Austria, Sound of Music Tour with Midi, Colin & Lesley

  Austria, Sound of Music Tour  

Arriving at our breathtakingly beautiful hotel, we couldn't believe how picturesque it was. 

We strolled into the village to look at some of the shops and check out the really unusual architecture before making our way to the cable car lift. everyone absolutely loved it and the views were just the best! We were over 2000 feet high and saw horses grazing, hikers, hand gliders, natural lakes and mountainous views to take your breath away. 

Off we went to the National Park, Hohe Tauern and the spectacular water fall. The breathtaking waterfall is the biggest one in Europe and the mountainous views and the surrounding National Park was fantastic. The noise of the waterfall was very loud and the closer we went the more we were sprayed. 

Today we made our way to Salzburg, ready for our Sound of Music tour! We visited Mirabell Gardens where we relieved Maria and the Von Trapp Family, singing on the steps by the fountain.

We visited the gazebo where Leizl and Ralph sang 16 going on 17!  We saw Leopoldskron Palace where the children fell into the lake from their boat and we learnt that Gretel almost drowned when filming that scene. We then passed the abbey in Nonnberg where the Captain and Maria were married in real life.

A small train ride transported us to the stunning Cathedral where the wedding scene in the movie was filmed. It’s truly spectacular and extremely ornate.

In Zell am See we took a boat across the Zell Lake into a shopping paradise with lovely narrow lanes full of a variety of great shops, all very traditional. We had lunch in a traditional Austrian pastry shop where we sampled apple strudels, yummm!

In the village of Bad Gastein we saw the amazing water fall over the bridge, cascading down under the bridge and into the valley. It was really impressive!

Norfolk - Boats, Trains & Seaside with Isobel, Donna & Rich

  Norfolk - Boats, Trains & Seaside  

We put our life jackets on and made our way to the dock where we boarded our sailing boat. The water was calm and with the slight breeze we took to the water and enjoyed the relaxing trip around the broads. Some of us took the opportunity to help steer the boat and changed the direction of the sails. The sun was shining and it was perfect for a beautiful trip around the broads!

Some of us went out on the canoes whilst the others went back out on the sailing boat. The group did a fantastic job with the canoeing and had great fun!

At the Bowling Alley we had great fun with some close, high scores and some great strikes with Luke being the overall winner with a fantastic score of 112. 

In Holt we strated our Steam Train journey to Sheringham. We were very excited to board the beautiful train which passed through Weybourne and the most stunning views of the countryside. 

Once we had arrived at Sheringham we walked down through the busy streets with many souvenir shops and boutiques before finding a lovely pub with a beautiful garden where we sat and enjoyed our lunch in the glorious sunshine before continuing our walk down to the sea front. We sat and enjoyed an ice cream

Lake District Activity Centre with Gary & Netty

   Lake District Activity Centre   

We got kitted out in our canoeing equipment and headed to the beautiful Lake Windermere, which is the largest lake in the UK. The sun was shining as we paddled around some of the stunning lake with amazing scenery of mountains and forests.

 We tried our hand at archery and had great fun competing against each other.

Another fun and challenging activity of indoor rock climbing and abseiling. Everyone faced the challenges with bravery and confidence and we all excelled.

We tried the sensory big swing in the sports hall. We all chose a song to be swung around and around to. To finish the day we all tried the zip wire, whizzing down at great speed looking out on spectacular sights of the surrounding area.

 One evening we had great fun doing an arts and crafts class where we painted pictures onto tiles and then made greetings cards to take home. 

After getting kitted up in our caving equipment we went to the Yorkshire Dales to a beautiful cave at Yordas, in the Yorkshire Dales, a huge and unspoilt cave. The cave had a beautiful waterfall with stunning high walls and ceiling. 

 We took out all sort of different bikes and cycled around the beautiful grounds. 

At the tepee we learned how to make a fire and chatted about our wonderful week. We then went for a lovely walk in the woods to spot some wildlife.