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You’ve spent the whole year saving (only going out for smashed avo once a week instead of three times) and you’re about to jet off for the trip of a lifetime – the Spanish summer. Previous years have been spent scrolling through social media, drooling over pictures of the world’s best fiestas while jealousy seeps from your pores, but now it’s your turn!

So you’ve done your research, booked your flights, and set yourself a loose itinerary, but chances are that you’ve overlooked a pretty important detail– not everybody you’ll meet is going to speak English!  That means you’re going to be shit out of luck if you can’t muster the occasional “cerveza, por favor.”  If you still need convincing, here’s some reasons why your tour of Spain needs to include a couple language lessons.

Showing off

One way to really impress your new-found travel buddies is to have a sneaky bit of Spanish under your belt, ready to whip out at the perfect time. Just as someone else has given up and turned to google translate, you’ll be ready to take the wheel.  No matter what else you bring to the table, being the only point of communication with the locals will make you an invaluable travel companion. Your friends will probably even shower you with free drinks (when you’re not at a Stoke camp getting all your beers and sangria free) to show their gratitude.

Meeting the Locals

Yeah, you’ve got your travel posse built from the best and brightest that Spain’s hostels and fiestas have to offer, but did you really come all this way to hang out with people you could have met at the supermarket back home? You’re in Spain, so go chat up some locals! Of course, you’ll need to be able to string together a coherent bunch of verbs and nouns, but imagine all the things you’ll learn and experience when you start hanging out with people who actually know things about the city you’re visiting.  Locals know where to find the best bars, the hippest hangout spots, and the events you’ll never hear about otherwise. Not to mention all the gorgeous Spaniards that you’ll be able to talk to…

It’s really not that hard

At Stoke, we like to say ‘fuck plans, follow your heart,’ and the good news is that you can live the free-spirited life you’ve always wanted while also improving your Spanish skills.  Commitment-phobes rejoice, because the good people at Suspanish have you covered. They’ll hook you up with the language school and type of class that suits you best, wherever you happen to be.  With over 650 different courses available through 68 language schools in 26 cities across Spain, Suspanish will connect you to a Spanish class that fits into your schedule. That means you’ll be free to follow Stoke around to all the crazy events we visit, like the La Tomatina tomato fight in Valencia, the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, or even a wild weekend in Ibiza, and find a Spanish class that’s right for you while you’re there.

Take a peek at our 2018 Calendar and then head over to Suspanish to find a course that fits in your party schedule

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Ahh hickeys, we’ve all had them, given them, tried to cover them up and had to explain them at some point in our lives. The little (or big) purple suckers hang around for days as a reminder of those sexy times (just in case you need reminding) and you are forced to wear it as a filthy tag of fornicatio until it decides to be on its merry way. Love them or hate them, they’re almost never a good look, yet we still continue to pull the ol’ vampire move every now and then. So, where are the worst possible places to receive hickeys? How big is too big? It’s all open to personal opinion really. Here’s a list of some of the worst spots, in our humble yet knowledgeable opinion:

1. Smack bang in the middle of your neck

At our Running Of The Bulls campsite, one lucky lady emerged with a very sizeable, very dark hickey, right in the middle of her neck. It was the most indiscreet and highly visible hickey to (probably) ever exist and no amount of makeup was able cover it up. With every new person she saw she was subject to the same reaction, the same questions and the same level of disgust. The worst part was that because it was in the middle of her neck, she was pretty much fresh out of cover up options. Hair wouldn’t do it, scarves are no good in the middle of the Spanish summer and if you’re wearing your traditional red neck scarf for days on end, you’re probably going to end up getting some pretty funny looks.

2. On your boobs

This one is controversial because boob hickeys aren’t always THAT bad. Depending on where they are, sometimes they are ok. That’s not to say you should go around giving people hickeys on their boobs, but, if you are going to do it, do it in a spot that is easily covered up. Another girl at the campsite was given one on her boob, but in a less than ideal spot. Unless she was wearing a crew neck t-shirt, it was out there for everyone to see. In bathers, a tank top, a sundress, in pretty much everything it was visible. And yes, people did ask.

