Broadchurch breaks, a new Paris hotel, and Peru by bike: Travel agenda
Where to go and what to know
1. North star
The Foreign Office has announced that overseas visitors to the northern Sri Lankan city of Jaffna and surroundings no longer need official approval. But it warns: "Military activities are ongoing. You should obey orders from the security forces and signs warning of the danger from land-mines."
2. Balearic beauty
Accommodation specialist i-escape has launched its first collection of properties on the island of Menorca. The eight boutique hotels and villas include the recently opened Hotel Petit Mao, an eight-bedroom townhouse in the island's capital, and Ca Na Xini, an agrotourism estate on a working vineyard.
3. Dorset drama
Broadchurch fans rejoice. Literary Lyme Walking Tours is hosting a day trip to some of the Dorset locations used in the ITV drama. Sites include the hut from Series 1, the caravan site, the harbour, police station, and the cliffs that have become synonymous with the series. The Broadchurch Experience is on 25 May; tickets £30.
4. Georgia bound
At the end of this month Virgin Atlantic abandons its routes from Heathrow to Mumbai and Tokyo, but the airline is expanding in March from Manchester to Atlanta – home of its partner, Delta Airlines. Easy connections are available to a wide range of cities with no direct flights, such as Memphis and New Orleans.
5. Hot Hyatt
Hyatt is set to open its first hotel on the East African island of Zanzibar in March. The 67-bed property, set within two buildings on the beachfront of Unesco-listed Stone Town, will have a spa and fitness centre, an oceanfront infinity pool, and a dining room with an outdoor terrace.
6. Reserve now
The hotly anticipated La Réserve Paris Hotel and Spa has opened its 40 rooms and suites between Avenue Montaigne and Faubourg Saint-Honoré. French food will be served in the restaurant, Le Gabriel, and guests can use a private library, a bar, a smoking room, a 16m swimming pool and a spa.
7. Finn link
Helsinki airport finally gets a rail-air link to the city centre in July, when the much-delayed Ring Rail Line opens. The €750m project will shrink the journey time to the city centre to 20 minutes. It also offers easy connections to other Finnish destinations and even across the Russian border to St Petersburg.
8. Blaze a trail
Peru's Cordilleras Blanca & Huayhuash, by Neil and Harriet Pike, is a new guide to a region north-west of Lima that's often neglected by Brits in favour of the Inca Trail, but it has some of the world's finest trekking and mountain biking. The guide has 20 hiking trails and 30 days of cycle routes (Trailblazer Publications, £15.99).
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