Has it really been since January since i last posted?

I feel like in my head i had posted something, well here we are. With all best intentions to blog and post more frequently.

Well this July in my 2 weeks holiday i went, after a 2 year gap to Salou Tarragona Spain. This will be my 2nd trip after a very long gap before that! I myself am not a fan of sitting on the beach all day, sunbathing or burning. I like to go into the water parks and pool maybe, but not one to sit round the Hotel Pool either. So this leaves a holiday with shopping, sightseeing and other things.

As i have got older i have become more interested in food as i always was, wanting to try new things and buy different groceries in the supermarkets. Much like at home really. This really sums up my holidays like food tourism.

In Salou it is home to Port Aventura World formerly known as just Port Aventura. This year turning 30 years old. I can say i have been to it when it was the original, then Universal brought it and renamed it Universal Mediterannea. Apparently at the time the owners of Universal thought it was not worth keeping, so sold it off ( bet they regret that now) And was re branded Port aventura world with the new Hotels and Water park and later Ferrari Land. The Woody woodpecker Mascot still remains in the Park.

And so the holiday was made up of water park, theme park and shopping etc. 2 days in the water park 2 days in the theme park and the rest exploring etc.

Port Aventura world is made up of 3 parks The Costa Caribe waterpark, Port Aventura and Ferrari land.

After our 40minute walk from our hotel to the park, there is a security checkpoint, it is hit or miss but food and drink are not allowed in the park! Bottled water is though. This seems to depend on the security as did see people inside with food they brought, but bear it in mind.

We went in July and of course the Schools had already broken up in Spain/Europe so lots of teens kids etc around. I did see people with fans but not sure.

There are park maps and digital boards with wait times and show times, around the park. I recommend making a note of the showtimes first, as some shows are not on certain days and some times not on till late. The wait times for rides can get long but never saw anything over 1hr30. mostly under 1hour etc. When it is hot as always it seems, start off with the water ride. The 1st one you come across is Tutuki splash you do get quite wet especially at the back row, surprisingly not so much the front row. Work the rides and waiting around the show times.

For the 30th Year Celebrations they have an overlay on the show in China/Mexico. A birthday parade and late night show /fireworks. Note these are not till park close at 11pm so bare that in mind. You can get a hand stamp and return later if you need to. As we had a 40minute walk back, we opted to miss the firework show. The parade was not on when i was there, but maybe on another day in the daytime. Around the Park each land area also has different 30th signs.

Food in the park

The food offering varies by the different lands but mostly fast food, but some sit down more formal dining, lot of Drinks and Icecream carts. In the western section saw a Ben & jerrys milkshake sign. Thought that sounded great. Mango and also cherry Garcia, it was like 7 euros each and was so thin and not thick at all. No discredit to the Icecream itself, but honestly just get an icecream scoop instead!

The official Coffee of the park is Saula a coffee from Barcelona. They come in a reusable Yellow plastic cup, as does the soft drinks which you can with your recipet return for a 1 Euro deposit back. Or just keep

As we had Breakfast and Dinner at the Hotel we only needed a snack in the time we were out, so often had an Icecream or something in Mcdonalds, Kfc etc to get by.

The water park and Ferrari Land

Costa Caribe the water park is deffo worth a visit or two, full of slides and pools to relax. Getting there as early as you can guarantees you maybe a spot in the shade or front. One time was the inside are the other was in the blazing Sun, got burnt to a crisp. You can rent towels, lockers and waterproof your phone. In the main pool sunglasses and sometimes Hats and phones are not permitted, the lifeguards forever blowing the whistles. The lazy river i think was fine, but that gets long lines too. Options to eat are mostly fast food like Hot dogs etc Pizza and Soft drinks. Warning the floor does get very hot if you are barefoot, found this out!

Ferrari Land

As the name suggest it is a land, it really could just be an extra land in the Port Aventura park, but is a separate park and ticket. Be aware that this park often does not open till later afternoon. When i was there it was opening at 4.30pm. The park has several rides and a show. Main draw is the Coaster, simulator rides and speedway? made a dash to the similar to Soaring ride at Disney. And the other Ferrari simulator int he same building, these both get long lines, so when the park opened got on both of them within an hour or so. Also places to eat and shop. This is like a few hours kind of park rather than half or fullday.

Hotel and in Town

For some time now we have stayed in the same Hotel Playa Park, this is at the top of a hill so you do have to climb a slope down to the town. Saying that it is not far away from a lot of bars, restaurants and shops.

