By Tensi Sánchez from actitudesmgz.com

If Grimm brothers continue writing fairy tales, they might dedicate a special mention for the moors which hosts the enchanted city of Hanover , the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony; a city that has been rebuilt with the passing of time, but today it still retains that magical air so typical of small German towns.

The eclectic style of the city is present at every step, the center of the city called Stadtmitte has the peculiarCentral Station – Haupbtbahnhof , a key point for connecting for surrounding area trains and focal point of the life of the Germans, because in its interior there is a large underground shopping area full of exotic restaurants and many shops that extend to Kröpcke station , an amazing shopping gallery beneath the streets of Hanover. It is definitely the perfect place to eat very economically, do not hesitate to try the gastronomic variety Back Factory : the famous pretzel, the wide variety of snacks or sweets Sedans, plus in this shopping area you can visit its unusual shops and store underground for boys and girls One Green Elephant .

In the center of the city, we can find several commercial galleries such as Ernst-August- Galeri or Galeria Kaufhof leading the most exclusive streets of the German city, full of shops and fancy restaurants. Among downtown streets, you can find an exquisite women fashion store known as Zöe where you’ll discover the womenswear collections not suitable for all pockets!. You should not miss the stock shop T•k•maxx where you will access to large firms for men, women and children at unbelievable prices.

Around Kröpcke, we discover Hussel Chocolates, a real chocolate heaven, where we can choose from a wide variety of chocolates in all flavors: pralines, truffles, chocolate with orange … Ideal for gourmands!. Very close to Hussel, we find Butlers, a design shop, full of these curious objects that make our lives more fun: mugs, magnets, posters and postcards …

Not only can you enjoy the wonders that Hanover offers during the day, but at night the city dresses in fashion for a few drinks in the best pubs. To begin the evening, a move to to taste Loretta’s Biergarten’sdishes, as, for instance, their delicious goat cheese wrapped in bacon or tagliatelle with venison, together with an authentic German beer in their spectacular garden terrace. After dinner and if you feel like a night out, the best option is to go to the trendiest nightclub in Hanover, Osho Disco, three floors where you can dance to the latest music.

A few blocks southwest lies the old city, Altstadt, undoubtedly the favorite place to find small boutiques, antique shops and enticing restaurants. In the surroundings of the Market Church, we may find made-in-Hannover small boutiques as the women’s clothing store Spitzl Anette, Marie Jo’s boutique or BBP Prêt à Porter’s designs .

Continuing along Knochenhauerstraße, we discover a piece of Mallorca in Hanover. Here it is Ein Stück Mallorca, a jeweler with pieces made of gold and silver with inlaid minerals, authentic artwork. Not only we have a “little piece” of Mallorca but also very close to this street you can find a small bakery in true French style, we talk about Glücksmoment, a very intimate and welcoming place to find endless varieties of muffins, cupcakes, chocolates, French macaroons … Exquisite!

On Kramerstraße street, there is a wide variety of small shops and antiquarians as Antiquitäten or Jordan, where you may find used books, pieces of glassware, pottery jars, vintage posters and the most diverse objects from the past, certainly the most charming part of the city immersed in Old Germany’s classic buildings.

Continuing through old town streets we find Balhofplatz, a wide and centenary square, the idyllic place to relax and have a nice cup of tea on the terrace of Tee Flubehen or enjoy a lovely German meal in the very authentic Restaurant Silver & Gold, both adjacent and near Leine river, on whose banks are held old Town trail on Saturdays.

One of the most beautiful landscapes you will see in Hanover is Maschsee Lake, a huge artificial lake. Take a sunset stroll along the bank of the lake to Yachtschule Hanover landing, where you can rent boats to sail or dinner amidst one of the best and most incredible views of the city.

To round off this German experience, do not miss the opportunity to visit the Gardens Herrenhausen, just minutes from the city center by public transport. You’ll come to one of the greatest and beautiful Baroque gardens in Germany. Next to them is located the English-style botanical garden Berggarten.

To see the video click this link.

Do not wait to book Vueling

¡We love Hanover!

