The Point Circuit in Robberg Nature Reserve is one of the most breathtaking and rewarding hikes on the Garden Route. This 9.2km loop takes around 4 hours and showcases dramatic cliffs, wild ocean views, and rich wildlife, including seals and seabird colonies. In our blog, we share our full-day experience hiking the Point Circuit while house-sitting in Plettenberg Bay, complete with swims in tidal pools, sunbathing on sandy beaches, and clambering over rocky sections with the help of fixed ropes. The trail can be challenging in places, especially along the southern shoreline, but the views and variety make it worth every step. Highlights include the detour around “The Island”, where we stopped for a dip and a break on the sand. Whether you’re in it for the adventure, the scenery or the wildlife, Robberg’s Point Circuit is an unforgettable coastal experience. Don’t miss the post-hike smoothies at the on-site café!

The Waterfall Trail in Tsitsikamma National Park is a rugged and rewarding coastal hike that forms the first 3km of the world-famous Otter Trail. This out-and-back route takes around 3–3.5 hours return and ends at a spectacular waterfall cascading into a deep pool before flowing into the sea. In our blog, we share our experience hiking this trail slowly after a leg injury, making the most of the dramatic scenery, rock scrambling and refreshing tidal pools. Although the distance may seem short, the terrain is challenging in places and requires some care—especially at high tide. We highly recommend packing a picnic and swimming gear to make a full day of it, with plenty of time to relax at the waterfall. If you’re visiting the Garden Route and looking for a scenic adventure that delivers coastal views, wildlife and natural beauty, the Waterfall Trail is not to be missed.

Lion’s Head is one of Cape Town’s most iconic hikes, offering panoramic views over the city, Table Mountain and the Atlantic coastline. In this blog, we share our experience hiking to the summit for sunset in March 2025 – a truly unforgettable adventure. The trail is short but steep, with some scrambling and metal ladders near the top, and takes around 2–2.5 hours return. We cover essential tips like bringing a head torch for the descent, hiking in a group for safety, and packing a cold drink to enjoy at the summit. We also highlight the differences between hiking Lion’s Head by day versus at sunset, including crowds, views and safety considerations. Whether you’re visiting Cape Town for the first time or returning to explore more of Table Mountain National Park, Lion’s Head is a must-do—just time it well, go prepared, and soak in every jaw-dropping moment at the top.

Our first hike in the Cape Town area and a fantastic one to start with. We wanted to start from the Nordhoek beach side as it looked a little more difficult and we thought it would be quieter too–we weren’t wrong! This route provides everything you could want from a hike: incredible views, some challenging sections, and some peace and quiet. This is considered a challenging route and there is some scrambling involved, but the views from the top more than reward your efforts.

In Kenya’s Rift Valley sits the huge and dormant volcano of Mount Longonot. A difficult hike with an entry fee of $26pp, but one that is well worth the effort and cost. A popular hike as it is only 60km from Nairobi—but you can escape the crowds by doing the full crater rim loop hike as we did. A must do hike when visiting Kenya, and one you won’t forget in a hurry, not just because of the incredibe scenery but because of the fact that you won’t be able to walk for a while!

Just a few kilometres north of the city centre of Nairobi lies Karura Forest, a park which covers over 1000 hectares of land. Walk, jog or cycle through this natural landscape, discovering caves and waterfalls, and reconnecting with nature. The park can get busy on weekends and holidays especially the picnic areas and waterfall but if you walk a little further you’ll get the place all to yourself.

Hiking to Britain’s most remote pub, The Old Forge in Inverie, is no joke. The terrain is tricky, the trail difficult underfoot, the weather temperamental; you must be prepared with the correct gear for navigating and hiking in extreme conditions. If you do your research and set out on this hike, you will be rewarded with other-worldly landscapes, mystic surroundings and incredible views, as well as the achievement of getting to the pub and having a pint of course! Inverie, located on the Knoydart Peninsula, is a small settlement of approx. 150 residents, accessible only by foot or boat and feels as though it could be Britain’s last wild frontier. Spend some time here to soak up the atmosphere before getting the ferry back to Mallaig.

The highest mountain in the UK, Ben Nevis is popular with hikers as it is a big achievement, set in a beautiful national park and easily accessible from Fort William. It is also part of the Three Peaks Challenge. We climbed it in April 2024 and started the walk very early, summiting at around 7.20am - we believe we were the first to summit that day as we didn’t see another person the entire way up or at the peak, and met the first other hikers on our descent. The Mountain Track is the most direct and accessible route for hikers, but it is by no means “easy”. We were lucky enough to get perfect weather conditions but make sure you prepare for adverse conditions and take enough water and food as well as layers for the top of the mountain where it is quite exposed. A nice 16km out and back hike which is easily doable in half a day.

