vallierojas: Ten great new UK holidays for 2011

From cattle ranching to cycling for softies, and staying in a smuggler's house to wild camping, we've rounded up some of the best new things to do and places to stay in the UK

Walk, cycle or ride the South Loch Ness Trail, Highlands

So new it doesn't actually open until July, the South Loch Ness Trail opens up the less-travelled side of Scotland's most notorious body of water. Unusually for a long distance trail, it accommodates walkers, cyclists and horseriders (and unicyclists and pogo-stickers too, if that's your bag). Stretching from Inverness to just outside Fort Augustus, the 30-mile route takes in some of Scotland's most iconic scenery as it climbs high above the enigmatic loch.
? visitlochness.com/south-loch-ness-trail. Stay at Pottery House B&B, Dores (01463 751267, potteryhouse.co.uk), from �36pp per night

Stay in a Hemp Cottage in Crossgar, County Down

You can buy almost anything made of hemp nowadays, so it was only a matter of time before you could stay in a building made from the wonder plant. Hemp Cottage is the result of a cunning scheme by its architect owners to build a modern yet pleasingly rustic-looking cottage that would be snug in winter and cool in summer. Set in an orchard on the bank of a quiet river, the "hempcrete" cottage is also within striking distance of Strangford Lough and the Mourne Mountains.
? From �400 a week (sleeps two-three); 028-44 830988, responsibletravel.com

Stay in a smuggler's palace in Eyemouth, Berwickshire

For an island nation we possess disappointingly few palaces built by smugglers, and even fewer that you can spend the night in. Thank goodness, then, for Gunsgreen House. Recently restored, this grand Georgian pile built by local smuggler John Nisbet keeps a watchful eye over the harbour at Eyemouth, a few swift oar-strokes north of the border. Guests take over the entire top two floors; the rest of the building houses a museum ? original hidey-holes, cellars and all.
? From �1,100 a week (sleeps 10 + 1), 01738 451610, gunsgreenhouse.org ; book through cottages-and-castles.co.uk, ref A782

Drive cattle in Okehampton, Devon

Ever wanted to emulate John Wayne's cowboy in Red River and cry, "Take 'em to Missouri, Matt!"? Well, the good news is that Missouri has just come to Dartmoor. Saddle up and join farmer Philip Heard on his 660-acre (ahem) ranch to drive his 150 head of cattle across the moor's gulleys and granite tors to pastures new. Staying at a local inn (in lieu of a dusty saloon bar), you'll not only be herding but can also help with dehorning and castration. Not for the lily-livered.
? Until the end of September from �299 for two nights to �749 for seven nights, half board; 01837 52409, dartmoorridingholidays.co.uk

Soft Cycling and Yurting near Halesworth, Suffolk

Suffolk is anathema to mountaineers but heaven for fair-weather cyclists. Ivy Grange Farm's two lovely yurts, which open next month, make the ideal base for a week of pain-free pedalling ? just borrow one of their bicycles and head off. A plethora of cycle routes passes the front gate, including the brand new 13-mile Beccles to Southwold cycle route opened in May. When you return, grab a solar-heated jungle shower before picking fruit and veg from your yurt's own plot and knocking up a barely-earned barbecue.
? Yurts sleeping two-three from �390 a week; weekend and midweek breaks at a 40% discount (small discount if you arrive on a bicycle or public transport); 07802 456087, ivygrangefarm.co.uk

Wander the Winchcombe Way, Gloucestershire

With a tavern every five miles, the brand new 42-mile Winchcombe Way might almost be viewed as a very energetic pub crawl. A cleverly devised figure-of-eight route centred on the attractive small town of Winchcombe, the walk takes in some lesser-trodden glories of the north Cotswolds. There's oodles of accommodation along the way, from hotels to humble campsites, but finish at 17th-century Woodstanway Farmhouse and you can ease aching limbs (or heads) in a Jacuzzi.
? winchcombewelcomeswalkers.com; Woodstanway Farmhouse (01386 584318, woodstanwayfarmhouse.co.uk) has doubles from �35 a night

Sleep in the Music Mill near Hathersage, Derbyshire

Deftly throwing its hat into the ring as Britain's most unlikely luxury holiday cottage conversion is the Music Mill, which began life as the nation's very first gramophone needle factory. Just what the owners were thinking building it next to a babbling brook in this gorgeous and largely unspoilt corner of the Peak District (wonderful Stanage Edge is close by) is anyone's guess. Outside, it's all no-nonsense pre-Victorian industrial zeal. Inside, however, the needle has definitely jumped ? this is luxury loft living, and the loft is absolutely huge, with a price to match.
? From �745 for three days (sleeps six); 01865 764087, sheepskinlife.com

At one with nature in Pouquelaie Vinery, Guernsey

Perhaps it's apt that an island best known for its cows now offers a way to "reconnect with the land". Stay in WildGuernsey's bell tent or two tipis and you can wake up to the sound of the sea below and the prospect of cooking your breakfast over an open fire from a hamper stuffed with local food. Eco-friendly activities include sea foraging, beach-craft and herbal balm making. And you can even hire your own chicken coop. Clucktastic!
? Bell tent from �42 a night (sleeps four), tipi from �532 a week, two-night weekend �184 (sleeps four); 01481 263153, wildguernsey.co.uk

Travel back to the future in Tenby, Pembrokeshire

Ah, dear old Tenby. There can hardly be a more picturesque and homely bucket-and-spade resort in the whole of Wales. All the more surprising, then, to discover that one of the beachfront Regency townhouses within its medieval walls has been converted into two quite extraordinarily contemporary apartments. Sleek minimalism is the order of the day here. And wood-burning stoves. And massive clocks. There are cracking views of Carmarthen Bay and a kayak thrown in too. Is it Tenby or not Tenby? That is the question.
? From �850 a week, shorter stays available (sleeps four); northbeachtenby.com

Move in with owls in Sewerby, East Yorkshire

Opened just last month, the Owl House is one of five newly converted cottages so green they would make the huggiest of tree huggers purr. Better still, when fitting out these Victorian farm buildings with reclaimed materials, biomass underfloor heaters, rainwater catchment systems, wind turbines and all that malarkey, the owners discovered a pair of barn owls living there. So now, within the cottage's roof space, there's a self-contained five-star owl house complete with CCTV so guests in the house below can keep an eye on the feathered squatters above.
? From �375 a week for a two-person cottage, weekend rates also available; 01262 674932, fieldhousefarmcottages.co.uk