by Isabelle Esteves

Created on: December 23, 2011   Last Updated: December 26, 2011

January is off season for many destinations. What that means for travelers is that the rates will be lower than they are at the height of the season. The exceptions to that rule are the sunny destinations and the ski slopes. Both of these will be higher in January than they will be say, in August.

There are many places that really shine in the winter. A large city is a wonderful place to visit in the winter and January in particular. You will get amazing hotel rates in January in Boston especially on the weekends. There will be ice skating on the common, the museums and the theatres will have lots of things going on and many hotels will have package deals that are not only cheap but hard to resist. Keep in mind that cheap in a city, is not the same as cheap other places. You are not going to find a $59 hotel but you will get great deals. If you want the cheapest stay possible, stay a little outside the city and take the T in to see the sights. 9 Zero is a Kimpton Hotel that has recently been named one of the best 500 hotels in the world by Travel and Leisure Magazine. Among their special packages is

Winter Wonderland which includes breakfast for two up to $50, free valet parking, late checkout and ice skate rentals at the Frog Pond on the Boston Common.

Europe is at its cheapest in the winter except Scandinavia. This is the most affordable time to see the City of Lights, the canals of Amsterdam and Big Ben. In January even the airlines have a little mercy on tourists. With a little effort, you can find hotels or bed and breakfast that are offering three nights for the price of two, are including dinner in the cost and are offering upgrades. You can try to find the hotels on your own, just use Google to search the area you are interested in. You can also check websites such as www.hotels.com for the special deals. Bed and breakfasts are a little more demanding; you may have to check them out individually by area. It can take quite a while but the payoff is getting a really cheap rate.

If you are looking to go south, you need to stay in the more northern areas of Florida. Places such as  St. Augustine, Florida are a bargain in January. It will not be warm like it is in southern Florida, but it will be a lot warmer than it is in the frozen north.

Victoria, British Columbia  is a great place to visit in January. It is not nearly as cold as you would expect given its northern location. There are rooms starting at 20 CDN at a hostel to 183 at the Fairmont Princess which is the ultimate in luxury. These are both cheap and there are many lovely hotels and bed and breakfast for under $100 a night.

These are just a few of the cheap places to head in January 2012. Your vacation dollar will go a lot farther in these locations than they will in warmer climes.

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