a safari in Chitwan National Park in search of rhinos, elephants and even tigers. Angkor Wat GETTY IMAGES Cambodia was the second southeast Asian nation after Thailand to reopen post-pandemic but tourism has been slow to recover. That’s bad news for business and government in Cambodia but rather better for us in that the overcrowding in areas such as Siem Reap and Sihanoukville has vanished — making now a particularly good time to visit. This 11-day private highlights tour is ideal for first timers, taking in Phnom Penh, Battambang and a full-day crossing of Lake Tonle Sap to Siem Reap for Angkor Wat; an afternoon with the clever mine-detecting rats of the APOPO NGO; and a thrilling visit to the lost temple of Beng Mealea — Angkor’s forgotten twin. A good book is an essential companion on a transatlantic crossing — better still, you’ll have an entire literary festival. The mid-November week-long event, departing from Southampton, takes place aboard Cunard’s elegant Queen Mary 2, offering passengers the perfect opportunity to mingle with (or maybe no chance of escaping) a cohort of authors, poets, journalists, critics and historians. They include the crime writer Mark Billingham, the Scottish novelist Chris Brookmyre and his co-writer and wife, Marisa Haetzman, the former US ambassador to the UK Matthew Barzun, and the Sunday Times interviewer Decca Aitkenhead, with more authors to be announced. ● More great places to visit in November San Sebastian de La Gomera is the capital of La Gomera GETTY IMAGES Why would you go to Costa Rica when you can find much the same — toucans aside — in the Canaries? Volcanoes, cloud forests, dense tropical foliage, deep gorges and wild surf characterises this tiny, vertiginous island lying an hour by ferry from Tenerife. And, with December highs of 22C, the weather is perfect for hiking. On this seven-day break you’ll take a guided journey through Garajonay National Park — the greatest tract of ancient cloud forest in Europe; trek the Vallehermoso Gorge to the sea; wander the banana groves above the terraced village of Agulo; and hike the heavenly Guarimiar gorge. The walks are short enough too to guarantee loafing and lunching time in and around the three hotels, chosen as much for their cuisine as for their views. Another year, another Pig: the tenth in the litter of English boutique restaurants with rooms and, located just south of Stratford-upon-Avon, the most northerly Pig yet. In a 16th-century farmhouse close to the abandoned medieval village of Thornton, the Pig on the Farm will have 35 rooms and suites, shepherd’s huts repurposed as spa treatment rooms, two acres of fruit and veg gardens, a mushroom growing house and a smokery, all serving a restaurant committed to a 25-mile menu. The main thing to know about this Pig is that, like its predecessors, it will be wildly popular, so if you want a room any time before 2026, you’d best book now. The Okavango Delta GETTY IMAGES Once upon a time Botswana was far and away the priciest destination in sub-Saharan Africa and, while it’s still not cheap, prices in rival nations have increased so much in recent years that a safari on the Chobe, Okavango and Khwai rivers no longer seems quite such an extravagance. December, guides say, is the secret season — partly because there are fewer tourists but mainly because of the Chobe-Nxai Pan migration of about 15,000 zebras. They’re not the sole attraction, either: green season — dense bush, muddy tracks, high humidity — brings tens of thousands of elephants, high predator activity and good birding. This 12-day trip takes you from Johannesburg via Victoria Falls to Chobe; the Okavango Delta and the magnificent Moremi Game Reserve; staying in four luxury lodges, including the celebrated Chief’s Camp. Combine a cruise with a safari on this new 16-day itinerary that marries Kenya with the Seychelles. The turf is the first week, comprising a small-group journey from the Samburu and Lake Nakuru in Kenya’s north to the Masai Mara in the deep south and focused on game drives to see east Africa’s astonishing wildlife. For part two of this trip you’ll board the 100-passenger Emerald Azzura yacht for an