By Craig Tansley

It’s freezing outside – the snow’s falling and there’s no end in sight till April… Maybe even May. So what can you do to find somewhere warm and sunny – why not change your hemisphere? When it’s winter in the north it’s summer in the south, and we’ll show you the best places to find the right amount of sunshine.

1 | Best Romantic Destination

Aerial View of Kokomo Private Island Resort, Fiji

Kokomo Private Island Resort, Fiji. Everybody knows, a little place like Kokomo. Okay, okay, cheesy song from the Beach Boys, but there’s nothing cheesy about this resort which opened last year. Take a seaplane from Fiji’s main airport, and you’ll land beside your own tiny island oasis. There’s a casual open restaurant built on the water where the chef cooks what was caught yesterday. Go diving on coral reefs completely unaffected by bleaching, catch huge game fish, or just relax on the sand outside your private villa.

2 | Best South American Destination

Aerial View of Llao Llao Hotel & Resort in Patagonia, Argentina

Llao Llao Hotel & Resort, Argentina. You’ll find this sunny little gem in the heart of Argentina’s Lakes District. Take a 25-minute drive along the shores of Moreno Lake and you’ll find a resort (with a golf course) nestled between two lakes. In summer, the elevation means the temperature stays below 90 degrees and humidity remains low. This area is the best on Earth for fly-fishing, or take a swim in the lake. Spend your evenings outside in the resort’s dining patio, looking out to the Andes.

3 | Best Beach Destination

View from Byron Bay Lighthouse, Australia

Byron Bay, Australia. Perhaps you’re no surfer – maybe you don’t have an interest in surfing at all, but nowhere spells ‘summer’ more than an Australian surf town, and no surf town’s quite like Byron Bay. Sample the vibe of a village with 18 beaches around it where everyone lives for waves. Bronzed Aussies walk through town on their way to the surf, tourists take lessons (there’s more than 10 surf schools here if you’re up for the challenge), while afternoons are spent at beachside bars and cafes watching the waves (Crocodile Dundee Paul Hogan once lived here and you can down a cocktail at the bar his best buddy once owned, The Beach Hotel).

4 | Best Secret Destination

Secluded beach on Rarotonga, Cook Islands

Cook Islands. How they slip under the radar is anyone’s guess, but these 15 islands set in an area of ocean the size of western Europe populated by barely 15,000 inhabitants are a beachcomber’s paradise. There’s high-end romantic resorts on the island group’s most iconic island, Aitutaki, while main island, Rarotonga, has the right mix of sunset bars and atmospheric restaurants while still being home to empty beaches and an almost entirely undiscovered mountainous hinterland. There are islands 40 minutes away that are visited by fewer than 20 people each year.

5 | Best African Safari Destination

Dining area at the Kanga Camp in Mana Pools National Park, Zimbabwe

Mana Pools, Zimbabwe. There’s no better antidote to all that Northern Hemisphere chill than time spent on the savannahs on an African bush safari, and there’s nowhere better to come face-to-face with wild animals while escaping the crowds of South African and Kenyan safari camps than Mana Pools. After a change in government, Zimbabwe has opened back up to tourism. At Mana Pools, take walking safaris with lions, leopards and elephants or float down the mighty Zambezi River amongst hippos and crocodiles.

6 | Best Adventure Destination

Man on Mt. Yasur at sunset in Tanna,Vanuatu

Tanna, Vanuatu. Want to feel like you’re an adventurist while not giving up any of your creature comforts in five-star lodgings by the beach? Then come to Tanna. Barely 60 minutes by plane from Vanuatu’s capital, Port Vila, Tanna is still dominated by locals who live in tribes in grass huts in the forests (called Cargo Cults, they worship everyone from the Queen Of England’s husband, Philip, to American WWII deserters). You’ll get to snorkel and swim in clear blue waters along a deserted coastline. Though the biggest thrill is taking a 4WD safari to active volcano, Mt Yasur, to sit by its crater as dry lava spits out into the air at sunset as you sip champagne.

7 | Best Luxury Destination

Boat in water in Bora Bora, French Polynesia

Bora Bora, French Polynesia. Don’t consider it unless you’re willing to blow some serious cash, but if luxury in the sunshine is your thing, nowhere on Earth does it better than Bora Bora. Fly from Tahiti and take a speedboat to a private island retreat. You’ll find some of the most iconic luxury resorts here – where Hollywood stars flee – all built on tiny atolls in the lagoon (the most revered are the Four Seasons and St Regis). Book an overwater bungalow. Ride a cruiser bike to breakfast, then spend your day in a hammock, or in the lagoon, before sunset drinks looking back on volcanic peaks, Mt Otemanu and Mt Pahia.

8 | Best Gourmet Destination

Cape Town, South Africa. Not only is Cape Town one of the world’s prettiest seaside cities (it’s surrounded on three sides by ocean and dwarfed by the kilometre-high Table Mountain), it’s also one of the most affordable gourmet cities of the Southern Hemisphere. Populated by Europeans, African and Asians – there are more than 200 restaurants in a city which reflect this multi-culture. Cape Town is also surrounded by some of the Southern Hemisphere’s best wine regions, especially Stellenbosch. Be sure to try the unique Cape Malay cuisine – a combination of Malaysian and Dutch food.

