Malta

Some travel analysts suggest that Malta’s holiday industry was saved by the entry into the market of budget airlines, turning a worsening position just a few years ago to an island that has a vibrant tourism sector.

With higher airfares than competitors in the Mediterranean the number of holidays to Malta had been declining for some years, but eventually the authorities gave in to the inevitable and allowed Ryanair to start flights to Malta - and the island hasn’t looked back since.

Other airlines are now flying to the island’s Luqa Airport, including easyJet and bmi, from not just the main UK airports such as Gatwick, but Bournemouth, Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle - with good news for holidaymakers in Northern Ireland that easyJet are to start a Belfast service soon.

The net result of the skies opening up to the budget airlines is a wider choice of Malta flights for tourists, with a choice of departure times and airport, and lower airfares.

And while the UK market is the biggest for her tourism industry, more visitors are coming from elsewhere as the airlines have opened new routes to the island from other European cities - diversifying the tourist mix, becoming less dependent on the UK, and increasing the net number of holidaymakers spending money in the hotels, shops and other holiday related businesses.

The new routes include Milan, Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, Marseille, Seville, Stockholm, Valencia and Venice - allowing Italian, Spanish, French and Swedish people to more readily consider Malta for a holiday destination.

All excellent news for the tourism industry. But it’s not just the lower fares that those taking a holiday are benefitting from, as Malta’s flag carrier is winning awards for excellence, while lowering their own fares to compete with the budget airlines.

In a recent satisfaction survey of passengers by the influential Which? consumer magazine in the UK, Air Malta was voted as one of the best, alongside Swiss Air, while the budget airlines were a lot less successful.

It’s quite a turnaround for the island’s national airline. Given that it’s a small country with a population of just over 400,000 people there were justifiable fears that the airline might go out of business as the low cost carriers cut fares. But Air Malta has not just competed well on fares but provided a service that other - much bigger - airlines cannot match.

Coupled with the good hotels Malta has, the island now appeals not just to those who want a traditional two week holiday in the Mediterranean, but also for those who want to visit for a long weekend. Spa hotels are a big attraction, and some of the Malta hotels have been winning awards for excellence in the last couple of years, all adding to her reputation among tourists in the UK and Europe.

The capital is Valletta, and the main villages where people take a Malta holiday are St Paul’s Bay, Mellieha and St Juilan’s. Mellieha has the best beach and a ot of people who take villas as opposed to staying in a hotel opt to stay here, with the Santa Maria Estate popular.

Another Malta blog is available at maltaproperty.info and often people post their own photographs of the island along with photographs on social media like facebook, myspace and twitter.

If you’re considering a diving holiday for next year, there’s no better place than Malta - and that’s according to the divers themselves.

As The Independent in the UK report:

As I floated through the open hatchway into the engine room, it was almost as if the scene had been frozen in time. The ship’s charts were still in the rack and the phone was on the hook, but seaweed waved gracefully around the wreck, now home to octopus and fireworms.

On the seabed lay some Royal Navy china, smashed into pieces when the Lady Davinia, formerly HMS Greetham, was sunk. As I picked up one piece for a closer look, I was amused to discover it had been made in the Wedgwood factory just 15 minutes from where I grew up. Now 64 years later, it was half-buried in the sand, waiting to be rediscovered.

Just 15 metres above me, the busy cafés of Sliema, on Malta’s east coast near the capital Valletta, were full of tourists relaxing in the sunshine.

The Mediterranean island, along with neighbouring Gozo, was last year voted the best diving destination in Europe by readers of Diver magazine in America, thanks to its clear, warm waters, and more than 30 underwater sites, with reefs, fish, caves and lagoons as well as the numerous wrecks. There’s also a long diving season (from Easter through to November), and plenty of English-speaking instructors, so it’s ideal for beginners from the UK.