eight-day Seychelles sail calling at Sainte Anne Island, Cousin Island, Praslin, Mahé and La Digue — home to Aldabra giant tortoises. Cartagena GETTY IMAGES Colombia’s tourism slogan was once “the only risk is wanting to stay”. Thankfully they’ve changed it now to “Colombia: Land of Beauty”; less contentious and indeed more accurate. This new 16-day small-group adventure is a journey through the history and culture of the country, from Bogota and playing explosive games of tejo (the country’s beloved throwing game, which uses little pockets of gunpowder) to a descent into the subterranean salt cathedral of Zipaquira. There’s also a hike in the arid Tatacoa desert; a trip to the 1,300ft Bordones waterfall; the coffee plantations of the high Paisa and the Caribbean beaches of Tayrona National Park. The adventure ends in the magical city of Cartagena. ● More great places to visit in December Where are you most excited to visit in 2024? Let us know in the comments below Sign up for our Times Travel newsletter and follow us on Instagram and X1. Decamp to Lisbon
Details B&B doubles from £173 (almalusahotels.com). Fly to Lisbon2. Burns Night shindig in the Highlands
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for 16 from £4,900 (classic.co.uk)3. No-ski Switzerland
Details Six nights’ half-board from £1,915pp, including train travel (inntravel.co.uk)Advertisem*nt
4. Learn salsa in Havana
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £925pp (responsibletravel.com). Fly to Havana5. Discover Sierra Leone
Details Ten nights’ B&B from £3,355pp, including flights (rainbowtours.co.uk)6. French mountain meditation
Details Six nights’ half-board from £1,550pp, including activities and transfers (ourretreat.co.uk). Fly to Geneva7. Kangaroo Island bounces back
Details Thirteen nights’ full board from £11,695pp, including flights (steppestravel.com)Advertisem*nt
8. Discover the Douro by train
Details Fourteen nights’ B&B from £1,306pp, including train travel (byway.travel)9. Cultural Paris
Details Four nights’ B&B from £2,887pp, including train travel, opera tickets and some extra meals (kirkerholidays.com)10. Chills and thrills in Japan
Details Ten nights’ B&B from £3,695pp, including some extra meals (explore.co.uk). Fly to Tokyo11. Iceland’s aurora hotspot
Details Three nights’ B&B from £920pp, including flights (best-served.co.uk) 12. Canary Island-hopping
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,265pp (macsadventure.com). Fly to TenerifeAdvertisem*nt
13. Rare flamingos in Cyprus
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £603pp, including flights (britishairways.com)14. Culinary Korea
Details Twelve nights’ B&B from £3,536pp, including all travel within Korea, food experiences and some private guiding (insideasiatours.com). Fly to Seoul15. Winter sun in Kerala
Details Eleven nights’ B&B from £2,345pp, including some extra meals (corinthiantravel.co.uk). Fly to Kochi 16. Alpine feast
Details Three nights’ B&B at Hotel Gran Baita from £635pp, including flights and car hire (momentumski.com)Advertisem*nt
17. Make for Machu Picchu
Details Eleven nights’ B&B from £1,582pp, including permits and some extra meals (intrepidtravel.com). Fly to Lima18. Great value safari
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £3,165pp for adults and £2,545pp for children, including flights, transfers and some extra meals, departing on March 22 or 30 (familiesworldwide.co.uk)19. New flights to Asia
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,441pp, including flights (thomascook.com)20. Explore Panama
Details Eight nights’ B&B from £2,790pp, including activities and some extra meals (worldexpeditions.com). Fly to Panama21. Sustainable Sri Lanka
Details Thirteen nights’ B&B from £4,740pp, including transfers and some extra meals (experiencetravelgroup.com). Fly to ColomboAdvertisem*nt
22. Channel Islands puffins
Details Three nights’ B&B from £399pp, including flights (premierholidays.co.uk) 23. Ansel’s Arizona
Details Thirteen nights’ room only from £3,375pp, including flights and car hire (bon-voyage.co.uk)24. Scotland by rail
Details Six nights’ B&B from £2,074pp, including train travel and some extra meals (adventurepeople.com)25. Cretan Easter
