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The Norfolk Broads by Norfolk Holiday Guide

The Norfolk Broads is an area consisting of many rivers and lakes situated close to the East coast of the county. In conjunction with the neighbouring Suffolk Broads it is the largest protected wetland and third largest inland waterway in Britain. Its status is equivalent to that of a national park, although it has not been designated as oneyet. The Broads Authority, set up in 1989, is responsible for conservation, planning, recreation and waterways.

The Broads, as it is commonly referred to, has an area of 303 square kilometers (for those who, like me, are struggling to come to terms with metrication that is 117 square miles). In its entirety it is made up of seven rivers, namely the Ant, Thurne, Bure, Chet, Yare, Waveney and Wensum, together with sixty three broads. Of these broads only thirteen are for the most part navigable, with three more having only channels which can be navigated. The total navigable waterways amount to 200 kilometers (125 miles) and provide some spectacular night-time scenery.

Intensive peat digging during medieval times is believed to have culminated in the creation of the broads. The result is an area which has, quite fittingly, been described as Britains Magical Waterland. It is home to a diverse range of plants, insects, birds and animals, many of which are the rarest in the UK and some of which are unique to this area. Our most beautiful insect, the Swallowtail butterfly, has made its home here and the delightful British Otter is making a welcome comeback here thanks to the landscape and the water quality.

The Norfolk Broads can be explored along the numerous footpaths and cycle tracks running parallel to the rivers, with bicycle hire available around the county. However, the best way to take in the beautiful landscape and its wildlife is to rent a boat and cruise the waterways at your leisure or to take a guided boat tour. There are many businesses throughout the area offering tours or boats of all shapes and sizes for hire. You can live on board or there is plenty of accommodation available in close proximity to moorings if you want to hire boats by the day.

The Norfolk Holiday Guide is managed by Wentworth Leisure Ltd, a family run company with a love of travel. We are committed to promoting the tourist trade in Norfolk and are doing everything we can to encourage visitors to choose Norfolk as their holiday destination. We are totally independent and are not connected in any way with the Norfolk Tourist Board or any other organisation in Norfolk.

The website is a contemporary, easy to use online guide for holidays within the county of Norfolk. We hope you will find all the information you require for visiting this popular tourist destination. This online guide will help you to choose the Norfolk holiday accommodation that best suits your needs. We have specially designed the Norfolk Holiday Guide website to offer you a quick and easy way to search for your tourist destination or service, with no commission paid to ourselves, as all bookings take place directly with the service you are looking for.

Looking for a holiday rental Explore Italy

There are many holiday rentals to choose from and some include the following favorite hot spots! Casa Capobianco Dolcedo is in the town Imperia, far away from this port town. The tranquility of Casa Capobianco has two bedrooms, the kitchen, and a bathroom. This beautiful house is for the person seeking peace and quiet and you still have mountains and the water surrounding you. You can also go hiking or bike riding.

Another great holiday rental is LUlivo di Sempre Verde. This apartment rental is located in Torria. This village is right in the middle of the olive growers in the mountains. It has a small pool to entertain your friends and it sleeps five people. There are three apartments here. You have an amazing view of the Ligurian Alps. There is plenty of parking if you and your friends want to go hiking or biking on the many trails surrounding the apartments. In about 20-25 minutes you can drive to the sandy beaches of Imperia. There is a path that leads to the center of the town where you can get fresh made bread and groceries or you can choose from several different quaint restaurants.

If you want a private beach then the newly built San Sebastiano No 130 is for you. This beautiful two bedroom has a breathtaking ocean view with its own pool if you do not want to swim in the ocean. This apartment complex is located in a quaint town called Bergeggi. This apartment comes totally furnished so you will not need anything else but your clothes. For a day of excitement you can go snorkeling or diving off the privately owned island of Capo Vado.

You will have plenty of Italian foods to choose from while you are here. You will be in heaven with the many delicious pestos, wines and fish and game. Oh and of course the favorite, Spaghetti! There are hundreds of fine Italian restaurants to choose from and you are sure to add at least a couple to your list of favorites!

