I haven't been everywhere, but it's on my list

How pilgrims benefit rural communities  The last World Trails Conference took place in Santiago de Compostela in September 2018. There were many lessons learnt during the three day event but only one that inspired the article you are    about to read. Why should we promote active walking holidays such as  The Camino de Santiago?   The Camino is growing more popular as it helps you reconnect with nature and rural areas which we have distanced ourselves from over the last fifty years due to our busy city lives and the advancement of technology. This separation from our natural way of living a thousand years ago is causing a crave for nature and we are embracing the idea of exploring our inner selves while enjoying an active walking holiday. This is the Slow Tourism model, a form of responsible travel that has deeper economic implications that you may think. Let’s explore them! Promoting this type of holiday over traditional beach holidays (Mass Tour...

Are you fed up of tourist traps? Ibiza, Cancún, Venice, Barcelona or Benidorm are synonymous of summer holidays. These places have been so successful attracting tourists that locals are starting to suffer the consequences in the form of higher rents and disruptive levels of noise. Mass media marketing is very efficient in convincing people where they should go and spend their cash. So efficient that some places have reached a point of overcrowding, making the holidays less special than they previously were. For this reason, people are starting to look for alternative holiday locations where their friends have never been. You may have never heard of a hidden gem in northern Spain called Asturias. This northern coastal region of Spain is stunning. The beauty of its landscapes, as green as southern Ireland, grasslands filled with cows next to paradise beaches and the Picos de Europa mountains, one of the most beautiful places for mountaineers to hike. Asturianos are descendan...

There are three dimensions to the Camino, says Bronagh Carroll, and a little magic in each... Bronagh Hill of Magic Hill Holidays Bronagh Carroll June 2 2018 1:00 AM   How can walking up to 30km a day on a muddy trail with a heavy rucksack on your back be magic? Let me tell you. You've probably heard about Spain's Camino de Santiago de Compostela from friends and strangers alike. You may even have been tempted to try it once or twice, but pushed the notion to the back of your mind, thinking: 'The Camino is not for me' or, 'I'm not that kind of person'. Well, the Camino  is  for you. The Camino is for everyone. That's the beauty of this walk. I know it can be scary to go out of your comfort zone. But you are never one simple number on the Camino - except for at the tourist office, of course. You form part of other people’s Caminos as much as they form part of yours. There are three ...

Freedom? Beauty? Looking for the unexpected? To challenge ourselves and our values? To escape our day to day life even for one week? There is not one answer that fits all. People travel for different reasons. Some people want to leave the town where “they are from” and where everyone knows them because in some way, being in a new place where nobody else knows you, makes you freer. It feels good because there is no emotional attachment in that holiday place. No bad things happened there (at least not to yourself). My favorite reason to go to a new place is the thirst for adventure and to push my comfort zone.    This makes things exciting. It makes you more independent and better at solving other types of problems in your home environment or at work. The most common example is when you venture to a country where they speak a different language. In touristic cities or central areas of large cities, you will normally get by with English. But when you come out of those touri...

Educational holidays are becoming increasingly more popular among people from developed countries. The traditional beach and do nothing holiday will not face extinction any time soon but the new wave of educational holidays is asking for room in the tourism industry. This is a consequence of the digital revolution. “Far away” places are just a click away from you (and cheaper air transport has contributed to this) and this gives you the opportunity to learn about the history of other lands and see how they live without having to rely on TV documentaries. Also, as the smart TVs, smartphones and other devices allow us to choose what we want to learn about; this has created a thirst for exploring unchartered territories. Also, if something defines millennials the most, is seeking instant gratification. “I know what I want, and I want it right now”, ranging from a hot meal delivered almost instantly to your house, a cab on the go or language lessons on your phone. There are more people...