It was all a long way from the swimming pool in Waterloo, London, where I’d started my dive training with the London Hellfins Scuba Diving Club. Although you can do the complete course in Malta, I wanted to get the theory lessons and pool training needed for the British Sub Aqua Club (BSAC) qualification done in the rainy UK, rather than being cooped up in a classroom while the sun shone outside.

The chlorine-scented pool that I’d practised in seemed a world away as I headed to my hotel, the Maritim Antonine Hotel & Spa in Mellieha, in the north of Malta.

Mellieha Malta

While the UK froze, the sun was shining on the small hillside town, dominated by its huge baroque church, which is still the focal point of life on the island – although, for younger Maltese, it often seems to be a meeting point to start a night out.

Mellieha is also home to one of the island’s best restaurants: Giuseppi’s Wine Bar. Despite the uninspiring name – and its less-than-obvious entrance on St Helen Street – the seafood and local fish on the menu are spectacular, thanks to local chef Michael Diacono.

Over some Maltese wine, it was time for a quick introduction to the island by dive instructor Dave, who moved here three years ago from Lowestoft, enticed by the laid-back way of life, the year-round sunshine, and the fantastic choice of dive sites. He revealed it’s the wrecks that make Maltese diving so special. And according to Dave, even on the rare occasions when there’s bad weather in Malta, or when the wind makes the sea too rough for diving in one place, there is always a more sheltered option to try less than an hour’s drive away.

The next morning, I shoehorned myself into a short pink wetsuit and some fetching black Neoprene boots as Dave led me into the calm waters of Qawra Bay, just along the coast from Mellieha, for my first ocean dive.

Things got off to a slow start when it turned out I was too light to sink, but, after a brief pause to fill my pockets with lead, I headed slowly down past shelves of seagrass towards the reef – while trying to keep an eye on my oxygen and my dive buddy, look out for landmarks to guide myself, stay balanced without shooting down to the seabed or up to the surface too fast, and still find the time to enjoy the scenery.

Once I’d worked out how to balance these various factors, I relaxed. After spotting a flying gurnard with its stunning iridescent blue markings hidden in the sand, I started to forget the strangeness of being completely surrounded by water.

The sea around Malta is home to grouper, rainbow wrasse and parrot fish, not to mention eels and more elusive barracudas and seahorses. Whether I dived one of the many wrecks or among the rock reefs and soft corals, there was plenty of underwater company, with shoals of brightly coloured fish darting over to investigate this curious bubble-blowing intruder.

With each dive I had more tests to pass, but also more exciting sites to explore. On Manoel Island, a spit of land opposite the capital Valletta, we strode off the sea wall to investigate a bombed barge, the Water Lighter X127.

Valletta Malta

Also known as the Carolita, she was sunk during the Second World War (probably after being mistaken for a submarine), and I could still make out the gaping hole left by the bomb that had finished her off.

The next day we explored the Lady Davinia. I got kitted up on the quayside, much to the amusement of a couple of local fishermen as I waddled to the shore weighed down with tank, lead and unwieldy flippers before vanishing under the waves. And when I emerged from the dive, my fifth, I was a certified Ocean Diver.

After swimming alongside them during the day, it felt almost rude to tuck into fish every evening. But specialities such as octopus carpaccio at harbourside restaurants around the island were too mouth-watering to miss.

Peppino’s in St Julian’s Bay, near Sliema, has tempted celebrities such as Brad Pitt, Madonna and Daniel Craig in the past, while they filmed in Malta (which has doubled as places such as Troy and Lebanon on film).

Meanwhile, in St Paul’s Bay, a short drive from Mellieha, Tarragon Restaurant has already started winning local awards for its modern twist on Malta’s classic favourites, such as black tiger prawns in champagne tempura.

For such a tiny island, there’s plenty to see on dry land. And as I could only safely dive for a couple of hours every day, I did plenty of exploring – when I could drag myself away from the Malta hotels rooftop pool and the hot stone massages of its underground spa.

