Catherine Harvey

France is a very popular holiday destination but there are very many aspects to the type of holiday you could choose.

There's the holiday where you pack the kids and all your belongings into a taxi, drag it all onto a ferry or train, arrive in France hot and stressed, take another taxi to your hotel in the centre of Paris that you've paid an extortionate fee for, unpack and try to pacify the kids.

This is the time of year when most people are beginning to think about their holidays and the travel business is booming. The winter is dragging on, Christmas is well and truly over and forgotten and summer is a long way off. Desperate for something to look forward to, Brits head off in droves on a Saturday morning to trawl the travel agents for their next big credit card binge.

Anybody that has ever used chauffeur car hire will know only too well it is an entirely different experience to that of grabbing a taxi. Use chauffeur car hire and you will get a polite, courteous, fragrant driver who is smartly dressed. Try a taxi and you'll be often be greeted by a pungent smelling sweaty individual who will extinguish his cigarette reluctantly.

If there's one reason to enjoy car hire in Poland, it has to be to experience the wildlife.

Poland is at the geometric heart of Europe and much of it is still unsoiled in that it supports such diverse wildlife, the likes of which you will be hard pushed to see elsewhere. A dis-used bunker in the West of Poland houses some of the rarest bats in the whole of Europe.

For anyone planning a visit to Bristol, take note: you're going to need longer than a day to appreciate all this historic city has to offer. Use car hire Bristol to get around because there is no one definitive place to be recommended.

Spread across this beautiful area of the UK, is some of the most spectacular scenery you will ever encounter.

There are many activities to be indulged in to avoid the boredom that comes from driving but few of them are legal and most require that you remove at least one hand from the wheel with the possible implications of being stopped for careless driving. If you have to travel but are easily bored, try using chauffeur car hire to get around and then indulge yourself in all sorts of fun.

There is no doubt that everyone's senses have been on red alert in the last few years regarding terrorism. You can't pass through an airport without seeing an increased level of security and with many travellers nervously looking around them, scrutinising their fellow travellers with suspicion and doubt. Anyone arriving with a bag is looked upon with distrust - in an airport?

Of course, after terrorist events of the last few years it is difficult to relax again.

Forget London, Manchester is the place to be for all those who want to experience life. For those thinking about a short break they would usually think of somewhere with a hot climate on the Continent or possibly somewhere in the country but this doesn't suit everybody. Short breaks and holidays do not have to mean strategic planning in a bid to force yourself to relax in a short space of time and neither do you need somewhere with quite, golden beaches for strolling on just to be able to relax.

For the perfect short break away from it all take a plane to Ireland. You can then use car hire from Belfast Airport and within a few short miles see some of the best sights, experience some of the best tastes, indulge in some of the most exciting sports and have some of the most awesome fun you have ever experienced.

So, what makes it worth going across the water for a break when you could just as easily take one this side of the pond? For a start, Ireland is hot on educating their young and any children you take with you are guaranteed the time of their lives.

Scotland is a perfect place for anyone to take a short break. It has a wilderness quality to it that comes with its vast beaches, cliff top scenery and fresh, clean air but is balanced with a thriving nightlife, welcoming people and traditional fishing villages that gives it that quaint, homely feel. On top of that, Scotland has the freshest food served in the finest restaurants, it has championship golf courses and a choice of thirteen magnificent and striking castles.