DREAM DESTINATIONS

The places those in the know will be booking for 2021 (dust off those passports now)

- EMMA O’KELLY

THE SKI RESORT: ST ANTON AM ARLBERG, AUSTRIA

How will we do socially distanced skiing? How long will queues be at the resorts? There are lots of question marks over this winter’s ski season. Perhaps 2021 is the year to appreciate the mountains rather than haring down them on crowded slopes. Enter the village of St Anton am Arlberg in Austria, where speedy chairlifts provide access to over 200 miles of runs and plenty of off-piste routes. It’s a resort rich in Alpine beauty, full of local life and off-piste options, such as horse sleigh riding and curling. In the resort itself, Ullrhaus is a new family-run hotel opened by St Anton locals Franziska Alber and Michael Gfall (theaficionados.com/hotels/austria/tirol/st-anton/ullrhaus). It has all the usual Alpine trappings – glowing fires, a spa with three wood-scented saunas, a hearty menu and fine gluhwein – set in muted contemporary interiors injected with Tyrolean tradition.

ISLAND RETREAT: BOHUSLÄN ARCHIPELAGO, SWEDEN

Got the urge to holiday on a private island? Then head to Sweden’s western archipelago for some serious isolation. Sweden stands out for its successful stance on COVID-19, so the country feels like a safe bet, and with more than 8,000 islands to explore along the 280-kilometre archipelago, you’re unlikely to run into crowds. Base yourself on Hamneskär at Pater Noster (paternosterlighthouse. com) when it opens early 2021.