Win an Exclusive Getaway in one of Marbella’s best retreats

TRAVEL lovers of Instagram, Youtube, and Facebook have the chance to win an exceptional two-night break at the stunning Jazmines & Moras Boutique Hotel in #Marbella, by entering a social media contest showcasing the luxury of experiencing nature.

The nature-inspired contest is accepting entries from 21st  December to 22nd February 2019 and is open to all travel lovers and bloggers who love sharing content on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. The six winners will be selected based on their entries and experiences of capturing the luxury of hotels and the enjoyment of travelling. The sights, scents, tastes and feels of the environment, anywhere in the world.

This gives an opportunity for all kinds of travel lovers to be creative with their social sharing. The most creative presentation on different social media will have the best chance to win this contest.

Travel bloggers and aspiring influencers who want to win the two-nights luxury accommodation at the Jazmines & Moras boutique hotel will mention @jazminesymoras on their story, post their photo and text entry along with the hashtag #iwantmymarbellaexperience, then simply register their name, email and social media profile at www.jazminesymoras.com



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Portfolio expansion for Exceptional Villas

LEADING luxury villa rental provider, Exceptional Villas announced today that they have further expanded their portfolio across many new markets in #Europe for the 2019 season. The company which are also considered to be one of the most trusted #villas rental companies in the world have added luxury vacation rentals in Ibiza, Mallorca, Italy, Greece and the Greek Islands, France and Italy.

#Italy is the company's most popular European destination. The country has some of the world's most beautiful cities such as Florence, Venice, Rome, Sienna and Milan as well as the beautiful hilltop villages of Tuscany, gorgeous vineyards, the majestic Italian Alps, Italian Islands such as Capri and the stunningly beautiful Amalfi Coast.

It is a country that has something for everyone with properties to suit all tastes and all budgets too. Exceptional Villas expects to see a large increase in visitors travelling to Italy this year, especially from its US clientele.

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Barcelona opens its doors

BARCELONA invites you to visit all of its architectural to observe, understand and question the value architecture and its relation to Catalan society and culture with 48 H Open House Barcelona. The festival opens in the first week of October. This event is free for all and will include guided tours, information guides for visitors to explain each of the houses they’re visiting.

Some of the houses include famous landmarks like Casa Vicens, el Mercat de Sant Antoni, while there are also some lesser known sites in the ten other neighborhoods of #Barcelona. Mark your calendars for 27 & 28 October 2018. The event promises visitors an appreciation of the value of good architecture and urbanism, opening over 200 great buildings of different styles, forms, and sizes to the public.

The program is built around the broad network of buildings that will open their doors to the public and it is set within the six Barcelona boroughs (Barcelona, Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Vilassar de Dalt, Sant Joan Despí, Badalona and L’Hospitalet de Llobregat). 

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Picture Credit: By cstnow - Flickr, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2541708

Heading for some winter sun

WITH the winter chill predicted to last four months in the U.K. Brits will be heading abroad for some winter sun in their droves. Research conducted by beach holiday specialist On the Beach has revealed Spain as the most popular winter sun destination this year, with the Canary Islands and resorts across the mainland attracting more Brits than any other destination in Europe, with Turkey firmly back in the Top 5 winter sun destinations.

Top 10 most popular winter sun destinations:

1.   Canary Islands
2.   Mainland Spain
3.   Balearic Islands
4.   Turkey
5.   Algarve (Portugal)
6.   Greece
7.   Malta
8.   Morocco
9.   Egypt
10. Cyprus

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Enjoy Granada with a little help

THE Italian startup for electric bike tours BikeSquare, is expanding to #Spain to offer the chance of visiting and discovering by ebike the most important Spanish cities with their different history, character and traditions.

Thanks to the collaboration with its partner, E-bike Tour Granada, BikeSquare is offering an electric bike tour of the city, to enjoy #Granada historical districts and their spectacular viewpoints.

Accompanied by a professional guide, visitors will have the chance to visit the fascinating neighbourhoods of Albayzín and Sacromonte, perched on the hill. The Albayzín is a charming area, located at 700-800 mts height, that maintains the Moorish traits, with its narrow lanes and well-kept traditional houses. It is famous especially for its dramatic views overlooking the Alhambra palace. The Sacromonte, is known for its Abbey and its caves, where every night gypsies celebrate with their songs and flamenco dance.

