Five best Latin dance holidays

1. Flamenco in Andalucia

The La Fuente flamenco school offers a distinctive dance experience, miles from any urban bustle in a small village on the edge of the Sierra Nevada national park in Andalucia. The purpose-built studio is surrounded by miles of stunning mountain views, walking trails and horse-riding routes for guests to explore and the winding streets of the village of Capileira on its doorstep.

Accommodation is in a charming hostel seconds from the school, with a restaurant, a beautiful garden and a swimming pool.

Courses start from £87 (Dh507) for a five-hour class; and accommodation from £152 (Dh885) for a week.

 2 Bachata and merengue in the Dominican Republic

Responsible Travel offers a two-week holiday in the Dominican Republic including intensive Spanish language lessons and dance tutorials in bachata, merengue and salsa. The programme is based in the lively capital city of Santo Domingo, with hundreds of live music venues for late-night practice with the locals.

Guests stay with Dominican families during the course, the cost of which is included in the package. Guests have the option of a weekend excursion to the beaches of the Samana peninsula. Prices from £730 (Dh4,254), excluding flights.

 3 Salsa in Colombia

Santiago de Cali, or Cali for short, is considered the "World Capital of Salsa", boasting over 200 salsa schools and more than 80 salsa orchestras. Visitors from South America flock to the city for the salsa-drenched Feria de Cal in December, the International Salsa Festival in September, and the monthly extravaganzas at Delirio.

But all year round, the halls of Tin Tin Deo and Zaperoco, the local clubs, heave until the wee hours. If you want to give it a try, private classes can be booked at the esteemed Sondeluz dance academy.

 4 Capoeira in Brazil

GoLearnTo's two-week Portuguese and Capoeira course in Brazil is based in the martial art's spiritual home: Salvador, which also happens to be home to some of the finest beaches in the world and temperatures hovering around 30 degrees in February, when the next courses begin.

Alongside the lessons, the school offers free cooking and Samba tuition, and weekend excursions including surf and scuba lessons. Prices from £333 (Dh1,939) excluding flights.

  5 Tango in Finland

While it might be a long way from Argentina, Finland is a country of intense passions and tango has been adopted as national obsession. Each year, hundreds of thousands of dancers descend on Seinjoki, a rural town on the country's western flank, for the Tangomarkkinat festival.

Dancers line the streets and dance under the midnight sun, as pageants and singing contests are beamed across the country — every Finn can name the reigning Tango king and Queen.