Temperature in May: 23°C high; 17°C low Season: spring Travel time from UK: 4 hours 15 minutes Time difference: GMT +2 Think of the Greek Islands and think of whitewashed stone villages illuminated against the blue Aegean, ancient ruins and tiny little…

Södermalm is renowned for its creative atmosphere, and hip, family-run boutique hotel NOFO, name reflecting its north of Folkungagatan locale just next to baroque Katarina Church, fits right in. From a colour-drenched lounge with scarlet walls, flamboyant draped curtains, and 1920s shell-silhouette…

I wade through the undergrowth of Astove’s abandoned copra plantation, a Seychelles' island, where giant tortoises hide out like a platoon of jumbo army helmets beneath the palms. The ground is otherwise the domain of hermit crabs and fallen coconuts, a tiny…