Top Ten Reasons to Spend Christmas in Tenerife

Having splashed and sloshed our way through the wettest summer in living memory, many of us Brits are severely in need of a bit of light relief. Recent statistics reveal a desperate rush to leave the country over Christmas and head to the gloriously sunny climes of Tenerife. The statistics, from a survey by TravelRepublic, show a massive increase in winter sun holidays in general and Christmas breaks in Tenerife are the most popular of all.

There has been a drop in Tenerife travel prices this season with many one-week packages to Tenerife coming in at under £300. Cheap trips to Tenerife are clearly a big draw to those of us keen to escape the grim British weather, but could there be more to it than this? Christmas is getting bigger every year and the pressure to get it right is immense. A Tenerife Christmas can remove such hassles, and more. That's why I've compiled a list of ten aspects of Christmas hell and how jetting off on a sunny holiday to Tenerife will turn them all around!

1) In the UK: Presents and shopping

Us Brits spend an average of £384 on 18 Christmas presents. Significantly more than you might be spending on your whole Tenerife holiday!

On holiday: Spanish souvenirs

It's impossible to list all the Spanish souvenirs you could find for your loved ones, but here are five of the most popular items you could pick up whilst in Tenerife:

Abanico - hand held fans elaborately decorated or carved from wood make a great Tenerife Christmas present.

Football Souvenirs - items brandishing the Real Madrid crest or a miniature replica of the stadium are ideal gifts for footie fans!

Bullfighting Souvenirs - you can buy a representation of the three matadors or even a replica matador's jacket.

Toro - these miniature Spanish bulls vary in quality from moulded plastic to elaborate pieces hand made in leather.

Art & Paintings - from the country that gave birth to Salvador Dali and Picasso there is a large selection of cheap scenes of everyday Spain.

2) In the UK: Enforced jollity

At Christmas there is no greater sin then appearing to be grumpy. Never mind if it's raining again when it ought to be snowing. Never mind the awkward family tensions. If your mood isn't up you're in trouble - you're 'ruining Christmas'.

On holiday: Real jollity

Waking up to the bliss of no responsibilities and a day of sunbathing will put you in a naturally good mood, so there's no need to fake it!

3) In the UK: Inappropriate outfits

Christmas seems to inspire the oddest outfits: fluorescent antlers, hair tinsel, 'fun' paper crowns, ridiculous knitted festively themed woolly jumpers - the list is endless and another example of that enforced jollity.

On holiday: A good tan

Developing a healthy glow in Tenerife will make you the envy of all your friends when the glitter of Christmas has died down to a dull fizzle and everyone's feeling pale and miserable. Ha-ha!

4) In the UK: Guzzling excessive cheap alcohol

To get through the emotional rollercoaster of another family Christmas, many of us, despite our best intentions, will turn to the bottle to ease the pain. The following day's hangover only makes it that much worse.

On holiday: Sipping cocktails by the pool

There are so many fabulous bars in Tenerife that you'll be spoilt for choice, and there's no need to overdo it when you're already having so much fun!

5) In the UK: Office parties

You can already picture the scene: watching what you drink in case you say exactly what you think about your unbearable boss or colleague, whilst pretending not to be disgusted by the cringeworthy advances of the office letch. Finally, you end up dancing wildly with said letch in a mad drunken stupor. The Facebook photos won't make it any easier to forget.

On holiday: Beach parties!

A beach party in Tenerife will really blow away the winter cobwebs. For daytime fun, the main beach of Playa de las Americas is where the party people go to recharge their batteries before the next clubland assault and when the sun goes down you can head to Enramada Beach near La Caleta, where Chiringuito Beach Club hosts parties at the weekend. Many revellers choose to camp on the beach at Las Galletas, bringing their own food and drinks and listening to music into the small hours. Christmas in Tenerife is such fun!

6) In the UK: Christmas lunch

First of all, whoever's cooking is incredibly stressed, and claims you have no idea how much work there is to do (if you try and help then you're inevitably doing it all wrong). This leads to petty arguments and numerous kitchen disasters. Meanwhile one member of the family has suddenly decided to become a vegan without telling anyone and refuses to eat a thing, glaring grumpily while everyone else tucks into their turkey.

