Trust the Russians to have fun even in the bone chilling cold. Moscow makes the most of the snow-decked winter landscape by packing in myriad fun activities to try. Start with Maslenitsa, a cheerful pre-Christian celebration. Maslenitsa Festival Tours are run in Moscow and St.Petersburg. It covers the iconic tourist attractions of two Russian capitals as well as endless festivities. Maslenitsa is also popular as the Pancake week with the Russians liberally savouring the delicacy with numerous fillings and toppings, from sour cream to caviar, to salmon and all things sweet. Each day of the festival involves food, predominatly pancakes with many indulgent toppings, sledding and snowball fights to complete the fun episode.
FESTIVE VIBE: Maslenitsa Festival, a week-long holiday in March, celebrates the end of winter and marks the arrival of Spring Ice Skating and fun winter sports Think winters in Moscow, think ice skating. There are numerous artificial arenas set up in Moscow, head to Gorky Park (the largest ring), Sokolniki Park, Izmailovsky Park, and Patriarchfs Pond. In addition to ice skating, there are spots for skiing, sledging, tubing, ice sliding and snowboarding. More than 40 parks throughout Moscow offer dozens of ski tracks and walking paths. Tracks are well-illuminated and are equipped with heated locker rooms and rental points.
BANISH THE WINTER BLUES WITH EXCITING TOURNAMENTS AND SPORTS Region:Switzerland
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- Ski Jumping World Cup, Engelberg- 15/16 December 2018 - Davos Nordic- 15/16 December 2018 - Spengler Cup, Davos- 26-31 December 2018 - Ski World Cup Adelboden- 12/13 January 2019 - Laax Open- 14-19 January 2019
STARS OF THE NORTH: A game of ice cricket in progress
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The country of legendary ski resorts, Switzerland is enveloped with the highest number of peaks in Europe, along with plenty of winter sports. This is the perfect excuse to escape to the snow carpeted wonderland featuring an exquisite backdrop of high peaks stretching into the distance.
NEED FOR SPEED: Bobsleigh, a fun winter sport requires teams to make a timed run down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks Apart from skiing you can also try Bob Run, Extreme Ice Karting, Glacier Bungee Jumping, skating or golf and spectate horse-racing and polo. From Klosters to St Moritz, Verbier to Zermatt, all are famed for exquisite winter. Cricket on Ice, hosted in St Moritz, is another yearly tournament, attracts business executives from all over the world. Apart from that listed alongside are3 tournaments that you can catch on your winter visit to Switzerland.
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NORTHERN LIGHTS AND NORDIC LANDSCAPES Region: Iceland and Finland
The Northern Lights need no introduction. Sleeping under the stars or watching the Aurora Borealis dance is a dream for many. Although, its not as easy as it looks to spot the lights. City lights can blur out the lights in the night sky hence a remote location is necessary. A dark sky sans clouds furthers your chance to spot the lights. With the dazzling phenomena right around the corner, head to Iceland or Finland.
AMIDST WILDERNESS: In Iceland, transparent chambers mimicking bubbles allow a glimpse of the Northern Lights while in bed (Pic: Buubble) While Northern Lights is the prime attraction in the region, Iceland’s most famous spots remain accessible even during winter. Visit the waterfalls, Blue Lagoon, glaciers, black sand beaches, museums, ice caves, and the Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon. You can club your experience with a visit to Lapland, Finland to enjoy Christmas festivities.
If you’ve had skiing on your bucket list, head to Trysilfjellet Mountain region in Norway. The region has a good ski school and is popular with families. It is considered as one of the country’s biggest ski destination with access to tracks on three sides of the mountain. Furthermore, the resort town of Hemsedal provides access to the Scandinavian Alps.
WINTER LANDSCAPES: Skiing tournaments in Lillehammer, Norway attract many winter sports enthusiasts The craggy and wooded Hallingdal Mountains are considered by many as the finest ski areas. There are large children’s area, snow parks and excellent off-piste opportunities to avail. If you are visiting the Norweigan capital, there’s ample opportunity to try numerous winter sports a little outside of Oslo city centre. X-Games, the Youth Olympics, the Snowboard World Cup and the Arctic Challenge are some of the events you can catch here along with trying your hand at a sport at a ski or snowboarding park.
Wow fact: Trysil, a municipality in the Trysilfjellet mountain region in Norway, was one of the first places in Europe to achieve the prestigious certification of a Sustainable Destination
Celebrated across the globe, winter solstice marks the beginning of longer daylight hours. As the sun rises and sets on December 21st, in the northern hemisphere, it is the year’s shortest day also the official beginning of winter. The prehistoric ring of standing stones, Stonehenge is considered as one of the most iconic sites for winter solstice. During mid December, Stonehenge offers a surreal setting.
