We travelled from Gatwick Airport on a Sunday morning flight with British Airways, which was a smooth and quick flight, simplified by taking just hand luggage which enabled us to speed through the airport without any delay.

Just outside the airport terminal at Edinburgh Airport we took a Lothian Bus to take us to the city centre and our hotel (for travel in and around Edinburgh including Edinburgh Airport, city bus tours and night buses). The Lothian Bus staff where extremely friendly and helpful giving us tourist tips, one of which was to advise us that as it was the weekend, which Scotland celebrate St Andrews Day (Saint Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland), which meant that we could take a visit Edinburgh Castle and take advantage of free entry.

We booked to stay for two nights at the George Hotel, which boasts a prestigious location in the heart of the city, taking prime position on the elegant George Street. The hotel was beautiful both on the interior and exterior. I cannot recommend this hotel enough. The location is wonderful with everything in easy walking distance. The staff are attentive and the decor is stunning throughout including spacious bedrooms and comfy bed. The breakfast was another highlight and just what is needed before long strolls round this stunning city in the cold.

It was so lovely to travel in late November/December when the city is decorated with it’s magical lights, decorations, Christmas Market, ice rink and fair rides.

Edinburgh Castle is a must on any trip to Edinburgh along with a sample of whisky and buy some tartan souvenirs from one of the many shops on the Royal Mile.

To really appreciate the city with spectacular views from up high, take the steep spiral steps of Sir Walter Scott’s Monument, which is located on the south side of Princes Street, roughly opposite ‘Jenners’.

This is certainly a city that we are looking to go back to in a few years if not before. My top tips include: wear comfortable shoes especially when walking round the city along the cobbled lanes. Also wrap up warm with hats, gloves and scarf’s which are a must during the winter months.

Our hotel was called the San Rocco Hotel and it is absolutely fabulous. In 2007 and 2008 it won awards as the ‘Best Small Hotel’ in Croatia and I now know exactly why. It is a family run affair that places the attention to detail and guest well being very high on the agenda. Don’t get me wrong, it is not a lavishly finished palace but more a perfectly appointed, tranquil place where you are made to feel special and valued as a guest. The village of Britonigla is a little like a place that to a degree time has forgotten, as are most of the villages in the areas. Simple, rustic and rural charm that just sucks you in and slows you down. I still smile when I think about the tractors chugging into the village with wife and kids sitting on the wings.

Our first week on holiday in Croatia happened to coincide with the villages annual festival week. Music, song and dance for 5 nights on the trot. Great fun concentrated to the centre of the village that does not disturb outside of the main square in front of the church.

Britonigla is perfectly placed allowing you to choose to explore the villages in one direction or the coast in the other. The villages are picture postcard hill top delights. As you go from one to another you drive through vineyards, olive groves and general small scale agriculture.

As you would expect the coast line is a little more focused towards the tourist but not so as to put you off. What is far More obvious in these places in the focus on fishing industries. The beaches we saw tended to be pebble or rocks and not crowded. Harbour fronts we cafe lined and a very pleasant place to just kick back, drink coffee and people watch.

Eating out was a pleasant surprise as it was not as expensive as we feared it could be. In the villages the both of us could eat and drink for £15 all in! There were more expensive alternative but we preferred to eat where the locals where eating.

I think I will always look back on our time in Istria very fondly. A special place.

Here’s what Alan said: “It was taken whilst i was doing the Cape Wrath trail last May, leaving Shenavail Bothy, Nr Ullapool, so why is it interesting? Well the person in the picture is your Michelle, who I met en route and walked with for several days. Happy memories.”

Please send your photographs to photos@packyourbags.com.

The Oosterdam in this day and age is a ‘mid sized’ ship and carried 2111 guests and 809 crew and at no time did the ship appear crowded even on ‘sea days’ when there where still plenty of sun chairs available.  It also offered an “As you wish” dining option which meant that we could choose to have dinner at the time that suited us best and get a table for two every night rather than having fixed times and having to share a table with strangers.  Generally the food was very good, although we did feel that the lunchtime buffet was rather limited.

The itinerary was Barcelona (Spain), Monte Carlo (Monaco), Livorno (Italy), Civitavecchia (Italy), Messina (Italy), Navplion (Greece), Katakolon (Greece), Corfu, Dubrovnik (Croatia) and Venice (Italy) all in 12 days, so it was a bit of a case of if its Wednesday it must be Monaco, but it was an excellent combination of destinations.  Cruising past the Island of Stromboli (an active Volcano) and the approaches into Venice overlooking St Mark’s Square are certainly worth a mention.

