SEVEN HOURS

DUBAI 31C (88F)

Dubai will always be a sure-fire option for winter sun – it is never without the latter, and has no concept of the former. November is an ideal month to visit, as the heat has dropped from the infernal 40Cs of high summer to the palatable promise of the low 30Cs. Excellent accommodation abounds.

A seven-night half-board break at the five-star Fairmont The Palm, flying from Edinburgh on Nov 16, costs from £1,308pp via Destinology (01204 874516; destinology.co.uk).

OMAN 30C (86F)

If the regular criticism levelled at Dubai – that it doesn’t have much culture – leaves you scanning the map of the Middle East for somewhere with more substance (while still hoping to feel the sun on your back in November), then Oman is a plausible solution. A holiday there can mix the museums, mosques and opera house of the capital Muscat, and the desert dunes of Wahiba Sands, with turtlewatching at Ras al Jinz and some of the region’s best beaches.

Steppes Travel (01258 787501; steppestravel.com) offers an 11-day Highlights of Oman tour, incorporating all of this, from £4,095pp including flights.

BERMUDA 26C (79F)

The home of colourful shorts and mysterious triangles is often (mistakenly) thought to be part of the Caribbean. In reality, it lies a little closer to the UK – as the shorter flight time demonstrates. The effect – in terms of both the pleasantness of the weather and the beauty of shoreline – is much the same, however.

A seven-night break at the five-star Grotto Bay Beach Resort – on Bailey’s Bay in the north-east of the island – flying from Gatwick on Nov 20, starts at £2,046pp with Prestige Holidays (01425 480400; prestigeholidays.co.uk).

If Nelson decried the mosquitoes of Antigua, he had a happier time in Nevis