The Breakfast and dinner are included, but can be swapped for Lunch. The Hotel is nice and clean, at night they have different entertainment around the pool area, from Flamenco to Tribute acts, was a nice free way to entertain yourselves in the evening. You can hire the Fridge and safe in the room too. Tv with many Different language tv channels and a Balcony. Sadly this time we were not facing the pool/stage so overlooked the back of the Hotel and a big Tree. The food on the buffet is varied and was always different most nights, and loved the big selection of desserts. I tried one of almost everything, plus fruit etc.

Though i do not eat like that at home, we did walk most days 40mins there and back so allowed a treat lol One thing to note, not sure if at other Hotels, at Dinner water is not included. You have to pay extra for that and other drinks. At breakfast drinks coffee juice, water are free via the machines. It is not much but still best to be prepared for.

At the bottom of the Hill is a night Handmade type Market, Arcades and small park and Amusement rides. English is commonly spoke here. The sheer amount of British Pubs tells you that. Lots of little shops and Mini supermarkets i would call like a off license type shop.

When we went it was in the 30Cs so it is advisable to buy some bottled water to carry around with you. We opted to get a big 8l bottle and decant into smaller bottles of our own to take out. If yo happen to have a fridge in your room, can chill them there. This is much more economic than keep buying cold water when out and about, as a premium is added to the price often for being cold.

Local shops can be handy, but do shop around for the best prices as they do vary. Small convenience ones can be sometimes higher than something further away in town.

  • Mercadona bit bigger supermarket
  • Michelangelo loads of these around
  • Alcat/ Supermercat
  • Spar in Town
  • Lidl/Aldi/Esclat further on the outskirts of Town if you are driving or Bus

Out of town a bit further are some bigger local Supermarkets. Mercadona. I googled a local Mall past Port Aventura world, so we walked there, no big names but worth a look. The mall was like a Ghost Mall! the Shoe shop on the outside was closing down. Inside were many empty units followed eventually by the bigger Mercadona Supermarket and a few kiosks at the back, Decathlon at the back. Not sure what happened to it! a Cinema apparently too? Give that one a miss. Further out of town by Bus or very long walk is Lidl and Esclat

This sounds obvious but take a hat and sunscreen and if you have one a portable rechargeable fan. And also sounding obvious a beach towel, places even hotels can charge for hire of them and the waterparks.

Cash or Card?

I took some Cash and my card, though nowadays almost everywhere takes debit cards, The banks do charge to use them abroad, opt to pay in local currency when you are given the option on the card reader. Take a luggage scale with you to avoid the excess baggage charge. LOL my case was 10kg when i went there and 21 kg going back. You can see i stocked up on Snacks and Sangria!

Eating in town

Locally near us were so many options to eat, from Pubs to restaurants with Lobsters and even Chickens on a spit! also local Burger King, Mcdonalds and Kfc and plenty of places to buy Ice creams. Even a Taco Bell!

I made it my mission to try as much as possible from Mcdonalds and Kfc etc of the Menu we do not have. Whilst some items were out, i had a good go and made a quick video on youtube and a reel on my insta. This now seems to be a defining part of my breaks away, finding something on the Mcdonalds menu!

The Beach

Not too far away is the local Beach, that stretches for miles. This is the main attraction for many. Lots of places to get food too. There is a Fountain show too at night. It used to be longer but now it just changes colours! we sat there waiting till 10pm for it to start and then it did not change. nice to sit and watch and relax but nothing more than that. Font Luminoso it is called i think.

Getting around

We walked everywhere locally, even to the Theme Park and that was a 40minute walk! from our Hotel

One day we went exploring, i saw on the map there was a Lidl, about 8miles we walked that day. Well off the path into the outskirts and 2 much bigger supermarkets. Walked along the seafront all the way to Cambrils.

If you do not fancy walking you can get local Buses, which are like Coaches in size. Many local Bus stops and places to buy the Bus tickets before you board. These always seemed a bit hectic, so avoided them.

You can also book excursions and trips at the local Bus stop shops to Barcelona etc really depends on what you want to see and do on your holiday.

Final Thoughts

Looking back over the week had a great time, got to try some new snacks and had fun. My camera roll is all but food photos says it all! probably would not walk the 8miles day again especially in the 30C heat. There is another Water park there too, maybe check that out Aquatopia? not part of the resort just another one locally.

But ultimately do your holiday your way! but any tips are always appreciated to keep you ready.

Thanks for reading, if you fancy a look at all the Mcdonalds and other foods i found and tried out, check out my insta page and my youtube quick videos.