Half-term Holidays in Manilva, Costa del Sol, Spain
I love living in Manilva but what is it really like as a family holiday destination?
Well, this week I got to see it through fresh eyes as my eldest brother, his wife and their three children aged 8, 6 and 3 1/2 (the half is very important to him) visited us in La Duquesa, Manilva for the first time in 7 years.
The last time they came (Easter 2006) they remember the area being like a building site with cranes everywhere and lots of trucks on the roads.
This time they were very impressed with how the area has been improved and what a beautiful place it is with so many nice things to do.
Here is a brief summary of what they did while staying in Manilva over the last 7 days.
Day 1 A walk along Rio Manilva and a visit to the Roman Baths
The kids loved looking for fishes to catch in their nets and then going for a swim in the Roman Baths.
Day 2 Castellar Zoo followed by lunch in Castellar and an ice cream in Castillo de Castellar.
The kids loved feeding the animals at Castellar Zoo
The adults enjoyed the beautiful scenery in and around Castellar which is only a 30 minute scenic drive from Manilva
Day 3 Horse riding and picnic in Manilva Countryside followed by an afternoon swim in the pool.
Both adults and children loved horse-riding in the beautiful countryside of Manilva.
Day 4 Day trip to Gibraltar
They enjoyed their day in Gibraltar learning about its history, exploring the caves and seeing the monkeys. They also enjoyed shopping along Main Street.
Day 5 Day trip to Selwo
The kids enjoyed their trip to the zoo and even got to ride a camel.
Day 6 Tivoli World in Benalmadena
They had a fun filled evening at Tivoli World which is a great theme park for all ages but particularly the under 12’s
Day 7 Day at the beach at El Castillo de La Duquesa, Manilva
They spent their last day having a relaxing day at the beach at El Castillo de La Duquesa.
They had a lovely time looking around La Duquesa castle and browsing the small exhibitions inside it followed by a couple of hours looking for fish and crabs in the rock pools in front of the castle.
After a delicious lunch of fresh fish, chips and salad at the popular Andres y Maria Chiringuito we all took a short stroll down the recently renovated Paseo Maritimo to Puerto de la Duquesa.
They enjoyed delicious ice creams from Garibaldis whilst enjoying looking at the boats in the beautiful marina of Puerto de La Duquesa.
Like most of the other days they finished the day off with a swim in the pool back at their holiday home for the week.
They told me that they really did have a wonderful time and we had a wonderful time with them.
If you are planning your holidays Manilva really is a fantastic place to stay. If you need accommodation www.barringtonholidays.com have a number of excellent properties available for holiday rentals. Email Jessica at info@barringtonholidays.com and she will be happy to help you.
If you would like to know more about what there is to do around Manilva please email me at lucy@barringtonhomes.eu or leave a comment below.
Alternatively please “like” our facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/barringtonhomesduquesa. as I will be writing about all the wonderful things there are to do here over the coming months.