Valentine’s Day 14 February 2010 will be on Sunday, meaning that you have a whole weekend to celebrate in style!

What will you be doing for Valentine’s Day?

How about a Valentine’s Day Break in the UK? For one night or the whole weekend, you could be strolling through the ancient Scottish city of Edinburgh, living in the lap of luxury in a deluxe London hotel, snuggling up in front of a log fire in a cosy cottage in the Cotswolds, relaxing in a historic English inn or booking into a quaint hotel with a four poster bedroom in Warwickshire.

Steeped in history, why not have a Valentine’s break with a difference and stay in a fairytale castle, and if you’re not already married – why not pop the question in this perfect setting?  With stunning views over Loch Lomond, Cameron House offers an award winning 5 star experience never to be forgotten or alternatively the boutique hotel, Castle Venlaw in Pebbles, has a lovely superior double room, individually appointed for two nights over Valentines for £338.00 including dinner, bed and breakfast.

Longleat House, Safari and attractions will be open from 13 to 21 February to incorporate Valentines breaks and school half term.  For a romantic weekend away, why not look at the Bath Arms in Longleat, Warminster with its interior designed bedrooms, some themed (as in the Karma Sutra room!), and a wide selection of treatments including Thai Massage and Hopi Candles.

For gentle walks through the Pennines or Dales, the Jacobean manor, Holdsworth House Hotel is just two miles from Halifax.  The lovely Barn House is located in the village of Walkington near the M62 not far from Hull and York. For Valentines weekend you could choose to say in The French Provence double room, The Songbirds Kingsize room or The Raj Experience 4 poster room, each for £120 per room per night.

May be an interesting stay if you are familiar with Five’s Hotel Inspector progamme shown in July 2008, the West Usk Lighthouse, St Brides Wentlooge, Newport which has rooms with a waterbed or four poster bed. The lighthouse hotel can arrange trips to the village restaurant in a Rolls Royce and can arrange champagne and flowers for special occasions.  There is also an authentic Mongolian Yurt with double bed and two singles with a wood burning stove in the middle if you like to camp with a difference!

The annual Six Nations Rugby Competition is due to start next month, between England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France and Italy.

Historically, the English and Scottish started playing rugby union in 1871 which became the Home International Championship, with Ireland and Wales joining in 1883. One hundred years ago the French, who had played a few of the tournaments, made the competition the “Five Nations”.  Italy joined in 2000, hence the “Six Nations Championship”, with the Women’s Six Nations Competition commencing in 2001.

During the Championship each team plays each of the other teams just once with two points awarded to the winning team, one point each for a draw and no points for a loss. If a team wins every game they achieve a Grand Slam. If a Home Nation beats three other Home Nations, they win the Triple Crown Trophy, which was an invisible cup until 2006.

The Championship Trophy was first presented to France, the winners of 1993. Made by a team of silversmiths, the trophy, valued at around £55,000, was originally of silver but due to champagne corrosion (it can hold five bottles worth!) it is now covered with 22 carat gold plate. The 15 team members are represented by the 15 side panels of the Championship Trophy, with the referee and two touch judges represented by three handles.

The first match in 2010 will be Ireland v Italy on Saturday 6 February at 2.30pm playing at Croke Park in Dublin. The second match that day kicks off at 5pm at Twickenham with England playing Wales. Scotland and France will play at Murrayfield, Edinburgh at 3pm on Sunday 7 February.

Valentines weekend sees Wales playing Scotland at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, with France v Ireland at the Stade de France in Saint Denis near Paris – both matches are on Saturday 13 February.  At the Stadio Flainio in Rome on Sunday 14th Italy will play England at 3.30 local time.

Wales will then play France on the evening of Friday 26 February with Italy playing Scotland and England playing Ireland on Saturday afternoon.

Two weeks later on Saturday 13th March, Ireland will play Wales and Scotland will play England; France plays Italy on Sunday. The final three matches will all be played on Saturday 20th March; Wales v Italy at 2.30pm, Ireland v Scotland 5pm, France v England 8.45pm.

Ireland won the 2009 Six Nations Competition with a Grand Slam as Wales did in 2008. Who will win 2010?

January City Break Deals are available in abundance. Christmas is over, the New Year has started and we just want the party season to continue – or simply escape it!

So a romantic weekend in Paris or a few days in Barcelona? A city break in Rome, Italy or a shopping trip in Milan and a quick trip to the ski slopes? Follow the tracks of the stars through Cannes or enjoy a cheap weekend mini break in Amsterdam? A mid week city break in Porto, Portugal or a relaxing UK city holiday in Edinburgh?

