Revealed: The secret places we can't wait to return to

Travel writers are a spoiled bunch, with countless anecdotes of the very best beaches, cities, mountains and more from all corners of the world. But that does mean that when a particular place stands out in their memory, and begs to be returned to, it must have a certain star quality. Perhaps it is a secret pocket of shimmering sea water lined with green-grey rocks that double as sunbathing platforms. Maybe it is a tiny fishing town that acts as a gateway to otherworldly lava fields and geysers. Here Telegraph Travel shares the places from their little black book of adventures that they will never forget, and hope to one day return to as soon as this is all over.

Ambeli Beach, Folegandros, Greece

The place I return to most often in my mind – in this current state of lockdown but also before – is Ambeli Beach on the peanut husk-shaped island of Folegandros. The day my husband and I set off to find it we went armed with only a paper map from our hotel. The trick to finding it is this – drive as far north on the main road as possible and look for a cluster of cars and mopeds as your signal, park and then go the rest of the way on foot. A nondescript dirt track studded with trees (and the occasional goat) bends and gives way to grey-green rocks – perfect sunbathing platforms – lining the quiet turquoise bay of the Aegean. Rock pools flank the right side, creating miniature private pools. The water is so clear you can even make out the patterns of peoples’ swimwear. When the heat of the day got too much I drove us, barefoot and still wet, to Irene’s restaurant where we dined on slow-cooked aubergine and fragrant rosehip yogurt. What I would give for a morning like that now.

Jade Conroy

Whistler, Canada

Many argue that the place you learn to ski always holds a place in your heart. But for me, it’s the place I learnt to love skiing, unrequitedly and wholeheartedly, that comes top of my travel list time and time again. With two mountains summiting above 2,000m and the biggest ski area in North America, Whistler Blackcomb is a giant among ski resorts. It’s a heady mixture of vast terrain, ego-boosting snow and a bustling resort village. Add these punchy credentials to the whirlwind of emotions I felt during my first visit there – from the adventure of a maiden voyage across the pond to the adrenaline of the conquering my first black diamond run, to the serenity of the outdoor forest spa, wonder of the views from Canada’s longest zipline and the pride of watching my other half learn to ski – and it’s a cocktail that has left me love drunk with both skiing and the Canadian slopes.

Lucy Aspden

Noosa, Australia

Of all the beauty spots on Australia's Sunshine Coast, Noosa – 90 minutes north of Brisbane – is my favourite; a microcosm of the Australia I love. The ocean teases with waves that a longboard should caress, and everglades rivalled only by Florida's give access through Noosa Biosphere (best explored by kayak). Subtropical hinterland and national park become smart towns of indie stores and a thriving food scene that encompasses 'neo-bistro' riverside dining to amped-up burgers and shakes, and all the crushed(/smashed/mashed) avo brunches in between. It's as wild as it is refined, the ultimate tonic to lockdown; I dream of Laguna Lookout and soaking up the curves of land and sea, or finding calm on the waterways in a rented boat, just a fishing rod and book for company.

Benjamin Parker

Keflavik, Iceland

I've only been to Iceland once, on a two-night stopover to the US around this time last year, but I've been thinking about it a lot during lockdown, as it was the most 'isolated' place I've ever been. I stayed on the edge of Keflavik town, observing life in its tiny fishing harbour with cute clapboard houses, and exploring the rural surrounds, from those otherworldly lava fields and geysers to an ethereal lighthouse on the northernmost tip of this little peninsula. I had been to remote places before, but this was unlike anywhere I had ever visited. It felt lonely, even bleak, under perpetually grey skies, but strangely, desolately beautiful, with unsurfaced roads and no one else on them. I was captivated, and the renewed appreciation lockdown has given me for peace and quiet has made me even keener to return.

Rachel Cranshaw

Luang Prabang, Laos

I find it hard to quieten my restless mind (even in non-pandemic times), but I finally discovered the off-switch on my first trip to the sleepy temple town of Luang Prabang, in little landlocked Laos. Time moves at half speed here, with groups of monks in bright orange robes padding along the dusty roads, past old French villas with blue shuttered windows and towards the gilded temples that overlook the mighty Mekong river. Simply wandering around the Unesco-protected town is uplifting enough, but on our last day, we took a slow boat out to the nearby Pak Ou caves, which are filled with hundreds of bronze Buddha figurines, before enjoying a picnic of fresh spring rolls and cold bottles of Beer Lao on a sand bank in the middle of the river. It’s a scene that will always remain on my internal travel highlights reel.