The South Downs Way National Trail is 100 miles in length, stretching from Winchester to Eastbourne on the south coast. The undulating pathways are mainly made up of chalk track, gravel and concrete so can be hard on already tired feet but the views across valleys and out to the sea often make up for the difficulty of the walk. We completed this route in just 4 days as part of a much longer hike of 215 miles, and feel that it would’ve been nicer to have an extra day or two to enjoy the villages and towns that the route takes you through. Carrying all of our camping and cooking equipment, food, water and clothes also made this hike more challenging.

A challenge we set ourselves in memory of Tom’s dad Derek - walking from Derek’s front door in Gloucester to where he grew up (and his favourite pub) in St. Leonards on Sea. The route was 215 miles in length and was always going to be difficult to complete in the 9 day timescale we had but we were really up against it with winds and rain as well as countless blisters and sores on our shoulders and backs from our backpacks. We carried all our camping and cooking equipment as well as food, water, clothes and first aid kit. As difficult as it was, we really enjoyed the route which was mainly on footpaths and allowed us to reconnect with nature and the basic necessities.

Scafell Pike is the highest mountain in England at 978m high which makes it a popular hiking destination, it is also part of the three peaks challenge! The Wasdale Head route is the busiest due to it being the most straightforward route to reach the summit. The hike is easily doable in half a day, and we’d recommend starting it as early as you can if you want to avoid meeting lots of other hikers on the trail. Read about our experience on our first time up the mountain here!

A mere hours’ drive from the second city of Kazakhstan, Turgen Gorge national park packs a lot of punch - the area is home to several waterfalls, the highest being the Kairak Waterfall at 55m, as well as alpine meadows, thick pine forests, grasslands and rivers, and hundreds of hiking trails. It is a popular area with day trippers from Almaty and as soon as you arrive it’s not hard to see why. This waterfall hike is fairly easy being mainly flat until the final few kilometres of steep sharp uphill hiking.

Kolsay Lakes National Park in Kazakhstan is quite simply one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to in my life. With breath-taking alpine landscapes surrounding the lakes, the ice-capped mountains, spruce trees and deep blue and green colours from the water invoked scenes of Canada or Switzerland, not what I’d expected from Central Asia. This hike is definitely the most difficult but most rewarding hike I’ve ever done, and requires good hiking experience as well as proper hiking gear and a strong mindset to complete.

The Charyn Canyon National Park in Kazakhstan is known for its canyon and mind-boggling rock formations. It is home to incredible hiking trails to viewpoints over the canyon and down into the gorge itself along to the River Charyn. We undertook both hikes from the main visitors centre - this blog describes both fairly easy 6km out and back routes.

The Brecon Beacons is known for it’s landscape of mountains, valleys, waterfalls, canyons and lakes. A haven for any outdoor enthusiast and providing incredible views from any vantage point the national park is full of great trails. This 20km hike is strenuous and takes in the highest point in the park but is well worth the effort!

Mount Tujanit dominates the skyline of Albania’s capital city, Tirana. At 1583m high the peak of this lofty mountain is high enough to provide incredible views over the city and the valleys which reach hundreds of miles in any direction. Read my guide to find out how to summit this peak and enjoy some mini golf whilst you’re up there! Join us above the clouds on this hike…

Known as Albania’s “Grand Canyon”, the Osumi Canyon is a deep gorge set into the landscape with chalk blue waters running through the centre and surrounded by rocky cliffs and mountain ranges. The scenery on this hike was breath taking - join us as we do an 11 mile loop hike around it’s perimeter.

Have you ever wanted to be in two places at once? How about three? This moderate 20km loop trail takes in the highest point of the Netherlands as well as the point where Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands meet - pretty cool hey! With only a few steep sections, the most difficult part of this hike were the muddy and icy conditions. This guide will lead you from Aachen and take in quaint Dutch villages, national forest parks and several points of interest.

A place I’d longed to visit ever since I first heard William Wordsworth’s poems and Dorothy Wordworth’s hiking journals, Ullswater is the second largest mere in the Lake District and hosts incredible scenery and ample hiking opportunities. This 14km circular route is one not to be missed!

A quiet and peaceful waterfall located 5-6km outside Port Barton accessible by an enchanting rainforest hike which transports you to another world. A must do activity if you are in the Philippines, not for its grandeur; it is certainly not the biggest waterfall in the country, but it is the most special, for its’ unspoilt natural beauty and its’ proximity to my favourite place in the world, Port Barton.