We’ve had some wonderful travel highlights this year. Of course discovery, exploration and adventure
Activity holidays, Adventure, City breaks, Cottage & villa holidays, Europe, Family
7 travel highlights from 2018
If you’re a regular visitor here, you’ll know we’ve spent a fair amount of time in Northern Spain. In fact, over the last couple of years, we’ve taken road trips around Cantabria and Asturias, not to mention exploring the Huesca, Zaragoza and Teruel provinces. In a stark contrast to its southern counterpart, Northern Spain remains largely untouched by tourism. I’m sure I could write a list of many things to do in Northern Spain but for now, let’s stick with seven. If you’ve not been before, here’s just a taste of what you can expect.
Well, our travel bucket list isn’t getting any shorter that’s for sure. We cross one destination off and promptly add another five. It’s not like we haven’t travelled either, we’ve already seen a lot of the world both independently and as a family. So we have a real mix on our bucket list from destinations we yearn to visit that give us a fuzzy feeling inside whenever we think about them to the intriguing, thrilling and remarkable. As a family of three, our typical holidays are based on discovery, exploration and adventure entwined with an abundance of fun. The latter is, of course, obligatory – quality time as a family is our essential ingredient.
The Doves approach to holidays is very much based on discovery, exploration and adventure with authenticity at the heart. Often our favourite destinations are largely unspoiled by tourism, offer breathtaking scenery in spades and provide the best outdoor playground for our seven-year-old daughter. The kind of properties we love are full of character, rustic and often unique with a story to tell. Of course, having a great time is a key ingredient for our family holidays too.
We’ve always enjoyed adventurous holidays whether it be swimming in the Great Barrier Reef, trekking the Tongariro Crossing or navigating a river to Angel Falls. As parents of course our priorities changed and with it the focus of our holidays. That said, POD has grown up with the same desire to explore that we have. She loves the great outdoors and last year in Cantabria, aged just five, even climbed her first mountain. While we’re family orientated in our travels too, there’s nothing better than making discoveries – especially when they’re unexpected.
With an intriguing history that dates back to Roman times, spectacular landscapes and exceptional architecture, you can’t help but fall in love with Aragon. Situated off the beaten track in the heavenly north east of Spain, this region combines discovery, exploration and adventure – our perfect ingredients for a family holiday. There’s no shortage of things to do either. Whether it be visiting the most well preserved castle in Europe, observing staggering rock formations that overshadow the trees or exploring an extraordinary natural park that surprises you at every turn.
Rucksacks have become an essential piece of kit in the Dove household over recent years. Of course we travelled a lot before POD came along but these days most of our adventures are outdoors based. We’ve always loved exploring, especially off the beaten track, and we continue to do so even with our six year old daughter in tow. There’s nothing better than blowing away the cobwebs, discovering new places and giving your child the best experiences is there?
We’re of the opinion that you should never travel to the same destination more than once. Occasionally it doesn’t work out that way, like the time we got diverted to Tahiti while en route to New Zealand. We took our honeymoon in Tahiti and had the most incredible time in both Tikehau and Moorea. As such, we always said we wouldn’t go back. And yet there we were dancing with the locals at the airport adorned with flowers!
Last summer was the first time we’d visited Northern Spain having taken trips elsewhere in the country many times. We loved it so much we’re heading back there this summer albeit to a totally different region. If you’ve not been to Northern Spain before, here’s a little taste of what it’s like.
The rustic cottage we’d booked was located just two and a half hours drive away from Bilbao. Although we’d originally planned to stop in the capital of the Basque Country, we ended up heading straight to the small village of Trillayo. With a population of just 31, and the medieval town of Potes ten minutes away, it was an ideal base for our adventures. We’d totally fallen in love with this 200 year old cottage when we’d seen it online and really hoped it lived up to expectations. It really did, the views from our balcony of the Picos de Europa were magnificent. We’d enjoy breakfast there before heading out each day and evenings were spent watching the swallows fly in circles around nearby rooftops. There was only one day we weren’t out exploring but we’ve pulled together our top picks for things you really shouldn’t miss.
Of all the countries we’ve travelled to, Venezuela remains one of the most memorable. And it wasn’t just the ten flights in ten days either. Our first 24 hours in South America saw us exchange currency in the airport car park, stay in a hotel with armed guards and leave the majority of our luggage with strangers. But it was an incredible trip and we did so many awesome things while we were there. Here are our top five.
