Where to go

🏞️ Icelandic road trip | 🐅 Thai safari | 🏝️ Cocos Islands

26 April 2024

Adventure

The Ring Road is “Iceland’s most iconic route”, says The Daily Telegraph, winding through fairytale towns and showcasing the country’s most extraordinary geological features. The 820-mile loop starts in Reykjavik and takes in everything from glaciers and fjords to hot springs and serene beaches. Those seeking a culture fix can tie in visits to the capital’s museums and galleries. EasyJet offers flights from London Gatwick to Reykjavik from £31, easyjet.com.

Shoestring

Thailand’s Kaeng Krachan National Park is just three hours southwest of Bangkok, says The Times. The safari hotspot’s “big five” comprises tigers, elephants, leopards, sun bears, and gaurs (a type of bison), and the park is also home to myriad creatures including monkeys, butterflies and panthers. Tour operators guide visitors through cathedral-like caves, dense jungle and island archipelagos linked by Indiana Jones-style rope bridges. But the “really wild part” is the price: entry costs £7, and you can spend a night among the wildlife in one of the park’s campsites for just £1. For more information visit thainationalparks.com.

Hotel

Vocabolo Moscatelli is “one of the most alluring” luxury hotels in Umbria, says Harper’s Bazaar. Set in a 12th-century former monastery in a remote estate near the hamlet of Calzolaro, the hotel feels like “a friend’s stylish country home”, with just 12 bedrooms and a “distinctly relaxed vibe”. The main house has retained many original features, including exposed terracotta brickwork and wooden beams, alongside sleek contemporary art and modern touches like al fresco bathtubs and a limestone swimming pool. Activities include truffle hunting and forest bathing. Rooms from £406 per night, vocabolomoscatelli.com.

Alternative

The Cocos Islands are “as remote as a mariner’s fable”, says the FT. The only way to get to the tiny archipelago is via a twice-weekly flight from Perth in Western Australia, 1,720 miles away, a journey made by only 4,000 tourists last year. A far-flung family of Scots ruled the islands until the 1970s, when the Australian government took over, and there are just 593 full-time inhabitants. A “mythical world of tides and sun”, it’s the perfect place to “embrace the good life” – be it swimming with manta rays or lounging on a pristine sandy beach. If you like “kite surfing, beachcombing, snorkelling, scuba or bird watching”, you’ll be happy here. Flights from Perth start at £615 return, virginaustralia.com.

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