On holiday: Tapas & fresh tropical fruit

Food in Tenerife is very tasty and a lot less stressful than Christmas dinner. Tapas are Spain's appetizers, scrummy little dishes which are often flavoured with garlic, chillies or paprika, cumin, salt, pepper or saffron. It often comes with seafood such as anchovies, sardines or mackerel in olive oil with tomatoes and sometimes peppers or olives. On your Tenerife holiday you can also sample many delicious tropical fruits like mangoes, paw paw and 'platanos fritos' - fried bananas.

7) In the UK: Christmas television

Saccharine Coca Cola adverts, endless repeats of 'Only Fools and Horses', soap extravaganzas and 'Celebrity' Christmas specials.

On holiday: singles - Find a winter romance

For goodness sake, forget TV and get out there onto the lively Tenerife singles scene. If anything's going to boost your sprits at Christmas it's a sizzling holiday romance!

8) In the UK: Christmas number ones

Slade's 'So here it is Merry Christmas', Band Aid's 'Do they know it's Christmas' and Aled Jones' 'Walking in the air'. Haven't you heard them all enough?

On holiday: iPod

Forget the naffness - when you set off for your holiday in Tenerife you make sure you've got all your favourite tunes at your fingertips so you can sunbathe in peace.

9) In the UK: Carol singers

Expecting you to give them money for one chorus of 'We Wish You a Merry Christmas' when half of them don't know the words and the other half are miming.

On holiday: iPod

See above.

10) In the UK: Unrelentingly grim weather

Grrr. Grrr. Grrr.

On holiday: Sunshine

Mmm - what a relief!

Do You Really Know the Christmas History?

The Christmas history in America really lacks a clear pathway and seems to hodge podge many different cultural narratives and traditions all together. Since the American people are really a diaspora of different nationalities, it's not surprising then that our holiday season is packed with so many rich traditions. From the German Christmas trees and English pudding, to Scandinavian yule logs and New England turkeys, Christmas Day rituals have become a larger celebration of Christmases past.

Some religious scholars point out that the Christmas celebration is oddly placed, speculating that a more accurate birth might have been in September or sometime in the fall, when it was easier to travel from Bethlehem to Jerusalem. In fact, December 25th, Christmas Day, had been celebrated as "Winter Solstice" for three centuries before Christ's birth. This time marked a day where the worst of winter was behind them and they could look forward to more sunlight and better days.

In Scandinavia, fathers and sons would bring home large logs that they would burn for 24 hours to bring good luck for the coming year. In Germany, people stayed inside to avoid the pagan god Oden's nocturnal flights across the sky, where he would look down and judge those who would perish and who would survive.

In Rome, the licentious feast of Saturnalia would boast plentiful food and drink, honor children and allow slaves or peasants to become masters for a month. It's commonly believed that the church chose this date purposely to replace the pagan celebrations of the season and encourage people to embrace Christianity instead.

Even though Christmas got off to a rocky start, the Christmas spirit had become so strong that it brought one of the world's mightiest wars to a screeching halt for just one day. On Christmas Day in 1914, an eerie calm spread over the battle field as the sounds of rifles firing quieted and shells ceased exploding. Across the Western Front, a sound rose up out of the trenches as both German and British troops began singing a Christmas carol across enemy lines.

At daybreak, a few German soldiers crept out of hiding, unarmed, calling out a tentative "Merry Xmas" in their enemy's native language. When the Allies saw this was no trick, they barreled out of the trenches to shake hands, exchange cigarettes and plum pudding. A few of the soldiers played a game of soccer, while others sadly removed some of the bodies during this brief ceasefire. Just five months into this brutal war, this rare anomaly revealed how basic decent humanity shines through, even during the most disheartening times.

In many ways, Americans have become alienated from the Christmas customs we celebrate today. For instance, Christmas trees are a German tradition that has been practiced since the 17th Century; yet the Puritans were hesitant to celebrate in such pagan ways, so stately pines didn't gain widespread popularity in America until a sketch of Queen Victoria, her children and a tree filled with Christmas ornaments circulated in 1846.

Christmas cards had been prevalent in Britain, but America didn't catch on fully until 1850, when German card-maker Louis Prang immigrated and set up shop. Mistletoe, which dates back to the Victorian era, is a Celtic and Teutonic tradition that was believed to heal wounds, increase fertility and ward off evil spirits. Plum pudding harkens all the way back to Middle Ages England. Caroling is another English practice, where roving minstrels would come through town and play for the rich in exchange for a warm meal, a warm bed and a pittance. The tradition of hanging stockings is said to stem from the legends of St. Nicholas, as well as the Scandinavian tradition of leaving shoes on the hearth in anticipation of gold coins and candies.