As the summer season comes to and end across Europe there’s one southern outpost where the sun continues to shine.  Although in fairness Lanzarote – and the rest of the Canaries – are in fact located many hundreds of miles south of the Iberian Peninsula and mainland Europe, off the coast of Africa.  Whilst retaining European Union membership as part of Spain.

As a result the Canaries welcome visitors throughout the year and after Catalonia are the second most popular holiday destination in Spain.  Arrivals have fallen by around 20% during 2009 thanks to the current economic crisis.  But millions of tourists will still be booking holidays in the region this autumn, despite the downturn.

The Canaries are just four hours flying time from the UK.  Making these islands the closest winter destination to sun starved Northern Europe.  And this year the cost of flights to Lanzarote are set to fall – thanks to growing competition on this route between the big guns of the low cost flight world, easyJet and Ryanair.  The latter has firmly switched their focus to the Canaries this winter and will be operating 16 new services to Lanzarote from airports across the UK. 

What sort of weather can visitors expect to enjoy during the winter months?On Lanzarote the temperature averages at around 20 degrees Celsius.  With hardly any rainfall at all.  The days are also longer than back in the UK – with the sun not setting before 6pm at the earliest.  Whilst the Trade Winds that normally buffet the island from March through to August have dampened down. 

The island offers high standards of accommodation too.  Covering all of the bases from high quality hotels through to simple studio apartments.  A growing number of visitors now prefer to book their own accommodation online too – thanks to the growth in internet usage.  And as result interest in – and bookings for – Lanzarote villas have increased enormously over the last decade.

Naturally as in any service business the increase in holidaymakers requiring Lanzarote holiday apartments and villas is good news for visitors to Lanzarote as villa owners are being driven to ensure presentation is up to par, and all mod cons and traditional extras are now included gratis

Playa Blanca is the resort to head for if you’re planning a winter break on the island.  As thanks to it’s southerly location it enjoys the best weather and most sunshine hours.  As well as boasting some of the best beaches on the island.  There’s a decent selection of villas in Playa Blanca for holidaymakers to choose from too.  With high quality rental properties available in areas such as Rubicon Marina and Costa Papagayo.  And with prices starting from around £400 per week for a standard two bedroom villa with pool.

The island is a exceptionally well visitied all year holiday destination with many outstanding resorts. Follow the links for even more information about Playa Blanca holiday villas in particular or other Lanzarote villas and apartments.

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I was delighted to have the opportunity to join my couses at their holiday flat in Nice. After meeting my cousins at Grenoble (Lyon) the plan was to head down to Nice by car.

I was welcomed by my cousins and their dog Tuppy as my flight from Stansted arrived without any problems. On the way to Nice, we stopped at Orange to view the ancient Roman Theatre and the size of the semi-circular theatre backing on to the hillside is impressive. The niche in the stage wall houses a colossal statue of the Emperor Auguste – an awesome sight.

The sun shone of the golden sandy coloured buildings of Avignon which was our next destination. We took the train tour through the vast gardens of the Palace of the Popes. The alleyways were extremely narrow and cars were often parked haphazardly! The famous bridge used to span the two arms of the Rhone, 22 arches in all but just four arches with a small chapel on the second pier are all that remains today. Tuppy was more interested in a paddle in the river than the amazing Roman aqueduct with its triple tiers that we saw at Pont du Gard.

On to Marseilles; again lovely old golden stone buildings along the coast road and the harbour. The old fort and the church on the hilltop reminded me of Malta. The latter part of the journey to Nice was marred by heavy rain which continued until the following morning. In the afternoon, we visit the Russian Cathedral of St Nicholas, the largest Russian church outside Russia. Close by is the chapel, built on the site of Villa Bermond where the Crown Prince Nicholas Alexandrovich died in 1865. I was not aware the the Romanovs had visited the Cote d’Azur since 1856. Queen Victoria used to stay at the palatial hilltop hotel where we stopped for lunch !! Today, the building has been converted to flats and a statue of Queen Victoria and several angels can be found at the bottom of the hill. We were tempted to visit the Roman Monument, La Turbie in memory of the Emperor Augustus by sunshine and blue skies. Between 25BC and 15BC, the people of the Alps were finally subjagated. This paved the way for the Roman advance up the Rhone Valley and along the Rhine and ultimately to England.

We moved on to Monaco; wonderful views along the Corniche roads. The horrendous sharp bends put me off driving on the roads! Two very large cruise ships were in the vicinity as it was Yachting Week. Eventually we escaped the horrendous traffic and found an underground car park. Grace Kelly is buried at the Cathedral we visited. Her grave was covered with masses of flowers and Prince Rainier lies alongside her grave. Jacques Cousteau was Director at the Oceanographic Museum for many years which were saw along with the Casino.

Another expedition was up into the hills to visit Matisses Chapel but sadly it was closed. Our next stop was Vence and it is a lovely old city with cafes, craft shops and narroe pave passageways. a very large statue of a wounded dove can be found in the town centre.e. Wounded Peace. This bishopric is the smallest in France and there have been bishops here since 374AD.

We headed for the Market on my final day. There is a countrified air to this part of the city where new streamlined trams run through the streets which stretches of grass between the tracks. The large market sold vast quantities of fruit and veg, pottery and herb mills, African animals and table linen; truly one could browse for hours on end. I returned from Nice with many happy memories of my first trip to the area.

You can book trip trip to Nice online with Explorer Travel on their website (http://www.explorerdirect.co.uk)

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