Up for a challenge?

JERSEY Tourism is seeking teams for its three-day Jersey Challenge sports endurance event on October 1.

The challenge consists of kayaking in St Catherine’s Bay, cycling along the north coast of the island before heading down to Corbiere lighthouse on the west coast and back to St Catherine’s, followed by a trail run through St Catherine’s woods, fields and the cliff top paths above Rozel.

The long-distance category incorporates a one-mile kayak course, 40-mile bike ride and eight-mile trail run; the short course is half a mile of kayaking, a 20-mile bike ride and five-mile trail run.

The team of two must do all three elements, and finish together. Each person who completes the course will receive a medal and there will be trophies for winners of various categories.

Kayaks, buoyancy jackets and paddles are provided, but entrants must supply their own bikes. Entry is £60 (about €90) per team and entry forms can be downloaded from www.209events.com, where you will also find details of accommodation packages for the Merton Hotel. The closing date for receipt of entries is September 15.

There are three direct flights from Dublin to Jersey each week with Aer Lingus (www.aerlingus.com) until the end of October. The airline carries bikes (subject to available space) at €30 each way. To book a bicycle, passengers must contact their local reservations office. Landbridge transport is available from Stena Line (www.stenaline.ie) in association with Condor Ferries; they carry bicycles for foot passengers at no extra charge.

For further information about visiting Jersey, see www.jersey.com.

*STENA Line has a promotion to the hugely popular Alton Towers. A two-day package, based on two adults and two children sharing, including return travel by Superferry, costs from €127 per person. The package includes one night accommodation at the Express By Holiday Inn, Stafford, and a two-day ticket to Britain’s top theme park.

To book , call Stena Line on 01 204 7733 or visit your local travel agent.

*Fast and furious is the way this August bank holiday weekend at the Nuremore Hotel and Country Club, Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, with its all inclusive activity packages from €315pps for two nights’ B&B plus one dinner and one activity. Activities include quad biking, archery, action target, air strike and shuffleboarding.

&Tel [phone]; email [e-mail].

*BUDGET !Travel is in the midst of a super sale to the Med next month. The promotion sees the company slashing high season prices on thousands of destinations in Spain, the Canaries, Portugal, Turkey, Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Croatia.

For further information, log on to www.budgettravel.ie or call Budget Direct on [phone].