Best Holiday Destinations - Spain

Spain is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Europe. It is located in South West Europe and borders France and Portugal.

Many people are attracted by the climate in Spain, in the summer months it is almost always hot and sunny, making it a favourite of English tourists wanting to get away from the mild wet summer back home.

The main two coastal tourist destinations in Spain are the Costa Blanca, the Costa Del Sol, as well as the main two cities, Madrid, the Capital, and Barcelona.

Watch out for more updates on Spain over the coming months!

Australia

Australia is always a favourite of holiday makers the world over. It’s list of qualities goes on and on, a really diverse and interesting country with plenty of potential holiday destinations to be visited.

Located in the Pacific Ocean, Australia is the other side of the world to England, and is completely found within the Southern hemisphere, hence its nickname ‘down under’. Many people think that the capital city of Australia is Sydney, this is incorrect. It is actually Canberra, a fairly new city that was purpose built to act as the political capital. Both Sydney and Melbourne wanted to be chosen to be capital city, so Canberra was built roughly in between these two cities geographically as compromise. As such Canberra is only about 100 years old.

Despite this, Sydney is often seen as the capital because it is the most popular tourist destination in Australia by a long way. Other popular cities are Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Darwin and towns along the Great Barrier Reef on the East Coast. The Outback, the arid area in Central Australia containing Ayers Rock (or Uluru), is also a fairly popular tourist destination.

Austraila has a fantastic climate (for most) with high temperatures and little rain during long spells of the year. Obviously in summer, around Christmas time, this can cause droughts and severe bush fires which are devastating to the environment. However, holiday makers love the beach culture that exists in Australia and see the Sun as a blessing. The beaches in Australia are often spectacular, it is often so hot that tourists need to cool off somehow and the sea provides an excellent solution to this problem.

Another reason why Australia is a popular holiday destination is because English is the local language so it is easy to speak to people there. Australians, or Aussies, are also generally seen as very friendly people and there is often a lot of banter between them and the English, who they often call ‘Pommes’.

There is certainly a lot to do in Australia, and combined with its climate and friendly atmosphere, if perceived by many to be one of the best holiday destinations in the world.

Best Holiday Destinations - Croatia

Croatia is located in Europe, sharing borders with Hungary, Slovenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Serbia & Montenegro.

The country has a lengthy coastline, with the Adriatic Sea being found to the South West. Croatia is rapidly expanding as a top tourist destination, with more and more tourists visiting every year. With its stunning scenery and exquisite coastline, this is hardly a surprise as it is one of the most beautiful countries in the world.

Although Croatia borders several Eastern European countries, much of Croatia has a more mediteranian feel to it, especially along the coast, which faces Italy just 100 miles away or so. Italian influence is clear, with the food along the coast sharing many similarities with Italy, Pasta and Pizzerias are everywhere. The nutrient rich waters of the Adriatic lead to a wide array of seafood being on offer in Croatia, almost every type of fish can be found here, all freshly caught and expertly cooked. Its enough to make your mouth water just thinking about, yes the food in Croatia is excellent. Further inland the food is more meat-based, with more Eastern European influence, with plenty of pork, dumplings and cheese - prsut is a speciality of Croatia, cured pork which is very tasty.

The capital of Croatia is Zagreb, locates inland. The other main tourist towns are Dubrovnik, Split and Zadar. All these destinations have their own particular qualities.

Dubrovnik is perhaps the most beautiful town in Croatia. Its old buildings and famous wall make it a brilliant tourist destination, tours around the top of the wall, in a group or by your own, are not to be missed. Situated right on the coast, the views are spectacular on a sunny day, you can see miles across into the Adriatic.

Split is a fairly industrial town, entering from the North by road there is an abundance of cranes, high rise tower blocks and industrial plants and warehouses. However the centre of town is much nicer, with the spectacular Diocletian's Palace being perhaps the biggest draw. Originally built right on the seafront, this palace is now in poor condition but is still a brilliant sight to see. Split is also home to a large port, where you can get ferried you across to a wealth of islands, such as Hvar, Bol and Korcula.

