As one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, (attracting more than 50 million visitors a year) Spain which is also a top destination for UK tourists who wish to enjoy the sun, sand and sangria, has plenty to offer no matter what holiday your after.

For those who want easy going family holidays where all you needs are catered for then you don’t need to look further than the popular resorts such as Tenerife, Gran Canaria or Lanzarote which offer plenty of family orientated activities. If you want a faced paced party holiday then you need to be going to Spain’s world famous party capital, Ibiza or the lively resort of Magaluf. And for those who want to get away from the hustle and bustle of the busier tourist resorts you can look to stay in some traditional holiday rentals in Spain further off the beaten track such as Correalejo National Park, and the resorts of La Gomera and La Palma.

There is also more to Spain than the golden beaches, if you travel a little further in land you will find a country steeped in history with a rich culture as well as cities which boast world’s finest architecture as well as breath taking scenery. Here you also get to enjoy the real Spain, with its sights, sounds and tastes that are a world away from the bright tacky lights and British orientated food found in many of the resorts.  If you stay in holiday villas further inland you will get to enjoy the real Spain, in villages the feel like they have stood still in time.

You don’t have to go far from your holiday villa in the Costa del Sol to get some grub the food in certain resorts such as Torremolinos, Benalmadena and Fuengirola offer a distinctly British affair, with the streets and promenades packed with British-style pubs and expat-owned cafés, where you can enjoy full English breakfasts, roast dinners and steak and kidney pies. However if you like to go on holiday and enjoy traditional local cuisine, fear not because the Costa del Sol and southern Spain is where the Spanish food of Tapas was born. You can enjoy traditional Spanish favourites such as their spicy chorizo and their albonigas which are meatballs in tomato sauce or jamon Serrano which is traditional salt-cured ham and yummy deep-fried, lemon-drizzled squid rings washed down with ice-cold sangria.

Jamon Serrano Tapas

Picture courtesy of Kazutaka NAKANO

If you do stay in self catering holiday villas in Spain, it a great opportunity to go out and try all these local flavours, you can also pop to the local markets and have a go yourself at cooking tapas. You can also enjoy trying out the fresh local produce such as giant lobsters and big cheeses.

There are also plenty of places to go for a night on the town no matter what you’re looking for, some quieter resorts like Frigiliana, Marbella and Estepona have a great laidback vibe if you want to just chill out and enjoy great food, drink and local music. If you want to be a bit more energetic you could visit Torremolinos, Benalmadena and Fuengirola which have plenty of vibrant bars, clubs and pubs that offer plenty to keep you going.

Sangria

Picture courtesy of andriesss

When you’re not enjoying the beaches here there is plenty of places to shopping here in the Costa del Sol, in some of the resorts like Marbella and Puerto Banus for example, you will find big designer-name boutiques. Over in Torremolinos and Benalmadena however you will find cheap and colourful gifts as well as the Costa’s holiday favourite blue and white Andalucian dishes, as well as handmade soft leather bags, straw baskets and flamenco shawls.

When it comes to booking a holiday many people look to see if they can get the best value for money, so with many people feeling the pinch still has meant some people are looking to the UK in hope of getting a good deal however some prices here in the UK can be higher than abroad, so what’s the best option?

A lot depends on what you’re looking for in a holiday, the type of accommodation you want to stay in and what you’re happy paying for food and drink as well as travel expenses’. Some popular resorts in the UK find that businesses impose much higher prices than normal for food and accommodation especially if you want to travel with your family during the school holidays that it can work out cheap to go abroad, even when comparing holiday rentals.

Sometimes it can be cheaper to holiday abroad if you are looking to stay in all inclusive accommodation as although it costs more initially you save money during your holiday because your meals and drinks are included at your resort, however factoring in the flights can bump up the price to more than a holiday in the UK.

If your confident that you can keep to a budget for your holiday then there are ways to save money, if you take a caravan holiday at a park in the UK you can share the cost with a few people, many static caravans can sleep up to 10 people, all you need to think about then is the cost of food which can also be split. Travel may be a bit more expensive but if there are a few of you then to travel around you could hire a mini bus, splitting the cost here will also be handy.

