The climate and the culture is so great that it is a waste to just visit one or two cities, especially if you are taking a plane between them. Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide are all cities that deserve thorough experiencing; at least a week in each. And then you still have the whole country side left, where the sun and the breezes are waiting for you.

The best way to go about this is to find a place with cars for sale, and use whatever money you have saved up with your friends, to buy a safe, decent car that can take you around the enormous country. For example, you can use Simpletrade in order to find whatever suits you the best.

Then you pack it with food, blankets, mattresses, tents, water, cameras, bathing suits, a stereo, speakers, towels, maps, you name it. Anything that will keep you warm, safe, entertained and dry, pretty much. It is not overly important which route you take, as long as you try to see all cardinal points. Each part of the country has its own charms.

When it is time to fly back to whatever country you came from, you just sell the car and hopefully you will get most of your money back!

Cheltenham: Where regency meets racing

Cheltenham Races
Even if you’re not majorly into horse racing or betting, it’s a really fun excursion for a one-off. The atmosphere at the race course is electric and this spills over into the town itself. As the Gold Cup tends to happen around St Patrick’s Day, there is a real Irish vibe about the place. Guinness tents provide extra drinking space in the pubs and many of them take euros while the races are on to take advantage of all the paddy spending power. Most visitors arrive on the train and pub crawl their way to the race course, but there are plenty of buses for those who’d rather get there in some sort of functioning order. There are lots of good hotels and B&Bs to suit any budget but they fill up fast. Many of the Cheltenham residents actually let out their own rooms to accommodate the influx of visitors.

The Cotswolds
Away from the horses, Cheltenham has plenty to offer. The regency town houses, old Pump Rooms and promenade squares and terraces are reminiscent of fellow spa town, Bath. Speaking of which, Cheltenham provides a great base for exploring the surrounding Cotswold area including Bath, Stratford-upon-Avon and surrounding quaint Cotswold villages. A trip to Sudeley Castle in Winchcombe or to the beautiful Westonbirt Arboretum near Tetbury, makes for a nice day out if you get the weather.

Cheltenham Festivals
While the Gold Cup is a major attraction for Cheltenham, the races go on periodically throughout the year and the New Year’s Day races are great for helping you forget your hangover. But there’s more going on than just horse racing. Cheltenham holds many festivals including an Arts Festival that attracts internationally acclaimed artists, a Jazz Festival, the Cricket Festival which is the oldest cricket festival in the country, and the National Hunt Festival to name but a few. In the summer there is often live music or craft fares in the beer gardens that can be found in the Montpellier area of the town beside the luxury Queen’s Hotel. Being a regular Britain in Bloom winner, Cheltenham’s gardens provide a colourful and scented setting for relaxing outdoors. By night, there are a number of theatres to choose from, the largest being The Everyman Theatre in the town centre, where you’ll find a range of productions sporting some famous faces.

Designed For Leisure
Whatever it is that brings you to Cheltenham, you’ll be visiting a town that was designed purely for leisure and pleasure, a notion that it replicates today. Cheltenham originally became a spa town in 1716 when the first medicinal waters were discovered. King George III visited in 1788 to drink the waters which sparked a trend amongst the elite. At that point, Cheltenham’s transformation into a fashionable leisure resort began. King George III envisaged the first ‘English Garden City’ which became characterised by the regency period architecture that you can find there today. While perhaps not the destination of nobility that it once was, Cheltenham still caters to its original purpose, so a visit to this little spa town is sure to be a pleasure.

Best of British
A really lovely spot to visit is Padstow in the South West of England. This is a charming Cornish fishing village complete with higgledy-piggledy little streets, old English pubs selling the best cider and Cornish ales, boxes of fudge and homemade jams and honey, not to mention good-old fish n’ chips. In fact, Padstow is one of the best seaside places to visit for fish and chips as Rick Stein, the famous chef, has made Padstow his home and set up not only an award-winning restaurant but a cafe selling exquisite British fish n’ chips. Sitting on the harbour-side munching on a Rick Stein special is just heaven. Add to the pleasure with a spot of crab-fishing – the local shops sell string, bait and buckets for tourists to chance their luck in the quayside whilst supping cider in the sun.

Coastal Walks
With countless restaurants to choose from in the town of Padstow, you’ll find yourself needing to walk off your fine meals. Luckily there are some amazing walks that take in both beach and countryside. Miles of golden sands offer fun for kids, dogs and water-sportastic adults alike, while the countryside offers stunning views accessed by heather-scented, winding footpaths along cliff-tops and through sheep-laden fields.

Local flavour
There are a large number of campsites and B&Bs in Padstow so you can take your pick as to your preferred view. Facilities range from basic to more luxury but all are very friendly, informative and make your stay all the more enjoyable. Whether you are dining at your accommodation or in Rick Stein’s swanky restaurant, you can rest assured the food is almost always sourced locally. There is a wealth of great quality local produce in the South West and a trip to Padstow is a great opportunity to sample some fine Cornish delights. Try some freshly caught lobster, a ‘real’ traditional Cornish pasty, Cornish ice-cream or a down-right dirty pack of porky scratchings! Why not – you’re on holiday!

