View of palm trees and houses beyond a sandy beach under a clear blue sky It feels like a life time since I was on a beautiful beach doing nothing. But it was actually just a week a go, it’s crazy how quickly time flows by when I got back to Sheffield! I went to Fuerteventura for the annual family trip! Last year we went to Barcelona. Unlike my other adventures this year, this one was most of a relaxing trip so we didn’t do much. Doing nothing and “relaxing” was actually really difficult for me especially for the first few days! I had just finished my placement so my mind was pretty much occupied by worries of forgetting something. Silhouetted palm trees and buildings against a colourful twilight sky Thankfully, this passed after a while and I got to fully enjoy the present moment on such a wonderful island.

Fuerte-what?

For those who don’t know, Fuerteventura is one of the Canary Islands. Located off the coast of Africa, in the Atlantic Ocean, and a part of Spain. Apparently, Fuerteventura is translated to by some as “Strong Winds” which is no lie. Sunny sandy beach with palm trees, parasols casting shadows, and a clear blue sky Even though the sun was scorching hot, it got pretty windy at times. It is divided into six municipalities: Antigua, Betancuria, La Oliva, Pajara, Puerto del Rosario and Tuineje. We mostly stayed in Antigua. Once we landed after a 4-hour flight, we waited around an hour or so for our bus to the hotel. Only to find out that if we took a taxi, it would’ve only taken 10-15 minutes. ? After the long and uncomfortable flight (with RyanAir ?) all I wanted to do was drop all my stuff off and watch the sunset at the beach. Sadly, by the time we got to the hotel, the sun had already set and we were just looking for food!

Hotel

Hotel building overlooking a swimming pool and beach with calm evening sea in the background We stayed at the Geranois Suites Hotel which is located right by the beach! To top it all off, I luckily scored a room that had a view of the beach. Whenever I organise hotels, I always try and get the best room (i.e. the one with the best view!) So far, I’ve been pretty successful with this (apart from the one in Nice, of course.) Person sitting in front of a hotel sign reading Geranios Suites beside stone steps and palm tree

Food

We had breakfast and dinner at the hotel. At first, this actually put me off and I was eager to look elsewhere for food because I was scared it’d be the same as every other hotel, the same things every single day, and after a while (especially if it’s not particularly healthy) it can get a bit sickening. BUT the food at Geranois was always varied and they had healthy options! I got my shot of fruit smoothies every morning just like I did at home. ? At lunch, my dad went to some local supermarkets and cooked some food for us – it was such a treat because seafood was much cheaper ? so we had seafood almost every day!

Things I did

As I’ve said, it was more of a relaxing holiday so compared to my previous travel posts I didn’t do much at all, I did, however:

  • Go to the gym with my parents. On the photos, the hotel gym looked amazing. But in real life, just like the one in Lisbon, it was quite small with limited facilities.
  • Workout (in my hotel room, I actually filmed this on my Instagram story) because the gym opened at 8am. If you went any earlier, the machines wouldn’t have any power. You could use the weights, but in the dark (because sunrise was at 8? I was confused too?) ?
  • Workout at the beach ?

Person in red workout clothes standing on sand at sunset with hands on hips looking towards distant hills

  • Lay down on the beach -burning- tanning, reading, writing my positive habits posts, singing, listening to music, trying not to get sand in my eyes (because the winds were so strong omg)

Person in pink bikini sitting on sandy beach facing calm blue sea under clear sky

  • Swimming. Nothing better than the waves pushing you back and forth. It’s so relaxing ?

Small person standing waist-deep in sparkling shallow sea near sandy shore and rocky breakwater

  • Go on walks with my family, but mostly by myself because my family got too tired and so literally just took naps in the hotel. I saw some beautiful places though – like small markets, colourful houses, shopping centres, more beaches!

Rocky shoreline and calm ocean waves under a clear blue sky on a sunny day Woman sitting on sand at beach near a signpost with distances to various places in Fuerteventura Rocky shoreline with blue sea and distant town under clear sky in Fuerteventura Person walking on a wooden pier towards a building over water with lamp posts on either side Empty sun loungers under straw umbrellas on beach with calm sea and distant mountains Sunny beach with a few people walking near the water and palm tree shadows on the sand

  • Meditated on the beach ?

Woman performing a yoga tree pose on the beach at sunset

  • Force my sister to buy the same dress as me at a shady shop so we could take cute shots (she actually loved it!)

Two women in matching floral dresses posing and smiling on a wooden boardwalk on the beach

  • Break my selfie stick because I tried to get a cool shot and accidentally dipped it in the ocean. ?? Someone remind me to get water-proof cameras/equipment next time or in fact, someone remind me to just buy a drone??
  • Rent a car and explore La Olivia (my dad drove, obviously ;)) where we saw more of a “city” – we went shopping, ate food, ice cream and found more beaches!!

Desert landscape with low shrubs and distant hills beside the ocean

  • Stop by a desert. It was incredible, I’ve never been to one before, but Fuerteventura was just full of them! After a walking around for a while, I started to understand why some people start imagining sources of water. The sun can get to ya!

Woman wearing off-shoulder top and denim shorts standing on sandy desert landscape Expansive sandy desert with distant mountains under clear blue sky

  • Took a selfie with a camel who got scared and nearly attacked me (I have this on video and it shook me ok ? Maybe I should stop taking selfies)

Person with henna tattoo on hand shielding face from sun near camels on a promenade

  • Spent most of the time in a bikini, running around frreeeeeeee~ (this is my natural state, oh and wearing GymShark but seriously why can’t the UK allow me to do this)

Woman in bikini top and shorts sitting on stone wall overlooking beach and sea Person standing waist-deep in shallow sea water with buildings in the background

  • Got a henna tattoo done. For 15 euros (yikes) but then I slept on my hand that night so I got a free one transferred onto my leg. Buy one get one free. Win.
  • Entertained groups of people by singing along (very loudly) to Little Mermaid songs.

Person sitting at edge of wooden dock looking at clear water and rocks beneath

  • I saw a real life mermaid and lined up with all the little kids who wanted a photo with her. I have no shame.
  • Bonded with my family ? We’re always so busy with work life that sometimes we forget to spend some quality time together; this was a great chance for all of us to bond! ?

Three young people indoors smiling, one making a playful sad face Group of four people posing on a pier with a blue sea and sky behind them

Video

Because words and photos don’t do the place justice… I created a quick video with all the clips I took! Watch till the end or skip to 3:52 for the best part ? ✨

I came back refreshed and ready to take on my upcoming placements after finishing a year of full-time work at the University! ?? Side note: Thank you for all the comments and messages on my last post, it warms my heart so much knowing I’ve motivated and inspired some of you. Always choose to live your best life, folks. Prioritise yourself!