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Turn off the highway between Jaipur and Delhi and drive up the hillside above Neemrana into a Rajasthani palace.After your dip in one of two pools settle on the terrace for afternoon tea and cakes and watch sunset across the plains. Dinner outside around a lamplit lily pond, Indian/Creole cuisine served as a buffet will even tempt you to try Indian wine! A balcony with swinging beds and 'quiet please' notices for the important afternoon nap. All this amid glorious old stone walls and gardens. For those on a budget you can find a room costing no more than a B+B in the UK.
fort-palace.neemranahotels.com/
Village Neemrana, District Alwar 301 705
Rajasthan
+91 1494 299900
Google map: bit.ly/scWcL0
For a truly delightful Norwegian experience visit the Utne Hotel in the Hardanger region. From your first glimpse of the hotel with its quaint clapboard exterior and white picket fence you will be enchanted. The hotel dates from 1722 and the interior is furnished in traditional Norwegian style with painted woodwork, antique furniture and old paintings. Sitting in the drawing room is like visiting a private house. Then complete the experience with afternoon tea served in miniature teapots with chocolate and apple cake accompanied by ice cream and starfruit. It is almost impossible to choose between the beautiful views of the fjords, the exquisite furnishings of the room and the presentation of the cake, an art work in itself. A gem in a beautiful country! While there also visit the Hardanger Folk Museum to learn all about the area and its customs and music.
www.utnehotel.no/
Utne Hotel, NO-5779 Utne
+47 53 66 64 00
Google map: bit.ly/oyUGZF
We enjoyed a fabulous 10 day stay at Gasthof zur Post in July 2011 with our four-year-old son. The Familie Kohlmayr and their staff were so friendly and hospitable that they made us feel that nothing was too much trouble. We enjoyed delicious real Austrian food and drink throughout our stay and the grill night at the Kohlmayr's Mountain Cabin is one of of best memories of the holiday. The Gasthof is in a wonderful location among the mountains and yet is so convenient for so many nearby places of interest and enjoyment.
www.kohlmayr.com
Ferienhotel Gasthof zur Post, Dorfstrabe 22
5561 Untertauern, Salzburger Land
+43 6455 238
Google map: bit.ly/pMST9q
This is an amazing beach hotel only about 30 minutes drive from the centre of Athens. It overlooks a calm bay with views up to the Temple of Poseidon (a short walk away). The service, food and rooms are superb.
www.capesounio.com/
Sounio Road GR-195 00, Sounio, Attica
+30 22920 69700
A simple but very good chalet that offers good food and very friendly service. The chalet is close to the slopes. The owner Ferg is great at providing a perfect sking holiday. The wine in tasty too.
www.skideep.net
Chalet Taniere, Route du Formier, La Tania, 73120, Courchevel, France
+33 (0) 479 08 19 05
Google map: bit.ly/fJRqag
Baden-Baden is one of the few low-cost destinations that really can be reached for under a tenner. It is a charming, traditional Black Forest town with all the usual winter attractions-cosy bars selling Gluwein, cake shops with comfortingly fattening cream cakes and matronly chic women who march purposefully round the shops of "Knightsbridge-am-Rhein", clad in furs and designer labels (even the dogs wear matching capes and jackets). However, the greatest lure in winter is the outdoor thermal spa, the Caracalla. For just a few euros you can relax in the mineral rich waters of one of twelve spa pools, including some outside where you can soak in 68c naturally heated, curative water as the snowflakes twirl around you. A bracing walk through some trees leads you to the saunas, set amongst the trees and perched above the pools. Don't be surprised to meet hardy souls using the icy outdoor showers next to the sauna cabins before they plunge back into the waters of the pools.
Carasana Bäderbetriebe GmbH
Römerplatz 1, 76530 Baden-Baden
+49 (0) 7221 275 940
www.caracalla.de
Google map: bit.ly/ceA2s5
I stayed here last year which was their first year of operation. It's one of the most affordable chalets I have found with great accommodation in a traditional chalet with good food and hospitality. It is just by the centre of the village and the main ski lift up to the Three Valleys is only about 200 metres away which can either be skied or walked to. The lift links you to the whole of the Three Valleys area which offers excellent and varied skiing of a huge area.
www.snowretreat.co.uk/
+33(0)642832598
Google map: bit.ly/9FMmeB
A rigorous hike through rainforest, high woodland and dramatic coastline.
