Sick of the UK? Sun, sea and poker - yes please!

If you’re planning your summer holiday and the thought of a week without your regular game is making you chillier than the outside temperature then you may want to consider a poker holiday in Europe.

Dragon's Den deal maker ace Steve Bellis teamed up with travel firm TR4 to organise 'Poker Holidays'. He is planning to take a party of poker players to Lanzarote for a week of sun, sea and poker. Heaven! Bellis said "We went out there last year with 50 players and it was a great success. A lot of places have karaoke and bingo but there are lots of people who want to play poker. Then we had a meeting with TR4 Travel in Holywell and discussed the possibility of taking 120 people."

Steve noticed the gap in the market when he did an internet search for poker holidays and found that most of them were in Las Vegas and catered towards the more serious players with a bankroll that could cover the flight and a decent game. "We wanted to offer something that was a bit closer to home, more relaxed and less expensive."

This is another feather in the cap for the very successful Nuts Poker League. After success in the Dragons Den, they faced objections from the Shropshire Police concerned about illegal gambling. Bellis successfully argued that as no money was being exchanged in the 'play for points' poker league; no laws were being breached. As a result, the Police removed their objection. Right on!

Since then the Nuts Poker League has gone from strength to strength, even launching their own online poker room. If history is anything to go buy, then these poker holidays will be a big success and one day Steve Bellis might become the Richard Branson of UK Poker. Good luck with it Steve! Watch out, there will be sharks in the pool...