I WOULD like to visit Antarctica. How should I go about arranging this? - S Robertson, Wetherby

Orient Lines (www.orientlines.com) has trips aboard the Marco Polo. The vessel had a £31m refit in the 1990s to ensure it could cope with the treacherous conditions (40ft swells and winds of 70mph), and is regarded as one of the best ships plying these waters. It can hold 800 passengers, but for Antarctica cruises numbers are limited to 400. It has several restaurants and bars, and even a gym, as well as a reputation for employing some of the most knowledgeable guides. An 11-day trip, with eight on the ship, starts at £3,099pp for an inside cabin (£3,499pp for an outside one), full-board, including flights from the UK and overnight hotel accommodation.

If you prefer a smaller ship, try Peregrine Adventures (www.peregrineadventures.co.uk). It uses a boat that takes only 100 people: ten nights start at £3,970pp for an outside cabin, including flights from London, transfers and accommodation in Buenos Aires and Ushuaia. Check out specialists Cruise People (www.cruisepeople.co.uk) and Voyana Cruise (www.voyanacruise.com). They sometimes have discounted packages.

February 20, 2005

HOW CAN I arrange a husky safari, and where should I go? - G Seaton, Birmingham

Husky-dog sledding doesn’t have to be expensive, or even far flung. Ski schools in the Alps offer taster sessions. Evolution 2, for example, offers a range of husky experiences in Tignes and Sainte Foy. A half-day’s mushing instruction, where you will learn to drive the pack, costs £92.80. It also offers ski-joering, where you are pulled on skis over the snow behind a racing horse; this type of madness costs from £23 per session. For a cheap deal to Tignes or Sainte Foy, check out discount websites such as Iglu, Ski Holidays and If you ski. Among other operators, Explore Worldwide has five-day trips to Finnish Lapland, which is one of the best places to try the activity, staying at the Hotel Kakslauttanen in the Arctic Circle. Activities include husky safaris, as well as ice-fishing and snowshoeing. It has spaces on trips in March and April that start at £825pp, B&B, including flights from Heathrow; regional departures cost from £79pp extra. Other companies that offer husky safaries include Activities Abroad, Arctic Experience, Inghams and Transun.

February 13, 2005

HOW can I organise a Trans-Siberian Railway trip? - V Green, London

There are three trans-Siberian routes: the longest is Moscow to Vladivostok, taking seven days to travel 6,152 miles through Siberia to the east coast. Tourists tend to prefer the other routes, both of which finish in Beijing. Arguably, the more interesting is the Trans-Mongolian, which cuts across Outer Mongolia and the Gobi Desert before entering China and passing through the Great Wall. The Trans-Manchurian travels through Manchuria en route to the Chinese capital. Both trips take six days. As you will need visas, and will probably want to stop en route, you might find it easier to book a package. The Russia Experience (020 8566 8846, www.trans-siberian.co.uk), for example, has a 15-day tour with stopovers at Lake Baikal, in Siberia, where you stay with a local family, and Ulan Bator, Mongolia, where you sleep in a traditional tent. Prices start at £1,085pp, based on four sharing a second-class compartment and including some meals, but not flights. Or try Regent Holidays (0117 921 1711, www.regent-holidays.co.uk) or Intourist (0870 112 1232, www.intourist.com). Travelling independently is also possible. Although Russian Railways does not have an online booking facility, you can pitch up at Moscow’s Yaroslavsky station and buy a ticket. Or book through a Russian agency such as G&R International (www.hostels.ru) or Way to Russia (www.waytorussia.net/services/traintickets.html). Expect to pay about £165 for a second-class ticket on the Trans-Manchurian train. Also invest in The Trans-Siberian Handbook (Trailblazer Publications £12.99) or Lonely Planet’s Trans-Siberian Railway (£12.99).

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