Christmas holiday somewhere warm and interesting

[baldrick]

Where would you go? For 10-14 days.

Mixture of city sightseeing & beach (happy to fly between them). In previous trips we've been to Greece, India, Vietnam.

Not seeing the same deals on flights as pre Covid so rather than seeing a bargain and making a holiday out of it I'm having to decide where to go and it's proving difficult.

Don't want to go to Australia (too far), Dubai (too much slavery) or the US or Malaysia (been before). Ideally a direct flight from the UK even if we have to travel to Heathrow.

 

[miss direct]

Egypt? Morocco? Oman?

 

[platinumsage]

Barbados, plenty of non-beach island exploring to be done, from slave rebellion signal stations to George Washington’s house.

 

[Elpenor]

Oman would be the desert experience without Dubai and guaranteed warm weather. Flights not too long and Oman air isn’t a dry airline I think. Not sure if BA still fly there

The Gambia? Friends used to go but I don’t think they ever left the resort. Think there might have been a war or something

St Lucia I’ve been told is the nicest part of the Caribbean by folks who’ve been on holiday there, my friend who is of Dominican heritage says it’s where she’d live in the Caribbean if she could choose anywhere

 

[sparkybird]

México?

 

[dessiato]

Málaga, easy to get to, not hot but pleasantly warm in winter, beach, city, history. Plenty to do.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Not seeing the same deals on flights as pre Covid so rather than seeing a bargain and making a holiday out of it I'm having to decide where to go and it's proving difficult.

There are no deals to be had to anywhere warm and sunny during any school holiday periods, including up to next Easter. Until this March there were stunning deals everywhere, then much of the world opened up from the start of April and the airlines/tour operators ramped up the prices, e.g. in March you could get BA business class to New York for anytime this year for £1100, a very good deal, now you won't get it under £7000.

Colombia might be OK, especially if you take a flight via the US (hassle as you need ESTAs and must enter and leave the US each way, but often around 1/2 the price of direct or via Europe).

 

[Supine]

Koh Phangan - North of the island

 

[baldrick]

Been to Morocco a couple of times, love it but want somewhere new. Never fancied Egypt for some reason. Oman though has been on my list for a while, so good shout.

Thought vaguely about the Caribbean but a lot seems to be swanky AI places unless I'm getting it totally wrong. It does look lovely but was never sure about the 'things to do' side. We don't drink so rum tours are out. But maybe that should go on the list too.

Where in Mexico? I don't know enough about it.

Love Malaga but have been there 2 or 3 times now.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Thought vaguely about the Caribbean but a lot seems to be swanky AI places unless I'm getting it totally wrong. It does look lovely but was never sure about the 'things to do' side. We don't drink so rum tours are out. But maybe that should go on the list too.

Colombia's on the Caribbean, has very un-swanky islands that no one has ever heard of yet are stunning, Providencia, has mainland coast, historic cities and jungle trekking.

 

[planetgeli]

Where in Mexico? I don't know enough about it.

Tulum? Sight-seeing and beach all in one. Two weeks to Mexico isn't enough for the travelling to see sights and beach, but Tulum would do both.

 

[souljacker]

I'm considering Bangkok -> chang mai -> Koh Tao (or Rai Lei, Krabi) -> Bangkok in November. That's got beach and city sightseeing and definitely heat. Might be a bit much for 14 days though. I'm hoping to do 3 weeks.

 

[baldrick]

I'm considering Bangkok -> chang mai -> Koh Tao (or Rai Lei, Krabi) -> Bangkok in November. That's got beach and city sightseeing and definitely heat. Might be a bit much for 14 days though. I'm hoping to do 3 weeks.

Yeah I find a max of 3 places in 2 weeks is doable for a relaxed holiday as travel basically takes a day out of your itinerary each time. If you have to travel back to your start point that makes it more awkward. Worked really well for Vietnam as we flew into HCMC and out of Hanoi.

There are no deals to be had to anywhere warm and sunny during any school holiday periods, including up to next Easter. Until this March there were stunning deals everywhere, then much of the world opened up from the start of April and the airlines/tour operators ramped up the prices, e.g. in March you could get BA business class to New York for anytime this year for £1100, a very good deal, now you won't get it under £7000.

Colombia might be OK, especially if you take a flight via the US (hassle as you need ESTAs and must enter and leave the US each way, but often around 1/2 the price of direct or via Europe).

Will investigate Columbia and Mexico. I'm not saying money is no object but as there's no deals to be had I'm feeling a certain amount of pressure to get it right

 

[Petcha]

Bangkok. Highly underrated city. They finally stopped the need for quarantine last month. You still need to wear a mask everywhere though (even outside). And a lot of the bars are still boarded up down Khao San but that'll change now the restrictions are lifted. Khao San isn't everyone's cup of tea but it's undeniably fun for a bar crawl and the guest houses are fun. Then jump on the train up to Chiang Mai/Pai. Lovely.

 

[mod]

Lanzarote. Went there for xmas and NYE 11 years ago.

We done some research and stayed in a very quiet part of the island called Playa Flamingo about a mile West of a family resort called Playa Blanc. Play Blanca has lots of really nice restaurants.

We booked an apartment through these people whitebeachholidays.com and was very happy with our place but it was expensive. About £600 for 10 nights.

If you get a car, there are a beautiful beach about 30 minutes drive from Playa Blanca called Papagayo. We loved it at Papagayo.

Here are a few handy links....

Playa Blanca...

Playa Blanca Tourist Information

The only resource you will ever need for Playa Blanca, Lanzarote. Find all the important tourist information about Playa Blanca.

www.lanzaroteguidebook.com

Papagayo

papagayo lanzarote - Google Search

A great book/story to read (its very funny and raunchy) about Lanzarote by Michel Houellebecq...

