OKINAWA

When craving winter sun in an interesting locale, few people think of Japan. Their loss is your gain: Okinawa sits on the same latitude as Florida and midwinter temperatures rarely dip below 20C. This cluster of 49 inhabited islands and

111 deserted ones are firmly off the mainstream tourist map, yet the sub-tropical seas nurture exotic marine life such as green damselfish alongside gorgeous reefs and underwater ruins; it’s a paradise for snorkelling and diving. If history is more your style, you can explore the five remaining castles of the Ryukyu dynasty, all Unesco Heritage Sites, or trace relics from the Battle of Okinawa in the Second World War.