What are the opening hours?

Monday 9am - 5pm Tuesday 9am - 5pm Wednesday 9am - 5pm Thursday 9am - 5pm Friday 9am - 5pm

HoliDave, 43a Shambles, York (2025)

30/08/2023

The real authentic experience. The real Italy? If you’ve traveled around Italy and maybe only been to the North then you’re in for a surprise visiting the busy metropolitan city of Napoli, which is very different from the more northern European centers like Milan. We could call it the home of Pizza or maybe the home of Football?
You will see posters and representations of Diego Maradona everywhere in the city. He was an Argentinian footballer but represented as a God in the city of Napoli. Very interesting indeed. The pizza speaks for itself by reputation and you cannot visit the city without enjoying the most delicious Napoli style pizza which will surely blow your mind.
We highly recommend visiting the underground Napoli where you will experience incredible mines that date back to the Roman era which are an absolute incredible feat of engineering! The city is packed with nightlife from bars to music venues and there’s restaurants of different calibers on every Street.
Close to the city is Pompeii which is an absolute must visit if you’re in the area. And why not climb Mount Vesuvius just for good measure. All in all Napoli is a fantastic City to visit which is full of culture and takes you away slightly from the norms of modern northern European life. You could even stay for a week because there’s so much to see in different parts of the city and there’s truly something for everyone.

28/08/2023

Bakewell is beautiful market town situated in Derbyshire which makes for a fantastic day out with the family or friends. The town is incredibly popular so often very busy, but that shouldn't deter you from visiting because the town is full of wonderful pubs and cafes where you can enjoy a nice lunch or tea. There's the wonderful little bridge that crosses the river for some of the car parking near the showground into the town. Famously the bridge is covered in padlocks that people have left there as a memory to see again when they return. This is another wonderful place that you can visit without having to give any thought or planning into your day because you can simply turn up and enjoy the wonderful, quaint and elegant streets filled with all sorts of shops. As a traditional town you can obviously find the town hall which often shows wonderful exhibits or hosts craft fairs. Whenever you visit you will definitely be in for a treat and you can expect a wonderful day out.

27/08/2023

Rivelin Valley Nature Trail
Situated close to Sheffield with easy parking and the beautiful park and facilities at one end of the valley, visiting this beautiful location makes a wonderful day out for family and friends. Or if you want to get a bit of head space why not take yourself on a lovely lonesome walk. As you can see from the stunning pictures, this is a gorgeous area of natural beauty where children can play and be free and where you can take in the gorgeous, picturesque landscape. With its fairly central location in the UK it should be an easy attraction for many to visit from all over. If you live within an hour's distance from Sheffield then this is highly recommended also as a last minute day out where you do not need to plan anything or give it much forethought.

04/07/2023

One fantastic sport that I personally enjoy is via ferrata. The combination between trekking and climbing is something that I think you can struggle to find anywhere else. Being outside in nature but doing more than just walking and trekking gives more excitement and a sense of adventure. This is one of the more difficult routes that I have completed with a section that made me very uncomfortable. However it's possible to complete a via ferrata as a complete novice. All of the different routes are graded in difficulty and there are some fantastic groups on the internet such as ViaFerrata365. When completing this particular route you get fantastic views down on the city of Lecco and the gorgeous lakes which are simply incredible and breathtaking. I can't recommend enough to take part in this sport if it's something you haven't tried before and especially if you love the great outdoors. Simply wow what an adventure! https://holidave.co.uk/2023/06/21/via-ferrata-simone-contessi-lecco/

03/07/2023

We’ve previously written about some other stunning walks like this near Bergamo and I was surprised and excited to find some very similar and equally as beautiful. Situated near Brescia and Bergamo in the north of Italy are these beautiful waterfalls which you can follow up and easy to navigate path. The scenery and the different pools of water are gorgeous and breathtaking. If you want to get out in nature then this is a highly recommended stop and something fantastic to put on your itinerary when traveling around the north of Italy. Depending on season I would definitely recommend wearing long trousers in any forest areas or near wet ground due to the risk of ticks. Definitely put this one on your list. A lot of the paths are accessible to all but when things become a little bit more tricky further up I think it would be impossible to take a wheelchair or pushchair for example so do bear this one in mind. https://holidave.co.uk/2023/04/18/gardone-val-trompia-stunning-waterfall-walks/

