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Cyprus Anassa

Cyprus is only 4 Hours from London and hot enough to lie in the sun even in the Winter and Spring months. The Anassa has won the Tatler Award for World Top Spa Legend 2007 and the Villegiature Award Best Resort in Europe 2006. After visiting for a week in May last year, I totally agreed with these verdicts. The Anassa is situated in a beautiful bay (by a nature reserve-so still natural and unbuilt). The architectural interiors are visually impressive as you enter, and the staff attentive. This is a luxurious and glamorous 5* Hotel where as a woman, you might wish to dress stylishly at night appropriate to the surroundings, especially as two of the restaurants offer ‘serious’ gourmet food, beautifully presented, served in romantic dining rooms. Equally if you are on your own or with your family and children, you will have no need to dress up at all, as you may simply move from the beach and poolside (or even your own private pool in a garden villa) during the daytime to the more casual buffet dining room, poolside restaurants or special entertainment nights such as the beach barbeque and the Greek night set outside with traditional dancing and music. Although the food is fantastic you can still leave feeling fit and svelte as there is an excellent nutritionist on hand to help you with your dietary requirements. At the breakfast buffet there is even a ‘healthy corner’ with soya milk and wheat free cereals and bread, whilst the Spa has a special, delicious, menu too and a juice bar. The Spa is a place that is not simply an adjunct to the Hotel but somewhere you could come for a week to de-tox, train in the gym, swim in the indoor pool, practise yoga with the Yoga teacher and chill out with pampering and relaxing well-executed treatments. My Polish masseur Mariusz was one of the best masseurs I have discovered anywhere in the world. I cannot recommend the Anassa enough for a short break or long stay, as you will be welcomed and looked after perfectly whether you are on your own (as I was) or with friends and family.


www.anassa.com.cy/anassa.aspx

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Cuba

Cuba is everything you expect it to be. The vintage 50’s cars; the amazing but faded beauty of Art Deco and Spanish Baroque grand architecture; the music; the vibrancy; and the friendliness of the Cuban people.
We stayed at the Hotel Nacional in Havana for 4 nights in a 6th floor sea view room with great views over Havana. You would miss so much if you stayed less days. We really tried to cram everything in. Museums and art galleries, Museo de la Revolucion, the museo National del bellas artes. Music -the Buona Vista Social Club who played one night at the Hotel Nacional. Street markets, cafes, bars, especially those where Hemingway drank. Private restaurants- (those you can book) the Gringo Viejo for lobster, Paladar La Guarida (the most extraordinary experience of eating top quality cuisine in an eclectic space of antiques and paintings on the top floor of a once grand but now dilapidated tenement building) and (those you queue for)-Los Nardos for paella and the most delicious steak.
We stayed for the second half of our 10 days in the Paradisus Varadero resort. A 5* all inclusive hotel situated on miles of white sand fringed with palm trees. We lay in the sun all day, with long breaks to eat delicious food and drink tpoo many mohitos (don’t believe what they say about bad Cuban food. If you choose your hotel and restaurant wisely you can eat very well). We learnt to salsa and tango with dancing classes, improved our Spanish in afternoon lessons on the beach and my son water-skiied daily.
A fabulous holiday – I wish we had had more time to see more of a fascinating country.
We flew with Virgin Airlines direct to Havana and booked our holiday with Kuoni, who were extremely helpful in helping us select our hotels.

www.kuoni.co.uk/all_inclusive/caribbean/cuba/paradisus_varadero

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The Emelisse Hotel

The Emilesse "boutique" Hotel is privately owned and is part of a group of 3 Hotels in the Ionian islands. It is situated on a beautiful bay, in the North of Kefalonia, overlooking the island of Ithaka.
This Hotel has everything that you hope for in a boutique Hotel, and the pictures really are exactly how it is in reality. Think …very romantic, chill out music, beautiful views, glowing sunsets whilst you have your evening drinks and impeccable personal service.
The bedrooms are light and airy with terraces overlooking the sea and Balinese style wooden four poster beds.
The infinity swimming pools also overlook the bay, and at night are lit with candles.
After a day by the pool, or on the Hotel speed-boat visiting the other islands, you can wind down at the Hotel’s Elemis spa before eating at one of the 2 restaurants on the hotel terraces.
Or you can visit the nearby harbour of Fiscardo (5 minutes away by Hotel shuttle) to wander around the shops, people-watch, or look at the multi-million pound yachts moored in the harbour whilst having dinner at one of the many restaurants.
In my opinion, this is one of the best run small Hotels of the World that I have stayed in.

www.arthotel.gr/emelisse

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Ionian Discoveries

Jamie, a young, good-looking British marine biologist takes you out on his boat with around 12 other snorkelling enthusiasts for what you may expect to be a quite normal holiday-style-fun-day of snorkelling, with a bit of marine life info thrown in, as well as an on-board delicious Greek lunch.
But this day is like no other I have ever spent snorkelling anywhere in the world…. All due to Jamie and his stories.
Jamie is one of the most interesting and funny orators of information about the underwater world that I have ever encountered, appealing to both younger children and adults. His enthusiasm is infectious and you will learn not only how to find all those sea creatures you have always missed, when snorkelling, that hide or camouflage themselves under rocks on the sea bed, but you will also learn all about their daily habits, particularly the mating habits of the octopus, sea-cucumber, star fish and sea-urchin. He helps you to find and gather various sea creatures for his onboard aquarium, for closer inspection, that are then gently returned to the sea alive and well by the end of the trip.
You will never be able to look at an octopus or a sea cucumber in the same way again.
This was definitely one of the highlights of my stay in Kefalonia.

www.ioniandiscoveries.com

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