Taking off: what’s new in the world

picTravel section of the year
You’re reading the best travel journalism in Britain. Not our words — we’re far too modest — but those of our peers. Last week, this section was named National Broadsheet Newspaper Travel Section of the Year at the Travel Media Awards. In a convincing double, our glossy sister title The Sunday Times Travel Magazine won Consumer Publication of the Year. The gongs come on top of our recent wins at the Aito travel writing awards, in which our two titles won both Travel Writer of the Year and Young Travel Writer of the Year.

Ride in the Valkyrie
Bored by business class? Fed up with first? Then the Valkyrie-X could be for you. This limited-edition private jet seats four beneath its viewing-canopy cockpit. Produced by San Francisco-based firm Cobalt, the “rose gold” (don’t call it pink) aircraft costs a shade over £1.2m. The range on a single tank is 1,150 miles, which won’t get you to the Caribbean but is more than sufficient to fly repeatedly back and forth over your country estate.
cobalt-aircraft.com

Stripped-back dining
Want to take your topless sunbathing on holiday a step further? Opening in Tenerife in the new year will be the Canaries’ first naturist restaurant. Diners at bamboo-clad Innato will be invited to strip off on arrival, then served a series of dishes by waiting staff, some of whom will act as human tables in the (possibly confusing) “aphrodisiac buffet”. Inspired by the success of London’s birthday-suit-only Bunyadi restaurant, which opened in the summer, Innato makes its debut in San Isidro on January 20.
€150 per couple, with drinks; innatotenerife.com

Packing a punch
The Barracuda is a backpack with bite. Its built-in battery can be wirelessly recharged when you’re at home and then charges your stuff on the go; an alarm sounds should you leave the bag open, or some hapless pickpocket tries to rob you; it has push-button interlinked zip locks, a retractable keyring, detachable camera mount… and lest we forget, it also carries stuff.
Barracuda Konzu from £126, kickstarter.com

Stride out with seals
When it’s finished, the England Coast Path will be a not-inconsiderable 2,700 miles long – one of the longest continuous walking trails in the world. The devil is in the detail, of course, and one of the fiddlier sections – from Hopton-on-Sea to Sea Palling in Norfolk – has just been completed. The 21-mile stretch includes the wildlife haven of Winterton-Horsey Dunes (known for its basking seals), cracking views of Great Yarmouth’s wide sandy beach, and three miles of hitherto inaccessible pathway.
nationaltrail.co.uk/england-coast-path

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