Quirky Traveller's Tales

It’s a real pleasure to be hosting a series of interviews with some very special Holiday Homeowners from around the world.  They will share with you their reasons for loving where their holiday homes are situated,  best-kept quirky travel secrets and top tips for making the most of your stay.  

Nicky Anson and Phil Bryant  made Istria, Croatia their home after many hectic years running their own marketing agency in Antwerp. Amidst its rocky coastline and lush landscape they discovered the more laid-back, outdoor lifestyle they were looking for;  somewhere they could relax on outdoor sofas, lunch on the terrace and enjoy an afternoon swim.

After several years, Nicky and Phil realised what a fantastic holiday location this was and launched a holiday rentals business, alongside a blog chronicling their experiences, Liveistria.com.  They now offer two beautiful properties to guests on HomeAway.co.uk  ‘The Little House’ and a traditional stone cottage in Brnobici.

Here, Nicky talks about what first drew them to this “sweet spot” of the Med, why you should go, the region’s best kept secrets, and her favourite places to hang out.

What first made you fall in love with Istria and why should people come here?

When we first came here, Istria completely won my heart. I’d always thought the Med was dry and dusty, but Istria is green and covered with wonderful oak forests. Its rocky coastline, with pines growing down to the sea, is exquisite. 

Inland, it’s full of time-forgotten, stone villages and along the coast you’ll find magnificent Venetian seaside towns. Here, the pace of life is slower and the quality of life higher: there’s less traffic and more trees, and wild flowers still grow in the hedgerows. It’s a special part of Europe, a “sweet spot” in the Med; far enough south to have long, warm summers, yet without the searing heat of further down.

What’s the best-kept secret you would tell any visitors not to miss?

I’ve just discovered Pula Aquarium, a fascinating attraction in an old fort on the coast, which is a great place to find out about the Adriatic Sea and is home to Croatia’s only marine turtle rescue centre.  Also, most tourists stick to the coast, but the true Istrian gems are the inland villages. Grožnjan, Motovun and Hum are the ‘big three’ on the tourist trail, but try Draguć, Sv. Lovreč, Roč and Gračišće, and you’ll escape to a world where time’s stood still.

Another special place is Dvigrad, which was abandoned in the 17^th Century when its population moved out to escape the plague. Today only local tourists seem to know about this atmospheric ruined town.

Where’s the best place to go to just ‘hang out’, people watch and generally soak up the atmosphere?

For some buzz, Poreč sea front is the place to see and be seen. Have a coffee in café Epoca and watch the world parade past.My favourite local restaurant is Konoba Monica in Žbandaj, just outside Poreč. The food’s fantastic, the portions huge and the prices unbelievably cheap. Very few tourists find it and most guests are locals. Owner Biljana speaks very little English, but will make you very welcome. Also in Žbandaj is Konoba Kaštel, one of Istria’s oldest restaurants offering locally-sourced, traditional food.

What would you recommend visitors treat themselves to while they’re there, or take home as a souvenir?

Istria has been famous for its olive oil since Roman times and it still wins many prizes today, so if you can, take a bottle home. Small bottles of various types are available in the supermarkets.  Also try one of the local rakijas (‘grappa’ in Italian). Distilled from grape residue from wine production, it’s then flavoured to produce a wide range of aperitifs and liqueurs. Very common is medica, flavoured with honey, but my favourite is the jet black orahovac, flavoured with walnut. Also available are unusual biska (mistletoe), šlivovic (plum) and kruškovac (pear), to name just a few.

Finally, what are the most ‘quirky’ things to do, see, visit or experience here?

For something unusual to do, try spreading your beard (pretend if you don’t have one!) on Tinjan’s old stone table. Villagers used to elect their mayor this way. A flea was released in the middle and whoever’s beard it jumped in to became mayor. It’s a great spot to enjoy the view over the dramatic Draga valley, Tinjan is a charming little village and there’s even a konoba for a refreshing drink. 

