Mes: mayo 2020

There was no chance that the 2020 Barcelona Boat Parties would be the same as previous years. 100s of people on each boat, partying, dancing, drinking; 1000s of partiers joining us over the course of a summer, coming from all over the world. As we’re slowly coming out of lockdowns, when most of us weren’t physically with people outside of our households for months, imagining going back to these hedonistic, floating festivals, just didn’t seem feasible. 

But as restrictions lift in Spain, it’s becoming more clear that we’re going to be having some kind of a boat party in 2020. Here’s what you can expect. 

Barcelona Boat Parties In Phase Two

Phase two of restrictions should come into effect from the 8th of June. This is when our boat parties can begin. 

Private Boat Parties For Barcelona Province Residents

We’ll be taking bookings for completely private groups of locals (because during phase two nobody else can travel here). These can be groups of friends, workmates, whatever, and we’ll be running two capacities. The smaller boat can be chartered for up to 10 people, while the biggest boat is for groups of 50-100 people. Get your groups together, and get out on the Med. The sun, salt air, seawater, the motion of the ocean – it’s all going to do you better than good, it’s going to do you great. 

Barcelona Boat Parties For The Rest Of Summer 2020

Starting from July Spain will reopen for tourists and when that happens the Barcelona new normal will begin in earnest. We’ll be able to open up boat parties to the public, meaning that you don’t have to have 10, or 50-100 friends to get on a boat, but can book it alone, in pairs, or in smaller groups and then join big groups of strangers-about-to-become-friends onboard. We’ll be running a longer season than usual this year, too, and will make sure to overcompensate for the lost parties by throwing even better events once we’re finally allowed out of the port. 

New Boat Party Rules For 2020

Reduced capacity: we’ll likely only be allowed to have 100 people onboard, which isn’t a small group, but does represent a reduced capacity. This means that most cruises will be sellouts.

Increased hygiene: like everywhere on land, we’ll ensure that all staff are gloved and masked, that hand sanitizer is readily available, and that there’s plenty of space for people to social distance. 

Masks: masks won’t be required onboard, because of the open air nature of the boat, but will be available for you if you forgot to bring your own. 

We’re almost ready to set sail. Are you ready to jump onboard for a same-same but different type of Barcelona Boat Party? €1 bookings for the time being. Post-lockdown parties ahoy!

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For a guide on how to get to Oktoberfest from within Munich, you’re going to want to read this.

Getting to Oktoberfest is easy from anywhere in Europe. Munich has been a transport hub for as long as Europeans have been travelling, and all roads, rails and flight paths go through here.

The first step to travelling to Oktoberfest is deciding when you want to go (answer: it’s always epic). The next is determining where you’ll be arriving from – if it’s from your home, that’s an easy decision, but if you’ll be travelling in the lead up to arriving in Munich, you might not know exactly where will be your departure point; if you’re travelling right, you might not know your departure point until the day of. The third consideration, and perhaps the most important, is how much you value your time. Will you be willing to save some money on your arrival by spending a bit more time on the road? Whatever your situation may be, this guide to travelling to Oktoberfest will help you get there and get into some tasty German beers. 

Travelling to Oktoberfest by plane

Flying to Munich is by far the quickest way to arrive at Oktoberfest, and if you plan your travel early enough it could also be one of the cheaper options. Unfortunately for most of us, we’re a little bit slack with our travel plans, and often end up getting stuck with hefty, last-minute airfares. Nevertheless, we recommend scoping out flight aggregating websites, like Skyscanner, or using Google Flights, for flights from the lower cost airlines, or even with Lufthansa, which will allow you a little extra space, and a snack! From Munich airport you can ride the train straight into the city centre and the beer halls directly, or follow our directions to get to the Stoketoberfest campsite. Alternatively you could fly into Memmingen, or another airport near Munich, but we’d only recommend that if you were desperate. For a full guide on booking cheap flights in Europe, you should check this out. 