9 | Best Golfing Destination

Queenstown, New Zealand. Nowhere does golf in summer in the Southern Hemisphere in one region better than the Queenstown region. You’ll find seven of New Zealand’s best courses all within a 45-minute drive of each other. But these aren’t ordinary courses – courses like The Hills and Jacks Point are some of the world’s top courses, playing out beside enormous lakes, and between mountains in the region’s world-famous landscape (immortalised in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy). The average high temperature in summer is a comfortable 75-degrees, and courses are surrounded by wineries perched on cliff tops.

10 | Best ‘Do Nothing’ Destination

Aerial view of Sinalei Resort & Spa in Samoa

Samoa. You’ve been stuck inside all winter and all you want to do is soak in the rays and work your lily-white skin into something resembling colour. Where’s the best place to go do nothing? Samoa. These are islands built for slumber in the sun. With beaches spread across its main two islands – Upola and Savaii – there’s always somewhere to sunbake. But it’s the villages here you won’t believe. Drive through them (slowly) and you’ll find a nation deep in slumber. In Samoa, sleeping is a national pastime.

Kemp Travel is a full service travel agency. Our incredible team would be more than happy to help you start planning a trip to any of the above destinations. Fill out our quote request form and tell us about what you want to do and one of our travel specialists will reach out to you with some amazing options that best fit your needs.

By Joanne Sasvari

Forget the harried crowds and joyless chore of holiday shopping at the mall. Instead, revel in all that makes the festive season magical at one of northwestern Europe’s Christmas markets. With winter’s smaller crowds, lower prices, and merry mood, December can be the best time to travel to Europe, and it’s easy to visit the best Christmas market destinations by rail. Just be sure to bring an extra suitcase – you’ll need it for all the treasures you’ll find.

Christmas Market in Vienna Austria. Photo by Alisa Anton

They say the Germans invented Christmas: The Christmas tree, Kris Kringle, Silent Night, the Advent calendar, Christmas gifts and even the Christmas card all hail from the snowy forests of northwestern Europe. So, too, the Christmas market, which is the best possible way to spend a wintry evening.

For centuries, the open-air markets known as Weihnactsmarkt or Christkindlmarkt have popped up in communities all over Germany during the four weeks of Advent that lead up to Christmas Day. They’re usually held in the main town square, where vendors set up stalls to sell handicrafts, ornaments, food and the fragrant hot spiced wine known as glühwein. There’s often live entertainment and sometimes a nativity scene, a visit from the Three Wise Men or the arrival of the ‘Christkind’, played by an angelic-looking local child.

The earliest winter markets date back to the 12th Century – with some of the oldest in Munich, Frankfurt and Dresden – and weren’t specifically religious. Rather, they were an opportunity for townspeople to stock up on food and other household goods before the worst of winter arrived. Gradually, they became opportunities for artists and artisans to sell their wares. Then, in the early 1500s, around the time of the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther established December 24 as the country’s official gift-giving day, and the markets became a place to shop for presents.

Germany is still home to some of the world’s biggest and best Christmas markets. The ones in Nuremberg and Dresden draw about two million visitors a year; the ones in Stuttgart, Frankfurt and Dortmund attract about three million; and the most visited market, which is in Cologne, features hundreds of stalls and is visited by four million people a year. Indeed, the whole city of Cologne becomes a sparkling seasonal spectacle

But the tradition has spread beyond Germany’s borders, right across Europe, and a rail pass is a great way to visit the markets.

The one in Strasbourg in eastern France, for instance, dates back to 1570, has 10 locations, 300 stalls and a towering Great Christmas Tree. Vienna’s market is even older, dating back to 1298, and is one of the most traditionally festive in Europe with a huge skating rink, reindeer rides and a traditional (and very boozy) hot rum punsch.

In Budapest, Vörösmarty Square is transformed into a magical winter wonderland, where the façade of the famous Gerbeaud Coffee House is transformed into a giant Advent calendar with a window display opening every day before Christmas Eve. Prague, in the Czech Republic, has two markets just a short stroll from each other, one on Old Town Square and the other in Wenceslas Square, featuring wooden huts selling local crafts and foodstuffs. In Poland, Krakow’s market is the place to go for hand-painted ornaments and quirky antiques.

St. Stephen’s Basilica, Christmas Market in Budapest, Hungary. Photo by Liam McKay

In Scandinavia, Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens burst with light shows and fireworks displays. Meanwhile, in Stockholm, Sweden, Skansen’s Christmas Market is as traditional as can be, with dancing around the Christmas tree and a small zoo where you can hang out with real live reindeer.

Today, Europe’s Christmas markets are more popular than ever. Whatever faith you follow – even if it’s no faith at all – the markets evoke an old-fashioned sense of community, with great food and unique one-of-a-kind gifts. Most of all, they are festively social, with people of all ages and walks of life gathering happily together.

It may be chilly outside, but here at Europe’s Christmas markets, the joyful goodwill will keep you warm all over.

There are also tons of amazing river cruising options that will take you to see the christmas markets including Avalon Waterways and AMA Waterways. If you’re looking to book a trip to see European Christmas markets, whether it be by land or river cruise, we can help! Fill out our request a quote form and tell us more about your trip and one of our advisors will be in touch!

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