UK holidaymakers looking for a relaxing city break with a great opportunity to soak up the sunshine on the beach should look no further than this key destination in southern Spain, declared the Malaga City Tourist Board and Convention Bureau.

Spokesman Antonio Montejo Romero said that for people walking around town on Malaga holidays it was only a 10 minute stroll between attractions.

“We consider that 90 per cent of the old town of Malaga, downtown, is pedestrianised, so visitors don’t need to hire a car to be moving around the city centre of Malaga,” he added.

Mr Romero went on to say that as well as the golden beaches of Malaga, holidays to the city can also be a cultural experience, since there are 23 museums to choose from, such as the Picasso Museum, containing the famous artist’s “most important private collection” of paintings.

There are many cheap flights to Malaga available from the UK, thanks to its status as a travel hub for the various resorts of the Costa del Sol.

Last month flag carrier British Airways launched new leisure services from London City Airport, among which was a Malaga route, operated by BA CityFlyer. The airline’s cheap flights to Malaga leave the Docklands airport thrice-weekly.

Holidaymakers looking for cruise holidays can also take cheap flights to Malaga, Barcelona and Palma from Leeds Bradford Airport, where Royal Caribbean International Cruises has recently expanded the number of connecting services.

The ACI figures were good news for the holidays industry in general, and the aviation sector in particular. They offered proof that people throughout the world are continuing to value their foreign holidays.

There was an overall 6.6 per cent increase in passenger numbers on international cheap flights in May, the association said, with “significant growth” in cheap flights to Turkey, Spain, Russia and destinations across Northern Europe.

Northern Europe holidays proved especially popular in May, with an 8 per cent increase. However, the greatest rate of improvement was in the Asia Pacific region, where the number of people taking cheap flights increased by a whopping 9.8 per cent.

ACI world economics director Andreas Schimm commented: “We are encouraged by the continuing strong growth trend in passenger traffic.”

He went on to point out that there was a general upward trend in the number of people on cheap flights across the world, with the ACI figures for April revealing what the association called a “vigorous increase in international traffic in Europe” of some 11 per cent.

Mr Schimm added: “Most recent forecasts from the IMF predict robust GDP and trade volume growth in excess of 4 per cent. Passenger and freight growth are expected to remain well above that figure for the remainder of 2011.”

The only downward figures in May were for the Africa region, where there was a 16.5 per cent fall in the number of people taking cheap flights across the continent.

The convention’s marketing attaché Jessika Bettan said that the city has many vineyards within the city limits itself, although many visitors are unaware of them.

As well as the dedicated vineyards, there are also several castles just a 20 minute cheap car hire trip away which also produce wine – she said that a trip to explore the vineyards of Nice was a perfect day out for people on France holidays.

“You can have the morning on the markets, then you can see all the local products, and then you eat in a restaurant along the beach and you eat the specialities from the market because all the restaurants they prepare their meals with products that they buy in the morning,” Ms Bettan pointed out.

“You have a little lunch, then you take a bus or a car and you visit the vineyards.”

France holidays are becoming increasingly popular among British travellers this year, according to a recent report published by The Co-operative Travel found that Britons are switching back to traditional holiday destinations such as France in 2011.

This squares with figures published last week by the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), which showed that France remained the most popular place to go on holiday worldwide.

There are many cheap flights to Nice available from the UK, such as the easyJet service operating out of London Gatwick Airport, or KLM’s route to the southern French city from Edinburgh.

As Americans across the globe broke out the champagne and fireworks for the Fourth of July celebrations, Jet2.com managing director Ian Doubtfire and East Midlands Airport managing director Brad Miller teamed up to promote the carrier’s New York flights. These services will be taking off from four airports in northern England and Scotland in November and December, with the aim of giving passengers a chance to do their Christmas shopping in style.

Mr Doubtfire warned passengers that in the seven weeks since Jet2.com had announced its cheap flights to New York, “well over half” of the seats have been booked and the Jet2holidays package deals – which include accommodation in good quality cheap hotels – have also sold rapidly.