All roads lead to Valletta, around a half-hour drive from Mellieha. The fortified city, a grid of cobbled streets and steep steps, was built in the 16th century by the Knights of St John – otherwise known as the Knights Hospitaller.

Given the island as their base by a 16th-century king of Spain, and charged with protecting it against the Ottomans, they then built the new walled capital as a fortress to keep out the Turks.

The city is a Unesco World Heritage site, and walking through the streets takes you through centuries of history. Many of the façades of the auberges, the knights’ grand former palaces, are unchanged, and you can visit the Grand Master’s Palace, home to the Maltese government.

Most memorable for me, though, was the former capital of Mdina, the walled fortress in the centre of the island. Unlike Valletta’s wide, planned streets, the twisting alleyways date from around the time of the Arab occupation of the island in the ninth century.

The city is closed to all but residents’ cars. As I ambled to the bastion walls, past the Nunnery of St Benedict and the 700-year-old palazzos and casas of the Maltese nobility, nothing broke the quiet except the echoing clop of horse and carriage.

All too soon, though, it was time for my last dip: at Cirkewwa, in the island’s far north. One of the best beginner sites, the water here is astonishingly clear, and, although I couldn’t stray below 20 metres, the seabed at 36 metres looked temptingly close. One of the string of small underwater caves contained a statue of the Virgin Mary, and there was a natural stone arch in the rocks to swim through.

For information on diving Malta holidays visit yourmalta.com - they also have airlines with details of flights to Malta.

Malta

The percentage of people who book their holidays and trips away via the internet increases every year, and with ticketless flights, reviews of hotels from previous guests and currency delivered to your home, the impression might be that booking a trip a few days before departure is the norm.

Not for UK tourists, according to research undertaken by leading online travel site Expedia.

In fact, many British people still book their overseas trips months ahead - but then they are the most organised tourists in Europe!

Before the recession, the trend was to book different parts of a holiday with different online travel firms, ensuring each part of the trip was done at the best price - but with some small companies going under Expedia note that more people are booking both flights and hotels at the same time.

And it’s not just the recession that’s caused the shift back to booking with the same company, the recent Icelandic volcano left many travellers stranded while those who had booked with well established tour operators such as Thomson and Thomas Cook were well looked after and alternative ways home organised on their behalf.

And it’s in times like this that tourists realise that cheap isn’t always good - but a resource like Expedia does allow money to be saved while booking all or some parts of a trip with one company.

Take Malta for example. There are plenty of different options for booking holidays in Malta available, and different parts of the trip can be booked seperately - or all with someone like Expedia.

Hotels can be viewed and reviews from people who have stayed there be seen, and a little extra research can be done to see which area might be most suitable. Valletta for history, Mellieha for a good beach for example. Both areas have a wide choice of accommodation and any of the Malta hotels can be booked with the one resource.

Flights are slightly different for the island. In recent years the low cost carriers have started to fly in and out of Malta, and not all of them are represented on travel sites that do the other components of a trip. Search Expedia for example for return flights and it might not bring up Ryanair who were the first budget airline to fly to the island, and provide flights from both Luton and Bournemouth.

So for the cost conscious it might be worth checking their site to see how much their Malta flights are.

But overall booking everything with one company does have its benefits, with hotels, car hire, flights, holidays and travel insurance all possible, and for Malta holidays Expedia is able to offer all these at a good price.

More details about the island are at yourmalta.com and there are other free to use articles

Gran Canaria Blog

There’s a part of Gran Canaria that has become known by holidaymakers visiting the island as ‘Little Venice’ – the village of Puerto de Mogan.

Away from the bigger resorts it’s a haven of tranquility and still has the air of a traditional village, but with the advantage of good modern accommodation with both a hotel and self catering accommodation available.

Puerto de Mogan’s similarity to the Italian city of canals is no accident. The vision of the designers of the beachfront part of the city was to re-create the quaintness of Venice in a Spanish environment.

It’s located on the southwestern coast of Gran Canaria. The island is the second largest most populous in the Canary Island chain. Visitors from Europe, the UK and further afield for its sunshine, beaches, charm and rich culture.