Travelling to Oktoberfest by train

Train travel within Europe and to Munich for Oktoberfest comes in second to airline travel for convenience – sometimes even beating flying when you factor in that trains stop in the city centre and you don’t have to negotiate airport connections. That said, you’ll be paying a premium price for train tickets, too, especially if you’re booking last minute. The German rail system is very well connected with the rest of Europe, and you can book tickets and find timetables for Europe-wide train travel at the D-Bahn website. Alternatively, if you’re travelling around the continent for a spell and want to really get to know the railways, you should look into a Eurail Pass, if you’re not a European resident, or an Interrail Pass if you are. For more information, we’ve also done a deep dive into cheap train travel across Europe, and whether a Eurail Pass is worth it.

Travelling to Oktoberfest by bus

So this is going to take a little longer. Getting to Munich from anywhere outside of Germany – and most places inside of Germany – by bus can take a while. Buses travel slower than trains, don’t have routes that are as direct, and despite there being no official borders in Europe, sometimes buses will get stopped for passport checks and other searches. That said, bus travel is almost always cheap, and not so reliant on early booking. And, really, watching the world roll by from outside your bus window, reading a book, watching a movie, chatting, having some drinks, are not the worst ways to spend a few hours. FlixBus offers services from all over Europe to Munich, many without connections, and services like Omio can compare all different bus companies and deliver you the best price. Also, if you’re travelling from most of Europe you can link up with one of Stoke Travel’s own buses, and package up your stay with your travel. For a full guide on European bus travel, we’ve gone and done all the research for you. 

Travelling to Oktoberfest by car

Yes, you can most certainly drive to Oktoberfest, either in your own car or a car you’ve hired. The German autobahn system is epic, you can drive really, really fast, and despite the high velocity travel and petrol stations that sell beer, the experience is an overwhelmingly safe one. Some things you’ll have to consider, include parking when you get to Munich – you’re going to have to leave your car where you stay, because there’s no way you’re getting it near to Oktoberfest – and driving home the morning after when you’re definitely, most likely, almost certainly still over the limit. We have parking at our Stoketoberfest campsite, and if you’re travelling Europe in a van or camper-car/motorhome set up, we have space for you too. For a full guide to driving in Europe as a backpacker, guess what, we got you. 

Travelling to Oktoberfest by hitchhiking

Hmmm, yeah. You can. If you have to. If you like to. But, well, it could be weird, with all the language barriers and so on, and maybe not the safest safest. But if you’re already considering hitchhiking then you probably won’t be reading this for advice. We touch on it in this general guide to travelling around Europe.

Travelling to Oktoberfest by walking

This is for the real legends, the true travellers, the hectic slow movers who don’t care about how long it takes them and how stinky they are when they arrive. Europe is amazingly crisscrossed with well-marked hiking trails, that will take you through villages and over mountain passes. You could even hike to Munich across the Alps, if you really want to earn your beer when you arrive. We’ll let you do the research, crazy walkers, but generally in Europe you can just start walking in the direction you want to go. Find where Munich is, and take that first step!

Travelling from anywhere in Munich to the Stoketoberfest campsite

Once in Munich it’s a breeze to get to the Stoke Travel campsite and all the Stoketoberfest joys that lie within. Simply follow the easy instructions we’ve put together for you here.

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10 reasons why a solo trip to Oktoberfest is an awesome idea

It’s on your bucket list, but for some reason you can’t convince the homies to join you at Oktoberfest. They have their reasons – they’re not available at all for the last two weeks of September and first week of October; they’re not interested in drinking the world’s best beer and dancing on beer hall tables; they’ve already been and they don’t want to go again – and you know that all those reasons are bullshit! Nevertheless, you’ve exhausted all of your avenues to convince them, from pleading to blackmail to bribery, and still nobody is up to the challenge, so you ask yourself, can I travel to Oktoberfest alone?

Well, the answer is absolutely yes, you dummy, you can travel to Oktoberfest alone, and furthermore you’re going to have more fun by yourself then you would with those wet mops anyway. Here’s a few reasons why you should hit up Oktoberfest as a solo traveller. 

