Take me there: Dickens Museum, London
If the release of the lavish new adaptation of Great Expectations has got you in the mood for a Dickensian Christmas, head for London's Doughty Street: the Charles Dickens Museum will reopen tomorrow after an eight-month, £3.1m renovation. Crowning a year of celebrations to mark the writer's bicentenary, Dickens's home will be decked out in Victorian Christmas finery. Enjoy mulled wine and mince pies; see Tim Carroll's production of A Christmas Carol, including puppetry and music; or take a guided walk through London with readings and a visit to Dickens's favourite tavern. From 10-26 December (booking advised). Tickets £7 to £18 (dickensmuseum.com).
It's a good time to… book a Twixmas break
Oh there's nothing the travel industry loves better than a made-up word (see babymoons, staycations, voluntourism). Now there's the Twixmas break. Referring to the strange limbo between Christmas and New Year, normally spent slumped in front of repeats of the Gavin & Stacey Christmas Special, they are, of course, a marketing ploy to fill rooms in the low season – but some of the offers this year are quite tempting.
If anywhere can make a Twixmas break cool, Cornwall's Scarlet Hotel can. Beach walks, spa treatments, yoga classes and lazy afternoons at a gorgeous clifftop retreat… what's not to like? From £605pp for three nights, 27–30 December, scarlethotel.co.uk.
At the more traditional but no less inviting Fishmore Hall in Ludlow, a two-night break between 26 and 30 December costs £295 per room, including breakfast and dinner on one evening (fishmorehall.co.uk).
If walking off the Christmas pudding is a priority, try the YHA's popular winter walking weekend starting on 27 December. Based at Castleton Losehill Hall hostel in the Peak District, the three-night package promises guided walks, good food and sociable evenings (£240; yha.org.uk/events/country-adventures-yha-adventure-breaks).
Give me a break: the week's best deals
Home: Winter inn The Felin Fach Griffin in the Breacon Beacons was recently named Inn of the Year by the Good Pub Guide. Until 22 March, it will be offering discounted midweek breaks from £145 for one night's dinner, bed and breakfast for two. The dining pub with rooms, renowned for its food, makes a great base for walking and browsing the bookshops of nearby Hay on Wye (eatdrinksleep.ltd.uk).
Away: New Year in Berlin The German capital will be seeing out 2012 in style with a street party stretching 2km from the Brandenburg Gate to the Victory Column. A last-minute New Year getaway with BA, departing on 31 December, costs from £289pp, with two nights' room-only accommodation in the Best Western City Ost, and flights from Heathrow (ba.com/newyearbreaks).
For more inside tips, advice and holiday ideas, go to guardian.co.uk/travel
