Kate Whitehead

Straddling the equator between Columbia and Peru, Ecuador may be the smallest Andean country but it’s packed with startling landscapes and exciting things to see and do.

Elsewhere in the world, orchestras are often struggling to maintain interest and audiences. As the Hong Kong Philharmonic passes its 40th anniversary, morale has never been higher.

North Korea has barely been out of the news since Kim Jong-un took control of the regime following the death of his father Kim Jong-il in December 2011. From nuclear threats, public executions, forced labour camps and, most recently, a damning united Nations report, the headlines make clear that the isolated state is extremely volatile.

Escape the tourist throng at Inca ruins, and support a site that provides a good living for its workers

It’s harder to stay lean as you age, but middle-age spread can be moderated with exercise and a healthy diet

What is it? Not the one and only One&Only, funnily enough, although it is the original, from which a chain of luxury resorts has been built that stretches from North America to Australia (Sanya will soon see China’s first). It’s not often that a mountain view beats a sea view, but Cape Town, in South…