Getting the flavour of…

Arthur Ransome’s Lakes

First published in 1930 – and newly adapted for the cinema – Arthur Ransome’s Swallows and Amazons was inspired by the writer’s own holidays in the Lake District. And a break spent swimming and sailing there lets children recreate the book’s adventures, says Sarah Urwin Jones in The Times. Start by cruising Coniston Water in the steam yacht Gondola – the model for Captain Flint’s houseboat. Swim the 750 metres from the lake’s “idyllic” wooded banks to Peel Island (Ransome’s Wild Cat Island) with openwater expert Pete Kelly of Swim the Lakes. And take sailing lessons on Ullswater with the Glenridding Sailing Centre, whose traditional boats are much like Ransome’s own Amazon, on display in the Ruskin Museum. See www.swimthelakes.co.uk, www.glenriddingsailingcentre.co.uk and www.nationaltrust.org.uk (for the Gondola).

Deluxe trekking in Sikkim

With its “dense, damp, fragrant” forests, exotic mammals and rare orchids, the Himalayan kingdom of Sikkim was a “paradise” for 19th century naturalists. Annexed by India in 1975, it remains hard to get to, and little visited – yet now it’s possible to trek there in luxury, says Steve King in the FT. On Shakti Himalaya’s “village walks”, guests stay in traditional houses, with en-suite bathrooms and “crisply made” beds, and staff set up picnic tables at “carefully chosen viewpoints” for lunch each day. You won’t escape all signs of modernity – power lines, satellite dishes, and so on – but the “careworn” Buddhist monasteries and villages bright with flowers take you back in time, and the views of the towering Kanchenjunga massif are awe-inspiring. Original Travel (020-7978 7333, www. originaltravel.co.uk) has five nights with Shakti Himalaya from £3,350pp, incl. flights.

Slovakia’s superb wine region

Renowned for centuries across Europe, Tokaji was called “the wine of kings and the king of wines” by Louis XIV. Goethe, Voltaire and Beethoven all relished it. And having recovered from communist mismanagement, the best Hungarian varieties are riding high again. But there’s another, far smaller Tokaj wine region in neighbouring Slovakia, says Miroslava Germanova in The New York Times. “An undiscovered jewel”, it stretches across the rolling hills around the village of Malá Trna. The flavour of the naturally sweet wines it produces owes much to a dark mould, Cladosporium cellare, in the deep cellars where it matures. Tastings are often by appointment only – but the effort is worth it. Some wineries have “low-key” hotels, or try The Cottage, a “cosy” holiday let (+421 905 837 829, www.tokaj-ubytovanie.sk).