What's It Like To Go Away For Christmas?

This is a question I've asked myself every year. I see people on cruises, celebrating on the beach, or cozying up in a mountain cabin and I could never wrap my head around it.

Christmas is the time of year that you’re traditionally meant to spend at home, with your family, and have a great time with loved ones around the tree, so going away for the holidays seems a bit out of my comfort zone. Packing up and leaving all my decorations behind seems so anti-festive but when I think about it, taking the people I love most with me to some exotic land, beach, or cabin to have a real festive season to remember isn't completely off my list.

So here's what I've concluded on what its like to go away for Christmas.

Some Destinations are Better Than Others...

But this all depends on what you want from your vacation, and that’s what makes listening to reviews and recommendations a little shifty from time to time. If you’re in the market for a vacation that’s best for the Christmas season, there are usually two types of destinations to look into that involves beanies or bikinis. Somewhere sunny, where you can forget about the cold and wet weather back home is an option, and somewhere where it’s cold and constantly snowing, so you have a 100% chance of experiencing a white Christmas.

Being able to head to the beach on Christmas day is a wonderful new and fun way to get into the festive spirit. I hear the coastline of Spain is magical with the Moroccan skyline in the distance. Drinking Margs and being merry doesn't sound too bad with a view like that on Christmas morning...

But, if Santa in a speedo doesn't fit your fancy,  you could head much more North, and stay in places like Finland, Switzerland, or Norway. Switzerland has quite a few famous skiing resorts like St. Moritz (which is the oldest winter vacationing resort in the world) or Zermatt.

I hope you're seeing what I'm seeing in that there’s quite a lot out there for you to settle into if you want to head away for the Christmas season and experience something better than the black ice that decorates your driveway. 

To book a hotel or to book something more private? That is the question...

Booking some accommodation for your Christmas getaway should be a big thing in your mind, as you want somewhere that’s going to allow you to fit all your presents and parcels in, as well as all your excited friends and family.

Food accommodations:

Do you want cheap food? Seasonal food? Or maybe you’re going to want somewhere that allows you the ability to cook up your own Christmas dinner if you’re a bit anal about how the turkey tastes!

Christmas Morning

It’s an important day of the year if you celebrate it, and you’re going to want to feel festive and cozy as you rise from a bed that you don’t even have to change. But what would be the best way to cater to these needs?

A hotel is an option most explored, seeing as you can book whole suites to fit you and one other into. If you’re only staying for like 3 days, a hotel is probably your best option. But if you’re going away at Christmas time to make sure you can explore a certain part of the world during the festive season, and enjoy a bunch of different celebrations going on around the world, a hostel will be the best value for your money here. And you can dart back and forth between different hostels.

But what about if the WHOLE family is going? I personally don't think hotels offer the "home for the holidays" vibe. Looking into some vacation rentals could be your saving grace, seeing as having a bit of privacy and a lot of space of your own means you can fit all kinds of decorations and party supplies into your accommodation space. A standard hotel room doesn’t allow that! And if you’re going away for a week or more, this might just be the better value for money option.

The Chance to Chase Down Your Childhood Dreams

A final and quick point, but it’s an important one! We've all wanted to get the chance to meet Santa. Hell, I'm 24 and I would still love to meet the jolly 'ol jingler so why not go in search for him this Christmas time? Lapland is a wonderful place to visit and you might just see the Northern Lights when you come out of Santa’s Grotto! You might find an empty cabin or specially built igloo to hang in while you're tucked in cozy inside and watching. If that's not festive I don't know what else you want in life.

I'm curious to know your thoughts though. How many of you travel for the holidays? Do you like it better or worse? What are your experiences with this?