Our free days are a pleasant surprise on the calendar and the best way to get the most out of them is to board a plane bound for some fresh, entertaining and getatable destination. That spot is Gran Canaria, a whirlwind of sensations, halfway between Europe, Africa and America.

Gran Canaria is just a two-hour flight from the Iberian Peninsula. So, getting there is really easy. A comfortable trip with no stopovers will convey you to that diverse land which emerged millions of years ago from submerged volcanoes in the depths of the Atlantic.

One of the perks offered by a Gran Canaria getaway is, of course, the winter sun. Temperatures on the island remain a constant 24 degrees all year around, enabling you to make the most of any outing to Las Canteras, Maspalomas, Playa del Inglés or Puerto de Mogán, some of the best known and famous beaches.

The Gran Canaria seaboard is the perfect setting for letting off steam by engaging in watersports, but, if what you’re after is making forays into the island’s interior, you should make a point of visiting the towns of Teror, Agüimes, Tejeda and Artenara, or such stunning spots as the Guayadeque Gorge, an ancient pre-Hispanic settlement which nowadays is noted for its striking, cosy cave houses.

Any trip to Gran Canaria should include a visit to the island’s summit, a central area in the Biosphere Reserve where the Roque Nublo and Roque Bentayga outcrops stand. Oh, and remember to get your camera ready. There, you will literally feel like you have arrived in heaven when the weather phenomenon known as the “sea of clouds” spreads out at your feet, as if you were the main subject in a painting set against the memorable scenery of steep mountains and deep gorges.

The north coast of Gran Canaria features some must-see sites such as Puerto de Las Nieves and the Valle de Agaete, a lush garden with tropical fruit housing the only coffee plantation in Europe. Gáldar awaits you with the majesty of the Cueva Pintada (Painted Cave), the largest native Canarian archaeological site, while Arucas, for its part, is the headquarters of Arehucas Rum, a peerless drink which has livened up the festivities of many generations of Canary Islanders.

Well worth visiting is Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, a carefree capital with a wealth of cultural activities. Its Vegueta district is the city’s historic centre and you are urged to venture into the monumental area to see close-up the Cathedral of Santa Ana, Museo Canario, Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno and Christopher Columbus House Museum, a beautiful enclave where the Genoese navigator stopped over on his way to discovering America and which highlights the relationship between the Canary Islands and the New World.

If you’re up for an intense day of shopping at more than reasonable prices, the Calle Mayor de Triana is the ideal spot for it. Large, national and international firms and prestigious brands have stores in this shopping area, and the latter is a pleasure on the eyes, as the district features picturesque buildings in various architectural styles.

Gran Canaria is a lively island, an urban travel destination where you can soak up the atmosphere of its street markets and craft stalls, as well as the various events held there during the year. The last quarter of 2016 will see such long-awaited events as the start of the ARC Transatlantic Race, the Underwater Photography Contest, the Bethlehem built of sand on Las Canteras beach or the Gran Canaria Walking Festival, a grand event for trekking enthusiasts which in this upcoming fifth edition will be including new routes and a night itinerary for star-gazing on the Cumbre de Tejeda.

All these offerings make Gran Canaria a unique destination for an exciting long weekend or warm autumn or winter holiday. Here, time flies by and the island has lots of travel plans to be savoured in advance.

Why wait to experience all this first-hand? Check out our flights here.

Images by Patronato Turismo Gran Canaria

A trip to Emilia-Romagna takes you through a world of flavours, that’s for sure. Apart from its emblematic towns and magnificent traces of the past in the form of monuments, the region offers its delicious cuisine. Make sure you partake of it on your way through Bologna, Ravenna, Modena, Rimini, Ferrara, Parma or any other spot in this popular region of northern Italy. One way of getting to know their culinary delights, apart from tasting them, is to visit some of the gastronomy museums there. Following is a selection of such museums, where you can get up to speed on the history, origins, evolution and preparation of these delicacies in Emilia-Romagna.

Balsamic Vinegar Museum (Museo del Balsamico Tradizionale di Spilamberto)
(Via Roncati, 28, Spilamberto)

Balsamic vinegar or aceto balsamico has its origins in Emilia-Romagna. It is derived from a blend of different wines, both red and white. The process of making this type of vinegar is longer than for other vinegars. At Spilamberto, between Modena and Bologna, you can visit a museum dedicated to this delicious, delicate accompaniment to salads, meats and even desserts.

Museo del Prosciutto di Parma
(Via Bocchialini, 7, Langhirano)

Prosciutto is the denomination accorded Italy’s cured ham, and Parma is one of the protected designations of origin for this product, characteristic of northern and central Italy. Made from cured leg of pork or wild boar, it features in starters (antipasti), sandwiches and panini, pizzas, in pasta sauces and even as a filling in meat dishes.

