Having returned from the New Year in Andalucía trip, I feel I should praise all those concerned for making a wonderful holiday. The flight was due to leave Manchester on 27 December however I was contacted by a Just You representative on Christmas Day, to inform me of a change of the departure terminal at Manchester, which I was thankful for. We were met at the airport in Malaga by a local representative, who advised us about the pick pockets, this made us all a little wary, however it is good that we were told of this issue and I am pleased to say we all survived the holiday without any problems.
After a 20-30 minute transfer we were welcomed at the Hotel TRH Mijas by Claire, our Tour Manager. We arrived earlier than the main group who were traveling from Gatwick, so we had the luxury of un-packing and wandered into Mijas for lunch.
I enjoyed all the included excursions, although I did have to curb the free wine and open bar at the New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner, due to an excursion the next day. The optional excursions were also good which included Gibraltar and the Alhambra Palace. Both are well worth a visit, we all thought the guide at the Alhambra was brilliant and the use of the remote earphones for our visit was great as it enabled us to look around and take photos, whilst still listening to what he was saying. The visit was 2.5hrs long, but personally I thought it whizzed by.
New Year’s Eve Gala dinner was wonderful, lovely food and attentive waiters, whether you required wine or water. You could dance the night away if you so wished and there was a free bar from 12 midnight till 2am. Most of the group retired to bed at 2am... however I believe the Spanish guests were still going strong until breakfast time!
The hotel is a nice hotel, located just a few minutes’ walk from the centre of Mijas, the rooms are comfortable, the views are lovely and I didn’t really hear much noise, even on New Year’s Eve when the hotel was full. The food was ok, some people were a little unhappy with the selection, but always managed to eat something. Breakfast could have been a little warmer at times… however there is a microwave if you do require it piping hot.
That just leaves me to comment on the Tour Manager Claire Mellor... what can I say, knowledgeable, experienced, enthusiastic and an exceptional tour manager and to date the best guide I have experienced after travelling with Just You and other similar companies over several years.
Many Thanks to Just You, Claire Mellor, Hotel TRH Mijas and the group for making a truly memorable New Year 2013/14.
Karen :thumbup:
