‘We took a Christmas picnic and watched the start of the Sydney to Hobart race’

From Australia to Namibia, Venezuela and Mauritius, here are the countries that ticked all your boxes for winter sun breaks

FEEL THE HEAT

Looking up at Le Morne Brabant, on the southwest tip of Mauritius, I was struck by the mountain’s verdant surface. Below lay a landscape of thatched huts and low-level dwellings (one of them mine) along a coast of azure sea and white coral sands flanked by palms.

The intense heat was wonderful after the big freeze and weeks of drizzle back home. Next day saw me jetting by speedboat to Ile aux Cerfs, where we stopped for a lunch of baked local fish, mango and papaya picked fresh from the trees above. Sega (the national dance) was performed gently and rhythmically – and I joined in, feet melting into warm, wet sand. Winter back home will certainly feel shorter. Sue Talbot, Buckinghamshire

CHRISTMAS CARACAS

After the atrocities of 9/11, long-haul flights were a hard sell: we bought a return fare from London to Caracas for just £200 each. A short hop on a rickety DC-9 took us to Isla de Margarita, Venezuela’s Caribbean island. It delivered every tropical cliché: azure sea, waving palms and golden sand.

There was no middle class in Venezuela, the taxi driver told us – only the very rich and the poor. From Monday to Friday, the beach was quiet, but at the weekend, the wealthy of Caracas jetted in. We had to budge up on the sand to accommodate a family with hamper and coolbox. The reward? “Muchas gracias” and a glass of 18-yearold Chivas Regal whisky at 11am. Simon Channon, Nottinghamshire

INTO AFRICA

For British people, especially citydwellers, a winter holiday in Namibia ticks most boxes. Adventure? Try the rugged Fish River Canyon Trail, or quad-biking on the sands near Swakopmund. Nature? The Sossusvlei dunes, or the salt road along the Skeleton Coast, strewn with shipwrecks. Wildlife? Etosha National Park and the Caprivi Strip rival anywhere in Africa.

There are no language problems and you can expect excellent value for money. The beer is good, thanks to a strong German influence. And the weather? In a word: sunshine.

Why will city-dwellers appreciate it? Because of the delight of vast open spaces and traffic-free roads.

David Syme, Edinburgh