Enjoying Morocco starts with the simple pleasures like drinking a mint tea in the nearest cafe as you watch the world go by. You deserve it! The Caribbean is truly the epitome of a winter sun destination. With its low humidity and mild evening temperatures, winter is the best season to take a trip to the Caribbean.
As you might know, however, the Caribbean is much more than just one destination. In fact, its made up of over five thousand islands, reefs and cays, each and every one of which has something unique to offer.
As there are so many Caribbean destinations to choose from, a great way to decide on which one suits you best is to check out our handy quiz for a personalised recommendation.
A few things a winter holiday to the Caribbean is sure to deliver is white sand beaches, cerulean waves and lush green forests inhabited by beautiful flora and tropical birds.
Molokini snorkel tour and scuba diving is a dream in these waters, where colourful fish, imposing shipwrecks and coral reefs abound. In fact, one of the best ways to explore the island coastlines is by water.
Hiring a powerboat or going on a kayaking tour are great options for budding explorers, just make sure you have your kayak storage on you if you did decide to bring your own kayak. But these islands also have amazing communities and cultures to discover in between catching waves and digging your toes in the sand, and a Caribbean holiday should never be rushed.
There are many sides to Thailand, and the rich cultural heritage seeps through them all. Many tourists will find themselves in the energetic and vibrant party city of Bangkok or the vibrant heart of Chiang Mai. The wilder, quieter east is made for surfers, while divers can paddle alongside turtles and inland lurk gorgeous gardens or intriguing sugar-plantation tours.
Winter is dry season, with sunshine and warm seas guaranteed so close to the equator. Where to stay In a lovely west-coast fishing village, the Aussie-owned Little Good Harbour hotel pairs coral-stone cottages with a terrific seafood and pasta restaurant. Average winter temperature 17C As safe a bet as any Canary Island for winter rays, Lanzarote is elevated further by its scenery. The southeast coast is a little gaudy, but rarely expensive; further north and inland, things get more boutiquey.
As well as limiting numbers, this precludes mammoth hotels or glitzy restaurants. Instead, huts and hammocks are more the simple vibe across sugar-coloured shores whose baby-blue waters are ripe for diving or snorkelling. Private or chartered sailboats are a popular way to get around, with an estimated isles — yes, one for every day of the year — to investigate. Sal is also wrapped in vast stretches of red, lunar-like desertscapes, salt pans and the Buracona Lagoon, whose waters turn a curious neon-blue each morning.
Surfing and whale-watching from February are popular pursuits as a Saharan breeze keeps everyone cool. Average winter temperature 27C A lesser-visited province in Thailand, southerly Krabi has several distinctive draws. Just out into the Andaman Sea are more than islands, most notably the idyllic Phi Phi archipelago where ivory beaches, transparent blue seas and glorious snorkelling hold sway. Inland hide vine-swathed lagoons and ancient, elaborate cave temples patrolled by monkeys. To visit both, stay on the coast.
Belle Mare on Mauritius island Alamy. But this large island is also far easier to visit independently — and it offers a far more diverse tourist menu. In addition to sunbathing and snorkelling, you might hike rainforested gorges looking for monkeys or pink pigeons; you might paraglide off volcanic peaks; you might swim with dolphins; you might investigate a multi-influenced cuisine; or you might tour Indian temples and botanical gardens.
Winter is largely sun-soaked, if sporadically rainy. Sailing through the Whitsunday Islands Getty Images. Everything will be green and plentiful at this time of year, while the adjacent Great Barrier Reef eternally abounds with fish, turtles, rays and countless corals.
Where to stay Centred around its own reef and an underwater observatory, Daydream Island Resort proffers plentiful free activities, plus restaurants and a spa. Close by begin the shopping souks, with haggle-happy stallholders hawking everything from carpets to cloves. Further out sprawl glorious tropical gardens, including the blue-hued Jardin Majorelle, and Islamic palaces. Read more features on Cambodia or check out our editor approved Cambodia itinerary.
Adrift in the Indian Ocean , a thousand miles from the nearest coast of Africa , the Seychelles are the ultimate fantasy-island escape. Seychelles weather The archipelago has year-round heat and sunshine, as well as its fair share of rain. October is a great month to go for a hit of sunshine, before it gets too rainy, and the air is fresher.
Read more features on the Seychelles. What Mauritius has over its Indian Ocean neighbours, the Seychelles and the Maldives, is its size and natural diversity, and the fact that you can do it independently. Its beaches are still potted tropical paradises, and here you can rent a car and go exploring to find your own deserted cove, drive or hike up into its rainforested hills, take a boat out and go snorkelling or dive in its extraordinary underwater world.
It has a bit of a reputation for overly groomed resorts - but it also has some of the finest beach hotels in the world, and you can find little boutique hotels right on the beach, too. Take a closer look at Mauritius: the Indian Ocean superstar. There's a real buzz about Sri Lanka right now, with those in the know making a beeline for coastal spots south of Colombo. Bright-green rice paddies and verdant tea plantations make way for gorgeous, golden beaches to the west of Galle.
Surfers prize the hippy-chic hangouts and rolling waves that hit the sandy coves to the east. The best places in Sri Lanka. Ecuador is less developed than Costa Rica , so expect an adventure — one with everything its Latin cousin has to offer, and more besides. Want wildlife? Take a luxury cruise into the Ecuadorian Amazon. Want an eco-stay? The five-star Mashpi Lodge — a National Geographic Unique Lodge of the World — is a sustainable, all-glass stunner hiding out in a cloud forest.
