Small group holidays grew out of people’s desires to take on the iconic odysseys. Such as walking the Great Wall of China, hiking to Everest Basecamp, scaling Mont Blanc, summitting Mount Kilimanjaro, exploring Toubkal and the Atlas Mountains, or trekking the Inca Trail. Because, yes, you can organise these yourself but it will take months. And a lot of good contacts. Plus you can put your trust in a company that has spent years developing these contacts and seeking out expertise. Leaving you time to just get fit, trip ready and enjoy the adventure.

At Responsible Travel, we have so many extraordinary walking holidays on offer it is hard to know where to start. Except to tell you a few of our lesser known secrets: Portugal’s Serra de Estrela Mountains, France’s Mercantour National Park, Japan’s Nakasendo Trail ,Canada’s Vancouver Island, and the hiking heartland of Turkey in Central Anatolia. As well as all the vias in the ‘ias’: Check out Romania, Andalucia, Albania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Wildlife lovers will covet some of the wild places where you can venture on holiday. By definition these are in places pretty much untouched by man, so don’t expect to sleep in a boutique hotel. Wilderness holidays take to the likes of the Yunnan Province in China, the Khangai Mountains of Mongolia or the Maliau Basin of Borneo. Or, closer to home, High Atlas Mountains of Morocco and the Wild Taiga in Finland.