The cheap flights leave Leeds Bradford and Newcastle airports, flying to New York Newark Airport on 1 December, returning on 4 December, and again on 8 December, returning on the 11th. This year, they will also leave East Midlands and Glasgow airports on 17 November, returning on the 20^th.

Mr Doubtfire said: “We’re delighted to be offering festive flights to New York again, and to introduce them for the first time to our Glasgow and East Midlands’ bases. For three of the airports it is the only transatlantic flight they offer, and the fact we’ve already sold more than half the seats shows that there is a real appetite for them.”

Mr Miller added: “The bookings to date for this flight speak volumes. With over half the seats already sold after only seven weeks, it’s clear that there is demand for transatlantic flights from the region.”

With such a large number of cheap flights to Florida available, the tourism association of Kissimmee is encouraging visitors to base themselves in the city. It’s said that it makes a great centre for exploring “the great outdoors” in the Sunshine State.

The local tourist board’s senior sales representative Rene Kuziv noted that with cheap flights to Orlando – less than 20 miles away – or Kissimmee itself available from airports across the UK, staying in the city is an attractive alternative to the hectic pace of Miami holidays or Orlando itself, and using it to explore the surrounding countryside can give tourists a refreshing break from days at the bustling theme parks. Kissimmee is also more affordable than its more famous Floridian counterparts, she pointed out, with more cheap hotels and restaurants.

Ms Kuziv added: “Kissimmee has a plethora of outdoor activities, from Forever Florida eco-safaris – which invite visitors to ride through conservation areas on horseback, zip line through the wilderness and explore its wildlife – to Kissimmee’s Lake Toho that welcomes air boat rides, pontoon boating, fishing and birding adventures.”

Holiday operator Thomas Cook recently started offering attractive Kissimmee holiday packages, in association with Ocean Florida. Ocean Florida director Harry Hastings said that cheap flights to Florida are available with Thomas Cook Airlines, from “various UK airports including Gatwick, Manchester and Glasgow”.

The UNWTO said that France enjoyed the greatest number of international arrivals in 2010. Around 76.8 million people visited the country, a similar figure to the previous year.

When it came to USA holidays, the UNWTO said that there was a substantial 8.7 per cent increase in international visitor numbers in 2010, boosting the USA to the second most visited holiday destination in the world. This was partly due to the increased number of cheap flights to the USA being made available from Europe and Asia.

The rise of China as a tourism destination also continued last year, with even Spain holidays being eclipsed and pushed into fourth place, while China took the number three spot. Some 55.7 million international visitors took cheap flights to China last year, the UN World Tourism Organization said.

Italy holidays came fifth, followed by Britain, Turkey, Germany, Malaysia and Mexico holidays, the figures showed.

When it came to the reasons for holiday bookings last year, just over half of around 480 million international visitor arrivals were recorded as being for the purposes of leisure, rest and recreation – some 51 per cent – and 27 per cent had been travelling for reasons including religious pilgrimages, or visits to expatriated friends and family. Cheap flights remained the number one method of travel to holiday destinations in 2010, with a solid 51 per cent of travellers having taken to the air.

The southern French city has long been a draw for holidaymakers, due to the region’s warm weather, the attractive surrounding countryside and the many delicious opportunities for cuisine. However, the  Nice Convention and Visitors Bureau stressed that the city’s Old Town also gives visitors the opportunity to discover its fascinating history and the locale’s unique culture and character – deriving from the fact that Nice was an independent city-state until around 1860.

The Convention’s marketing attache Jessika Bettan went on to recommend the local markets as a fantastic place to find delicious local delicacies.

“The Old Town with the little narrow streets, the houses are all painted yellow and red, and with the sunlight shining it really brings everything to life,” Ms Bettan declared. “Everyday we have a food and vegetable market and a flower market, except on Mondays when we have an antique market. It makes it a very lively place all year long.”

