Two ski stations – Fuentes de Invierno and Valgrande-Pajares – promise exciting days of skiing, as well as good food in a cosy, family environment. They are ideal for families, and for those who want to get away from it all, eager to seek out tranquil, more relaxing destinations.

Fuentes de Invierno – The Last Glacier in the Cordillera

Located in the municipality of Aller, Fuentes de Invierno boasts the most up-to-date ski lifts of all stations in the Cordillera Cantábrica. It is the ideal resort for enjoying the white sport in tip-top conditions. The rugged mountain terrain, combined with small clusters of forest and cabins dotted across the lower reaches of the resort, make this diminutive skiable tract (8.7 km) one of the most picturesque spots in the Principality of Asturias.

The beginner slopes, halfway up the resort (1,650 m), and the areas of La Llomba and Entresierras for the more seasoned enthusiasts, will appeal to all skiers, whatever their level. At the end of the day, make sure you stop off at one of the villages near the resort, such as Felechosa or El Pino, where a large number of restaurants offer the finest Asturian cuisine (pote, fabada, picadillo, carnes roxas), as well as succulent dishes typical of Aller. You are certain to find game on the menu – plentiful in this part of the Montaña Central – in addition to such confectionery delicacies as cuayá or panchón.

Valgrande-Pajares, the Oldest of the Cantabrian Resorts

Inaugurated in 1954, the Lena resort of Valgrande-Pajares has had skiers on its pistes for over 60 years. It is considered one of the benchmark ski stations in the Cordillera Cantábrica. With a skiable tract of 21.5 km, it is strategically located at just over half an hour from several major cities (Oviedo, Gijón and León), and is equipped with snowmaking systems to guarantee hassle-free skiing throughout the season. The ski lifts that connect the whole resort start out from the base station (1,350 m), where all the main facilities are located.

At its highest point (1,870 m), towered over by the Cuitu Nigru,Cellón and Tres Marías peaks, you can see out across the landscape of the Cordillera Cantábrica range, and even catch a glimpse of the sea on clear days. Depending on your level of expertise, from this point you can access the beginner’s area, traverse the main axis of the resort – the Valle del Sol – or get to the crown jewel – El Tubo – the only officially sanctioned competition piste in Asturias.

Whether you’re reluctant to try out skiing, or have skied your heart out and need to regain your strength, make sure you head for the Cuitu Negro café and indulge in a veritable culinary tribute. Their tripe and the meat stew are some of the hallmarks of the house.

The ski resort’s ease of access and its accommodation capacity of 150 at the foot of the ski slopes make Pajares the perfect destination for those eager to do sport as well as spend time visiting the main cities and towns in the vicinity to enjoy other activities – cultural tours, shopping, cinema, concerts, theatre…

In short, both Valgrande-Pajares and Fuentes de Invierno are ski resorts with charm. Their friendly service and family atmosphere are paramount, and you can enjoy skiing starting at €24 – peerless prices for a winter getaway.

Here, then, is our advice, if you are undecided about where to head this winter. Check out our flights here.

Text and images by Turismo Asturias

One August morning in 2014,  Stephen Curry, one of the world’s best basketball players, looked out of the window in the hotel where he was staying in the south of the island, together with the American national team, and wrote a message for posterity on the social networks: “Gran Canaria, God’s creation” was the immortalising phrase he wrote while taking in the scenery. He thus confirmed, decades later, that what the writer and journalist Domingo Doreste had said about his land of birth being a miniature continent was still true. The key to this is the combination of factors which make Gran Canaria a unique destination for nature lovers.

In 2005, almost half the island’s surface area was designated a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO, a tribute to the incalculable wealth of its species and a state of conservation which has kept human impact on the environment to a bare minimum. Indeed, man’s traces in the protected nature areas open to visitors is hardly perceptible. Each strip of land, whether on the coastline or in the mountains, reveals a genuine flourish of beauty.

