The photographer – and paterfamilias to an enormous brood of beautiful children and hunting hounds – Mr Oddur Thorisson is a prolific traveller. Mr Thorisson will very often pick up sticks with his wife Mimi, author of the forthcoming food book, Old World Italian: Recipes And Secrets From Our Travels In Italy, and family, from their new-ish home base in Torino, and head off to Paris, say, for fashion week (in which his children may be modelling for Bonpoint). Or to Venice, where he and Ms Thorisson host culinary workshops. To Medoc, where the Thorissons have a home (across the street from our friends Mr Matt Hranek and Ms Yolanda Edwards) – all the while eating, photographing and generally making merry.

Before the pandemic temporarily clouded its forecast, the outlook for the travel industry was astonishingly bright. With an entirely new generation of travellers coming of age, previously off-radar destinations such as Cambodia, Ethiopia and Mongolia going mainstream and solo travel a seemingly unstoppable force, the world of holidaymaking was seriously going places.

The good news is that ski season isn’t cancelled this year. The bad news is that for most of us, it’s going to look a bit different. (Who else is sick of hearing that?) So, no, you might not be jetting off to snowier pastures, but for many city-dwellers, there’s actually no need to hop a plane to get a winter sports fix. Though sometimes overlooked for glitzier global destinations, these local ski resorts are just a few hours’ drive from some of the world’s biggest cities.

As the August Bank Holiday and Labor Day both reappear on the horizon and the travel industry tentatively tiptoes back into the frame, isn’t it time you embraced the dog days of summer in style? Before both sides of the Pond fall into autumn, jumpers reappear from wardrobes and sweaters from closets, there’s still one final opportunity to get away, relax and enjoy the last of the summer sun (and, indeed, wine). On whichever side of the Atlantic you’ve been locked down, this is your chance to escape before summer scarpers. These are our expert picks for a holiday without the quarantine.

The photographer – and paterfamilias to an enormous brood of beautiful children and hunting hounds – Mr Oddur Thorisson is a prolific traveller. Mr Thorisson will very often pick up sticks with his wife Mimi, author of the forthcoming food book, Old World Italian: Recipes And Secrets From Our Travels In Italy, and family, from their new-ish home base in Torino, and head off to Paris, say, for fashion week (in which his children may be modelling for Bonpoint). Or to Venice, where he and Ms Thorisson host culinary workshops. To Medoc, where the Thorissons have a home (across the street from our friends Mr Matt Hranek and Ms Yolanda Edwards) – all the while eating, photographing and generally making merry.

Before the pandemic temporarily clouded its forecast, the outlook for the travel industry was astonishingly bright. With an entirely new generation of travellers coming of age, previously off-radar destinations such as Cambodia, Ethiopia and Mongolia going mainstream and solo travel a seemingly unstoppable force, the world of holidaymaking was seriously going places.