The island is home to over 800,000 residents. It sees well over twice that many annual visitors. Tourism is an important part of the economy.

A majority of tourist activity takes place along the eastern coast of the island. Much of it is centered around the capital city of Las Palmas.

The western side is less populated and concentrated. This is one reason that Puerto de Mogan’s developers decided to adopt an Italian theme. Created by an Italian designer, it’s one that is unique to the island.

Visitors to the beachside downtown area will be hard pressed to find a motor vehicle of any kind. Instead, Puerto de Mogan caters to the pedestrian.

Designers created arched walkways reminiscent of many Italian cities. Visitors can stroll the bricked walkways which link the town’s shops, restaurants and quaint residences and hotels.

The real nod to Venice, though, is the town’s canals. They run through the village and out into the marina area which opens into the Atlantic Ocean.

While many of Gran Canaria’s popular resort towns feature modern high-rise buildings. This was another deliberate design choice by town visionaries.

The main hotel sits comfortably in the surroundings, and for those considering a week or two’s holiday it can be booked in the UK via Thomson Holidays or independently.

No buildings exceed two stories tall except for a small handful of older ones. Any modern construction is limited by law to two stories or less. This feature adds to the unique charm of the beach town.

Locals survived for centuries on fishing. The city is still home to many native fishermen. However, most of the economic activity comes from tourism in today’s world.

Daytrippers tend to stick to the waterfront area of the city. Tourists who want to stay for a spell and spend a little bit less money can venture further inland. Away from the pricey, tourist driven restaurants and boutiques, visitors can find more authentic cuisine and homier accommodation.

The village is family friendly, with activities for people of all ages. For swimming and sunbathing it’s fairly sheltered, so the water is warm and currents are gentle, helped by the good Gran Canaria weather.

Other popular water activities include snorkelling, boating and jet skiing, as well as surfing if you venture a bit further out.

Puerto de Mogan is widely well known for her Friday market. The open air market draws hundreds of locals as well as tourists every week. Shoppers can find just about anything, from hand made clothing to native produce, fresh fish, and locally made craft and gift items.

A visit to to see Puerto de Mogan is well worthwhile if you’re not staying there during Gran Canaria holidays - most of the coastal towns are connected by a highway.

Some of the eastern towns are even connected by ferry for ease of travel. It’s time well-spent, whether it’s a day trip or a longer stay.

For a Gran Canaria map visit yourgrancanaria.net

Comments from people who have been to the island are often posted on social network sites such as mixx

As UK holidaymakers get set to head to the Mediterranean island, Post Office Travel Insurance reminds people of the importance of travel insurance.

Research from the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) has shown that Malta is expected to be a popular destination for UK tourists throughout 2010. The country already hosts around half a million UK tourists each year, and according to the ABTA Travel Trends Report this figure is expected to increase thanks to new Malta flights from the UK to be introduced this year.

With Malta set to be a popular short-haul destination, Post Office Travel Insurance advises those planning to visit the island not to forget their travel insurance. Post Office Travel Insurance reminds holidaymakers that whatever the destination travel insurance is always an important requirement.

Those planning a weekend break in Malta in addition to a longer holiday during the year may benefit from an annual travel insurance policy. An annual travel insurance policy is often a cost-effective way of taking out travel insurance cover if going on multiple holidays throughout the year.

Post Office Travel Insurance reminds all travellers to check that they should have the correct travel insurance policy in place before they travel - even when only embarking on a short-haul holiday or city break - to ensure peace of mind when travelling should delays, accidents or emergencies occur.

Majorca Blog

As reputations go, Majorca has a real mix of attitude from people who might be considering a holiday on the well known Spanish island that has proved so popular with tourists in the past.

On the one hand there is the image of Magaluf to consider. It’s a town that attracts some but is a definite turn off for others.

