Sunloungers have always baffled me. You spread your towel (before the Germans of course), settle back in the sunshine — and then what? Is that it for the rest of the day, aside from a few drinks and the odd dip in the pool? And how is that going to clear your head of anything? Call me a fidget, but by noon, bored witless by the inactivity, I’d be a sitting duck for every gripe and worry I’ve dodged for the last year.
I’m not the only one who longs for a busier, more adventurous experience. Booking for Exodus’s walking holidays are, for example, already back to 2019 levels. Meanwhile, at Much Better Adventures, the co-founder Sam Bruce notes a growing appetite for bigger experiences. “Searches on our site for ‘moderate’ and ‘challenging’ adventures have increased the most,” he notes as the 2023 season begins.
There’s a new spirit of creativity abroad, too. In the 30 holidays gathered below, you’ll find plenty of fresh ideas, whether it’s a Lakeland holiday leading the fell ponies that carry your gear, a mix of yoga and rock-climbing in Morocco, or a cycling weekend with the five-times Tour de France winner Miguel Induráin. But whether the theme is new or old, each one offers the same fundamental pleasure: the joy of being outdoors all day, doing something that keeps both mind and body active. In my book, nothing is more refreshing.
● Best family adventure holidays
● Top adventure holidays for 2023
What’s more, these days you don’t need to rough it when it comes to bedtime. There are, admittedly, a couple of camping trips in this list. But in others, the accommodation is a touch more pampering. A chic Scandi-style surf hotel in Portugal, artfully restored Transylvanian cottages, a Tuscan country estate: you’ll find them all here, waiting for your weary limbs. After a day spent sailing, hiking, trail-running or wild swimming, you certainly won’t be fidgeting.
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1. Mid-level hiking in the Canary Islands
Bathed in balmy mid-Atlantic air, the Canaries are the perfect spot to get a head start on your summer walking. What’s more, if you focus on near-neighbours Tenerife and La Gomera, you’ll mix eerie volcanic landscapes with dense cloud forests, hidden valleys and vivid terraced fields. This eight-day self-guided itinerary picks its way carefully through the vertiginous terrain and keeps things steady rather than strenuous. Accommodation is in cute and carefully restored village hotels for six of the seven nights, with the final night in a convenient block in the town centre.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,149pp, including flights (walksworldwide.com)
2. On foot: family trekking with ponies in Cumbria
Hidden away south of Haweswater in the northeast part of the Lake District, Swindale is a place of long trackways, deep river pools and an RSPB rewilding project. This three-day trip lets you walk it as the local traders once did, with Cumbrian fell ponies to carry your equipment. You’ll sleep in robust but roomy Robens tents, cook over charcoal fires and settle into a pace of life determined by the steady clip-clop of the horses. Come in late June or July if possible. Swindale Beck is a lovely spot for swimming.
Details Two nights’ full board from £645pp for a family of four (fellpony.co.uk)
3. Winter mountaineering in the West Highlands of Scotland
Few British landscapes offer a bigger, more hair-raising sense of adventure than the West Highlands in winter. Here, amid billowing clouds of wind-blown snow, the black crags of Glencoe and Ben Nevis bare their teeth — and there’s no safe way to get near them without crampons, ice axes, ropes and harnesses. Just learning how to use all this gear can be breathlessly exciting, but if you book three days with West Coast Mountain Guides (£488pp for a group of two), you should progress beyond that, and onto to your first “easy” ascent — weather and fitness levels permitting, of course. In nearby Fort William, the Cruachan Hotel makes a neat and comfortable base.
Details B&B doubles from £82 (cruachanhotel.co.uk)
4. Easy walking in Puglia, Italy
Who said walking holidays were a slog? This one-week saunter through the country lanes and cobbled streets of Puglia is sybaritic rather than strenuous. You’ll stop for a swim in the Dune Costiere regional park, taste the subtle, fruity whites of Locorotondo, and stay in a cave hotel, a restored farmhouse and one of the region’s famous witch’s-hat houses known as trulli. A full day is set aside for the baroque glories of Lecce.
