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DEALS

Sun, sea and under seven hours: the best bargain mid-haul spots

Try these magical holiday hotspots without the jet lag

Boa Vista in Cape Verde
Boa Vista in Cape Verde
ALAMY
The Sunday Times

1. Cape Verde

For beach and surf
Flying time: 6hr

Even some of the most tenacious winter sunseekers aren’t sure what — or where — Cape Verde is, so we’ll clear things up. Cape Verde is an archipelago of ten islands 400 miles off the coast of Senegal, west Africa. Here the average high in December is a windy 26C and there’s a mix of African, Brazilian and Portuguese influences. The confusion comes about because mainstream tourism has really only hit one island, Sal, where dozens of beach hotels, including the Halos Casa Resort, offer all-inclusive deals for under £650pp (tui.co.uk). However other islands, Boa Vista, Sao Vicente and Santiago, are opening up, offering hiking, stargazing and volcano-climbing to adventurers.
Details
Seven nights’ B&B from £789pp, including flights (capeverde.co.uk)

Lanzarote in Spain
Lanzarote in Spain
CLICK&BOO/GETTY IMAGES

2. Lanzarote, Spain

For an arty escape
Flying time: 4hr

Lanzarote is an island shaped by the local-born architect and artist César Manrique — and it couldn’t be more different from busier Tenerife and Gran Canaria. Manrique stopped high-rise development in its tracks in the 1960s, leaving a landscape that is lunar-like in places, jungly in others, and populated only by low-rise, whitewashed villages. For the best weather, stay south at the Princesa Yaiza Suite Hotel Resort, but be sure to explore by car, spotting Manrique’s wind sculptures, public miradors and art foundation as you go.
Details
Seven nights’ B&B from £629pp, including transfers (elegant resorts.co.uk). Fly to Arrecife

Brunch in Tel Aviv
Brunch in Tel Aviv
ALEXANDER SPATARI/GETTY IMAGES

3. Tel Aviv, Israel

For a slick city break
Flying time: 5hr

There’s something about passing the five-hour mark on a flight that means you expect a little extra from this trip — cocktails and sunloungers simply won’t cut it. Which is where Tel Aviv steps in, with its stylish hotels and buzzing beach clubs (the sceniest being on Hilton Beach). There’s also the Old City of Jaffa, home to mosques and a famed flea market, as well as art galleries to match Brooklyn’s and modernist architecture that sparkles in the winter sunshine. Jerusalem is only a 35-minute train ride away, and the Dead Sea not much further beyond. Stay at the Publica Isrotel just north of the city.
Details
Three nights’ room only from £650pp, including flights (virginholidays.co.uk)

Taghazout in Morocco
Taghazout in Morocco
ALPHOTOGRAPHIC/GETTY IMAGES

4. Taghazout, Morocco

For off-grid adventure
Flying time: 4hr (to Agadir)

At this time of the year the beaches in the country’s north, such as Tangier, are a little too chilly for sunbathing. Instead, head south to sleepy fishing village turned surf town Taghazout, where it’s 28C now and there’s wall-to-wall sunshine. Not a surfer? Not a problem. Fill sunny days with beach yoga, hike in Paradise Valley in the foothills of the High Atlas, spend dirhams at Agadir’s souk, or just pick any rooftop restaurant and hoover up views of the Atlantic with your lamb tagine. The five-star Hyatt Regency hotel faces the beach and has a 27-hole golf course.
Details
Seven nights’ room only from £521pp, including flights (thomascook.com)

Best villas in Morocco
14 amazing hotels in Tel Aviv

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The Red Sea in Egypt
The Red Sea in Egypt
WESTEND61/GETTY IMAGES

5. Red Sea, Egypt

For scuba and antiquities
Flying time: 5hr 30min (to Hurghada)

Both of Egypt’s best-known holiday resorts — Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada — sit on the Red Sea and show off the best scuba and snorkelling you’ll find under six hours from the UK. But the latter, on the mainland, is also driving distance from Luxor’s Valley of the Kings, the Nile for a day’s cruise, and even Cairo and the pyramids at Giza (best enjoyed as an overnighter). Daytime December temperatures at the sandy beach next to Hurghada’s Long Beach Resort regularly hit 24C which, with a wonder of the ancient world thrown in, is about as fulfilling as a week’s holiday gets.
Details
Seven nights’ all-inclusive from £562pp, including flights (easyjet.com)

The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi
BUENA VISTA IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES

6. Abu Dhabi, UAE

For affordable yet flash hotels
Flying time: 6hr 45min
More cerebral than Dubai, but not as history-heavy as Jordan, Abu Dhabi is just the right holiday balance. The hotels, such as the Rixos Premium Saadiyat Island, are fabulously five-star yet often affordable, offering all the infinity pools and barmen on rollerskates your social media could wish for. Yet, within a 15-minute cab ride from anywhere in the city, you also have the wondrous Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, the angular Louvre Abu Dhabi gallery, ancient waterways at Eastern Mangrove National Park, and turtle spotting on Saadiyat Island. Oh yes, and the average high in December is 26C.
Details
Five nights’ all-inclusive from £1,345pp, including flights (kenwoodtravel.co.uk)

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