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £907pp, including flights, car hire and Easter lunch (simpsontravel.com)26. Easter skiing in Norway
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,445pp, including flights (skisolutions.com)27. Walking hidden Albania
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,049pp, including flights and some extra meals (walksworldwide.com)28. Tour of Slovenia
Details Nine nights’ B&B from £3,795pp, including flights and some extra meals (ffestiniogtravel.com)29. Egypt’s Siwa Oasis
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £4,345pp, including flights (abercrombiekent.co.uk)30. Malaysian sun
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,219pp, including flights (destination2.co.uk)31. Going solo on the Silk Road
Details Ten nights’ half-board from £3,099pp, including flights (solosholidays.co.uk)32. Cunard’s newest ship
Details Fourteen nights’ full board from £2,229pp (cunard.co.uk)33. The oldest camino, Spain
Details More information at osalnes.com. Fly to Santiago de Compostela and take the train to Pontevedra34. Oregon road-tripping, US
Details Seven nights’ room only from £1,269pp, including flights and car hire (travelbag.co.uk)35. Luxury Lanzarote
Details Five nights’ all-inclusive from £886pp, including flights (britishairways.com)36. Hiking in Umbria, Italy
Details Seven nights’ full board from £2,660pp, including activities (hedonistichiking.com) Fly to Perugia37. Croatia culture cruise
Details Seven nights’ full board from £1,695pp (cruisecroatia.com). Fly to Split38. Queensland, Australia, goes upmarket
Details Ten nights — six full board at Orpheus Island and four room only at the Calile — from £6,629pp, including flights (elegantresorts.co.uk)39. Cute Cornish cottage
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for six from £1,803 (classic.co.uk)40. Divine Herefordshire
Details Room-only church accommodation from £20pp (abbeydoredeanery.org/gvpw)41. Simple life in Greece’s Pelion
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,169pp, including flights and car hire (ionianislandholidays.com)42. Off-peak Zanzibar
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,235pp, including flights, departing on June 1 (awayholidays.co.uk)43. Train to the Midnight Sun
Details Twenty-one nights’ B&B from £4,120pp, including train travel (discover-the-world.com)44. Hebridean island-hopping
Details Six nights’ half-board from £2,575pp (mckinlaykidd.com). Fly to Glasgow45. To Santiago by e-bike, Spain
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £2,245pp (skedaddle.com). Fly to Santiago de Compostela46. Trekking with the Masai, Kenya
Details Seven nights’ full board from £7,295pp, including flights (steppestravel.com)47. Paris to Portofino, Italy
Details One night’s full board on the train and two nights’ B&B at Splendido, including one dinner from £7,290pp (belmond.com)48. Finland summer fling
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for 12 from £12,200 (sjvillas.co.uk). Fly to Helsinki49. Family adventures in Albania
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,030pp including activities and some extra meals (explore.co.uk). Fly to Tirana50. French seaside near the Pyrénées
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for six from £2,189 (pierreetvacances.co.uk). Fly to Girona or take the ferry to Calais then drive51. Baltic cruise
Details Twelve nights’ all-inclusive from £6,019pp, including flights (oceaniacruises.com)52. Eurocamp in Brittany
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £698 (eurocamp.com). Take the ferry to St Malo or fly to Nantes53. Family tour of Turkey’s Turquoise Coast
Details Ten nights’ B&B from £2,074pp, including car hire and activities (stubbornmuletravel.com). Fly to Antalya54. Northumberland coastal hike
Details Seven nights’ full board from £1,045pp (hfholidays.co.uk)55. Latvia’s riviera
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £995pp, including flights (regent-holidays.co.uk)56. Idyllic Welsh campsite
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for four from £385 (bertskg.com)57. Secret Bali
