The Rio Safari Elche - A Fantastic Animal Park

The Rio Safari Elche - Located between Santa Pola and Elche in the central Costa Blanca region of Spain, is the wonderful animal park, the Rio Safari Elche. All the family will enjoy a trip to this excellent park with plenty to offer new and returning visitors alike.

Before you take a trip to the Rio Safari, it is a good idea to check with your local Tourist Information Office as they often have vouchers giving money off entrance to the park or possibly even 'kids go free' tickets. At the very least you will be able to pick up a leaflet and a map of how to get to the park.

The Rio Safari Elche has other facilities apart from just the animal park - the swimming pool is open during the hot summer months, so take some towels and swimming costumes (and especially suntan lotion!) and enjoy a cooling dip while you are there. Tabled picnic areas are provided, so you can take your own snacks and refreshments (though refreshments are available on site).

A very enjoyable part of the whole Rio Safari Elche experience is the 'train' ride through the park. This is a unique opportunity to get close to the animals and also to take some great photographs. Throughout the day there are a number of entertaining animal shows, all included in your ticket price, the animal shows comprise a parrot show, an elephant show and a sea-lion show, all with commentaries in English and Spanish - great fun for all the family!

Feeding the many animals is one of the most enjoyable parts of the whole Rio Safari Elche experience and you can do this whilst walking through the park during free periods between the 'train' rides and animal shows. The most fun to feed are the giraffes, who are very gentle and graceful and do enjoy a nice juicy carrot (or three!) - they will take one from your hand, using their long tongue.

The goat pen is sometimes open for visitors to go inside and carrots may be on sale at the entrance for feeding them. However the goats can be a little over-enthusiastic at the sight of a carrot, so a little care is needed.

The variety of different animal species that can be seen at the Rio Safari is mind boggling and includes crocodiles, chimps, monkeys, deer, antelope, buffalo, emus, ostriches, lions, tigers, jaguars, llamas, camels, giraffes, an elephant and a hippo. Another popular section is the parrot house featuring some very colourful specimens, also the reptile house and aquarium, with a good variety of snakes, lizards and fish.

Some recent refurbishments to the Rio Safari Elche have given it a fresh new feel, and have resulted in a much enhanced experience for visitors to the park, as these improvements continue, it is hoped that the park will attract even bigger audiences.

So if you are in the area why not take a day out to visit the Rio Safari Elche and enjoy a day amongst the 4,000 or so palm trees. You will not be disappointed.

The Rio Safari Elche is located between Santa Pola and Elche just off the CV-865 and is well signposted from this road.

Holidays on Costa Del Sol

The secret is out. Every year more and more people are learning about the wonderful experience they can have with a holiday on the Costa Del Sol. Malaga has become a must-do location on the vacation plans of any who know of this area. Whether they are from Europe or other corners of the globe, they have heard of the beautiful weather, stunning sights, vexing views and lively entertainment and cultural offerings. No matter what Malaga Hotel you are staying in, you will be able to easily able to find a number of entertainment and cultural offerings in the nearby area. That means plenty of things to do, and not a lot of time wasted traveling from destination to destination.

Malaga Spain Hotel Deals

Everyone has a budget they need to keep within for their traveling. Often you can save a lot of money on your travel plans by looking for a good hotel deal. Since there are so many offerings in the Malaga vicinity, you are sure to find a hotel that has all the services and comforts you want, that is where you want it to be, and at a great price. There are also hotels to fit any possible budget constraints. If you are watching every penny, there are a number of basic hotels that can help you save money. If you like a lavish lifestyle, there are also resorts offering all the luxuries you can imagine. One important thing about getting the hotel that is best for you is making sure you can get a room when you want it. You should pre-book your hotel months in advance, especially if you are planning on traveling during busy seasons, to make sure accommodations are available when you want to visit. Much of this work can be done from the convenience of you own home, on the internet. The internet is also a great way to compare the prices for similar hotels to see if you can save even more.

Deals on Airfare

When it comes to saving money on your trip, there are more ways to do this than just on your Malaga hotel. You can also look for other savings. While you are booking your accommodations on the internet, you should take the time to look up airfare prices. You can comparison shop for your airline tickets and may be able to save even more money on your trip. When searching for cheaper airfare, try being a little flexible with your schedule. One day earlier or later could make hundreds of dollars of difference in the price of the tickets.

If you need in country health insurance, you also may be able to get a better rate for this by shopping online.

All of these travel tips can add up. The more you save on hotels, airfare and other must-do expenses, the more money you will have once you go on your trip for spending on things you want and enjoy.