3. The side of your neck

Although this one is generally a lot easier to cover up, it still kind of sucks (ha, get it), especially in the Spanish summer. Yeah, you can wear your hair down to cover it up but who wants to have a heavy mop of hair sticking to their neck in 30-degree heat. Not us, and probably not you. This one will often open itself up to unnecessary staring while people try to figure out whether it is indeed a hickey, or if it’s just a cheeky little birthmark in a slightly inconvenient place.

4. Anywhere on the top half of your body

If it’s above your waist, there’s a high chance people are going to see it. It doesn’t really matter too much where it is, if it’s there and it’s within eyesight, the wandering eye of the ever so curious friend/fellow traveller/hostel worker/bartender will catch it, they will judge you and they will probably get a fucking weird mental image of you almost definitely naked, receiving said hickey. Let’s be honest, that’s not something either of you want. Or is it…

5. Anywhere at all, ever

Put simply, hickeys are pretty gross, and as we’ve just touched on in the previous dot points, they’re almost always visible and people will almost always mention it. If they don’t mention it, that’s probably worse. They’re left awkwardly staring at it while you stand there knowing they’re staring at it, waiting for them to say something but they don’t and it ends up being a big ol’ awkward mess. A big ol’ awkward mess that could have easily been avoided in if in the sweaty heat of the moment, you’d simply said “Hey, please don’t fucking suck on my neck”.

If any of the above resonate with you, or hit a little too close to home, then let this serve as a reminder for the remainder of the festival season (and life in general), not to be that person running around with a giant hickey on your neck. On the other hand though, if you’ve read this and thought Fuck you guys, I love hickeys! then by all means, be our guest. In fact, why not be our literal guest and come and hang out with us at La Tomatina or Oktoberfest, where we can almost guarantee you’ll find more than enough willing suitors ready to go to town on your neck… Or wherever you like…

Who are we to tell you that hickeys are gross? If you’re in the mood to receive a hickey or perhaps to give one, come with us and join the party at La Tomatina and Oktoberfest! Make sure your neck is tasty and delicious, practice your sucking skills and book your trip here!

 

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Sail Croatia Peak Season, With Air Conditioning, At Low Season No Air Con Prices

Sail Croatia isn’t the kind of trip you necessarily want the best deal on. Promises of budget this, and half price that conjure up images of leaky boats and drunken captains. But we’re Stoke Travel, and we just have a knack for offering more, for a little bit less. We can’t help ourselves! And so our Stoke Afloat sail Croatia trip does just that, giving you more bang, for less bucks. Here’s how.

We’ve got air con

On paper our prices are comparable with the other operators, until you see that the only boats they operate with air conditioning are the premium options and come in at a considerably higher price than Stoke boats (starting at over €800 for trips along the same route, for the same duration and going up to over €1000).

Stoke’s boat is €600 for the seven nights, with air conditioning. And our boat is as cute as heck, running a little smaller than the big operators, so you will be floating with 18 new best friends instead of 30 kind of strangers.

Low season prices during high season

This isn’t our main business, so we aren’t going to sting you with high season surcharges. All we want is for our loyal Stoke Travel crew to be able to have a wild, beautiful time on the Adriatic Sea, visit Croatia’s most beautiful sights and pumpingest party spots, and to do so when the weather is warmest, the water most swimmable and the bars and clubs the most packed with hot guys and total babes. Others charge a premium to take you out during these busy times, €200-300 more, but not Stoke Afloat, no way. Our prices are similar to what you’d be paying in May or October, the shoulder months, but we’ll be taking you out for the week starting July 28th, or the following one from August 4th.

If we may say it again, €600!

Open beer and sangria bar on board

Our extensive research of asking our friends who have sailed Croatia with other operators (idiots!) has led us to the conclusion that onboard bar tabs easily run into the hundreds, averaging around €300 for the seven nights and eight days. It’s so easy to do, when beers are just being added to your bill, and the days are long and hot, and you’re in dire need of the liquid courage to shake your thang in one of the many Croatian nightclubs we’ll be visiting. You just keep throwing beers on the tab and at the end you’re a couple of hundred bucks in the hole. Not with Stoke Afloat, however, where we offer you unlimited beer and sangria on board for only €10 a day. That’s €70 for the whole trip, and you can literally drink as much as your beautiful little belly and brain can handle. Nobody else sailing Croatia offers this.