Details Thirteen nights’ B&B — three in Singapore; three in Denpasar, Indonesia; and seven at Wapa di Ume — from £2,699pp, including flights (trailfinders.com)58. Off-grid Norfolk
Details Three nights’ self-catering for two from £875 (wildwithconsent.com)59. Cycle Norway’s Lofoten islands
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £3,499pp, including flights and bike hire (headwater.com) 60. See Canada gold rush region
Details Fourteen nights’ room only from £2,485pp, including flights and car hire (windowsonthewild.com)61. Portugal with teens
Details Four nights’ B&B in Lisbon and ten nights’ self-catering in Cascais from £2,334pp, including flights and transfers (sunvil.co.uk)62. Galician road trip, Spain
Details Nine nights’ B&B from £1,625pp, including ferry crossings (caminos.co.uk)63. Walking the prosecco hills, Italy
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £1,469pp, including flights (exodus.co.uk)64. Olympic hideaway
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £968pp, including flights (olympicholidays.com)65. Aruba beach bounty
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £2,829pp, including flights (kuoni.co.uk)66. Two migrations in Kenya
Details Eleven nights — full board in the bush and B&B at Watamu — from £8,500pp, including flights (audleytravel.com)67. Deep in Ladakh
Details Seven nights’ full board from £7,150pp (shaktihimalaya.com). Fly to Leh68. Morocco’s hidden treasure
Details Seven nights — four nights’ B&B in Fez and three nights’ half-board in Bhalil — from £1,050pp (fleewinter.com). Fly to Fez69. Swiss Grand Tour
Details Fourteen nights’ room only from £4,049pp, including flights, rail travel and some extra meals (trailfinders.com)70. A trullo in Puglia
Details Seven nights’ self-catering for six from £2,273 (oliverstravels.com). Fly to Bari71. North to south in India
Details Fifteen nights’ B&B from £3,495pp, including flights and some extra meals (vjv.com)72. Portugal’s Douro Valley by ebike
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,965pp, including flights and bikes (cycling-for-softies.co.uk)73. Lombardy and back
Details Nine nights’ B&B from £2,895pp, including rail travel and some extra meals (coxandkings.co.uk)74. Bear tracking in northern Spain
Details Nine nights’ full board from £2,295pp, including ferry crossings (naturetrek.co.uk)75. Gorgeous Greek gorges
Details Seven nights’ self-catering from £817pp, including flights and car hire (ionianislandholidays.com)76. Austrian family stay
Details Seven nights’ full board from £860pp based on four sharing a suite (boeglerhof.at). Fly to Innsbruck77. Namibia self-drive
Details Eleven nights’ B&B from £2,431pp, including SUV hire and some extra meals (trailfinders.com). Fly to Windhoek78. Cruise from Rome to Florida
Details Nineteen nights’ full board from £1,879pp, including flights and transfers, departing on November 8 (iglucruise.com)79. Mantas in the Maldives
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £2,689pp, including flights (destinology.co.uk)80. Soul searching in India
Details Eight nights’ full board from £980pp (villageways.com). Fly to Delhi81. Trip the light fantastic in Svalbard
Details Four nights’ B&B from £2,120pp, including flights (originaltravel.co.uk) 82. Hike the Himalayas
Details Thirteen nights’ full board from £3,499pp, including flights (hfholidays.co.uk)83. Cambodian highlights
Details Eleven nights’ B&B from £2,795pp, including flights and some extra meals (bambootravel.co.uk)84. Sunday Times at sea
Details Six nights’ all-inclusive from £1,199pp, departing on November 13 (cunard.com)85. Tropical La Gomera
Details Six nights’ B&B from £1,500pp, including transfers and some extra meals (pura-aventura.com). Fly to Tenerife86. Boutique stay near the Bard
Details Room-only doubles from £250 (thepighotel.com)87. Secret Botswana
Details Eleven nights’ full board from £10,990pp, including flights (abercrombiekent.co.uk)88. African surf and turf
Details Fourteen nights’ full board from £8,535pp, including flights (emeraldcruises.co.uk)89. Colombia for the coffee
Details Fourteen nights’ B&B from £2,879pp, including flights (exodus.co.uk)