02/07/2023

What are fabulous place to visit when in the north of Italy and exploring the lakes. This is the beautiful Monte Isola. Monte Isola is a decent sized Island right in the middle of lake Iseo or Lago di Iseo. It’s very quaint, beautiful and simply a gorgeous place to visit when in the area. Definitely a fantastic and highly recommended day trip if you were traveling around the lakes and would like to see something quite unique and special. The area is famous for freshwater sardines and you can enjoy some good cuisine at some of the local restaurants here. A small ferry will take you across from the Eastern side of the lake in minutes and at relatively low cost. There’s a beautiful little cycling bar next to the ferry station on the edge of the lake where you can enjoy a quick aperitivo before you make the short journey across. It might be worth making restaurant reservations here because there is not a huge choice and I can imagine in the very busy periods you could easily be disappointed when the places are full. If you’re looking for a last-minute day trip then go for it you will not be disappointed. https://holidave.co.uk/2023/04/12/monte-isola-brescia-italy/

30/06/2023

What a simply splendid trip on two wheels. As a family who has always loved motorcycles and scooters we thought it was a great opportunity for two of us to make the long trip on two wheels. We waited for the weather to change and picked a wonderful period in April. Fortunately for us April showers were off the cards and it was sunshine and modest temperatures all the way. This is a highly recommended trip and the idea was planted like a seed back at the end of 2022. I would never have imagined to make such a long trip on a scooter but this particular bike is a vespa 300 and has a significant amount of power for what it is. Buying it second-hand we were able to glean some fantastic information from the previous owners who were avid riders through France and have made many trips themselves. When they explained how comfortable and easy it is to ride a vespa 300 GTS I was completely sold on making the trip. We travelled down to the south of England and across into France on the channel tunnel before making a beautiful journey through France trying to avoid the big motorways wherever we could. We stopped in some fantastic places and did two overnight trips in France before getting into Switzerland and enjoying the fantastic views of the mountains and lakes. We soon found ourselves entering Italy near lake Como and the rest is history. It’s definitely true to say that you see a lot more when you are riding on a bike because you are simply more exposed. What a great holiday, great idea for a trip and what a fabulous adventure.
https://holidave.co.uk/2023/04/10/two-wheels-on-tour-uk-to-italy/

02/03/2023

If you love Italy, and you’re a big fan of getting out on the slopes then we can’t recommend enough that you head to the Dolomites. In northern Italy, there are many small ski resorts, some isolated, and some with better snow cover during the winter than others, but if you’re looking for a multi-resort, impressive and well supported ski area, then look no further than The Dolomite Super Ski area is a huge collection of impressive ski resorts and slopes covering a huge geographical area that is similar to places like Chamonix in terms of being well supported by free ski buses to take you from accommodation and small towns up to the ski lifts 🚠. Prices in our opinion can be slightly better than those, perhaps in France with regard to ski hire and all the extras like eating outside. If you like Italian cuisine, then it’s a no brainer to be skiing in Italy and enjoy fantastic food in the evenings. Even though skiing in the Dolomites is spread over a vast area, you can connect many of the resorts by taking ski lifts the top of the mountains, and linking up onto opposite slopes. In fact, you can ski all around the area in effectively, a big circle or square called or La Sellaronda. Take on the fantastic challenge of skiing all day on this wonderful huge circuit. See more onhttps://holidave.co.uk/2023/02/23/ski-resorts-and-skiing-in-the-dolomites/

02/03/2023

As a young family or at least with young children, we love to get out on the slopes at half term. Coming from the UK. This is the unique and most appropriate holiday where we can take our young children skiing and would highly recommend other young families try this activity too. We’d love to help you plan an itinerary so that you can enjoy the slopes with peace of mind and simplicity. Why not plan ahead for 2024! Destination Italy for us, and some incredible skiing in the Dolomites. But in the valleys of France and through into Italy, there’s many fantastic results to explore and we’ve got some great ideas for you. see more on https://holidave.co.uk/2023/02/15/february-half-term-uk-ski-holiday-vibes-%f0%9f%8e%bf/

13/02/2023

What a great Mini Holiday! This is not our first rodeo and definitely worth shouting about. A Mini Cruise from Hull to Rotterdam or Amsterdam can be secured for a bargain price, especially out of season. You sail out from Hull around 7pm and get a good night's sleep in a comfortable cabin. (If you pay a bit more for a CLUB CABIN, it's worth every penny, the mini bar is free!) - You will arrive into Europort in the morning and you'll have booked your choice of visiting either Rotterdam City or Amsterdam. Rotterdam is a more modern city but both have a heap of great things to do including galleries, exhibitions and loads more. You have the whole day to explore before the bus comes back for you around 6pm to take you back to the boat. This is such a great little getaway that we have done it many times. There's Duty Free, Entertainment, choices of food and even a cinema on the boats. Our Highlight on this trip was the Remastered show! Wow. But also check out the EuroMast, Markthal and SplashTours.https://holidave.co.uk/2022/11/20/rotterdam-the-po-mini-cruise/
Splashtours Rotterdam

