Lettie Goes Travelling

In previous blogs I’ve talked about the non-negotiable aspects of a break — the things you can see and measure. The tangible elements like distance from the airport, transfer times, and location.

But there’s another side to travel that’s much harder to quantify: how a place feels.

I’ve discovered that this can have just as much impact on whether a trip is good… or truly memorable.

I’ve mentioned before that I don’t particularly enjoy New Year at home, so I always try to be away if I can. If it happens to be somewhere warm and sunny, even better — I love a Vitamin D top-up in December 🌞

A few years ago I decided to go to Morocco — Agadir, to be precise.

Prices were good, the weather forecast even better, so I started researching. I kept coming back to the same hotel, part of the Robinsons group. Lovely grounds, right on the beach, lots of sport and exercise activities, healthy food and excellent reviews.

It looked ideal.

But there was one theme that kept appearing in the reviews: this was a German hotel chain, and the majority of the guests were German.

Which makes perfect sense.

Long story short… I booked it.

I arrived in the evening and was the only person from my flight heading to the hotel, but the transfer was smooth enough. The arrival itself was impressive — huge wooden gates standing over two stories high.

The welcome at reception was just as impressive, both cordial and efficient.

And almost immediately I thought:

This place feels right.

It’s quite difficult to explain why, but I’ll try.

The hotel itself was beautiful — lovely bar areas, gorgeous gardens, incredibly peaceful and serene.

The staff were amazing. Always smiling, always helpful, nothing was too much trouble.

The setting on the beach was perfect for my early morning walks before breakfast. I even became aware that hotel security were discreetly keeping an eye on me as I walked alone on the beach, which I appreciated.

But then there were the other guests — and this was going to make or break it.

I loved watching all the sporty families getting involved in beach volleyball, the PT sessions by the pool, and even a New Year’s Day 10k run along the beach.

(I know… right? 😜)

And because I couldn’t understand the conversations happening around me, I had great fun inventing my own little stories about what might be going on in everyone’s lives.

As I wandered around the hotel and grounds — especially on the way in and out of breakfast — people would greet me with a cheerful “Guten Morgen!”

And I would reply, just as cheerfully, with “Good morning!”

Very quickly I realised that I was the only English person staying there.

And I absolutely loved it.

There was a beautiful rooftop bar, and each evening before dinner I would settle myself in the corner of the terrace with a cool drink and watch the sun go down.

Naturally, I took photo after photo.

Probably on the fourth or fifth evening I was doing exactly that when a lady approached me and started speaking quickly in German.

I stopped her and explained that I was English and unfortunately didn’t speak German.

She smiled and said, in perfect English:

“I have seen you taking beautiful pictures of the sunset every night, but you are not in any of them. A beautiful sunset deserves a beautiful lady with it — let me take some photos for you.”

It was such a lovely moment.

Not just because of the compliment (which I’ll happily accept!) but because she had noticed I was travelling alone.

One of the things you don’t get many of when travelling solo is photographs that actually show you were there — rather than just proof that you have legs!

Looking back, I’m convinced the overall atmosphere of the hotel shaped how everyone behaved.

People were relaxed. Kind. Considerate.

And that atmosphere feeds itself.

Everyone is calm, so the place feels calm.

I’ve experienced something similar on cooking holidays — a small group of people thrown together in beautiful surroundings. Everyone who books already shares a similar interest, so things tend to gel naturally.

It made me realise something important.

Even when you travel, you’re not just experiencing the place.

You’re contributing to the atmosphere as well.

Your attitude, your openness, your willingness to engage — all of it shapes the experience.

In other words, the magic of a place isn’t just happening to you.

You’re helping create