ENJOY AN EXTRA DAY IN THE SUN
Every turn of this African river
PRAGUE: Pay £99 per person (saving up to £129pp) for a two-night stay at the four-star Red & Blue Design Hotel, departing from January 26 from Stansted. Book at loveholidays.com.
DEVON: Celebrate New Year on a sheep farm near Plymtree, Devon, for £402, reduced from £525, for a week. The Milk Shed, which sleeps four, with two dogs welcome, has a games barn and a caravan for children to play in. A pub and shop are within a mile, with goodies on arrival on December 29. Book at helpfulholidays.co.uk
or 01647 433 593. NEW YORK AND BOSTON: THOSE final few hours of a beach holiday are precious and I often opt for an evening return flight to catch those last remaining rays.
But that often proves to be a good idea in theory and less so in reality.
Usually having to check out at 10am, the only real option is to sit in the hotel all day because venturing too far runs the risk of a mad dash to pick up luggage and get to the airport in time.
Fortunately, Virgin Holidays has come up with a solution – a new Departure Beach in Barbados, promising to salvage that “lost last day”.
Transfers collect you from your hotel as you check out and drop you off at a gorgeous beach to lap up all the last rays before enjoying a stunning sunset view – if your flight is late enough, of course.
You can even check in for your flight while feeling the sand between your toes. You’ll get your boarding pass as your luggage is swiftly whisked off to the airport, leaving you free to enjoy the surroundings.
There is a very nice beach bar (I enjoyed rum cocktails served in coconuts), plus a glorious patch of warm sand and inviting blue sea to dip in. Hand luggage can be kept safe in a locker, too.
Or if you prefer the full lounge-style warm-up to the flight home, enjoy an air-conditioned bar area with lunch, teas and soft drinks included in the price, plus free wi-fi and a gaming area to keep the children occupied.
Either way, as boarding time approaches, you can rid yourself of the sand and seawater with a hot shower, pop your swimsuit into the plastic bags provided and hop on the waiting airport transfer.
Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson was there in person for the Departure Beach launch and said: “I’ve flown in for it because I love it when our team creates something special like this. To have the luxury of something like this on your last day is really nice.
“I’m proud of what Virgin Holidays have done in the past 35 years.
“When we have a delayed flight at our Heathrow lounge, we sometimes get a round of applause – everyone’s so happy there! We would like that same sort of feel here.”
Celebrity guests at the launch included singer Pixie Lott and TV presenter Laura Whitmore.
And if this bold and brilliant concept takes off, you can expect Virgin to open more elsewhere.