€70 on beer and sangria instead of €300+? Sign us up!

It’s pretty obvious that not only will we be floating on the cutest air conditioned boat, during peak season, packed full of legends, but we’ll be doing it at a price that’ll save you money. €600, plus €10 a day for unlimited booze. There are a few spots left on both trips, but they won’t be available for long. Reserve yours now!

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So, can girls run with the bulls? Put simply, they absolutely can, but a lot of them don’t want to. We’ve all heard about the famous Spanish festival of San Fermin, The Running Of The Bulls, a world-famous event that brings thousands of tourists from all over the world to defy death by running with bulls, and of course, by partying for a week straight. It’s very important to do your research about running with the bulls if you feel like it’s something that might tickle your fancy.

A lot of tourists just go in expecting it to be a casual jog, go out the night before, party right through, pissed as a nit and wonder why they fell over and copped an injury. Don’t be that person. Although it is pretty much all men that participate in the run, more and more girls are getting keen on the idea because you know, girl power and stuff.

During the actual run itself, it’s dog eat dog. Bull eat bull if you will. You think that if you fall over, because you’re a girl, a hero will appear in the form of a muscley spaniard and you will you be whisked away to safety and attempt to run again the next day. Not true. In the midst of the run itself, from the second that first canon goes off, the people are more of a threat than the bulls, well, almost. They go crazy, become almost possessed and absolutely fucking charge through the streets, no matter who is in the way. Big tough guys line up, stretch out their legs, they practice jumping over and under things to make sure they’re agile enough to escape should they need to.

You need to be ok with running amongst this, knowing that you’re essentially out there on your own. During the run itself, you might not even remember anything, it’s pretty much a blur of adrenaline. You might look back and see some poor fucker on the ground surrounded by paramedics, you might (almost definitely will) see people get pushed over, knocked to the ground or trampled. Don’t think about it! Don’t stop to offer help – just keep running! When you get to the arena, double check that there are no stray bulls behind you, sprint in there, get some poor stranger to snap your token insta pic and then get the fuck out, unless of course you want to tango with the bulls, then stay and pray you don’t get hurt. The run itself will only last for about five minutes tops, so even though it feels like it will last forever, it sure as hell won’t.

It is important to remember that you can start at different points throughout the run. The further up you are, the safer you will (should) be. It’s totally normal to be scared shitless, especially if you’re a girl planning on entering the testosterone fuelled streets. Our hot tips are: start after Dead Man’s corner, don’t look back, forget about everyone else and fucking run. Maybe even wait a few days and make sure everyone else that goes before you makes it back in one piece. Ask around for tried and tested tips on how to make it out alive, with as few bruises as possible.

We highly recommend arriving in Pamplona a few days before, spend some time chilling out at the Stoke campsite with all your new besties, drinking all the beer and sangria humanly possible, thinking up a game plan and preparing get amongst it. Then, get out there, show the boys (and the bulls) who’s boss and try not to get trampled. Once it’s all over, the adrenalin has worn off and you’ve stopped shaking profusely, return to camp and brag about your newfound bad-bitch status. You earned it.

Running Of The Bulls is a festival in Pamplona, Spain that runs in conjunction with Stoke’s very own Stoked In The Park. Between these two festivals, the craziness of the street carnivals that run every night and the non-stop madness of the Stoke campsite, you’re an idiot if you miss out. 

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The first ever Stoked In The Park just finished in El Molino campsite, a little to the south of Pamplona. The two-day music festival fulfilled its purpose of adding more to the city’s San Fermin celebrations, without detracting from the ancient traditions that annually draw 100s of 1000s of revellers from around Spain and the world. In an age where moral dilemmas turn us away from bull runs, Stoked In The Park sought to remind travellers that Pamplona is an amazing city and that San Fermin is one hell of a party.

This year’s Stoked in the park was headlined by Sydney’s Art Vs Science, as well as frontman Dan Mac’s side project The Swirly Train, and while reviews of those two acts are available on this website, it’s worthy while the memories are fresh to go over the events other goings on, to remind those present whose memories are understandably fuzzy, and to inspire interest in those who missed this year, but wouldn’t dream of doing the same next.