Lanzarote: Amazon.co.uk: Houellebecq, Michel, Wynne, Frank: 9780099448365: Books

Buy Lanzarote by Houellebecq, Michel, Wynne, Frank from Amazon's Fiction Books Store. Everyday low prices on a huge range of new releases and classic fiction.

www.amazon.co.uk

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Yeah I find a max of 3 places in 2 weeks is doable for a relaxed holiday as travel basically takes a day out of your itinerary each time. If you have to travel back to your start point that makes it more awkward. Worked really well for Vietnam as we flew into HCMC and out of Hanoi.




Will investigate Columbia and Mexico. I'm not saying money is no object but as there's no deals to be had I'm feeling a certain amount of pressure to get it right

Cartagena, Providencia (San Andres island is easier to get to and perhaps more going on), Medellin.

 

[Chz]

A lot of what you'd consider to be far too touristy locations are actually quite nice off-season. I spent Christmas in the Algarve one year and had far, far more fun than the time I went in summer. Same for the Spanish Costas, the Canaries, etc. Even Venice.

I know the OP seems to be looking more adventurous than that, but it's a good tip for other users.

 

[baldrick]

No I totally agree. One of the best holidays we had was Athens at Christmas. Perfect sightseeing weather and hardly any tourists.

Isn't Medellin famous for err, cartels? I'm up for an adventurous holiday but perhaps that's a little too exciting for what I'm looking for.

 

[krtek a houby]

Sicily has an awesome mix of historical sites and sights, some great beaches, delicious food and a city or two.

Would recommend Okinawa and its southern islands but independent travelers are still being kept out for now.

 

[baldrick]

Lanzarote. Went there for xmas and NYE 11 years ago.

We done some research and stayed in a very quiet part of the island called Playa Flamingo about a mile West of a family resort called Playa Blanc. Play Blanca has lots of really nice restaurants.

We booked an apartment through these people whitebeachholidays.com and was very happy with our place but it was expensive. About £600 for 10 nights.

If you get a car, there are a beautiful beach about 30 minutes drive from Playa Blanca called Papagayo. We loved it at Papagayo.

Here are a few handy links....

That does look good. We're going to Tenerife for a week's drop and flop in August so will keep it in mind for another time.

 

[baldrick]

Sicily has an awesome mix of historical sites and sights, some great beaches, delicious food and a city or two.

Would recommend Okinawa and its southern islands but independent travelers are still being kept out for now.

We can never go to Italy, we have tried twice and each time a member of either mine or my husband's family has died.

The first time was in fact a holiday to Sicily. I was really looking forward to it

 

[krtek a houby]

We can never go to Italy, we have tried twice and each time a member of either mine or my husband's family has died.

The first time was in fact a holiday to Sicily. I was really looking forward to it

Oh, sorry to hear that. It's such a fascinating island.

How about the Hawaiian Islands? So much to see and do and so many different cultures there. And the scenery!

 

[krtek a houby]

That does look good. We're going to Tenerife for a week's drop and flop in August so will keep it in mind for another time.

La Gomera is worth a look, not as commercial as Tenerife. Great for hiking about and really getting away from it all.

 

[baldrick]

Oh, sorry to hear that. It's such a fascinating island.

How about the Hawaiian Islands? So much to see and do and so many different cultures there. And the scenery!

I nearly got an error fare to Hawaii over Xmas! The transaction wouldn't go through and eventually I saw they'd corrected it. That would have been amazing. It is a really long journey though and if I was paying full price I'd want longer than 2 weeks.

 

[krtek a houby]

I nearly got an error fare to Hawaii over Xmas! The transaction wouldn't go through and eventually I saw they'd corrected it. That would have been amazing. It is a really long journey though and if I was paying full price I'd want longer than 2 weeks.

Yeah, we had maybe ten days to two weeks and got to visit 3 of the islands. Would definitely need more time to really investigate.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Isn't Medellin famous for err, cartels? I'm up for an adventurous holiday but perhaps that's a little too exciting for what I'm looking for.

Was, isn't any more really and is pretty much very safe these days

 

[baldrick]

La Gomera is worth a look, not as commercial as Tenerife. Great for hiking about and really getting away from it all.

I actually wanted to go to La Gomera instead but there's no direct flights from Birmingham.

 

[krtek a houby]

I actually wanted to go to La Gomera instead but there's no direct flights from Birmingham.

Can't remember exactly how we did it. Think it was London Heathrow to one of the other islands (maybe Tenerife) and a ferry over to La Gomera.

 

[Sue]

Isn't Medellin famous for err, cartels? I'm up for an adventurous holiday but perhaps that's a little too exciting for what I'm looking for.

Went there on my own a few years ago. Felt v safe. The Botero sculptures and graffiti tours/cable cars are great. And there were very few tourists.

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

Málaga, easy to get to, not hot but pleasantly warm in winter, beach, city, history. Plenty to do.

Agreed. I went to Malaga for a couple of weeks on a last minute package deal years ago, think it was late January/maybe February time and had a nice enough time.

It's not somewhere I would've had on my 'to do' list, not somewhere I would've chosen to go, ordinarily, but I'd witnessed a shooting in the street outside my flat and the police were talking about putting me into witness protection, so I basically went into a travel agent and said I need to get out of Dodge City for a couple of weeks, somewhere cheap and sunny.

I spent time on the beach and by the pool and also went on a couple of day trips, to Ronda (because of Hemingway's For Whom The Bell Tolls) and also to visit Alhambra in Granada.

It was warm enough to be t-shirt weather in the day and putting a cardigan on/taking a jumper when going out for dinner at night. Although it seemed relatively balmy to me, the Spaniards were walking round with coats on day and night as it was their winter.