April Newsletter
- Bob and Wendy
- Apr 6
- 7 min read
Welcome to the April edition of the newsletter. I think we can safely call this the Spring edition. We have been out and about in Northern Spain and Porto (pictured above) doing a recce for our new tour in 2026. Read on for details. We also have some information on a sponsored event that Wendy and I are doing this summer, which we are hoping you might like to support. As usual we have another “cut out and keep” recipe (with a Spanish theme of course) and this month’s motorhome tips are about continental toll tags.
2026 Tours
Before we get started, it’s time for the monthly sales pitch! We are now open for bookings for 2026. Details of the 2026 schedule are not yet available to the general public. You are only seeing them now because you are a loyal and long suffering newsletter reader.
We have attached out 2026 Previews Leaflet to the email reminder you have just received. If you see anything you fancy you can book online here: https://www.crossingsmotorhometours.com/book-now
If you want to have a chat about any of the tours (including the Northern Spain & Portugal Tour featured this month), please feel free to get in touch. Please be aware that a couple of the tours are sold out already so you may choose to contact us to check availability before filling in the booking form.
2025 Cancellation Space Available
Due to a cancellation we have a space available on our Loire and Burgundy Tour in September this year. Full details are available on the website here:
The space is available on a first-come-first-served basis. If you want to have an informal chat about the tour please contact us straight away (right now if you like). If you would like to go ahead and book, please do so using the link here: https://www.crossingsmotorhometours.com/book-now
Northern Spain and Portugal 2026
We have just returned from an amazing recce down to Northern Spain and Portugal. Our overwhelming feeling is one of amazing (and cheap) food and wine, stunning historical towns and cities, dramatic coastline surrounded by lush greenery, fantastic beaches and coves, great driving roads, mountains views and very friendly locals. I have struggled to find enough adjectives to describe some of the places we have been so have included lots of photos!
Our 25-day tour will start in the UK (as all of our tours do) and we have picked a path down the Atlantic Coast of France with stop-overs in Normandy and the Loire before arriving in the vineyards around Bordeaux where we will have a two-night stop over to visit the city, walk among the vines and drink nice wine!
We then get into Spain passing to the west of the dramatic Pyrenees mountain range. Our first stop if the small, historic city of Pamplona. It is best known as the home of the “running of the bulls” event where the locals charge around the narrow streets chased by a rampant bull. This event will not be taking place during our visit (thankfully) although it is an important part of the history of the place. Away from death-defying blood sports, Pamplona is a beautiful old town, which is very accessible on foot.
Next we head further inland to the stunning city of Burgos. Here you can walk down the tree-lined promenade that follows the River Arlanzon and visit the colossal cathedral and the stunning Santa Maria Arch that provides a gateway into the old walled town.
Next stop we have Salamanca sitting gracefully on top of a hill overlooking the Tormes River. If you were wowed by Burgos, then this place takes it up a notch with its wide array of splendid historic buildings all built around a dramatic ancient central square. The city is a haven for foodies with so many choices of things to eat and drink.
Next we head into Portugal where the scenery starts of change with lots of rocky outcrops and old villages. Our destination is close to the coast just north of Porto. Porto ups the stakes yet again with the River Doura at its heart and the old buildings rising into the hillside on each bank. In the middle of this is the dramatic two-storey Dom Luis Bridge, which you can pass on foot or by tram. You can also take the cable car past it for the best views.
Porto is literally packed with churches and palaces and yet another stunning cathedral. It also has an amazing train station where the grand lobby is lined with murals made of local porcelain tiles depicting Portuguese life. Meanwhile, as the above picture shows, it takes four Portugese police officers to arrest Wendy!
This packed tour now continues with a trip to Santiago de Compostela. This is the end point of the famous St James’ Way pilgrimage path where the pilgrims (hikers) have walked up to 500 miles (I feel a song coming on) to get there. We drove to it and it still felt like an achievement. We marvelled at the walkers who were crashed out in the main square admiring the cathedral – the end point of their mammoth walk.
The tour now changes pace a little as we move into the largely unspoilt and undiscovered Galicia region of Northern Spain. Here you can expect rolling green hills leading to pretty bays, harbours and fishing villages. As we head east you move onto Costa Verde or the Green Coast, so called due to the lush vegetation all around the coastline.