I walked this recently with my friend, a local called Damien who lives in Tanetane, near Portsmouth Dominica. He walked this trail back in the early 80's with many other locals and so we decided to revisit.
We set off from my cottage accommodation at Manicou River Eco Resort, Tanetane. We then walked up the Manicou River until we reached the main road and caught a bus (we were going to hitch a ride but the bus arrived within five minutes) to the trailhead in Pennville. We then walked through farmland and animals for a mile or so until we were truly alone. We never saw another soul until we finished the hike in Capuchin three hours later.
We walked along jungle tracks though very rough farmland with dramatic drops in impossible valleys. Damien told me how the farmers here have to walk to the main road with their loads on their backs and heads to sell in the markets. Many young people are abandoning these farms as the need for gadgets and Game boys mean they need to work in town to earn the bigger money.
We walked through huge bamboo forest and banana plantation. Damien pointed out the various crops and the names of the trees as we hiked our way above the island. Many places we saw the islands of Guadeloupe, Marie Galante and the Saints quite clearly. We were very high.
We came across ruins of old estate houses and an entire village (Delaford) that were abandoned to the jungle with Tarzan vines and huge plants over our heads. Some were 'Birds of Paradise' as big as a small house.
Most visitors don't know that this part of the island is every bit as rich and verdant as any other. This is green lush rainforest but just a few miles from Portsmouth center. The Caribbean side is known as being dry and featureless, but the coastline between Portsmouth and Capuchin is as stunning and dramatic as the Cote d’Azur.
The trail may be getting known now, but it is still a challenge and many times we had to hack our way through fallen bamboo with cutlass (machete). The lovely cooling winds really help though and sitting looking over a half mile deep valley with a cool bottle of water that you just filled from a mountain stream makes you feel a million miles from your desk back in wherever.
You do not need a guide as you can just follow the blue and yellow paint on the sides of rocks and trees. If you take any banana remember to leave a little change for the farmer to find to say “thanks”. Take a cutlass.
The entire trail was cut by hand as there are no roads to access this area. This was no mean feat and when you see the Reposoir Point a deep cut through volcanic rock you can really understand. The whole trail was originally a local route, which the school children of Delaford walked every day to attend school in Pennville. Imagine.
We sat and cooled our feet in lovely streams and listened to nothing, but the sound of running water and our own breathing. There was no aural trace of humans at all. Lovely.
Capuchin beckoned as we entered Degras Balata estate walking through lovely Balata trees and hearing the exotic birds above.
We looked over Cape Melville in Capuchin, which is a stomach churning drop to certain death and said "wow" a lot.
We then bumped into a couple of teachers from Ross Medical University (Portsmouth) and were then driven back to the resort which was nice.
All in all, this is an excellent hike and we were never more than 10 miles from Portsmouth center, but felt a million miles from it all. Go there now.
Manicou River Eco Resort: www.manicouriverresort.com
Everton Hall Estate
Tanetane, Portsmouth.
Commonwealth of Dominica
+ 1 767 616 8903.
Walk from Portsmouth (15 minutes) or take a bus.
It's a hotel based on natural, artisanal and handmade furnitures. The atmosphere in the hotel was really peaceful, with linen curtains and sheets, natural coconut fibers bed and wooden parquet flooring. The breakfast was amazing, full of organic products and very tasty.
28 rue de l'Arc de Triomphe, 75017 Paris
+33 1 40 55 03 57
www.hidden-hotel.com
Google map: bit.ly/lZHnvB
A gem in the old city of Istanbul (a romantic place in itself), the Serkeci Konak is a boutique hotel that will leave you relaxed and loved up. A totally romantic hotel which we would go back to in a second!
The rooms are beautiful, comfortable and perfect for snuggling. An impressive breakfast spread is served until 10.30am, allowing for plenty of laying in, before either heading off into the Old City (which you can't help but fall in love in), or enjoy the delights the hotel has to offer: lounge in the pool and spa area (which offers a range of amazing massages including Turkish baths); enjoy drinks on the love seats on the roof terrace overlooking the Bosphorous; have (free) afternoon tea in the comfortable and private lounge area, and enjoy dinner in one of the two restaurants (one is a delicious sea food restaurant on the roof terrace looking out over the Bosphorous). We started every evening with cocktails on the roof while the sun set, before heading into town.