Thanks to the powerful electric bikes, it will be easy reaching the top of the hill and enjoying this charming and authentic areas. The 3 hour tour starts on the roads and Forest trails of the Alhambra. Visitors will enjoy the magnificent views of the Albayzín and the Alhambra, the Sacromonte Abbey, with the viewpoints of San Miguel and San Nicolás, coming back to the center of Granada by the Sacromonte.


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Picture Credit: viator1945  VA Varese dintorni, S.Maria del Monte-Sacro Monte con vista sulla lontana Brianza via photopin

Wander the streets in San Sebastian's old town

SAMPLING delicious pintxos along the grid of narrow streets in San Sebastián's old town has been named the #1 best food experience in the world, according to global travel authority Lonely Planet's Ultimate Eats.

In the much-anticipated follow-up to Lonely Planet's Ultimate Travel, Ultimate Eats: The World's Top 500 Food Experiences...Ranked (Lonely Planet Food / $29.99 / August 2018) travels the world with an insatiable appetite to present the definitive foodie bucket-list of the world's top 500 food experiences – ranked.

Visitors to lonelyplanet.com/ultimate-eats have the opportunity to enter a competition for a chance to win the ultimate eating experience for two courtesy of Intrepid Travel's Northern Spain Real Food Adventure. Terms and conditions apply.




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Picture Credit: By flydime - Pinchos / Spain, Barcelona, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11347080

Barcelona by bicycle

A surprising electric bike journey will bring you through famous sites and hidden treasures of the Old Town, the Fishermen Port and the Montjuic Hill to discover the strong relationship between #Barcelona and the Sea.

The tour, offered by BikeSquare in collaboration with E-bike Rent Barcelona, will bring you through the Gothic city centre, to admire the Roman ruins of the ancient Barcino, then to the charming medieval district of El Born, where you can enjoy the marvellous Santa Maria del Mar Church (the “Cathedral of the Sea”), the narrow streets and the cosy atmosphere.  Here you'll have a chance to taste the famous pintxos, the typical tapas of the Basque Country, famous for its exceptional gastronomy and wine.

Then a ride along the Port Vell to escape the crowds at Montjuic Hill, while exploring the Olympic stadium and the Olympic Swimming pool, enjoying spectacular views of the whole city.  On the way down stop in front of one of the most emblematic symbols of Barcelona, the Columbus Statue and then cross the “Rambla del Mar” bridge and on the other side a Turkish Goleta will be waiting. 

ebike.bikesquare.eu/en/barcelona



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Picture Credit: By Giorgio Galeotti, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org 52837569

Magnificent Menorca

ALL Cugo Gran is a stunning luxury villa rental nestled on 250-acres of land in #Menorca. It is a 5-star rural destination that boasts 11 splendidly equipped bedrooms, a spacious porch leading into a dining area and bar as well as a comfortable sitting room with 180⁰ views of the sea and countryside. 

The villa is in close proximity to Menorca’s airport, the spectacular Cova den Xoroi caves and the village of Sant Climent. In 2017, the Corporate Travel Awards bestowed the Fully Serviced Luxury Villa of the Year award to Curo Gran.

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Most popular European destinations for American travellers

LONDON and Paris continue to be the most popular European destinations for American travelers this summer, but the remaining spots on the Top 20 list saw significant movement from 2017, according to an analysis by Allianz Global Assistance. This year, Reykjavik, Iceland jumped from 17th to third, Barcelona, Spain slipped from fifth to seventh and Nice, France cracked the Top 20 for the first time to come in at 11th.

American travellers visiting Reykjavik has grown significantly in the last few years. Ranked 28th in 2015, the destination cracked the top 20 in 2016 and 2017.Thanks in part to increased direct airlift from the U.S. to the island nation, Iceland's otherworldly landscapes and colorful city homes have been trending on social media in recent years. Despite talk of over-tourism and discussion to potentially limit the number of annual visitors to the country, Reykjavik's popularity continues to rise this summer.

Barcelona's fall in rankings from fifth in 2016 and 2017 to seventh in 2018, may have been caused by several recent incidents. In the last year, Barcelona experienced a terrorist attack in the popular Las Ramblas area; political turmoil as Catalonia attempted to cede from Spain; and organized street protests in Barcelona.

Nice lands on the list for the first time, this suggests that American perception of the city's safety has recovered from the 2016 terrorist truck attack during the city's Bastille Day celebration.

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Party in paradise

THE party is just getting started in paradise. W Hotels Worldwide, part of Marriott International, today announced plans to debut its newest hotel in #Spain with the opening of W Ibiza in Summer 2019. 