Details Seven nights B&B from £2,579pp, including flights and most meals (exodus.co.uk)
5. Trail running for the fit in the Alps, France
Trail running in the Alps is mind-blowing and addictive. But if you go at it too hard, too soon, your legs will explode. Three cheers, then, for these midsummer “Introduction to the Alps” weekends based in Chamonix and aimed at anyone who can run 10km nonstop. Sound advice on technique is combined with sensible objectives and stunning views. On day one, you’ll walk rather than run on your first ascent; when the pace quickens on day two your target is a balcony overlooking France’s longest glacier, the Mer de Glace. The four-star accommodation at the designery Refuge des Aiglons isn’t too gruelling either.
Details Two nights’ B&B from £505pp (runthewild.co.uk). Fly to Geneva
6. Self-guided hiking in Sicily’s islands, Italy
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Northwestern Sicily is closer to Africa than it is to the Italian mainland, and it has a character all of its own, as you’ll discover on this week of self-guided walks around Scopello, Erice and the Egadi Islands. Come in spring for balmy sunshine and fresh sea breezes, as you discover a rich mix of Moorish villages, Norman castles and a remote marine conservation area that’s home to bottlenose dolphins and rare monk seals. No walk is longer than nine miles and accommodation is in small, family-run three-star hotels throughout.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £775pp (inntravel.co.uk). Fly to Palermo
7. Five-day trek to the summit of Mount Ararat, Turkey
Need to really, really stretch your legs? Then how about climbing Turkey’s sacred summit, Mount Ararat? Its snow-capped peak soars to more than 5,000m but is not a technical challenge: the most difficult section is a short, snowy traverse with crampons and trekking poles, but you will need to be fit as well as properly acclimatised. This new guided itinerary breaks you in with a one-day walk on the 3,500m Mount Artos, before the main five-day trek. Expect a mix of accommodation, from a comfortable hotel in Van to mountaineering tents — as well as gob-smacking views from the top.
Details Nine nights’ full board from £1,945pp (keadventure.com). Fly to Van
8. On (or in) the water: posh surfing in Ericeira, Portugal
Not every surfer wants to sleep in a campervan. So step forward Aetheos Ericeira. The low-slung hotel sits on cliffs six miles north of Portugal’s surf capital, Ericeira, and offers a bright, light modernist sense of comfort, as well as sprawling sea-view terraces and a spa. There’s no avoiding the water, though. A concierge offers surfboards for hire and advice on where to take them. Or join the free daily surf lesson with the Progress Surf School: founder Joanna Andrade was Portugal’s first female big-wave star.
Details Four nights’ B&B from £611pp, including flights (fishandpips.co.uk)
9. Sailing for newbies from Cornwall to Ireland
Here’s a chance to settle into the meditative pace of a long-distance voyage while engaging with the long maritime history of the Irish Sea. On board the Eda Frandsen — a 75-year-old gaff cutter — you’ll sail from Falmouth to the Isles of Scilly on April 29, before hopping from port to port up the Irish Sea. Wales, Ireland and the Isle of Man are all potential stops as you head towards the Isle of Arran, learning the ropes as you go, and following in the wake of traders, saints and raiders. You sleep on board in small, snug cabins.
Details Nine nights’ full board from £1,495pp (wildernessengland.com)
10. Rafting for beginners in the Alps, France
By turns serene, collaborative and breathlessly exciting, this rafting trip on the Isère in the French Alps packs a lasting punch, even if the descent takes only two half days. Fed by a reservoir, the river is reliably thunderous. But what makes the trip magnificent is the overnight forest bivouac halfway down. Here, everyone is encouraged to work together, lighting fires, cooking and pitching in with music and stories (a yoga teacher is also available). Enhance your trip with mountain hikes from the comfy and characterful Le Coeur 1210 (B&B doubles from £97; lecoeur1210.fr).
