Lazing around the Laguna de Apoyo

Never have I been to a more hammock-friendly country than Nicaragua. Here, hammocks are omnipresent. Every hotel, home, café and market flaunts their hammocks in front of me; ‘Come’, they seem to whisper, ‘get in, bring your book. Whatever it is you think you have to do, or wherever it is you think you have to be, you don’t. All will be well with the world if you envelope yourself in my fabric folds’.

Jemaa el-Fnaa By Night

Marrakech’s highlights are undoubtedly food and shopping and both are best accomplished in and around the legendary surroundings of Marrakech’s central square. Your shopping will be chaotic and your food eaten in a throng of people while the stalls’ sales people grab more customers from amongst the crowds, but the experience is unforgettable.

If you’re lucky rushing around the souks looking for that perfect tan leather handbag might just work off some of the calories from the barbecued meat and plentiful patisseries too.

Pool in Sri Lanka

You’re booking a hotel for your next break; you know you’ll spend little time in the room, but you’re lusting after a pool or an onsite spa. It will blow the budget but you just can’t resist. Sound familiar?

We’re all seduced into spending more than we planned, or staying in a less than ideal location by hotels’ designer credentials or leisure facilities, and unless we’re on a dedicated beach break, we know we’ll spend most of our time out and about exploring the destination not swimming in the hotel pool.