There’s a lot more to Munich than the Oktoberfest beer festival and a legendary football team –this city of 1.5 million people is one of Europe’s most important cultural centres, while also boasting a very complete menu of entertainment and recreational options, every day of the year. Here are a few proposals for a weekend getaway to this liveliest of German cities.

Amongst it many attractions, Munich is easy to get to and to get around in, thanks to its huge international airport, excellent rail connection, and the super-modern public transport systems serving the city and its outskirts. Most of the key places for sightseers are concentrated in a relatively small area, and the city is thronged with visitors all year round. Keep in mind that the Alps are nearby, and the city is a staging point for skiers in winter and for climbers, hikers, mountain bikers, and paragliders in summer.

The city’s cultural life is intense, and no tourist should neglect to visits the cluster of three classical art museums collectively known as the Pinakothek –a show of El Greco is now in progress in one of them and will remain open until 12^th April. Not far away is the Brandhorst museum of modern art. On the bank of the Isar river is the fascinating Deutsches Museum of science and technology. It has a branch in Schleissheim to the north of the city that specialises in airplanes, and another in Theresienhöhe dedicated to every imaginable type of land transport vehicle. You may also enjoy the recently opened ZNT, New Technologies Centre, with its focus on nanotechnology and biotechnology. Car aficionados will love the BMW Welt museum –BMW is a Bavarian brand, afer all! To learn more about Munich itself, and its long and curious history, check out the Stadtmuseum, and don’t miss the permanent “Typically Munich” exhibition. For insights into the Bavarian people, there’s the incredible Residenz, the old palace of the Bavarian royal family, located in the city centre, and Germany’s largest urban palace. Today it is one of Europe’s leading museums of decorative arts, and its richly furnished and adorned spaces evoke many centuries of history under the Wittelsbach dynasty (1180-1918). At a short distance is the dynasty’s first Munich home, the Alter Hof, later used as law courts, and now the site of the Bavarian Museums Information Office and of a small museum devoted to the Wittelbachs, whose most famous king, Ludwig II, was born in the Nymphenburg castle standing in the western part of the city, next to the entrance to the Nymphenburg park. But just two hours southwest of Munich is one of Germany’s most celebrated castles, Neuschwanstein, at the foot of the Alps, which was Walt Disney’s inspiration for the castle in the cartoon classic Sleepìng Beauty.

Munich, by the way, has three top-ranked orchestras, numerous music festivals in many genres, and dozens of concert halls.

Design
Design is something else Munich is famous for, and this is evident in the way people dress –in style and good taste, like the people of Milan. The city centre is the best place to shop for designer clothes and decorative items, for antiques, and for books. For luxury goods, jewellery, silverware, etc., look for shops labelled as Königlich Bayerischen Hoflieferanten, or “suppliers to the royal household of Bavaria”.

A Bite to Eat, Sports…
It’s almost impossible not to eat well wherever you go in Bavaria, and Munich’s dining is unrivalled for quality and variety. Local specialities include the famous Weisswurst or veal sausages, accompanied by a salty soft or crisp pretzel and sweet mustard; a ration of pork or beef with mash; and a spicy Obatzder cheese sauce with black bread. When it comes to eating, the locals prefer the biergärten –especially in summer—and the friendly beer halls found throughout the city.

For the sports-minded, we recommend a tour of the Olimpiastadion stadium where the main events of the 1972 Olympic Games were held, a milestone in stadium architecture, and still in almost continual use, as is the Allianz Arena, built for the 2006 World Football Cup, and now home to FC Bayern -a team with five Champions League titles to its credit- and the less well-known TSV 1860.

Munich awaits! Check out our fares here!