W #Ibiza will be located in Santa Eulalia del Río, a buzzing beachside neighborhood centrally located to Ibiza's famous beaches, nightclubs and rural-chic inland attractions. Scheduled to open in 2019, the hotel's beachfront location will provide guests with direct access to the sparkling Mediterranean Sea.

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British? . . . Beach holiday please

THE global tourism industry has been flourishing over the past few decades and vacation or holiday travel is one of the key sectors in this industry. Travelers seem to choose beach holidays more often, which makes the beach holidays segment more popular than most of the others in vacation travel domain. More than any other reasons, holidaying currently seems to be one of the top reasons to travel, besides business tours. Leading holidaymakers in the United Kingdom have been offering several vacation plans for those who wish to travel abroad but evident rise in the number of ‘staycations’ within the UK since the past few years is expected to provide a decent boost to the growth of holidays market in UK.

According to a report by Market Research Hub (MRH), a majority of UK consumers choose to travel with their friends and family just to relax, experiencing the sun and beach. This tendency will play a key role in strengthening the potential of UK’s beach holiday industry. Italy, Spain, and France have been topping the list of consumers’ choices over the years. However, holidaymakers are now deliberately promoting local, nearby beaches, which could present a range of more convenient and affordable choices to those who are planning a beach holiday in coming years.

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Permission to fly

THOMAS COOK Airlines Balearics (TCAB) has yesterday evening been granted an AOC. This means that the new Spanish airline can formally operate as an airline. The AOC comes following months of preparatory work. The new Spanish airline will commence operations with five Airbus A320 aircraft during summer 2018.

The new airline, Thomas Cook Airlines #Balearics, is part of Thomas Cook Group Airlines’ growth plans, giving it a new base in its most popular destination from which it can provide flights to support its other airlines, according to seasonal demand.

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Field to fork detox in Andalucia

AFTER snow, slush and sleet comes spring so take time out and revitalise and rejuvenate mind, body and soul.

Not just a detox diet, but an expert-designed gourmet detox diet based on organic field-to-fork produce paired with tailored private sessions of yoga, meditation and tai chi, as well as massage, spa treatments, invigorating walks, revitalising sleep. Our small group has exclusive use of 1700-acre organic farm and luxurious mountain retreat, La Donaira.

La Donaira offers just 9 individually-designed suites, state of the art facilities including contemporary spa, exquisite shared spaces, open-air pool and gardens, yoga platform and running trails.

From €830/pp (3 days/3 nights) - Close to Ronda and the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park. Easy access from Seville (1hr), Jerez (1hr) and Malaga (1hr 40mins) airports. 

www.ladonaira.com/events

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A most delicious Spanish city

MIMO, the pioneering food and travel company, announces its latest opening: Mimo Sevilla Cooking School. Visitors to Sevilla will be able to participate in a cooking experience unlike any other, right in the center of one of Spain’s most delicious cities.

Mimo Sevilla Cooking School sits poolside in the gardens of Sevilla's landmark hotel, Hotel Alfonso XIII, A Luxury Collection Hotel. The daily classes encompass the local cuisines of Andalucía, presenting their techniques and dishes in hands-on cooking classes of three and a half hours. The seven classes on offer for the first season are:

Tapas Cooking Class : The Classics
Tapas Cooking Class : Modern Stars
Michelin Star Cooking Class
Spanish Cooking Class
The Cuisine of Andalucía : Sevilla, Cadiz & Huelva
The Cuisine of Andalucía : Málaga, Granada & Córdoba
Moorish & Arabic Cooking Class

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Spain still a top destination for European travellers

IN a year that was marked with political agitations and external disturbances, Spain still received over 80 million international visitors in 2017 - retaining its position as the most visited country by EU residents. Hotel connectivity leader RateTiger, in partnership with BEONPRICE and Live OS published the Infographic titled ‘La Liga Hospitality’ at FITUR in Madrid.

Interestingly, 6 out of every 10 international bookings in Spain come from 5 European countries, namely – UK, France, Germany, Italy and Netherlands. Spaniards continue to travel with 65% of their population taking a personal trip in 2017.

Data from the infographic show that while Catalan region still remains one of the most visited tourist places in the country, the region has been struggling to get its momentum back following the political unrest. This has an impact on the overall tourism forecast for Spanish hotel industry with growth in 2018 for four key cities – Barcelona, Madrid, Canarias and Mallorca showing a dip compared to last year.