Details One night’s full board rafting trip from £344pp (essaonia.net). Take the train to Aime-la-Plagne
11. Scuba diving in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt
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Make life easy on your first scuba-diving trip by learning in the warm, sheltered waters of Sharm el-Sheikh Stay at the small, unpretentious Camel Dive Club & Hotel, and you’ll also get the services of an on-site dive centre, a purpose-built training pool, and the company of like-minded fellow guests, who’ll be just as excited by the Red Sea’s teeming underwater life as you are. Your basic SSI Open Water qualification begins with online learning at home, and can be completed at the hotel in three days (£367pp). Cue a euphoric sundowner at the hotel’s rooftop bar and up to five more dives, included in the holiday price.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,175pp, including flights (regal-dive.co.uk)
12. Open-water challenge for novices in Mallorca, Spain
If 500m in your local pool is no problem but you’re daunted by the thought of the sea, this six-day “Introduction to Open Water” for fit, capable novices in Mallorca is for you. Based in the peaceful seaside town of Colonia de Sant Jordi in the southeast, it starts in the shallow bay just beyond your three-star hotel, so the coaches can get a sense of your swimming, then progresses to a 50m training pool for tips and a video analysis. One-to-one tutorials in the sea follow as well as progressively more challenging dips, culminating in an extended swim in the clear blue waters off the Cap de Ses Salines.
Details Five nights’ B&B from £1,050pp, including some meals (swimtrek.com). Fly to Palma
13. Expert-level scuba diving, Iceland
The glacier water that feeds Iceland’s Silfra Fissure in Thingvellir National Park has been filtering through the rock of the surrounding lava field for years. It’s not just frigid, it’s dazzlingly clear too, with 100m underwater views opening up in front of you as you swim. A four-day itinerary for experienced divers includes a day of scuba diving in a fast-paced and feisty long weekend, with expert divers to lead you and all scuba gear provided, including mandatory dry suits. There’s a day free for dry-land adventures too, but it’s the experience of swimming between the Eurasian and American tectonic plates that will stay with you. At times you can reach out and touch both walls.
Details Three nights’ B&B from £1,195pp, including flights (diveworldwide.com)
14. Paddleboarding for beginners/intermediates in Croatia
Officially, the aim of this women-only Croatia SUP adventure is to circumnavigate the little island of Molat. But really that’s a pretext for five days of sunny, waterborne bliss as you paddle and picnic your way through the turquoise world of the Zadar archipelago. Beginners are welcome if fairly confident and active, kayaks are available for longer crossings, and a local family-run agriturismo will sate your growing appetite with plenty of fresh fish, island honey and olive oil. Accommodation is spread through locally owned apartments.
Details Six nights’ full board from £1,249pp (gutsygirls.co.uk). Fly to Zadar
15. Swimming, surfing and yoga for outdoorsy types in
Cornwall
Don’t flinch from Cornwall’s ocean chill — embrace it on a private, three-day cold water therapy retreat. Based in one of the cute clapperboard houses at Three Mile Beach in Gwithian, you’ll have your own in-house Wim Hof Method workshop, learning how to control your breathing as you plunge from private sauna into an ice-filled barrel. Then, it’s time for a sound bath on the beach and a restorative yoga class. Optional two-hour, private surf and coasteering lessons start from £50pp, including wetsuit hire (globalboarders.com).
Details Three nights’ self-catering from £300pp for four people, including Wim Hof workshop (threemilebeach.co.uk)
16. Easy kayaking with photography in Sweden
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Autumn’s warm colours await on this five-day photography workshop in the St Anna archipelago, Sweden, a maze of more than 6,000 islands and reefs south of Stockholm. With a maximum of four hours’ sea kayaking each day, the trip is not designed to be too arduous, and you’ll have time to focus on your camera under the watchful eye of the Sweden-based photographer and wilderness guide Rob McNamee. During the first three nights you’ll be wild camping close to the water’s edge, but you’ll finish in cosy cabins at the end of the trip, editing and processing your work.
Details Four nights’ all-inclusive from £1,132pp, on September 6 or 15 (dothenorth.com). Fly to Stockholm
17. Mixed activities: family adventures in Kotor, Montenegro
Montenegro’s soaring mountains and spectacular fjords are the backdrop to a busy week of guided family-friendly activities on this well-paced, one-week trip. It starts with a lazy beach day around the small attractive city of Kotor, so the grown-ups can recharge their batteries, then you’re off. White-water rafting in the Tara Canyon, a high ropes course in the Lovcen National Park and sea-kayaking on Kotor’s fjord are all on the menu, as is unfussy accommodation in mountain apartments and a small family-run hotel.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,035pp, including some meals (activitiesabroad.com). Fly to Tivat
18. Kayaking and hiking in Vietnam
There’s no doubting the highlight of this kayak and caving expedition: paddling through Lan Ha Bay. The little sister of Halong Bay shares the same dreamlike landscape of limestone pillars and turquoise ocean. But it’s more remote and less touristy, and the two days you’ll stay here (overnighting on a sailing boat) are typical of an itinerary that treads an energetic path through the country. Expect jungle hikes, laughing yoga and cave swimming as well as a mix of hotels, jungle lodges and a night under canvas.
