Recommend a Christmas destination

R0C

Looking to go somewhere from circa Dec 23rd until January 3rd. Start and end dates are flexible though [longer or shorter trip okay] but we want to be gone by Christmas Eve.

For the last few years, we've been in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, etc.

We're a couple and travel quite a bit and have recently been to the following destinations so we want to travel to somewhere other than the following places:

Ukraine
USA
Canada
UAE
Switzerland
Belgium
Malaysia
NZ
Australia
Spain
France
Portugal
UK


Outside of those destinations, can anyone recommend somewhere that would be worth visiting over the Christmas period?

It doesn't necessarily have to be Christmas-y. We're very open to anything, whether it be sun or snow, or city breaks..

Not very interested in pubs/clubs or fitness/hillwalking or mountain climbing type holidays. Definitely not interested in lying on a beach or by a pool for two weeks. Beaches are great, but only for a few hours.

We love interesting places, architecture, sightseeing combined with photography, travelling around, museums, culture, historic sights, war sites, aviation, castles, eating out, markets, etc. We usually hire a vehicle and really get to see a place.

Budget is fairly open. Don't want to spend thousands this year, the cheaper the better, but up to €2,000 per person [for flights and accommodation] is okay. But definitely prefer on the lower side of the scale. If it could be done for under €1,000 each that'd be fantastic.

Because the dates fall over Christmas Day, it can make a winter destination a little trickier to pick. We want to be able to get food on Christmas Day and have encountered problems with this in the past.

I have had India in mind, but flights are looking very expensive and I think I'd prefer to do it properly and spend a longer time there rather than rushing it.


Any recommendations of somewhere you have been that was worth visiting at that time of year would be much appreciated!

R0C

Uhuh... thanks.. And you don't work for USA Hotel booking by any chance, do you? Just I like to receive unbiased feedback...

I hope I will not regret it. :rolleyes:


Anybody got any constructive advice on where to go this winter? I was close to booking Egypt on Friday night but not sure I'm so keen on travelling around it with it being a little unsettled right now.

Considering skiing.

finbarrk

What about Ireland?

R0C

No, definitely not interested in Ireland. I travel around Ireland throughout the year for my job and have seen enough. Also, I can't imagine it would be the best place to spend Christmas Day with stuff closed. I'm looking for somewhere where I can do something on Christmas Day, be it eat out, do a small bit of shopping, partake in some kind of activity.

Thanks anyway.

headmaster

Try Caccutta, that's India I think. You'll find its a change from your normal routine and it will provide you with quite a bit to do, if you have a mind to do it.

R0C

It's a tie between India and skiing at the moment.

ardmacha

Istanbul might meet the bill for a place where you could eat on Xmas. Lots to see there, palaces, mosques, churches, markets etc. I wouldn't bother with the car hire though.

R0C

That sounds interesting and definitely appealing, but I think we've been swayed toward skiing for this year. Currently deciding on somewhere in Austria. Thanks for the replies!

jt_dublin

Hi ROC

I would recommend St. Anton in Austria.

http://www.stantonamarlberg.com/en/home/2.html

We skied there a few years ago. Lovely resort in that it's a very old town and not a new purpose built place. The train arrives right into the centre of town, so no long bus transfers either. St. Anton was the host of the Alpine World Ski Championships in 2001 and had a lot of upgrading for the event.

We stayed at this hotel.
http://schwarzeradler.com/index_en.php

The hotel is 2 minutes walk to the lifts and the price included the ski-pass, so was good value.

We really liked it and just looking on TripAdvisor, I'm glad to see that others think so too!

http://www.tripadvisor.ie/Hotel_Review-g608676-d195368-Reviews-Hotel_Schwarzer_Adler-St_Anton_am_Arlberg_Tirol_Austrian_Alps.html

Enjoy, whatever you do!

JT.

R0C

Hi JT,

What an excellent response! That's exactly the kind of info I'm seeking, and after now reading up on St. Anton it sounds like exactly the kind of place we'd like to go to. That hotel you suggested looks fabulous but it appears to be booked out from the 24th to the 7th.

