Only 30 kilometers from Granada, the Masaya Volcano National Park is the first, and largest national park in the country, consisting of a volcanic caldera with two volcanoes and five craters. Its crater “Santiago” has an altitude of 635 meters above sea level, and continuously emits large amounts of sulfur dioxide.

The park opens its doors for the daytime visit and it is also possible to take a short night tour, this is what we did. We took a taxi from Granada, arrived to the park before sunset. This visit is available without reservation, from 5 PM to around 8 PM. You just need to get the road main entrance; if there are people or groups before you, you will need to stand in line, as visitors are allowed to enter and go to the crater in order of arrival. The vehicles are parked one after the other next to the main road. The entrance fee for the night tour is US$10 per person.

The light was amazing when we reached the crater : we could see the golden rays of the sun through the volcano’s smoke.

The eruptions have had a dramatic impact on the surroundings. Rocks and volcanic ashes still cover the area surrounding the volcanoes. The nature is rough yet peaceful. Different types of vegetation appeared after the eruptions. We walked around the main crater for a while. The sky’s colors and appearances were changing a lot and created interesting landscapes photographies!

Our friend Laurine also took some lovely pictures of us, and with us 🙂

There are several trails that lead to the other craters and the Tzinaconostoc Cave in which hundreds of bats house. Those trails distance vary between 1.4 and 5.9 kilometers, but some were closed to the public at this time, and we didn’t have a lot of time to explore because we decided to arrive before sunset, so we just walked around different spots nearby.

Night time Visit

Every night the park offers a spectacle that astonishes its nocturnal visitors: the appreciation of the so-called “lava lake” that can be observed from the very shore of the crater. The crater maintains an incandescence inside due to a persistent lava lake, reason why it was object of veneration by the inhabitants of the area before the arrival of the Spanish colonizers, who baptized the active volcano with the name of “The Mouth of Hell”.

The spectacle is rare and breathtaking: the sky is getting dark, allowing you to see thousands of stars and, from the edge of the crater, right into the bottom of it, you are able to see an amazing lava lake that move with its incandescent color. The contemplation lasts a few more minutes, after that time you will be asked by guides and park ranger to leave the area and go to the main gate.

Mexico City was our first stop in our Mexican trip. After a month backpacking in Panama and Costa Rica, we wouldn’t have a better experience then staying at Xoma Roma while exploring Mexico City! We took a Uber straight from the Airport to Xoma Roma and we arrived in front of an impressive and so modern building!

Our host, Victoria was waiting for us at our arrival. She showed us everything and accompanied us to our room: the elevator opened on the 2nd floor and we discovered our own brand new apartment!

We immediately felt at home! A 64m2 luxury apartment including a living room, bedroom, and a spacious bathroom!

We were so tired from our long travel day that we immediately went to bed, in this huge king size bed!

We wanted to enjoy our breakfast in our own space. So we made our coffee with the delicious coffee that our apartment offered and we grab some fresh bakeries from a shop a few steps ahead. Romas is full of those!

Our bed, the light and fresh bakeries, what else?!

The apartment has its own private balcony on which we can relax. In bed or balcony breakfast, you just have to choose 😉

The rooftop, at Xoma Roma consists of a beautiful heated pool, lounge chairs with an astonishing view on the cityscape where you can relax all day long…

You will also find a lovely swing on the rooftop from where you can admire the sun fall behind the skyline.

We decided to extend the experience with a Tequila shot next to the fire-pit. Its heat gives the opportunity to enjoy the rooftop’s sofa longer, even though nights are cold in Mexico city in November.

and when the city lights turn on, the magic still operates…

And because we really loved it, we even came up for sunrise, before leaving our cozy place for a full visiting day!

While staying in Xoma Roma we took Uber to explore Mexico City, it is very cheap and easy!

We went on the top of Torre Latino Americana from where we saw a beautiful sunset, and also visit the famous Basilica de Guadalupe, for sunset too obviously 😉

Roma’s neighborhood is definitely the best one to enjoy Mexico city’s facilities: just a few steps away you’ll need everything you need : cafe’s, restaurants, bars, shops…

But, what we also like about staying at Xoma Roma and having our entire own apartment, is the option of going back home after sunset, ordering a Ubereats and chillin at home.

Guess where… Oh yes, it’s bath time!

We were so happy with our stay at Xoma Roma !

If you wanna book your stay too:

https://www.viadora.com/room/xoma/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/viadoramx/

I visited Ephesus twice already, but it was always at the wrong time of the day : 11am/1pm, terrible light and so many people! With Eric, we decided to enter the site at 4pm and stay until sunset!

