WHAT IS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE HOLIDAY?
Our honeymoon to South Africa in 2012. Cape Town is a stunning jewel of a city set between Table Mountain – which we walked up – and Table Bay.
We stayed at The Bay Hotel overlooking pristine Camps Bay. We visited Robben Island whose guides at the prison, where Nelson Mandela was incarcerated, really bring your visit alive.
In Franschhoek – a fertile valley which has become the country’s gourmet capital – we stayed in boutique hotel Le Quartier Français, which had a sensational menu.
A place to remember. We also went whale watching at Hermanus, where we saw humpback whales and their calves. Afterwards, we stayed at the indulgent riverside camp Exeter Leadwood Lodge in Sabi Sands Game Park.
We ticked off the Big Five, but our stay nearly ended in a close encounter with a big cat. My wife caught me sleepwalking.
I was about to open the door to go outside where there was a pride of lions stretched out on the path.
AND YOUR WORST?
When I went hill-walking in Glencoe, Scotland, with a pal. We thought we’d be real men and camp. Our first mistake.
As inexperienced campers, we pitched on a slope. Next day, an hour into our walk along the Lost Valley, the heavens opened.
Wet and cold when we returned, we discovered a stream of water and slurry running through our tent, so we headed home.
WHICH SOUVENIR DO YOU MOST CHERISH?
A rock from the top of Kilimanjaro. I’d hoped for a fantastic view at the summit, but it was foggy.
We were greeted by a German adventurer, stripped to his thermals, disco-dancing in the blizzard.
Once you hit altitude and became breathless, it was harder – especially the last 3,000ft at minus 30.
BEST BOOK?
I love Boy’s Own Adventures from Erik Larson, Jon Krakauer and Ben Macintyre. Or the latest thriller from John le Carré.
HOW DO YOU SPEND YOUR TIME ON HOLIDAY?
I like activities: cycling or walking. Our last holiday, organised by Saddle Skedaddle, was cycling from Vienna to Budapest along the Danube.
We saw storks nesting on top of telegraph poles, Esztergom’s magnificent cathedral and the dramatic Danube Bend.
After five days in the saddle, a hot stone massage in the hotel spa and beers in one of the city’s ruin bars did the trick.
WHERE WOULD YOU REVISIT?
The Lake District. I’ve been going since I was a lad. My first visit was the coldest. My Scout troop camped by Lake Windermere to learn how to canoe.
With snow melting from the hills, the water was freezing. In later years, the Old Dungeon Ghyll pub has been a favourite finish to a walk round the Langdale horseshoe.
Walks from Ambleside are so pretty.
WHERE NEXT?
Cycling from Bordeaux in France to San Sebastián in Spain. The prospect of pedalling from one great restaurant to another, stopping at vineyards to sample local libations, is mouth-watering.
● Wallis in Love: The untold true passion of the Duchess of Windsor by Andrew Morton (Michael O’Mara Books, £20) is out now.
