The festive season is fast approaching, bringing with it a mixture of anticipation and anxiety. For many people, the holidays are a chance to relax and take a well-earned rest after a hectic year. It can also be an opportunity to re-group, meet with friends and catch up with the family, whilst indulging in good food.

Indeed, according to a survey of people’s attitudes, 61 per cent of respondents said that spending the festive period with their loved ones was a top priority, with 38 per cent believing that having a traditional Christmas dinner with the family was a key factor in having a merry Christmas.

For others, however, the imminent approach of Christmas and New Year brings about a feeling of trepidation, with thoughts of impenetrable crowds battling their way down the high street for presents, food to arrange and cook, and bickering family members, overshadowing any joy.

The research also showed that one in ten of the people interviewed were not likely to spend Christmas at home, in order to avoid the chaos it brings, whilst nearly one in four said they wanted to go away because it relieves the stress that the festive period brings.

It is for this latter group of people, who shrink away in fear at the thought of the stress that can be induced by such activities, that festive breaks are an ideal solution. Not only can you escape the madness of city life with a quiet hotel hidden away in the English countryside, for example, but you can also avoid the chore of cooking and clearing up, letting someone else take charge of it all.

Festive breaks are also great for those who would rather experience something different at Christmas and/or New Year, by travelling to a new city you have always had interest in but don’t have the chance to visit during the year. There is also the opportunity to take advantage of the various activities, such as winter festivals and celebrations, which take place around Britain.

As previously mentioned, the festive season is a great opportunity to catch up with family and friends. What is not so fun, however, is having to spend a couple of days sleeping on a tiny sofa at a friend’s apartment, or being holed up in the cramped conditions of a relative’s overpopulated house. In this way, it can often be wise instead, to take advantage of the freedom of booking into alternative accommodation.

Whatever the reason for wanting to escape the confines of home during Christmas and New Year, it can’t be argued that festive hotel breaks are a great way to achieve a sense of relaxation and freedom. And, whilst you are being waited on hand and foot, you can lie back and think of those who are pulling their hair out over the latest family argument of what to watch on television!