So Confused

atilladehun

I don't think I've booked a sun holiday in 10 years that I don't know who to trust and whose recommendations I should take. All I know is that we want to go between the 29th October and the 5th November. School holidays, so we want to book early. I realise this means Canaries, Caribbean or Maldives. Maybe Morocco or Cyprus. The travel agents will obviously make all their places seem great but I hear so many people say don't stay here.

I suppose we want:
A hot sun & Beach
Nice Accommodation
Quality restaurants (probably not a strip)
Interesting sites either historical or geographical.

It would be a bonus if there was diving/surfing.

Does anyone have any advice or help?

Aishae

ask friends for recommendations - work colleagues etc...

also - one suggestion apart from the packages you see in travel agents windows: is then to look at the hotel / apartments online. check out reviews (google it) and you can also google the area, there may be a tourist website for it too. if you like what you see, you could see what the hotel and flights would cost if you booked individually as opposed to the travel agents package deal. although those deals are usually worth it as they do the airport collections and so on.

rossie1977

not really going to get anywhere hot in the north hemisphere that time of year, places like the canaries and south florida will be warm (18-24c)

morocco i found a little dirty especially the beaches, interesting country with a rich history but wouldn't go there for a sun-beach holiday, cyprus is nice some interesting historial sites but the beaches aren't that great (at least along the south coast), the best beach i saw was in ayia napa and thats just a tiny village that really only is open for teens and the booze gang in summer, i was there in february and it everywhere was shut, the main towns on the south coast like larnaca and limassol have small stony beaches for the most part

the canaries would be a good choice that time of year, you won't have the lager louts around, the south of gran canaria has the best beaches, the sand dunes at Maspalomas are amazing, nice small beaches at puerto rico and puerto de mogan, thing about the canaries is that you can travel between some of the islands pretty easily, its a short ferry ride from gran canaria to tenerife (and with ryanair/aer lingus its easy to fly into one airport and out of another), tenerife is a great island for watersports and has some lovely scenery such mount teide national park, los gigantes and the masca valley

Daisy M

Tripadvisor is your friend, loads of info on each resort and all hotels and accomodation.

atilladehun

Thanks for the help folks. I'll have a look around trip advisor I think. Gran Canaria is a good suggestion. Thanks rossie.

I've been to Morocco recently but on a travel around/city trip. We did spend a night in Agadir and I would agree it is dirty and a bad advertisement for holiday resorts.

I might try and keep an eye out for something a bit farther afield though if the price is right.

Cheers.

Pythia

Don't forget Egypt!

tbukela

I seriously wouldn't discount Egypt, great offers at the moment. Family friendly and the weather at that time of year wouldn't be extreme.
Dubai would be my recommendation, great spot for families, loads to do and weather would be nice without being oppressive.

atilladehun

Thanks folks,

Have you experience booking these holidays? Is it possible to give recommendations of travel agencies or hotels etc? I don't think I can book flights to Egypt from what I've seen. I'd have to use an agent.

With Dubai there's Etihad I could book but I would like a better deal, it seems to be expensive. Maybe a package would be better.

I've spent some time on trip-advisor the last day or so and I'm a little overwhelmed. Going through the top ranked hotels the comments can be all over the place. I suppose some people just have a bad/unlucky experience. Maybe it's the kind of thing I'd be fine with on a longer trip staying in a number of locations but want to be sure with 1 short week. Aahhh, the pressure!

Thanks again. You guys are definitely helping and giving me focus.

tinkerbell

Hi OP, what kind of a budget are you operating on? Like how much per night? Bahia del Duque in Tenerife is AMAZING, but it is expensive. I would definitely recommend that hotel.

Pythia

With Egypt you could go with Falcon or Sunway. You can book the trip online. Sharm el Sheikh is the main tourist resort.

It has diving, hot weather and historical sites.

I stayed in the Hyatt there but it perhaps isn't as family friendly as some other places. You should definitely consider Egypt anyway!

tbukela

I was in Dubai in April, flew with Ethihad which were very impressive. Standard of hotels are very good. Loads to do over there for young and old.
Traveled to Egypt about five years ago and toured for two weeks with a week in the red sea. Stayed in Dahab which is more backpacker themed but traveled to Sharm el Sheik which was nice.
Would recommend either location.

another native

Because of the dates you're travelling, I think whatever location you decide on, departures from Ireland at that time will be pricey. Schools closed and value-for-money travel rarely go hand in hand.

Egypt crossed my mind too when I first read your query, but now I'm not so sure. Sharm El Sheikh has sun and wonderful diving, but for me rates low on culture (except you take excursions). Also the incidence of stomach bugs is fairly common with tourists. I stayed there in June 2008.

All inclusive (AI) holidays (not just to Egypt) seem to be very popular in recent years. Meals, drinks, snacks, ice-creams etc; are included in the rate. Personally haven't tried them, as I prefer to sample what the general area has to offer.

Wish I could be more helpful with your dream holiday!

Fratton Fred

Lanzarote has site seeing, sun, beaches and where we stay in Costa Teguise they have diving and wind surfing in abundance.

We stayed in a villa in October last year and the Luabay hotel at easter, I would recommend both, but the Luabay is AI only and the food is a bit repetitive.

Daisy M

atilladehun wrote: »

Thanks folks,

Have you experience booking these holidays? Is it possible to give recommendations of travel agencies or hotels etc? I don't think I can book flights to Egypt from what I've seen. I'd have to use an agent.

With Dubai there's Etihad I could book but I would like a better deal, it seems to be expensive. Maybe a package would be better.

I've spent some time on trip-advisor the last day or so and I'm a little overwhelmed. Going through the top ranked hotels the comments can be all over the place. I suppose some people just have a bad/unlucky experience. Maybe it's the kind of thing I'd be fine with on a longer trip staying in a number of locations but want to be sure with 1 short week. Aahhh, the pressure!

Thanks again. You guys are definitely helping and giving me focus.

Hi firstly I can understand you feeling overwhealmed on Tripadvisor, there is so much info and it can be hard to know where to start. A few tips on how to make it a little easier. Narrow down your search to two or three. Go to the ta forums on each particular area have a good read through and see if has what you want. Dont be afraid to sign up and ask questions members are really helpful. When you are looking at the accomodation reviews firstly have a look at the pictures posted on each particular hotel/apartment by previous guests. Personally I think that these give a much better insight as to wheather or not you will like this place more than any review ever can. Again do not be afraid to message someone who has posted a recent review, if you have any questions people are usually happy to help thats why they write the review in the first place. There are usually a few destination experts on each location they are usually full of great info and are open to answering questions you have. There is a things to do section also for each destination so that should help you decide if that particular resort has what you want. Planning holidays can be stressful especially if its your first time to a particular area but stick with it give your self a dead line to have decided by (otherwise you could spend the summer on your laptop) Best of luck.