Europe is warming up in April, with smaller resorts starting to open after the winter lull; buds are opening, and many trees are laden with beautiful coloured blossom…

Paris in April is beautiful with the parks awash with cherry blossom and a carpet of colourful flowering bulbs.  Pack a suitcase for the warm, wet and chilly weather, slip on your walking shoes and discover spring time in the French capital.  Book ahead for Le Grand Monde d’Andy Warhol, and visit the annual Foire du Trone, a huge market and funfair combined.

For beach holidays in Europe, look at Cyprus and the resorts of Limassol and Paphos, the southern Greek islands of Crete or Rhodes, the unspoilt Cape Verde Islands off Africa, southern Italy or the Canary Islands.

Travel in April to the Cayman Islands south of Cuba in the Caribbean Sea, and stay on the stunning islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac or Little Cayman, where the fauna and flora is spectacular. Relax on Seven Mile Beach and visit the Pedro St James Castle; sail around the islands and swim with the stingrays.

For the active and fit, a trip to the Mount Everest base camp in Nepal at the beginning of April is an experience never to be forgotten.  Fly into Kathmandu, then onto Lukla a Sherpa village before a 10 day return trek to Base Camp.

Travel in April to explore Egypt, and combine a Red Sea holiday relaxing on the beach and scuba diving amongst the beautiful coral reefs around Sharm el Sheikh, with a Nile Cruise between Cairo, Aswan and Luxor, visiting the spectacular pyramids and Sphinx, bazaars and temples.

Easter is celebrated in India with the territory of Goa, particularly popular.  As the Arabian Sea laps Goa’s shores, spend time on the endless warm sandy beaches and take time discovering the delights of the”North”  capital of Panjim, Fort Aguada and Candolim. Colva and Bogmalo are popular resorts in South Goa.  Make sure you pack lots of high factor sun lotion!

What could be more luxurious than escaping the cold, rain and snow and venturing off to a hot, sunny, peaceful oasis miles from any where?  You don’t need to spend a fortune for a winter island getaway in the sun but if relaxation is what you are looking for, then a winter holiday on a beautiful island is the perfect choice!

For holidays on the beautiful Seychelles islands it is best to wait until March when the rains have calmed, although the temperatures average about 29 degrees centigrade throughout the year. April and October are the best months to dive as the weather changes from winter to summer (and vice versa). The Seychelles’ Bird Island is just 30 minutes flight from Mahe and the journey is spectacular as you look down at the clear turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean sprinkled with tiny islands and coral cay.

On the glorious island of Mauritius, November to April is the summer time with water temperatures reaching up to 28 degrees centigrade and winds usually steadily blowing and warm.  Little islands are dotted around the Mauritius coast, so why not explore or stay on Ile aux Cerfs, Ile Ambre or Ile Ronde? Surf, swim, snorkel – horse ride, explore the botanical gardens of Pamplemousse or the leisure park near Port Louis.

If you’d rather enjoy a winter island getaway in the Caribbean then the popular island of Jamaica is where you should find a good selection of cheap holidays, and the weather is at its best, especially in the north of the island.  Choose a cheap all inclusive holiday in Jamaica where you may enjoy entertainment day and night, or choose a luxury spa hotel in Jamaica where you can relax and partake in many treatments. Play golf, take a trip to the Blue Mountains, try your hand at deep sea fishing or simply laze by the pool…

For a winter Caribbean island holiday you could also stay in the Cayman Islands, the Bahamas, Antigua, Barbados, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, Saint Kitts or Cuba.

In the South Pacific, the rainy season is from November to April, so for winter island getaways, why not wait until late April to visit the beautiful islands of Fiji, Tonga, Samoa or the Cook Islands?

For a getaway island holiday closer to home, Madeira in the Atlantic and the Canary Islands of Tenerife, Lanzarote and Gran Canaria are popular.

The winter is a great time to book cheap summer holidays with early booking bargains.  Low cost hotel and self catering accommodation, bargain flights and cheap car hire are all available now for summer 2010 holidays!

Summer holidays in the UK are recognized as departing between May and October, and this is the period that you will discover that the abundance of bargain charter and low cost summer flights can be matched with super low priced accommodation either cheap hotel s, reduce priced apartments or cut priced villas.

Teletext Holidays are offering cheap summer holidays from £172 per person leaving from Stansted on 26 August for 7 nights in Majorca, with Ibiza selling from £214 per person leaving the UK on 29 August for 7 nights (both holidays, staying in self catering accommodation).

Thomas Cook are also promoting numerous special offer summer holidays with savings of up to £400 per couple, cheap holidays from £149 per person and no flight supplements on a huge number of 2010 summer holidays.

Cheap family holidays may also be booked during the winter for travel in the summer, with numerous tour operators offering hundreds of free child places.

Other ways to ensure cheap summer holidays is by avoiding school holidays during July and August (and May Bank holiday), and by being flexible with your travel dates and days of the week, and if possible, by choosing a number of different destinations.