If culture’s your thing, go to see the 14^th C frescos in Beram. These Renaissance masterpieces are in a gorgeous little chapel just outside the village. You may be lucky and find it open, but if not you need to go and ask for the key in the village – an adventure in itself!  You can also visit the island of Brijuni which used to be Tito’s holiday island and can be explored today on a little tourist train. A mixture of safari park and history lesson, it’s definitely quirky!

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Holiday Homeowner Q&A is bought to you by HomeAway.co.uk, the UK’s leading holiday rentals website with over 300,000 properties worldwide. From cute studios and city apartments to rural cottages and country homes, large luxury villas, quirky conversions and more, there are thousands of unique places to enjoy a more authentic and unusual holiday.

“Can we take our water bottles through?”

“Pardon?”

“Can we take our water bottles through security?”

“Oh yes, of course you can. You can take anything you like – bottle of champagne if you fancy it!”

And all this with a friendly smile and a wave through Customs … What  a difference this was from the usual hectic, growly, stressing, nerve-jangling ordeal that is airport departure these days.  I was with a group of journalists on at trip by Stena Line Ferry on our way to Amsterdam in Holland, and already I was a very happy traveller.  We’d met up at Liverpool Street Station in London a couple of hours earlier and got the train to Harwich – an easy enough journey through rather unprepossessing English scenery.  I could not believe how quick, quiet and yes, friendly the Check In process was – within 10 minutes we were being directed to our cabins by smiling crew members.  Now this is what all travel should be like …

After a speedy change it was back down to the swanky Taste restaurant for dinner. None of your laptop meals here.   With fresh crab starter, fillet steak and passion fruit meringue I was in seventh heaven. It was only when someone said, “Oh look, the boat’s moving,” that we realised we had actually set off on our overnight journey across the North Sea.  Dining at sea like this is to be highly recommended.

We had a quick look outside at the disappearing lights of Harwich Harbour before we went off to bed.  It’s years since I’ve been on a ferry and things have certainly improved a lot since then.  I’d been rather spoilt with a very special cruise to Norway last year but this sea voyage did not disappoint.  Most surprising was the really comfy double bed with TV and en-suite bathroom. Through the large window I could watch the seas roll by.  Scrolling through the TV I found the Pets Channel – here there are cameras trained on the cages all through the trip so owners can see for themselves how their beloved animals are doing. I got quite fixated with a slender little dog as he settled down to sleep whilst we sailed steadily and smoothly towards Holland …

Now being woken at 6am by the chirpy sound of ‘Don’t worry, be happy’ through a tannoy system above your head may not be your idea of heaven, but there are worse ways … I finally dragged myself out of bed at 7am and repacked my case. (I had recently got one of those ‘World’s Lightest’ Sub Ø G bags as I was going to be spending carting my luggage about about – it is SO light!)  I just had time to grab a cooked breakfast before disembarkation at the Hoek of Holland.  I had honestly had no idea I’d been at sea all night – as smooth a crossing as the North Sea has ever produced.  We all went outside to watch the final stages of docking alongside the ferry terminal – it was a glorious morning and we would be on our way by train to Amsterdam in no time at all.

If you have ever been frustrated with the hassle at airports (who hasn’t?), love slow travel and enjoy the journey as much as the destination, take to tip from me and go by ferry to Holland – it’s a travel experience to relish …

One of my favourite places in Holland is the Keukenhof Gardens - if you visit in spring make time to experience the world’s largest floral display.

Skiing has long been the favoured pastime of many Brits, and this year is no different. With record snow fall in the Alps this season, conditions are perfect to throw yourself down a sumptuously covered slope and go on a ski holiday to France or elsewhere in Europe.  Although popular as a winter sport nowadays, the activity itself did not grow out of a need for exercise, as it is seen today, but was instead, an advanced method of hunting in the snow. The tradition emerged from the Alps, where locals favoured fixed bindings for their skis, compared to the Nordic method of having just your toes attached to the ski. Now skiing is popular across the world, but remains especially prevalent in the place it was born.

Europe has some of the best ski destinations including the famous St Anton, Courchevel, Chamonix and Verbier. These destinations offer, not just some of the best skiing in the world, but also the chance to taste some truly delicious alpine food. And with vin chaud, great steaks, and the best hot chocolate on offer you certainly won’t go hungry after a hard day on the slopes. .

