One of the best books of the year has been recently been published by the Irish Hotels Federation: Be Our Guest. This annual publication lists a great selection of hotels and guesthouses all over Ireland.
Essential reading for anyone planning a holiday, or for business people who travel or use meeting rooms. The guide lists accommodation by county and is personalised with photographs of the proprietors or managers. It also where to stay when your play golf or go fishing. Great value for £2 from local tourist boards or IHF, 13 Northbrook Road, Dublin 4, Tel: 01 497 6459.
Good news for travellers to or from the United Kingdom this Christmas. British Midland have added 112 extra flights on Dublin from Heathrow and East Midlands. Ryanair have added more than 200 flights on their extensive route network including Paris and Brussels. They will lease in an additional five aircraft for the holiday period, giving access to their low fares to over 200,000 people.
Getting married in the New Year, looking for that special hotel for your honeymoon, then the soon to be published Special Honeymoon Hotel book is a must. Published by World Destinations Publishing in association with You and Your Wedding magazine it will be a rollcall of the finest, most stylish, romantic and exciting places to be married, hold a reception or go on honeymoon. It will also have advice and tips for future brides. There will be separate sections on cruise lines, short-stay hotels and hotels catering for couples only. It will be available from most good bookshops and priced around £6.
Every year thousands of Spanish students come of Ireland to learn English, but now here is your chance to return the compliment and go to to learn Spanish.
The Bonanova School is located in Fuengirola in the province of Andalusia, which will be familar to many Irish visitors. The intensive courses can be taken at the school or in a teacher's own home.
Pupils can study for a diploma in Spanish certified by the Instituto Cervantes. Courses are graded to your level and you can also take Spanish culture and civilisation classes. Fuengirola is 25 kilometres from Malaga: fees are from about £300 for two weeks . Details from C/. San Rafael, 17, E-29640 Fuengirola (Malaga). Tel: 00 34 5 247 9735 or email: bonanova@cece.es.
Conservation Corporation Africa (CCA) - the finest African safari company has established its European Sales Office in Dublin. Committed to African conservation development through the expansion or green frontiers and uplifting rural communities CCA brings discerning travellers to its game lodges in some of the most spectacular locations in African. The lodges are in South and East Africa, and are built in local styles but with five star amenities. Game drives are organised with local guides and they have restocked such animals as white rhino, elephant, cheetah, giraffe, zebra, wildebeest and antelope in their reserves.
Eco-tourism at its best. Call for their stunning brochure, 01 662 3222.
- Compiled by Joan Scales