Everyone reaches a point during the year when work and routine and chores start to rule their life.
This is when the time comes to venture far and wide to take a well-earned holiday. If all the stories and research in the papers and magazines are to be believed, many find the annual family holiday to be one of the most stressful times of the year. How anyone could say that after a week at the Creta Panorama near Rethymnon in Crete I'll never know!
The car's parked, it's cool, windy and the first drops of rain are starting to fall. It's only a short walk to get to the terminal at Cardiff airport, where our tickets are at the First Choice / Thomson desk ready for collection. A little refreshment in Departures put us in that almost indescribable frame of mind that many will be able to relate to, but which hasn't yet been accurately reflected in the Oxford English Dictionary. It's that combination of “Aaaaahhhh” and “Wahayyy” that overcomes anyone who has worked for months whilst looking forward to the holiday break ahead of them.
Thomson AirwaysWe're called through to the gate: “this is a bit early!”, we mutter, but follow in blind compliance anyway. We're already boarding the plane... why so early? we wonder. Tearing along the tarmac five minutes before the scheduled departure time is a good omen, surely! A cool, refreshing G&T before dinner from Thomson's brilliant cabin crew further reinforces the “Aaaahhh-Wahayy” of earlier and before we know it we are picking up our cases from the carousel in Heraklion and on our way to The Creta Panorama.
Are holidays meant to be this easy? Aren't we supposed to be sweating in a queue somewhere by now, unsure of our fate and drinking the last dregs from our bottle of Hartlepool Spring? Isn't an overworked holiday representative supposed to be frantically phoning local contacts to dispatch the marauding hordes to their respective hostelries? Obviously not, it seems.
Iberostar Creta PanoramaThe frontage and reception are quite impressive, as are the staff. I'm amazed at how fluently they seem to be able to converse with so many different nationalities. However, it's now gone 10pm and we're off to our room at the Creta Panorama, following a very chatty and friendly porter who is making light work of navigating our bags on his huge trolley - obviously built for greater loads than we have presented today. Our room is absolutely delightful: air conditioned, a fantastic view over the sea, loads of storage space, a little terrace out front where we can spend an evening with a bottle of wine and a citronella candle. We couldn't have hoped for nicer.
All InclusiveAs people more used to independent travel, this all-inclusive arrangement is relatively new to us. Convenient? Yes. Good Value? Yes. Our ideal? Hmmm.... However, let's not beat about the bush here. The food is excellent and considering the hotel is catering to probably around ten or more nationalities, it seems to have something to please everyone. Not only this, but there hardly seems to be a minute of the day when food is not available 'somewhere' on site. As one restaurant is finishing a sitting, another is continuing. As the main restaurant is clearing up lunch, Zorba's Tavern is serving its late lunch buffet. For those too lazy to even leave their pitch at the poolside, there are even snacks and drinks to be had there. We've tried eating at lots of different times of the day and on every occasion there's been plenty of table space and really well-stocked and presented buffets.
The children seem in their element... Imagine it: you're an energetic, demanding six-year-old and you have access to as much ice-cream, coke and sticky buns as your supersonic metabolism can handle. It must be like all your birthdays and Christmases have come at once! The kiddies have their own club up near the theatre and this is really well laid out, with their own little enclosed paddling pool and plenty of staff to supervise their exuberant activity. They obviously both enjoy and work hard at this, because the shows they put on for Mum and Dad in the early evenings are brilliantly done.
ActivitiesWhat on Earth....? There's some idiot dressed as a Duracell Bunny running around the campus now, beating his drum incessantly. We simply glare at him as he approaches. I'm sure it's the same bloke who was singing hymns, dressed as a monk yesterday... and come to think of it, wasn't he wearing a skirt the day before too? I'm far too deeply engrossed in my book to want to go and play with a strange man at this time of day. Call me an old stick-in-the-mud if you must, but this chapter is far too good to interrupt! That's one really nice thing about the Creta Panorama; it's big enough and diverse enough for everyone to do as little or as much as they choose to do. The five different pools, the battalions of 'Animation' staff, the acres of lawned grounds, the numerous palm trees, inexhaustible supplies of sunbeds, the picturesque pathways along the coastline all allow day after day of uninterrupted activity or uninterrupted blissful peace and quiet - whichever takes your fancy.
RethymnonRethymnon's an amazing little (or maybe not-so-little) place. Loads of narrow shopping streets interspersed with cosy restaurants, a beautiful Venetian harbour with several restaurants offering harbour-side seating and hot and cold running lobster. Be prepared to be jostled and fought over by the various restaurateurs who will each convince you that theirs is undoubtedly the best. The one we have chosen is lovely, and I've no reason to believe the others aren't too. We've also managed to find some great souvenirs for those we've left at home. It's really easy to get into town using the regular bus that stops right outside the hotel and is definitely worth a visit.
Time to go home now unfortunately. It's been a week of working really hard at doing nothing except relax, eat, walk, sleep and carry out the bare minimum of life-sustaining activity. It's not often one gets the chance to do that anywhere, let alone on holiday but we succeeded and succeeded in a way we never thought possible! Still, we haven't lost that sense of Aaaahhh-Wahayyy yet, which must be a very good sign! First Choice have succeeded in giving us something to soothe our weary bones and thoroughly enjoy it at the same time. It has been an absolutely fantastic and totally relaxing break which we had without an ounce of stress or worry. Now that's what holidaying is all about, surely!
Nigel Crawford
Co-Editor, TheBabyWebsite.com
August 2010
First Choice offers seven night holidays to Crete, staying at the 4 Sun Plus Iberostar Creta Panorama from £580 per adult, first child goes FREE and second child from £420, based on two adults and two children sharing a Family room with a sea view on an all-inclusive basis, departing from London Gatwick on the 1st October 2010. For more information visit www.firstchoice.co.uk or call 0871 200 4455. |
Bluestone Wales
