With the Festive season over, many of us look for some much needed winter sunshine and with Valentine’s Day around the corner there are some great destinations perfect for the month of love.
1. New Orleans
Is there a better time than February to visit the Big Easy? Not only is the raw humidity of the Louisiana summer yet to awaken, but the city’s most famous carnival, Mardi Gras, dominates the month. February 13 will be the big day of celebration in 2019, but you can expect a full week of parades, music, razzmatazz and merriment on St Charles Avenue and in the French Quarter in the build-up to Fat Tuesday.
Take me to New Orleans
2. Marrakesh, Morocco
The Moroccan capital is at its best in February, when days are sun-baked but rarely sweaty, and nights are refreshingly cool, ideal for downing cinnamon-spiced pastilla and rich lamb tagine. Spend the morning wandering the souks, skipping from sellers hawking handmade leather bags and sandals to those peddling rainbows of silk pashminas (don’t forget to haggle). Afterwards, plunk yourself at a garden-fringed hotel pool – Four Seasons Resort Marrakesh, Hotel price reduced from £361 to £298 just outside the souk, is one of the most tranquil hotels. Emirates are offering World Privilege Plus members an incredible 5% off flights.
Take Me to Marrakesh
3. Barbados
Powder-white sands lapped by azure waves, frosted cocktails made from punchy local rum, glitzy hotels – if you want a sultry Valentine’s break, Barbados is hard to beat. Sexy places to stay, from hideaway villas to plush resorts, line its western shores, while seafood-stacked restaurants, such as The Cliff or Cin Cin, are perfect for a sundowner tête-à-tête. The cherry on the cake? Tax-free shopping in colonial Bridgetown – because nothing says ‘I love you’ like a cut-price diamond-encrusted watch. With up 60% off over 270 Hotels to choose from your money is going a lot further with your World Privilege Plus Membership.
Take me to Barbados
4. The Maldives
Some 1,192 islets and coral outcrops – stretched across 26 atolls and 35,000 square miles of water – make up this archipelago nation in the Indian Ocean. golden sands, swaying palm trees, azure shallows. If you want variety of terrain, do not visit the Maldives. If you want temperatures in the thirties Celsius and unrestrained beach luxury, you have chosen well. World Privilege Plus have partners with Maldives Aficionado membership Amilla Fushi and Finolhu Resorts (contact us directly for more details) to provide you with a host of complementary services and upgrade.
Take me to The Maldives
5. Oman
Neither as grandstanding as Dubai, nor as grand as Abu Dhabi (whose long-in-percolation outpost of the Louvre opened last year, while the Guggenheim has yet to be unveiled), Oman is the calmer cousin of the Arabian Peninsula. But it should not be underestimated as a possibility for winter sun. Both Zighy Bay and Sur are alluring places for beach escapes; Muscat is a city of underappreciated culture and sophistication.
Take me to Oman
6. St Lucia
St Lucia is one of the Caribbean’s most coveted destinations – and with good reason. Its west coast is home to some of the planet’s loveliest beaches, including the golden strip of Anse Chastanet – while the twin volcanic bluffs of Gros and Petit Piton offer hiking and climbing challenges, as well as wonderful photos. Discover the best kept secret in Saint Lucia and immerse yourself in true Caribbean luxury. East Winds is a breath taking tropical garden by the sea, set on a sandy, secluded storybook beach. Our Caribbean hideaway is the island’s original boutique resort, featuring 30 cottage style suites and an Ocean front beach house, tucked away amongst lush plants, trees, and a kaleidoscope of colourful bird life. Members get up to 30% off.
Take me to St Lucia
7. Zanzibar
This feted slice of sand and sunshine is a continental junction box – officially African in that it is part of Tanzania, seductively Middle Eastern in the mercantile heritage of Stone Town (which was once the capital of Oman), temptingly tropical in the way the Indian Ocean laps at its sides. Of course, this clash of cultures only makes Zanzibar more exotic – and the weather is largely reliable, flirting with the thirties Celsius as February dawns.
Take me to Zanzibar
8. Hawaii
There can be no doubt that America’s mid-Pacific archipelago requires quite a journey from the UK, and an 11-hour slug of jetlag once you arrive. But there are few better cures for such time difference than the soft sands of Waikiki Beach – the sunshine strip which adorns the southern edge of the state capital Honolulu, on Oahu. And the sight of the volcanic titans Kilauea and Mauna Loa, on the “Big Island”, is sure to awaken the senses.
Take me to Hawaii
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