This versatile product has its own museum in Parma where you can come to grips with its origins, history and manufacturing process. It is located in Langhirano, a municipality which also hosts a ham festival.

While we’re at it, in addition to the prosciutto of Parma, you’d should also try other cured sausages, including culatello from Zibello, Parma salami and spalla cotta (cooked pork shoulder) from San Secondo.

Parmesan Cheese Museum (Museo del Parmigiano Reggiano)
(C/ Corte Castellazzi, Via Volta, 5 Soragna - Parma)

Parmesan or parmigiano is a cheese which hardly requires introducing. Who hasn’t sprinkled it over pasta or risotto or used it as a grilled topping? The more inquiring minds among you will already know that its origins lie in Parma, hence the name. What you might not know is that the original recipe most likely goes back to Roman times. You will discover these and many other details at the Museo del Parmigiano Reggiano, located in Soragna. It is housed in a former cheese factory and has produce from the five Parmigiano-Reggiano-producing provinces on display. The museum exhibits cover the period from the mid-19th century to the mid-20th century.

Carpigiani Gelato Museum
(Via Emilia, 45, Anzola dell’Emilia)

Just a few kilometres from Bologna, in Anzola dell’Emilia, lies this museum, dedicated to one of Italy’s most popular and refreshing products –ice-cream. Inaugurated in 2012, its over one thousand square metres of exhibition space features ice-cream machines, photos, multimedia presentations and the implements used in ice-cream making, all props used to narrate its history and evolution. Incredible as it may seem, in ancient Mesopotamia they already used snow and ice from the mountains to cool drinks served at royal banquets.

The exhibition area is part of the Carpigiani ice-cream company, which opened the museum for the purpose of educating the public about this product.

Tomato Museum (Museo del Pomodoro)
(C/ Corte di Giarola – Parco del Taro, Collecchio)

A museum dedicated to tomatoes? This fruit, originating from the Americas and ever-present in Italian cuisine, deserves its own space to be extolled and studied in greater depth. Also known locally as “red gold”, the tomato has its own museum in Collecchio, the region’s agricultural and industrial centre, situated less than half an hour from Parma.

Why not broaden your horizons and get to know Italian cuisine even further? Get your ticket here!

Text by ISABELYLUIS Comunicación

Images by Pink Ayla, Turismo Emilia Romagna, Kelly Hau, faungg's photos

It is the coastal and tourist resort par excellence. Eilat is the southernmost city in Israel and lies on the border of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. From this bustling city straddling the sea and the desert you can see the mountains of Jordan and Saudi Arabia on the horizon. Four countries come into view with but a single glance – a unique setting.

Once you’ve got your bearings, it’s time to soak up this torrid resort where the thermometer rarely drops below 20 degrees. Indeed, it stays above 30 degrees most of the year around – well, even a bit higher in summer. Oddly enough, it can even happen that, while it is snowing in Jerusalem (quite a common occurrence in winter), you can be roasting in the sun in Eilat, just a four-hour drive away (or one hour, by plane, from Tel Aviv).

Apart from being spoilt by the warmest temperatures, what draws most visitors to Eilat is the Red Sea. Being able to swim in clear, warm, sky-blue, richly-coloured waters is a luxury in a country covered for the most part by such deserts as the Negev, Arava or Judea.

The city’s infrastructure is also a boon. It is designed for the holiday-maker’s benefit, with all the ingredients that a tourist thirsting for leisure, sun and sea could wish for. It boasts a seaside promenade lined with shopping centres and stores brimming with special offers for all kinds of tax-free souvenirs (Eilat is a free port). There are restaurants everywhere, a variety of attractions, particularly for children and families, and a throbbing nightlife with entertainment for those seeking all-nighters. And, most importantly, a lavish supply of holiday hotels of all categories with swimming pools, spas, beach access and all the comforts visitors could need to switch off for a few days.

But, I should emphasise – what visitors to Eilat enjoy most is the coastline studded with marine life. The Red Sea is an underwater paradise for lovers of all types of diving, from the pros to the amateurs.

Even children can take the plunge and dive with dolphins, which is perhaps the activity that both children and adults request most during their stay in Eilat. The experience is well worth trying at the dolphin-reef. It’s easy – all you have to do is put on a tight-fitting wetsuit, adjust your oxygen bottle properly and take everything you need to breathe freely under the water. And, pay attention to the instructor who is going to escort you on your underwater adventure… and let yourself go!

You’ll be taking in the colourful marine wildlife and coral reefs as a plus to the experience of diving down to conquer the seabed with the odd dolphin as your host, who is more than likely to perform a few pirouettes for its prized visitors – a fascinating experience!