People staying in Nice on their France holidays will be able to get around easily, thanks to its cheap and extensive bus tours, which give visitors the option of hopping off and hopping on again at 14 different stops throughout the city. There are many different airlines offering cheap flights to Nice from the UK – and recently the BA CityFlyer route operating out of London City Airport boosted its service to twice a day, operating until September.

There are new cheap flights to Basel Mulhouse Airport in the south of the Alsace region by carriers bmi and Swiss, operating from Heathrow and Manchester Airports, while cheap fares specialist easyJet has begun flying to the destination from Gatwick Airport and British Airways has instituted a new route from Edinburgh. Many other airports and carriers also offer cheap flights to Strasbourg, the Alsatian capital.

Upon arrival in the region itself, golfers are spoilt for choice when it comes to great courses. France’s second highest-rated course – according to the Peugeot Golf Guide – can be found here, the 18-hole, championship-standard Kempferhof in Plobsheim, which is just 15 kilometres from Strasbourg.

Golfers looking for a trickier course can try the Golf de Soufflenheim, which is set amid 70 acres of beautiful countryside, with 18 lakes. Other alternatives include the Ammerschwihr Trois-Epis course, some 10 kilometres from Colmar, or the Golf de la Wantzenau, which is also near Strasbourg.

The Tourisme Alsace agency also recommends the region for the very best in cuisine, with some amazing gastronomic delights to be found as the culinary styles of France, Germany and Switzerland meet and mingle.

For the latest news on cheap flights to the Alsace region, and the cheapest fares, be sure to check online before booking. There are also great deals on cheap hotels throughout France to be found on the best travel websites.

The Sunshine State’s newest theme park will cover 150 acres and is designed to appeal most strongly to youngsters between 2-12 years old.

Legoland Florida sales manager Todd Andrus said that visitors will be able to enjoy racing car rides, entertainment, rollercoasters and gigantic exhibitions – all with that unique Lego style. Mr Andrus went on to reveal that 80 per cent of all enquiries about the theme park had so far involved queries about the opening date, so that tourists can book their cheap flights to Florida and their cheap hotels when they get there, as well as buying their tickets for the theme park itself.

Legoland Florida will be run by Merlin Entertainments and can be found halfway between the state’s major cities of Orlando and Tampa. Cheap flights to Orlando and Tampa are widely available from the UK, flying throughout the year.

The world famous toy company already has theme parks around the world, including Windsor in the UK, and Merlin Entertainments Group recently announced plans for another new Legoland in Tokyo, which will be a perfect fit for families taking cheap flights to Japan next year, as it is due to open at the Decks Tokyo Beach Mall in June 2012.

The group will also be opening a Madame Tussauds in Tokyo, starting in October as a temporary exhibition, which will become permanent if it is a success.

On the weekend of 18 June, the theme park began the celebrations by loosing confetti and firing golden streamers high into the sky. It also dished out free Butterbeer, chocolate frogs and cauldron cakes to delighted Harry Potter fans.

Universal Orlando Resort president Bill Davis declared: “We’re so excited to celebrate this milestone with our guests.”

“It’s been an incredible year for us and our guests and we look forward to creating more exciting memories with them in the years to come.”

Orlando holidays have been a firm family favourite for many years, thanks to the city’s plethora of exciting theme parks, such as Walt Disney World and SeaWorld.

People from across the UK regularly take cheap flights to Orlando to spend a couple of weeks immersed in the fantastic worlds created by the theme park resorts, and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter has proved equally irresistible in the year since it opened, offering visitors a chance to visit locations from the books and films, sample thrilling rides and browse and eat in shops and restaurants based on JK Rowling’s phenomenon.

Even people sampling the Universal Orlando Resort online were able to join in the festivities over the weekend, with a special tab added to the theme park’s Facebook fan page which urged users to interact with each other, sharing their experiences of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and photographs of their visit.

Cheap flights to Orlando are available from airports across the UK.