View Article - Bel and the Dragon

38 LIFESTYLE
Now yer Turking...
ENJOY a week of Turkish delight in Kalkan for just over
£515, nearly a fifth off brochure prices. Anatolian Sky
Holidays has savings of up to £120 per person on
seven-night stays at the four-star Rhapsody
Hotel, departures June to October.
The price is for two sharing on B&B basis
including return flights from London Gatwick.
Visit anatoliansky.co.uk or call 0844 273 3586.
TAKE
AWAY
SLAYER: Bel And The Dragon
Dragon’s a
great den
Bel And The Dragon,
Churt, Surrey
THE WELCOME This beautifully restored
country inn in the Surrey Hills near Farnham
has 18 immaculately styled bedrooms. But
we went for a double in The Cottage, a
newly renovated five-bedroom annexe. This
would be ideal for a wedding or a weekend
catch-up with pals. Regular trains from
London to Farnham and a free car park for
guests is available.
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD If you drive then
exploring the Surrey Hills by car is a joy. The
local council has put together a series of
scenic drives with satnav instructions.
Bustling Guildford is only 30 minutes away
by car and an hourly bus service gets you to
market town Farnham in 13 minutes.
Churt is tiny – but the hotel bar and
restaurant offers a vast menu. THE ROOM Decorated in a
tasteful, shabby chic style
with a giant comfy
bed and a huge
bathroom with
free-standing bath.
The complimentary
bottle of Sipsmith Sloe gin was a nice touch.
As dedicated coffee snobs, we were thrilled
to see the Nespresso machine alongside the
kettle. Entertainment was supplied by a
Roberts digital radio and flat-screen TV.
THE FOOD The full English breakfast,
including venison sausage, was superb.
Blueberry pancakes and bacon with clotted
cream and caramelised banana offered a
British take on an American favourite.
Veggies are offered macadamia nut cottage
cheese and breakfast radishes with
oatcakes, avocado and candied olives.
Restaurant mains included roasted Atlantic
cod with miso and lime for £15. The
rotisserie included a suckling pig (£19) with
thyme and duck fat roasted potatoes.
THE SERVICE Smiley staff couldn’t do
enough.
LOVED The books in our room – a vast range
of classics. A change from places that buy
their books by the foot for deception. And
the free booze which included two different
aged Scotch whiskies. HATED Not a problem for drivers, but the
once-an-hour bus service to Farnham might
leave some feeling a little cut off.
BOTTOM LINE Rooms start at £95 a night
from Sunday to Thursday. Weekends are
steeper, but a special rate from £200 for
Friday and Saturday is available.
CHECK IT OUT belandthedragon-churt.co.uk
HOTEL
inspector
* JUNE 26, 2016
Travel
SUNDAY PEOPLE
LIFESTYLE 39
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ESCAPE to the luxury Indian Ocean flights from London and
transfers to the
island of Mauritius and save £690.
oceanside hotel in Domaine de Bel
Tropical
p ca Sky offers a week, half Ombre. Pavilion rooms have four-pos
ter
boa
board, in the five-star Heritage beds, outdoor showers and en
suites
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Le Telfair in September for with antique baths. Go to tropical
sky.
££1,329 – if booked before co.uk or call 01342 886941.
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GREAT
break
email travel@people.co.uk
Q&A
BEFORE any possible Brexit issues,
jump over to Europe’s fantastic theme
parks to get your adrenaline fix and be
enthralled by spectacular shows.
PortAventura
Your travel questions
answered.
Spain
Send your questions to
travel@people.co.uk
THRILL FACTORS: For fun in the hot sun head to
this colossal park on the Costa Dorada. It holds
six themed adventure areas based on places
around the world including Polynesia, Mexico,
the Caribbean and Mediterranean.
You can cool down in the Cambodia kingdom
of Angkor – battle boats are armed with water
cannons so even spectators get a soaking. More
splashing rides are promised in the Aquatic
Park, including the Bermuda Triangle whirlpool.
The park is home to the fastest rollercoaster
in Europe – the horizontal catapult Furios Baco
– as well as the 76m-high Shambhala which has
the longest drop of any ride on the Continent.
New this year is the summer show Revolution,
a musical journey that pays tribute to the
women of pop, from Gloria Gaynor to Adele.
