Interested in seeing more than the tourist highlights of a city, then see it with a local “Greeter”.
Greeters are, more often than not, local citizens who have lived in their city for a while, and some even their whole lives. They know every nook and cranny of their city, especially unique places and hidden gems of which tourists are unaware. You won’t be sharing space with the crowds!
We have had the pleasure of “Greeters” showing us part of their city in New York, London, France, Munich and Vienna to date. It’s an opportunity to meet and converse with friendly people, to learn about life in the city from a local perspective and hear about why they love living in their city. They have been enriching and pleasurable experiences. We always try to plan one or two during our travels if they are available.
The Greeter system is free. You do not pay a Greeter. Greeters volunteer their time at no charge because they are passionate about sharing their city with the rest of the world. Greeters will guide a group of up to six people.
We have been lucky to have been sole clients on our Greeter tours to date. Our enthusiastic guides have gone beyond the call of duty and created bespoke walking tours based on our interests.
Want to know more about our Greeter experience? Feel free to send us your question/s here.
If you’d like to find a book your own Greeter experience, have a look, visit the Global Greeter Network website.
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You may have gathered by now that we love our driving holidays.
On our shorter holidays in Europe, we hire our car the conventional way, from a reputable car hire company.
However, when it comes to taking a longer trip, we choose to lease our vehicle. This is a popular choice for many seasoned travellers from the southern hemisphere who lease their car from one of several short-term holiday leasing car companies.
Generally, the proviso is leasing the car for 20 days or more. You can lease the car for up to 175 days. If you are intending to take a self-driving holiday in Europe, we highly recommend exploring this option.
Some of the benefits:
You get to drive a brand new car French motor vehicle
The car is registered in your name
There are a number of pick-up and drop-off depots scattered throughout Europe
Hassle-free pick-up and return. All arrangements and paperwork are completed before you start your travel, all you have to do is pick up the keys to the car and head away
You can drive the car throughout Europe including England and Ireland
Full insurance cover with no excess
24/7 roadside assistance
Unlimited kilometres.
Our company of choice for leasing is globalCARS. Their friendly and professional staff have always provided an efficient service ensuring we have all the information we need before we travel including detailed directions to the pick-up and drop-off locations and local contacts. Make sure you sign-up for their email notifications to ensure you get their best deals.
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We left the hustle and bustle of Florence for the quieter Tuscan city of Sienna. What a pleasant surprise.
Sienna is not a large city in comparison to Florence. It has its own uniqueness, the Old Town is a warren of alleyways with the beautiful Duomo with Donatelli and Michaelangelo sculptures and amazing frescoes, the Fort and the sloping main square, Piazza del Campo (suggested to be one of the loveliest in Italy) the main drawcards.
We appreciated making the decision to stay a few days in Sienna as it provided an opportunity to relax, slow our travelling pace and immerse ourselves in the Tuscan countryside.
We had pre-booked our apartment in the Old Town and were rewarded with a beautiful modern apartment. Set on the top floor of a historic 15th-century building, it is in the pedestrian-only zone providing easy walking access to all the sights and when the day tourists disappeared the alleyways were ours to explore and we had an excellent opportunity to enjoy the local restaurants at our leisure.
Views from the top of the tower
Buying a ticket and climbing the 474 or so steps up the Terre del Mangia tower in Piazza del Campo for sweeping views over the city and surrounding countryside was well worth the effort. Although not quite as high up, our apartment, however, provided equally captivating views across the city and further into the Tuscan countryside from its balcony. The only thing was that being a historic building, the apartment could only be accessed by walking up the 90-odd steps.
The view of the Duomo from our apartment balcony.
Enchanted by the views and solitude we took the opportunity on our first night to enjoy an evening on the balcony with a bottle Tuscan wine accompanied by a variety of cheese followed a light dinner purchased from a restaurant down the street. The apartment has a fully equipped kitchen for cooking meals, as we sometimes tire of eating out every night when travelling.