Everybody is best friends in the beer halls

From the moment you step inside the Oktoberfest beer halls you are immediately surrounded by 10s of 1000s of potential new best friends. From the grumpy old locals, to the awestruck tourists, everybody in the beer halls is there to drink beer, and be merry, and it’s common knowledge that beer drinking and merrymaking are two pastimes that are best done in company. At Oktoberfest you can’t get served a beer unless you’re sitting at a table, and when you’re in a group that can be tough – it’s a lot easier to squeeze onto a packed table if you’re alone, than if you were with seven other thirsty travellers. So you sit down, you order a beer, you cheers your new table mates, and from that moment on you are the best of friends. It’s really that easy. 

Plus you’ve got the world’s best beer to break the ice for you

But I’m socially awkward, you cry. Don’t worry, you won’t have any qualms with asking for a space to order a beer, or sparking up a conversation, once the first few gulps of Oktoberfest’s extra delicious, super strong, beer has passed by your lips and started its way to making your hips sway to the oompah bands. This beer is delicious, it will rock you, and it comes by the litre. What more do you need to shake the inhibitions away? Learn more about Oktoberfest beers here. 

You would have lost your friends anyway

Now you see them, now you don’t. As soon as you leave to go to the toilet, stop to talk to a friendly, but foreign, face, or stand up on the table to dance, you’ll lose your friends guaranteed. Then you’ll just spend the rest of your day trying to find them again, so the bigger your group, the more opportunities to lose people, the more time you’ll spend trying to find them again. We recommend that you travel solo, so that you can just completely discard of this inevitability and think only about numero uno. Here are some more tips for surviving the Oktoberfest beer halls. 

But made new ones

See points one and two, above. 

Staying at Stoketoberfest makes friend making easy

Stoketoberfest is Stoke Travel’s Oktoberfest campsite accommodation and party located inside Munich. It’s a short metro ride from the beer halls, and is both the cheapest Oktoberfest stay and the most enjoyable – which is why we host more travellers than anybody else in Munich, up to 2000 on a weekend night. In a group this big you’re bound to find your people, the people you want to drink with, laugh alongside of, to egg on, and maybe even to make out with. In addition to simply being the biggest group of young travellers at Oktoberfest, Stoketoberfest is also designed around creating a social atmosphere, from our open beer and sangria bar, to the dance floor with bands and DJs playing every night, the beer pong and flip cup tournaments and the infamous Wheel of Misfortune – Stoketoberfest is created around making the travellers a part of the spectacle, pulling you out of your shell and forcing you to mingle with like-minded travellers, study abroad students, backpackers, expats and beer lovers from all over the world. 

Trust us, come to Stoketoberfest as a solo traveller and leave with a whole bunch of new best friends, and maybe lovers, from all over the world. 

Solo travelling around Europe is the best anyway

You can go where you want, when you want. You are forced to step outside of your comfort zone and spark up conversations with strangers. You don’t have to deal with anybody else’s travel hangups, anxieties, fears, or suspicions. You’re completely free and able to do whatever you want, eat whatever you want, get as drunk or not drunk as you want, kiss whoever you feel like kissing and have nobody around to either judge you, or to report back to your friends and at home. It’s not just Oktoberfest that is perfect for solo travelling, it’s all of Europe.  

So if you find yourself travelling alone and can’t find anybody to accompany you at Oktoberfest, don’t worry, we’ve got literally 1000s of drinking buddies waiting for you at Stoketoberfest. 

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By K.P. our resident food critic

Paella is one of Spain’s national joys (as you probably know) and is hands down the one dish you HAVE to wrap your mouth around while you are in Barcelona (note: paella in Spain is a lunchtime deal, so please do not order it for dinner… well you can but we will judge you for it). Be warned, there is nothing worse than a dodgy serving of paella (they’ll probably charge you a lot  for it too) when there are so many gems around the city. 

HINT: if you are four or more people, why not order a variety of “paellas for two” and then all share. The paella serving size is always beyond generous, so don’t worry – there will be plenty to go around. For a list of some of the different types of paella that you might encounter on a Barcelona menu, see our glossary below.

These are our favourite places in Barcelona for a bangin paella.

Escriba (€€€)

In our opinion, these guys do the tastiest paella in town. With a view that would rival most postcards, located directly on Bogatell beach, this is the perfect location for your “blow out” classic Spanish lunch here in Barcelona. The paella will set you back about €18 per person for their classic seafood option, but trust us it is so worth it. We recommend you call ahead for a reservation (a couple of days minimum). This place is hot with both locals and tourists alike so it fills up quickly.

Minyam (€€)

Located in PobleNou, Minyam specialises in “smoked paellas” and believe us they are delicious. They also serve traditional Catalan tapas and sharing is encouraged (fried calamari, mussels in white wine & house made croquettes to name some of our favourites). They have a team of great chefs on hand, a fabulous wine list and great service. Rub shoulders with locals and grab yourself a table here.

La Fonda Del Port Olimpic (€) 

Address: Moll de Gregal, 7, 8, 9, 08005 Barcelona

Phone: 932 21 22 10

Menu: lafondadelport.com

If you’re looking for a cheaper option for a paella meal, this is your place!! La Fonda is located in Port Olimpic, and they have 2 restaurants, be sure to ask for the restaurant upstairs as the views are amazing. They have a €25 per person menu which will get you a mix of 4 shared entree plates (their calamari, fresh prawns, goat cheese salad and mussels are our top picks) and a main (seafood paella duh). You also get olives, bread, a drink of choice (if you order wine they’ll give you the bottle), coffee, a dessert plate, cake and a little shot at the end of your meal. Bang for your buck or what!

Cheriff (€€)

Address: Carrer de Ginebra, 15, 08003 Barcelona

Phone: 933 19 69 84

Menu: cheriffrestaurant.es

Now we head down to the old fisherman’s barrio of Barceloneta. El Cheriff might look a bit… tacky, with the fish tanks and all, but the paella is the perfect golden brown, almost always with the socarrat (see glossary below), there are plenty of different options, and while the waiters might ask if you have a reservation, and then act put out when you do not, the place is usually pretty empty. This is a very authentic Spanish-style restaurant, so don’t expect too much English from the staff (not that you’ll need it with your mouth full).

7 Portes (€€€)

Located on that wonderful little gastronomic island between Barceloneta and the trendy El Born, Sept Portes, or Seven Doors, is an institution in the city and the place where local families gather to celebrate special occasions together, usually over a few different types of paella. Where El Cheriff is authentic in its taverns style, 7 Portes is authentic, old school fancy. Waiters in white who have been working there for 40 years, perfect paellas, and classic decor. Expect this place to be full of locals, especially on Thursdays and Sundays, the unofficial, but kind of official, paella days.

Choosing your own paella restaurant in Barcelona

In addition to our list of the best places to eat paella in Barcelona, there may be places we haven’t found yet. So, if you want to go rogue and find your own spot, here are a couple of tips to help you in your paella search:

1. If you are sitting in a restaurant in Las Ramblas, get up, walk away and don’t look back – there’s nowhere along the tourist hotspot that serves anything near a decent paella,
2. If you are buying the paella from a generic sign with said paella pictured, leave now. Pictures of food on signs outside the restaurant – especially paella – is a massive no-no. Pictures of food inside the menu, surprisingly, can sometimes mean amazing and authentic (usually if the photo is of a terrible quality), 
3. If you can buy hamburgers, pasta or Chinese food on the same menu, do the same as instructed above and get out of there,
4. If you can opt to buy paella for one person only it’s probably shit (there is a two person minimum order on all good paellas in town),
5. The yellower the colour, the grosser it generally is. Real paella is golden brown in colour, the yellow stuff is just soaked in colouring. Don’t judge the dish if you ordered from a crap establishment.