MORE INFO: portaventuraworld.com/en
STAY FOR THE RIDE: Seven nights’ B&B at the
park’s Hotel PortAventura for a family of four
costs from £455pp including park entrance.
Ryanair, easyJet, Monarch, Vueling and
Norwegian all fly direct to Barcelona – it’s an
hour by train from there to PortAventura.
GO DUTCH:
Efteling
Can we still be fined if we
take our boys out of school for
Q
a holiday before the end of term?
A
It’s still a difficult one. Most
parents don’t fully understand
the rules. Although the high court
backed Jon Platt – the dad who
took his daughter to Florida and
refused to pay the £120 fine –
government ministers have said
they want to close the loophole he
used to avoid it.
So technically, you’ll face legal
action – and councils say they are
dishing out more fines to parents.
But I wonder how long it will be
before the pressure of public
opinion forces a change. Surveys
since the case show almost half of
parents are now likely to take
children out of school in term time.
ENJOY FRUITS OF THE
FOREST: Europa-Park
Disneyland
Paris
THRILL FACTORS: The creators of the world’s
most famous theme parks have built two here –
Disneyland and Walt Disney Studios.
Join Elsa, Anna and Olaf in a sing-along of
your favourite songs from the hit show Frozen.
And from July 2, Mickey Mouse will be
starring in a production that makes the most of
Disney’s movies. Mickey and the Magician ropes
in characters including Genie from Aladdin,
Cinderella and Lion King’s Rafiki.
Adrenaline aficionados will find more than
enough rides to get their fix. There is the
scream-inducing Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring
Aerosmith, and Space Mountain: Mission 2.
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror has a
stomach-churning drop, while you ride a tidal
wave through Crush’s Coaster. Be warned, multisensory 4D attraction Ratatouille: A Recipe for
Adventure, whets your appetite for more.
MORE INFO: disneylandparis.co.uk
STAY FOR THE RIDE: Superbreak (superbreak.
com) has two nights’ B&B at the four-star
Novotel Marne La Vallee Le Grand from £701
based on a family of four sharing a room,
including flights leaving Gatwick on July 26 and
1 Day/2 Park special offer tickets.
COSTA FUN:
PortAventura
Legoland
L
Denmark
D
Europa-Park
Germany
THRILL FACTORS: Vast enough to accommodate
150 football fields, this park in the Black Forest
is divided into European countries. Soak up the
fun on Fjord-Rafting – a rapids ride complete
with roaring waterfall, while in France, Silver
Star, one of the park’s biggest and highest steel
coasters, hits 80mph with 4G forces. For a less
heart-stopping time, Germany’s Elf Ride is a
gentle boat trip through Elfin realms.
MORE INFO: europapark.de/en
STAY FOR THE RIDE: A two-day package in a
family room for four at the four-star Bell Rock
Hotel, one of the park’s inns, starts at £126 a
night including breakfast and park tickets.
EasyJet (easyjet.com) flies from Luton to nearby
Basel. Europa-Park is about one hour’s drive
from the airport.
SEVEN
nights’ fullboard on P&O’s
Oceana to Venice,
Montenegro, Corfu, Rome,
Ajaccio and Genoa leaving
July 20, plus flights from
Gatwick or Manchester,
for £617. Full details at
planetcruise.co.uk or
0239 327 7931.
PIPE DREAM:
ParkSiam
T
THRILL
FACTORS: Billund is where the kingdom
of plastic bricks began – Legoland even built an
ai
airport after opening in 1968 to bring in visitors.
Themed areas such as the Knights’ Kingdom,
Pi
Pirate Land and Wild West offer more than 50
rides. In Polar Land you may freeze with fear on
ri
the icy Polar X-plorer ride.
th
Then there’s a jeep safari ride over the
sa
savannah, spotting giraffes, elephants, lions and
monkeys – all built from Lego bricks of course.
m
New for this year is Ninjago World where you
are challenged to crack Lloyd’s Laser Maze and
ar
brave the ascent of Cole’s Climbing Wall.
br
For the younger ones there are attractions
ba
based on the familiar Duplo bricks.
MORE INFO: legoland.dk/en
M
STAY
S
T FOR THE RIDE: Four-star Hotel Legoland
in the centre of the park offers B&B in a
family
fa
room (sleeping four) from £224 a
ni
night.
