If you'd prefer a beach holiday, how about...
For sandy beaches, excellent shopping and art galleries: Sarasota, Florida
Sarasota is the perfect antidote to bustling Orlando, thanks to its relaxed nature and cultural feel.
Culture rears its head through a variety of means in Sarasota. The Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, the FSU Centre and Asolo Theatre all stage concerts, musicals, plays and more. However, many are attracted to the pull of Sarasota thanks to its sublime beaches, first-class coastal resorts, restaurants, small art galleries and upmarket shops.
40 miles of beautiful white beaches run from Tampa Bay to Sarasota with access also available to a number of enclaves and islands. To the south of Sarasota, Siesta Key is a popular haunt for writers and artists and has a laidback feel and ‘lazy’ beach atmosphere, whereas St. Lido Key is geared towards tourists thanks to the number of hotels and resorts.
As mentioned, shopping is also high on the agenda of many, with St. Armand’s Key a veritable haven of swanky boutiques, small bistros and designer shops.
For historical interest and winter sunshine: Paphos, Cyprus
There are very few tourist towns in the world that are UNESCO World Heritage sites, but Paphos has this honour.
The sites of historical interest are many. Firstly, the Paphos Archaeological Park has a number of truly fascinating artefacts and attractions, including the House of Dionysos and the House of Thesus – ruins of large Roman villas. The Tomb of Kings is arguably Paphos’s biggest pull – an awesome collection of carved tombs from the fourth century. Also worth mentioning is the Paphos Fort situated by the beautiful marina in the old town. Although the present fort was rebuilt by the Turks in the 16th century, it is nevertheless an impressive spectacle.
Of course, many venture to Paphos simply to soak up the relaxed ambience of the town and kickback in the pleasantly warm surroundings and beautiful beaches. A particularly rewarding trip is to Coral Bay to the northwest of Paphos, which is situated in a wonderful horseshoe bay.
For a luxurious get-away-from-it-all - Mauritius
In a nutshell, Mauritius is a small island in a class of its own in terms of beauty and tropical luxury – perhaps the ultimate winter getaway. The island is blessed with beautiful white beaches and deep blue seas, but has so much more to offer than sunbathing and dipping into the water as it is so packed with historic sites, culture and a seemingly endless list of outdoor pursuits that are enough to tempt even the most ardent sunbather from their lounger.
Mauritius forms part of the Mascarene Islands, with Port Louis (its capital) being Africa’s richest city. The island’s main towns of Port Louis, Quatre Bornes and Curepipe accentuate the diversity of this incredible paradise; all bustling, heady mixes of culture and crowds converging on the markets and restaurants serving up local and international cuisine creating an inimitable buzz. Combine this with the Black River Gorges National Park with its acres of awesome forest and you get an idea of why Mauritius is its own little planet.
Hire a car and explore at your leisure – find a bargain at the bustling market in Port Louis; explore the beautiful colonial houses, huge plantation houses and sugar mills; stroll through the bird park at Casela or the Pamplemousses Botanical Gardens; marvel at the Chamarel Coloured Earths and the Rochester Falls; escape to the deserted, wide, wind swept beaches of the East Coast.
But what of the beaches? ‘Stunning’ would be a fair description. Expect to be greeted by sand-lined lagoons, huge open expanses of white sand, unreal offshore islands – a perfect haven for those looking to escape the cold, dark winter back home.
December to April is classed as the hot, wet season and temperatures (sea and land) are pleasant. Rain tends to be concentrated in the centre of the island or fall in quick, heavy showers. The west coast benefits from a hotter, drier environment
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