British Isles

If you have a dog, it probably thinks it's time it had a holiday after seeing you enjoy Christmas and new year. Toad Hall Cottages can help couples with a choice of properties that also welcome pet dogs. They include the Bothy, a 16th-century detached cottage deep in the countryside near Crediton, Devon, and the Bolt Hole, in a cluster of modern cottages beside a fishing lake near Bude, Cornwall, and with shared use of an indoor heated pool. Prices this month are from £132 for three nights and £180 for a week. 01548 853089

Pets are also welcome at Chapel Yard Cottage, a three-storey property dating back to the 19th century, within walking distance of Whitwell village, Derbyshire, and Whitwell Woods, which have marked trails. It sleeps five and is reduced to £250 a week from January 17 and 24 with holidaylets.net. 020-7108 1133

Take the dog for a walk along the North Norfolk coast while staying at Titchwell Manor near Brancaster, which has special rates until February 12. The former Victorian farmhouse, with additional rooms around a herb garden, offers dinner in the two AA Rosette-restaurant and B&B for £125 for two nights midweek and £150 at weekends. 01485 210221

You will find few hacks in the hostelries of Fleet Street, London, these days, but the area is a perfect base for visiting St Paul's, Somerset House and its skating rink and Tate Modern. A short bus or Tube ride will also take you to the sales. A bright studio for two, set back from the street, is available between January 15 and 25 for £400 a week with holidaylettings.co.uk. 01865 312000

Three nights for the price of two are on offer this winter at the Knight Residence in Lauriston Street in the centre of Edinburgh and close to the castle and Princes Street. Apartments with one bedroom, bathroom. kitchen, lounge, PC, TV and parking, cost £310 for three nights and those with two bedrooms for families are £370. Welcome pack included. 0131-622 8120

Short haul

Three-night breaks for the price of two are also available in three and four-star city centre hotels in Rome and Florence for the next two months with Citalia. Prices are from £179 and £219, including flights from Gatwick. 0871 6640253

Go skiing in Kaprun, Austria, for a week from January 24 and watch hot-air balloons take to the skies. This holiday with Directline Skiing will coincide with the Gas Balloon Trophy, when 40 global teams vie to fly the farthest. A week in the catered Hohe Tauern chalet costs £360 with a flight from Gatwick to Salzburg and transfers. 020-8239 3399

A £5 tour of the De Halve Maan Brewery and a bottle of blond beer, a visit to the Frietmuseum to investigate the history of chips and a stop in a chocolate shop are among the trips recommended by Railbookers on its three-night breaks to Bruges. They cost from £194 with Eurostar travel from London, Belgian Railways from Brussels and three nights in the central Novotel hotel. 0844 4821010

Historic sights such as the Alhambra Palace and Generalife gardens will be the main attractions on a holiday in Granada with Simpson Travel. It offers B&B for three nights in the 15th-century Casa Morisca Hotel in the centre of the city for £441 this month, with flights from a choice of UK airports and transfers. 020-8392 5853

Holiday Jewels offers a choice of three and four-star hotels in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh for a week from January 22. Prices are from £259 and £279 with flights from Gatwick and B&B. 0870 0672352

A week's half-board at the Louis Imperial Beach, a four-star hotel on the west coast of Cyprus, a short way from the sights of Paphos town, costs £365 with Expedia.co.uk, including a flight from Gatwick on January 27. 0871 2260808

Long haul

Enjoy a week of winter sun for £675 at Rex Resorts' Turtle Beach hotel on Tobago with Monarch Holidays. The holiday starts with a flight from Gatwick on January 21 and guests benefit from sea-facing rooms, a large pool directly by the shore, tennis courts and watersports. 0871 4238642

If you are planning ahead for half- term and it falls in the last week of February, Bon Voyage has a good deal to Orlando. Fly with Virgin Atlantic from Gatwick between February 20 and 22 for a week at a Ramada Resort with a free shuttle to Walt Disney World Resort and pay £425 for adults and £299 for children, based on a family of up to four. 0800 3160194

All prices on this page are per person and based on two sharing a room unless stated otherwise.

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