Castile-La Mancha, an adventure for your children

Are you looking for a holiday where you can enjoy your children? What's more, what if it were the type of holiday they dream of? It would be an unforgettable trip for the whole family. Would you like to give it a try? Ask them if they would like to be the characters in the following story...but be careful, because once they hear it, there will be no turning back. You will simply have to make the trip.

Once upon a time, there was a boy who loved technology, who believed that there was nothing better than spending the day playing video games with his friends. One day, his parents took him on holiday, and he had to leave his friends and his games behind. He thought he would be bored, but he ended up becoming a great explorer. He discovered new territory, saw animals he had never seen before, learnt the art of orienteering in the forests, rode in a 4x4 and took part in adventure sports. He discovered Castile-La Mancha, a region located in central Spain.

This is really a true story, because Castile-La Mancha gives children the opportunity to discover nature. There are all kinds of activities especially designed for them. The traditional routes are complemented by sessions devoted to skills like mushroom gathering, artistic drawing and photography, or spectacular shows put on by nature that they could probably never even imagine, such as the deer rutting season, the arrival of the cranes and the black vultures in the Montes de Toledo Mountains.

Exploring the Cabañeros and Tablas de Daimiel national parks, or nature reserves like Lagunas de Ruidera and Alto Tajo, will let them discover endangered animal species like the brown bear, the Iberian lynx and the Spanish imperial eagle.

Action-packed fun

You can propose a mission for them, too: they can be field explorers in any of the five provinces of Castile-La Mancha (Albacete, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Guadalajara and Toledo), because all have orienteering races for children aged 3 to 14. They are a real challenge for children, who will have fun and learn while they feel like true adventurers.

If they want more action, there are many other options: a quad bike circuit in Buendía (Cuenca), another one for go-karting in Cabanillas del Campo (Guadalajara), 4x4 and horse-riding routes, water parks and lakes for scuba diving in the vicinity of the Lagunas de Ruidera nature reserve.

The most entertaining way to learn

Even cultural activities will become a happy memory for your children, because they also afford opportunities for hands-on fun. In Albacete, they can take part in the workshops on energy and work with audiovisual materials and scale models at the wind farms in the Sierra de Higueruela Mountains. In Ciudad Real, they can discover all about the world of private investigation in the Detective Museum, located in Torre de Juan Abad, or the magic of the mills at the Wind Mill Museum, where they can see them in operation on the first Sunday of every month. In Cuenca, they can participate in the International Electrography Museum's creative workshops using new technologies. Finally, they can learn how other children around the world have fun, and how past generations did, through an exhibition of over 5,000 toys at the Castile-La Mancha Toy Museum.

Relaxation is also possible

Do you think you will be able to keep up with the kids in their fast-paced and exciting role as explorers in a new world? Castile-La Mancha can lend a hand with other, more relaxing alternatives that everyone can enjoy. How about a leisurely train ride through the historic quarter of Toledo and along the beautiful banks of the Tagus River? A delightful way to end the day is to take a rest under a blanket of stars. If you would prefer a more professional view of the night sky, make sure to visit the Cuenca Planetarium or the Yebes Astronomy Centre.

Are you still not sure about what destination to choose for your next family holiday? Tell your children this story, and they are sure to make the decision for you. "Mum, we want to be explorers!"

You can organise all of these activities with the help of the tourist offices of Castile-La Mancha.