Great value family holiday ideas: Winter Wonderlands

by Rhonda Carrier
28 October 2008

Winter Wonderlands family holiday ideas by Rhonda Carrier

As Keats’ “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness” segues into the shorter, sharper days of winter, our thoughts turn naturally to hibernation. But there’s plenty to get out and about for during the chillier months, from Halloween and Bonfire Night to Thanksgiving (for all you Americanophiles), Christmas, New Year and Easter. All are perfect excuses for a family break, whether you go to a fireworks extravaganza at a theme-park, head north or to the mountains in search of some real snow, or jet off to warmer climes.

Winter Warmers

Winter has traditionally meant long-haul when it comes to holidays – Australia, the Caribbean, the Seychelles… With the credit crunch and threatened recession, however, most of us will be looking to more affordable options, with medium-haul destinations your best bet for winter sun as fuel prices rise. We have family-oriented destination guides (and often discounted deals) to such winter sunspots as Jordan, Egypt, Malta, the Azores and more, as well as to Morocco and Tunisia, which both offer warm weather despite being within a short-haul flight of the UK. If these sound too ambitious for you, check out the Adventure Company, which offers amazing family excursions to such places, many available as wallet-pleasing last-minute deals – think Saharan camel treks, ‘Feluccas and Pharaohs’ and other Egyptian tours, and a ‘Petra and the Dead Sea Infant Tour’. Otherwise, Cape Verde off the west coast of Africa is an up-and-coming destination, while Dubai and Oman are only just in the long-haul category, with flights taking seven hours.

If you do go long-haul to destinations such as the US West Coast or Australia, consider money-saving options such as motorhoming or home-swaps rather than staying in hotels.

In the current economic climate and uncertainty, and with climbing oil prices, it’s well worth booking flights now to take advantage of 2008 prices. Next year will also see fewer flights and package holidays available to family favourites such as Egypt and Greece, due to the demise of one of Britain’s biggest operators, with the resultant hike in prices.

Chilling Out

Alternatively, why not take the path of least resistance and positively embrace the cold? There’s plenty of family fun to be had in the ice and the snow, whether it’s skiing and snowboarding in the ultra-child-friendly resorts of the French Alps (to which Take the Family has in-depth guides by a ski-expert father), meeting Santa and husky-sledging in Lapland, snow-mobiling, snow-shoeing, ice-fishing and Northern Lights viewing in Finland courtesy of Activities Abroad, or bedding down in Sweden’s Ice Hotel.

This is also a great time for city breaks: New York, Paris, London, Edinburgh, Brussels, Prague and Vienna are all good festive bets, many with jawdropping New Year’s Eve celebrations. Or head for one of the many German towns and cities that host magical Christmas markets. In February, Venice comes into its own for families with its famous carnival.

Again, if you’re worried about your budget, think outside the expensive Eurozone – Bulgaria, for instance, has good-value beginner-to-intermediate skiing. Closer to home, think about renting a cosy cottage in Scotland, where the elements are at their most dramatic – if you stay near Edinburgh you can hop over for the Hogmanay celebrations. Cosier still, hole up in one of the UK’s five Luxury Family Hotels, where county-house comfort and spa treats come combined with children’s dens, activities and baby-listening.

Other feature articles by Rhonda