Car parks opening
SOME National Trust car parks have now reopened to allow access to outdoor spaces. But its historic buildings and cafes remain closed.
A statement said: “We’re prioritising opening our gates and offering beautiful outdoor spaces first. The announcement follows the government decision to let people in England drive to outdoor spaces.”
THERE’S nothing quite as invigorating – and brilliantly socially distanced – as a coastal walk. Breathe deeply, take in the views, listen to the surf and dine on the best of sea and land.
Britty special The Brittany coast, France
The GR34 is the French equivalent of our Southwest Coast Path. It runs 1,240 miles from Mont Saint-michel on the English Channel to Saint-nazaire on the Atlantic coast. It even has a region called Cornouaille – and has strong links to our Cornwall, where it got its name.
The section that has its own “goldilocks” microclimate starts to the south of Quimper on a shoreline of cliffs and coves, offshore islands and secret beaches.
Head for is Le Pouldu’s Plage de Ballangenet. From here, it is easy walking through wildflowers and past sandy beaches to Doelan, one of the prettiest ports in southern Brittany, with two absurdly picturesque lighthouses. Then you are into wilder Finistere, with its little oyster and shellfish farms.
WHEN THE WORLD REOPENS: Macsadventure has two itineraries on the coast: the northern Granite Coast or the southern coast and islands, from £940 for eight days, land only. See macsadventure.com.
Gimme five The Cinque Terre, Italy
Liguria’s Unesco-registered Cinque Terre consists of five villages, with multicoloured houses cascading like spilt paint down to the sea, where they end in fishing harbours.
These villages are connected by train and footpath, but not by car, so they have a timeless serenity not found in many other places.
Of the five, Vernazza is the prettiest, with a choice of footpaths to neighbour Monterosso along cliff-hugging terraces and olive groves. This is one of the most dramatic and delectable stretches of European shoreline.
WHEN THE WORLD REOPENS: Ramblers Holidays offers seven-night guided group walks around the Cinque Terre, with flights, from £1,099. See ramblersholidays.co.uk.
Home turf Southwest Coast Path, Cornwall
The UK’S most popular long-distance path has a variety of moods. In South Devon it is gentle and calm. In North Cornwall, harsh and wild.
The section at Land’s End round to Helford gives a taste of both. Once a footpath that was patrolled by the coastguard until 1913 to stop smugglers, it runs along the edge of the cliffs, hugging the coast and connecting secret coves.
Besides Land’s End, this section includes Minack Theatre, carved into the cliffs, the fabulous beach at Praa Sands, and Lizard
Point, the most southerly point in the UK, where everyone should have a pastie made by Ann of Ann’s Pasties.
You end in the wooded Helford estuary, immortalised by Daphne du Maurier in her book Frenchman’s Creek.
WHEN THE WORLD REOPENS: A seven-night guided group walk with Hfholidays costs from £855. See hfholidays.co.uk.
Hola hope Collioure-cadaques France and Spain
This hike crosses from France into Spain at the point where the Pyrenees melt into the Mediterranean. The result is a shoreline of cliffs, bays and beaches, populated by artists and colourful fishing boats.
Collioure, at the French end, attracted the likes of Matisse and Picasso. Cadaques, at the Spanish end, was the home of Salvador Dali.
Between the two lies an inspirational palette of coastal paths and vineyards, orange groves and rural country lanes.
Walkers usually overnight in four waterside villages – in Banyuls, in Port Bou, in Llança, and in Port de la Selva – and linger at either end to savour the flavour, not to mention the seafood and wine.
WHEN THE WORLD REOPENS: An eight-day self-guided hike with Keadventure costs from £775, land only. See keadventure.com.
Welsh wonder Pembrokeshire coast path, Wales
The 186 mile Pembrokeshire coast path twists its way through almost every kind of maritime landscape from cliffs and coves to beaches and estuaries. And almost all of it lies within the