Family sites

Babycentre.co.uk/babytravel is a good source of tips for travelling with infants, with sections on British beaches, what to expect when taking your offspring to different countries, and what to pack for different kinds of holiday. Mumsnet.com is strong on product reviews and hotel recommendations, though sometimes it's hard to differentiate the advertising and the genuine advice. Its weekend breaks section includes youth hostels as well as more expensive accommodation.

News in brief

Single adventures | Hostels for all | Trek school | Hop-on across Egypt | Inca pressure | Regions take off | The big build | World Cup kick off

Ask a fellow traveller

The Cycle Touring Club (ctc.org.uk) has three well-established routes and other information for members that can be downloaded from its website. The YHA (yha.org.uk) and the Scottish YHA (syha.org.uk) have a 16-day route between their hostels, which you can download. Book two to three weeks in advance as certain hostels, like those in the Lake District if you plan to tackle the Kirkstone Pass, get very busy. Also worth stopping at Carbisdale Castle SYHA, north of Inverness, possibly the best hostel in the world.

Whats Hot?

Backpacker chic An Australian hostel chain claims to be setting "new benchmarks" in backpacker accommodation, with the launch of its latest "luxury hostel" in Melbourne 's fashionable St Kilda district.

Yours for £11.80 a night

If you think that youth hostels are all damp bunks, bland food and muddy boots, you're behind the times. Richard Hammond reports from Devon.

Hostels and campsites for teenagers

Can anybody recommend a good campsite or youth hostel in France (preferably Brittany) that will accept groups of unaccompanied under 18s?

Travel tip

In Sofia, the Art Hostel (art-hostel.com) is a funky place to stay.

Travel tips

If you're going to Reykjavik, the airport bus will only stop at certain hotels. If yours isn't on the list, you'll be asked to leave the bus at the Icelandair Hotel and you'll have to take a city bus or taxi into town. So, if you're staying in the city centre, tell the driver you're staying at the youth hostel (which is on the bus route) and you can walk the rest of the way. You can also be picked up from there to get your flight home. Patricia Dobson

Beds on a budget

Katie Wood, author of Cheap Sleeps Europe, selects her favourite low-cost hotels and hostels.