There are plus and negatives to both staying here in the UK for a holiday or going abroad, however with careful planning and comparing deals and prices, you could get a very reasonable summer holiday.

Some holiday destinations can make your break into a holiday of a lifetime and somewhere such as the Far East which is steeped in tradition, customs and superstation will be somewhere you will never forget. There is a lot to see and it can be quite hard to see even a small fraction however if you take a cruise holiday to the Far East you can fit in a lot more sights and sounds than you think, without worrying about travel and getting around.

You can experience the Far East on a cruise and stay holiday, which includes a stay in Hong Kong or Singapore, the number of nights spent on the cruise depends on how many places you want to visit, they range from 4.5 or six nights to 14 nights or if you wish even longer if you visit during a world cruise.

Whilst exploring Asia and the Orient you will see a contrast, from large bustling cityscapes to small sedate country life that has been unchanged for centuries, as you explore cities such as Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong, Manila and Kuala Lumpur you will find yourself immersed in their fast pace of life with sights, sound and smells that bombard your senses. You can also experience the calm whilst here when visiting one of the Buddhist Temples with sedate perfectly manicured gardens as well as learn their history and beliefs.

A Far East cruise holiday will really be a once in a lifetime holiday and nothing can prepare for everything you will encounter, and if all the hustle and bustle becomes too much then you can always retreat to you familiar surroundings of your cruise ship.

You don’t have to go too far to enjoy a great holiday, there are plenty of places to visit here in the UK, and getting round is not as bad as people think, you can easily take flights to London or Dublin as well as flights to Glasgow or Edinburgh, from all smaller UK airports, and there will be one near to you. You can also hop on a train or a bus and travel all around England, Scotland and Wales with ease, you can leave your car at home and hire a car in the area you choose so you can save time on the hours spent travelling on the motorways.

There is so much to see and do in the UK we really are spoilt for choice, we have large historical cities to explore all with their own piece of history as well as museums and galleries, we have outstanding natural beauty in our countryside with many national parks. There’s also plenty of fun to be had at the coast, and if we get lots of hot sun this summer then who needs to go abroad for their beach holiday.

So don’t let the worries of delays at the stations or strikes at the airports put you off you can still have a Great British Holiday right here in the UK!

The Scottish town of St Andrews is well known for two things, being ‘the home of golf’ and its prestigious university, however it does have more to offer than that. There are many historical and cultural places to explore as well as enjoying its award winning beaches St Andrews makes a great destination for anyone looking for holiday rentals. Because there is so much to see and do in and around the area St Andrews makes a great base for a holiday in Scotland, not to mention the friendly locals.

St Andrews Golf Course

Picture courtesy of Charlie Dave

The golf club at St Andrews is world famous and is known as ‘the home of golf’ because the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, founded in 1754, exercises legislative authority over the game worldwide (except in the United States and Mexico) and that its being the host venue for The Open Championship, which is the oldest of golf’s championships the most. The course is also ranked one of the best in the world, as well as one of the most picturesque. The University of St Andrews is also world famous and attracts many visitors, it is the third oldest University in the English speaking world and also its one of the UK’s most prestigious and the University was founded in 1410.

University of St Andrews

Picture courtesy of StuSmith_UK

For those who like to get out and about there are many activities to enjoy in this area such as Horse riding, guided tours, watersports, cycle way’s, off roading, power kiting, walking and hiking, plus so much more, plenty for the whole family to enjoy. St Andrews also offers a wide variety of shopping from traditional Scottish ware to local arts and crafts, it’s also host to farmers markets as well as specialist food shops. You will also fine a great number of places to eat and drink, with fine dining restaurants, cafes, pubs and bars, and fresh fish and chips, there’s plenty for all to enjoy.

There are some great caravan holiday parks in and around St Andres with some fabulous views of the ocean and the surrounding area so you are spoilt for choice for places to stay.

St Andrews Harobour

Picture courtesy of Ed.ward

There is so much you can do here in the UK this summer to escape the World Cup, Wimbledon, Big Brother and Britain’s Got Talent.

