To celebrate a significant birthday, my four siblings and I would like to get together, with our families, in July or August. Two of us live in Ireland, two are in London and one is in Athens. There would be 20 people. Our original idea, Austria, is too difficult for our Athenian sibling to get to. We are now thinking of a package holidays to Chania, in Crete, or another Greek island, but we're worried about the heat. Can you think of any other options? – MP, Dublin
Austria may be possible if the Greek-based family could travel from Athens to Vienna or Munich and take the train or bus to a resort to meet the rest of the family. Aegean Airlines has daily flights from Athens to Vienna and Lufthansa to Munich. Crystal Holidays has a great selection of packages to Austrian mountain resorts with prices from €550pps for a week. See crystalsummer.ie.
The temperatures on the Greek islands in the high season range from the mid-20s to 30 degrees. It can get hotter too, and many places do not have air conditioning.
There are packages from Ireland to Crete (not Chania), Corfu, Rhodes and Zante with falconholidays.ie and from the UK with parent company First Choice, firstchoice.co.uk. Aer Lingus flies to Athens and Corfu during the summer and Ryanair to Chania.
I hope to take my elderly parents on holiday in mid-April. They are not sun worshipers but we are looking for somewhere warm, 20-23 degrees by day, where they could swim daily, and where they do not have to do much walking. I plan on hiring a car to go sightseeing as they enjoy taking in the locality, viewing the scenery and architecture, and eating out
– AM, Limerick
Most places in Europe are beginning to warm up in April but hitting 23 degrees is not guaranteed unless you go to the Canary Islands. What you will get is warmer, longer days. From Shannon, there are flights to the Algarve, Alicante, Malaga, Majorca and Nice, though the Mediterranean will be warmer than the Atlantic for sea swimming. Easter is later this year , April 20th, so you may run into higher prices if you travel that week.
The Cote d’Azur is lovely and there are plenty of places to go sightseeing and lovely restaurants for eating out. You have all the stylish towns of the coast and the pretty villages of Provence to explore. Majorca is also a good bet, especially for sea swimmers. The resort area of Playa de Palma has good accommodation, a nice beach and is only 15 minutes from Palma city where there are plenty of cultural attractions.
Do you have a recommendation for a four-star hotel overlooking the sea in Nice, near the Opera House and in walking distance to restaurants? We intend travelling the last week in April. A lift is required in the hotel. We looked at the Hotel Negresco and it seems too formal.
– EP, Dublin
The Negresco can seem a bit stiff, but it is well worth a visit and maybe a drink in the bar. Hotels in Nice can be a little bit hit and miss, even at the top end. There is an element of faded grandeur and at times aloof service.
Nearest to the Opera is the Beau Rivage, hotelnicebeaurivage.com, next nearest, Le Meridien on the Promenade des Anglais, lemeridiennice.com, and also on the Promenade a little further along is the Westminster, westminister-nice.com. If you could stray away from the coast, the Boscolo Exedra is very stylish, nice.boscolohotels.com.
Send your questions to jscales@irishtimes.com