Spring is on the horizon in the northern hemisphere, with the first day of spring officially being the 20^th of March. In countries still gripped by the cold and snow, the end of the freezing weather is strongly anticipated. As people start to think about warmer temperatures, many South African expats living in colder countries eagerly start planning their spring vacations. To help you with your plans, we have put together our list of the best spring vacations you might like to consider this year.

Spring season vacation destinations

1. Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, Japan

If seeing Japan’s world-famous cherry blossoms is something on your bucket list, then head to Japan’s beautiful Mount Fuji and Japan’s most visited national park. Spring is the ideal time to see the cherry blossoms as the cherry blossom and plum trees across Japan all start to bloom in late March. Be prepared to have your breath blown away as you take pictures of the iconic Mount Fuji through a magnificent frame of purple and lavender blossoms.

2. Paris, the city of amour

Spring and love are synonymous, making Paris the ideal place to enjoy a spring vacation. The beautiful fountains, banana trees and roses that fill the city’s famous parks and gardens are magnificent at this time of year. So, take someone special with you and enjoy the City of Lights in springtime.

3. The Tulip Festival in the Netherlands

Spring is all about flowers. So, if you can’t travel far to see the cherry blossoms in Japan, consider a trip to the Netherlands to view the magnificent array of tulips in the Netherland’s fields and parks. The ideal time to see the tulips in all their beauty is from late March to mid-April. Good places to visit are the fields that lie in the Noordoostpolder, and the Keukenhof Gardens, which are open from March to May. You can also take a bicycle tour along the 19-mile Flower Bulb Route in North Holland where you will see blooming daffodils and millions of tulips.

4. Columbia River Gorge, Pacific Northwest USA

If the great outdoors is your thing, then this canyon is an ideal place to take a spring vacation. It stretches 130km along the Columbian River and in spring, hundreds of thousands of sunflowers brighten up the entire landscape. Go there for fishing, biking, kitesurfing and many other outdoor sports.

5. Costa Rica

Regular visitors to Costa Rica say that travelling to this beautiful country in spring enables you to avoid the huge number of tourists that arrive in the dry season and the peak of its rainy season. Spring also enables you to take advantage of the lower green-season rates that are still available. An ideal spring vacation spot is the Manuel Antonio National Park where you will find some of Costa Rica’s most magnificent beaches and lush tropical rainforests, right on the edges of the beaches, filled with tropical birds, monkeys, iguanas and other exotic wildlife.

If you are a South African expat living in the northern hemisphere and would like to know more about how you can maximise your finances through financial emigration, accessing your South African retirement annuity and our tailor-made tax solutions for South Africans around the world, contact FinGlobal today.