We took advantage of the September 7th holiday in Brazil on a Thursday and booked a trip at the last minute to visit 3 cities in Spain very close to Portugal: Badajoz, Merida and Cáceres.
Day 1 – Thursday – 09/07/2023
We left Cascais just in time for lunch and gave the kids plenty of snacks to keep them satisfied and sleep in the car. It worked! We arrived in Badajoz after almost 3 hours of travel and went straight to the restaurant recommended by the blog. Vagamundos, Ajonegro Tapestry.
Having lunch in Badajoz
As it was already close to closing time for the famous siesta, we managed to get a free table in the square and we had to order all the dishes at once. We didn't find any soup on the menu for Ju, but she had a few tapas that we ordered, as did Paddy, and we were very happy with the result. Everything was delicious! We ordered tuna, scallops, octopus and a certain SOLOMILLO IBÉRICO AL AJONEGRO TOSTED which was spectacular.
To our delight, the children were able to play freely in the empty square with the balloons that I had blown up at the time and we were able to relax and plan the itinerary a little with my father-in-law, who this time came with us to enjoy the trip with the children. It was his first trip alone with us! 🙂
We walked to where we had parked the car and the city was pitch black. No people walking. No cars moving. Just us and our little brats making noises that probably all the neighbors could hear. What a strange feeling.
Our hotel in Badajoz
We drove for about 15 minutes to our hotel, the Illunion Golf Badajoz, and as it was very hot, we did the check-in without stress and we ran to put on our swimsuits and bathing suits to relax in the pools. We spent a good while enjoying the space, until it started to get windy and cooler, and we thought it would be wiser to go upstairs to take a shower and get ready for dinner.
I found the hotel to be very pleasant, with good service and good circulation areas and pools. I missed a playground or a playroom, and I think the water temperature could be a little warmer in the pools, especially the small one. I didn't like the carpet in the hallways of the apartments, because there were lots of stains on them, and I wonder if it's because they allow dogs in the hotel. Luckily, there aren't any in the rooms. I found the room to be cramped for the four of us, but it was so nice to cuddle up together that I won't complain... lol
Some photos:
Dining at the hotel
We were tired and decided to have dinner at the hotel restaurant. My father-in-law took a table outside, right next to the pool, and we were very well attended by a Spanish waiter who made us want to dine there for the next two nights as well.
The kids played around the pool with any friends who showed up, we drank without worrying about driving, we ordered reasonably priced and tasty food, and when we got tired, we paid and took an elevator to go to sleep. Practicality when traveling with kids is great – and necessary!
Day 2 – Friday – 09/08/2023
We had a beautiful breakfast at the hotel and went to explore the city of Merida. We drove for almost an hour with some snacks, balloons and music on Spotify so that no one would be sad in the car. Traveling should be fun!
Exploring Merida
We parked the car very close to the city's main attraction, in a spot that appeared at just the right time for us. We were surprised, we took advantage of it and after we got out of the car, we even heard from a pedestrian that we had gotten lucky. I was already excited about the city, I'm not going to lie. I love these signs.
Roman Theatre and Amphitheatre of Mérida
Since we were right there and everyone was feeling energetic and in a good mood, we took the opportunity to go and see these magnificent temples. We got the combined ticket – Ticket for the Complete Monumental Complex (Theater-Amphitheater, Alcazaba, Circus, Moreria, Crypt of Santa Eulalia and House of Mitre-Columbariums) for €15 – and off we went straight to the Roman Amphitheater, because we knew that would be what Patrick would be most excited about since we always talk to them about fights, wars, previous peoples and other details.
A summary of the place: Built in the 8th century BC, as evidenced by the inscriptions found on its stands, the Amphitheatre was the stage for very popular shows: gladiator games, wild animal hunts and fights between wild animals, in artificial settings that recreated forests, jungles with lakes or deserts. All this took place above the large wooden platforms that formed the arena. The approximate capacity of this gigantic space was between 15 and 16 thousand spectators. (source: Merida Tourism)
We were impressed by how well-preserved it was and how perfect the construction was. It's easy to close your eyes and imagine the battles in space, especially after watching the Gladiator movie...lol. If I could, I would have stayed there a lot longer, but the sun was hot and the kids aren't very patient, so we saw what there was to see and left.
