Travel & Leisure

For most of us annual leave or holiday time is a precious commodity that cannot be wasted. Time away from work is essential and never more so than at the moment when stress levels are at an all time high as we struggle through difficult economic conditions. Increased working hours and the possibility of redundancy have added to our already busy schedules.

Confidently, arms outstretched, I thrust myself away from the poolside into the water, expecting the rest of me to follow.  Seconds later legs and feet were flailing in the air at ear level and I was bobbing about near certain to collide with fellow bathers.  Yes, you guessed it.  I was in a thalasso pool - and no ordinary one at that.

Marking the 1100th anniversary of Normandy [911-2011], the Normandy Tourist Board invites Englishman Nick Hordern to "Trace his Norman Roots" only to discover Truth is stranger than Fiction

"Sarkozy orders holidays at home!" ran the Le Figaro headline, reporting the French President's current veto of vacations abroad for his political troops. "What hardship!" we thought.