One of the must-visit landmarks is Caldera de Tejeda, which affords stunning views of the north-west of the island. It is home to both Roque Nublo and Roque Bentayga, two basalt monoliths regarded as emblematic by the islanders. The summit is presided over by El Pico de las Nieves, at an altitude of 1,949 metres. This great height often puts it above the cloud level, setting up an effect known as the “sea of clouds”.

This spectacular backdrop, swathed in silence, exerts a great pull on visitors seeking direct contact with the living legacy of Macaronesia, the ensemble of five archipelagoes in the North Atlantic, made up of the Canary Islands, the Azores, the Cape Verde Islands, Madeira and the Savage Islands. The flora of Gran Canaria is one of the island’s great draws and has aroused interest among the scientific community for centuries. Over a hundred plant species are indigenous to this island alone, while another five hundred species are endemic to the Archipelago. Laurel forests and towering pines are conducive to immersing oneself in an environment blessed with a privileged climate. If you’re fond of botany, be sure to visit the Jardín Viera y Clavijo – also known as the Jardín Canario (Canary Island Garden) – given over primarily to flowers and plants endemic to the seven Canary Islands.

The indigenous fauna scattered across the island is also interesting. In addition to lizards, perenquenes (Canary wall geckos) and such iconic birds as the blue chaffinch, Gran Canaria is home to almost fifty types of nesting birds. The sea is another of its fortes. The waters surrounding the island feature a broad variety of fish, notably the comber, grouper, island grouper, cow bream and white seabream, among many others. It is also quite common to spot dolphins and whales coasting along at a safe distance.

Gran Canaria’s biodiversity can be seen in all its splendour from the Red de Miradores, a network of viewpoints comprising 31 observation platforms affording the best possible views and where you can take great photos. Further, if you’re an enthusiast of trekking, climbing or cycling, Gran Canaria offers endless opportunities in the form of routes with various difficulty ratings.

Accommodation at stunning sites is provided by a good range of rural hotels and houses spread across the whole island. Small spiritual retreats, where you can dispel all stress, located in gorges and other concealed tracts of land, guaranteed to enhance your experience of Gran Canaria.

Come and live it out for yourself. Check out our flights here.

Photos by Patronato Turismo Gran Canaria

A city underground. This idea was developed by Emir Kusturica – filmmaker born in Bosnia, raised on Islam, later converted to Christianity and self-proclaimed Serbian – in the movie Underground (1995), which showed the eventful recent history of the former Yugoslavia in a tragicomic point of view, with the protagonists create their own world underground to protect their interests, forgetting about the events above the ground. This is some kind of Plato’s cave where they live isolated while about the Nazis invade the territory, later Tito regime during the Cold War and finally the Yugoslavian war.

Located strategically between western and eastern territories, at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and by the Adriatic, Aegean and Black seas, probably is the European city that has been devastated and rebuilt again the most. Serbian capital has been occupied about 38 times in the past 300 years. Austrians, Serbians and Germans have created all kind of structures in the territory that Belgrade occupies.

The insides - a tangle of tunnels, shafts, caves and bunkers - have always been there, preserved during all these wars and also created because of them. Most of the historical center is on archaeological sites and hundreds of meters of tunnels were built for many reasons, during thousands of years.

Since 2012, some of these secrets can be revealed in Belgrade - even most of them still remain closed to the public – in a trip through subterranean routes. Total, there are about 140 structures certified officially nowadays, which are allowed to be visited.

But for now is almost impossible to know how many elements can be found underground. One person that knows this well is Zoran Nikolic, cowriter of Beograd ispod Beograda (‘Belgrade under Belgrade’) where he reveals the secrets that he now also shows as specialized guide around this area.

Under the library in Belgrade

By the start of Knez Mihailova street the City Library can be found, located in a building that used to be the most famous hotel in Belgrade. In the underground floors there is the Roman room, with well-conserved rests of an old fortress and a collection of Roman sculptures and graves. The room is used for lectures, music concerts and other cultural events.

