Go advice: Your questions answered
Q My friends and I are looking for a surfing and adventure holiday for early July, after the Leaving Cert exams. There are four of us and we’re all 18. We’re on a tight budget and we understand that the least expensive option for us might be to choose a surfing destination, then book into a guesthouse or BB. Is it difficult for a group of teenagers to get accommodation? We don’t want to take one of the typical package sun holidays that Leaving Cert students usually choose. France is our first choice but we’re open to other destinations.
SM, Dublin
Surfing is a good fun holiday and one that you will enjoy. I have four destinations that are perfect for surfing holidays. When it comes to accommodation, a youth hostel is ideal for you and your friends, and you will also have a chance to meet other surfers if you stay in a hostel. The best hostel booking site is hostelworld.com
It is usually easy to arrange surfing lessons and board hire in surf towns and you will rarely have to book in advance. First up is Biarritz, the home of French surfing. If you time your trip around July 10th-14th, the Roxy Jam Women’s Surf Championships are on, along with lots of music and free events. Details on roxy.com, Ryanair (ryanair.com) flies to Biarritz from Dublin.
Near enough to Biarritz, only 60km away, is the Spanish surf city of San Sebastian. You can take the train from Biarritz or fly to Bilbao with Aer Lingus. San Sebastian is very cool and there are lots of great surf hostels to stay in. La Zurriola is the best surfing beach.
Surfholidays.com, an Irish company, organises packages that include lessons and accommodation in France, Spain, Portugal, and the Canary Islands. It has hotel and self-catering options. It may not be the cheapest, but it is all organised for you.
Closer to home for some good fun, Newquay in Cornwall is the surf capital of England. The beaches are long and sandy, and the waves perfect. You can get to Newquay easily from Ireland, with daily flights from Dublin on airsouthwest.com. It is also quite reasonable for eating out, and there is a great selection of bars and clubs. See accommodation at visitnewquay.org and self-catering at bluechip vacations.com where you will find apartments to rent for about £700 (€804) per week.
Q My family and I would like to spend about a month in New York, from late May. We would like to rent a two-bedroom apartment in a central location in Manhattan.
MN, Waterford
I have a few ideas for you. The first is an agency that specialises in holiday rentals, newyorkstay.com, 001-646-468-6000. It has a good selection of properties in Manhattan to rent.
Homeaway.com is a website where most of the properties are owner-let and prices are more reasonable. If you consider staying just over a bridge, say in Brooklyn, accommodation can be even cheaper.
The Hotel Beacon (001-212-787-1100, beaconhotel.com) has a good selection of one- and two-bedroom suites with kitchenettes. I would suggest you call the hotel, as it may offer a discount for a long let. The rate in June for a one-bedroom suite that sleeps four is from $263 (€192) per night. The Beacon Hotel is on the Upper West side and well located for visiting New York.
Q While looking for interesting and unusual holiday accommodation in the past, I have found the network of gîtes in France very useful and wonder if you are aware of a similar network in Germany?
MOD, Dublin
Germany does not have a network of gîtes like the French one. But there are agents who rent self-catering properties, from apartments and traditional houses to castles. Go to interhome.ie, novasol.co.uk and the German site, fewo-direkt.de.
E-mail questions, with your name and address, to jscales@irishtimes.com