A walking or cycling holiday in France is never complete without a trip to a local market. They’re all just, well….so French. They also haven’t really changed in centuries, with slow food just part of the French way of life. As a result, it’s impossible to know where to start when creating a menu of marchés. But there are a few that jump out as perfect for the beginning or end of a trip, so that you can pack a pannier for a picnic or seek out some last minute presents before you leave. Many of these holidays are also accessible by train and so, if local delicacies and artisan crafts bring you ..read more

We are all for keeping things analogue when it comes to maps and directions, especially on a holiday where you might be seeking to have a digital detox. However, technology is here to help if you want, and it’s very user-friendly and accessible too. The technology in question is in the form of GPS and GPX files, with more details below as to how these can be used on your walking and cycling holidays. If you’re a newbie and you were around to get this reference point, rest assured that you definitely don’t need to be Scully from the X-Files to get your head around our GPX files.  GPS Devic ..read more

Did you know that the iconic red and white stripe markings that jump out at you on an Alpine boulder or a Corsican beech tree along France’s network of Grandes Randonnées (GR) long-distance trails are hand painted by volunteers called baliseurs? They are veritable trail blazers, with their pots of red and white paint and plastic templates to ensure that the markings are précis. Volunteers are trained in these skills by the Fédération Française de la Randonnée Pédestre, which has been protecting and maintaining a 350,000km network of paths since 1946, a time when a need for freedom in nature mu ..read more

There’s something about a journey from mainland to island that brings out a childlike excitement on our travels. So often they are isolated from the norm, secluded and serene with a backdrop of tight-knit communities and commitment to sustainability. Islanders have often been stewards of conservation and sustainability long before many of us were aware of the words, simply as a way to survive and keep their place of beauty alive. Beauty that you can seek out on our carefully-crafted island walking holidays, from challenging ones like Corsica to heavenly Hellenic ones like Kythira. Jump on boar ..read more

We have over 150 self-guided cycling holidays around the world, with tracks and trails through some colossal and historical landscapes. Whether you’re taking on a leisurely journey through Alicante or Andalucia, a Portuguese pilgrimage along the Camino, or an epic cycle between Amsterdam and Paris, you are most likely going to want a coffee or two. Each country has its own glorious coffee rituals too as you will discover en route, whether you’re stopping for a Spanish cortado, fika in Sweden, um café pingado in Portugal or kaffee und kuchen at a German Konditorei. So here are some of our favou ..read more

November’s that month when, for many of us, things start to feel a little darker, hibernation feelings loom overhead and we switch down a gear. Taking a holiday in November is a way to buck the trend, pull open the curtains onto a world of adventures and keep winter woollies at bay for a while longer. You’ve also still got a few months to get in training if you want to take on a challenging adventure such as trekking up Argentina’s Aconcagua or Morocco’s Toubkal. And if you like to avoid the whole build up to Christmas, a month in Nepal will nip that in the bud big time. Raise a toast to some ..read more

The Camino is many things. It’s challenging and exciting, spiritual and peaceful. It’s also quite complex, consisting of many different routes that all converge on the holy city of Santiago de Compostela. Why Santiago? Because its Archcathedral Basilica is believed to be the shrine of Saint James, an apostle of Jesus. This is why the Camino de Santiago is also known as the Way of St. James. He died a martyr in AD44, but it wasn’t until the 9th century that pilgrims started to travel from near and far, on various routes, to pay homage at his place of rest. To walk the camino is, therefore, to f ..read more

If you find yourself looking for a walking holiday, you are most likely already committed to responsible rambling. Most of you will have also discovered the healing powers of putting one foot in front of the other, and agree with Shane O’Mara, author of the excellent book, In Praise of Walking, that science has proved “moving is medicine“. Medicine can have side effects, however, which is why we sometimes need to be reminded of some necessary precautions to keep in mind before partaking. Whether you are a committed outdoor adventurer or a newbie in our worldwide web of walking, here are a few ..read more

The Via Dinarica was launched in 2010 and is the baby of a group of local and regional leaders who had the vision to not only put their countries on the map but to do so in a sustainable and adventurous way. It has a network of three trails, covering over 2,000km in all, but the most complete one is the White Trail and the best one right now for walking the Via Dinarica Trail. This takes you on a journey of around 1,200km across the main ridge of the Dinaric Alps, through Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH), Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia. The others are called the Blue and Gr ..read more

Our co-founder and one of life’s adventurers, Peter Duncan, shares tips, tales and trails from his walking holiday along the Cilento Coast in Italy. From the temples at Paestum to secret coves on the Tyrrhenian Sea, he was delighted to explore somewhere new. And somewhere wonderfully quiet too.  What made you choose the Cilento Coast for a walking holiday?  Well, I like walking when it’s a bit quiet and the nearby Amalfi Coast can start to get a bit crowded at this time of year, so this looked like an interesting alternative. I travelled with my lovely wife, Annie and we also wanted ..read more