Lake Baikal travel tips

Even after seven unbroken days on a train from Moscow, nothing can prepare you for the Chinese border. As you pull into the platform, which is lit up in neon colours, a Chinese-tinged version of the Vienna Waltz comes blaring over the Tannoy. Trying to work out the cultural relevance of this is a hopeless task, as the tune soon changes – moving through the works of Richard Clayderman before finishing as you draw away with a stirring rendition of Beethoven’s Fifth. As the music fades, the train rolls into a vast shed manned with soldiers and workers in hard hats. Each carriage is then separated and raised on hydraulics, the wheels removed and new narrower ones rolled into place to match the Chinese gauges – the whole process lasting almost two hours. All while the passengers are still on board.

Encircled by verdant wooded hills that teem with wildlife, water tumbles down through the chain of terraced pools, waterfalls and cascades that make up the Edenic landscape of Plitvice Lakes National Park. Built up over thousands of years, natural barriers of travertine separate the sixteen cool, flat, turquoise lakes and provide dams for the rushing water to plunge over.

If you’re after some rejuvenation on your next break but still fancy a bit of an adventure, there are a whole host of alternative therapies offered around the world. From snail facials to a spot of sauna whipping, you can invigorate your body and soul with a smorgasbord of weird but wonderful wellness treatments. Here we’ve rounded up ten of the best.

Slicing a north-south swathe through the mountains and coniferous snow forests of Siberia, visiting Russia’s Lake Baikal (Ozero Baikal) is a world-beating experience — and that’s no exaggeration. At over 1.6 km deep, Lake Baikal is the world’s deepest freshwater lake, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an undeniable sparkling jewel in Siberia’s crown. From finding out what you need to know before you go to Baikal, to discovering what makes it special, read on for your Lake Baikal travel guide.

Travel isn't always easy, but in these destinations it's certainly a little more challenging. Here are some of the world's more difficult destinations that are totally worth the effort.