I've checked various hotel booking sites for somewhere else in St. Anton that week, and it seems almost impossible to find anywhere to stay! I guess it's a really popular destination for Christmas week. There are some places 15 to 20km outside the town but we'd prefer to be in the middle of it all.

Maybe I'll find some accommodation through google.

Thanks again for the advice!

saywhatyousee

R0C wrote: »

Looking to go somewhere from circa Dec 23rd until January 3rd. Start and end dates are flexible though [longer or shorter trip okay] but we want to be gone by Christmas Eve.

For the last few years, we've been in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, etc.

We're a couple and travel quite a bit and have recently been to the following destinations so we want to travel to somewhere other than the following places:

Ukraine
USA
Canada
UAE
Switzerland
Belgium
Malaysia
NZ
Australia
Spain
France
Portugal
UK


Outside of those destinations, can anyone recommend somewhere that would be worth visiting over the Christmas period?

It doesn't necessarily have to be Christmas-y. We're very open to anything, whether it be sun or snow, or city breaks..

Not very interested in pubs/clubs or fitness/hillwalking or mountain climbing type holidays. Definitely not interested in lying on a beach or by a pool for two weeks. Beaches are great, but only for a few hours.

We love interesting places, architecture, sightseeing combined with photography, travelling around, museums, culture, historic sights, war sites, aviation, castles, eating out, markets, etc. We usually hire a vehicle and really get to see a place.

Budget is fairly open. Don't want to spend thousands this year, the cheaper the better, but up to €2,000 per person [for flights and accommodation] is okay. But definitely prefer on the lower side of the scale. If it could be done for under €1,000 each that'd be fantastic.

Because the dates fall over Christmas Day, it can make a winter destination a little trickier to pick. We want to be able to get food on Christmas Day and have encountered problems with this in the past.

I have had India in mind, but flights are looking very expensive and I think I'd prefer to do it properly and spend a longer time there rather than rushing it.


Any recommendations of somewhere you have been that was worth visiting at that time of year would be much appreciated!

What about Amsterdam and then a trip on to Prague both have stunning architecture.Amsterdam has some great museums and a great market its not all weed and nightclubs there are some great things to do there.They are my two favorite cities in Europe if you have not been to either i would highly recommend it.

jt_dublin

Thanks ROC.

What a pity that the hotel is not available... especially after reading this on one of the TripAdvisor reviews.

We stayed here over the Christmas week and the gala dinner on the Christmas Eve was a delight. With real candles on the tree, the fire blazing, champagne on flow and (most) of the guests dressed up smartly and a fabulous five course menu, it made it a truly special evening.

I wonder if it would be worth giving them a call to see if they have had any cancellations?

R0C

jt_dublin wrote: »

Thanks ROC.

What a pity that the hotel is not available... especially after reading this on one of the TripAdvisor reviews.

We stayed here over the Christmas week and the gala dinner on the Christmas Eve was a delight. With real candles on the tree, the fire blazing, champagne on flow and (most) of the guests dressed up smartly and a fabulous five course menu, it made it a truly special evening.

I wonder if it would be worth giving them a call to see if they have had any cancellations?

I was thinking that exactly, JT. I'm going to try calling them later. I think I saw somewhere on their site that they don't open until Dec 1st, but I'll give it a try anyway. There has to be one double room available out there somewhere!

R0C

saywhatyousee wrote: »

What about Amsterdam and then a trip on to Prague both have stunning architecture.Amsterdam has some great museums and a great market its not all weed and nightclubs there are some great things to do there.They are my two favorite cities in Europe if you have not been to either i would highly recommend it.

I have been to both though not for Christmas, but I loved both places. The architecture is one of the big attractions for me.

I spent many Christmases in Bruges, Belgium growing up, and couldn't rate it highly enough, really magical with the open air ice rink and Christmas markets. Just want to do somewhere different this year.

Heart is now very set on skiing so just hoping I can figure out accommodation!