If you’re travelling by yourself, without a tour operator, this is definitely the best choice ever! Why? First, because it will be way less crowded! Most people comes here with a group tour from Turkey’s coastline or from a cruise ship. They usually arrive at 10am and leave in the middle of the afternoon, but this is just the moment you will arrive

The air becomes cooler, especially if you’re travelling in summer as we did, temperatures sometimes rises up to 45°C in the hottest part of the day! And the most important, the light becomes softer…

When entering Ephesus at 4pm, you have about 3 hours to enjoy the site. For us it is enough time to both visit quietly and catch some shots! We took the option the visit the terrace houses, it was not my favourite part but still interesting to see!

Of course, what makes Ephesus so famous through the world and one of the most visited places in Turkey is its spectacular library! 

It was my third time here and I was still very impressed!

We tried to catch some different angles and play with the light!

The more the sun goes down, the less people you will see… We lost ourselves into the alleys, it felt like time had stopped…

But, time hadn’t stopped! At 7pm, the guard kindly reminded us it was time to leave! As usual, we were taking pictures, but the last rays of sun were so worth it !

During our road trip in Montenegro we had the chance to stay for 2 nights in a beautiful Glamping close to Skadar Lake.

Skadar Lake lies on the border of Albania and Montenegro, it is the largest lake in Southern Europe and one of the largest national parks in Montenegro, while the Albanian section is a nature reserve. It’s extremely famous for its diversity of flora and fauna. Lake itself is unusual for mutual vicinity of different living areas and their chain of feeding.

What exactly is “Glamping”?

Glamping is where stunning nature meets modern luxury. It’s a way to experience the untamed and completely unique parts of the world, without having to sacrifice creature comforts. We no longer just want to simply witness nature—we want to live in it. A fusion of glamour and camping, glamping is a way to authentically experience the most awe-inspiring locales.

It’s much more than a nice tent.

The glamping movement is growing, and it’s showing no signs of slowing down. Across the globe, you’ll find incredible destinations, each offering their own unique advantages.

We stay at Hoopoe Glamping.

This lovely place is owned by two beautiful souls, Daria & Matthieu, who met here in Montenegro a few years ago! Daria is Polish, Matthieu comes from Belgium. They met here, close to the place they ended up building their own Glamping. We immediately felt so good here: welcomed by home made lemonades, fruits from the beautiful garden that we can see from the reception’s terrace & restaurant.

For our first night at Hoopoe we experiences the Safari Lodge Oak. A large full equipped tent with the comfort and design of a luxury hotel. Here are some details…

Our Tent has a lovely private bathroom including an open shower, with a view!

All the products in the bathroom are handmade at Hoopoe.

Here you can listen to the sound of nature while showering, it’s magical!

After enjoying our day we had a glass of wine and ended up with an excellent diner on our private terrace.

We finished our beautiful day by gazing at the stars!

Day 2 : Exploring the lake with Mathieu & moving to the Mint Bell Tent 

On our second day at Hoopoe Glamping we joined Matthieu, the owner, for a Canoe lake tour. We first had breakfast on the Glamping’s restaurant: all the products are freshly made and baked! It is such a pleasure to enjoy such a healthy and tasty breakfast with a peaceful nature’s view!

There is no better way than Canoe to explore Skadar Lake! Even thought it’s very hot in the middle of August, the water is refreshing and the views are definitely worth it! Images speaks better than words:

Mint Bell Tent

We spent our second night into a different tent called the Mint tent Bell.  This one was my favorite, probably because of its form which makes it looks very Boho style! Here, once again, every detail counts, the fournitures are so cute!

This tent also has its private outdoor shower that I love so much!

Because the temperatures were so high, our hosts revealed us their secret gem: a natural pool along the river to refresh ourselves; and we had it just for ourselves !

To finish this beautiful day our hosts treated ourselves with a succulent plate of cheese and vegetables that we enjoyed together with a glass of local white wine, on our private wooden deck, until the nightfall…

Our last morning we enjoyed our little cocoon before hitting the road:

we practiced some yoga on our deck and had our last breakfast that we enjoyed directly next to our tent.

We truly loved our escape and can only recommend a stay at Hoopoe Glamping!

**Update: The owners have now added a beautiful pool to their place, which definitely makes a stay there even more better! If you like nature, peace, good raw food, this is the place for you!

Book your stay HERE