Holidays abroad 'still cheaper than the UK

Despite the falling pound and the credit crunch many foreign destinations are still cheaper than holidaying in Britain, according to a new study by travel firm Thomas Cook.

That holiday in the sun might not cost as much as you think.

The Holiday Cost of Living study, which compares prices in 16 popular holiday destinations, has shown that a cup of coffee in Goa will cost you ten times less than in the UK while other holiday hotspots such as Cuba also enjoy bargain prices.

Many other destinations are also ‘significantly cheaper’ with a three-course meal costing around £11.50 in Spain, while a beer in Bulgaria will set you back as little as £1.20.

Germany: Wine trail is a grape place to get away from it all

AS A keen gardener and the owner of a couple of grapevines that have yielded many pounds of delicious fruit during the past few years I jumped at the chance to see how professional growers cultivate their crops and turn their bounty into wine.

The launch of Ryanair’s budget service from Birmingham to Germany’s low-cost Frankfurt-Hahn airport, in the West Central region in Rhineland-Palatinate, has opened a convenient gateway to the Moselle Valley, one of Europe’s leading wine producing areas, particularly the white Riesling.

I hired a car from Hertz at the airport and leisurely drove the 41km to my base at the picturesque town of Cochem. En route I passed countless vineyards which clothed the slopes of the valley like a patchwork quilt. I passed through the village of Bremm which boasts Europe’s steepest vineyard, perched at a gravity-defying gradient of 65 per cent.

Motoring alongside the Mosel River I soon arrived at Cochem, which is overlooked by the fairytale-style Reichsburg castle.

My hotel, the Karl-Muller, was easily located as it stands near the town centre, overlooking the river.

At dinner that night I took advantage of the local specialities, choosing from a menu that included onion soup with Riesling wine, vegetables with Riesling sauce and a dessert of Zaboyone of Riesling wine with vanilla ice cream. Did I mention that a lot of Riesling grapes are grown in this region?

Oh, and there was also Riesling in a glass, as well as a red Dornfelder from the neighbouring village of Klotten.

I was looking forward to learning more about the wine but the next morning I had the opportunity of a guided tour of Cochem with Anja Fortier from the city’s tourist office.

We strolled around the narrow winding streets, calling in at St Martin’s Church and the Town Hall.

Anja also pointed out the entrance to the Kaiser Wilhelm railway tunnel, the longest in Germany. The four and a half kilometre feat of engineering took eight years to build and was opened in 1877.

A climb to 180m above sea level brought us to the castle, a Gothic-style building restored in 1877 to its 16th century splendour.

Marvellous views from an observation platform outside one of the castle’s rooms across the town and valley is the reward for the effort.

A conducted tour revealed collections of furniture, suits of armour and quirky items like a stuffed badger collected by the driving force behind the restoration, Louis Ravene, who bought the dilapidated castle from the Prussian state property administration for 300 gold marks.

It was time to have a close look at the vineyards. I met Andreas Zenz who has launched vineyard walking tours, Wein & Weg, to show where the grapes are grown for the area’s superior Breva wine.

To get from the road to the vines, however, we had to endure something akin to a slow motion rollercoaster; a Monorack which also transports the grape pickers to the top of the slopes.

This mini train travels, on a track, among the vines but the gradient is so steep it feels like you’re on a white knuckle ride.

Fortunately, it only went uphill to the start of our hike! During the walk Andreas explained that a number of winegrowers in the region had joined together as a co-operative to launch Breva which uses the best grapes for the wine. It’s more expensive to buy, around £10 a bottle, but the aim is to show that the Moselle Valley can produce high quality vino.

Stout walking shoes are advisable for the hike as the steep slope and shale underfoot can be treacherous! But at the end, I had the chance to find out how good the wine is.

Among the wines on offer was one made with the grape variety Regent, which is the type I grow. So now I know what it’s supposed to taste like when made into a first class wine!

Travel Facts

AIRLINE details: Ryanair flies four times a week from Birmingham to Frankfurt-Hahn. See www.ryanair.com or you can also book a Hertz car via the website at www.ryanair.hertz.com

Hotel: Prices at the Karl-Müller at Cochem start at 44 euros per person in a double room, including breakfast. You can stay seven nights for the price of six. Go to www.hotel-karl-mueller.de

Guided tour of Cochem: English tours organised by request at the tourist information office, +49 (0)2671 60040. You can also book tours along the Breva walking path. From April-October a four hour guided tour (in German) takes place every Friday, including a wine-grower’s meal and a wine tasting. It costs 25.80 euros.

Volunteering holidays – do good, have a blast

Which would you prefer?

Option A – beach, beer, beach and more beer. Surfing in the morning and lying in the hammock into the evening and then, off to the bars.

Option B – devoting all of your time to good causes. Spending your days – and some nights – giving yourself to a volunteer project, scientific pursuits or conservation.

It doesn’t have to be one or the other. You want to do something good for the world around you but you have no intention of waging a heroic one person war on all the injustices of the world. Your free time is for enjoyment as well as for good deeds.

If you chose option A exclusively, you’re not going to be interested in the rest of this article. You might want to switch to a website about rave drug safety or about vacation destinations with cheap booze.

Good deeds on vacation

A holiday in a far flung place can be tantalising, whether it’s sitting on a hammock reading a book or taking part in active sports. Imagine days spent boating on the high seas, maybe diving then spending evenings having cold beers underneath a thatched roof. AND it’s possible to have a trip where you can do good.

Helping the ocean

Conservation, research, cleanups. Examples include taking surveys of coral reefs in the South Pacific and surveying a turtle population in Central America.

You’ll be surrounded by marine life. If you don’t scuba dive already, this may be the opportunity to learn. Gain watermanship skills, meet people and have some very interesting experiences.

Helping communities

You may be supporting people on long-term projects or in helping out in times of trouble such as natural disasters (earthquakes, hurricanes etc) or civil insurrections and wars. You may be asked with building projects, teaching English. If you have specialist knowledge or training in fields such as nursing/medicine or IT, your skills may be called for in a health clinic or in connecting computers for the village school

You might be able to complement your academic studies or add valuable work experience to your curriculum vitae/resume.

Quality valuable time will be spent and the environment will benefit. You can contribute existing skills or learn new ones on a volunteer stint.

Where to go? What to do?

Proceed with caution and some skepticism. There is a plethora of organisations and companies – both private and not-for-profit – that will place you in a project or good cause holiday (usually for a fee). Make sure you find a reputable organiser for your volunteer projects.

What field are you interested in? Is it international development, scientific research or crisis assistance? What are you good at doing, what field would like to try or gain new skills in? Make sure you feel something is a good match before embarking.