A week in the Med

I booked our trip myself through a supplier of Travel Counsellors for the first week in July 24. I also booked a Hotel and park, that is I booked a hotel for the night before we fly and leave the car there for the duration of our holiday. We prefer it to having a mad dash to get to the airport on time. Setting off from home around 1pm after dropping our dog Vera, off at daughter's house. Driving to Stansted with none of the anxiety of ensuring you get to the airport on time. We booked an evening meal with a couple of drinks, retired to our room with a drink for the road, well the corridor! Watched a couple of acts of Glastonbury on the ‘Beeb’ and settled down for sleep in a very nice comfy bed in Novotel Stansted, definitely a hotel I will recommend to clients in the future.

The Flight We awoke at 6, showered and met the shuttle bus which cost us £4 each. Checked in at the BA desk, where a nice gentleman checked our names off his list. He explained because we were on a charter flight we would be at the cargo side rather than with the scheduled flights. Personally I felt less 'cattle class’ being boarded via a bus on a plane that was 4 seats wide. The flight took 2 hours and we were in The Med. An hour after touch down, using a private transfer and we were at our accommodation, A’merula in Calvi, unpacked and by the pool! Another couple from our flight arrived about half an hour later, we saw them arrive as we sat by the pool. The accommodation was a small studio apartment which was suitable for Madeleine, my wife and I. The kitchen had everything we needed, although we ate out. The week flew by with the beginning not having sunny weather but was warmer than the UK! We managed to go on a local train to another village up the coast called ‘L'Ile Rousse.’ It cost about 13 Euros each return. We walked around the peninsula with the old and modern lighthouse, had a look around the town and then found our way to a beach bar for a drink. One of the things we did enjoy was sitting in the marina watching the yachts arrive. On our last night, a Lamborghini boat arrived! I didn't know they made boats, apparently 400 of them about 4 million each!

Highlights/Recommendations I would recommend Calvi for families with small children below 5, the beach is excellent with a shallow slope. As an example of how shallow the beach was, adults were walking out 100m and it was still only coming up to their waist. Apparently Bastia has a water park to keep the slightly older children entertained, which may be a better option as a resort for families with older children. In Calvi you had a choice of restaurants, we thought if you were there for 2 weeks you could eat somewhere different every night! Choices were amazing, especially if you like seafood. We found Corsica to be slightly more expensive than we expected. A meal for 2 would normally run to around 100 Euros, including drinks and desert. Would I recommend Corsica for a holiday? Of course, it has something for everyone; If you fancy hiking in stunning scenery you can, ensure you come prepared to walk in excessive heat. If you just want to laze on a beach or by a pool, you can. The beaches also have plenty of water sports from Jet Skis and Snorkelling. If you planned to stay for more than a week, you may want to hire a car which I believe is about 300 Euros per week, dependent on size of vehicle of course. If you have any questions do not hesitate to contact me to ask, I will do my best to answer them.