Everyone needs a little sunshine in their lives and during the darkest depths of winter it can really chase the blues away if you fly off to a winter sun destination. There are lots of easily accessible places to spend a few relaxing days or weeks.

India is a truly diverse country with many different landscapes, regional variations of language and culture and ethnicity. For the beach-based break, head to the tropical destination of Goa, which offers palm fringed, soft white sand beaches and the fantastic local cuisine is world famous. Many thousands flock here during the winter months and it is easy to see what the attraction is.

Head to the United States of America and go south to the state of Florida, which offers the holidaymaker a wide variety of options. Treat the kids and the adults to a trip to Disneyland or venture even further south to the Florida Keys and follow in the footsteps of Ernest Hemingway by taking in some deep-water fishing.

To really experience the opposite seasons travel to the other side of the world and visit New Zealand. This beautiful country has truly spectacular scenery with vast mountains, rivers and lakes. There are natural springs to bathe in and at the top of the North Island, you can witness the coming together of two oceans, a sight once seen will never be forgotten.

Barbados offers a tropical paradise holiday with an edge of excitement. This island is surrounded by the beautiful, calm Caribbean Sea and enjoys a year round pleasant climate. The people are extremely hospitable and there is a very relaxed atmosphere to life here. There are lots of shopping opportunities, great nightlife locations, golf courses and lovely beaches, with associated water sports, to enjoy. This place is also known as the `little England of the Caribbean`.

Venture to Morocco and you will be rewarded with the opportunity to immerse yourself in a rich and interesting local culture. The souks in Marrakech are definitely not to be missed and there are many great and ancient buildings to visit in Fez, the capital city or, possibly the most famous city of Casablanca. For a beach break, visit Tetouan.

Whatever else you have planned for the long dark nights this winter, make sure you take advantage of London deals and don`t miss out on the chance to top up your Vitamin D.

There are so many exciting opportunities for adventure holidays across the United Kingdom. With activities such as hiking, horse riding, canoeing and kayaking in locations across beautiful locations including Welsh valleys, the Scottish Highlands and English moorlands the United Kingdom is the ideal choice for adventure holidays.

One of the most popular types of adventure holiday are water sports based holiday. These holidays include white water rafting, kayaking and canoeing. In terms of white water rafting, the two best locations in the United Kingdom are the River Trywryn in North Wales and The River Dee in North East Scotland. The River Trywryn is the location of the Canolfan Trywryn Whitewater centre and provides everything that beginners need including tuition and equipment hire. Both these locations are within close proximity to large towns with a wide range of accommodation available making it easy to plan white water rafting adventure holidays.

For kayaking and canoeing there are a range of excellent locations to try the sport or enhance existing skills. For beginners there are several half day taster courses available as well as intensive five day courses, teaching all the essential skills. These courses are available across the country with some of the best centres located in Wales as well as the opportunity to try sea kayaking on the North Coast. Many centres also offer accommodation packages which can include camping or local accommodation options.

Adventure holidays also take place off the water and one other popular type of adventure holiday is a climbing holiday. This can either incorporate traditional outdoor climbing and hiking or more modern indoor climbing. A number of activity centres including the Black Rock Activity centre in Somerset, offer rock climbing tuition as well as the full range of climbing safety equipment, ensuring ultimate safety especially for young climbers. There are also a number of centres located within the Peak District in Cumbria which offer hill trekking holidays as well as tuition in hill walking skills such as navigation.

A more gentle option for adventure holidays is horse riding and this can include horse trekking, tuition as well as advanced tuition for more experienced riders. One great location for horse riding is one of the many activity centres located in the and around the Scottish Highlands which provides beautiful scenery, health and well treated animals and well equipped staff. For children who are proficient horse riders there is also the chance to enjoy an unguided trek.

There are many more types of adventure holiday and these holidays are not just suitable for families, but also stag and hen parties who can take advantage of accommodation such as cottages in Lake District as well as apartments in nearby cities. Regardless of the type of activity the holiday is, there are so many brilliant locations and service to help make it the best holiday possible.