The watersports in Croatia are also widespread, scuba diving being incredibly popular due to the clear waters of the Adriatic as well as the diverse marine life.

Croatia is certainly one of the best holiday destinations in the world if you are after sun, sea and a wealth of things to see and do.

Flights

Flying is by far the most popular way of reaching the top holiday destinations in the world. Cheap flights run by companies like Easyjet and Ryanair have helped make travelling to more exotic destinations around the world much more accessible and affordable. Last minute flights can often be bought at rock bottom prices, with various websites specifically specialising in this kind of deal.

Cheap flights obviously have their drawbacks though, not much legroom and no free onboard services make the journey not particularly luxurious in most cases, however personally I love that, I don’t like being charged in my ticket for services I don’t want, I prefer to choose so personally I’d rather fly cheaply, more money to spend on food, drink and any other special treats later on in the holiday.

The increasing number of flights abroad does have it's drawbacks though - many people will complain of the expansion of variuos airports, with Heathrow being the prime example. Terminal 5 has recently been completed, which now deals with all British Airways flights, and there are plans for a 3rd runway to be built - this plan has fierce opposition from environmentalists and residents however - the Conservatives have promised to scrap these plans and build a faster and better railway network instead. In my opinion though if we want to keep up with other Global economic powerhouses we must build a new runway in order to meet increasing demand for flights.

The recently launched Airbus A380 is a new airliner in competition with the previous largest commercial jet - theBoeing 747. It has a huge passenger capacity and unparalleled onboard facilities such as casinos, double beds and gymnasiums. This as well as it's huge potential capacity of 853 people mean it could change long-haul flights to holiday destinations forever.

Ibiza

Ibiza is in the Balaeric Islands, just off the east coast of Spain. It is an island made famous by its nightlife, arguably the best in the world. Home to some of the biggest and best nightclubs in the world, including Space, Amnesia, Pacha, Privilege, Eden, Es Parasis, DC 10 and El Divino, Ibiza is a mecca for clubbers from all over the world, making it a one of the best holiday destinations if you want to let your hair down and soak up the electric atmosphere, and plenty of beer as well.

There are two main towns in Ibiza, Ibiza Town, the capital to the east of the island, and San Antonio, to the west. The towns are linked by a main road which has a frequent bus service, taking about half an hour. Ibiza Town is the much more upmarket town, full of stylish and sophisticated clientele, and also has a high gay population. The bars in Ibiza Town are therefore more expensive than in San Antonio, however you generally get what you pay for and the quality of the bars is definitely superior to those in San An. Ibiza Town is also home to Pacha, a globally recognised clubbing brand with nightclubs all over the World. El Divino is another major club there, situated on the edge of the bay, so clubbers can look out over the sea as the dance. Both are stylish clubs, attracting sexy fashionistas from all over the world who love to be seen.

San Antonio is the more popular town for English holiday makers, mostly intent on getting as drunk as possible in the week or two they have away from home. Here the countless bars along the main streets compete to pull in as many punters as possible, leading to ridiculously cheap drinks offers everywhere. Buy one get one free, and free shots are the standard in San An! San Antonio featured extensively on the Sky One show Ibiza Uncovered, which gave Ibiza a bad name due to the culture of getting drunk and having sex with as many people as possible, however this happens in many holiday destinations abroad such as Magaluf and Malia and personally I don’t think San An is any worse. People will always have their opinions on drunkenness though, all I would say is I would not advise the older clientele to stay in San An although it does make an excellent night out, the sunsets by Cafe Mambo and Cafe Del Mar are incredibly atmospheric and suitable for any age of individual, my parents went and they loved it! It is good to sit back with a cocktail and watch the people go by, while soothing chillout music relaxes you as the sun goes down.


Cafe Mambo Sunset