07/01/2023

What a fantastic experience, even if we are not the biggest Formula One fans. Monaco is always somewhere we have wanted to explore. While I can imagine that hotel prices are high in Monaco, you can still do Monaco on a budget and here is how…. If you’re thinking of visiting Monaco, then you will most likely want to stay outside of the principality. A short drive out of Monaco will take you into France where you can find very reasonable accommodation. We stayed in an Airbnb which had fantastic facilities and was just a 25 minute drive away. Some areas of Monaco are much more affluent than others. However, if you avoid places like Monte carlo and head to some of the smaller marinas, you can find somewhere to park and enjoy fantastic restaurants without the huge price tag. We found a wonderful Italian restaurant that we absolutely loved. It was family run and both the food and service was incredible. Definitely check them out. https://www.graziella-restaurant-italien-monaco.com/ Driving around, Monaco is pretty straightforward and you really feel the racetrack experience when you drive down straight past the huge Marina full of super yachts. In the evening, everything is wonderfully lit which is something beautiful about visiting towards the end of the year when the nights are long. Interestingly, Monaco is full of tunnels because the buildings / architecture is so dense, this makes for a wonderful experience driving around and you can quite easily get lost if you’re not looking at the road signs. But that’s no problem at all because it’s extremely fun. So enjoy Monaco and definitely don’t be put off by the high price tag of certain aspects. Stay outside of the city and enjoy exploring.

06/01/2023

As a couple, and as an active family with young children, we love to explore marinas, boats, and the sea. The coastline of western and north-west Italy, tracking round into southern France is full of wonderful marinas, and you can see it all from super yachts to stunning catamarans. There is something for everyone. You don’t have to be a millionaire to enjoy the amazing designs and craftsmanship that goes into some of these fine vessels. Also-often in the marinas there are an array of bars and Cafes that we love to visit and enjoy the ambience. This particular trip took us all the way from northern Italy across to St Tropez and there was so much to see along the coast.

05/01/2023

What a great experience, travelling from near Milan, in Italy, to the coast, and then following the coastline all the way to St Tropez before returning with stop offs at these fantastic places! There’s a lot of wealth and expensive tourism in these resorts with high-end, luxury stores, and amazing hotels. But! You can do this part of Europe on a budget. There are many excellent Airbnb opportunities and reasonably priced accommodation through sites like Booking. Look out for our individual posts and we will soon also share some of our wonderful superyacht footage over on https://deepblueimage.com/

12/11/2022

Taking dogs on holiday can be a wonderful thing. The current problem is travelling from the UK at the moment after Brexit, where animals need a pet passport. Sadly, this is really expensive and difficult because to return to the UK, you might also need to get your pets checked in a foreign country. However, you can do so much more abroad with your lovely pets and especially dogs, for example… In Italy, and also France, dogs are often welcome in restaurants and sometimes even supermarkets if they are well behaved. For us, travelling with our lovely pets is something quite magical, and it’s wonderful to be able to enjoy all the same things together. if you have the possibility to get your pet’s passports in a foreign country, within the EU, then this could be your golden ticket to being able to travel with them in the future. https://holidave.co.uk/2022/11/05/travelling-with-dogs-eu/

09/11/2022

Lago di Endine is very much a green lake. What do I mean by green? This is a small lake very close to Bergamo, and in fact probably the closest and easiest to get to for a swim or a quick paddle.

07/11/2022

Lake Lecco and Como are all part of the same water and together they form a huge upside down Y on the map. First of all, we can tell you that there is so much to do on the lake.

05/11/2022

Lake Garda is a fantastic place to be. You can be surrounded by wonderful people, fantastic restaurants, theme parks, and so much more.

03/11/2022

If you were driving from Lecco to Bergamo, you would surely pass by this fantastic pizzeria, Bundle Pizza. It’s clearly got a great reputation by the locals and has a strong brand presence.

01/11/2022

Sushi is really popular in Italy. Clearly there is a much bigger demand for sushi restaurants in Italy than there is in the UK. Most cities in Italy have many sushi restaurants.

26/10/2022

If you’re planning a ski holiday, this hotel would be the perfect place to stay with wonderful ski slopes right outside the door!

23/10/2022

When looking for hotel accommodation, we love to get a good balance between luxury, comfort and of course value for money. Hotel Touring in Santa Cristina ticks this box and ticks another massive box for us which is having a pool or leisure facilities.

20/10/2022

We chose to stay for one night at Hotel Linder due to the fantastic reviews both on TripAdvisor and on Google local. Clearly there’s a lot of positivity and good things to talk about.The hotel has an incredible indoor infinity pool with sauna and steam room facilities.

17/10/2022

The landscape in the Dolomites is dominated by the wonderful rocks/mountains themselves, towering above and shooting out of the ground like something from another planet. There simply is no other place with such distinctive rock giants. We can’t recommend a trip around the Dolomites enough. There are some wonderful hotels such as Hotel Touring Dolomites, Cycling Hotel Linder and La Tana dell Orso. La Tana dell'Orso