Known as the northern paradise and a top city characterised by modernity, elegance and style, Copenhagen is a place of superlatives. It is by far the most visited area in all the Scandinavia, host of the oldest monarchy in the world and stands alongside London and Oslo as one of the classiest capitals in the world.

Even though many people consider the climate summit held in Copenhagen in December 2009 as a political failure, in light of the event, the Danish capital reconfirmed itself as one of the greenest cities in the world.  Instead of energy consuming skyscrapers, Copenhagen’s architecture is based around classy eco-efficient three to four story buildings with colourful roofs and facades; instead of motorways and overcrowded boulevards it has wide pedestrian areas (the number of parks and green areas exceed the world average) with low pollution and instead of cars there are thousands of bikes and boats cutting through the city. Due to its recent green revolution, the city is host to tens of kilometres of bike lanes and visitors can make use of the free to use city-bikes (or bycyklen) that can be found all over the city. Winner of the European Environmental Management Award in 2006 , Copenhagen is one of the few capitals that tops several rankings conducted by green organizations ( Grist.org, Thefourgreensteps.com).

Copenhagen is a historical city, surrounded by water and ingeniously built on two islands: Zealand and Amager. The city has one of the most beautiful promenades in the world: Nyhavn, the 17th century waterfront. Within the wealth of classic architecture two key masterpieces stand out through their perfection: The Rosenburg Slot (Castle) and the Christiansborg Palace. Well worth a visit is the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, an art gallery opened by the Carlsberg founder, Carl Jacobsen. The spiritual patron of Copenhagen is no other than Hans Christian Andersen, the famous children literature writer whose statues are spread in different parts of the town. Andersen’s character, The Little Mermaid has become a symbol of the Danish Capital and her famous statue facing the sea near the Nyhavn waterfront is one of the most popular attractions in the city.

Repeatedly awarded top positions in ‘best city to live in’ rankings, the atmosphere in Copenhagen is tranquil, with a somewhat provincial feel. This combined with the 17th century architecture gives the impression that Copenhagen is a fairy tale city. Even though Denmark is one of the most expensive countries in Europe, the Danish people are very modest and extremely friendly. They show respect for tradition, for monarchy and for nature, and are extremely switched on to the issues of climate change and the actions individuals can take to combat it.

Not surprisingly, Copenhagen is the host of a range of important international events. The first event of the year is the Copenhagen Carnival in May followed by the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, one of the biggest festivals of this type and then the Golden Age Festival, a beautiful combination of arts and music.

With hundreds of boutique restaurants, bars, shopping malls and picturesque alleys, and a relaxed but forward-thinking culture, Copenhagen is an ideal place for a city break. Getting there has never been easier with Zoombu, a travel search engine and innovative London based start-up, which can help you plan your journey.  Discover the best route from your home to your destination in Copenhagen by browsing and comparing hundreds of routes involving flights, trains, driving, or even coaches.  Zoombu picks out and chose the right one for you depending on your time, budget, or environmental views.  Hurry up and join the green revolution in Copenhagen !

This spring, a friend of mine is embarking on a medical trek through Nepal to help locals with heathcare. After recently reading the inspiring book, Three Cups of Tea by Glen Mortenson, I am especially inspired by this volunteer work and wish Andrew the best of luck. To offset travel and trip expenses for this volunteer project, medical volunteers such as Andrew need our support. Below is an excerpt about the medical trek from his Facebook Trip:

You can follow Andrew’s fascinating journey on his blog, Andrew’s Himalyan Adventure.

If you would like to contribute to this great cause, why not consider supporting his efforts by making a small donation to help offset travel expenses. Note, if you do not have a Facebook account and would like to contribute, please contact MyTripGuru for help. Also, check out the Himalayan Healthcare website to find out about other ways how you can help.

While the Czech Republic may not be one of the world’s largest producers of beer, it is home to some of the world’s finest beers. The tradition of brewing beer runs deep here and there are numerous excellent breweries that also offer tours and tastings. The following are 5 breweries that are especially well known.

