Take A Trip Off The Beaten Track
If you are thinking about Spain Holidays and want to take off over the next few months, here are a few places to visit to give you a taste of what’s out there.
Valencia
Valencia has a Biopark, which is an animal friendly, ecologically aware centre, open to visitors. The park has been sectioned and the landscaping is superb, so you can “visit” the savannah grasslands and Madagascar – which is where the beautiful lemurs will stare you out! Children love this place, since you get to see to wild animals in an environment which reflects their real environments much more than most zoos.
Seville
Seville has The Alcazar Gardens, where you can enjoy the lush greenery and summer evening concerts. Seville Cathedral is huge, and everything in it is larger than life. It also has a Bell Tower, which you get to by climbing up about 35 steeply sloped ramps! Visit the Old Cigar Factory Building where Bizet’s opera, “Carmen” is set and wander along the riverside down to the Expo Seville site, which has plazas, fountains, museums and cultural venues.
Jerez
Jerez, going deeper into Spain, has a strong history of sherry production and is home to traditional Flamenco. The old town in Jerez is made up of tiny alleyways, leading to lilac tree lines squares. Come evening, entire families come out to eat, and sing the evening away over a couple of bottles of good red wine. The Jerez Flamenco Centre and Museum is marvellous – an old building with a library full of flamenco films both old and new, a cinema, and a dance school. There are also gardens, Arab bath houses, great tapas bars, and local clubs where flamenco kicks off at around midnight. The sherry houses (bodegas) are fascinating too – and your entrance fee includes a sampling session of the range of sherry available from the Bodega store. Children will love the Equestrian Centre where the finest Spanish horses display their incredible balance, strength and appitude for dance!
Get Active In Central Spain
La Pedriza is close to Madrid, and it’s known for its great walking with Granite Mountains to test your fitness levels. Or try Avila, which has glacial mountains. From the giddy heights of the top, you can look down on a lagoon, sitting in the hollowed out bowl of the mountain.
South Coast Spain
For uncomplicated family fun, head for the south coast, where you have Malaga, Costa De Sol, and Fuengirola. The coastal resorts in Andalucía are geared up for tourists, so there are plenty of eateries, English is widely spoken, and getting around is easy. There are all the usual seaside recreations on offer such as water parks, cable cars, trips into the mountains, and fast boats over to The Rock of Gibraltar and North Africa. Malaga is sophisticated, with beautiful stores, authentic eateries, a Picasso Museum, a Contemporary Arts Centre, and a Castle overlooking the town. Further down the line is Fuengirola, which although built up, has some really excellent restaurants to discover in the streets immediately behind the main road, which overlooks the long beach. And you can go up into the shady hills to visit Mihas, where there is a wonderful Wine Museum….with a little restaurant set deep into a cool courtyard. Perfect for a glass of chilled, dry sherry and a dish of local olives! Take a stroll up to the old Bullring, which is something of a rarity – its more square than round, and the views from the high seats are spectacular.
Spain has so much to offer that you’ll have new and wonderful experiences every day of your trip.