After the Amphitheater, we walked to the Roman Theater, which is right next to it. It's beautiful, but to our surprise, they were preparing the space to host a very special show at night because it was daytime. September 8th, Extremadura Day, and therefore our visit had a lot of equipment spoiling the view. But I have to confess something: I was a little jealous of those who had tickets to the show there. Imagine listening to classical music at night in such a special place? I want to do that one day, for sure!
Some details of the place: The theatre was built between 16 and 15 BC, when the colony was promoted to the capital of the province of Lusitania. Like the adjacent amphitheatre, the theatre was partly built on the side of a hill, which substantially reduced the cost of its construction. Although the Romans were not very fond of theatre, a prestigious city could not fail to have a building for stage games. (Source: Merida Tourism)
Walking through the streets of Mérida
As we were leaving the attraction, I called a few restaurants that we found good on TripAdvisor and after a few crowded places, we ended up choosing NATURA GastroArtWe saw that the distance was very short and we went on foot.
We walked down José Ramón Mélida Street, which is pedestrian-only and has an interesting sunshade and water jets to cool off from the heat. It was essential for us to recharge our batteries after spending more than an hour walking around in the blazing sun. We loved walking around the city center in peace and seeing beautiful places like the Portico of the Municipal Forum of Augusta Emérita on the way.
Having lunch in Merida
This restaurant was the #3 in the city when we made our reservation and from the photos of the dishes, my mouth was watering before I decided to call. When we arrived at the door, I confess that I didn't really like what I saw, but we went in anyway and didn't regret it. We were placed at a hidden table that made us feel comfortable enough for the kids to make noise, we were served by the owner and chef Fernando, and everything we ordered was delicious, especially the Iberian Ham. The restaurant was empty when we arrived, which gave us a bad feeling of being tricked, but when we left it was packed and everyone seemed very happy. Worth a visit!
Temple of Diana in Merida
We left lunch straight to buy ice cream for dessert very close to the Temple of Diana, in Heladeria Artesana Agustin Mira, which has existed since 1929. Impressive, right? A delight, of course. Then we went on to see the famous temple that must have been built during the time of Augustus and whose state of conservation is impressive. Since we had the pre-arranged ticket, we went up the stairs, got our tickets stamped and continued up. Beautiful, beautiful!
Roman Bridge of Merida
We continued walking even with the strong sun – holy children's cart that carries tired children when the parents are even more tired – and we passed the statue of Capitoline Wolf before we get to the long-awaited one Roman Bridge of Merida. We had seen some beautiful photos, but the main reason we walked there was that we had to throw rocks into the Guadiana River with Paddy. We had talked about it earlier in the day and he had obviously been waiting the whole time for the incredible moment of lots of rock throwing by all the travelers in the family.
The problem was that when we got to the bridge we couldn't find any rocks to throw into the river. It was frustrating for him, poor thing. But we found the solution to his problems: the only way was to go into one of the last attractions in the city to get some rocks. And off we went with him, hopeful.
Arab Alcazaba in Merida
Summary: This great fortress was built during the Muslim period of Merida by the Umayyad emir Abd al-Rahman II, in the year 835 of our era. The person in charge of designing it was the architect Abd Allah, who in order to build this Alcazaba, the oldest in the Iberian Peninsula, sought inspiration in Byzantine models. The walls, 2.70 meters wide, feature facings made from ashlars and other materials reused from previous periods. It's amazing!
We took advantage of the fact that we already had the agreed ticket and went in without hesitation. We walked around a bit inside, climbed the walls, took some beautiful photos, picked up some rocks and went out to throw them. It was a hit with the kids and adults alike.
After this last attraction, we walked back to the car and it was a struggle with the heat, I won't deny it. The good thing was that we managed to get Ju to sleep in the stroller and we could just focus on Patrick, who was also exhausted when he got to the car and slept the whole way back to the hotel – just like me, who was in the back seat with the kids lol.
Having dinner again at the hotel
We arrived very tired and went straight to our room to take a shower and rest a bit. I even went out by car to some nearby supermarkets to buy more fruit, snacks and, most importantly, soup for Juju – she loves it and the hotel didn’t have it – but I found everything closed. That’s when I remembered the holiday. 🙂
We ate delicious pasta at the restaurant, the children played with others at the hotel and we were able to rest until it was time to go up to bed. An intense but happy day!
