Staying in a Luxury Villa with www.mallorca-summer.com in Mallorca, Spain

This is my pool and the view from my villa in Mallorca. I wish I could stay here and have this view forever. Without a doubt it is one of my favorites that I have had on my travels.

For a week we have been able to enjoy this beautiful view and a 4 bedroom 4.5 bath villa just on the outskirts of town, booked through mallorca-summer.com. Costing 650 euro for the week during October (slow season) it is a reasonably priced accommodation. Now if only this gorgeous pool was heated…

For this trip I chose not to rent a car and instead used the frequent bus system that runs around the island to get to our villa. The 45minute drive from Palma, the capital city of the island to Pollensa was less than 6 euro which is a great deal. Since I did not book a car hire I also purposely looked for a property located close to town so that I could easily walk to the grocery store and restaurants. Conveniently where we stayed was also only a 10 euro taxi ride to the nearest beach town which is Port De Pollensa.

There were some great conveniences with this villa that are worth noting. When we arrived the keys were waiting for us in a lock box that we had previously been given the code for. This was great because then we could arrive whenever we wanted and didn’t have anyone waiting around for our arrival. Half way through the week there was also a lady who showed up and exchanged all of our towels, even the kitchen towels, for clean ones, as well as a gentleman who showed up to give the pool a clean.

 

This property also came with great wifi until half way through the week when the 4 of us on 8 devices might have eaten up all of the data. Ooops. However surprisingly the rental company was quick to arrive (when requested) with a back up my wifi not once but twice. Which was GREATLY appreciated.

The location also could not have been better. We were just on the edge of the town so that our villa had a large property and was somewhat private, yet it only took us 10 minutes to walk into the middle of town, which was great. Also being such a small town it gave us the feeling of being safe and so it didn’t bother us much walking down the streets at night to get home from a late night of tapas and wine.

I would love to visit Mallorca again sometime and explore more of the island.

Nostalgia for summer in Europe

Guys, I’ve been suffering from some serious nostalgia for a European summer.

This time last year I was lounging on the beach in the Costa Brava in Spain drinking mojitos and working on my tan. Now I am back at home in New Zealand, waking up to frosty mornings and lighting the fire to warm the house up and wearing my down parka and beanie inside waiting for the snows to come. Not the same, guys.

Both have their merits but man, do I miss those bluebird summer days in southern Europe, especially Spain.

I don’t think Europe is on the cards for me this summer, at least not the summery warm Europe I have been dreaming about. For some reason I keep planning snow trips. Why Liz, why??

Plus, I already had my getaway from the chilly winter down under by escaping to Sri Lanka and the Maldives for 3 weeks, and not even I am greedy enough to try and squeeze in another vacation haha.

But I still miss Europe. And I definitely miss living in Spain sometimes. I guess we always want what we can’t have right?

You guys know how much nostalgia I have for anything travel, so this comes as no surprise.

But it also leads to my next point which is a nice giveaway opportunity for you guys. Cheapflights is giving away $2000 for you to spend on flights to getaway from winter. Details at the end of the post.

I know where I would be going – straight back to the old world! I’d fly to London which is the gateway to Europe, and where so many cheap flights route through. I always buy my flights super last minute to get the best deals. And also I’m not that organized. When I flew home from Spain last summer I booked my ticket the day before!

Santorini? Southern Spain? The Turkish coast? The Swiss Alps? The Lake District? My list is enormous.

So, I really love Madrid

I just realized it’s been way too long since I’ve written about my beloved Spain and I thought I’d share some of my reasons to love Madrid.

For those of you who are new to the blog, I lived in Spain for three years on and off before moving to New Zealand in 2013. Spain has always been one of my homes, and I hope it always will be. And while I’ve called Salamanca, Cordoba and Logroño home, I realized I have neglected to talk about a place where I spent quite a bit of time over the years – Madrid.

For me, Madrid is the heart of Spain and it’s a place I know really well. Geographically the center of the country, it’s also the center for travel and work and I pretty much am always passing through there over the years. It’s where many of my friends are and it’s a massive hub for expats. I know it well.

For some reason Madrid doesn’t always have the best rep – people tend to compare it to Barcelona a lot. Madrid versus Barcelona is more than just an epic soccer rivalry, and tourists tend to love the flashy beachside Catalán capital a lot more than traditional Madrid. Having spent a lot of time in both, I can safely say I hate Barcelona and love Madrid.

For me, Madrid is the real Spain. It doesn’t get anymore Spanish than Madrid. With great food, amazing arts and culture, historic neighborhoods, adorable old man bats, fabulous shopping and super fun events, not to mention it’s the center for just about anywhere, Madrid a very livable lively city. I have so much nostalgia for it, especially in summer!

Why have I not talked about this before on the blog? Why? Better late than never, I guess.

I visited Madrid for the first time in 2005, spent a lot of time there in 2007/2008 and finally lived there for the first time in the summer of 2009 which researching for my college senior thesis at the National Library and have been coming back on and off ever since.

Even though Madrid is a well-known city, for me it doesn’t feel touristy. It still has an authentic, traditional Spanish vibe that I love and adore. And while I generally always enjoy being in the countryside or small towns, I really also love big cities, especially ones that I know pretty well.

I spent over a week chilling out in Madrid a year ago and thought I’d piecemeal together some bits and pieces of my time there and why I love Madrid so much. I literally spent so much time there that I had to force myself to leave and head south to go exploring!

There are so many reasons to love Madrid. Far from being any sort of clear guide of what to do or what not to do in Madrid on holiday, and since I have never really gone to Madrid for a holiday anyways, I thought I’d go ahead and share personal reasons for why I love Madrid, what keeps bringing me back there and where my favorite haunts are.

Enjoy!

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