Want surf? You may have heard of another of its under-the-radar destinations, the Galapagos, too. Above: Laguna de Quilotoa is a beautiful crater lake in a secluded location of the Ecuadorian Andes. These are the best things to do in Quito. Every bit as dreamy as the Maldives, but more satisfyingly off-radar, the Andaman Islands have smartened up. This tropical archipelago — geographically closer to Myanmar and Indonesia than its owner, India — has always been brochure-beautiful, but only recently blessed with luxury digs.
Those far-flung beaches and impossibly pure waters were more reward for intrepid surfers and gap-year backpackers until now. But it was only a matter of time before this primitive paradise turned upscale.
Havelock is the most developed of the islands, the vast majority of which are off-limits to visitors and populated by indigenous tribes. Winter is the clearest, driest time of year — particularly January to March — with temperatures around 29C. Above: Havelock Islands, Andam Islands. The Andaman Islands. Read more about Hampi, India. Vietnam may well be one of the most fascinating, beautiful and charming countries you will ever visit. Saigon is wonderful, colonial and quirky; Ho Chi Minh City has one of the world's best food scenes.
And the coast of Vietnam - oh, the coast! The beaches are extraordinary. So much untouched beauty. Little islands and dramatic bays to explore by boat. Out-of-this-world beach-chic places to stay , right on the sand. And even though it's easy-going and luxury can be found everywhere, it still feels like a secret, still some sense of discovery about a trip there.
The best hotels in Vietnam. Please note: Following a large explosion on 4 August , the Lebanese government has declared Beirut a disaster area in a state of emergency until 18 September Please check the UK government's latest Beirut travel advice before planning to visit.
But if Dubai is a blockbuster — with its all-singing, all-dancing fountain and world-beating tower — think of Beirut as a cool little indie movie: edgier, artsier, and just as deserving of your time. But it misses all the other things that make Ghana great. Like the capital, Accra, a spirited city stuffed to the gills with red-hot food, nightlife and art.
Join us on a road trip in Africa. Life is simpler here; expect drowsy little guesthouses over big-wow hotels. Guadeloupe is in fact a chain of islands, the largest of which are Grande-Terre and Basse-Terre, close enough to be connected by a bridge. It also boasts the Cousteau Reserve, teeming with turtles, bright coral sponges, and seahorses. The lesser-known islands are treasures, too. This is the place yachties talk of in hushed tones under late-night stars; a primal, barely-charted territory populated only by the Moken — nomadic sea gypsies — which has left both beaches and ocean thoroughly unspoiled.
As Myanmar rejoins the international community after decades of pariahdom, the government is widening its permit policy, and luxury charters are becoming more frequent Indo Yachts and the good ship Lamima offer especially blissful sails. The climate is hot year-round, but drier and the sky clearer in winter; the beauty of being boat-bound, of course, is that relieving sea breeze. From the s to the s, port city Tangier was a playground for the maddest and baddest bohemians: Beat icons like Burroughs and Kerouac; glamorously demon-plagued playwrights from Tennessee Williams to Jean Genet.
The Moroccan monarchy later enacted punishment: the city was left to rot. In a hilltop casbah, El Morocco Club is where the leisure class make easy work of looking beautiful while slurping oysters and sipping Mojitos. Read about our road trip in Morocco. But against all odds, this laidback outpost is now flaunting a decidedly cosmopolitan luster. Other neighbourhoods, too, thrum with a new energy. William Street, in inner suburb Northbridge , is packed with imaginative cocktail bars, quirky fashion boutiques, live music and the unmissable, three-in-one Perth Cultural Centre.
Riverside suburb Maylands, meanwhile, has gone the full hipster: cafe culture, gourmet pizza, rainbow-bright murals. And while Perth might be the new standard-bearer for Aussie cool, the weather is plenty hot.
December to March temperatures average between 28C and 31C. Read more about Northbridge, Perth. The best places for winter sun The best islands for winter sun.
The best winter-sun destinations in Europe. The best winter-sun destinations available for travel now. While the north was pretty rainy and the weather stopped me going hiking in Sapa, the south was hot sun. I went over to the island of Phu Quoc and boiled for the week — it was fab. Detailed Guide to the Prices in Phu Quoc. Scorching sun throughout. Whether you fancy doing a road trip from Miami to Key West , staying in Miami for a food tour , exploring Martin Country or cruising up the Emerald Coast — there are some great holidays to enjoy in Florida.
I spent two weeks of December in Belize, and although there were a few tropical rain storms, generally, it was gorgeous sun. You only need to look at some of my Belize photos to see how great the weather was for most of the time. I went scuba diving, snorkelling, ate bargain lobster and drank Belikin Beers by the sea for a fortnight — absolute dreams!
And then finally for our long haul winter sun destinations — my personal recommendation would be Barbados. I went in February just before I moved to Southsea — it was the last place I went on my nomadic life. Watch my video on how to spend a week in Barbados: contains RUM. I think most of the people I met thought I was mad going to Barbados by myself — such a couples location — but I made friends on the rum boat, road tripped round the island, and loved making my way round the Barbados restaurants.
Watch my video above to see what else I got up to on a week in Barbados. Winter is a great time to go on holiday. You should check out the great festivals in January too, see if you can time them together! Sign me up for the newsletter! I guess you swop by mistake.
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