Of course, thirty years is nothing, but that’s the time that has passed since 1986, when Asturias set up what was the first rural tourism establishment in Spain. Everything has changed since then, and for the better. The village of Taramundi, where the original La Rectoral was inaugurated, has now become an international paragon. Travellers have come from far and wide to discover it and enjoy the peace and quiet it offers, as well as to meet its people and learn its traditions. Rural tourism, which has subsequently spread across the whole of Asturias, is a leisure style with millions of adepts, some of whom have found in Asturias their coveted paradise.

La Rectoral – 30 Years of Rural Encounters in a Natural Paradise

Three decades ago, when few would have thought that tourism might become one of the region’s major economic engines, the government of the Principality of Asturias bravely decided to spearhead a project intended to transform a small spot in the Principality – Taramundi. Balancing enjoyment of and respect for the environment was the watchword of this initiative which culminated in the opening of the Hotel La Rectoral on 17 June 1986.

A Trend that Spread Like Wildfire Across the Whole of Asturias

After the inauguration of La Rectoral, new projects sprang up all over Asturias – notably in the east, west and centre of the region – in the form of small hotels, village houses and rural apartments. A whole panoply of rural accommodations which breathed new life into villages and hamlets and engendered a new concept of leisure based on authenticity and contact with nature, traditional customs and the ancestral world.

A Superb Backdrop for Rural Tourism

Preservation of the environment, which for 30 years has made us worthy of the epithet, “Asturias, a Natural Paradise”, is the perfect enticement for a sojourn in its rural areas. Asturias boasts over a third of its territory under some form of official protection, whether as a park, reserve or natural monument. Following are some of its standout areas:

In the Picos de Europa, visitors can hike through the gorges that divide this great limestone mass, delve into the activity of livestock grazing – which is still carried out within the park boundaries – or discover karst formations and glacial remains, as in the Covadonga lakes.

Another option is to visit the Fuentes del Narcea, Degaña e Ibias nature reserve, a territory with a marked variety of nuances which acts as a sanctuary for the Cantabrian brown bear and features the largest oak forest in Europe – the Muniellos Forests.

Something similar is in store for the traveller in Somiedo, as here, too, you can follow the tracks of the brown bear and because scattered across the whole territory you will come across pastureland punctuated by the presence of cabanas de teito,stone constructions with thatched roofs once used by vaqueiros or highland cowherds as a refuge in the summer months, the sight of which takes the onlooker back in time.

Beech forests are the prevalent type of vegetation in the Redes woodlands, while the spectacular summits of the Retriñón, Peña del Viento, Canto del Oso and Pico Torres are a treat for those seeking contact with nature.

Much of the reserve known as Oscos-Eo is also forested. However, what sets it apart is its status as one of Spain’s most active craft tradition areas. More than just the cradle of rural tourism, Taramundi is home to one of the most interesting ethnographic complexes on the Peninsula.

The latest addition to this array of idyllic settings is the Las Ubiñas-La Mesa Nature Park. With an area of 451 km², it is the site of the second largest limestone mountain system in the Cordillera Cantábrica – namely the Peña Ubiña Massif – and it also features various cultural vestiges which range in time from the Bronze Age to a present-day theme park – the Prehistoric Park.

Dreaming in Asturias

Dreaming in Asturias is a cinch, whether you are asleep or awake. With a stellar track record in the business, our accommodations are of the highest standard and beyond guaranteed. We cater to all kinds of visitors in terms of taste, objectives and options. From available feedback, it would seem that lodging in Asturias is always a gratifying experience.

As an example of rural excellence, some 50 rural hotels are managed under the quality seal known as “Casonas Asturianas”, while 56 Casas de Aldea y Apartamentos Rurales (village houses and rural apartments) come under the auspices of the “Asturias Calidad Rural” association.

Both the Casonas Asturianas hotels and the houses and apartments making up the Casas de Aldea y Apartamentos Rurales de Aldeas attest to the excellence shared by thousands of people who on countless occasions are able to recall and adopt as their own the motto that dreaming in Asturias is really easy and within anybody’s reach.

Alone, with your Partner or as a Family

All kinds of experiences can be had in Asturias, each one better than the last. You can savour urban or rural settings and bask in either mountain or seaside idylls, all at your own pace. And, you can do so any way you wish – alone, with your partner or with children and the whole family. The options are endless, determined by your interests and tastes.

And, very importantly, it is very easy to get from the villages to the city and vice versa. Everything is near and well connected.

