TRINIDAD & TOBAGO COLORADO AND NEW MEXICO

RAVENNA

Covid-19 has overshadowed many of 2020’s commemorations, but the 700th anniversary of the death one of Italy’s greatest poets will (hopefully) be beyond its reach. Dante (Alighieri) will be saluted in Tuscany and EmiliaRomagna (see viedidante.it) – and maybe nowhere more so than in Ravenna, where he wrote part of his Divine Comedy. He also died there in 1321, and is buried (to the continued sorrow of his birthplace, Florence) next to its Basilica di San Francesco. Martin Randall Travel (020 8742 3355; martinrandall.com) has a five-day Ravenna & Urbino cultural group tours slated to begin on April 7 and Sept 29 2021. From £1,710 per perrson, including ng flights.

BURGUNDY NDY

Ocean cruising remains one of the most precarious travel options tions as Covid-19 rages on, but if you still like the e idea of a holiday by boat, at, a river voyage should d be more feasible. Jules Verne (020 3811 5939; vjv.com) om) has added a Péniche Bourgogne gogne break to its range of European ean barge holidays for 2021 – a week’s ek’s cruise from Paris to Dijon on the Petite Saône and Canal de Bourgogne, with bicycles available if you want to stretch etch your legs legs. Sailings are scheduled for July 15 and Aug 12, from £2,295 per person including Eurostar tickets.

FINNISH LAPLAND

There is always an element of escapism to the Nordic lands – and March should provide sights to assuage all ills. Geomagnetic activity tends to be enhanced around the equinoxes – which makes them ideal time-frames for the Northern Lights. The Aurora Zone (01670 785012; theaurorazone.com) offers three-night Wilderness Weekends at Nellim in Arctic Finland. A getaway (March 18-21) timed to coincide with the spring equinox (March 20) costs from £1,095 per person, with flights. If this sounds too soon, the company has also released dates and prices for the following winter season. An identical package from Dec 16-19 2021 will cost from £1,430 per person.

A break in the Caribbean does not have to mean endless hours on busy beaches. It can also poke through the leaves of forests in search of bright fluttering in the branches. Motmot Travel (01327 359622; motmottravel. com) specialises in wildlife-focused holidays in the region, and has a 16-day

nature tour of Trinidad and Tobago scheduled for April 16-May 1. This will split its time evenly between the two islands as it seeks out violaceous trogons, bay-headed tanagers and white-cheeked pintails (as well as leatherback turtles). From £3,690 per

person, with flights.

The same principles o of fresh air and broad horizons apply readily to the Resorts and Ranch Ranches of Colorado and New M Mexico escorted tour that will be unv unveiled by Luxur ury Gold (0800 5 533 5620; luxurygold.com) in 2021. Thi s nine-day trip will begin in Denver, and make its way to Santa Fe – via Colorado S Springs, a ride on the Pikes Peak Cog Railway, and a stay on the vast Vermejo Park Ranch, which spans the b border between the two sta states. The first departure is scheduled for May 9 9, from £ £5,265 per person, excluding international flights – with further trips planned for July 4, plus Aug 15 and 29 (prices vary according to date).