About the AuthorBeing very excited about Costa del Sol and Hotels in Malaga Spain, Johnathan Bakers was publishing plenty of detailed reports on this specific topic. You can learn about his observations on Malaga Hotel at other sources for Malaga Hotel tips.

Dreams of Spain... The Journey Before the Trip

Half the pleasure of traveling is in the anticipation. There's magic in waiting for the day to come, the expectation of being somewhere new, somewhere exotic, inhaling strangely fragrant air, and feeling foreign breezes stroke your skin. To get maximum enjoyment from your pre-trip daydreaming, I always think it pays to learn a bit about where you're going before you set foot out the door.

There are cities that can enchant you, where the flagstones of the piazzas and squares can capture your imagination, basilicas and palaces where you can give yourself to musing on the generations of feet that trod the very spot where you now stand. But only if you have some inkling of their history.

Spain is one of those evocative destinations... a sweeping backdrop for some of the most intriguing, grand and turbulent history that has ever been written. In case you find yourself Espa񡠢ound this year or next, here is a random smattering of geographic, historical and other tidbits to set your reveries in motion as you pack.

Occupying eighty-five percent of the Iberian Peninsula at the southwestern tip of Europe, Spain is the continent's third largest country. Her outlying territories include the Balearic Islands... Majorca, Menorca and Ibiza... and the Canary Islands over six hundred miles south, off the North African coast. Spain today is an exuberant blend of striking contrasts, a place where the traditional and the ultra-modern live side by side. Spanish identity has been shaped by a long, eventful history and by the large footprints left by those who first invaded and colonized the land.

Ancient Greeks and Phoenicians swept through the peninsular ahead of the Romans who came in 300 BC. The imperial conquerors brought their highly developed language and architecture, their agricultural techniques, and unusual new crops like wine grapes and wheat. Evidence of renowned Roman engineering, like the amphitheater in Merida and the great aqueduct in Segovia, remains in many parts of Spain today.

After the Romans, came the Visigoths, one of the many Germanic tribes who had converted to Christianity. They ruled Iberia from their court at Barcelona for three hundred years. Next to take center stage in Spain's drama were the North African Moors who occupied Iberia for seven centuries, imprinting what would become the Spanish language, Spanish architecture and Spanish cuisine with their own unique eastern characteristics. Their influence and legacy are particularly visible in the south, in places like Granada where the great Moorish Fortress, the Alhambra, still stands.

Until the Moors were driven out of the Iberian peninsular in 1492, Spain remained a disconnected group of separate kingdoms. Andalusia, Galicia, Leon, Castilla, Aragon and Catalunya were autonomous and independent until Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand began the process of uniting them into one nation, Espa񡮠
The ensuing turn of the century began the Golden Age of Spain. Intrepid explorers like Columbus, Pizarro and Cortes set sail around the globe, and for the next two hundred years Spain achieved naval and economic supremacy, making it one of the leading colonial powers of the day.

Predominantly catholic today, the Spain of earlier times was traditionally a cosmopolitan blended society with a reputation for humanistic tolerance. Medieval Moorish culture from 750 to 1050 was highly educated, particularly advanced in mathematics and medicine. For centuries, a substantial Jewish population which prized learning and philosophy endowed Spain with its wisdom and business acumen. Spanish Jews, Moors and Christians lived together in what we would regard today as a very progressive liberal society.

The great university at Salamanca was founded in the early 13th century and became the brightest academic beacon in Europe, matched only by the famous bastions of education founded in the previous century in Paris, Bologna and Oxford. For several hundred years a degree in the Sciences from Salamanca was the most coveted credential to which a scholar could aspire.
Down through the ages many empires have scaled Iberia's mountain ranges, inhabited her shores and marched across her arid plains. Ultimately all succumbed to Spain's siren song and were assimilated into her culture, impacting and changing it, as much as they were impacted and changed by it.

Today's Spain is a parliamentary monarchy comprised of autonomous regions. Each has a distinctive landscape, its own unique history and cultural traditions, a regional cuisine, and sometimes a separate language which distinguishes its natives.

The intoxicating energy of Spain can seduce, mystify and mesmerize. Few visitors escape the lure of her charms. You can ski the peaks and snow caps of the Pyrenees, sunbathe on endless white sand beaches, rub elbows with the jet set in Marbella, or take a dusty road up into the pueblos blancas and find your soul in the raw emotion of Andalusia's gyspsy flamenco. Just bring your open heart... you won't find a warmer welcome anywhere on the continent.