Paella glossary

To help you navigate the menu and look like a pro in front of your pals.

Paella valenciana

The original paella from Valencia, with chicken, rabbit, beans, cooked over a wood fire sometimes, and they say that the very best have to be cooked with Valencia water (or stock, but the water and stock paella fight has been fought for years and we don’t want to get involved).

paella de mariscos

A seafood paella, and what most of us imagine when we talk about Spain’s ubiquitous rice dish. The purists in Valencia will refuse to call this a paella, and will instead call it arroz de mariscos, seafood rice, but we think they’re being a little precious about it all. The seafood in this paella usually includes mussels, clams, prawns and bigger prawns, and calamari rings, or some other squid/cuttlefish portion.

Paella Mixta

A combination of the two, or made with whatever the restaurant has on hand, so long as there is at least one seafood and one land-food (ha) ingredient in there. It’s the surf and turf of paellas, and is usually spectacular.

Paella vegetal

For those who choose not to eat anything that casts a shadow, this is the classic paella without anything that’s been alive (except for all the plants).

paella negra/Arroz negro

Rice that’s been blackened by squid ink, with bits of squid through it, and accompanied with a heaped serving of aioli, that pungent garlic mayonnaise that you can never, ever get enough of.

Fideua

Any of the above, but with short noodles instead of rice. These dishes are usually wonderfully crispy where they need to be, and also served with aioli.

arroz caldoso

This is like a paella, but prepared in a deeper pan and with more juice, so it’s somewhere between a very thick soup and a paella. You can find caldosos with many different ingredients, but one that pops up often is bogavante, or lobster, and it’s not super expensive, so if you want to get your maximum fancy on, you know what to do.

paella

What we’ve been talking about all along, but also the pan. The paella is the name of the pan, which vary in size from the two-person size, to huge festival paella pans. Want to see a massive paella pan in action? Come to any Stoke Travel festival (but especially La Tomatina in Valencia where we cook up a massive paella for everybody).

socarrat

The socarrat is the key to any great paella, and refers to the layer of crust between the pan and the rest of the dish. This crispy rice layer is where you find all the flavour, and is greatly sought after by paella aficionados.

How about a paella on a boat? Check out the Barcelona Boat Party, because we have options with food and paella is often on the menu, or join the Barcelona Cooking Class to learn how to do it yourself! 

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By KP, our resident food critic

Now we’re talking, good old authentic tapas, that Spanish speciality done in Barcelona with a particularly Catalan flair. These little bars may have seating, or you could just be standing around the bar, they might be rowdy, or quiet, but no matter what the ambience you better believe that this is where you’ll find the best tapas in Barcelona.

• Jai Cai (€€): You can find these guys tucked away down one of the backstreets of the old fisherman’s village, La Barceloneta. They are family run and have two locations (both next door to each other) so if you can’t grab a table at one, give the other a crack! Authentic (Barceloneta style) fried tapas! The chocos (fried cuttlefish) are some of the best in town along with their fried eggplant with honey! Their classic menu hasn’t had much changed on it since the 50s so be sure to pay them a visit!
• Can Paixano (€): Located in between Born and Barceloneta you’ll find this little gem tucked away like most well kept secrets. Can Paixano is a family run cava house that produces all their own sparkling wines. They have a simple but super tasty menu for you to pair with their cavas (note: you can’t drink here without ordering food) and authentic service (don’t mind the rubbish on the ground). We recommend their bite sized sandwiches and their famous rose cava. A bottle will set you back around €3, more or less (so cheap and so delicious). There are very minimal seats here and it is muy popular so again patience is required but it is an absolute must when here in Barcelona.
• Quimet & Quimet (€€€): These guys have been around since 1914 and have to be one of the most famous tapas bars in Barcelona. Anthony Bourdain himself professed that the tapas here were “the best he’s ever had”, and you can understand why from the moment you taste one of their famous montaditos (a type of tapas here in Spain which generally refers to bites of bread with toppings). There are no seats here and as mentioned, it’s fairly popular, so we recommend patience and weekday visits if you can!
• El Nou de Granados (€€€): You’ll find this fabulous spot on one of the nicest walking streets in Barcelona, Enric de Granados. Their terrace is the best spot to sit on a warm afternoon/night and they have some of the tastiest tapas menus in Barcelona (in our opinion). They have a mix of traditional and asian style plates which are all delicious and serve huge jugs of white (or red but the white is epic) sangria to wash everything down.
• La Bombeta (€€): For authentic tapas, La Bombeta is a great place to pop by if you are in Barceloneta! They don’t speak English or accept credit cards, but their food is some of the best around and the atmosphere here is unbeatable, classically Catalan. Be sure to grab one of their famous bombas (fried meat and potato balls doused in spicy mayo sauce) along with their calamari & pimientos de padrón. Thank us later.
• Llamber (€€€): This ones a bit of a splash out spot, but so totally worth it. Perfect place to bring your mum or that Tinder date you really fancy. The restaurant itself, their menu and their wine list are all pretty perfect if you ask us. Be sure to try the buñuelos de bacalao (fried cod balls) and their morcilla con chipirones (black sausage with calamari – trust us it’s way more amazing than it sounds). You’re in for a treat.

