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An irritating recession is no reason to put off your annual vacation. Theresa Semackor knows how to travel on a budget.

Jane Austen fans flock to see the author’s home at Chawton, usually on organised tours. Julia O’Connor braves the UK’s notoriously complicated and expensive public transport system and completes the journey in authentic Victorian style – on foot.

Tourism is certainly helping Cambodia’s fast-growing economy, and helping the country rise above its turbulent past, but Adam O’Hern finds worrying signs of how the boom in western visitors is now eroding a traditional Khmer way of life.

Lorne Blumer loves the southern city of New Orleans. And proves it with this atmospheric dispatch from America’s frontline of fun.

To experience Britain’s maritime heritage the best place to visit is Portsmouth, surely the most important naval base in England. Jonathan Hunter tours the museums on offer and finds history on show at every turn.

Bob Carter gets to grips with western Sweden when he teams up with three friends for a six-day expedition in a Canadian canoe. Days on the lakes and nights in a hammock prove to the perfect way to travel through the the Bergslagen region.

The countless winding roads of the ‘Emerald Isle’ easily outwit Sharon Goott Nissim’s GPS navigator. So the planned highlights she’d hoped to see are replaced with an unplanned tour – and a much more interesting experience.

Forget tourist embargoes: they haven’t worked and never will. As Myanmar’s repressive regime crumbles Andy Knight flies into Burma and checks out the situation on the ground.

A hundred years ago Maurice Coggin, aged 19, set off from Eastbourne to ride across England on a newly-bought ‘Premier’ motorbike. But the first British bikes were not reliable machines, and after a full day on the road he is forced to continue by train.

Those booking their European summer sun need look no further than Spain’s Atlantic outposts. Tenerife is a natural choice, says William David.

Jason Smart ticks of the eightieth country he’s visited but I think he’s cheating. One of the smallest states in Europe, best known for postage stamps, should hardly count. But – he’s done his research – it has its very own beer.

After planning retirement in Southeast Asia’s most visited nation, Allan Cross begins to see steel behind the smiles. Western visitors, he says, should be aware that it’s not such a carefree place and the potential for civil unrest simmers below the surface.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas to Ashleigh Powell, with toys in every store and New York’s iconic attractions close at hand.

Backpacking Europe doesn’t have to mean slumming it. James Redding recommends some European ‘Capitals of Culture’ that are worth visiting on any budget.

Despite not having read the books or seen the films, Helen Moat finds a stopover in the town of Forks brings her a raw taste of American gothic. But there’s more to the place than the movie-themed marketing would have her believe.

David S Grant has a good time on his visit to Holland’s capital. Too good, in fact. If he’d stayed another light he’d have had to leave his liver there.

Denver Burke suggests Scotland for Christmas. The city of Edinburgh, he says, it at its best in the festive season.

French Polynesia fails to charm John M Edwards. Everything’s expensive, the beaches are poor and budget travellers unpopular. Especially him when, on the island of Moorea, he crashes the local Club Med and chomps his way through some free hospitality.

When Glen Rooney proposed cycling across Romania he didn’t get a lot of encouragement. Instead he was warned of dangerous dogs, bandits and highwaymen. Of course he found nothing of the kind: just rural tranquillity and the kindness of strangers.

Texas Street is one of Korea’s most notorious red-light zones. In the interests of research Michael Fraiman sets out to spend a night amongst strippers and prostitutes and finds it a strangely angry place.

Iain Miller finds beauty and peace in the magical landscapes of Norway and Sweden. An escorted tour, he finds, is the best way to explore.

No travel insurance for Rick Langrehr as Peru, apparently, is unsafe for Americans. But South America’s highlights, including Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca are brought within easy reach by a fart-powered horse and a high-powered motorbike.

High in the mountains, the city of Baguio is a refuge from the Manila’s tropical heat. If you’re not into beaches this is one part of the archipelago that is well worth a visit. Jason McKenny dines out with the Igorot people of Luzon’s Cordillera Central.

Wondering where to go skiing this year? Kirsty Leckie-Palmer rounds up the world’s best ski resorts in Europe and North America.

To those who find the story of humanity hard to handle, Warwick Cairns makes it simple with a concise account that starts with a Kenyan fossil and ends with the present day.

Zoe Shenton shocks her friends – and the tourist industry – by visiting Indonesia without going to Bali or Lombok. She flies into Jakarta and explores Java, seeing a side of the country package-travelling resortists often overlook.

As the UK heads into the festive season the winter shows come on in London’s Theatreland. William David says tickets to a show can be a great gift for the hard-to-please – and gives a guide to which shows to see.

In many parts of southern Africa you’ll see more animals carved in wood, on sale by the side of the road, than you will on a safari. Stefanie Giglio meets the craftsmen who turn Africa’s trees into art – and therefore food.

There’s plenty of livestock at India’s largest camel market, but Hema Narayanan finds the ‘Ship of the Desert’ is no longer a premium product. When oil is easier to buy than water the days of the caravanserai are fading – and camels too have to eat.

Lilia Velinova finds a warm welcome in the Caribbean’s US outpost is a breeze. After frittering away too many days on her resort beach she opens out to the locals and discovers a whole new world.

Ireland’s beautiful landscape is littered with castles, stone-built hideouts for built for feudal cheifs. Sergio Santos runs through his personal favourites, each with its own Irish tale to tell.

The world’s most populous nation – and one of the largest too – doesn’t deter round-the-world cyclist Charlie Walker who pedals from Vietnam in the south to the northern capital, Beijing – and finds plenty of rural tranquillity along the way.

On his first visit to Europe Sam Belletto flies into Greece and is immediately targeted by sleazy tricksters. A quick evening drink turns into a frightening ordeal and he has to think fast to escape with his cash.

James Cave says forget Europe for pre-Christmas celebrations: the Santa Claus parades are bigger and better in Canada. Fly to the Big Country for the run-up to the festive season.

Just a few years ago – and well within living memory – the Khmer Rouge tortured and killed millions of Cambodians. Peter Watson travels to Cambodia and meets a survivor of Southeast Asia’s very own holocaust.

Living in England, encumbered with a new baby and frowned at by his doctor, Matt Pointon needs some exercise. So he sets off for a short walk along his local canal – and a hundred miles later stops to draw breath.

The undeveloped islands of the Maldives have only just opened up to independent travellers. Donna Richardson charts a course around the heart-shaped Addu Atoll and finds it easy to get around on a budget.

The Asus Eee Pad slider is the latest touch-screen tablet flaunting its floaty icons to tempt your Christmas cash. But this time it has a keyboard. The Barker family sees if this can be the gadget that combines family games appeal with the serious needs of a writer on the road.