This in turn leads to probably the most dramatic stretch of motorway that you are likely to encounter with the Picos de Europa mountain range on your right and the craggy inlets and sweeping cliffs of the coastline on your left. Our tour will spend six days passing along this stretch with time spend both coastal and mountain campsites (but nothing too scary on the drive).
Our final destination is what proved to be our favourite city – San Sebastian. We are in the Basque Region now, which has retained its own language. The locals call the city Donastia. This is a delightful place with a pretty old town set out in a grid of streets all lined with restaurants, cafes and boutique shops. It also has two bays and you can climb up to the statue of Mary to enjoy the views of the town and across to the Bay of Biscay.
After all that excitement, it is time to head back up through France, following a slightly different route and back home.
Our Northern Spain & Portugal Tour will run from 18th May to 11th June 2026.
Sponsored abseil off Coventry Cathedral
On a very different note, we would like to tell you about a sponsored event that both Wendy and I will be taking part on Saturday 19th July 2025. This is on behalf of an excellent local Coventry charity that Colin & Sue (Crossings' tour leaders) are involved in. The charity provides vital support for local families in need in the Coventry area. Full details of the charity and what they do can be found here: https://covcitymission.org.uk/
We have a very close connection to Coventry as my Mum was born there and survived my grandparents house being bombed during the WW2 raid that partially destroyed the old cathedral. If you have visited the NEC Shows you may have met my Uncle Rog who still resides in Cov. I also went to college there and our “passing out” ceremony took place in the cathedral. Therefore, it makes perfect sense to throw ourselves off the top of Coventry’s tallest building attached only by a rope.
The charity has a Just Giving page if you feel that you would like to contribute. If you are fairly local to Cov, you can also come and watch us do it. Sue has booked the church hall for afterwards so you can come and have a cup of tea and maybe even a burger! Full details to follow. In the meantime, here is the link to the Just Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/coventrycitymission/donate
Please mention our names if you donate.
Coq au Van (the amusingly titled recipe feature)
One-pan Spanish Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts - OR 6 chicken thighs
3 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
1 cup uncooked white rice
2 ¼ cups low sodium chicken broth
1 lemon
chopped cilantro or parsley - for garnish
Spanish seasoning mix
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon coriander - (see note)
¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning
Instructions
In a small bowl whisk together all ingredients for the Spanish seasoning mix. Divide in half and set aside. Cut the lemon in half, then thinly slice one half - for garnish - and reserve the other half for juicing later in the recipe.
Place chicken in a medium bowl. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil, then toss to coat well. Use half of the prepared seasoning mix to rub on both sides of each piece of chicken.
Drizzle a large skillet with remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and bring to medium heat. Cook chicken for 2-3 minutes on each side until browned. Transfer to a plate. (It won't be cooked through at this point)
Add rice, chicken broth, juice from 1/2 of the lemon, and remaining seasoning mix and stir to combine. Return chicken to the pan on top of the rice. Cover and cook for 20-25 minutes until liquid is absorbed, rice is tender, and chicken is cooked through.
Garnish with lemon slices and freshly chopped cilantro or parsley and serve immediately.
Motorhoming Tips
Prompted by our recent recce we thought it might be useful to provide an update on the use of toll tags when in Europe. It is possible to avoid toll roads when driving on the continent, but sometimes it makes sense to use them. Tolls are typically collected at toll booths on the motorways where you pay with cash or card. Some countries are introducing “free flow” motorways where there are no toll booths and number plate recognition is used.
You may like to consider a toll tag. These are small electronic devices that you put in the windscreen. You buy them before you leave the UK and link them to your bank account. With your tag in the windscreen there is no to use the machines at the toll booths – you simply drive up to the barrier and it opens. Payment is taken directly and there is a website where you can view your statements.
There is a small cost involved in having the tag and then you pay the standard toll fees when you are using the toll road network. Some tags cover more than one country. There are a few companies offering the tags. We and our customers use either Emovis (https://www.emovis-tag.co.uk/) or Bip & Go (https://www.bipandgo.com/en/).
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Please feel free to contact us at any time. When we are away, calls will bounce to our mobiles at no expense to yourself.
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