Foulness Island is steeped in mystery and intrigue. Situated off the east coast of Essex, it is owned by the Ministry of Defence, so non-residents must obtain a pass to visit-except during the annual cycle event run by the local Rotary Club. On this day, cyclists who have applied for tickets can ride around the flat, isolated island roads and see the amazing birdlife who make these wetlands their home (the name "Foulness" means "Birds Nest.") Just offshore are colonies of seals and there is a huge population of avocets. A small pub serves the villagers, who number fewer than 200. It is an oddly peaceful place despite the testing ranges where ammunition is fired into Maplin Sands. Military satellite dishes, weather stations and old air raid shelters sit inconguously amid wind-whipped fields of crops and the odd cow or two. There is an eerie sense of desolation, in contrast with lively Southend-on-Sea just a few miles down the road. With the highest point on the island at just 6 feet, and with few vehicles on the roads, this is a cycling experience not to be missed.

www.thorpebayrotaryevents.co.uk/
Google map: bit.ly/H9oKLa

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If you are in the traditional "white villages" of southern Spain during the Christmas holidays, you can experience many traditions based on religious beliefs. There are "belens" (nativity scenes) set up all over the villages - spot the "caganer" figure with his trousers down squatting in the traditional scene! In the bars, you may see a travelling group of shepherd musicians playing and dancing. On Christmas Eve, families have meals including special treats like turron, and little oil lamps sparkle in the windows of the houses. There are processions through the villages, most noteably on Three Kings day on 6th January when children leave out their shoes for the kings to fill with presents - as they pass by, the kings give out sweets and gifts. Best of all, the weather is warm and pleasant and if you're lucky, you could spend the 25th of December on a sandy beach ...

Google map: bit.ly/uAx09a

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Everything seems new, shiny and expensive when shopping in Japan, so the Toji Temple market in Kyoto is a refreshing find. It's open on the 21st of each month (in honour of the founding priest who died on 21st of March 835) and the stunning grounds of the temple and many of the surrounding streets, are filled with stalls selling various treasures. My favourites are the ladies selling beautiful antique kimonos and rolls of delicately embroidered kimono fabrics for astonishingly low prices. Among the Japanese antiques, new and vintage clothing and rows of shoes, bedding and cookware, priests wander past stalls selling sizzling "takoyaki" octopus balls, the temple bell tolls and clouds of incense drifts on the air. Best of all, being Japan, everyone is unfailingly polite so despite the crush you don't need sharp elbows.

Tō-ji is located in Minami-ku near the intersection of Ōmiya Street and Kujō Street, southwest of Kyoto Station.
Japan, Kyoto Prefecture Kyoto Minami Ward Kujocho １
+81 75-461-5786
Google map: bit.ly/ujghKE

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Ryanair fly to Karlsruhe-Baden from Stansted with fares rarely more than a fiver. Flight timetables are perfect (out Friday evening after work, back Sunday night) meaning you can spend a long weekend enjoying the spas at Baden-Baden. There are two: the modern Caracella, which has a family atmosphere with large thermally heated pools, and the Roman Friedrichsbad. Enjoy coffee and cake in one of the smart cafes in the pedestrianised town centre and maybe take in the opera or a concert in the cultural district. You needn't worry about paying extra for hold luggage because in the Roman baths (and parts of the Caracella), it's compulsory not to wear clothes, so you can ignore the airline's swingeing baggage restrictions.

www.carasana.de/home/en/roemisch.html
+49 7221 2759-40
Römerplatz 1, D-76530 Baden-Baden
Google map: bit.ly/h7QkDY

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The five rooms in "The Place To Stay" are imaginatively converted outbuildings clustered around a pretty courtyard garden with views towards the Longleat Estate. West Country breakfasts - using fresh local produce - are served in the main farmhouse, along with bowls brimming with fresh fruit salad. The owner is a qualified massage therapist, so you can have a treatment in the luxury of your room. They will also sprinkle rose petals in the bath; coupled with the deep fluffy bathrobes, tasteful decor and four poster beds, this is the closest to five-star hotel service you'll ever find in a humble B&B.