Are you full yet? Well good, because your Barcelona Boat Party is about to set sail. Enjoy!

 

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By KP, our resident food critic

Surely you know that StokeTravel do a bottomless brunch with unlimited mimosas at all of our destinations, because we know that nothing beats a big hearty serving of brunch to knock the edge off your hangover when you’re on holidays. These are the best places in Barcelona to start your day, fill your tummies and even get your bloody Mary buzz back on if you feel so inclined!

• Little Fern (€): Our favourite place in town for a good brunch, Little Fern opened its doors to us last year and their menu couldn’t get much better. Jay and Judit (the legendary owners) are two of the friendliest people you’ll meet & they’ve trained their staff to be the same with everyone that walks through their doors. Their price is great, their coffee is one of the best in town, they have an outdoor terrace to take in all the sunshine and have New Zealand wine on offer! Couldn’t really ask for more. Get their avocado and pea smash, you won’t be disappointed.
• Caravelle (€€): One of the OG brunch spots around, the Australian owners moved here straight out of London’s cafe scene and they know what’s up. With an in-house smoker (makes their bacon/sausages/ribs taste THAT much better) and an in-house brewery, they produce some delish artisan food & beer. That along with a team of some of the hottest young chefs in town serving creative, tasty food all day every day. Get the Spanglish from their brunch menu (they make their own sausage and have English style bacon – a rarity here). This is obviously a brunch recommendation but their dinner menu is just as impressive, and their taco nights are amazing.
• Enkel (€€): Located bang in the centre of the city, the girls at Enkel have an impressive brunch menu with South American flare and offer a bottomless brunch any day of the week. 35€ will get you a savoury plate, sweet plate, coffee/tea and unlimited cava/mimosas for 2 hours. Great place to get your buzz on before a day of sightseeing!
• Mensanna (€): These guys are a 5 minute stroll from Parc Ciutadella (in between Born and Poble Nou) and have one of the best priced brunch options around. Their open sandwiches (on naan bread) are a favourite along with their big fresh juices and delicious chai lattes. Enjoy it all on one of their terrace seats which gets sun for most of the morning. It’s hard to spend more than 10€ a head here for a well portioned, tasty brunch! NOTE: They have a really good lunch menu also, their speciality prawn tacos are the BEST!
• Marmalade, Firebug, Milk (€€): We have these three spots listed as one, as they are sister establishments and have similar menus. Located in three of the big touristic barrios (Raval, Born and Gothic), they have a HUGE, delicious brunch menu which is served until 4pm daily. Marmalade is a Stokie favourite, due to its size (we can all fit in here) and the fact they take reservations (on a Sunday this can be tricky). Their Turkish eggs and Asian chicken salad are both show stoppers!