South West sight-seeing
If you want to explore a little further afield, you can take a drive to The Eden Project in St Austell to see the ‘global garden’. An amazing feat of engineering, the Eden project includes Bio-domes or ‘Biomes’ that house species of flora and fauna from tropical rainforests to the Mediterranean Basin. It really is a stunning experience and a vibrantly vivid, sensory journey across the world. Also quite good if it is raining!

Great surfing bays at Padstow

Surfing
If you fancy yourself as a surfer and would much rather spend your time on the beach however, there are numerous surfing spots in and around Padstow. The vast sandy beaches that reach out into a slowly deepening sea make this a perfect location for beginners. There are many surf schools around the coast of the South West so you’re likely to find one on most major beaches. Nearby Newquay is the major magnet for surfers who hang out on Newquay beach for the summer. Look out for the VW Beetle convention that happens in the summer, there’s a real buzz around the place at this time. However, be warned that Newquay is also famous for stag and hen weekends so if you are after a quiet holiday, it probably isn’t the place for you.

Legend & Myth
A trip up the road north of Padstow will find you arriving at Tintagel. This is the home of King Arthur’s castle. It is now a National Trust property so you need to pay to get in to see the ruins, but the views are amazing and the surrounding countryside is home to some great walks. You can’t help but muse over the myths and legends surrounding King Arthur as you amble along under the shadow of what was once his great castle.

Explore more of the South West
Whether you choose to stay in Padstow, or use it as a base to explore a little more of the South West, you really won’t be disappointed. What’s more, you’re likely to come back with a new-found love of the British coast and countryside. If you want to see more of it, the South West coastal path covers 630 miles of stunning coastline from Minehead to Poole Harbour in Dorset. Choose a little, choose a lot, choose the whole lot; you’re sure to see the best of British wildlife, heritage and coastal scenery on your way.

Tignes Snowboarding Views

If you’re on a late arrival, a warm welcome will often be lavished upon you from the guy who knows the guy who runs the chalet you’ll be staying in. Next thing you know, you have a personal, albeit vaguely inebriated guide taking you directly to your door. Be prepared to be seeing a lot more of him as there’s only a couple of pubs and one late bar that cater for this small resort. But there-in lies the charm of les Brevieres. You meet lots of interesting people and genuinely have a good time après-ski. The unadulterated backdrop of traditional farmhouses, wooden lodges and narrow streets makes for a characteristically alpine environment that some of the larger resorts tend to lose. Look out for the donkey sausages on the street market though!

The slopes won’t let you down either. Les Brevieres is perfectly situated at the foot of the Espace Killy ski area. Assuming you get good snow from a seasonal perspective, the skiing here is really good and you can make it as extensive as you like. North-facing slopes often keep their snow into May and are generally not as busy as neighbouring resorts. They’re regularly pisted with plenty of nice little off-piste cut-throughs for those looking to experience ‘safe’ off-pisting. But the region isn’t that big so it’s inevitable that you will want to venture into Tignes itself as well as Val d’Isere and surrounding areas.

'The Needle' at the top of Les Brevieres lifts

For a longer, more energetic day, you could carry on from Tignes over to Val d’Isere. The funicular will take you up the mountain from the town and there you can choose from a vast range of slopes – the only thing stopping you will be time. There is always the option of getting the bus back if you don’t have time to ski your way back across, or you could consider stopping for a night. The nightlife in Val d’Isere is lively and you’ll find a real mix of nationalities here.

Back in Les Brevieres, there’s nothing nicer than skiing straight off the mountain into one of the bars for a nice warming glass of vin chaud as you un-buckle your boots and watch the last die-hards make their way off the mountain. Bliss.
 

Are is, of course, best in the winter and the healthy activities you can find in this center of winter sports in Jamtland, Sweden, are many. Try dog sledding in the crispy cold weather or have fun playing with snow mobiles for a day. The hiking might be Scandinavias best and the fishing in the cold Nordic rivers can give you an experience you will never forget.

The indigenous people of Sweden, the Sami have a strong presence in Jamtland, the area where you find Are, and there are possibilities to stay a night in a Kata, the traditional tent like home of the Sami. The most common traditional livelyhood of the Sami people is the herding of reindeer and with a little luck you can even run into reindeer while hitting the slopes in Are.

Michelangelos life ended 4 years after finishing The last judgement in the Sistine Chapel a mission given to hime by the pope Paulus III.

Image from Romresa.

The Swedes are a more or less frozen people that stay inside most of the year and that is probably the reason for the effects of spring. Once the sun starts warming up the streets, the bars and the water in Stockholm the city explodes with happy people. Like bears they have been waiting all winter and all of a sudden they all show up on the same day in May.