Ennio, our host was very helpful, settling us into the apartment, explaining the area, directing us to the closest shops and advising of things to do in Sienna. For those travelling by car, there is a free public car park about 200 metres from the apartment. Just remember that Wednesday is “Market Day” and cars must vacate the certain areas of the car park the night before to accommodate the stalls.
Our recommendations for dinner and dessert:
We enjoyed a beautiful Tuscan meal at Antica Tratorria Papei. A young pharmacist we met while staying in Genoa recommended we dine at this little restaurant located in a smaller piazza (Piazza Mercato) nestled behind Piazza del Campo.
Our Sienna host, Ennio recommended a humble establishment a little way up the street from our apartment called Osteria Il Vinaio. There is no menu, just dishes of the day. Good, wholesome food.
Make sure you save a little space for dessert. For some traditional Siennese delicacies, step into Bar Paticcerie Nannini and indulge yourself.
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The ultimate dream for many who visit Italy is to spend time in Tuscany, to wander through medieval hilltop towns and meander along the backroads among the rolling hills stopping at intervals at wineries along the way to sample the local wine and delicacies.
Easily accessed from both Florence and Sienna, a driving tour of Chianti is a great way to experience Tuscany and can easily be done on a day trip. Or, if you don’t have time to dedicate a day to this pleasure then take this route as you travel between the two cities.
We were staying for a few days in each city, and even though we had previously visited Florence we decided to take advantage of the many things Florence has to offer and visit Chianti from Sienna. Sienna is smaller than Florence. It is more relaxed and without the hustle and bustle of the larger city so it set the tone for taking a leisurely drive through the wine country.
The lady at the Visitor Centre in Sienna promised a “stooning drive”. Chianti is 40 minutes from Sienna following Chiantigiana Road which took us along quiet roads, through little townships set among rolling hills filled with vineyards and olive groves. There are eight counties named after the main town in each country. We visited three – Castellina in Chianti, Radda in Chianti and Gaiole in Chianti. Each town was small and unique, filled with its own atmosphere, castles, squares, and natural surroundings. We were amazed at how the towns could be so close together and still be different, and best of all – no crowds.
The roads were quiet and easy to drive along and wineries offering tastings were well signed and inviting. We stopped at the Livernano winery in Radda in Chianti to taste the local Chianti Classic, Rose and L’Anima wines.
A beautiful, relaxed day. We have read so much about the beauty of Tuscany. It’s true!
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Santiago de Compostela in the northwestern corner of Spain is often overlooked by tourists who prefer to flock to the more popular cities of Barcelona and Madrid or the southern beachside resort towns in the Malaga province.
This UNESCO World Heritage city offers a gateway to the Galacia region which has its own rich and unique history, language and culture.
The city is, however, most known as the end point for pilgrims completing “the Camino”. Pilgrims finish the Camino by seeking blessings at the Cathedral of St James. More than 200,000 pilgrims now complete the Camino each year with numbers growing as the walk regains popularity.
With the city’s popularity, a wide variety of accommodation is now offered, including the major hotel chains.
With only an overnight stay planned we chose to stay in the historical Old Town area to give us an opportunity to explore the area on foot and watch pilgrims entering the city on the final leg of their Camino journey to receive blessings at the Cathedral of St James.
We were lucky to find a reasonably priced hotel very close to the Cathedral and right on the Camino trail leading into the Old Town. Casas Reais is a lovely boutique hotel with only 9 rooms. The rooms are spacious, simple but modern, comfortable and tastefully decorated. Each has its own bathroom facilities. The hotel offers breakfast in a small café on site and it is the perfect spot to sit with a drink to people watch at the end of a day out exploring the city.
Our host, Montse was very accommodating, courteous and helpful, advising us of sights worth visiting and pointing us in the right direction for our morning walk.
We will be returning for a longer stay. Plans are in place to complete the full Camino and a longer stay in Santiago de Compostela to see all that we missed on our first visit.
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