BEST FOOT FORWARD

Build up your step count on one of these wonderful walking holidays

- LAURA MULLEY

Fly and flop getaways are all well and good, but if you want to burn off some of that breakfast buffet – and really explore the area you’re staying in – then a specialist walking holiday might be for you. With something for all fitness levels, these organised trips either involve staying at one hotel, which you set out from on foot every day, or moving between locations, with your luggage transported so it’s waiting for you at your next accommodation.

Keen to lace up your boots and set off? From Dartmoor to the Dolomites, here’s our pick of the best hiking holidays to book this year…

GIRL GROUP 

Explore Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way with a group of equally adventurous females on one of two women-only routes Wilderness Ireland is running this year.

The coastal course explores the region’s striking cliff faces and islands, steeped in history and mythology, including Burren (said to have inspired J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth), the iconic Cliffs of Moher, and Clare Island, where pirate queen Grace O’Malley ruled from in the 16th Century.

At the end of the day, discuss the day’s highlights with the group over a hearty dinner at a local pub or restaurant.

HOW TO BOOK 

Wilderness Ireland’s Hiking & Island Hopping trip (wildernessireland.com) costs €2,672 for six nights’ accommodation, meals, guides and transfers for a trip departing 17 August.

EXPLORE THE MOORS