Winter, Wondrous Winter Holidays | ExpatWoman.com
 

Winter, Wondrous Winter Holidays

Here's a look at some great winter holiday ideas and destinations for the whole family to enjoy together.

Posted on

31 July 2013

Last updated on 14 January 2020
Winter, Wondrous Winter Holidays

The fabulous thing about living in the Middle East is that we are literally in the middle of the map and travel is easy, whether you choose to go North or South this winter.


Visit Santa’s workshop 

New York is an amazing city, a holiday experience year round. If there are little ones in the family who have not been naughty, but very nice and deserve an incredible adventure EW has unearthed a little gem. In the State of New York, USA, there is a small village called the North Pole. This village caters to the little ones with fun rides and shows, it is frozen year round. There are many things to see and do. One of the most exciting being the opportunity for the children to visit Santa and Mrs. Clause in their home and tell them of all their Christmas wishes.

North Pole NY

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Disneyland Paris

The little ones will love the opportunity to meet Mickey, Mini and Pluto while the older children will get a kick out of the fast rides and haunted house. It’s a classic family getaway for a reason. There is not a single small child that would be disappointed with the enchantment provided by the castles and princesses in fantasy land or the fun rides in adventure land. The whole family can take a stroll down Main Street USA and mingle with their favourite
Disney characters. All in all visiting the place of fairy tales and imagination is bound to enchant the entire family and leave them with memories for years to come.

Disneyland Paris

Skiing 

This has been and will be the classic winter holiday for many families. It creates strong bonds between families as the lunchtime conversation is usually lively with discussion of new achievements on the slopes, what was seen and plans for the afternoon and surprisingly early bed times with the whole family exhausted by nature’s playground. Families can stay close by and opt for a skiing trip in one of the neighboring regions such as Lebanon or they can opt for Europe, USA or Canada for their skiing adventure. If you’re skiing on a budget then consider Borovets Bulgaria for the family holiday. The snow is powdery and the slopes are as challenging as you need them to be. There are countless kid’s activities with crèches for the very little ones. All in all Bulgaria provides a great value for money skiing holiday.

Skiing


Boulders Penguin Colony, Cape Town 

Penguins are known to be arctic creatures and last place that one would expect to find them is in South Africa, but this is one of the best destinations for penguin viewing. The children, whether they are young or in their teens, will be delighted at the opportunity to share a beach with penguins in their natural habitat. Boulders beach is one of the few places where man and penguin roam together. Cape Town is full of holiday activities for the whole family. This is another warm winter destination for the families that want to keep warm this winter.

Boulders beach Cape Town
 

Ice Skating in the Americas

Rideau Canal is located in the state of Ottawa in Canada this canal transforms into the world’s largest ice rink in the winter months. The Canal also becomes the highway to the center of Ottawa’s Winterlude festival, held over three weekends in February. The whole family will also enjoy the Ville de Gatineau’s Snowflake Kingdom, the largest snow playground on the continent of North America. A Zócalo (pictured below) is the largest ice skating rink in South America is found in Mexico City. If you are looking to get the family away from the bitterly cold winters of the north then head on down South. Ice skating in the sun is bound to be an exhilarating experience. The whole family can head down to the beach after spending some time on the ice.
 
A Zolaco
 

South Korea 

South Korea gets the winds blown in from Siberia and is exceptionally cold during winter. However it is a city’s city and offers visitors some very contemporary takes on winter activities. There is skiing and snowboarding available as well as Ice Skating in the center of the city. Furthermore the whole family can enjoy the natural wonders of the mountains and national parks. Although this may not be an ideal holiday for little ones, the older children will be enchanted by the incredibly savvy South Korea.
 
Ice Skating Seoul

Whatever the destination there is definitely one big PLUS to living in the UAE and that is that the choice of holiday destination is vast and fabulous. Families can choose to go on holiday to the North or the South or just stay put in the region. Whatever the choice remember to have a fab time this winter holiday!!

 


Pictures sourced from: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

 
 

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