Emma Beaumont

Mexico City, Mexico

Being in lockdown has made me appreciate the great outdoors more than ever, but even still it is the world's biggest and boldest cities that will be calling my name as soon as we can travel safely again. Mexico City, with its sprawl of colourful neighbourhoods and huge population, couldn’t be a better example of the type of holiday I am yearning for. Last year when I touched down there, I knew immediately it was the type of place you need to return to many times. Each of the different areas, from Roma to Coyoacán, has its own personality – like a village within the city. The latter, once home to Frida Kahlo, was one of my favourites, where we spent a Sunday afternoon browsing a pop-up market and watching local dance performances in the shadow of the main square’s (slightly dilapidated, and so ever the more beautiful) church. Admittedly, it is the corn tortillas topped with moreish house-style pastor (spit-grilled pork) at La Casa de los Tacos that tipped this day into one of the best.

Lizzie Frainier

Lake Constance, Central Europe

Happiness. I remember feeling that on Lake Constance, the huge expanse of water that emerges from the Rhine and touches Austria, Switzerland and Germany in the very heart of Europe. Slightly randomly we’d found a holiday home with its own little jetty and beach where I swam with my daughter, skimmed stones with my son and in the evening drank crisp white wine with my wife. We looked across to the snow clad peaks of Switzerland; we cycled to the harbour haven of Lindau; we lunched in medieval Meersburg, we walked in the hills of Vorarlberg. It was magical; it was memorable. We returned many times.

Adrian Bridge

Tswalu Kalahari, South Africa

There are only two safaris in the whole of Africa (and world) where you can get anywhere near wild meerkats. One is Tswalu Kalahari, which had just reopened after a big refurb right before all this happened, and which was very different from any other South African safari I've been to. It’s much closer (literally) to Namibia in landscape, but with all the great wildlife Namibia doesn't have. And meerkats! They even have a member of staff whose sole role is 'meerkat habituator', and who sits near them every day and does nothing. This group now – though totally wild – aren't afraid of humans, they just entirely ignore us, so there's no unethical interaction. I can’t wait to go back.

Annabel Fenwick-Elliot 

Limousin, France

I'd never heard of “Le France Profonde” before I visited Limousin. Translated as the Deep France, it is a phrase to encapsulate a local way of living in the rustic regions of our Gallic neighbours. In an unremarkable thumbprint on the map an hour north of Limoges, and a little east, it is to be found in spades: the countryside is rolling and endless, the towns few, charming and far between and the language nothing but French. No matter our proximity to the apocalypse I hope I will always return to this little enclave of French, far from the bustling cities, far from the honeytrap coasts and even further from the concerns of modern life.

Hugh Morris

Tamil Nadu, India

India stole my heart in the way that no other country has ever come close to doing. I particularly loved exploring Tamil Nadu, from the amazing architecture of Pondicherry to the nights spent at parties in the rural hill villages. The people I met were so kind and gentle, eager to share every aspect of their culture with me, especially food – idli (rice powder dumplings) with coconut chutney and spicy sambar for breakfast; biryani for lunch; and tiffin-like parotta (roti), Idiyappam (extremely thin rice noodles) and vada (savoury donuts) for dinner, with the odd fresh coconut in between. The scenery, a mixture of palm and banana trees, pastel-coloured villages and, in the towns, unfathomably busy roads often halted by the odd wandering cow, plus the rich smells and tropical heat is a world unto itself.

Charlotte Johnstone 

Treyarnon Bay, Cornwall

There will always be a special place in my heart for this small section of Cornwall's rugged north coast. My family have been holidaying here since 1945 – there's a tidal pool out by Trevose Head that my 75-year-old dad refers to as 'grandad's pool'  – and it's the one place on Earth that I return to each year without fail. Even when living in Australia, I'd make special pilgrimages in all seasons just to walk barefoot on the beach and scramble over the rocks. It's the place I long to run to when I need time to breathe or when life's simply getting too much – it's my happy place.

Penny Walker

Koh Lanta, Thailand

There's lots to explore in Thailand, but despite numerous trips there, I've always found myself gravitating back to one place: Koh Lanta, an island just off the Andaman coast, in Krabi province. There are undoubtedly better known Thai islands to visit – infamous Koh Phi Phi is a scant 30 minute boat ride away – but Lanta's charm lies in it holding the sweet spot between laid-back anonymity and cosmopolitan buzz. The island has something of a sliding scale between the two poles. Saladan, the largest village, is on the north part of the island and has the cheapest prices and the best nightlife. But the further south you get, the sleepier the island becomes, with the most pristine beaches and idyllic, lost paradise atmosphere to be found on the southern tip, in Koh Lanta National Park. It's addictive stuff – and one of the first places I'll be heading back to once the lockdown is over.

Emma Cooke

Is there a particular place you can't wait to return to? Share your favourite holiday spots in the comments below.