Wait! There’s still more – instead of diving with dolphins, if you’d prefer to have your picture taken with sharks, all you have to do is head for the Underwater Observatory Marine Park, an interactive aquarium, most of which is in the open air, which boasts Shark World, the largest shark pool in the Middle East, covering a surface area of 1,000 cubic metres. What visitors enjoy most is when the staff come to feed the sharks. This is undoubtedly the best time to come face to face with these huge, dangerous marine animals. Apart from the shark pool, the aquarium also features a children’s adventure park where infants can stroke and feed various kinds of fish and be treated to futuristic screenings such as “A Journey into the World of Sharks”.

But the sea is not the only attraction in Eilat – the sky is also captivating. It is right now, in spring, that millions of birds fly over that area. In fact, according to the experts, up to 500 million of them! They fly in a south–north direction, the opposite of the tourists, as part of the spectacular spring migration, an essential event for all ornithologists.

Eilat also stands out for its cultural offerings – could it be otherwise? These include such celebrated events as the Chamber Music Festival, an international classic held each year in February. Also in the vicinity is the nearby Timna Park, an exotic attraction where all kinds of adventure sports can be done in the middle of the desert while viewing landscapes worthy of Mars.

What more could you ask for? Check out our flights here.

Text and images by Nani Arenas

Scotland offers many reasons for visiting – beautiful scenery, like in the Highlands, and beautiful lakes, like Lochs Lomond, Tummel, Duich and Ness, the latter with monster included. Not to mention such cultural events as the Edinburgh Festival, during which the city is filled with theatre, music and dance, and the chance to discover its writers, notably Sir Walter Scott, Robert Burns, Robert Louis Stevenson and Irvine Welsh. And – you guessed it – the land’s magnificent whisky. Celtic in origin, this distillation is the epitome of Scottish identity traits – bagpipes and kilts notwithstanding. Scotch is also one of the country’s greatest moneyspinners and stands out as a major attraction for visitors to this land. Newcomers will have the opportunity to make their whisky debut in style, while connoisseurs have the unique occasion to become experts while treating themselves to the huge gamut of tastes and aromas.

Known as uisge beatha (water of life) in Gaelic, whisky is made from the distillation of fermented malt, generally barley, although other grains such as wheat, rye and corn can also be used. The distillation is aged in an oak cask for at least three years. Scotch is classified into the following types – single malt, vatted malt (or pure malt), blended and single grain, single malt being the most highly valued.

A good way of coming to grips with everything related to this popular Scottish beverage is by heading for Edinburgh to visit the Scotch Whisky Experience, a centre located in the Old Town, adjacent to Edinburgh Castle, where you can learn all the ins and outs of scotch. Once you have mastered the basics, you are ready to venture into one of the myriad distilleries scattered about the country. To help get your bearings, you should know that Scotland is divided into five whisky-producing regions. And, as in the case of wine, each region has its own characteristics.

In the region of the Lowlands, in the south of the country, the whisky they produce is mild, light and unsmoky, making it ideal for blends. As it lacks the malt character of the other regions, it is less popular and is produced by a fewer number of distilleries.

Speyside, named after the river Spey which traverses it, is the leading whisky-producing region and the venue for most organised distillery tours. The world’s most popular malts are produced here. One of the must-visit distilleries is Cardhu, located near Archiestown and founded by the whisky smuggler John Cumming in 1824. Glenfiddich, situated in Dufftown, is the only distillery where the distillation, ageing and bottling processes take place on the same premises. At Craigellachie we find the Macallan distillery, which also dates from 1824. Here, the whisky was originally aged in Spanish sherry casks. It set the record for having produced one of the most expensive bottles of liquor ever sold when it fetched $54,000 at an auction. Lastly, the Glenlivet distillery near Ballindalloch is considered to produce one of the finest malts in the region.

The largest region in terms of size and whisky output is the Highlands, situated in the north of Scotland. One of our favourite distilleries here is Oban, located in picturesque Oban Bay, opposite the seafront, which has been producing its excellent malt since 1794. Still in this area, we come to the sub-region known as The Islands which is worth visiting for two gems – the Jura distillery, sited on the island of the same name – an eminently family concern, which has been producing excellent malt whisky since 1810 – and Talisker, located on the priceless island of Skye.

Campbeltown, a region which once boasted up to thirty distilleries, now has only three distilleries in operation.

Lastly, we come to the region of Islay, located on Scotland’s west coast, which is known above all for its smoky whiskies. We recommend a visit to Bowmore, which has one of the first distilleries to be set up on the island, and where the malt is still produced using traditional methods, and Port Ellen, home to the Lagavulin distillery, built in 1816.

Now that you know some of the best whisky distilleries in Scotland, book your Vueling to Edinburgh and get to experience them first-hand.

Text by Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

Images by Cls With Attitude, Sem Shnaider, Rob Schulze, Kkonstan, Stephane Farenga, lynjardine, 82Gab