Winter break advice welcomed

Sorry to hear you have been under the weather.
We got married at the end of November some years back and headed for the driest place in continental Europe. Almeria in southern Spain. It is a semi desert and they used to film "spaghetti westerns" there. There are shots of it in one of the Indiana Jones films as well.
It is an interesting ex-volcanic arid landscape and we did lots of walking. There are also some interesting inland villages.
It is the Cabo de Gata National Park that I am on about - other parts of Almeria are covered in mile after mile of plastic greenhouses (oh THAT is where all those winter tomatoes and peppers come from...) They have probably done some development of hotels etc there since we visited.

On the way back we had a couple of nights in the parador in Nijar which we rather disliked. (narrow pavements and traffic...) So don't go there.

Madpotter It is a little further to go, but we go quite often in Jan/Feb to Cyprus. Almost guaranteed sun, similar to our spring - enough anyway to sit outside although a dip is not always on the agenda. I just sit outside and read or watch the world go by and there are plenty of activities to be undertaken - including walks.

Madeira?

Malta ? I have never been but reports are good.

Maybe a week would be too long but I loved Gibralter lots of history to explore there , a couple of reasonable beaches , its nice and small so you can walk where ever you want to and just across the border is Spain to also explore. The airport is tiny if you fly straight to Gib no faffing about for an hour to exit and you can walk into the main town from the airport too. The only downside was traffic and lots of it but a most interesting few days was spent there and my son says they haven't seen any rain this Winter the weather has been fab.

Malta is wonderful - so quaint in parts, beautiful scenery, perpetually warm, and lovely friendly people.

I'd say Madiera too. The walking is brilliant along the levadas or tiny waterways which cover the island. They range from very easy to very hard. The climate is gentle and there are stunningly beautiful gardens and lots to see. Funchal, the capital is very interesting and the restaurants are good value.

You cannot guarantee that Madeira will be dry. The very lushness of the island testifies to this. We were there at Easter and had a hard time finding the sun.

I was going to say Madeira but we had a very windy stormy week in February 2 years ago and we didnt really like it. The walks were much too hard for my back and we found it quite expensive. Probably better later when the flowers are in bloom

Thanks for all you helpful comments on where to go, and more importantly where to avoid!

Sorry it was Nerja that we didn't like. Perched on top of a cliff.
I do recall a honeymoony afternoon of passion there though...
Let us know what you decide.