And for tourists who prefer peace and quiet to a walk on the wild side, Magaluf is set to become even more of a party magnet as ‘Mallorca Rocks’  has opened - sister hotel to the successful ‘Ibiza Rocks’ just across the water.

Fantastic for the young, and young at heart who can discover Majorca as well as Ibiza. For those who like their clubbing and nightlife Mallorca Rocks will be the centre of a Majorca holiday for many of them.

And the Majorca hotels could benefit as stag weekends and hen parties view Majorca as an alternative to Ibiza, bringing in good revenue year round from young Europeans with disposable incomes.

Flights are inexpensive to the island, and with airlines operating from many regional airports from the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe, for students and other young people the cheap flights could see visitor numbers in this age group rise considerably this summer.

Majorca Holidays

But for couples and families who don’t want 24 hour partying, and are looking for a good relaxing sunshine holiday, is Majorca a good destination for them this year?

The answer is a definite yes, there’s another side to the island that’s ideal, and if they choose the right location it would be hard to imagine they’re on the same island as party loving Magaluf - but they would still get the good deal for their Majorca flights.

When looking at a map, on the north-west side of the island is Soller. And it is here that holidaymakers can escape to another world, and it’s quiet enough to enjoy while having a good amount of activities going on, to be enjoyed year round.

A tram connects the port to the town, and Deia - another village ideal for family holidays - is closeby, and there is a train that runs through the wonderful Majorca countryside to the capital Palma - a great day out enjoyed by many staying in Soller either in one of the hotels or Majorca villa holidays.

The port is a wonderful place to while away a few hours, with yachts calling in from all over Europe. The harbour area has a good amount of restaurants and cafes serving a variety of food including local dishes all day, and there are also apartments to rent with sea views here for holidaymakers.

For a good family holiday this summer, Soller could be the answer for a quality trip.

For a profile of Majorca including travel information visit yourmajorca.net

Malta has been getting in on the music act recently - each summer they play host to MTV and in September they are set to welcome Elton John for a live concert.

Included in Elton’s career are over 250 million singles sold worldwide, including ‘Candle in the Wind 1997′ - a tribute to his friend Princess Diana, which alone has sold more than 37 million copies.

Now in his sixties, Elton John has enjoyed considerable success since the early 1970’s, and had a string of top selling albums and singles that have not only brought him a terrific fan base, but endeared him to the general public in the UK, US, Australia, Canada, Europe - and it wouldn’t be unfair to say worldwide.

His first U.S. album number one was Honky Chateau, and included among his well known songs was Rocket Man and Honky Cat - just two of the hits which could be on the playlist for Malta in September.

Other hits that the Maltese and those taking their Malta holidays in September will be treated to could include:

Crocodile Rock, Daniel, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Bennie And The Jets, Nikita, Sacrifice, Sad Songs, I’m Still Standing and Blue Eyes.

If you’ve never been to Malta before and have been considering it, September is an ideal month for a visit, there are cheap Malta flight deals available, and what could be better than combing a visit with seeing Elton John live in concert?

And for those that haven’t been to the island before, what is it like?

Malta offers a great climate, and one of the best levels of sunshine in Europe. It has become a popular holiday destination for families. There are a number of good Malta hotels to suit just about anyone regardless of income levels. There are numerous bars, clubs and restaurants, where you can mingle with the locals and unwind. Malta makes a great weekend getaway as well as for a longer trip, with lots to see and do.

For those who are visiting for the music, the liveliest area is Paceville. A great set of clubs, discos and bars has developed over the years.

Paceville is the nightlife capital of Malta. Most of the venues are located on four main streets that spread out from the main square. These streets are Dragonara Road, Wilga Street, St. Georges Road and St. Rita Steps. A police presence is always nearby, keeping the denizens of the clubs safe and orderly. A taxi rank is also located in the main square, for those who need a lift.

Malta

Easter is just around the corner, and are you looking forward to a nice relaxing well earned holiday in one of Europe’s top locations like Malta?

