Letter of the week
My wife and I plan to visit our daughter who is living in the Turks and Caicos Islands in the British West Indies. We would like to combine this with a trip to Cuba. What are the travel options between Cuba and the Turks and Caicos? Are there sea connections?
Bob Giles by email
A plethora of cruise ships, private yachts and charter vessels plies the waters of the Caribbean, so it's frustrating for travellers that islands aren't linked by regular ferries. This is partly due to the islanders' preference for air travel. Cuba is a special case, however. A US trade embargo prevents vessels that visit Cuban ports from docking in the US for six months. This discourages almost all sea traffic from visiting. Nassau, in the Bahamas, is the closest jumping-off point for Cuba from the Turks and Caicos There are flights three times a week to Nassau with Bahamasair from Providenciales, in the Caicos - $120 one way, $220 return. Cubana flies from Nassau to Havana for $179 return. Journey Latin America (020 8747 3108) specialises in Cuba. Make sure you have the right documents before going. The Cuban Embassy (020 7240 2488) will advise you.
Edging up a volcano
This summer, we're off to Tenerife and intend to reach the Mount Teide volcano by cable car. However, we've heard that to peer over the crater requires a permit from the government office in Santa Cruz. How do we get one or should we refrain for environmental reasons?
M. Roberts, Swansea
Around 3.5 million visitors a year visit Parque Nacional Del Teide and most ride the cable car to La Rambleta (still a 20-minute hike from the summit), an observation area offering fantastic views of the surrounding islands.
Those determined to have a peek over the edge of the volcano do require a permit, which you can pick up from the park's Servicio de Uso Publico Office in Santa Cruz between 9am and 2pm on weekdays. They are free, but you will need to give in photocopies of the personal pages of your passport and to specify a date and two-hour slot for your climb.
The permit scheme limits the number of visitors to the summit to 50 at any one time to protect the fragile ecosystem from over-exposure to foreign bodies.
California on foot
Can anybody recommend good books on walking in California or suggest where we can look for them? We are going independently in late September, hiring a car and travelling around, and want to plan some walks in advance. We've looked at the websites of Stanfords and Amazon US but nothing comes up.
Christeve Shearer by email
There are loads of books on Californian outdoor pursuits, but it is hard to find good ones or get them in the UK. California Hiking (Foghorn Press) offers a good review of the options. Mountaineers Books and Wilderness Press both have ranges of regional guides. If you can't get these from Amazon or Stanfords, order them from the publishers' websites. Try also www.gorp.com for a good selection of walking guides. Lonely Planet's Hiking in the USA will give a good overview.
Need we speak Latvian?
Some friends and I are travelling independently to Latvia this summer. We wonder how widely foreign languages are understood there. Between us, we speak French, German and Swedish, but virtually no Latvian or Russian. Is this likely to be a problem?
Michael Webb by email
Only 55 per cent of the population speak Latvian as a first language. English is widely spoken, especially in the tourist industry. This may not reach a conversational level, but you'll be able to communicate. You can always fall back on German if the going gets tough, but there's no substitute for attempting the local language. Even if you only master a few basic words your efforts will be appreciated. Most guide-books include a language glossary, so you can look up essential phrases. Visu labu! (All the best!)
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