Under the Belgrade fortress

Kalemegdan, the great Fortress of Belgrade, is one of the seven fortifications that stand by the Danube, along Serbia and at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers. Here is where, according to the legend, Attila was buried. The fortress along to the Kalemegdan Park, become the most relevant historic-cultural complex in Belgrade.

Under the ground there is Barutana cave, a former Austrian military warehouse now used as archaeological museum, including pieces from Singidunum, the antique Roman city that used to be where Belgrade is now, including sarcophagi, tombstones and altars.

Bellow the park there is also a fascinating bunker, from the last days of the Soviet Union. Josip Broz Tito, Yugoslavian head of state, wanted to built a bunker after World War II to protect Belgrade of a possible Russian invasion.

Near the fortress, artificial caves where used as food warehouses. Nowadays, restaurants and cellars are located here, where there is never a need for air-conditioned.

Under Tašmajdan park

One of the most significant parts of the route is under the centric park of Tasmajdan, right bellow the Serbian Parliament. Bellow asphalt and concrete layers there are caves built by the Romans that were used centuries after for many purposes: during the Great War they were a warehouse for bombs and during World War II they were used as hidden headquarters by the Germans.

Picture from wikimapia.org

A place well worth discovering! Check out our flights here.

¡Kalinka, Kalinka, Kalinka moyá! Can't get Tetri´s song out of your head? Easy..., the same thing happens to us as well. We have just landed in Moscow and we are going to eat a lot! Going out in Moscow and try some restaurants can be an amazing and enriching experience where you will discover both the delicious flavors of Russian cuisine and customs of the Russians, which may seem a little peculiar.

The dishes of Russian cuisine are usually quite caloric, due to the harsh winters where greater caloric intake is needed. The Russians give much importance to the ritual of food and like to make life around the stove.

A typical meal starts with a Russian zakuski (appetizers) that can be salads, and small plates of pickled fish like pod Seliódka shuboi (herring coat) or a pirogi (dumplings) meat with vegetables, and always accompanied by a good shots of vodka.

As is typical starter soups, both hot and cold in winter and summer. Russian soups are very strong and more than a starter for us are almost a full meal, since all carry vegetables, meat, chicken, fish ... The most popular are the borsch, made of beets, cabbage, potato and meat; and solianka, made of meat or fish, with an acidic due to the lemmon they put on it. Another soup is shi made ​​of cabbage and Uja, made of fish.

Main courses can be stroganoff meat, shasliki (a typical meat kebabs from Caucasus), golubtsi (cabbage leaves stuffed with meat) or the dish we liked the most: pelmeni (a kind of Russian ravioli filled with meat, potato or vegetable)

Many dishes can be served with smetana, a sour cream sauce flavored particular that we loved. The most popular drink in Russia, in spite of the general though, it's not the vodka but the tea. For dessert, along with tea, you can taste some delicious blini (pancakes) or marlenka cake, something like a strudel.

My-My

At Mu-Mu restaurants they serve typical Russian food. It is a self-service restaurant with tiny portions, so it is ideal to try different dishes. They are very popular among Muscovites and it is well priced.

Jachapuri,10 Bolshoi Gnezdnikovsky per.

It is a nice and central Georgian food restaurant. The food is very good and it is not too expensive. Totally recommended.

Pushkin Cafe, Tverskoy bulvar, 26A

It is considered the best restaurant in Moscow. It is a nice vintage place, very well preserved where can you can taste high level dishes of the Russian cuisine. Good service and medium-high but reasonable price.

A couple of features to consider when venturing out for lunch or dinner in Moscow: dinner can be served until the minute they close the place, but they will not wait until you finish the meal, so if you do not want to have to swallow all in five minutes, we recommend not arrive too late. Russians do not like you to pay them with coins, so if you're planning to spend those last loose rubles at a dinner, do better buying souvenirs in Red Square, or you will receive disapproving look from the waiter.

Приятного аппетита!!

By Nadia Polo

solianka by Шнапс | stroganoff by Pittaya Sroilong | zakuski by Timothy Post | pelmeni by Bernd Hutschenreuther

Makes you want to go, right? Do it! Check out our prices here!