Details Nine nights’ B&B from £1,910pp, including most meals (muchbetteradventures.com). Fly to Hanoi
19. Gentle fun in the Pindus Mountains of Greece
Set in the rugged Zagori region of northern Greece, the luxe Aristi Mountain Resort is only half an hour’s drive from the 4,000ft (1,200m) walls of the Vikos Gorge. So no wonder awe-inspiring hikes are high on the agenda. There are plenty of other activities too. Try fly-fishing, rafting, riverside yoga, horse riding and rock climbing with the resort’s partner organisation Trekking Hellas (trekking.gr). Back at base, the area’s only hotel spa awaits, along with open fires, spacious bedrooms and sensational views from the restaurant terrace.
Details Seven nights’ B&B from £1,298pp, including flights (sunvil.co.uk)
20. Multi-activity adventures on Skye, Scotland
Fancy a refuge that’s as cosy as a tent, but a tad more stylish? Then consider the new, luxe cabins at the four-star Bracken Hide Hotel on Skye. Opening on March 31 it will provide 45 snug wooden refuges scattered across the 53-acre site, with power showers, underfloor heating and giant Harris Tweed headboards. A cinema room, sauna and restaurant await at the main lodge and guided outings come courtesy of the on-site partner Skye Adventure: try a scramble to the summit of the Cuillin Hills (£150pp for two) or a morning’s coasteering at £60pp (skyeadventure.com).
Details Room-only doubles from £140 (brackenhide.co.uk)
21. Rock climbing and yoga in the Todra Gorge, Morocco
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There’s no more tactile way to connect with a landscape than climbing it — and this innovative guided itinerary gives you two full days on the sheer limestone cliffs of the Todra Gorge. Located 140 miles east of Marrakesh, the valley’s 366m (1,200ft) walls are home to lots of beginner-friendly routes, as well as a via ferrata, with a comfortable local guesthouse waiting nearby when your muscles are spent. Add daily yoga sessions and a night in a billowing desert encampment gazing at the stars, and you’ve got a trip that will stretch both mind and body.
Details Six nights’ half-board from £684pp (muchbetteradventures.com). Fly to Marrakesh
22. Sailing and more for families, Peloponnese, Greece
It’s the breadth of choice that will get energetic families buzzing at the beachfront Club Messini in the Peloponnese area of mainland Greece. Steady onshore breezes blow almost every afternoon — and the hotel’s fleet of windsurfers and dinghies allows almost every level of sailor to take advantage of them. Free lessons are available for those that need them, while tennis, rock climbing, mountain biking and fitness lessons keep things busy onshore. It’s not just the young ’uns having fun. Childcare for two to 18-year-olds is included in the price, so parents can let rip too.
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £959pp, including flights and some other meals (neilson.co.uk)
23. Yoga and watersports for any fitness level in St Lucia
Expect some giddy changes of pace on this week-long Yoga at BodyHoliday package in St Lucia. Each morning begins with the quiet, meditative intensity of a 50-minute private yoga or Pilates lesson. But after that, you could be scuba diving, whizzing about on a catamaran, fencing or playing tennis. All these (and many more) are included in the price of your stay at this plush beachfront resort along with a daily treatment in its giant spa. Chances are, you’ll fall asleep as soon as you hit the massage table.
Details Seven nights’ all-inclusive from £4,110pp, including flights (healthandfitnesstravel.com)
24. On two wheels: gastronomic cycling in Rioja, Spain
Never mind the vines. At the start of this April 13-16 tour of Rioja, you’ll only have eyes for your fellow cyclists. The three-times world champion Óscar Freire and the five-times Tour de France winner Miguel Induráin will be joining your guided group, as you preview roads destined for the Tour de France 2023 in July. Your extraordinary surroundings will come into focus later, however — not just the Frank Gehry architecture at the Marques de Riscal winery, or its five-star hotel, but the food as well. The chefs Ashley Palmer-Watts (formerly of the Fat Duck) and Francis Paniego will be cooking.
