Could these wet and windy weeks be the start of a cold and miserable winter that you will want to get away from. Many people including myself were hoping for a nice summer in the UK which never materialised so are in need of some sun and warmth, this is where the growth in the villa market comes to help. Many see a private villa as a getaway for the main summer holiday and could be missing the full all year appeal and bargains that can be found by booking out of season. The winter season offers are coming through the site with some attractive bargains to ease the pocket with an early winter trip

When making the choice to book a villa holiday for the next family vacation can be a major decision that can turn your annual holiday into a trip that you will remember for many years to come and hopefully bring you back and book a villa year after year. Offering freedom and relaxation this could be the best choice you can make, don’t take my word for it there are thousands of people each year that enjoy luxury accommodation.

Continuing our development of the tourist info sections of the site an overview guide page for Spain has been added, a tourist guide for Spain has been added to the travel guides section with some general information on the country, indivual sections for each are will be following.

There will be some personal travellers experience guides being added over the next couple of weeks to give our visitors a personal impression of the destination they will be visting.

We have a large selection of holiday villas and apartments on the site all over Europe including the well known destinations and some not so well known holiday destinations. We are updating the tourist info sections of the site to include some useful information that will help our site visitors in selecting the perfect accommodation for their needs and helping plan excursions and activities for their holiday. A tourist guide for Croatia has been added to the site with some general information on the country.

There are also a selection of personal guides written by travellers on their experiences and tips on what they enjoyed on thier holiday.

I have been searching through the listings to find some of the best offers on the site for you, this weeks focus is on gites in France now with over 8500 accommodation villas and apartments in France to choose from I am sure we can find something for everybody;

Normandy

Hop over to France on a cheap ferry ticket and spend the weekend in Normandy only a short drive away from Calais

La Rabouillere – Englancourt – 20/11/09, Weekend sleeps 9 people £234

Les Aires – Epagnette – 20/11/09 – Romantic weekend getaway for 2 £134

La Bailotte – Luzior - 21/11/09 – 1 week sleeps 8 for £350, this property offers excellant value for money costing £43.75 each for a weeks accommodation.

Loire Valley

Sauvegrain gite – Chinon – 21/11/09, 1 week sleeps 4 £279, this property is 1 hour by TGV from Paris with a collection service availble from the station

Holiday Park Chalet – Chef Boutonne – 21/11/09 1 week sleeps 6 £213 this gite is equiped for handicaped guests, indoor heated swimming pool, restaurant and bar are located on the site.

Languedoc

Hotel de Margailler – Beucaire – 21/11/09 – 1 week sleeps 3 £236 a beautiful apartment in a private hotel dating from 1675

Residence Montpellier – 21/11/09 – 1 week sleeps 2 £481 10 minutes from the centre of Montpellier and 15 mins from the sea

The markets for adventure holidays is growing each year and with more people looking to get out and do something on their yearly holiday instead on laying on the beach or following the other half around the shops looking to buy that perfect holiday souvenir.

Mountain Biking Holidays

I am bit biased on this subject as I cant think of anything better than going mountain biking for a couple of weeks. There has been a long battle between walkers wanting to keep the mountains to themselves and questioning the deluge of mountain bikers on the hills but many of the larges ski resorts are developing dedicated biking areas to keep everybody happy, well  nearly everybody? The ski season in some of the large resorts does not last for very long and it can be very difficult for the accommodation providers to cover their costs over the short season. So why not turn over the lifts to the mountain bikers and bring some money into the resorts and create a much larger season for travellers.

We can all win – travelling to some of these larger resorts out of the main season can offer some great savings on the accommodation as these are effectively times that they would struggle to fill normally so many are now offering big discounts. I found a very nice apartment in Tirol Austria sleeping 4 people for £196 for 7 nights which works out to be £49.00 each for a weeks accommodation I am sure that you would find it hard to find a cheap hotel for that price per night let alone a week. All of the low cost airlines allow you to take a bike on the plane as sports luggage for an additional cost, please check with the airline before travelling for individual rules for sports equipment and costs.

This weeks offers are focussing on villas Austria with many of the main resorts catering for the all year round traveller taking the opportunity to save some money on booking out of the main school holidays. It will be a good few weeks until the snow appears in the hills, the mountains are a great place to get some quality hiking in around the alps.

Salzburg

Annaberg Lammertal – 26/09/2009 – 7 nights Sleeps 8 – £459 Save 14%

Carinthia

Sotour Maltschacher See, Feldkirchen Ossiachersee – 26/09/2009 – 7 nights – sleeps 4 £375 Save 14%

Faaker See Carinthia – 26/09/09 – 7 nights – sleeps 6 – £375 Save 20%

Styria

Gastehaus Hartweger, Haus Ennstal bei Scladming – 19/09/09 – 14 nights sleeps 3 £576 Save 14%

Bungalow Bad Mitterndorf Tauplitz – 19/09/09 – 7 nights – sleeps 5 £486 Save 10%

Haus Faitl, Bad Mitterndorf Tauplitz – 19/09/09 7 nights – sleeps 8 £341 Save 14%

Vorarlberg

Sonnenblick, Silbertal – 19/09/09 7 nights sleeps 6 £324 Save 9%

Landhaus Martha, Gaschurn – 19/09/09 7 nights sleeps 4 £309 Save 9%

The Tirol region of Austria can supply you with an adrenaline filled holiday or a relaxing trip enjoying the Tyrolean streets lined with traditional wooden chalets. Containing some of the best ski resorts in Europe if not the world the Tirol’s 36 different holiday areas can cater for most holidaymakers requirements. It is be very easy to book private ski accommodation with cheap flights to Austria, once you arrive there are many transfers to get you swiftly to the resort at very low costs. The train services from the main airports run very frequently through the season and are extremely reliable visit http://www.oebb.at/ to pre book your tickets and check timetables before travelling.

The range of ski chalets Tirol are already available online for early season offers, don’t leave it too late to get the best property, yes we do display a large selection of last minute deals on the site for all areas but the you will have to get in early if you want to secure the best accommodation and dates for your holiday.

Ski holidays offer a great social alternative to the normal beach or city break, large groups of friends will get together and book a large chalet for their annual get together on the slopes. Skiing can be a tiring activity and some people would prefer to gather around an open fire and down a few beers whilst exaggerating over their days performance and you thought it was just fisherman who had tall tales?

Booking a large ski chalet to cater for all of your group can give you huge savings on booking hotels and on food costs for the holiday. Why pay for expensive hotel facilities that you might not use during your trip, you will be on the slopes all day and with many of the ski resorts offering excellent restaurants and night life you could be out all evening.

Check out the early booking offers and get the best prices and accommodation before somebody else books it, some of the higher ski resorts offer extended ski seasons with the lifts opening in late November for the first snow with much cheaper accommodation for the early or late season weeks.

There are many things that you need to consider and take into account when booking a private villa instead of a packaged holiday that many people forget to check before travelling.Size of property – the size of the villa or apartment can vary depending on the country/resort. What is an acceptable sized property in the holiday destination may not be what you expect. Make sure that you have chosen a property for your needs.

If you are planning to be out around the pool all day and out partying all night then a save your pennies for spending money and rent a small apartment but if you are planning to take small children away and plan to spend most of your time in a private villa with a pool then space is what you need. Spending a little bit more to get a larger accommodation will ensure you have a better holiday.