Clearly, Asturias is a paradise any time of the year. It offers a host of leisure opportunities in terms of nature, culture, gastronomy, etc. All you need to do is come. Check out our flights here.

Text and images by Turismo de Asturias

Cantabria’s mining past remains alive in the 750 hectares of reddish landscape which is home to the Cabárceno Nature Park. Situated just 15 kilometres from Santander, its proximity is inversely proportional to the feeling of being in a wholly different part of the planet. Here, around one hundred animal species from the five continents roam in semi-freedom, including African elephants, gorillas, the ankole-watusi, the addax, llamas and sea lions.

The open-air tracts of land are spacious and immensely beautiful. The flora lives out its natural cycle during the four annual seasons, so you see a different park in the spring, summer, autumn and winter. The structures left behind from the area’s mining past have been re-used to appoint the various enclosures in Cabárceno. Animals are kept on land which resembles their natural habitat as closely as possible, as here the terrain is accommodating. A number of lookouts bring home the immensity of the panoramic landscape and allow visitors to spot herds of Somali asses, water buffalo, Grevi zebra and ostriches. The karst relief characterised by water’s fickle erosive force makes for fascinating observation and enhances the act of animal spotting.

Nature is allowed to run its course in the park. There are fights between members of the same species, the rutting season unfolds and dominant males abound. Man only intervenes in the event of illness, wounds, a life-threatening situation for some specimen and to feed the animals. That is when the park provides its Wildlife Visit. From 10 in the morning to 5 in the afternoon, a single vehicle seating 4 occupants drives through various areas inhabited by rhino, bears and giraffes. The tour costs €400, which includes a brunch in the park restaurant. Escorted by a ranger, visitors can get to see certain animals close up, as well as touch and feed them. This contact enables them to learn the traits and curiosities of each animal or species.

That is how you discover the three elegant giraffes that come running up to you because they see you arriving with a bag of carrots. All three are male and they get along well precisely because there are no females. Or you learn the amazing story of Jums, a 39-year-old African elephant that came from England and recognised one of its offspring that had been living in Cabárceno.

During the Wildlife Visit, guests are told about the rituals and training sessions conducted with some of the animals to get them accustomed to the presence of people for the sole purpose of enabling a vet to treat a wound or give them a medical check-up whenever necessary. This is a difficult task as wild animals retain their survival instinct and are thus wary of people, but it is gratifying to see how the staff’s daily work and their affection for the animals can work a miracle, as can an apple or a carrot!

The animals’ daily routine is not affected by the fortunate participants in the Wildlife Visit – book ahead, as there is a waiting list – and regular feeding times are strictly adhered to. The only enclosure where visitors are not allowed to get out of the car is that of the brown bears. However, a group of bears can be comfortably observed munching on a piece of bread or chicken through the car window just a few metres away. There are around 70 specimens in a 35-hectare space, which gives you some idea of how big the park is.

The Cabárceno Nature Park is dotted with natural lakes, and the 14 resident elephants relish bathing in waters up to 8 metres deep. The hippo enclosure here, rumoured to be the best in the world, is sited in the Lago Sexta, and a cableway is slated to run above this lake as of March 2016.

A one-day admission ticket to the Cabárceno Nature Park costs €25, and €15 for small children. However, we recommend you check out all the various types of admission, as there are discounts for families and “friends of Cabárceno”. Your ticket allows you to drive around the 20 kilometres of tracks in your own vehicle through all the areas. But, you are urged to observe the speed limit and safety precautions. Unfortunately, this unaccompanied drive-through does not allow you to touch or feed the animals; firstly, for safety reasons, as you will not be escorted by a ranger to guide you and, secondly, as each species has a specific diet at regular hours. A map is given to visitors at the entrance – the routes are clearly marked and you can download a mobile app which provides information on what you are seeing at all times. Park facilities include picnic areas for you to have a packed lunch at your leisure, and there are also cafés, restaurants and gift shops. Your ticket permits you to leave the park and re-enter later on. You are also allowed to make the tour in a camper van.

Your day trip will fly past as you observe the antics of fallow deer, red deer, gorillas, camels, displays of birds of prey and their types of flight, and sea lions cavorting about. (Don’t let them catch you calling them seals with ears – they don’t take kindly to being confused!) Whatever your age; if you like animals, this is where you will have a whale of a time!

