Getting the flavour of…
Art and glamour in Cape Town
Occupying the top six floors of a towering converted grain silo in Cape Town’s industrial dockyards, The Silo is Africa’s most “sophisticated” new hotel, says Lucia van der Post in the FT. It’s pretty incredible, with its wildly colourful interiors featuring antique furniture from markets all over Africa. There’s a rooftop bar and pool with panoramic views, and floor-to-ceiling windows in every room. But The Silo is most exciting for the close relationship it enjoys with its downstairs neighbour – the soon-toopen Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa. Guests will enjoy direct access to the museum – the world’s largest gallery of contemporary African art – and the hotel (which opened last month) is full of work by artists featured in it. Africa Travel (020-7843 3500, www.africatravel.com) has a five-night stay at The Silo from £2,795pp, incl. flights.
Returning to Sorrento
The Sorrentine Peninsula is best known for its gorgeous southern shore, the Amalfi Coast – but other areas are just as beautiful, more affordable, and “less infuriatingly busy”, says Nicky Swallow in Condé Nast Traveller. Sorrento itself – a staple of the 18th century Grand Tour – is a fine town with a spectacular clifftop setting facing Mount Vesuvius across the Bay of Naples. Away from its main tourist drag are plenty of little-visited treats, from “astonishing” medieval palaces to charming traditional shops. Nearby Vico Equense has some lovely beaches and “glorious” walking paths, as well as several Michelin-starred restaurants in the surrounding hills. But to truly venture off the beaten track, explore the wild coast between Nerano and Positano by boat, returning to civilisation at lovely Marina del Cantone for pasta at the “restaurant on stilts”, Lo Scoglio. Bellini Travel (020-7602 7602, www.bellinitravel.com) has a six-night trip from s1,720pp, excl. flights.
Riding in Ireland’s wild west
A legendary horseman, pony breeder and entrepreneur in his native County Galway, 79-year-old Willie Leahy founded Connemara Trails almost 50 years ago, and the week-long, 110-mile rides he leads across this rugged region, on Ireland’s wild western fringe, are still going strong, says Leyla Daybelge in The Daily Telegraph. The sense of “freedom, fun and proximity to nature” on these trips is wondrous. You spend your nights in country house hotels, and ride by day across landscapes ranging from lonely mountains to vast, boggy plains that echo with birdsong. There are white sand beaches too, where you can ride your pony, bareback, in turquoise waters – “a magical experience”.
From s1,590pp for six days (+353 91 843968, www.connemaratrail.com).