www.theplacetostayuk.com/index.htm
+44(0)1373 836 266
Knoll Hill Farm, Frome BA11 5DP
Google map: bit.ly/f3mwPg

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In Japan, onsen (hot springs) are enormously popular and part of everyday life-their temperature and mineral content are regulated by the Government. My favourite is the town of Hakone, where you can relax in the one of the many bath houses on the picturesque mountainside. There are several "onsen ryokans", traditional Japanese inns which have their own hot springs even if you aren't staying, they will allow day visits. Many of the pools are outdoors in beautiful wooded surroundings, even glimpsing Mount Fuji on a clear day. The onsen at Hakone Kowakien Yunessun are split into two separate areas - one, a traditional, nude environment and the other, a family zone requiring costumes where you can experience the surreal sight of enormous bottles of wine and casks of sake dwarfing the bathers soaking in themed pools. In one pool, coffee is added so caffeine can stimulate the skin, and in another, green tea is believed to help weakened immune systems. Afterwards, you may be offered black eggs cooked in the sulphurous pools nearby; eating one is supposed to add seven years to your life.

www.yunessun.com/english/yunessun.html
1297 Ninotaira Hakone-machi Ashigarashimo-gun Kanagawa-ken , 250-0407 Japan
+81 0460-82-4126
Google map: bit.ly/hbn0Sh

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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

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Mersea Island is reached by an ancient causeway (reputedly, Roman soldiers drowned here and their shrieks can be heard during a gale, so it's said) The road still floods a few times a month and cuts the island off from the mainland, so check the tides. There are two parts to the island-East and West Mersea. The whole place is no more than a few miles wide so head east for a small sandy beach and bracing walk along the sea wall where elephant and hippopotamus bones were discovered. Or go west into the village where the beach is larger, fringed with beach huts, and you will find the highly-rated Company Shed, a black weatherboarded place where you bring your own bread and wine to enjoy the freshest, prized oysters. Apparently, Rick Stein is a fan. It's Essex...but there's not a Cortina or a stilletto in sight.

Mersea Island, Essex
Google map: tinyurl.com/34boqmo

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What could be more romantic than whisking your loved one off to romp in the same lavish four poster bed used by Hugh Grant and Andie McDowell in Four Weddings and a Funeral? With timber beams and open log fires, the Crown Hotel in Amersham is a perfect retreat for a romantic weekend.

The hotel's Queen Elizabeth Suite, complete with four poster bed, was used for the filming of the duo's love scenes at the fictious "The Boatman Inn", while exterior shots were filmed at the Kings Arms just down the road.

The room is actually an individual suite separate from the main hotel block, crammed with gorgeous antiques and lovely touches which would amuse any film buff (was the copy of "Horse and Hounds" put there deliberately?).

The restaurant was charming, serving delicious food, and you could see where all the action was filmed in the bar. When you tire of Hugh Grant, the Chiltern Hills are just a short distance away for a romantic, bracing walk.

The Crown Inn, 16 High Street, Amersham, Bucks HP7 0DH
t +44 (0) 1494 721 541
f +44 (0) 1494 431 283

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If you’re staying on the Costa del Sol, the Rif Mountains of Morocco glitter tantalisingly on the horizon… and for about 50 euros each for a return trip, you can take a ferry which spans two hours and two cultures.

You can leave from Algeciras, an enormous, industrial port with an expensive car park, or drive a little further round the coast and use the more low-key port of Tarifa, which also has a free car park right by the ferry terminal.

Don’t forget the Moroccan time difference when catching the return boat, and also, make sure you get your immigration forms stamped on board before arriving.

The ferry is often rammed full of travellers returning from harvesting jobs in Europe, and a bag of sweets to share with curious children is a real ice breaker (a pack of Polos was shared between dozens of families).

You get great views of the Rock of Gibraltar and usually there are dolphins accompanying the ferries. In Tangiers, you can hire a guide for about 25 euros and experience the Kasbah and the markets for a few hours- a rowdy, colourful jumble - and try some of the unusual food and drink before returning to Europe… which will now seem grey and homogenous!

Several ferry companies including:
www.gotarifa.com/en/arrival/ferry_tarifa.html

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