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Super Spanish serviced apartments

HABITAT Apartments has been announced as “Spain’s Leading Serviced Apartment Brand 2017”.  This year’s award is Habitat Apartments’ fourth consecutive victory.

World Travel Awards celebrates its 24th anniversary this year and is acknowledged across the globe as the ultimate travel accolade. The World Travel Awards recognizes and awards the excellence and quality of the global tourist sector.

Founded 15 years ago, Habitat Apartments started out with only four employees, who supervised eight apartments in Spain. Over the years, the company expanded up to 25 employees and more than 500 apartments in eight different cities, Barcelona, Madrid, Amsterdam, Rome, Venice, Florence, Valencia and Marbella.

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Fiesta De San Fermín and the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona

THE Fiesta de San Fermín and the Feria del Toro, the Festival of the Bull, dates from the 14th century. #Sanfermines, as the festival is known locally in #Pamplona, and the encierro, the running of the bulls, was first introduced to the world in Ernest Hemingway’s 1926 novel “The Sun Also Rises” (Fiesta) and continues to drawn thousands of visitors yearly from around the world.

The fiesta begins at noon on July 6 with the opening ceremony, the firing of the rockets, “el chupinazo,” and ends at midnight of the 14th with the "pobre de mi,” the candlelight ceremony, which also marks the beginning of the countdown to Sanfermines 2019.

See www.sanfermintours.com for exclusive VIP packages.

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Picture Credit:  calafellvalo _ San Fermín 2017  via photopin

Europe’s most convenient airports revealed

EURO travellers rejoice! GoEuro, the platform for comparing and booking trains, buses and flights across Europe, has analysed more than 70 European airports to rank the fastest and cheapest transfers to city centres.

Whilst air travel may be the quickest point-to-point travel option, getting from the airport to the city centre can be tricky and stressful, especially if it’s your first time at a new destination. GoEuro’s new research allows savvy travellers to begin their holiday sooner, assessing distance, duration and price from the terminal to the city.

The Ten most convenient European airport transfers:

1. Nice Côte d'Azur, five minute transfer from £1.59

2. Lanzarote, 10 minute transfer from £1.24

3. Birmingham, 9 minute transfer from £2.90

4. Málaga-Costa del Sol, 12 minute transfer from £1.59

5. Frankfurt, 10 minute transfer from £4.24

6. Nürnberg, 12 minute transfer from £2.65

7. Cologne Bonn, 13 minute transfer from £2.12

8. Prague, 15 minute transfer from £0.79

9. Leipzig-Halle, 13 minute transfer from £3.97

10. Amsterdam Schiphol, 14 minute transfer from £3.71

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Art, culture and the beach all in one place

WITH the third largest amount of UNESCO World Heritage sites, #Spain is a mecca for historical landmarks and cultural tourism. In the south, Cadiz is one of the longest continually settled cities in western civilisation with copious amounts of Roman ruins and elements relating to this period of time.

Spain’s second largest city, Barcelona, is guaranteed to delight. With evidence of the towns existence dating back thousands of years, its markets, restaurants, shops and museums will keep the traveller busy for as much time as they can spare. An extensive and modern transportation system makes it a treat to get from a to b. Tired of art and culture head to the beach; it will be warm for much of the year. 

For something different, head to San Sebastian for the International Film Festival in Basque county, held every year in late September (see the film themed Astoria7 hotel below to immerse yourself in the experience). Other activities include Climbing in Los Mallos, whitewater rafting in Campo, Hiking in Galicia and even downhill skiing in Northern Spain. 

roomsXML has over 6,700 properties in Spain so you'll be sure to find the perfect place to stay.

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PortAventura World named 2017 Best Amusement Park in Europe

SPANISH amusement park PortAventura World has been named the best theme park in Europe in the 2017 edition of the 'World of Parks Awards' (www.worldofparks.eu), by one of the leading online portals for theme parks and leisure.  

In addition, Dance Revolution, one of PortAventura Park’s most acclaimed shows, has been named ‘Best show in a European Theme Park’ for the fourth year running. Dance Revolution is a spectacular musical which takes the audience on a journey through the world of music from the 1940s and 1950s right through to the present day.

This award positions #PortAventura World among the best leisure and #family #holiday destinations in Europe. The resort has welcomed more than 70 million visitors over its 22 year history, and it is also the home of the PortAventura Park theme park, PortAventura Caribe Aquatic Park, the recently opened Ferrari Land, 5 hotels and a convention center.

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Picture Credit: Pintrest