Celebrity traveller: Nick Knowles

WHAT IS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE HOLIDAY?

My wedding in Rome. After the ceremony we took a carriage ride around the sights including the Trevi Fountain and Colosseum. We ate some fantastic food. Jess and I stayed at the Residenza Napoleone III. It’s a Renaissance Palace where Napoleon III used to live – it was a great place to honeymoon. 

AND YOUR WORST?

Apackage to Tunisia 30 years ago. It wasn’t for me. I don’t like organised fun so I used the hotel as a base and we explored. I headed into the desert to Matmata and met Berber tribesmen who live in dwellings under the ground. 

FAVOURITE SOUVENIR?

I have a didgeridoo from Australia and a drum from Africa but as I move about so much things just end up getting left behind. I did have a collection of fossils from all around the world but Jess moved them from the lounge to the dining room before they came to rest in the shed. 

BEST HOLIDAY READ?

I like reading on holiday and I’ll look at anything by Tom Sharpe. I enjoyed The Throwback, a satirical novel. Neil Gaiman’s fantasy compilation Smoke And Mirrors is a favourite too. The short stories are perfect to dip into while waiting for a plane. 

HOW DO YOU SPEND YOUR TIME ON HOLIDAY?

Relaxing is normally top of the list but I usually end up visiting an old ruin or ancient site. When I was on the Greek island of Kalymnos I helped some Orthodox nuns load hay on to their wagons. As a thank you I was invited into the monastery where the priest made me sweet mint tea. That wouldn’t have happened if I’d been on a sunbed. 

WHERE WOULD YOU REVISIT?

Botswana’s Okavango Delta. It has to be one of the most beautiful places on earth. The array of animals there is simply amazing. Lewa in Kenya is stunning too, with a vast area of savannah and wetlands, grouped around a large conservation project for endangered species.

I’ve been chased around a tree by a rhino and a giraffe ran at me once. When I was in the Kalahari in South Africa we had a huge rainstorm overnight and in the morning the desert was covered in beautiful flowers.