The cold weather of late has made me start thinking of sunnier climates. It’s an inevitable side effect that I start looking at holiday websites like Holiday Gems. There are some amazing little holidays on there. I’ve been on a bit of a nostalgia trip of late so my top choices for winter sun are places I’ve visited before.
Tenerife
I’ve only been to Tenerife once and that was 9 years ago! It was November 2008 when we visited but it was the first holiday for the husband and I to go on. It was great! We stayed at the Barcelo Santiago hotel. The food was great, there was a pool, a little walk to the beach…. what else could you want?
We also took a trip to Siam Park – the water park a little way down the coast at Costa Adeje. Also went on a day trip out to sea to look for dolphins. And another trip to Loro Parque – a really lovely zoo in Puerto de la Cruz.
It is definitely somewhere I would visit again… unfortunately we can’t go this Winter but have just booked for next July!
Lanzarote
Another Canary Island in my Top 3 – Lanzarote! It’s another place I’ve only been once but I would go back. We stayed at Playa Blanca and took a few trips out including Rancho Texas, Glass Bottom Boat and Timon Faya.
The kids loved Rancho Texas which is a great zoo with a Wild West theme. Plus there’s a fab water park area there. Speaking of water parks, there’s another waterpark in Yaiza (nearer to Playa Blanca) which we saw but didn’t get a chance to try.
If you like the volcanoes then I would suggest a trip to the Timon Faya National Park. The visitor centre there has a great experience and information about the volcanoes. We took a bus trip around the volcano and it was a pretty hairy experience! If you’re scared of heights, close your eyes!
As part of that trip, we also had a ride on the camels. The camels have been doing it for years! My Nain remember going on the camel trek over 15 years ago!
Malta
Another winter sun destination I would choose is Malta. Again I’ve only been there once but we enjoyed it. We stayed at the Mellieha Bay Hotel up in the North of the island. The food was good, there was a swimming pool and a private beach. We were only a short walk from the main beach as well so plenty of sea and sand around.
We were also close to the ferry port to the island of Gozo. We took a trip over and from what I remember it was a cheap to cross over to Gozo. Both islands are seeped in history and whilst over on Gozo we visited the Citadel.
We were also a short drive from Anchor Bay where they filmed the movie Popeye. The place is fab! See my mini review over on TripAdvisor!
Oooo I’m now dreaming of winter sun again!!
Where are your top winter sun destinations?
(This is a collaborative post)
I always prefer colder destinations, but I would gladly visit all three of them in Winter. 🙂
These are all such fantastic choices for getting some sunshine during the winter months and they are not too far away. Also if you do fancy long-haul South Africa is a great choice, especially Cape Town
Laura x
Those are some great holiday ideas. I’ve been to Tenerife quite a few times and would love to go back!