There are so many beautiful holiday rentals in Italy and you know when you go there will always be someone who speaks English if you need it. There are several realtors who will help you plan out everything from the attractions to the housing. They will explain to you what all the different holiday rentals include and what they do not. They will tell you what type of entertainment that there is where you will be staying and if nothing you want is close they will give you an idea of where everything else is and how to get there. There are many that will even let you have your pets with you so they can enjoy your vacation with you. Your realtor can find the place that is just right for you so let them know everything you want and they will show you what they have. Your holiday is sure to be amazing!

Book Your Ski Holiday in France Enjoy the French Alps

Ski in Chamonix, Meribel, Tignes, La Plagne, Courchevel and more

When it comes to skiing, France is one of Europe’s top destinations. It is on the French-Italian border that the Alps, Europe’s greatest mountain range, reach their peak, in the eternal snows of Mont Blanc, at Chamonix. The French Alps offer the broadest range of skiing opportunities anywhere in Europe.

Why are Ski Holidays in France so Popular?

They offer an unbeaten combination of:
A vast choice of ski slopes and ski lifts
Snow quality and depth
A well established sports tourism industry
Over 400 fully equipped mountain resorts
The worlds biggest lift-linked ski areas
The potential for off-trail skiing on virgin snow
A choice of snow-boarding, ice skating and so many other winter sports

No wonder the French Alps are in many respects the worlds leading ski destination! Plan your ski holiday in France now. Compare holiday rental accomodation, prices and book online for booking your Alpine ski holidays.

Ski in the Alps with All the Comforts of Home

It is the French Alps that offer the broadest range of resorts, where the snow conditions are most reliable:

Les Portes du Soleil, (Avoriaz – Morzine) the northernmost area has a dozen resorts, including Avoriaz, the capital of snowboarding; and Morzine, a long-established resort, at an altitude of 1000m, with plenty of facilities for beginners.
Chamonix, in the Savoy Alps, lying at the foot of Mont Blanc, was the original French skiing resort, and for many years has been very popular with skiers from all over Europe. The area around Chamonix and Megve offers the fifth largest skiing area in France.
Les Arcs / La Plagne in the Haute Savoie offer plenty of high mountain skiing, so can usually guarantee good snow.
Tignes / Val d’Isre is a high mountain area, with some 300 km of pistes, many of them over 2,500 metres altitude.
The area of Les Trois Valles (Les 3 Valles), including the resorts of Courchevel, Val Thorens and Les Menuires, is the world’s largest ski area accessible with a single pass.
One of the largest resorts in the Alps, l’Alpe d’Huez offers a wide range of facilities, including plenty of slopes for beginners, and also opportunities for off-piste sking.
With 120 km of pistes, the southern Alpine resort of Isola 2000 is one of the sunniest ski resorts in France, one of the coldest, and also one of those that gets most snow.
There are plenty of other areas in the French Alps, but mostly smaller and for this reason often calmer, sometimes cheaper, and more family-oriented.

Online holiday planning sites can help you find catered chalets and holiday home rentals in favourite destinations such as Meribel, Morzine, Courchevel, Chamonix and Megeve, and in most other leading French resorts too. These can be budget options or fully kitted rental holiday homes with all the amenities and comforts of home like Internet, fireplace, sauna, washing machine and dishwasher.

Your ski holiday in France can be truly memorable and comfortable in every way. Search, compare and book online from a huge selection of Alpine chalets and holiday homes in nearly all the ski destinations in the Alps

The Holiday Meltdown Keeping Off Holiday Weight for Women

Ladies, those magical and fat-filled Holidays are just around the corner. Bountiful arrays of foods to entice you to feast on, high-cal drinks and constant snacks are all soon within reach. Possible unwanted pounds could be gained all too easily because of the eating variety this time of year brings. But, if pounds are undesired, why go out of your way to stuff face during all those holiday feasts and family gatherings?

Don’t cave and use the Holidays as an excuse to overindulge on all those hearty and unhealthful eatables. Instead, consider some alternatives to avoid an all too familiar holiday weight gain.

Clearly, most holiday foods are super fatty and high in calorie content, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t enjoy some of your favorite eats. Just be smart and attempt to cut back on their fatty and caloric values.