Ready for a bang-up brunch to either get back on the horse, or to wipe away the sins of the previous day’s Barcelona Boat Party? Dive in, and remember – it’s never too early for bloody Marys!

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An updating list of the music and cultural festivals, and sporting events, across Europe that have been cancelled, postponed, or rescheduled in 2020 due to COVID-19, and those that remain unchanged (for now).

Stoke Travel Events

All Stoke events for 2020 and 2021 can be booked with risk-free €1 deposits. Make travel plans during lockdown. 

Barcelona Boat Parties

The Barcelona Boat Parties are scheduled to go ahead in June, pending the Spanish government’s regulations regarding group gatherings. Book your Barcelona Boat Party now with risk-free €1 deposits. 

San Sebastian Surf Camp

Currently open, for whoever can make it there. If you’re able to get yourself to Bilbao, or San Sebastian, then come on down to the surf camp, we’re surfing every day, hiking in the national park that joins our property when there are no waves, skating our mini ramp, eating delicious food and drinking beers/wines/ciders and talking shit. We’ll be open until October at least, so jump on those €1 deposits. 

San Vino/The Wine Fight

It hasn’t actually been cancelled yet, but as it’s in Spain and at the end of June, we imagine that if it does go ahead it will be a socially distanced wine fight, which would be strange if not impossible. 

The Running Of The Bulls

Pamplona’s infamous bull run, and the epic San Fermin street party that we’re all about, has been cancelled for the year, offering the poor bulls a temporary reprieve. 

La Tomatina

If you looked up social distancing in the dictionary of opposites there would be a photo of La Tomatina, and so we’ll officially be waiting a year to throw tomatoes at each other’s faces. 

Oktoberfest

This one hurts bad, because we’d held out in hope that it would be going ahead later in the year, but the ever prudent German authorities decided against hosting the world’s biggest, best, most beautiful and original beer fest this year. 2021 is going to be huge (as is Springfest 2021). 

Hogmanay

The Scottish New Year celebration is still going ahead, maybe even in a post-vaccine world, and look, we really couldn’t think of any better way to rung in the new year, and to tell coronavirus to get tae fuck, than during  a good old fashioned Edinburgh knees up. 

Sitges Carnival

Game on. 

Andorra Ski Weekenders

We had to turn our final trip of 2020 around at the border as lockdowns were announced while we were on the road! But coming off the back of an otherwise sold out season, we’ll be back in 2021 with an expanded Andorra ski trip season.  

Spring Break Ibiza

2020 was cancelled at the last minute, and so we’re damn frothing for Spring Break Ibiza 2021, because for us there’s absolutely nothing finer than partying all night and sunning all the day on the world’s number one island for unbridled hedonism. 

Springfest

2020 was cancelled, which means we’ll be smashing Springfest 2021 with reckless abandon. We’re also offering free Springfest trips for health care workers from around the world, so you know it’s going to be a real vibe in Munich next April/May. 

European Festivals and Events That Have Been Cancelled For 2020

See you in 2021! 

Warning: depressing reading coming up! 

• Running of the Bulls, Spain
• San Vino, Spain
• La Tomatina, Spain
• Oktoberfest, Germany
• Glastonbury, UK
• Roskilde, Denmark
• Melt Festival, Germany
• London Fair, UK
• Solidays, France
• Rock En Seine, France
• Lollapalooza, France
• We Love Green, France
• Mele Festival, Germany
• Helene Beach Festival, Germany
• Kappa Future Festival, Italy
• Polifonic, Italy 
• Nameless Music Festival, Italy
• Ibiza Soca Festival, Spain
• Lovin’ Ibiza Festival, Spain
• The Great British Beer Festival, UK
• Musilac Mont Blanc, France
• Cannes Film Festival, France
• Isle of Wight, UK
• Rock Im Park
• EK 2020
• Lovebox
• Park Life, UK
• Bergenfest
• Sonar, Spain
• Solidays
• Garorock
• Secret Solstice
• Awakenings
• Breda Drijft
• Dour Festival
• Paleo Festival
• Gay Pride Amsterdam
• Dekmantel
• Outlook Festival
• Edinburgh Fringe
• Paradigm Festival
• Distortion
• Meadows In The Mountains

European Events And Festivals That Have Been Postponed To Later In 2020

These guys plan on pushing the boat out still, just later in the year.