A couple of things to consider, HAL offer airport transfers on arrival and departure which are at a horrendous price – so much cheaper to take a taxi even for just two people and this way you can travel when you want to and not wait to be herded on to a coach.  The ship gave no information for ‘independent’ travellers disembarking at Venice which was disappointing and caused unnecessary stress for those on early flights; however on the day it in fact could not have been easier to make your own way.  The cost of the ship transfers in Corfu where also expensive and we found it a relatively easy walk into town (approx 20 minute stroll)

Overall, despite a few niggles the HAL experience was good, although we felt that Celebrity are slightly better as far as overall service is concerned but we would cruise with HAL again providing both the itinerary and the price where right.

I won’t lie my holiday started off to be the worst trip I could imagine. On landing in to Larnaca airport full of excitement and anticipation I could almost taste the strawberry daiquiri but the dream was short lived when I was the last one standing and no not at the bar, at the baggage re claim where everyone else had got their suitcases and there ‘s me clutching my cowboy hat with no suitcase.

I stayed at the Anesis Hotel in Ayia Napa and had a lovely spacious room and the only downside was the view of the Car Park. I would recommend paying for a view of the pool if you visit the Anesis as the pool, bar and restaurant at the hotel are all great and the location is one of the best for a 3 * hotel in Ayia Napa.

 Ayia Napa has changed since my last visit 4 years ago it has grown considerably. There are more trendy bars and restaurants, so If you like a bit of sophistication before you move on up to the square then this really is the place to go. The square has not changed a bit, all the old favourites are there including Bedrock and Castle Club along with constant stalking on your approach by the bar reps offering you 2 for 1 offer’s and free shots but it pains me to say you are best accepting one of these offer’s as you get served quicker and if you haggle with them you can usually get an extra shot or 2 out of them.

A holiday in Cyprus is not the cheapest of destinations you will end up spending the same on a night out in Ayia Napa as you would back home here in the UK but don’t let this put you off as there is so much to do during the day and night and it’s worth that bit extra. I would definitely recommend going Half Board if you like to go out most nights as this guarantees all your spending money can be spent on your choice of activities on offer. If you choose to go self catering there is plenty of restaurants, fast food bars and mini markets to choose from.

The water park in Cyprus is still amazing one of the best in Europe in my opinion and drop to Atlantis has to be my favourite ride. Nissi beach is a must but go early as the beach gets busier as the day goes on but the crystal blue water’s and white sand is just what you need for a tan relaxing day and there are numerous water sports on offer and a few beach bars to sample.

Holidays in Cyprus has always been a firm favourite with me I have stayed in most resorts but Ayia Napa will still remain my favourite as it has everything a lively holiday needs. I would recommend the Anesis hotel and Ayia Napa if you are looking for a fun in the sun holiday.

images by: Yakinodi

Here’s what David had to say: “The picture, taken by my wife, shows me paddling for the first time solo in our new canoe. I’m trying to edge it for the first time, too (I didn’t fall in).

The river we’re on is the Hérault in the Languedoc region of France. You can see Mont St Baudille in the background.

The trip? It took us a whole lifetime to get to this area. It’s where we’ve retired to. Looks peaceful, doesn’t it? Particularly from under the brim of my new Tilley hat. (I lost my old hat in a canoeing incident we shan’t go into here.)”

Thanks David!

Please send your photographs to photos@packyourbags.com.

We booked the holiday through Longwood Holidays who specialise in Egypt. It was a last minute deal for 7 nights staying at the Hyatt Regency on Half Board Basis.

We flew with Monarch from London Gatwick on an early morning flight. We did however stay the night before at a hotel at Gatwick called the Mercure (excellent hotel & highly recommended) I would definitely recommend staying the night in a Gatwick airport hotel the night before you depart especially if you have an early morning flight to avoid being delayed and stuck in traffic on the M25!

We arrived in to Taba airport around lunchtime. Prepare to be shocked as the airport is pretty run down. The Suitcases are hurled off the conveyer belt and it’s a free for all to claim your luggage, so not much organisation whatsoever unfortunately.

The transfer from the airport to the hotel is around an hour, the transfer coaches are excellent, and fully air-conditioned. I am always worried about toilets etc abroad and they do have good facilities on the coach which you can use if you need to.

We arrived at the Hyatt after an hour and was given a letter A, B, C or D. This was obviously for the room allocations. There must have been around 100 people in reception queuing for a key at once.  The hotel staff were welcoming and came round with a really nice fruit drink as they could see the shock on everyone’s faces at the length of the queue.

The room we were given was a garden view room. The rooms were spacious and really clean. Probably one of the best hotel rooms I have stayed in. really large bathroom with walk-in shower, and a full mini bar which was very reasonable.
The balconies are large and offer beautiful views of the garden. I thought we had been given an upgrade but we hadn’t, these were standard rooms!

