🏝 Vacation ideas

Your time off is approved, but the destination is still open. Or the country is settled, yet it is unclear which coast, which island and which month would suit you best. These are the questions that bring readers to this section. We collect articles that help narrow the choice down to two or three options. You can check each of them against season, travel time and costs.

The largest group of articles follows the calendar. There are roundups for July, October, November, December and January: where you will find the dry season, a warm sea, festivals or harvest time in those months. Trips with children in May and October are covered separately. In the winter roundups we note where EU citizens need a visa and where it can be obtained online, and we advise checking the rules themselves with official sources.

The second group is about the sea and beaches. We compare pebbles and sand at resorts in Turkey, Hikkaduwa and Unawatuna, Greek islands with different kinds of vacation, and the coasts of Malaysia in winter and summer. There are overviews of Bali's beaches, beach resorts in the USA, quiet places in Bali beyond Kuta and uncrowded Greek beaches on Karpathos and Kefalonia. Families will find the roundups of hotels with kids' clubs in Punta Cana and of Turkish resorts for a vacation with children useful.

The third group: short itineraries and day trips. Monaco on foot in one day, Riga in two days, Gozo by ferry from Malta, outings from Avignon around Provence, excursions from Yerevan. Longer itineraries sit alongside them: Portugal from Lisbon to the Algarve, the island of São Miguel in the Azores, things to do in Cuba from Havana to Pico Turquino. Another theme is travel built around an event. That means the Christmas markets of Budapest, Vienna and Prague, Las Fallas in Valencia, Art Basel Miami Beach, Broadway musicals, Disney parks and cruises in the Baltic and the Caribbean. There are less usual topics too: caves, ghost towns, film studios with tours, a vacation without a smartphone.

Every article opens with a short conclusion: who the destination suits and in which season. Practical sections follow: how to get there, how much time to allow, what to buy in advance, where it is most convenient to stay. Each price and date comes with its source and the date it was checked. We are direct about the downsides: if the beach is crowded in season, the sea is cool or the journey is long, the text will say so.

The section is for those who are choosing between several destinations and want to compare them by clear criteria: season, sea, journey, budget, children's ages. It is also useful if you are looking for a reason to take a short trip. If you need a detailed guide to a single city with its districts and transport, you will not find enough here. A roundup gives you a direction and first reference points, not a complete plan.

A good place to start is the month of your trip. Open the roundup for that month and mark the options that work for weather and travel time. Then read the comparison articles on the country you have chosen: which coast, which island, which resort. Finally, look at a one-day or multi-day itinerary to judge what you could fill the trip with. That way the list gets shorter quickly.

This section belongs to "Types of travel". Next to it are the sections "Tourist ideas" and "For a note". If cost is your main criterion, see "Affordable vacation". If you are planning to keep moving and stay busy on the spot, "Active recreation", "Entertainment" and "Water parks" will come in handy. For reading before you set off, there is "Interesting facts".

We keep the articles up to date. Seasonal roundups are reviewed ahead of each new travel year, and prices, event dates and timetables are checked against the official websites of carriers, venues and tourism authorities. The date of the last check appears in every article. Visa conditions and entry rules change, so before buying tickets check them on the website of the consulate or the government authority of the country. Pick a month, compare two or three options and move on to a detailed plan.