Day 3 – Saturday – 09/09/2023
Another very complete breakfast and today was the day to meet the cutie Cáceres, the magical medieval city of Extremadura. From the little research I had done about these three cities before the trip, I had understood that Mérida was more captivating than Cáceres, which in turn was more interesting than Badajoz. After visiting all three, I can say that my order of preference was Cáceres, Mérida and Badajoz. I will try to show why in photos later.
We drove for almost 1h30 to Cáceres and it was quite tiring because no one slept or spent much energy at the hotel because it was raining. We parked the car in a street parking spot again and went down a hill towards the city's main square, Plaza Mayor. We stopped at a playground which was great for the kids to have some fun and to get through the day's sightseeing.
Plaza Mayor in Caceres
We arrived at the square and I loved what I saw. Few people, beautiful architecture, a clean and quiet place and plenty of space for children to play. We went to the famous city sign and found some water fountains that delighted the little ones. We stopped to read calmly about the walking route we would take and then headed straight to the walled city, which is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
The Ancient City of Cáceres
THE Ancient City of Cáceres is perfect for visiting on foot and has Renaissance mansions and palaces beautiful, surrounded by 12th century walls. We stopped to visit the Co-Cathedral of Santa Maria and Patrick and I went up to the tower, which has a beautiful view of the city. We listened to street artists, walked through the alleys and then went down to look for a restaurant for lunch.
Having lunch in Cáceres
We chose the Puerta de la Estrella Almagest, as it had good reviews and tables on the terrace in the square, which was great for letting the kids have more freedom. The service was good and the food was OK, but I think this was the restaurant we liked the least on the whole trip. We tried the famous Extremadura cheese, Torta del Casar, and I thought it was tasty, but nothing special.
We then stopped at an ice cream shop, much to the delight of the children, and returned to the car.
Dining at the hotel
We then drove to the hotel and everyone in the back seat fell asleep…lol. It was raining when we arrived, so we had to go up to the room, take a shower and play within the four tight walls. We went down to our last dinner at the hotel, and since Celo was feeling a little sick, he ended up going to bed early while my father-in-law, the kids and I ate.
Could it have been the lunch food? Hmm…that's our biggest suspect.
Day 4 – Sunday – 09/09/2023
We had our last breakfast at the hotel and since it was raining, we couldn't even enjoy the pool until checkout time. We calmly packed our things, put on our jackets and let the kids play freely in the lobby until we left.
We went to explore calmly Badajoz and then we went straight back to our little house in Cascais.
Exploring Badajoz
In Badajoz, we parked the car in Alcazaba Park, public, and we went to explore everything on foot with the children's stroller.
We found a very well-kept playground with interesting toys that were a hit with the kids. Now looking at the map I see that it is called Castillo Oscuro Children's Park. We stayed there for a while and then went to explore this great monument in the city, walking up to the Espantaperros Tower.
Then we went down from there and arrived at Plaza Alta, which is the most characteristic square in the city, and as the children were already tired, we stopped for lunch at one of the restaurants there.
Having lunch in Badajoz
We chose the The Casana because it had the best rating on TripAdvisor. We ordered jamón ibérico, croquettes and solomillo, and everything was good, but the service left a little to be desired.
On the way to the Guadiana River in Badajoz
We went for a walk around the city with the aim of throwing stones into the Guadiana River, something we had promised the little guy. We walked through empty, empty streets, and I had the feeling that it was a ghost town. Even in the Plaza de Espana we hardly saw anyone. Cathedral of St. John the Baptist It was closed, so we only saw it from the outside, and we kept walking.
We arrived at the famous Palmas Gate, built in the 16th century to serve as the main entrance to the walled city. It's so pretty. I made sure to pass underneath, of course.
Then finally at Puente de Palmas, the oldest bridge in Badajoz, we started throwing all the stones we had collected around the city. What joy!!! And some people say that children need toys… lol
We spent a long time throwing pebbles into the river and when we ran out, we went back to the car. Note: Celo went back to get the car while Luiz, the kids and I walked to the bridge. It would have been a real pain to go back to the Alcazaba with them after walking so much.
We returned to Cascais peacefully, with everyone sleeping in the back seat. The trip with my father-in-law was an absolute success 🙂 Here's to more!!
If you want to know more about other tours in Spain, see this link here.
