The Week UK 01Feb2020

LEISURE 41

1February2020 THE WEEK

Travel

Forsomeyears,avisittoAlgeriawas

a“trickyprospect”owingtoanxieties

aboutIslamistmilitants.Butitisnow

safefortravellers,andwellwortha

visitforitsemptybeachesandits

“olive-dotted”landscape,butalsofor

itsarchitecturalandartisticheritage,

saysWilliamDalrympleintheFT.The

country’scolonisationbyFranceand

its20thcenturywarofindependence,

inwhich25,000Frenchandatleast

40 0, 000 Algerianslosttheirlives,

figurelargeinitsimageabroad.

Butformuchofthelast2, 000 years,

NorthAfricacarriedfarmoreweight

inthe globalbalanceofpower–and

inAlgeria’sMoorishpalacesand

Romantowns,suchpastgloriesshineforth.

NeartheRomanhilltownofTiddis,forexample,liesthetomb

ofaBerbercavalrycommander,QuintusLolliusUrbicus,who

wasthefirstAfricangovernorofBritain.Appointedin 139 AD,he

ledthereconquestoflowlandScotland,andoversawthebuilding

oftheAntonineWall,fromtheFirthofClydetotheFirthof

Forth.Atthattime,athirdofRoman

senatorswerenorthAfrican,andtheir

“sybaritic”livesathomeareeasyto

imagineasyouwandertheruinsof

TimgadandDjémila,withtheir

“palatial”bathhouses,theatres,

housesofpleasureandhousesof

Bacchus.Equallyevocativearethe

mosaics,depictingaworldoflion-

huntingandhorseracinginsummer,

andwinterafternoonsofpig-sticking

andgladiatorialcombat.

Equallysophisticatedwerethe

medievalMuslimempires–the

AlmoravidsandAlmohads,

whosepalacesinTlemcenare

as“extraordinary”asthosein

southernSpain.AndinAlgiers,thewealthoftheBarbarypirates

(theterrorofwesternEuropeintheearlymodernage,capturing

100, 000 whiteChristianslavestoserveAlgiers)canbeseeninthe

“gorgeouslypainted”palaceapartmentsoftheDeyand–more

luxuriousstill–ofthecorsairAdmiralBarbarossa.WildFrontiers

(wildfrontierstravel.com)organisesgrouptrips.

Thisweek’sdream: Algeria’sancienttreasures

Gettingthe flavourof...

Heart of English Riviera

Set ontheseafront in the

beautiful town ofTorquay,the

Torbay Hoteloffersa3-night

stay from £104pp half-board,

incl udin gdrinks vouchers.

01942-415419, shearings.com.

Arrive20March.

Croatia’s Lopud island

With viewsacross thewater

to themainland, the four-star

HotelLafodia offersaseven-

nightstay from £706pp b&b,

including Glasgow flights. 020-

3451 2720,firstchoice.co.uk.

Depart4June.

Five-star Portugal

The five-starPestana Casino

Park in Funchal, Madeira,

offersa4-nigh tstayfrom

£392pphalf-board,including

Manchester flights. 020-3474

0372,blue seaholidays.co.uk.

Depart9March.

Sharm El Sheikh retreat

Stay 7nightsatthe Jaz Club

Fanara&Residence, which

boastsbreathtaking viewsof

the RedSea. From £780ppall-

inclusive, including Bristol

flights.020-36361931, tui.co.

uk. Depart 6May.

Diving with humpbacks

Humpback whalesmateandcalve inthe

tropical Gulf of Guinea each year, and there’s

no betterplacetoswimwiththemthan

around thetinyarchipelagicnation ofSão

ToméandPríncipe. Gowith theoperatorI

Am Water OceanTravel, says IanBelcher in

The Times,and you’llalsoenjoydaily tuition

in freediving (diving with no equipment) from

Hanli Prinsloo,arecord-breakerin thesport,

andPeter Marshall,achampion swimmer.

The sight ofthewhales leaping nearyour

boatisbothastonishingandintimidating.

They’re soactive that guestscan’talways

getclose tooneinthe water,butthere

areother“mesmerising”creaturesto dive

with (includingdolphins).Theislands are

beautiful, with fabulous beach hotels, verdant

junglepunctuatedbyvolcanic “fangs”of

rock, and asmanyendemicspecies asthe

Galapágosin aneighthof the space.Visit

iamwateroceantravel.comto requestprices

forbespoketours.

France’swildest western isle

Twelve milesoffthe coastofBrittany,the

Île d’Ouessantis the westernmostlandm ass

in metropolitan France,and oneof the

country’s “moststimulating spots”, says

Anthony PeregrineinThe SundayTimes.

Around itsrocky edgesand treelessheaths

swirlhighwinds,frequent mists andfog,

and current sof“devilishtreachery” (it has

fivelighthouses,includingEurope’smost

powerful,theCreac’h,whosebeamreaches

32 nautical milesandfromwhereanotional

linedrawntotheLizardin Cornwalldivides

theChannelfromtheAt lantic). Thereare

prettywhite-sandbeacheshiddenamongthe

cliffsontheisland’ssouthcoast,and lovely

pathsforhiking,bikingand birdwatchingall

overitssixsquaremiles.Visit pennarbed.fr

forinformationonferries,and ot-ouessant.fr

forgeneralinformation.

TheRHS’s first urban garden

Duetoopenthissummeron theedgeof

Salford inGreaterManchester,theRHS

GardenBridgewateristhebiggest gardening

projectin Europe,andtheRHS’sfirstever

urban garden,says RachelDixonin The

Guardian.Occupy ingtheformergroundsof

Worsley NewHall,a19thcentury mansion

demolishedin the1940s,it includesacafé

andkitchengarden,aChinesegarden,a

wildwoodland play area,and a“well-being

garden” foruse by community groups.

There’s alsoa“socia lprescribing”scheme,

all owing GPstorefer patientsstruggling

with isolation, restricted mobility and

otherconditio ns for activitiesorganised by

a“therapeuticgarde ner”. For thosekeen

to seethe garden beforeitsofficial summer

opening, thereare two-hour guided tours

until April, andvolu nteeringopportunities.

Visitrhs.org.uk forinformation.

Mezzatorre Hotel

Ischia, Italy

Perchedonthenorthcoastofthe

islandofIschia,nearNaples,this

beachhotelreopenedlastyear

afteramakeoverby“visionary

hotelmaven”Marie-LouiseSciò,

saysTatler.Likeherothercreations

–IlP ellicanoandLaPostaVecchia

–itm ixes“tradition”and“fantasy”

with“impeccabletasteandstyle”.

There’saSantaMariaNovellaspa

(wherethetreatmentsfocuson

Ischia’snaturalthermalwaters),a

swimmingpoolscene“straightout

ofaSlimAaronsshot”,anda

thatchedbeachsiderestaurantthat

combinesan“intimateclubby

vibe”withsucha“heady”

atmospherethat“youtrulyfeellike

theworldoutsidecanwait”.

Doubles from £310.

pellicanohotels.com.

Hotel of the week

The“palatial”ruinsofTimgad

Last-minuteoffersfromtoptravelcompanies

©S

TEPHENRINGER