British Airways flies direct to Billund
fr
from
Heathrow with return flights from
£7 (ba.com).
£72
Thrills
&
s
l
l
i
h
c
s
l
l
i
r
f
k
par
Park Siam
Tenerife
THRILL FACTORS: Park Siam was voted the world’s
top water park in last year’s TripAdvisor Travellers’
Choice Awards – and you will soon realise why.
The Tower of Power waterslide features a nearvertical drop. And the 240-metre long Singha boat
slide, launched last summer, has 14 tum-wrenching
changes of direction so is best done before lunch.
For a slower pace you will find a huge lazy river
ride, plus a white sand beach and an aquarium.
MORE INFO: siampark.net
STAY FOR THE RIDE: First Choice has seven nights’
all-inclusive at the Parque Cristobal Bungalows &
Siam Park from £884 per adult, £383 for the first
child and £463 for a second. Flights leave Gatwick
on July 31 (firstchoice.co.uk, 0871 200 7799).
Gardaland
Italy
THRILL FACTORS: On the south-eastern shore of
Lake Garda, adrenaline fans have over 30 rides to
get their fix. There is Oblivion – The Black Hole,
KID ZONE:
LegoLand
MINNIE BREAK:
Disneyland Paris
Italy’s first dive coaster, and the Magic Mountain
rollercoaster – a breathtaking descent of side
tailspins. For water fans there is the Colorado Boat
ride – a drenching river journey in a floating log.
New this year, Kung Fu Panda Academy, a themed
Chinese village, will entertain all the family.
In the Pagoda kids can meet giant panda Po and
learn how to throw kung-fu moves in a mini-show.
The Italians have even tried to make queuing up
fun. While waiting for the park’s 320-metre long
rollercoaster Kung Fung Master, you will face
challenges from a crocodile-shaped totem and a
moving bridge.
MORE INFO: gardaland.it/resort-en
STAY FOR THE RIDE: The Bella Italia campsite
offers excursions to Gardaland which
is an 10-minute drive away.
fEurocamp has seven nights’ selfcatering for a family of four
staying in a two-bedroom
Classic mobile home starting
at £1,120 in July. Travel is extra
but can be booked through the
tour operator (eurocamp.co.uk,
0844 406 0552).
SPLASH:
Gardaland
Efteling
Holland
THRILL FACTORS: You will be away with the
fairies at Efteling – Europe’s third-biggest theme
park, 60 miles from Amsterdam.
Its fairytale/fantasy theme is showcased on the
dark ride Droomvlucht – which passes through
caves of mystical people.
The Raveleijn theatre stars a five-headed firebreathing dragon, while Carnival Festival ride
takes you into the puppet world of Jokie and Jet.
Joris en de Draak is a traditional wooden coaster,
while Baron 1898, with its 123ft plunge into a
mineshaft, provides the biggest scares.
Then aas light fades watch Aquanura, Europe’s
biggest water fountain show.
bigges
MORE
M
MO
R INFO: efteling.com/en
STAY FOR THE RIDE: Take the car by ferry
S
ST
from
fro Newcastle to Amsterdam and stay
th
three
nights at Efteling’s Bosrijk Village
with
w DFDS. The five-night trip starts at
£2
£246pp including four-day park entry
and two nights on board in a cabin
(dfds.co.uk,
(dfds
0871 522 9955).
Make a splash in Bogs
Bogs wellies
bogsfootwear.
co.uk
From £30 for
kids/£55 for
adults
))))
It might be too
o
late if you are up
to your waist in
n
Glastonbury mud,
but Bogs is this year’s go-to welly
brand. They come in a range
of lengths, have grippy
moulded soles and some
are insulated for work
in freezing conditions.
And most have neat
holes at the top so they
are easy to pull on.
GREAT
gadget
Take GP with you on hols
Now GP – partnered
with Thomas Cook.
iOS and Android.
Free
))))
This lets you speak
to an Englishspeaking UK-based
doctor while you
go through a video
consultation while
you are abroad.
It can be used in
countries both in and
d
out of the EU.
Electronic prescriptions can be
made available to collect from any
local pharmacy.
This is one for Thomas Cook
customers only – though there are
other independent versions.
APP
of the
week
For more great holiday
ideas, see page 41
gg