Drive, hire a car, jump on a plane or sit back on a train to Edinburgh, capital of Scotland. Spend happy at the January sales, marvel at Turner’s watercolour collection at the National Gallery and explore the Old Town and New Town of Edinburgh, a wonderful UNESCO World Heritage Site in the city’s heart with its magnificent architecture and winding streets. If you take your city break in Edinburgh during the 25th January you’ll find you’re in Scotland for Burns Night, a celebration of poet Robert Burns who wrote Auld Lang Syne.

Book a cheap flight to Porto or Oporto for a January city break in Northern Portugal. If the weather is clear take a helicopter tour of Porto flying low over the River Duoro and its many bridges, the Vila Nova de Gaia centre for Port wine production and Porto’s spectacular Cathedral. Narrow streets, lined with picturesque Portuguese houses, lead you through both modern shops and unique boutique stores and round Porto’s many monuments and museums.

The weather is generally mild in Funchal capital of Madeira Island during January. The city slopes down from 1200 metres to the harbour, and staying high in the Monte area is a great experience as Funchal is access either by gondola lift or by the famous toboggan where two traditionally dressed drivers run with a large wicker basket at speed to Livramento. A city break in Funchal can either be relaxing in one of the many beautiful four and five star hotels, or exhilarating exploring the panoramic city with its extensive shops and levada walks through the hills.

Take a short break in Rome, on the banks of the Tiber River and enjoy this spectacular historic city with its many UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Visit the Vatican Museums and Roman Colosseum, the Borghese Gallery and stroll up the Spanish Steps. There are many archaeological sites in Rome including the Pantheon, Trajan’s Market and Forum Romanum.

With car hire shortages anticipated from 19th December for the Christmas and New Year holiday period 2009/2010, easyCar are warning their customers to book car hire NOW to avoid disappointment. 

The demand for rental cars has been historically high in the UK and Ireland during the Christmas season, but shortages are expected this winter in the popular cities and resorts of France, Portugal and Spain too.

easyCar reported in June 2009 that many areas of the UK, France and Spain had actually run out of hire cars during Easter, with the credit crunch leading car hire fleet operators to use their current stock of cars for longer periods, and not replace all of the older vehicles. A number of sources throughout the summer also stated that holidaymakers were more likely to book the small cars as they presumed they were cheaper, although this wasn’t always the case, which then led to the smaller cars being in very short supply.

Again the message regarding Christmas car hire availability with the shortage of cars and increasing prices being a problem, is that if you want to be sure that you will get the hire car of your choice, do not leave your rental booking until the last minute – BOOK NOW!

What could be a better way to get your Christmas shopping underway than by visiting one of the superb Christmas Markets which will shortly take throughout the length and breadth of the UK?

Next to the Abbey in the centre of Bath, festive wooden chalets will be set up donning Christmas gifts from 26th November to 6th December.  There will be three Christmas Markets in Bristol this winter, with twenty bespoke stalls selling their gifts at Goldbrick House, local gifts available at the Southville Centre and German crafts at Cribbs Causeway.

In London, visit the Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park which will be open from 21st November to 3rd January set in German wooden chalets, and the Spirit of Christmas Fair to be held at Olympia for just five days from 4th November should be quite spectacular! The largest London winter festival however boasting more than 70 stalls, as well as entertainment, music and husky dog sledding, will be in December between Southwark and Blackfriars Bridges on the South Bank, called the “Bankside Frost Fair”.

There will also be the Victorian Festival of Christmas at the end of November in Plymouth, with the Annual Worcester Christmas Fayre and Frankfurt Christmas Market, Birmingham, in the West Midlands.

Throughout December Manchester residents will be able to enjoy their traditional German Market, and in Chester the Christmas Market will have a truly continental flavour too. Along the cobbled streets of the city of Durham will be the Christmas Festival on the 5th and 6th December, with a children’s lantern procession, carols in Durham Cathedral, and over one hundred craft stalls and eateries. Around Grey’s Monument from 23rd November to 5th December you’ll discover the Continental Christmas Market in Newcastle upon Tyne, with the Christmas Market from 9th to 13th December.

Within the castle walls and through the town centre of Caerphilly, Wales on the 12th and 13th December Christmas fun will be had at the Caerphilly Medieval Market.

In Scotland, Edinburgh’s Christmas will start on the 26th November for around six weeks in and around Princes Street.  The Christmas lights will be switched on in the city and there will be an ice rink, funfair and German Market. In Glasgow, the bustling shopping district and St Enoch Square will be transformed into a winter wonderland from 27th November until Christmas Eve.

Fire Eating displays, mulled wine drinking, shopping and eating, as well as Santa visits will be available from mid November to mid December in Belfast, Northern Ireland.