Courchevel in particular is a great place to experience the sheer thrill of skiing, with the connected Three Valleys offering great skiing for all abilities in the largest ski area in Europe. With well-run lifts, connected regions and more five star restaurants than any other ski resort, the region certainly has a competitive edge.

www.courcheval.com

Chamonix, another French resort, offers not only amazing skiing, but intense views and the chance to ski on a glacier. This quaint resort is a favourite with many skiers, although it has a lower profile than nearby Courchevel.  St Anton is popular and well-known for its party atmosphere, and great food. It too offers excellent lift systems and challenging skiing.

So, this winter head to the birthplace of modern day skiing and practice what is, in essence a quirky sport, which was never really intended for anything else other than hunting.

This article is brought to you by Inghams.co.uk – ski holiday specialists

Guest blogger Alvina Labsvirs attended one of The Quirky Traveller Blogging Workshops.  As a result she is now pursuing her love of writing and travel on ‘Reasons To Go North‘ site.  In her very first guest post, she shares her enjoyment of one of Europe’s most vibrant and exciting cities.

Where would you choose to meet up with a Texan, a New Yorker, two from the UK and a Berliner?  Berlin is the ideal place! With our friend and guide Linda in charge, we had a weekend packed with interesting history, fantastic entertainment and wonderful food.  Seeing everything in three days was to prove impossible but with little sleep and Linda’s help we packed in a lot of the main tourist attractions and sampled some slightly off the beaten track.

The Wall is high on the agenda for any tourist.  But little remains, with only a line of bricks snaking through the city at ground level. The East side gallery is a stretch of 1.3k along Muhlenstrasse, decorated by artists from around the world.  The images resonate with the message that the division of East and West should never reoccur.

 East – West history is abundant and being of partial Eastern European descent, this was something I was keen to see.  The Topogrphie Des Terrors was the site of the former headquarters of the Secret State Police, now a harrowing information centre on the persecution and terror of the ‘Third Reich’.  The grey sarcophagi of the Holocaust Memorial are a perfect representation of coffins of those who had had their dignity stolen, even in death.

At the Brandenburg Gate, the symbolic end to the cold war when the wall came down, Linda recounted was how scared she was on that day. Two days after the crossing was opened she ventured to the west, but was terrified.  In her world no one had left the East and returned.

So from the sobriety of the SS, Check Point Charlie, an altogether lighter experience.  No longer manned by armed guards willing to shoot at the slightest misdemeanour, actors man the post in somewhat questionable, period uniforms and will invite you to pose with them, for a fee, of course. 

Berlin is a melting pot of cultures and so eating can be as diverse.  If you don’t mind queuing for your supper and enjoy the company of others, the long wooden tables at the Cafe am Neuen See, in the Tiergarten, are a good place to relax and meet other travellers.   After a sobering glimpse into all too recent history of the city, the option of beer and pizza can be a perfect antidote.   Alternatively Oraienburger Strasse is an area of restored communists’ residential blocks.  Previously run down and dilapidated inner city housing; now expensive apartments, with wonderful gardens and seductive restaurants.  We ate in a Turkish cafe, Hasir, which did delicious lamb and not so delicious chardonnay.

Less known are the ‘beach bars’ along the Spree, complete with sand and deckchairs.  A place to linger over a beer on a hot summer’s afternoon, or sample the bohemian nightlife.

A trip out to The Potsdam palaces and gardens, left by the Kissers of Germany, and now the summer playground of Berliners, is worth a day.  Try a bike trip with Fat Bike Tours.  A bike on trains and escalators has its challenges but the charm and beauty of the gardens will overcome that problem, and the hunky guides are adept and carrying a couple of bikes at a time up and down stairs.

Insider knowledge produced an unexpected last night.  The Berlin summer music festival builds a temporary concert hall between the two cathedrals and this was the last night with the London philharmonic playing.  By a stroke of luck, for us, the wind blew the rain off a canopy and caused a table’s occupants to flee and we secured a restaurant table.  A somewhat expensive meal, but with the opera thrown in who could complain?  Even for an uneducated non-opera listener this was an exquisite treat.