On arrival we were given free drinks and an introduction from one of the guest managers, all of whom are friendly knowledgeable, and looked out for us the whole time we were there without being imposing.
If you're not relaxed and loved up before you visit Serkeci Konak, you will be by the time you leave!
www.serkecikonak.com
Taya Hatun Sokak No:5 34120 Sirkeci
+90 212 528 43 44 pbx
Google map: tinyurl.com/ye35p3j
An unusual hotel near Wookey Hole. It is small, romantic and feels like going to stay in an old friend's country house. This hotel is full on quirky antiques, has a full sized snooker table, an honesty bar and an minima (a small cinema ... complete with an extensive DVD collection).
I would recommend it for couples who simply want to escape from everything for a couple of days.
www.glencothouse.co.uk
Glencot Lane, Wookey Hole, Wells, BA5 1BH
01749 677 160
Google map: tinyurl.com/y8md9sl
We have found a perfect pair of gites near Cluny. They are simply but adequately furnished, no satellite dish or dishwasher, just plain comfortable living. We came for Taize and this place at the edge of a forest has such tranquillity it fitted with our week of meditation. You can sit for hours in the garden and hear no man-made noises: quite incredible in the 21st century. Knowing the area, we brought our bikes with us for some exercise. The cycle track the Voie Verte runs almost past the house and is amazingly flat so that you can go for miles without too much effort!
www.latuileriechazelle.com/uk/gites.html +33 385 50 19 55
La Tuilerie de Chazelle, 71460 Cormatin, Burgundy, France
This tiny island in the middle of the Mediterranean has commanded the attention of invaders for centuries. Romans, Turks, Knights and even the British have all had a foothold on Malta’s shores at one time or another.
Now invaders of a different kind flock to Malta - tourists!
Drawn by the year round warm weather, the fact that most of the islanders speak English and drive on the left (after a fashion), Malta is a haven for the British sun worshipper.
But, there is so much more to do here. Despite the arrival of the 5 star luxury resorts, it remains a living slice of history. Famous for its two sieges, the first in 1565 when Soleyman the Magnificent was resoundingly beaten by The Hospitallers (or Knights of St. John).
The second came during World War II when again, the Maltese and their Allies drove off the German attempt to capture the island. History faces you on every corner, making the capital city Valletta a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Maltese are a friendly enough people, if a little gruff. They do seem to welcome the British more readily than any of the other visitors that descend on their shores annually. The attractions are obvious and the new resorts on the island are springing up continually.
Five star recommendations include,The Portomaso Hilton, Dragonara Palace and The Corinthian. There are plenty more, however, including some wonderful boutique hotels.
Gozo, Malta’s smaller sister island is an altogether quieter neighbour. The hotels here are smaller and more Spa orientated. Well worth a visit.
If you have the time, why not take a day trip to Sicily? There is a catamaran that visits daily or why not travel in style and use the helicopter service?
Maltese restaurants are doing their best in a world where fine dining is king. While they still have a lot to learn, fish is where they excel. Also, local specialties are worth trying. Hobz biz-zejt with fresh Maltese bread, tomatoes, olive oil and (depending on the maker) capers, olives, tuna and salt and pepper. The cheesecakes (savoury rather than sweet) stuffed with ricotta cheese are delicious whilst the cannolli from the Busy Bee bakery are stunning. The bread too is a wonderful treat.
Being the jewel of the Mediterranean, don’t forget the beaches. The only sandy ones are in the north of the island. The rest of Malta is rocky outcrops straight into deep water. No children here!
Snorkelling along these shores is a must as is a visit to the Blue Grotto. So called because of the turquoise blue of its waters and because it’s a erm...Grotto. Other attractions include Malta Glass, a visit to Comino and the capital Valletta. Malta has survived the centuries relatively unscathed by foreign invaders though all have left their mark. After visiting Malta yourself will it have left its mark on you?
Is this your business?