The Music

Over the two days Stoke in the park introduced travellers to upcoming acts from Australia, Spain, the UK, the USA, Brazil and New Zealand. The first day was rock heavy, starting off with the musical genius of Kiwi Pips, followed by the cocksure party swagger of Hiaground before Mesmeriser played into the late dusk with their psychedelic rock.

By the time Honey Hayze got onto stage the hot day had descended into a oftentimes violent rainstorm that had absolutely no effect on the crowds spirits. THe Hayze is a band of many members, and have a sound reminiscent of the Doors, mostly due to the frontman’s onstage mojo and Jim Morrison-esque roar. By the time he swilled an entire litre of beer the crowd was well and truly primed for Art Vs Science’s hit-and-banger laden set.

Day two started with the one man ska funk show that the fearless Paul The Kid brought to the Navarese fields, followed by Brazil’s The Filipes whose mastery of their craft got the afternoon crowd grooving with some truly international sounds. Following the bossa nova grooves the crowd enjoyed the technical wizardry of Barcelona’s Bonifrax, and the United States’ own David Read, two good friends who use samplers, instruments and their voices to create truly unique, highly appreciable sounds. Following the second days headliner in The Swirly Train we were treated to the tech house that floats DJ Semichub’s boat, with Maxy bringing it home for the animals who were able to go the distance.

We couldn’t think of a better way to enjoy Europe’s biggest cultural festivals than to be treated to world class music, for free, right where you sleep. This is a one-of-a-kind music festival within Europe’s biggest cultural festivals is a new way to travel, and nobody but Stoke goes to such lengths to make sure you have fun not only at the traditional event, but when you return to your campsite too.

The Accommodation

Like always, Stoke Travel went the extra distance in providing more and charging less for the lucky travellers who took a chance on this new concept. For less than a stay anywhere else, travellers enjoyed twin share tents with mats and sleeping bags, or teepees for bigger groups, and glamping for those of us who are happy to splurge on something a little more comfortable.

All accommodation s were a simple stumble from the music stage, allowing revellers the unique opportunity to literally sleep where they party.

The Food

Included in the ticket price is a cooked breakfast and dinner, running the gamut from bacon and eggs and French toast, to paella and schnitzel burgers. In addition to the included food were homemade Aussie-style pies presented by Stoke Eats and Kontuz Manos, with all four flavours – beef, chicken, pork and vegetable – selling out within an hour of being presented on both days. Our Kitchen Party will be rolling onto all upcoming Stoke events, with Kontuz Manos pies available at La Tomatina and Oktoberfest, where they are expected to sell out just as swiftly.

The Bar

The open and unlimited beer and sangria bar was absolutely taken advantage of between opening hours of 9am to 11pm. After dark and outside operating hours the campsite bars offered partiers the chance to buy something stronger well into the wee hours. One of the main points of difference with Stoked in the park is that for the majority of the day the bars flow freely, meaning that a major festival expense is avoided by taking the option of unlimited beer and sangria.

Other Activities

The Wheel Of Misfortune again confusingly proved to be a hit, with no shortage of victims queuing up for the chance to spin their way into public nudity, pouring beer on themselves or any of the other punishments that find their way on the wheel’s perimeter.

Yoga was popular, despite the oppressive Navarra heat, with many of the pretzel people opting for a splash in the river once their chakras were aligned. Tag rugby also went down on the sports fields, with the energetic competitors giving the hungover masses plenty to feel bad about.

Big Jakey from Stoke Eats gave a wonderful paella demonstration and wine tasting session, informing the assembled masses on Spanish cuisine and wines while pleasing their pallets and guts. The pool party was pretty chilled, but the beats and bar helped the dippers and foot danglers through what otherwise might have been a difficult few mornings. There was a wedding, although it probably wasn’t binding. Some punters took our air mattresses down the river. And Kanga the dog decided she didn’t like many people at all. 

What’s Next?

Stoked In The Park, London next May. Stoked In The Park, Pamplona, again, bigger and better. Stoked In The Park, Barcelona, for 2019. Can’t wait that long? We’ll be throwing elements of Stoked In The Park at our La Tomatina beachside camp, and Oktoberfest too, with most of the bands you loved at the first Stoked In The Park, Kontuz Manos pies, the Wheel of Misfortune, our legendary open bar, and every other thing we can do to get the party started before Europe’s biggest, best and most famous festivals.