Text: Isabel y Luis Comunicación

Photos: Deutschland Tourismus, Haydar Koyupinar/ Museum Brandhorst

1) Parc de La Villette

Open all year around, La Villette is a surefire destination for entertaining boys and girls aged 0 to 99 years! It is the largest park in France, stretching across an area of 55 hectares, and workshops, activities and shows are organised in its gardens and outhouses, come sunshine, rain or snow. It is renowned for its Cinéma en plein air (open-air cinema) in summer. Thousands of Parisians congregate there hours before the sessions to jostle for a good seat and unpack their picnic hampers. In winter, many workshops and other activities are held in the Grande Halle, an emblematic iron-and-glass building that was once France’s most important livestock market. But, to get back to what concerns us here – children – one essential destination is the Jardin des Vents et des Dunes, an admission-free playground recommended for children aged 0 to 13 years. Adults can stretch out on the chaises longues while they keep an eye on their youngsters. The Jardin des Voltiges, given over to circus, is an admission-free venue where kids can experience gravity on ropes, climb or ride a monocycle. Some interesting educational workshops and exhibitions are also organised in La Villette.

2) Cité des Sciences, Cité des Enfants and la Géode

La Villette is not exactly in the centre of Paris so, if you want to visit it, the best thing is to spend the whole day there and also see the Cité des Sciences, the Cité des Enfants and la Géode. The Cité des Sciences features some interesting educational exhibitions for the young – and not so young! – but for children the jewel in the crown is the Cité des Enfants. This huge space, taking up 5,000 square metres, hosts all kinds of activities, experiments, water games and discovery areas for learning while you play. It is divided into two parts – one for children for 2 to 7 years, and another for ages 5 to 12. To round off the day, a fitting choice would be to watch a movie or documentary on the 360° screen in the fantastic Géode.

3) Galerie de l’Évolution

The Gallery was inaugurated in 1889, shortly after the Eiffel Tower, as the Galerie de Zoologie. The formidable sight of a huge herd of elephants, giraffes, zebras or buffaloes will win over the young ones from the outset. The museum’s permanent exhibitions focus mainly on the evolution of the species, while the subjects of extinct and endangered species are also stressed. Children can discover biodiversity and environmental hazards through playful interactivity in the Galerie des Enfants. Further information here.

After such a flood of taxidermy animals, your children are likely to fancy seeing some live specimens. You need only to go outside the museum to come across the Zoo del Jardin des Plantes, a centre dedicated to the study and conservation of some 200 plant species, while for animal sightings you shouldn’t miss the Parc Zoologique de Paris, where you can have breakfast alongside the giraffes, or cut your teeth as animal handlers by feeding a manatee, a kind of giant seal weighing in at 600 kilograms.

4) Orchestre de Paris

One of France’s most prestigious orchestras offers concerts for the whole family where language is unimportant. Children and adults alike will discover music through a series of concert shows purpose designed for a public of all ages which elicit participation. You can check out their programme and times on this website.

5) Museum-wise

Most museums in Paris have materials specifically for children, including whole rooms and halls customised to their needs. The Louvre, for instance, organises workshops, family visits and story-telling sessions geared to discovering the museum as a form of entertainment. Parents can also download teaching material from their website or request it at information points. Noteworthy among the museums most highly rated by Parisians for their family facilities are the Palais de Tokyo and the Pompidou Centre, where they also organise workshops, activities and exhibitions tailored to children and adolescents.

In addition to the well-known museums, Paris has a host of others catering to all tastes. Don’t rule out visting some that will cause surprises, such as the Musée de la Poupée, Musée Gourmand du Chocolat, Musée de la Musique and the Musée Aéronautique.

So, head for Paris with your children – check out our flights here.

Text by Rita Peré / ISABELYLUIS Comunicación

Images by Cité des enfants, Francois_Grandin, Galerie de l’Évolution, Little Palais, Paris Tourist Office. Daniel Thierry, Paris Tourist Office. Amélie Dupont, Arnaud-Legrain

In Santander, we have met one of these persons who knows the town like the back of his hand. While he is talking about history and curiosities of Santander, he takes us through different bars and taverns in order to show us every specialty of each place.

