2020: a wonderful holiday - with a difference

Having finally secured a flight to Mahon, it was a relief to finally arrive to our haven at Villa Marron for our family holiday during what has undoubtedly been an uncertain time for overseas travel during the Covid19 pandemic.

Menorca was the quietest we've ever seen during peak season. British voices were seldom heard - instead largely replaced by Spanish, German and Italian accents. And the mask wearing was strictly upheld in all public spaces with the exception of the beach and when sitting down in restaurants and bars. So yes, it was different, but our local beach was still beautiful, the sky still bright blue, the sea still crystal clear, the Menorcans still welcoming and the villa still a wonderful retreat.

The restaurants remained open, serving great food and the local cocktail bar, Aloha Bar, put on some fabulous live soul music. We opted to limit days out but one trip we made via water taxi from Cala Galdana to Cala Fustam - one of Menorca's virgin (accessible by sea only) beaches - was great fun with the skipper taking us to into some amazing cliffside caves on the way.

Mainly, however, we stayed at Villa Marron and took full advantage of the pool. The UK government's surprise announcement halfway through our holiday that the Balearics were to be included in the 14 day quarantine requirement for those returning from Spain (despite the covid rate in Balearics being significantly lower than UK's) didn't spoil anything.

This picture sums up my Villa Marron experience this summer: unashamedly lazy but oh so wonderfully relaxing .