A dip in the hotel pool or the Mediterranean, a walk along the beach, a stroll along the promendade perhaps?

Not much else could be better or relaxing. But in many of Europe’s top holiday destinations the calm and serenity is often disturbed by salesmen and women pouncing unexpectedly to try to sell a timeshare unit in the vicinity.

Tactics can range from someone introducing themselves by holding a map and looking at first as if they are going to ask the unsuspecting holidaymaker how to get somewhere, but then launching into a sales pitch to try and get them to a timeshare presentation.

Another favourite is to offer a scratchcard, with a prize of a free round of golf, a bottle of wine, or something similar - every scratchcard is a ‘winner’ - the flipside being that it has to be claimed at a timeshare sales presentation.

Once at the timeshare presentation, the sales team go into overdrive, with a slick presentation promoting the virtues of buying a timeshare week.

Often included is the ultimate financial inducement - not only will you have your own holiday home in the sun - but it will be an appreciating asset than can be easily sold at a profit in years to come.

And if you like to vary the destination where you take your holidays? No worries, you can swap your timeshare week for another week at a similar resort in locations around the world easily, allowing you the freedom to vacation wherever you want, whether it be Malta, Lanzarote, holidays in Majorca or elsewhere.

But the truth is often far removed from what is claimed at timeshare presentations.

Timeshare units often plummet in value - do not buy a timeshare if you need the money and it forms a good part of your savings. Sometimes a week’s timeshare is advertised as a re-sale at less than 20 per cent of the price paid.

And don’t buy a timeshare week on the premise that you can holiday anywhere in the world, often timeshare owners find it nigh on impossible to swap their week with a week elsewhere, especially if the week owned is in low season.

Timeshare weeks in many European holiday resorts are a poor investment, carry annual maintenance charges that can add up to the equivalent of two return flights, and the chances of swapping for alternative locations not guaranteed.

Next time you’re approached by a timeshare tout, ignore them, and if they’re persistent report it the local tourist authority - if you do go to one of their presentations expect to be there a long time and be prepared to lose a fair bit of money.

For information about a holiday in Malta visit http://www.yourmalta.com and to see more about timeshare see what people are saying in real time with twitter

Malta

The  island’s tourist authorities have scored a major coup and helped secure Malta’s short and medium term future as a leading Mediterranean holiday destination recently, after it concluded deals with two of the UK’s top travel operators.

The agreements will see the island promoted well alongside Mediterranean competitors both in print brochures and via their respective online presence, but importantly Malta will be featured as a top destination in external media advertising as one of the locations offered to holidaymakers.

Malta is attracting a new generation of visitors, for it’s club scene, and The Independent newspaper in the UK recently reported:

This year clubland serves up some surprises when it comes to hotspots and the biggest comes from a small Mediterranean island.

Forget Ibiza, Malta, traditional favourite of OAP package holidaymakers is now a magnet for Europe’s young and restless.

Characterised by superb value, Malta’s huge open-air clubs, including Gianpula (gianpula .com) and Numero Uno (clubnumero uno.com), have lately been attracting big-name DJs such as Tiësto and Deadmau5, which in turn has brought in established dance music brands including Creamfields, Ministry of Sound and MTV for the busy summer festival months.

The “season” goes year-round, and a whopping 12,000 local clubbers are said to hit the dance floors at weekends (that’s about three per cent of the population – double the UK’s figures) with most of the clubs and bars concentrated in the aptly named Paceville, in the island’s north-east.

“And it’s not all about raving,” says Mixmag news editor, Nick Stevenson. “Malta is also a great place to chill out with new resorts like Fortina [hotelfortina.com] offering five-star spa treatments and quality food, ideal for detoxing and refuelling between punishing bouts on the dancefloor. And on the neighbouring island of Gozo, La Grotta has to be one of the most beautiful clubs around, carved right into a cliff face.”