Stockholms many parks fill with people laughing, heating up the grills and enjoying the first sunny days of the year. Usually this is a bit earlier than May but it stays this way well in to June so if you want to be on the safe side May is the perfect month for a trip to Stockholm.

Dominical can be found in the Puntarenas area on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and has a permanently perfecct temperature. No matter what time of the year you visit the area it will always be perfect. If you are on a tight budget you can even actually sleep on the beach, something that some of the many surfers that come here do.

The surfers come for one reason more than the others, the surfing in Domincal is world famous and the beaches are fantastic. Right now they are more or less empty as well as a lot of the US tourists fail to come due to their economic situation. My advice to you is to head straight there as it is one of the few truly beautiful places on the earth and you can have it more or less to yourself.

photo by Denis Salazar

Diving in the Red Sea

Sailing Holidays

If you love sailing, or would like to try your hand at it for the first time, there are a number of travel agents that can arrange a bespoke sailing holiday for you around destinations like Greece, Corsica, Egypt or further afield. Royal Yachting Association courses delivered by qualified instructors can help you use your holiday to learn how to sail and gain your first qualification so you can go out on your own.

The better companies, such as Mark Warner for example, have a large range of craft on offer to cater for all requirements and party sizes. Experienced sailors can make use of some of the newest and highest spec craft and equipment to really enhance their sailing experience. And even the most seasoned of sailors can attend the free sailing clinics that run in selected resorts to give tips and advice to people of all levels. Even kids can learn to sail as part of the Kid’s Club, giving mum and dad a chance to relax!

Scuba Diving and Snorkelling Holidays

If beautiful aquatic sea-scapes are your thing, there are a great range of diving holidays available to suit all abilities. Learn to dive for the first time with a PADI registered instructor or, if you are an expert, let the agent advise you on some of the most stunning open water dives to the best spots in the world –they will tailor-make the experience to suit your dream diving holiday.

And if you’re a bit worried about scuba diving but would like to experience an underwater wonderland, why not try a snorkelling holiday? Travel agents speacialising in activity holidays will know the best locations to make your snorkelling experience truly amazing.

Waterskiing, wakeboarding and kite surfing

For more high-octane water sports lovers, there are a range of holidays designed to teach you how to waterski, wakeboard or kitesurf. Endorsed by the British Waterski Federation, Mark Warner has a number of courses from beginner to expert that are all available in your resort. If you’d like to dabble but are not sure whether to commit to an entire course, you can ‘pay as you ski’ and do as much or as little time on water as you like.

Windsurfing

Mark Warner have a number of resorts in countries like Greece and Egypt that have now been classed as specialist windsurfing centres due to the perfect conditions found there i.e flat water and predictable breezes. Again, offering a range of courses to suit all levels, you can use your holiday to learn this popular sport or improve existing skills.

Experienced windsurfers will appreciate the range of brand new, high performance boards available for all wind conditions.
Mark Warner supply bespoke holidays across a large variety of sporting activities including tennis, mountain biking, skiing, fitness and aerobics and many more.

Shore-based Sea Fishing

One of the most relaxing vacation sports is fishing. Deep sea or from-shore saltwater fishing lets you enjoy the aquatic paradise of your holiday destination while providing the added excitement of a great catch. You can hook yourself some amazing fish with fishing trips extending to the Bahamas, Belize, the Seychelles and hundreds of other exotic locations all over the world.

If you prefer to get away from the beach and up to the mountains for a change of scenery, there are some fantastic freshwater fishing trips to the likes of Chile, Alaska, New Zealand and anywhere else you can imagine. Peaceful, idyllic vistas to relax the mind and refresh the soul, letting you think about nothing but the bobbing of your float.

Golf has to be one of the most popular holiday sports ever. Slipping on your golf shoes, stepping onto a freshly mown fairway with your clubs glinting in the sun, and setting down your bag to tee off – a full day of golfing bliss ahead of you. Life doesn’t get much better than that.

Use your holiday to explore some of the best golf courses in the world and, step off the green, to discover a little of what your golfing destination has to offer. Destinations like the Bahamas, Dubai, U.S and South Africa have been offering access to world class courses from the comfort of luxury hotels to golfers for years. Their experience and golfing heritage make them the ideal location for the committed golfer.

Closer to home, breaks to Ireland and Scotland’s quality courses make for a discovery into Celtic tradition in between playing the finest sweeping courses surrounded by the rich green British countryside. From tried and tested destinations across Europe, such as Portugal and Spain to newer destinations like Sweden or Morocco, if golf is your passion, there are hundreds of fantastic holiday destinations that can help you embrace it.

Mountain biking in Utah

Biking Holidays

Explore new landscapes under your own steam for the ultimate healthy get-away. From ambling routes taken at your own pace to more physical mountain biking or road cycling holidays, you can tailor-make your holiday to suit your mood.

There are a number of very good cycling holiday specialists who can help you plan and organise your get-away to your preferred destination. They offer holidays throughout Europe, Asia, South America and more. All you have to do is decide where you want to go and how far you want to pedal!