CELEBRATE AND ESCAPE ON ONE OF CHAPTERS EXPERIENCE HOLIDAYS CHRISTMAS AND WINTER BREAKS

Whether wanting to celebrate or escape Christmas and some of the winter period, expert lead Chapters Experience Holidays have it all worked out with a selection of holidays to whet even the most discerning of travellers’ appetites.

Whether festively floating round the stylishly lit Venetian canals over Christmas, snowshoeing through pristine Austrian wilderness or more exotically tucking into delicious, freshly cooked, street food on the streets of Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh, there will be no need to wonder what anyone else will doing for Christmas with these holidays to sink your teeth into.

Venice - La Serenissima

Magical at any time of year, Venice’s gondola festooned canals and impressive venetian treasures, such as the Doge’s Palace and St Mark’s Square, take on an invitingly eerie feel at Christmas when the mist rolls in off the water into the stylishly lit and near deserted alleyways to uncover beautifully decorated shops and a less touristy Venice with local Venetians festively going about their business. Exploring the city with a side trip to Padua, highlights of this one week holiday include exploring Piazza San Marco when only the pigeons are there, a boat trip across the lagoon to Murano, Burano and Torcello and contemplating Tintoretto’s amazing paintings in the Sculo di San Roco. In addition, time also spent meandering around the Christmas markets, with their lovely selection of Murano glass, marbled paper gifts and gourmet goodies, makes for the perfect opportunity to pick up that special gift.

Chapters Experience Holidays (01707246666, www.chaptersholidays.co.uk)Venice - La Serenissima one week half board holiday starts from £1,065/person including return flights, dinners in local restaurants, an expert leader and local transport. Departures: 21 December 2017

A Danube Christmas Delight

Celebrate in Vienna and Budapest, two of the finest cities on the Danube and discover the festive Tale of Two Cities. Wrap up warm for strolls through cobbled courtyards and bustling Christmas markets surrounded by twinkling fairy lights, traditional decorations and elegant architecture. Explore a museum or two before inviting smells from the numerous coffee houses tempt you in for a treat. Beginning in Vienna, this 9 day holiday takes in the city’s historic old town, the Opera House at Karlsplatz and magical Christmas markets which take place in front of the city hall. Transferring by train to the Hungarian capital, Budapest, a wonderful city divided by the Danube with the historic Buda on the right bank and modern Pest on the left, time is spent here exploring the Hungarian Parliament, Heroes Square, the Buda Royal Palace, Castle district and the beautiful Fishermen’s Bastion as well as the traditional Christmas market on Vörösmarty Square in the heart of Pest.

Chapters Experience Holidays (01707246666, www.chaptersholidays.co.uk) ‘A Danube Christmas Delight’ 9 day half board holiday starts from £1,199/person including return flights, local guides for half a day in each city, dinners in hotels and local restaurants, an expert leader and local transport. Departures: 24 December 2017

Kufsteinerland Winter Experience

With the New Year bringing the promise of new challenges, get the year off on the right foot with an exhilarating winter adventure snowshoeing through pristine Austrian wilderness near the Tyrolean Alps. Making the most of crisp, clear days, Kufsteinerland Winter Experience combines trekking in the snow and snowshoeing to remote, untouched areas in the beautiful Kaisertal Valley with cross country woodland trails to alpine villages. Taking in the famous spa town of Bad Häring and the historic border town of Kufstein with its landmark fortress offering impressive panoramic views of the region, days snowshoeing in the fresh alpine air are well-rewarded with tasty lunches of regional specialties at local alms (farms), a horse drawn carriage ride through gentle blankets of snow to a local distillery, a dramatic organ recital in Kufstein fortress and glühwein in the evening to warm any chilly bones.

Chapters Experience Holidays (01707246666, www.chaptersholidays.co.uk) ‘Kufsteinerland Winter Experience’ week long holiday starts from £955/person including return flights, accommodation, snowshoe hire, an expert leader, admission fees and local transport. Departures: 20 January 2018, 10 February 2018, 17 February 2018.

Colourful Cuba

Enjoy a toe-tapping Cuban Christmas or break from winter on a wonderful journey exploring the rhythmic delights of the Spanish colonial capital Havana and an island charmingly forgotten by time. Travelling into the fertile Sierra del Rosario Mountains, this Chapters Experience Holidays 16 day adventure begins by exploring the rare Viñales Valley Karst rock formations with walks through a fragrant countryside dotted with traditionally tended tobacco and pineapple plantations before travelling east to Baracoa - the landing site of Columbus. The trip then takes in Cuba’s second city Santiago, the intriguing labyrinthine city of Camaguay and old Trinidad - one of the best preserved colonial cities in the Americas, before culminating in a hike through the Sierra del Escambray mountains to visit an old slave plantation.  Returning to the coastal hub of Havana, where warm Caribbean breezes give way to the wafting scent of cigars, time is then spent cruising in a 1950’s taxi, trying your hand at cigar making or simply watching the world go by, sipping a refreshing Mojito, to the uplifting beat of ‘Social Club’ sounds.

Chapters Experience Holidays (01707246666, www.chaptersholidays.co.uk) 16 day ‘Colourful Cuba’ half board holiday starts from £2,775/person including return flights and transfers, all local transport for walking and sightseeing excursions, half board en-suite accommodation, services of a dedicated leader and a Cuban local guide. Departures 18 December 2017, 15 & 29 January, 12 February, 12 March 2018.

Vietnam Adventure

Not quite a million miles away from Christmas in the UK – although it may feel like it, Vietnam offers an exotic potpourri of magical landscapes, vibrant cities, ancient monuments and bustling street life. Journeying from French colonial influenced Ho Chi Minh City to the capital of Hanoi, Vietnam Adventure combines waterways with walking, whilst taking in some of the countries most fascinating attractions including the former French Hill station Da Lat – ‘the City of Eternal Spring; the 17th century trading port Hoi An with its enthralling jungle temple complex and UNESCO site ‘My Son’; and the 3000 extraordinary limestone island grottos and ‘stacks’ that are Halong Bay. Well punctuated with visits to aromatic floating markets and street food vendors where tucking into the likes of freshly made spring rolls and herb infused sticky chicken wings become the flavour of the day, the trip also includes smaller, yet equally rewarding, highlights such as meeting the locals on a walk around Hoa Binh village and swimming off the aqua waters of Titov Island.

Chapters Experience Holidays (01707 246666, www.chaptersholidays.co.uk) ‘Vietnam Adventure’ 19 night journey starts from £2925/person and includes flights, half board accommodation (taken in hotels and local restaurants), all local travel, transfers and entrance fees, five lunches, services of a dedicated leader and local English speaking guides throughout. Departures 12 December 2017 and 17 January 2018.

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