Those with a bigger budget should head for Brazil. According to DJ Magazine’s editor, Ben Murphy, it’s an emerging club destination for both the growing Brazilian middle class and international clubbers. “Brazil has some extraordinary clubs, already firmly established on the underground scene but beginning to draw much wider attention.” Top of the exotic spots is Green Valley (greenvalley .art.br), a vast, outdoor venue that opened in 2008 but is already a place of pilgrimage for long-haul clubbers. Set an hour south of Sao Paolo, this mega venue holds 6,000 revellers and comes with its own hair salon. “It’s more of a community than a club,” says Murphy. Another rising star in the same region, is Warung (warungclub .com.br) an Indonesian-themed beachfront club which is getting so popular that some are worried about it becoming overrun. “Brazil is where Ibiza was a couple of decades ago,” says Murphy. “Only a bit cooler.”

Back in Europe, Berlin continues to be a massive draw for underground clubbers, led by Berghain (berghain .de), an imposing warehouse in a bleak industrial estate on the city’s outskirts. “This place is still incredibly underground,” says Murphy. “No photographers are allowed inside and the door policy is a mysterious law unto itself. They have the world’s best DJs from the underground scene, everything from techno to dubstep, and a very mixed, international gay/straight crowd. It’s truly bacchanalian.” Watergate (water-gate.de) on the banks of the River Spree is another Berlin hub, complete with an outdoor sunrise deck and LED lights that dance a Technicolor rainbow in time to the music.

As a European Capital of Culture that comes without the euro, Istanbul (istanbul2010.org) offers decent value for money and, this year, has everything from urban arts gatherings, to rooftop bars and underground clubs. New bars such as Faces (faces istanbul.com) look set to draw locals and Capital of Culture-vultures alike, while established venues such as Indigo (livingindigo.com) are now pulling international DJ names.

But if you like your club culture to come with plenty of bling, there’s nowhere like Las Vegas. America’s Sin City is trying to shake off its theme-park image, building stylish hotels and top-notch restaurants. The clubs are also getting a make-over, no more populated by lounge crooners but DJs such as Paul Oakenfold. In Elvis-style, Oakenfold has residency at The Palms hotel, at the Rain nightclub (palms .com), with trapeze acts and million-dollar light shows alongside.

But what of Ibiza? The prototype clubber’s isle is still going strong but with high door charges, it’s not credit-crunch friendly. “But it’s still a great all-round holiday destination,” says Murphy. “And there are some alternative/cheaper nights, such as Ibiza Rocks and Reclaim the Dancefloor, which brings in a more inde crowd.”

If you want your pounds to stretch right around the clock, it’s either Malta, Berlin (such good-value producers and DJs are relocating there in droves, breeding a creative hub for dance music) or further east to Budapest.

Here, clubs sell drinks for as little as a pound and events such as the Sziget festival (sziget.hu) attract the likes of Prodigy and Armin van Buuren, with half the ticket costs of equivalent central European festivals. Croatia, with the Garden Festival (thegarden festival.eu) and Electric Elephant (electricelephant.co.uk) are other notables, while venues in Romania, along the Black Sea coast, score top marks from club cognoscenti for energy and affordability.

Equally cheap and cheerful, mainstream brands including Club 18-30 (club18-30.com) are cashing in on the big-name DJ act, securing partnerships with the likes of Ministry of Sound, Judge Jules and Hed Kandi at their club resorts in the Med, Greece and Turkey.

And the Alps are big this year with new events aimed at clubbers who want to squeeze in a bit of mountain sports between parties.

New for 2010 is The Big Snow Festival (thebigsnowfestival.com) in Andorra.

Hosting acts including Pendulum, Eddie Halliwell and Calvin Harris, it looks set to compete with established events such as Austria’s Snow Bombing (snowbombing.com). This year, Snowbombing welcomes back Fatboy Slim, who will headline after stepping down in 2009 to check into rehab. Take heed clubbers!

More information for Malta, including Malta hotels and Malta holidays are at http://www.yourmalta.com