At a dramatic pace we go from one tavern to other while he recommends us tasting the best bite of cod, or he warns how rude is the waiter in that place but let´s going in because they have the best seafood! Or “here there is the bestpiconcheese you can ever taste” There is no time to waste because in Santander there are many good taverns and he wants to show us all of them (or, at least, he will try)

The tavern tour is not quite expensive, because in Santander bites and plates are cheaper than in other northern towns. Bites cost between €1 and €2,50 and plates between €6 and €18 depending on what is ordered.

From beautiful Plaza Porticada (arcaded square), that hosted the International Festival of Santander for many years, to the popular neighborhood of Puertochico let´s walk around the excellent cuisine of Santander!

El Marucho
Calle Tetuán 21

Typical restaurant and bar without any comfort but where you can enjoy some exellent fish and seafood well-priced. Here we tasted some extraordianr rabas. During the high season it is not easy to find a place.

La Flor de Tetuán
Calle Tetuán 18

The specialty of this bar is fish and seafood. Prize is higher than in other local places but they serve the best grilled shrimp in Santander (plate costs about €12). Rabas, barnacles, spatter ... all the seafood is great!.

La Bodega de Santoña
Calle Peña Herbosa 21, enfrente del edificio del Gobierno Regional

Typical products from Cantabria like cheese and anchovies.

Casa Lita
Paseo de Pereda 37, al lado de Puerto chico

Great assortment of tapas and snacks from the more classic ones, like the bite of tortilla (Spanish omelette) to their own specialty Cantabrian bite. His chef, Joseba Guijarro, has one Michelin star and Casa Lita has awards for the quality of its bites.

Bodega Fuente Dé
Calle Peña Herbosa

Here we find picón cheese, an excellent blue cheese made in Cantabria. When you get into Bodega Fuente Dé, a hard mix of smells of cheese and pickles bits your nose. Few minutes later, this smell develops in an addictive fragance.They also serve tapas and typical dishes like cocido montañés, cocido lebaniego or picadillo de Potes.

El Solorzano
Calle Peña Herbosa 17

Vermouth with siphon. Great assortisment of tapas, mussels, rabas (squid rings), (tentacles), and many others.

El Diluvio
Calle General Mola 14

Just like Casa Lita, this place is a pioneer in Santander in serving elaborated tapas as País Vasco style. La Cigaleña
Daoiz y Velarde, 19

Un auténtico museo del vino en el que probar especialmente la tapa de bacalao rebozado. Riquísimas.

Tapas y Vinos
Calle Marcelino Sautuola

Rioja wine well-served and excellent tapas. The best one is the Spanish omelette with pork rinds.

El Tivoli
Calle Marcelino Sautuola

Exquisite squid rings and tentacles and very well served portions of ham.

La Conveniente
Calle de Gómez Oreña, 9

With to El Marucho, it is one of the most frequented by Santander visitors. Good plates of anchovies and fried bites served on big tables, that we ate all together listening a piano music.

El Cañadio
Calle de Gómez Oreña, 15

Excellent tapas cooked by one of the best chefs in the town. Here we ended the tapas tour because we ate too much not because there were no more bars or restaurants.

When we were returning home, he still recommended us to go to El Riojano (that looks like a museum with its painted by celebrities barrels), La Gloria, El Cantabria, Las Hijas de Florencio, La Malinche, Días de Sur, La Bodega de Jesús Quintanilla...

So you feel like visiting Santander, do you? Book your flights here!

Thessaloniki is redolent with a chaotic – and even decadent –  air, set in the West but facing the East, proud of a past characterised by Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman influences, yet imbued with modern, contemporary momentum.Thessaloniki (or Salonika) is not as popular as the capital, Athens, and does not exert the same draw as the absolutely exquisite Greek islands, but its streets are full of the delights that warrant flying there to be able to stand before the White Tower. Here, then, are some of its myriad charms.

