Give a saluTe for salou

Costa Dorada favourite guarantees sun and fun.

IT had been a dreich few weeks. It seemed as if we hadn’t felt sun on our faces for ages. So we deserved a wee holiday. The problem was, we were on a strict budget as we’d had a lot of unexpected bills.

All we were after was guaranteed sun, a nice beach and a few good places to eat and drink. Oh, and if we could find somewhere nice but cheap to stay, all the better.

One quick internet search later and we’d booked Salou, on Spain’s Costa Dorada.

We flew into Reus Airport. For sheer convenience, it’s perfect – a 15-minute drive from Salou.

Just remember that if you’re flying back from Reus to your destination – you can get flights to both Edinburgh and Glasgow – to take a book or something to amuse you while you wait for your flight.

It’s a pretty basic airport. There’s a small duty free shop and a wee cafe.

It’s not in the least bit glam. But it does the job.

Salou itself is small but touristy. Busy but has quiet pockets here and there. And hot. Sunny, hot and lovely.

There are dozens of apartments and hotels to choose from and lots offer all-inclusive deals. We had chosen an apartment with a pool and it turned

out to be one of the nicest we’ve ever had. Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, two balconies and a dining area. Oh, and a gym area – not that we saw much of that! And less than £300 for four nights. Perfect!

If you like beaches, Salou is perfect. The coastline stretches for miles and there are perfect, sandy beaches. You can find busy areas offering sports, plus more secluded sandy bays.

There’s nothing quite like swimming in the sea and our kids spent hours doing that.

Actually, we were surprised that two of our children had opted to come with us.

They’re 18 and 21 now and we didn’t think a holiday with their parents would be top of their list.

But of course, when they found out bank of mum and dad would cough up, the thought of a few days in the sun was too tempting.

Plus, of course, they had each other for company and weren’t just stuck with their ancient parents.

Salou is great for young people and teenagers. There are plenty of pubs and restaurants to choose from and lots of them do deals. There are nightclubs, too, but I have nothing to report from any of them – I’m way past any of that palaver!

Eating out is a breeze. You can find just about anything you want – authentic Spanish cuisine, restaurants offering a bit of everything and yes, there are even those pubs serving slap-up Scottish/ Irish/English breakfasts.

We went out to one Spanish restaurant and ordered “small fried fishes” to start with.

The waiter presented them with a showbiz flourish and told us that Scottish people always “ate like the Spanish” by eating the lot, but other British people could sometimes be a bit more squeamish.

Oh, the pressure to eat everything – including fish heads, eyes and scales! It felt a bit like one of the trials on I’m A Celebrity.

My husband had ordered paella. It was served by two waiters who made a great fuss of him and turned the service into a performance, with slowly unfurled napkins and the paella stirred at the table for him.

Honestly, I half-expected them to spoon-feed him.

Meanwhile, another, fussier member of our family – OK, it was me – had simply fancied a pizza. We then spotted another waiter running through from the Italian restaurant next door with it before he plonked it down at our table.

The contrast in service couldn’t have been greater – but it was a darn fine pizza.

As Salou is so close to Barcelona, we’d fully intended to spend a day there. It’s a fantastic city I never tire of. In the end, though, there was simply too much lazing around on beaches and drinking cocktails to cram in!

We did manage to drag ourselves to Port Aventura World theme park – there’s a shuttle bus, or you can walk in abouta 30 minutes. That actually feels quite long if it’s hot, so make sures you take drinks.

However, all that was forgotten once we were there. There are super-scary rollercoasters, but it’s a good option if you’ve got younger kids, as they are well catered for.

Salou is for you if you don’t mind tourists and love sun, beaches and chilling out.

Just don’t forget to try the small fried fishes!

Enjoyable Costa Dorada break serves up I’m A Celeb moment