SPECIALIST TRAVEL
www.companions2travel.co.uk
Excellent resource for pairing up people who are travelling on their own and
want some company. Post a profile if you don’t want to go it alone. Lone
travellers should also try www.singulartravel.co.uk,
which has negotiated deals with tour operators to scrap single supplements.
www.foodvacation.com
A garish and scruffy, but enthusiastic site that covers all things foodie.
There's culinary guides by destination, links to websites such as Slow
Food, and links to cooking holidays.
www.blacktomato.co.uk
A sumptuous website that's so well presented it's almost unnecessary to go on
holiday at all. An intuitive menu system helps you find the right holiday,
whether your passion is cooking, painting or skydiving. Two rival sites,
which also inspire with their experience-led breaks, are isango.com
and whydontyou.com.
www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure
So gorgeous looking you feel like you can jump through the screen, this
website has some of the most interesting adventure trips around, plus reader
competitions galore.
www.nationaltrail.co.uk
Site dedicated to the 15 designated National Trails in England, Scotland and
Wales for walking, cycling and horse riding, with photographs and
interactive route maps. Also check out www.ramblers.org.uk
for its extenxive routes across the UK, accommodation finder and walking
forum.
www.factivities.co.uk
Information and booking facilities for all kinds of activities from
orienteering to model plane flying. If you're looking specifically in
Pembrokeshire, check out www.preseliventure.com
for activites in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, from kayaking to
surfing, and including coasteering.
www.worldsnowboardguide.com
News, views, resort guides, events features — all a boarder’s needs covered.
Pages can take a while to load though, owing to the weight of rich content.
Also worth checking out www.welove2ski.com
for resort guides, and news from the slopes.
www.gapyear.com
Exhaustive guide to gap-year travel. Advice, features and a range of options
to help with that big trip. There's an active forum and also opportunity to
meet other travellers and join volunteer projects. Also see www.yearoutgroup.org,
formed in 1988 to “promote the concept and benefits of well-structured
year-out programmes”, this not-for- profit organisation will help you to
choose the right volunteer project.
www.bootsnall.com
Guide to independent travel with useful information on destinations, and
plenty of forum and community action.
www.worldsurface.com
Attractive online magazine promoting sustainable tourism. Register to join and
submit travel diaries. For eco travel news and tips, also see www.greentraveller.co.uk
www.responsibletravel.com
Get tips on sustainable travel and research and book eco trips around the
world.
Love the attention to detail with these sites. You may want to consider spa and wellness travel - one of the future growth areas around the world. One of my favorites which displays clear information in a very beautiful format is http://www.spasofamerica.com
I can't wait for them to launch Spas of Britain!
Pamela Alexander, Boston, USA