Pig out at Disney for free
For more great holiday ideas, see page 37
Chequers, the PM’S country retreat, and ascends its highest viewpoint, Coombe Hill, at 251 metres, with the Vale of Aylesbury below. GO SOLO: nationaltrail. co.uk. GET HELP: Contours Walking Holidays offers the whole or parts. A five-night, 48 mile, Chiltern section, starting in the pretty Thames-side village of Goring, costs from £355 including B&B and luggage transfers. See contours.co.uk.
Midge dodger
Scotland’s hugely popular long distance trail, the ancient cattle-drovers’ route from the Lowlands to FILL up at Disney World Florida with free meals for the whole family. To grab the top deal, you need to book your 2019 break with Attraction Tickets Direct. Bookings must be for a minimum of five nights at an on-site Disney hotel the Highlands, starts just north of Glasgow and finishes up in Fort William.
Initially it runs through mature woodland alongside gorgeous Loch Lomond before breaking free of all that fertility and heading on to the wild boggy desolation of Rannoch Moor and the high drama of Glencoe.
It will be wet and there will be midges, but the scenery is unforgettable. GO SOLO: westhighlandway.org. GET HELP: You can break this stunning route up into a variety of itineraries with Hillwalk Tours. For example, a six-night trip, which sees you head from Inverarnan to Fort William, costs from £639, based on two sharing and including B&B and luggage transfers. See hillwalktours.com. with theme-park tickets. So a 14-night holiday for a family of four staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge in September would cost from £4,734, including your meals. See attraction-ticketsdirect.co.uk. Running from Aviemore to Buckie, from mountains to the sea, this route sticks mostly to the track bed of the old Strathspey Railway, so relatively easy walking in a land of giants. It bumps over the toes of the Cairngorm mountains and follows one of Scotland’s most glorious rivers – the Spey – on its tumbling journey. En route it rambles through whisky country, past distilleries such as Knockando, Tormore and Dufftown, so plenty of spiritual diversions for you. GO SOLO: speysideway.org. GET HELP: Wilderness Scotland has guided group and self-guided individual packages. Seven nights self-guided costs from £745 including B&B and luggage transfers. See wildernessscotland.com.