Navigation skills

There’s an art to outdoors survival that goes beyond mastering a GPS tracking device and loading a smartphone app. For serious walkers and hikers keen to explore off-grid terrains and landscapes in all sorts of weather conditions, nothing beats using a hard-copy Ordnance Survey (OS) map and a compass.

Led by expert tutors, our navigation skills holidays cover all the basics. You’ll learn to read a map (useful for lowering your risk of getting lost), find grid references, and correctly work your compass so that the direction of travel arrow is pointing in the direction you want to walk in. You’ll also be given guidance on estimating distances and timings as well as planning your own countryside walks. No orienteering experience is needed. Maps are provided, but you will need to bring a compass.

You’ll be staying at one of our characterful UK country houses, all of which are cherished for their one-of-a-kind charm and sense of warmth. There’s cosy Victorian manors, elegant Georgian mansions, converted granaries and farmhouses, lakeside hideaways, and more – all with desirable addresses just a skip away from some of the best-loved national parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Full-board meals come as standard.