Details Three nights’ full board from £3,795pp (leblanq.com). Fly to Bilbao
25. Alpine mountain-biking in Sölden, Austria
As with many five-star ski hotels, prices at Das Central in Sölden, Austria, drop sharply in summer, and there are 10 per cent discounts on bookings of more than five nights. So you can get a taste of its three-storey spa and gastronomic kitchen for half the price of most nights in winter. You’ll have quick access to the area’s ever-expanding Bike Republic mountain-biking zone too. Take your pick from gentle valley-bottom jaunts, spectacular e-bike climbs and hell-for-leather switchback descents, while working up an appetite in the process. Dinner each night runs to five courses.
Details Half-board doubles from £333 (central-soelden.com). Fly to Innsbruck or take the train via Paris and Zurich
26. Untamed Abruzzo by e-bike, Italy
Don’t worry about the 25-40 miles you’ll need to cover each day on this guided small-group tour (which has departures on June 11 and September 3). Your e-bike will take the strain, leaving you to enjoy the back roads and farm tracks of this wild, high and underrated region of Italy. En route, you’ll visit two national parks, meet local beekeepers and learn to eat mozzarella “like an apple” for a mid-morning snack. Accommodation is in farms and village houses, restored with a light but stylish touch.
Details Five nights’ full board from £3,495pp (theslowcyclist.co.uk). Fly to Rome
27. Tough cycling in the Dolomites, Italy
Flat-topped, slab-sided and very roughly circular, the 3,152m (10,338ft) Sella Massif is in the heart of the Italian Dolomites, and pedalling over its three mountain passes once the snow’s gone is the region’s most spectacular two-wheeled challenge. No wonder, then, that 20,000 cyclists turn up whenever the roads are closed to other traffic. This year, there are two car-free Sellaronda Bike Days, on June 10 and September 16, and the chic Melodia del Bosco hotel in Badia is offering three-night accommodation packages for participants. Included in the price: a massage for your exhausted legs.
Details Three nights’ half-board from £341pp (melodiadelbosco.it). Fly or take the train to Venice
28. On horseback: horse riding and biking, Transylvania, Romania
Forget Dracula. It’s Transylvania’s rich mix of mountains, forests and wildlife that will get the blood pumping. This bespoke itinerary cherry picks some of the best guided hikes, biking and horse rides in the region, as well as some beautifully restored accommodation. At Bethlen, north of Cluj-Napoca, for example, you’ll stay in former estate barns and cottages equipped with custom-built furniture and hand-stitched curtains — and get the chance to ride Lipizzaner horses through the hills. In the Piatra Craiului Mountains you’ll hike forests populated by lynx and bears.
Details Six nights’ half-board from £6,500pp, including flights (blacktomato.com)
29. Beginners’ horse riding in Tuscany, Italy
Essentially, Borgo Pignano is your dream Tuscan estate: a grand country hotel on 750 organic acres not far from the stellar town of San Gimignano. So why not enjoy it as one of its owners would have done in the 17th century — on horseback? The estate stables are home to a group of gentle, well-trained mounts, and eight easy riding trails up to 5km long explore its woods and fields. Beginners can learn the basics with lessons priced from £61pp, while half-day treks (£123pp) take more experienced riders to the ruined fortress of Castelvecchio.
Details B&B doubles from £263 (borgopignano.com). Fly to Pisa
30. Namibia adventure for experienced riders
You’ll need to be lighter than 85kg, and comfortable riding at any speed — including a long, sustained canter. But for fit and experienced equestrians that’s all part of the allure of this guided, ten-day Namib Desert Ride through Namibia’s cool coastal desert. So, too, are the otherworldly landscapes you’ll encounter en route. Boulder fields, zebra paths, broad sandy plains — you’ll cross them all, notching up an average of 20 miles each day and settling into the purposeful, soothing rhythm of camp life. You sleep on camp beds in expedition tents but most riders take the camp beds out of the tents so they can sleep under the stars. Keep your eyes peeled en route. The local fauna include cheetah, springbok and oryx.
Details Nine nights’ full board from £5,350pp (rideworldwide.com).
Fly to Windhoek
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