• Primavera Sound, usually at the end of May, is now from the 26-30th of August
• Tomorrowland
• Tour de France

European Festivals And Events That Are Unchanged For 2020

Wishful thinking? Or they just haven’t made the announcement yet?

• Hogmanay, UK
• Sziget, Hungary
• ADE, The Netherlands
• Mysterylands, The Netherlands
• Awakenings, The Netherlands
• Wireless, UK
• TRNSMT, UK
• Berlinale, Germany
• Volt Festival
• Wireless Festival
• Mad Cool
• NOS alive
• BBK
• Exit Festival
• Ultra Europe
• Benicassim 
• Creamfields
• Reading and Leeds Festival
• SW4
• Rise Festival

Obviously this list is constantly changing, so please excuse us if we’re not up-to-date. And don’t forget to book your San Sebastian Surf Camp, and Barcelona Boat Party 2020, for €1… or we’ll see you in 2021!

 

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By KP, our resident food critic

Us Stokies know good coffee (comes with being so regularly hungover/busy), and while Spain has always had a coffee drinking culture of some sort, they are now catching on to the good stuff now and speciality coffee spots are popping up like daisies around Barcelona. Rather than settling for an average cafe con leche at a corner spot, see below our favourite cafes in town to grab yourself a tasty cuppa joe that’s bound to put a spring in your step!

 

• Brooklyn Cafe (€): New brewers on the block, Brooklyn is my pick for the best value speciality coffee in Barcelona. They have three locations across the city and their price can not be beat! A flat white will set you back about €1.90 (So good, a regular flat white will generally set you back between €2.5-3) and they taste like heaven. They roast all their own beans and their baristas know what they’re doing! 

• Lulu Barcelona (€): These girls sure know how to make a banging coffee! Service is always friendly, they have Oatly oat milk on offer and also have a coconut milk option for you fellow lacto free pals! If you’re ever wandering around the Born area, be sure to pop in and say hey to these gals!

• Little Fern (€): Our Kiwi friends are located in PobleNou and have some of the tastiest coffee on offer in Barcelona (and the friendliest service in town might we add). They use high quality beans from Ozone Coffee UK and know how to make one SMOOTH cup of brew! They also have one of THE best brunch cafes in town. Be sure to pop in and grab a strong one off them (their prana chai is also muy tasty for any of you non-coffee drinkers).
• Syra (€): So these guys have been around since 2015, but just started getting noticed as they opened up 4 different locations in town. Their coffee is super smooth but packs a punch! You won’t be disappointed with one of their cups & maybe even a cookie.
• Satans (€): Probably one of the cooler coffee corners in town, the team at Satans do some damn good cups of joe. Just don’t ask them for the wifi password… cause they ain’t about that life.
• Caravelle (€): Aussie owned Caravelle is one of the OG brunch spots in Barcelona (you’ll find them on our brunch list also) and for this reason they obvs should have banging coffee on offer (which they most certainly do). Grab yourself one of their cold brews or a classic flat white to start your day. They know what they’re doing!
• Super (€): The team at Super are doing great things! They roast all their beans in house, use high quality milks & have baristas that know the difference between a latte and a flat white. Worth the note, the staff are super friendly! They might even ask you how your day is (this is a big deal here trust us)!! They also do really tasty/healthy takeaway meals for a super bueno price! They’re worth a visit for sure!

It’s a given that you’re going to need at least one coffee a day when you visit Barcelona, maybe two if you manage to find your way onto a Barcelona Boat Party. Also, it’s not uncommon in Spain to order a shot of pretty much anything in your coffee, it’s called a carajillo, and you can go for Baileys, all the way to the locals’ favourite, brandy. 

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