The Berlin experience is one of juxtapositions.  Glass bridges across the Spree sit uneasily with communist blocks and magnificent museums.  Outside a brightly lit synagogue you will find hookers legally plying their trade, and on the next street eat the best ice cream in town.  You can dance most of the night on riverside dance floors and drink cocktails till dawn.  Don’t worry too much about your hotel.  You won’t be there for long …

Alvina Labsvirs says, “With my photographs and blog site Reasons to go North developed from my love of The Lakes, walking and travel,  I hope to  inspire visitor and residents to enjoy the Lakes, to get out and appreciate all that it has to offer.”

You can also find Alvina on Face Book

I was thrilled when Zoë agreed to let me write a guest post for The Quirky Traveller as I love her way of seeing the fun in everything. I reckon she would love the Magic Circus Paris, where we spent Christmas, as it’s a French manor-inspired hotel with a circus theme!

I decided to go crazy and take my young daughter to Disneyland Paris for Christmas and I wanted a hotel with a fun atmosphere but was still ‘grown up’ enough to offer a quality stay as no-one wants to be trudging around a theme park after a sleepless night.  The Magic Circus, Paris is a Disneyland Paris ‘Selected Hotel’ which means it reaches high standards and is only a short bus ride from the parks so can offer more space as well as more peace in the evenings.

It’s a large four star hotel and each and every room has a circus reference. It can be subtle with framed prints of circus escapades, or full-on, brightly-coloured fun, as the family rooms have bunk beds with circus tent curtains!

Magic Circus Family Room

I had booked a Family Room but the hotel upgraded us to a Tower Suite, which was a real treat as it meant my daughter had a separate bedroom and I could relax in the evening with the TV, while lounging on my enormous Queen-size bed when she was asleep. The hotel has chargeable wifi but I took a Tep Wireless pocket wifi device so I could stay in touch with friends (mostly on Twitter!) and this option meant I could get online while away from the hotel too.

After seeing so many buggy-pushing parents smoking at Disney Village when we arrived in France, I was grateful that the hotel is fully non-smoking and the luxury L’Occitane toiletries allowed me to feel spoilt too.  I also discovered the hotel is not only popular with families and guests going to Disneyland Paris, but also as a Conference Centre. I reckon it would be so much more fun than the often bland and generic conference venues I’ve attended.

The hotel’s circus theme is in all the public areas too.  When we arrived and saw the huge lobby with arcade games and rides – including a carousel right opposite the Reception Desk – we were both happy. And there were more squeals of delight when we turned around and saw a ball pit next to the bar!

Magic Circus Hotel – Bar des Artistes

All staff wear a red faux ringmaster/military uniform which is quirky in the extreme and even though the hotel was at maximum occupancy they always had a smile for every guest. Costumed characters were in the lobby each day to hug youngsters and make them feel special too.

I had thought about staying in a serviced apartment for this trip but there’s no way we would have had the same festive experience. On Christmas Day morning, Father Christmas came to the restaurant to meet families at breakfast and at the end of a long day at the Disneyland Park we were greeted off the shuttle bus with mulled wine and clementines.

Speaking of breakfast, the large restaurant lays on the best buffet breakfast I’ve even seen. From cooked items to fresh fruit salad, dried fruits to brioche-men, yogurts, cereals, cheeses, cold meats… Really, the widest selection I’ve ever come across. There’s no way we would have enjoyed breakfast in an apartment as much as here.

We made good use of the hotel’s indoor swimming pool which stays open until 10pm every day and is a great way to let off steam before bedtime. I didn’t need to use the Fitness Centre as the theme parks were my workout but we enjoyed going to the Health & Beauty Salon and watching other guests have fish pedicures.

Magic Circus Hotel

We had a wonderful time at Disneyland Paris – there’s so much to see and do we could have spent a week there! You can read some of my Top Tips for a visit here.

