Madagascar
On the trail of a killer
Join a project to track mysterious lemur-eating fossas and explore the heart of Kirindy Mitea national park in Madagascar. The journey starts with a motorised canoe trip along the northwest coast, followed by a six-hour hike into the park, which has no tourist facilities and no running water, to set up camp. The 16 fit and hardy participants will rise before dawn and walk up to 20km (12 miles) a day through steaming rainforests, setting traps for these cat-sized carnivores that are little understood. Learn to use tracking equipment, and spot lemurs and other unique Madagascan wildlife along the way.
A 17-night expedition from June 16 with Earthwatch (01865 318831, www.earthwatch.org/europe) costs £1,350pp, including camping, training, travel in Madagascar, but not flights from the UK.
North Korea
Guarded tour
There is no chance of getting lost in North Korea - two official guides accompany the few tourist groups everywhere they go, and wandering out of your hotel alone is forbidden. A tour, starting and ending in Beijing, arrives in the capital Pyongyang by sleeper train, where an obligatory visit is made to the Mansudae Monument to lay flowers and bow to the late Great Leader Kim II Sung’s 20m (65ft) bronze statue. You will also see his birthplace; the 38th parallel - where North and South Korean soldiers keep the Cold War going, standing either side of the demarcation line; and the Myohyangsan mountains, where a brief stroll is permitted.
Twelve-night tours leaving April 8 and 22 with Explore (0844 4990901, www.explore.co.uk) cost from £2,061pp, including flights, guiding and most meals.
Ukraine
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Across the steppes
Ukraine is Europe’s largest country, and the least visited. A ten-day group or private tour starts in Lviv, which has similar charms to Prague, but not the hordes of tourists. It continues half a day’s drive east to Kosov, a picturesque town in the mountains of the Carpathian National Nature Park, and then by sleeper train across the steppes to Kiev and the chance to visit Chernobyl, the eerie site of the world’s worst environmental disaster. The tour ends in the elegant Black Sea port of Odessa, where, instead of flying straight home, you can take a public ferry for 24 hours to Istanbul.
Group tours on June 6 or August 17 from £1,950pp (private tour from £2,250pp), with Undiscovered Destinations (0191-296 2674, www.undiscovered-destinations.com). Cost includes return flights, guiding, internal transport and some meals.
Australia
Bathe in a billabong
On the remote north coast of the Kimberly region of Western Australia is the enticingly named Faraway Bay Bush Camp. A maximum of 12 guests in eight cabins arrive by scenic light aircraft flight over mudflats, mangroves, Berkeley River Gorge, and King George Falls. Fish in the crocodile-infested sea or river, swim in tranquil lily-filled billabongs, explore rock art, or simply swing in a hammock sipping chardonnay and enjoying sweeping ocean views.
Four-night packages cost from £1,826pp with Bridge & Wickers (020-7483 6555, www.bridgeand wickers.co.uk ), including full board, drinks, guiding, fishing and land and air transfers from Kununurra.
Kyrgystan
Heads, you lose
Watch a variety of polo - the one where the “ball” is a headless goat passed or snatched from hand to hand - or join in if you dare, while on a yurt homestay with shepherds on the shore of Lake Son-Kul in Kyrgyzstan. A two-week overland bus adventure, starting in Tashkent in Uzbekistan, crosses the Fergana Valley, then makes the steep journey to the jaw-dropping heights of the Altai Shan mountains. Go even deeper into the wilds by pony or on foot, on a flexible itinerary, ruled by local conditions.
Departures May to August, £695pp plus about £145pp for kitty, with Dragoman Overland (01728 861133, www.dragoman.com), including most meals, land only.
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Albania
Ground in history
Albania shares its ancient history with neighbouring Italy and Greece, but its remarkable archaeological sites are free of jostling coach parties. Expert lecturer Oliver Gilkes, who has worked on Albanian digs, guides the group around sites such as Apollonia, founded by the Corinthians in 588BC. Four-wheel-drive vehicles are needed to reach the Illyrian site Byliss, spectacularly set on a long, flat hill overlooking the Vjose River.
Leave on October 9 with Andante Travels (01722 713800, www.andantetravels.co.uk), from £1,850pp, including flights, full board, guiding and tips
Guyana
Bask in a backwater
Guyana, with only 2,000 visitors a year - Machu Picchu can get more in a single day - is the backwater of South America and its only English-speaking country. On an 11-night tour, three are spent on the isolated Karanambu Ranch - where savannah, swamp and flood forest meet - sleeping in mud-brick cottages with limited electricity. There is a visit to a giant otter sanctuary as well as abundant bird-watching, caiman and jaguar-spotting opportunities. Kaieteur Falls, five times higher than Niagara, is also on the itinerary.
From £2,825pp on an escorted tour, (tailor-made also available), with Cox & Kings (020-7873 5000, www.coxandkings.co.uk), including flights, full board, transfers and excursions.
Bosnia-Herzegovina
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Walking with wolves
A new walking holiday in Bosnia-Herzegovina takes hiking trails in the Dinaric Alps, through forests where tree martins, bobcats and porcupines still thrive. Bears and wolves can also be spotted. The ten-day trip includes the Rakitnica canyon in Europe and rafting on the Neretva River.
Groups leave on June 15 or September 14 with Walks Worldwide (01524 242000, www.walksworldwide.com), £1,095pp, including flights, guiding, transport and most meals.