Christmas in Bermuda, New Year in New York

Jet off to Bermuda this Christmas with new arrival, Zoom Airlines (flyzoom.com), and you’ll find all the festive traditions you know and love wrapped up in a balmy climate, pink sand beaches and tranquil turquoise waters. Add-on a few days in New York, less than two hours by air from Bermuda, and you have the ideal combination of festive fun and New Year revelling!

Zoom Airlines, which launched its six and a half hour, direct flights to Bermuda from London Gatwick this summer, has also launched a New York route, making Bermuda and New York a highly affordable* twin-centre option. The Bermuda to New York leg is serviced well by a number of airlines including JetBlue (www.jetblue.com), which can transport you from balmy Bermuda to bustling New York in under two hours from just US$139.00 (approx. £67.00)!

Christmas is a wonderful time of year in Bermuda. You’ll enjoy a sunshine escape without missing out on traditional British favourites because Bermuda embraces many of the festive customs of its sovereign. Christmas in Bermuda involves mince pies, turkey, nativity plays in its many churches, Christmas pudding, crackers and even pantomime!

However, the Bermudians put their own twist on Christmas with events such as the annual Festival of Lights and the Christmas Eve parade of the Gombey dancers who snake through the streets, alleys and hotel lobbies dressed in rainbow-coloured capes and peacock-feathered hats.

Finally, you can’t spend Christmas in Bermuda without sampling a slice of cassava pie, the Bermuda national dish for more than 300 years. It's a delicious pie made with butter, eggs, vanilla, and shredded cassava root layered with meat and chicken.

The weather cannot be beaten, either! Bermuda benefits from a semi-tropical climate and only has two seasons, spring and summer, or ‘Golf and Spa’ and ‘Beach and Sizzle’ as the Bermudians prefer to name them. Christmas is the height of the ‘Golf and Spa’ season, when temperatures reach a satisfying average of 65 degrees Fahrenheit.

Whether your idea of Christmas bliss is relaxing on pink sand beaches, soaking up some local culture or playing a round of golf with views out to sea, you can spend the festive season the way you want to in beautiful Bermuda.

New York provides the perfect accompaniment to a rejuvenating festive break in Bermuda. There’s no better city in which to welcome in the New Year, not to mention getting a head start on the people at home in the January sales shopping stakes!

For more information on visiting Bermuda including a full list of accommodation options on the island go to Bermudatourism.com.

*At the time of writing Zoom Airlines had flights from London Gatwick to Bermuda available from £288.50 including all taxes and charges on 17 December 2007 and £268.50 on 24 December 2007. Flights from New York to London Gatwick with Zoom Airlines were available from US$609.00 (approx. £292.00) on 3 January 2008.

JetBlue had seats available on its Bermuda to New York flight on 27 December from US$179.00 (approx. £86.00). The lowest round-trip cost for a Bermuda and New York twin-centre trip over Christmas and New Year is approx. £647.00 per person.