See you everywhere!

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The Swirly Train is best described as an interplanetary musical journey that fuses theatrics with the absurd, and takes us from planet to planet via a galactic public transport system made up of thumping house beats interspersed with the occasional camp banger. It’s leader, our leader, is a young man called Swirly Dan, a Willy Wonka cum Hugh Jackman type who commands the front of the stage with his shirt unbuttoned and pants-fly unbeknownst in the same position; a Cheshire cat grin spread across his face betraying the lack of sleep he was suffering/drawing inspiration from.

The first track is a Swirly Train original, an operatic introduction to the train, that pulled the heathens from the hilltop bar and onto the dancefloor to see what all the fuss was about (relive the track here, on the Swirly Train’s Soundcloud).  Once there, with us hooked on his every word and song selection, Swirly Dan then implores us all to be naughty boys and girls, and to bump and grind from planet to planet while our fearless leader fist pumps, gyrates and even takes time out from the tech house to get “fruity” with Kym Mazelle’s Young Hearts Run Free, a gamble that was paid handsomely by the crowd who were equal parts eating out of his finger and wrapped around his little hand.

As the headline act on day two of Stoked In The Park, Swirly Dan and his earth-to-Pluto ‘round trip faced the unenviable task of coaxing the slovenly party animals off their day-long prostrate positions on the hill. With his knack of reading, and dictating to, the crowd, however,  he did so with ease, agitating the crowd to the point where the acts who followed him, DJ Semichub and Maxy, had no drama keeping the reluctantly faithful engaged and dancing until it was time to board the mornings buses and make their way into the Running of the Bulls..

Unfortunately Swirly Dan’s time with us here on this terrestrial planets had to come to an end. After two weeks of treating us to his cosmic curation of music and general merrymaking from San Vino, to the San Sebastian Surf Camp, as well as Stoked in the Park, he had to depart, boarding a Swirly Train of the avionic variety and making his way to his home new home planet of Berlin.

We wish this Ziggy Stardust style musical voyager the best of luck in Berlin’s club scene, and welcome him back with eager arms whenever he deigns it time to return to Stoke Travel to lead his acolytes on whatever adventure he deems essential at that time. We’re hoping for more swirly antics at La Tomatina and the end-of-season smasher, Oktoberfest. Travel well, space voyager, we’ll keep Earth swirly while we wait for your return.

The Swirly Train is a side project of Art Vs Science frontman, Dan Mac aka Swirly Dan. You can find the project on Soundcloud, or at various weird Berlin clubs this summer. Stoked in the Park is a first-of-its-kind music festival within Europe’s biggest traditional parties, with the first installment taking place in Pamplona during that city’s San Fermin celebrations.

 

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El pasado 30 de Junio tuvo lugar uno de los eventos referencia del long clásico del norte del país. El San Sebastián Single Fin Classic, organizado por la tienda Hawaii de San Sebastián, en la playa de la Zurriola. En el evento además de muchas caras conocidas del panorama tablonero, teníamos a nuestro amigo Nelson […]
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Loggers of the Basque Country es un extracto sacado del pasado Duct Tape Invitational, donde el vídeo se centra en los surfistas de la zona norte de España y el sur de Francia. Tenemos a Mikel Urigoitia como cabeza visible, pasando por el joven Asturiano Nico García, el local de Sopelana, Adrián López y el […]
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Este es Jared, un archiconocido logger, amigo de la Revista en sus visitas a Europa. Aquí lo tenemos  captado por Silox en Salinas: Es uno de los surfistas más influyentes de la costa oeste Californiana por su estilo desenfrenado al alcance de muy pocos. Hoy traemos un nuevo vídeo suyo, grabado en cámara de 8mm […]
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A quien no le gustaría estar en el agua, en un atardecer mágico en México, más concretamente en las interminables izquierdas de La Saladita… Pues High Latitude Films, nos trae ese momento, filmando a un puñado de buenos surfistas, sacándole todo el jugo a esta preciada ola El elenco lo componen:  WILL ALLEN, TOM PAYNE, KYLE […]
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