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Top Ten Quick Getaways

Walking and cycling holidays within an hour of the airport

While travelling deep into a country is very rewarding, revealing regions that far fewer tourists bother to visit, sometimes it can make a refreshing change to visit parts which can be accessed more quickly from the UK. Proximity to an airport doesn’t make such areas any less alluring – indeed, the ever-expanding network of flights, particularly new routes pioneered by ‘no-frills’ airlines to smaller regional airports, serves numerous regions of astonishing beauty. Here are some of the best walking and cycling holidays for a quick getaway. (See the links at the bottom of the page for short break ideas.)

Madeira’s Waterways & Flowers Walk (grade 2). On no other of our holidays can you be at your first hotel so quickly after collecting your cases from the arrivals hall of the airport. The taxi journey to the genteel town of Santo da Serra may only take 15 minutes, but here you are already in the rolling green hills of the island’s ‘homelands’ area, and the tranquillity is fantastic. It’s the sort of place that makes you realise that finally you really are on your long-awaited holiday. Fly to Funchal, with connecting taxi transfers (out 15 mins, home 1hr)

Lakes & Valleys of Slovenia Cycle (grade 2). The journey from Ljubljana Brnik Airport is so short there is barely time to whet your appetite for the week of cycling to come. However, the dramatic backdrop formed by the jagged Kamnik-Savinja Alps hints at the beautiful panoramas that await you as you cycle between the idyllic lakes of Bled and Bohinj. Fly to Ljubljana Brnik, with connecting taxi transfers (out 20mins, home 20mins)

Vézère & Dordogne Valleys Cycle (grade 2). For this cycling holiday you fly into Bergerac, a town synonymous with red wine. While this holiday certainly can feature plenty of wine – in this gastronomic region you can expect some great wine lists to accompany the mouthwatering menus – it is about much more than that. Scenic routes lead through idyllic villages, fortified towns, impressive châteaux and past caves in which prehistoric paintings have been discovered. Fly to Bergerac, with connecting taxi transfers (out 30mins, home 30mins)

Mountains & Villages of Mallora Walk (grades 1 & 2). Seemingly a world away from the resorts that stretch either side of the capital, Palma, the island’s most exquisite villages are nevertheless only a 35-minute drive from Palma’s airport. Leading from idyllic Fornalutx to elegant Sóller, then to charming Deià and finally Valldemossa (a great favourite of Chopin’s), our walk explores the heart of the Tramuntana Sierra, where mountains plunge into the sea and terraces of olive and orange trees stretch as far as the eye can see. Fly to Palma de Mallorca, with connecting taxi transfers (out 35mins, home 35mins)

Châteaux of the Loire Cycle (grade 1). Fly to Tours, and you arrive right in the middle of the Loire’s château country. And this is what this holiday is all about – gentle cycling interspersed with visits to grand châteaux steeped in history. Admire elegant Azay-le-Rideau, whose turrets are reflected in its small moat, enjoy the views over the River Loire from imposing Saumur, marvel at the splendour of fairy-tale Ussé, and learn about the many historical figures linked to the abbey at Fontevraud. Fly to Tours, with connecting taxi transfers (out 55mins, home 55mins)

Catalan Castles & Coves Walk (grade 1). Girona Airport is referred to by some airlines as Barcelona-Girona, but in fact is much closer to most of our holidays in this region than Barcelona Airport proper is. On this holiday, the easy journey is matched by easy walking – this is one of our most gentle walks, with short routes that allow plenty of time for exploring the delightful villages in which you stay and, towards the end of the week, for relaxing by the sea. Fly to Girona, with connecting taxi transfers (out 45mins, home 55mins)

Leutasch Valley Walk (grade 2). The charming small city of Innsbruck is one of the jewels of the Austrian Tyrol, and its airport provides easy access to another of the region’s treasures, the Leutasch Valley. Framed by the dramatic, jagged peaks of the Wetterstein chain, whose lower slopes are thickly forested, this is an idyllic valley, dotted with pretty villages and onion-domed churches. It exudes the very essence of the Tyrol: charming and traditional, with high standards of hospitality. Fly to Innsbruck, with connecting taxi transfers (out 50mins, home 50mins)

Lake Iseo Walk (grade 2). You may fly to Brescia with a ‘no-frills’ airline, but once you are at your first hotel, the Villa Kinzica, it will sink in that this is anything but a ‘no-frills’ holiday. In fact, the hotels – all deserving of their 4-star status – only get better as the holiday progresses. I Due Roccoli and the Relais Mirabella (the second and third hotels, respectively) are exquisite, with beautifully appointed bedrooms, attractive grounds and sweeping views. Combine all this with outstanding cuisine, another key ingredient of the walk, and you have a very indulgent holiday. Fly to Brescia or Bergamo, with connecting taxi transfers (out 50mins, home 50mins)

Pont du Gard Walk (grade 1-2). Like the Lake Iseo Walk above, this is a holiday on which only the airline can be described as having no frills. The emphasis is, again, on the hotels – and their restaurants. Spend your days strolling through Roman Provence’s scented hills, and your evenings savouring some first-rate dinners, culminating in the Michelin-starred cuisine of the 4-star Vieux Castillon in Castillon-du-Gard. Fly to Nîmes, with connecting taxi transfers (out 50mins, home 40mins)

Heart of Catalonia Cycle (grade 1-2). Strictly speaking, this holiday does not explore the heart of the region, but rather the north-east corner, for which Girona is very convenient. By leading from the foothills of the Pyrenees down to the coast, what it does reveal are many fascinating and enchanting elements that make up Catalonia’s heart and soul – superb cuisine, fantastic wine-growing areas, the inland plain, timeless medieval villages, stylish hotels and rich wildlife, to name but a few. Fly to Girona, with connecting taxi transfers (out 1hr, home 1hr)

Other week-long holidays with transfer times of an hour or less:
Lakes & Julian Alps Walk (fly to Ljubljana Brnik)
The Sorrento Peninsula Walk (fly to Naples)
The Coast of Almería Walk (fly to Almería)
Mountains of Alicante Walk (fly to Alicante)
Along the Catalan Coast Walk (fly to Girona)
Collioure to Cadaqués Walk (fly into Perpignan and out of Girona)
Châteaux & Vineyards Walk (fly to Tours)
Castles of the Cathars Walk (fly to Perpignan)
Pyrenees to Atlantic Walk (fly to Biarritz)
Lakes & Mountains Walk (fly to Salzburg)
Lake Achensee & its Mountains Discovery (fly to Innsbruck)
Lakes & Volcanoes of the Garrotxa Cycle (fly to Girona)
Southern Beaches to Central Plain Cycle (fly to Palma de Mallorca)

Short breaks with transfer times of an hour or less:
Along the Catalan Coast Walk (fly to Girona)
Catalan Castles & Coves Walk (fly to Girona)
Hidden Catalonia Walk (fly to Girona)
Dramatic Landscapes of Almería Walk (fly to Almería)
Mallorca's Tramuntana Sierra Discovery Walk (fly to Palma de Mallorca)
Austria’s Lake District Walk (fly to Salzburg)
Lake Iseo - Jewel of Lombardy Walk (fly to Bergamo or Brescia)
The Best of Roman Provence Walk (fly to Nîmes or Avignon)
From the Alps to the Riviera Walk (fly to Nice)
Unspoiled Central Mallorca Cycle (fly to Palma de Mallorca)
Hidden Valleys of the Garrotxa Cycle (fly to Girona)