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The eastern most Canary Island of Lanzarote is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Spain.  Welcoming around 1.5 million tourists every year – the majority of them from the UK.  Attracted by the island’s great year round climate – with temperatures reaching 20C even in the depths of winter.

Parts of Mexico and Florida are located on the same line of latitude as Lanzarote – and the island itself is situated just eighty miles off the coast of West Africa.  Making it the closest winter sun destination to the UK and the rest of Northern Europe.  With a flying time of around four hours from all major British airports.

As you´d expect from a popular holiday destination Lanzarote also offers visitors high standards of accommodation.  The bulk of which is located in the main resorts of Playa Blanca, Puerto del Carmen and Costa Teguise.

The best hotels in Lanzarote can be found in Playa Blanca - the newest resort on the island.  Playa Blanca is located right at the southern end of Lanzarote – just across the Bocaina Straits from the neighbouring island of Fuerteventura.  And as result tends to get the best weather – boasting a much better microclimate than the resorts to the north.

Playa Blanca is also home to some of the best beaches on Lanzarote.  Such as the stretches of sand at nearby Papagayo (or Parrot Beach) – which are still unspoiled and natural.  As well as some excellent beaches within the resort itself, such as Playa Flamingo and Paya Dorada.

As a result of these natural advantages Playa Blanca has rapidly expanded over the last decade and good quality four and five star hotels now line the seafront.  Which have helped to establish Playa Blanca as the second most popular resort on Lanzarote.

Visitors who prefer self catering accommodation should focus their search on the islands´s oldest resort of Puerto del Carmen.  Which is located just a short ten minute drive from Lanzarote´s sole airport at Arrecife.

Puerto del Carmen was developed for tourism back in the 1970´s and as a result features a good selection of holiday apartments for tourists to select from.  Whilst the quiet residential enclave of Los Mojones is home to some of the best quality villas in Lanzarote.  Which are all located just a short ten minute walk from the atmospheric old town harbour – where visitors will find a good selection of bars and restaurants.

EU interior ministers gave a mandate on Friday to the European Commission to negotiate the conditions for visa-free travel to the United States of America for all of the bloc’s citizens, its Slovenian presidency said.  Most older EU states are already part of a US visa waiver scheme, but Greece and most of the 12 mainly ex-communist nations who have joined the bloc since 2004 are not.

Washington has sought bilateral deals with some countries that do not enjoy visa-free US travel, rather than dealing with the European Union as a whole, fuelling tensions.The mandate will allow the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, to negotiate in the name of the entire 27-nation bloc and to sound out Washington about its demands for a deal.  I think the US is too paraniod to approve this.

Like most of Europe, France has some changes in store for visitors in 2008, starting at the veru top. France’s newly elected president, Nicolas Sarkozy, and recently appointed prime minister, Francois Fillon, appear to be America-friendly, so we can expect no more cries for Freedom Fries from people who don’t get out much.

Travelers will encounter some construction headaches at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, as it continues major renovations. While getting into Paris may be a little bumpy, getting out is slicker than ever with the opening of new bullet train lines. The big news in northeast France is the TGV Est bullet train, serving Reims, Verdun, Colmar, Strasbourg and beyond. It has cut travel times in half, bringing Reims within 45 minutes of Paris, and Colmar within 2.5 hours of the capital.

The healthy trend is hitting smokers, too. The French have followed the Irish and Italians in making all bars, restaurants and cafes smoke-free (those sitting outside can still light up). This could be a challenge in a culture so wrapped up in cafe sitting, where people have a decades-old ritual of stopping at the corner cafe for a drink and a smoke. But the movement against second-hand smoke is strong throughout Europe and, as country after country adopts bans, smokers adjust and life goes on.  Sounds like I might have to travel to France to enjoy this non-smoking hospitality.