For just £210 per person you could spend a week in the Canary Island of Tenerife in the Hacienda Del Sol (“Std3” self catering accommodation) from Tuesday 18 May with Directline Holidays. The cheapest accommodation at the same apartment complex but travelling on Saturday 7 August for 7 nights is currently priced at £385 per person (“1brm” self catering accommodation).

Great locations to choose your cheap summer holidays are the Canaries such as Tenerife and Lanzarote, Spain including the Costa del Sol and Costa Brava, Greek Island summer holidays to beautiful locations such as Corfu, Crete and Skiathos, the Algarve in Portugal and Bulgaria for summer 2010 holidays.

Choose a cheap holiday further afield and you could spend your bargain summer holiday in Turkey, Egypt or Tunisia in Africa or Jamaica, St Lucia or the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean.

All prices and availability were correct on 27 November 2009 but may change.

There are many fabulous and exciting countries to visit for a New Year holiday worldwide.

Cheap holidays to Dominican Republic in the Caribbean are available at the moment (13 December) for one week departing from Gatwick on Wednesday 30th December with Thomson Holidays.  Stay in the four star plus all inclusive ClubHotel Riu Bambu in Bavaro, Punta Cana including coach transfers from £1393 per person.  Wake up on New Year’s morning to the beautiful sight of fourteen miles of white tropical beaches, and blow away the cobwebs of 2009 with games of water polo and volleyball, scuba diving lessons and windsurfing.

The beautiful Maldives and spectacular Seychelles in the Indian Ocean are extra special New Year holiday destinations. Kuoni Holidays have last minute offers for 7 nights from 28 December staying at the boutique five star Velassaru Hotel in the Maldives from £2263 per person, and Labriz Hotel in the Seychelles from £4401 per person.

Tropicalsky are offering holidays at the end of December to Le Meridien on the island of Phuket in Thailand, from £1209 per person for six nights and holidays to the Grand Mirage Resort and Thalasso Spa in Bali for 7 nights from £1439 per person.

If you are looking for a New Year Holiday for the family with lots of activities, a holiday in Orlando, Florida is always popular. Not only is there an extensive choice of accommodation in and around Orlando, but so much to keep the youngest to the oldest member of the family happy. Travel to the Orlando Theme Parks, Movie Studios and Orlando Shopping Malls and factory outlets for an exciting Florida holiday at New Year.  Holidayhypmarket have New Year package holidays available from £1193 per person for 7 nights, flying from Gatwick on 28 December and staying in a two star Resort hotel on room only basis.

Guaranteed there’ll be rain in the UK – but don’t let the weather get you down, there is plenty to do to escape it!

So where to go on your December holiday?   Hot or cold?

As Christmas approaches, the Caribbean is the perfect hot spot to spend the festive season. There is still last minute holiday availability in Grenada, Dominican Republic, St Lucia, Barbados and a selection of other Caribbean islands for Christmas holidays and New Year holidays; however, if you can complete your holiday before Christmas Day, you are likely to find that your total holiday package is a few hundred pounds cheaper per person than if taken during the end of December. For your December Caribbean holiday, choose to stay in a luxury all inclusive spa resort or in low cost self catering complex – there are December holidays to suit all budgets!

Alternatively, how about slightly further north of the Caribbean, off the Florida coast and north of Cuba; the Bahamas?  Over 700 islands and 2,500 cays make up The Bahamas, although most people are only familiar with New Providence Island where the city of Nassau is located, a charming and colonial setting with many exclusive beachfront hotels.

Head south to South America in December, and 400 miles off the coast east of Argentina are the Falkland Islands. An ideal winter holiday location to unwind and escape the hustle and bustle of daily life, the Falkland Islands is a natural paradise. Over 740 islands make up the Falklands, with beautiful long sandy beaches and outstanding flora and fauna.

Not so far from home, in the north of Africa is the fascinating country of Egypt, bordering the Mediterranean to the north and boasting some of the world’s most beautiful and ancient historic artefacts, as well as many world famous seaside and diving resorts along the Red Sea.  The days are pleasantly warm during the winter although the evenings may be a little chilly – take a light jumper or cardigan rather than a thick ski jacket though!  Combine a Nile Cruise with a city break in Luxor or Aswan, or spend a few weeks relaxing on the luscious pale sandy beaches or exploring the colourful sea life.

Christmas ski packages are exceedingly popular with families and groups, many staying in chalets which offer a very sociable atmosphere with everyone dining together.  Snow in Europe tends to be good around the Christmas to New Year period, especially in the French Alps, Switzerland and Austria, although of course, you could also ski in Canada or America. Ski resorts that you can almost guarantee will have snow throughout the ski season because of their high altitude or glacier location include Val d’Isere, Tignes, Les Deux Alps, La Plagne, Courchevel 1850 and Meribel in France, Courmayeur in Italy and St Anton, Austria.