Make haste to discover all this wildlife. Check out our flights to Santander here.

Text and images by Planeta Dunia

“The moon? Mars? Iceland? No, it’s Lanzarote!” You will often catch yourself thinking this as you roam this fascinating island along roads traversing uninhabited places, without anyone for miles around you. You will also wonder what it might be like to live in this pleasant land of disturbing beauty, surrounded everywhere by raging Atlantic waves relished by surfers from all over the world.

Tracts of lunar land alternating with stretches of desert, and others carpeted in vegetation, where palm trees stand side by side with lava fields, wild beaches, small fishing villages and, of course, the ubiquitous seaside developments catering to mass tourism.

And, as you contemplate the impossible patterns forged by centuries of intermittent lava flows in the rocks, and you hear the roar of the waves while munching on papas con mojo,you regret that the incomprehensible tourist dynamic should have earmarked Lanzarote as the almost exclusive preserve of family holidaymakers and honeymoon couples. That is when you wish Lanzarote would bare its Indie streak, without renouncing its conventionalism, and that we “Peninsulars” – that is what we have been dubbed by the witty locals – would make the trip at least once a year to this island overflowing with charm, which also has its less predictable side. And this chart of rankings proves it.

1- El Chupadero. Its owner, Barbara, is a former model and erstwhile German New Yorker. One day in the eighties, she came across a derelict building in the middle of the island and fell prey to its charm. She decided to refurbish it with her own hands and settle there permanently, along with her two small children. That was how this restaurant was born, unwittingly hipster to the marrow, where every corner is a marvel of good taste and the menu the epitome of indigenous cuisine based on excellent produce.

2- Bar Stop. At the other end of the island, in Yaiza, lies this legendary establishment, which dates from 1890. It has a homely feel and more than reasonable prices and appears not to have changed one jot since its beginnings. Bar Stop is a place where you can enjoy deliciously rustic home cooking any time of the day while you eavesdrop on the locals chattering away – they also seem to have come fresh from 1890, brimming with friendliness and hospitality.

Plaza Ntra. Sra. de los Remedios (Yaiza).

3- La Lupe. Going to Lanzarote only to end up eating in a Mexican, considering the oodles of papas arrugadas that are shouting to get our attention, may seem rather reckless. But, once you’ve tried La Lupe’s delicatessen and sense that it comes hot from the heart of Mexico City, you realise that you have found an exceptional Mexican cuisine. Carefully crafted tacos, enchiladas, moles and other delicacies in a highly recommendable Mexican restaurant. Ideal for dining to a Tequila rhythm before lighting up the night at Noise.

4- NoiseClub Lanzarote. This is what we might term Lanzarote’s underground concert venue, whose owners fight daily to create an Indie atmosphere in the very heart of the capital, Arrecife. Noise is a small, inviting venue featuring live performances on Friday and Saturday after 11.30 p.m. Performers are often musicians from the Peninsula, in line with the open-minded approach of the artificers of Noise and their urge to bring out a less conventional side of Lanzarote. Performances are variegated, ranging from funk to techno.

5- Lagomar. One of the world’s greats who succumbed to the charms of Lanzarote was Omar Sharif. Indeed, he ended up building a formidable house at the seaside, by way of a large, stunningly beautiful fortress, now turned into a restaurant and wine bar. Every nook in the maze-like interior of Lagomar is a fiesta, from the elegant dining-room to the small bar counter surrounded by armchairs, the beautiful gardens and the pool crowning the patio. It is the ideal spot for having a well crafted glass of wine and for enjoying, any day of the week, the pleasant temperatures of Lanzarote and the anachronistic aura – in the best sense of the word – which still pervades this legendary precinct.

Where to Sleep

Sands Beach Lanzarote: This stunning, four-star resort on the Costa Teguise, just 15 minutes from the airport, will play havoc with those who have difficulty getting their bearings. Six huge swimming pools – one of which is heated – a spa, gaming hall, supermarket, activities at all hours and enormous rooms with a kitchen make up this complex with its private beach, where guests are treated like kings and prices are actually affordable.

Text and photos by Laura Conde of Gastronomistas