The first evening of our holiday in Egypt we arrived and experienced a sand storm which meant no electricity in the hotel; apparently it was the worst storm they had experienced in years! I have to say I thought it was incredible I have never seen anything like it!
It was slightly unfortunate as the next day they closed the main pool due to the sand that had blown from the beach and then in to the main pool. The pool was closed for 3 days. Luckily there were 2 more pools at the Hyatt that we used. This didn’t ruin the holiday in any way; we still had a fabulous time using the other pools.

Half Board was included in the cost of the holiday. The restaurant buffet food was very good. I was worried as I am a vegetarian but we were really well catered for. My partner is not that keen on buffets so we decided to eat in the paying restaurants for the next 6 nights of the holiday! They do offer a promotional dine around option which means you do get a discount should you wish to eat in an alternative restaurant in the hotel.

The only down fall was the price of drinks! They are really pricey. A bottle of house wine was approximately £30 a bottle. Beer was the cheapest drink that they had on offer. If you can visit the local supermarket which is about a 5 minute shuttle ride away then do so!

The hotel does offer a complimentary shuttle bus which you can use as many times as you like.

The gardens at the hotel are really well looked after, I was really impressed how clean the hotel was! Everywhere was spotless.

The Beach is stunning, lots of sun-beds for everyone to use (which you don’t have to pay for). Taba is excellent for snorkelling. The hotel also has a dive centre.

We only managed to do one of the excursions in Taba, which was the quad biking in the mountains for an hour. This is well worth the money it worked out approximately £35per person, we booked directly with the hotel the evening before.

There are limited things to do whilst you are there, so it really is just a great beach holiday and fantastic in the winter months if you need some sun and time to relax.

I would like to re-visit the Hyatt Regency again in the future; we had such a wonderful holiday in Egypt. Maybe next year I will try the Hyatt Regency in Sharm El Sheikh.

Images:

Hyatt Taba Heights & Taba Beach View –  by 8lettersuk
Marriot Resort from Taba Heights – by Sonysan

Image by mindfulness

When the summer season is at its height, it is often hard to imagine that the long hours of sunshine and clear blue skies will soon be taken over by wet, grey and dreary days. This is the time when the sentimental part of us makes us reach for our holiday snaps to revive those happy holiday memories. Or this could simply be the time when the practical side of us tells us that summer doesn’t necessarily need to be over yet – and that this is the best time to set out on a journey to chase the winter sun.

Many tour operators have lined up their flights for the winter holiday season, which doesn’t mean only the skiers will have the chance to enjoy the long awaited white snow-covered slopes. Hundreds of flights will head for places like the Canaries, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia or Gambia, which are classed as short or mid-haul destinations. This means that you can be on that sun baked beach within 6 hours!

Sharm el-Sheikh mosque by Argenberg

Egypt with its monumental history offers places like the calm remote Taba, with crimson mountains lining the blue coastline. The buzzing Sharm El Sheikh is a promise of hot sunny days on the beach and lively nights out, not mentioning the colourful reefs of its underwater world, ready to be explored by all keen divers.

The laid back coastal Agadir in Morocco is a perfect antidote to the frenetic capital Marrakech, with its cosmopolitan hotels and quaint city centre full of bazaars and salesmen trying to sell you anything from jewellery and textile to a camel!

If all this sounds too busy, then why not try and take a relaxing week on the Mediterranean coast of Tunisia? Many hotels here specialise in Thalasso-therapy and invite all their guests to enjoy the pampering spa and hammam sessions at fraction of the UK prices. Wherever you chose to go in North Africa, the winter months will certainly not let you down when it comes to long hours of sunshine, great all inclusive hotels and amazingly cheap package holidays.

Sunset by Maurice Koop

Gambia is a relatively new holiday destination emerging on the list of exotic places to visit during the winter time. It’s hot and full of unspoilt beaches dotted with inexpensive hotels. The service here is marked by the hospitality of the smiling locals, and the wildlife in the lush green natural setting is to die for. The bonus is that you won’t be jet lagged after your 6-hour long flight and after your first encounter with this wonderful country, you are sure to be back the next season.

If, however, you are prepared to spend a bit extra cash and longer hours on the flight, countries in the ever popular Caribbean – Mexico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Barbados, St Lucia or Antigua will satisfy even the most discerning traveller. The all inclusive resorts have been built with your utmost comfort in mind, directly on the beach and providing excellent food, entertainment and cultural experience, whether you are 6 or 66.

The Maldives by nattu

On the opposite side, where the tiffany blue Indian Ocean gently kisses the pearl white silky shores, the islands of Maldives are a true diver’s and honeymooner’s paradise. The impeccable service complements the elegant accommodation of beach villas and water bungalows from where you can take a plunge into the sea straight from your bedroom – the quintessential Maldivian experience.

Wherever your fancy takes you this winter season – the Canaries, North Africa, Caribbean, Goa or the Maldives and whether you choose to travel in October or January, they promise fun in the sun, sea and sand at fantastic bargain package holiday prices.