Nice ice baby
Since arriving in England you’ve survived your first ‘snowstorm’ (it’s about quality, not quantity) and had your flights cancelled due to ‘winter weather’ (everyone knows a light dusting means danger) but still you want more – look no further than the Ice Hotel deep in the heart of the Transylvanian Alps.
Only accessible by cable car, this hand-carved hotel made entirely of ice is spine-tingling – so grit your teeth (pun intended) and settle down for a dreamy night on a bed made of ice. The reindeer fur does help, as do the expertly mixed nightcaps at the sub-zero bar. Although you can’t stay at the Ice Hotel for more than a night, there are tons of winter activities in the area that you can book as part of a package – tunnel trekking, snowmobiling, cross country skiing, good old-fashioned tobogganing. You can mix and match your perfect Christmas itinerary at icehotelromania.com.
Rooms start at £75 and package prices depend on the type and length. The nearest city is Bucharest, which has some good deals on flights from London.
Country living
If shivering your nuts off isn’t your thing (really?), then maybe head to the Cornish coast for a classic Christmas cottage experience. Roaring fires, couches the size of a bus and idyllic old man pubs will put you in the festive mood. Get everyone involved by inviting a crew and drinking the frost-bite away, or make it a relaxed getaway with your special someone, safe from the pre-Christmas bustle in London. Classic.co.uk offers good cottages in the south of the country. A cottage that sleeps four costs about £25 per person, per night.
Christmas like a king
Let’s face it, you’re not exactly living like royalty (feasting on a double-whopper at 3am wearing the Burger King gold crown doesn’t count, even if you thought it did at the time), but that doesn’t mean you will never will. If you can get a big enough group together over Christmas (15-17 people) you can shack up in a real-life turreted castle for a price that isn’t just fit for a king. For £159 per person (that’s £22 a night) you can spend a week at Castell Trisor in Catalonia, Spain. There’s a stone-walled games room, drawing room, formal dining room, table tennis, chapel, covered terrace, TV room, and also breath-taking views of the countryside. It’s a fairy tale way to spend Christmas or even see in the New Year and Europe is one of the few places where castle holidays exist.
To find out more go to spain-holiday.com/6908. The closest place to fly is Barcelona.
We offer great deals on Christmas escapes at TNT Tour Search.