Stonehenge is carefully aligned pointing to the winter solstice sunset; the rays of early morning light perfectly align with the stones piercing through them. As with sunrise, sunset is spectacular too. The event is claimed to be more important in the Pagan calendar than the Summer Solstice, because it marks the ‘re-birth’ of the Sun for the New Year.
STARS OF THE NORTH: Revellers gather in the centre of Stonehenge, as they take part in a ceremony at the ancient neolithic monument Towards the opposite edge sits New Grange, which points to the winter solstice sunrise, and the Goseck circle, which is aligned to both the sunset and sunrise. Thereafter, visit the historic city of Salisbury nearby. Wander around its picturesque streets, ancient towns decked with black and white Tudor houses or visit the 800 year-old traditional local market.
Wish To Travel The World? Don't Miss Out On These 7 Destinations
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By Masoom Gupte
To reduce the world to a list of top destinations is a near impossible task. But for a variety of reasons some places are favoured over others and become the flavour of the moment. Here are some of the top spots trending this year.
By Masoom GupteTo reduce the world to a list of top destinations is a near impossible task. But for a variety of reasons some places are favoured over others and become the flavour of the moment. Her..
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Together, the five Stans — Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan — of Central Asia spell exotic. The historical association with the Silk Road, that passes through these countries, adds to the appeal and aura of the region. From cities like Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva and Tashkent, that mix the new with the old seamlessly, to the topography of the region that abounds in vast deserts, mountains and rivers, this promises to be the journey of a lifetime.
Together, the five Stans — Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan — of Central Asia spell exotic. The historical association with the Silk Road, that passes through these cou..
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When the landscape of Iceland showed up in a Bollywood movie some time back, many were prompted to ask if the sequence was shot on location, or if the backdrop was a result of computer generated graphics. That’s how unreal Iceland can be. The popularity of this European nation has been on a steady rise, prompting a national discussion about applying curbs on the number of tourists permitted to visit. Best to tick this one off the bucket list, before your name slips on to a waiting list of visitors.
When the landscape of Iceland showed up in a Bollywood movie some time back, many were prompted to ask if the sequence was shot on location, or if the backdrop was a result of computer generated grap..
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True, the country has a checkered past, enmeshed in a long history of violence. But nothing like tourism to change a nation’s image and fortunes. Earlier this year, the country’s tourism department signed a multi-million dollar branding deal with English football club Arsenal, putting the country’s tourism tagline on player jerseys. The deal quickly became controversial as Rwanda is one of the world’s poorest countries and marketing monies are frowned upon. But soon the number of UK visitors surged, claimed officials. Something did the trick. Either the campaign, or the country’s stunning national parks and wildlife.
True, the country has a checkered past, enmeshed in a long history of violence. But nothing like tourism to change a nation’s image and fortunes. Earlier this year, the country’s tourism department s..
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This one is for the adrenaline chasers. Go to the end of the world aboard a ship breaker, surrounded by glaciers and water, and little else. High fitness levels are recommended. But even that’s not a guard against potential sea sickness bouts. Prepare for wonder on this journey, and a discovery of what you are truly made of.
This one is for the adrenaline chasers. Go to the end of the world aboard a ship breaker, surrounded by glaciers and water, and little else. High fitness levels are recommended. But even that’s not a..
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It’s been voted as one of the best cities to live in the world. Not exactly unknown, the city does tend to lose out to the hordes that prefer the shinier, bigger cities of neighbouring United States. But by itself, Vancouver, a west coast seaport in British Columbia, is not just one of Canada’s densest, most ethnically diverse cities, it is also a thriving metropolis with a buzzing art, music, food and theatre scene. Surrounded by mountains, it isn’t too hard on the eyes either.
It’s been voted as one of the best cities to live in the world. Not exactly unknown, the city does tend to lose out to the hordes that prefer the shinier, bigger cities of neighbouring United States...
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One of the seven wonders of the world, this one is a definite bucket list item for many. T rekking up to the Inca ruins, is a much-awaited highpoint to those travelling to the continent, and with Peru on their itinerary. An early morning climb is strongly recommended to witness the sun creeping over the sprawling ruins.
One of the seven wonders of the world, this one is a definite bucket list item for many. T rekking up to the Inca ruins, is a much-awaited highpoint to those travelling to the continent, and with Per..
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A self-drive tour through New Zealand, taking in the abundant natural beauty. Enough said. Here’s a tip to top that. Spend a couple of days at the Aoraki/Mount Cook alpine village. Spend time in the shadow of New Zealand’s highest mountain, boating on the glacier lakes, walking around, taking off on hikes and generally pausing to breathe.
A self-drive tour through New Zealand, taking in the abundant natural beauty. Enough said. Here’s a tip to top that. Spend a couple of days at the Aoraki/Mount Cook alpine village. Spend time in the ..
Russia's premier geopolitical platform launched in Moscow with focus on regional conflicts