Start With a Fatty Cut Back:
Initially, start your day off with a generous breakfast, especially one full of protein. Eating protein is proven to keep you satisfied, as it takes longer to actually digest.
When partying, arrive with something already in your stomach. This way you’ll be less inclined to feast and constantly snack. Ideally, eat a little snack or small salad before you celebrate festivities at friends’ parties.
Avoid eating those sweets! Sugar cravings lead to an increased carbohydrate intake, which is detrimental when in excess. And when carbohydrate cravings are indulged upon a nasty cycle of continued carb consumption will ensue. Avoid those simple carbohydrates, and opt for complex ones instead, as they are more healthful and will sate your cravings more efficiently.
Constant running and shopping may keep you from eating well. Keep your kitchen stacked and supplied with an eclectic food selection. Mundane pantries lead to bland eating habits and poor health. Be varied and healthful instead, keeping in mind low fat and low cal eats!
Drinking on an empty stomach is also a no go. Always have a little something to eat while you’re drinking, as this can stop you from getting tipsy and being irrational with your holiday eating, or more typically, binging.
A fan of turkey? Opt to eat better and healthier with your birds. Choose skinless white meat rather than dark meat turkey.The manner in which you cook during the holidays is also a way to maintain your weight, shed pounds and just be mindful of unnecessary fats and calories.

Holiday Cooking Tips:
Pass your homemade gravy through a skimmer before serving to cut the fat and calories.
Opt to cook your stuffing outside the holiday bird and in a separate baking dish. External stuffing contains fewer calories and fat than stuffing cooked inside a turkey.
Provide items for family and friends at parties that are very low-cal and low-fat, such as a fresh fruit salad and steamed vegetables topped with lemon juice and herbs. And for snacking, serve pretzels and low-fat snack mixes instead of starchy, greasy chips and doodles.
Plate basic baked potatoes with your meals instead of sugary candied yams.
Instead of serving a rich, decadent pecan pie serve a humble and healthful apple pie topped with fat free frozen yogurt.
Using leftover meats from meals on sandwiches, use mustard instead of mayonnaise.In tandem with these healthful cut backs and cooking tips, you have to also stay active. Being sedentary over the holidays is asking for a weight gain. So, exercise! If anything, use exercise as a means to relieve built up holiday stress from all the shopping, in laws and frigid weather.

Taking a Holiday in Lytham St Annes

Lytham St Annes is situated on the beautiful Fylde Coast in Lancashire. The town is famous its Victorian heritage, and the town grew in popularity as a holiday destination for the well-heeled folk from the inland towns and cities of the industrial north.

Lytham sits alongside its rather noisier neighbour, Blackpool. Blackpool of course needs no further introduction, apart from to say that in recent years the town has undergone somewhat of a revival. The football team are sitting high in the premiership, and although the efforts to bring the supercasino to Blackpool ultimately failed, the town still has grand visions for a renaissance for much of its more salubrious areas.

But back to Lytham St Annes. The town has long been a haven for the retired, looking to settle down after a working career, in the quieter and refined surroundings of this picturesque place. Lytham is famous for its shopping and boutique stores, as well as its bustling cafe culture. St Annes is more of a holiday destination, boasting a wealth of quality hotels and holiday accommodation.

In particular, many of the St Annes hotels can be found along North Promenade, either side of the old Victorian pier. A lot of the hotels in St Annes cater equally well for families and business functions, although in line with many of the prevailing trends in recent years, many of them have had to move with the times and adjust their service offerings accordingly. A number of them have moved to exploit the wonderful array of golf courses in the area. Others now feature leisure facilities and spa packages.

Local hoteliers understand their market however, and pricing and facilities are always competitive. Hotel owners Lytham St Annes operate in a different environment than their counterparts further along the coast in Blackpool. Blackpool hotels very often rely for their trade in the peak summer months and the illuminations.

Lytham St Annes continues to thrive as a destination for holiday makers and day trippers alike, and with such a fine range of hotels, shops and attractions right on its doorstep, there is no reason why this shouldnt continue for many years to come.