There are many things to enjoy that won’t cost you anything, popular during the summer are fringe events which take place all over the country and are great for the whole family to enjoy, look out for one near you! Local summer fetes are also a great way to meet your neighbours and are great for the local community especially if you’re holidaying in the area.

If you want to enjoy some sporting activities for free head off to see the Oxford and Cambridge boat race, this tradition has been going for more than 150 years as both do battle on the Thames, some great spots to watch for free include Putney Bridge, Putney Embankment and Bishops Park (at the start), Hammersmith and Barnes (mid-course) and Dukes Meadows and Chiswick Bridge (at the finish).

There are great walking tours to take around many of the UK cities, many of which are available as pod casts and can be downloaded ready for you to use to explore.

Another great way to enjoy your free time for free is to take a tour of many of the UK’s main museums and galleries, entry to these are free as are the tours! The British Museum in London offers short tours that concentrate on different parts of their collection, the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh has one-hour tours and the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff has a range of themed tours.

There are many last minute cruise holiday deals around at the moment for summer 2010, but what about next year. As with many holidays you can get just as good of a deal booking months to a year in advance as you can last minute.

There are many cruise holidays available to book for summer 2011, so for more exclusive holidays such as round the world cruise holidays such as those offered by Cunard get booked up pretty quickly so you will find for those you will have to book a year in advance. Also when a cruise line is offering holidays on new ships they too get booked up pretty quickly. When booking well in advance you get better choice of what sort of accommodations you can have, from superior rooms to those with sea views and balconies.

Cruise holidays are getting more and more popular and demand is high because they can be better value for money than your average beach holiday, including all inclusive, so its defiantly worth while booking in advance and enjoying some great cruise deals and avoiding disappointment.

A visit to the Baltic capitals will be no ordinary holiday, the Baltic is a fascinating and captivating region steeped in history with so much to explore and unearth. With a cruise holiday you will get to cross the waves of the Baltic ocean that were once ruled by the mighty Vikings and where great wars were fought by the surrounding countries each vying for control of this great ocean.

You can experience some of the many cultures in Europe and enjoy magnificent scenery as you travel from city to city on a Baltic cruise. Setting off from the UK your first stop is the Danish city of Copenhagen recognised by its dominating skyline as you approach, Copenhagen as with most cities in the Baltic has some of Europe’s most fascinating Architecture and Copenhagen is also one of Europe’s greenest cities. From here you will set out on a cruise exploring many of the wonderful cities the Baltic ocean has to offer such as Gothenburg, Helsinki, St Petersburg, Oslo, Riger, Stockholm and Tallin enjoy the culture, explore each cities history and soak into the atmosphere of each destination.

Different itineraries also offer the chance to explore less discovered destinations along the way, small ports where hanseatic merchants once traded, with quaint centuries-old fishermen’s houses, winding streets and local charm. With so much to see its difficult to decide where to start, there are many great cruise deals that off many different itineraries so all you have to decide is what you want to see first, then book another one next year to start exploring more of this great region.

Boat setting sail into the Baltic Ocean

Picture courtesy of MarvinSiefke

There is so much to remember whilst on holiday, but you do have to make sure you keep yourself and your belongings from unscrupulous people waiting to get you from the moment you arrive. Most criminals can tell tourists from the locals and know how to specifically target us tourists constantly keeping up to date with the latest scams. So make sure wherever you are be aware of everyone around you someone could be waiting to pounce just when your least expecting it.

Warning single men

If you’re a guy travelling alone or with a mate and are approached by a couple of single girls, beware it will probably be too good to be true. Their usual scam is to pretend that they are lost in the city and need some help normally suggesting you all go for a drink at a bar they select of course, said bar will probably small dark and not have any windows and an exit guarded by a hefty doorman. After only a couple of drinks you will pretty much be bankrupted before your are able to leave after being left a heft bar tap for 4 drinks and not allowed to leave. Needless to say the girls won’t be particularly lost now, well not until they find some other unsuspecting guys.

The spectacle thief

Criminals are good at keeping you distracted whilst robbing you, normally with a commotion set up nearby and while you intrigued watching this someone swoops in and steals your belongings. Sometimes the distraction can be one on one with some asking for your help keeping you occupied while their accomplice nabs your stuff.