1. Pivovar Plzeň | Pilsen, Czech Republic

Beer Produced: Pilsner Urquell, Gambrinus

Read the review on Mytripguru.com

2. Pivovar Staropramen | Prague, Czech Republic

Beer produced: Staropramen, Branik, Stella Artois, Měšt’an, Vratislav

3. Budĕjovický Budvar n.p. | České Budĕjovice, Czech Republic

Beer produced: Budĕjovicky Budvar, Budweiser Budvar, Czechvar, Pardal

4. Královský pivovar Krušovice a.s. | Krušovice, Czech Republic

Beer produced: Krušovice, Mušketýr

5. Pivovar Velké Popovice | Velké Popovice, Czech Republic

Beer produced: Kozel

When I first moved to the Nahe wine region a year ago, I was blown away by the natural beauty, the excellent wines and the historical monuments to be found here. The Nahe, a wine region surrounding the Nahe River in southwestern Germany, is not one of the most internationally well-known wine regions in Germany but the beauty, accessibility and wide variety of wines makes this a place to watch. Due to its relative anonymity, the Nahe offers a great opportunity to experience local culture off the beaten path.

The Nahe is the second oldest wine region in Germany after the Mosel and includes the spa towns Bad Kreuznach, Bad Münster am Stein-Ebernburg and Bad Sobernheim as well as a number of smaller picturesque wine villages. The Nahe Wine Route, established just 30 years ago, winds through these towns and villages for 110 km.

There are excellent wineries to be found here at prices below the more well known regions such as the Mosel and Rheingau. Some of my favorite wineries include Genheimer Kiltz in Gutenberg and Johann Tulius in Bad Sobernheim. Try the Pinot Noir from Genheimer Kiltz. The 2007 vintage recently won the prestigious Gold Medal of the Mondial du Pinot Noir, an award that helps dispell the myth that Germany only produces world class white wines.

Besides wine, of course, there are lots of activities to do such as biking, hiking, spas, castles and ruins. Below are a couple of highlights:

Biking along the Nahe River

Spend a half day biking around the beautiful Nahe River region. You will see vineyards, stunning cliffs, forests, romantic towns and historical ruins. This 30km tour will take you past “Rotenfels”, the largest cliffs between Scandinavia and the Alps. Stop at Niederthaelerhof (between Schlossböckelheim and Oberhausen) for some food and some excellent wine from local vineyards. In Bad Münster am Stein, enjoy the medieval old town, the ruins of Rheingrafenstein, the Nahe River and spas. At a leisurely pace, expect to spend 5 hours for the tour. The tour is not difficult but there are two decent climbs.

Hiking on Rotenfels

Rotenfels, by Bad Münster am Stein and the Nahe River, is the highest cliff between Scandinavia and the Alps. It offers some spectacular views of the region, including some castles, the Nahe River, Bad Münster am Stein, and the surrounding vineyards. You can drive to the top and take a leisurely walk around the top of the cliffs.

Tour the ruins of Rheingrafenstein

Across the Nahe River facing Rotenfels lies Rheingrafenstein, castle ruins built on the face of the cliffs of a small mountain. Rheingrafenstein is reached by taking a ferry (actually, a small wooden raft) and then hiking up a forested trail for 20 minutes. The view is spectacular and the ruins themselves are a lot of fun to walk around in.

Relax in the spas of Bad Kreuznach

The spa town of Bad Kreuznach offers a variety of options to relax and unwind. The BÄDERHAUS has numerous saunas, steam baths, pools and relaxation areas along with a restaurant and rooftop terrace. Spend an hour in the nearby salt grotto, made with several tons of salt imported from the Dead Sea. The air you breath during just one hour in the salt grotto is the equivalent of spending 3 days oceanside. Finally, just sit on a bench next to one of the many saltworks in the Salinen Valley along the Nahe River, which help fight against sickness and afflictions such as rheumatism.

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