Christmas trees are optional, but beachfront views, tropical cocktails, and sunshine are nonnegotiable at these Hilton resorts in Hawaii, Mexico, and Puerto Rico

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There’s something about the holidays that makes us romanticize freezing temperatures . Snow-covered streets, cozy fireplaces, and hot chocolate all sound great in theory. But somewhere between scraping ice off your windshield and fighting over the thermostat at your family’s house, the magic starts to wear off.

Here’s a thought: What if the most wonderful time of the year didn’t have to be the coldest?

While a white Christmas has long been the gold standard of holiday nostalgia, there’s something to be said for celebrating the season with your toes in the sand. Picture oceanfront dinners, tropical cocktails, and afternoons spent by the pool instead of bundled up indoors.…