The Sufi Festival (17th - 19th February - inclusive) at the historic Nagaur Fort organised by the Meherangarh Museum Trust will feature the most beautiful expressions of Sufism.

World renowned Sufi Qawwals, folk musicians from the deserts of Rajasthan, singers from North-Eastern India, classical interpretations from Agra, as well as performers from Iran, Egypt and Turkey, perform here transcending all language, caste, geography and religion.

Over the three days of the festival, you will have the opportunity to meditate and relax through mystic music. Sufi lecture programs, dance and miniature painting workshops are arranged during the day. In the evenings, the moonlit Nagaur Fort turns magical with haunting music from the Sufi concerts.

For those who have experienced an African safari and are looking for something different, Namibia offers an unforgettable adventure and breathtaking beauty.

Whilst Namibia welcomes a steady stream of visitors year-round, May is a wonderful time to beat the crowds and experience some lovely weather.

For the ultimate adventure, take to the skies for a flying safari. Enjoy a bird’s-eye view of the landscape, wildlife, and exploring hidden gems.

Other highlights could include tracking the endangered black rhino and desert elephant in Damaraland; sandboarding and quad biking over the roaring sand dunes of Sossusvlei; and of course no trip would be complete without flying along the desolate Skeleton Coast, a mystical wilderness dotted with shipwrecks and fossil beds.

The Literary Festival in Parati is fast becoming one of the highlights in Brazil’s social calendar.

It is an unlikely place to find a prestigious literary gathering. And yet the Parati Literary Festival in August, regularly attracts an impressive array of highly regarded international authors.

As a cultural heritage site, with great little restaurants, beautiful
17th Century architecture and hidden beaches only accessible by boat – the Literary Festival is only one of the reasons to visit this beautiful place.

You could also include a visit to the Pantanal at this time, as it is best visited between April to October.

The Pantanal is a beautiful wilderness wetland. Being a ranching area there are large open spaces which make for wildlife viewing far superior to that of the Amazon.

This year we will be launching a brand new photography competition where we have teamed up with Leica, the iconic company that has defined excellent photography.

Over the next year we will give you the chance to submit photographs to become the cazenove+loyd Leica Photographer of the Year 2011, with some fantastic prizes from Leica each month.

Many of the best photos we have seen previously have come from our African destinations. One of our handpicked lodges, Londolozi, even has a specialist modified vehicle fitted with adapted seats and on-board photographic equipment, for guests to take exceptional photos.

The competition will run from January to December 2011 but look out for more information next month.

The 9th Latin America Film Festival comes to London for the month of November.

The festival aims to promote the region's cinematic talent at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, in the West End and on screens at the Tate Modern. There is a wide variety of feature, experimental and short films, as well as documentaries, retrospectives, master-classes and discussions with well-known industry professionals.

The film festival hopes to bring cultural diversity to London but also to  highlight the variety of Latin America. It is also committed to helping alleviate the poverty in Latin America.

Keep up to date with all the latest of the film festival on twitter.