Although a typical drink throughout the country, in Thessaloniki, frappé coffee is a religion. You will see them everywhere and at all hours, local folk sipping away at them in huge glasses, stuffed with a sort of evolved, iced cappuccino topped generously with foam. Cafés, bars, restaurants, ice-cream parlours… it is served in all kinds of establishments, but the best of them all is Paradosiako, an exquisite café and ice-cream parlour located in Aristotelous Square, the hub and heart of the city.

Thessaloniki is a city of churches. Marvellous churches, like Agios Panteleimon, the Church of the Acheiropoietos and Agios Athanasios. However, the most iconic church in the city is clearly the monumental Church of the Rotonda or Agios Giorgios. Designated a World Heritage Site in 1988, together with the Arch of Galerius (just over 100 metres from the Rotonda), this is the oldest church in Thessaloniki or, as some sources would have it, the oldest church in the world.

Sport is taken seriously in Greece, and in Thessaloniki, no less so. It is quite an experience to visit that volcano of passions, the Toumba Stadium, to see PAOK FC playing. Or, if your thing is basketball, head for the clamorous Alexandreio Melathron arena, home to the historic Aris FC.

Adjacent to Aristotle Avenue stands the Ladadika, the former oil market. You can find all kinds of shops and stalls in this maze of alleyways, a blend of Western market and Arab souq, with wares ranging from food to garments, and from spices to implements. On the south side, near the sea, is an area with the most contemporary restaurants in the city.

The epitome of the Mediterranean diet, Greek food is an orgasm on one’s taste buds. Bent on savouring one of the most widely acclaimed cuisines in the country, it would be a sin to visit Thessaloniki without tasting such local delicacies as xoriatiki salata, melitzanosalata, moussaka, youvetsi, bouyiourdi or mydia saganaki.There are excellent restaurants and taverns all around the city, but Neos Galerios (Apellou 3) is one of those small family restaurants (a variation on the Spanish Casa Pepe) where you can eat plenty and well for a moderate price.

In 1917 Thessaloniki was devastated by a fire from which only the upper district of Ano Poli was spared. Ringed by part of the old Byzantine and Ottoman walls, this jigsaw of steep, winding streets, and one-storey houses with colourful patios, enjoys privileged views of the rest of the city down below. You can walk up to Ano Poli, but the climb is likely to wear out your shoe soles. Your best bet is to take bus 50 which follows a circular route past the city’s cultural landmarks.

Thessaloniki is Greece’s cultural capital, particularly when it comes to the world of cinema. The majestic Olympion Theatre, located in beautiful Aristotelous Square, is the site of the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, the leading event of its kind in the country. Less than five minutes away lies the old harbour which has been partly remodelled and given over to cultural activities. One of the old shipyards now houses the Thessaloniki Cinema Museum. The rest of the refurbished shipyards host such events as the local editions of the Barcelona In-Edit (a music documentary film festival), and OffsideFest, a football documentary film festival.

The symbol of Thessaloniki is the White Tower, the sort of landmark which visitors to any city are bound to come across, even unwittingly. Once used as both a fortress and prison, the structure you see today was built during the period of Ottoman domination by Suleiman the Magnificent, most likely on the site of a pre-existing medieval construction. The White Tower is the point of departure for a walk down the Nikis, a promenade which stretches for several kilometres along the city’s seafront.

Mt Athos lies about three hours’ drive from Thessaloniki. Sacred to the Greek Orthodox Church faithful, this mountain rises from a rocky peninsula alongside the Aegean Sea. Around twenty monasteries are located on this mountain, including some of the oldest and remotest monasteries on earth, which are home to about 1,500 monks. The Holy Mountain enjoys a form of local autonomy and access to it is restricted. Women are not allowed to set foot on the mountain, while access to male visitors is limited to 200 Greeks and 10 foreigners per day.

Don’t wait to experience the magic that is Greece – check out our flights here.

Text by Oriol Rodríguez for Los Viajes de ISABELYLUIS

Images by L'imaGiraphe, Tilemahos Efthimiadis, Stella Vardaki, Dmitry Artyukhov