I’d definitely stay at this hotel again as, even though the theme is fun and loud, the hotel also offers peace and quiet and I slept soundly every night. Magic Circus is part of the Austrian hotel group Vienna International; not a brand I was aware of before but I’ll certainly be looking out for their hotels across Europe for future travels.  I paid for my travel and stay at the Magic Circus Hotel.

All Images Copyright © Vienna International Hotelmanagement AG. Tep Wireless loaned the pocket wifi to the author.

Laura Porter writes the About.com London Travel site which is an online travel guide for visitors to London. Like Zoë, she also writes every month for the Visit Britain Super Blog. You can follow Laura on Twitter and Facebook too.

One of the glories of Sweden is Fika … taking time out for coffee, cake and a chat. Heaven on a plate …  On a trip to the southern region of Skåne I sampled a lot of VERY good cake as well as many more sensory delights.  It’s a land of beautiful beaches, fertile fields, medieval villages, contemporary design and vibrant towns. Linking in to the concept of sustainable living, there’s a great emphasis on locally grown-produce, organic farms and fresh seafood.  Here are some ideas to help you make the most of a visit to this fascinating region, whatever the weather, whenever you go …

• Stroll round Malmöhus Castle gardens and discover what’s growing in the organic vegetable patch.  Try Fika at the Slottsträdgården café  It’s a quirky old greenhouse with grapes hanging from the vines and truly scrumptious chocolate brownies …

• Go swimming from the quaint old wooden Kallbadhuset Bathing House at Ribban (Malmö beach) overlooking the Oresund Bridge and Turning Torso building.  Nudity NOT compulsory! End the day with dinner at welcoming Salt Y Brygge, one of the world’s first truly organic restaurants.  If the weather’s good you can sit outside and gaze across to Denmark …

• Hire a bike and trundle round Malmö, a curiously compelling city that seamlessly combines old and new. Just off the medieval square of Lila Torg is the funky modernist Form & Design Center showcasing how very creative Malmö is.

• Get sand in your toes on the beach at Mossbystrand in the Österlen region.  Sample more delicious fika at the traditional café nearby.  Great homemade pastries and cakes – plus a huge range of fruit & herbal teas, preserves and some unusual gifts.

• Step back in time at mystical Ales Stenar, an ancient Stone Circle high above the sea.  Its original use is still unknown but the setting is spectacular. Below is the quaint fishing village of Kaseberga. Try the smoked prawns or chowder at Vendels where you can eat out overlooking the tiny harbour.

• Walk in Wallender’s footsteps through the quaint old streets of pretty Ystad. Sweden’s most famous detective solves murders all round here and you can get a guided tour to show all his favourite haunts.   If you’re lucky you might just catch a glimpse of the elusive Hornblower in the old clock tower.

• Escape for a while to one of Great Garbo’s favourite hideaway – the luxurious Hotel  Ystad på Saltsjöbad Relax in the sauna or Jacuzzi, run along the jetty and jump in the sea or, for something completely different, try their Gourmet Food package and cook a meal with their top chef, who’ll make you think you can win Master Chef without trying.

• Test your limits – go abseiling at one of Sweden’s top national parks, Kullaberg Nature Reserve. If heights aren’t your thing try mountain biking, or just take a picnic and enjoy the scenery.  The bustling fishing village of Mölle is reminiscent of Cornwall’s Padstow, with the iconic Grand Hotel looking down on all the activity.

• Explore the old city of Helsingborg with Kärnan, its unusual medieval tower and ornate City Hall and Venetian-style campanile.  Luxurious yachts jostle for space with high-speed ferries to nearby Denmark and the nightlife is buzzing.

• Discover a real-life fairy story at the Sofiero Palace on the outskirts of Helsingborg.  Inside the palace there’s a fascinating exhibition telling the story of the Swedish Royal family’s summer residence.  The gardens are outstanding and the kids will love the children’s play area and quirky sculptures.  Exhibitions change in the palace and grounds so plenty of reasons to revisit.

Many thanks to Malin and Visit Sweden for organising this trip and to Sara from Four BGB for being a fab host.  There’s a great Face Book app to help choose the perfect trip to this fascinating part of the world.  A version of this article appeared for Wandering Educators.