A city break or a getaway to a resort is all well and good, but what could be more magical to discover a country than to walk its oldest natural paths?
The hike may seem unexciting, but we can assure you, these routes promise real thrills.
This European walking holiday takes place in mountains, moors and hilltop forts to offer transparent walkways, wizarding folklore and the odd wild bear.
We’ve rounded up some of the best below.
Madeira Peaks
Do you believe that good climbs should be rewarded with great views?
Then, this new, small-group walking tour of sweet, wine-growing Madeira – a Portuguese-owned island that’s actually closer to Morocco – will delight you.
After a shorter hike along lush trails alongside waterfalls, you’ll climb the 5,964-foot Pico do Arieiro for sweeping vistas before ascending Cabo Girão’s glass walkway atop sheer cliffs.
Soothe your stomach with Madeiran poncha – distilled sugar cane that’s usually sweetened with fruit – and try a breathtaking jeep tour or toboggan ride on your last free day.
The trip: Five nights from £577 pp, B&B including transport, guiding and three lunches, leaves all year round with GA Adventures.
Flights to Funchal from £109.96 return (including checked baggage, which you’ll need) via Ryanair.
Patrol a UK border
The 177-mile-long Offa’s Dike Path follows an 8th-century bank and ditch ordered by the King of Mercia to protect his kingdom.
Criss-crossing the Welsh-English border 20 times, it mixes heather moorland and the Black Mountains with the gentler hills of Shropshire and the riverside meadows of the Wye Valley as it passes the eerie castle and market town.
Alongside a tour of the southern half for self-sufficient adventurers, Exodus recently launched a north-south epic, traveling from Prestatyn to the Severn Estuary.
The trip: Seventeen nights from £2,349 pp, B&B including luggage transfers, four dinners and itinerary notes (or southern leg only, eight nights from £1,199) with Exodus.
Hiking after the bears in Slovakia
What trumps a walking holiday? Easy: a walking holiday aimed at observing Carpathian bears in the wild. Rather than spending all day in hideouts, Walks Worldwide’s trip to Slovakia follows the tracks or trails of beasts in hopes of observing them from a safe distance.
It’s amidst the forested peaks of the High Tatras and the Silent Valley, where park rangers take you off-road to areas that tourists usually can’t visit. Groups are no larger than eight to minimize disruption.
Also incorporating the spectacular gorges of Slovak Paradise National Park, this is a comprehensive tour that includes eight hours of hiking per day.
The trip: Seven nights from £1,250 pp, B&B including flights, transport, six other meals and guides, departing 16th and 30th September with Walk around the world.
The unknown Italy
Researched with typical precision, On Foot Holidays’ Ligurian hills route takes seasoned strollers along an ancient salt road and out to the Mediterranean.
From Oltrepò Pavese, a region of northern Italy whose castles, bucolic humps, vineyards and culinary prowess inspire the nickname “Little Tuscany”, he soon returns to the lofty ridges along which Hannibal once marched on Rome. .
Eventually, the path descends to Camogli, a pastel-hued seaside resort.
You will walk an average of 18 km per day, always with shorter options, and you will sleep in agriturismi or mountain pass restaurants serving local cuisine.
The trip: Seven nights from £1,050 pp, B&B including transport, luggage transfers, 11 other meals and itinerary notes, available April to October with walking holidays. Flights to Pisa from €58 return via Easyjet.
Beware of witches
The Harz Witch Trail in northern Germany promises fairytale landscapes in the form of half-timbered towns, canyons, silent coniferous forests, lonely fortresses and elevated viewpoints.
After admiring the Unesco-protected Oberharzer Wasserregal dam system, hikers climb to the Brocken (3,743ft), a misty mountain known for its occult gatherings and its “Spectre”, an optical illusion in which your magnified shadow can be cast eerily on the clouds in front of you.
You’ll continue through chalk dunes towards an optional, rickety crossing of Earth’s longest suspension rope bridge. Brushes not provided…
The trip: Seven nights from £835 pp, B&B including transport and luggage transfers, available April to October with Mac’s Adventure. Flights to Hannover from €61 one way via British Airways.
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