Four go to Fuerteventura (2026) – Day 1

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Day 1 – Monday 9th March

6.05am: Morning readers! A lie in (or sorts) this morning as it’s the first day of our holiday 👍👍

We’re off to Fuerteventura with great mates, Paul & Sue. Last time we were all together like this, was in Corralejo, back in January, 2024, and we had a great time. This year, we had timed our break to coincide with the annual Corralejo Carnival that runs from the 5th until the 15th March. You can read more about the Carnival itself HERE.

For 2026, the headline celebrations include: the Grand Parade (Cabalgata) on Saturday, March 14th, with other major events including the Drag Queen Gala, Adult Queen Gala, and something nasty that involves sardines! 😮😮

8.35am: We left on time and headed for Paul & Sue’s.

9.15am: We said goodbye to Rothwell and after some, (ahem!) ‘experimentation’ with packing our luggage, we pointed the car in the direction of Birmingham Airport and EasyJet flight EZY6611. We had plenty of time, and it already felt like we were on holiday as, for a change, we weren’t in a rush.

If all goes to plan, we fly at 1.30pm, arriving at 5.45pm, local time. For once, there’s no time difference at our destination, which felt weird (and I’m sure there was an hour’s difference last time??) 🤔. We were soon joining the world and all its wives on the A14, but in spite of the time of day and it being a Monday, we had a hassle-free journey arriving just before 10am – 45 minutes was pretty good going!. With the car safely ‘meeted and greeted, we took the short walk to the Terminal.

With the bag-tagging machine, for once, behaving itself, we were soon heading for Departures. Since last flying from Birmingham, they’ve installed whizzy new security scanning technology – where there’s no requirement to remove any ‘tech’ for inspection, there are no restrictions on liquids, and their scanners are the ‘full body’ type. That suggested, the process should be quicker and smoother, but guess what? Yikes! The area was packed with people – and it certainly wasn’t a queue-free experience! As a result, it took us a while to get through, not helped by my laptop bag arousing their interest.

11.22am: Ten minutes later, with all the contents being signed-off as ‘passed’ we weaved our way through the legion of parfumery staff in Duty-free (and their free spray samples) to finally make it to the pre-boarding area where we joined P & S who skillfully, had somehow leapfrogged us, whilst queuing at Security. I’m not quite sure of the collective noun for ‘sprayers of scent’ – maybe it’s ‘new essence’ (nuisance?).

I digress! 😉

11.30am: With an hour-or-so to kill before boarding, we joined the rest of Warwickshire doing the same – reading, writing, drinking and eating – and of course hoping and praying (given the current global conflict affecting many flights) that their flight wouldn’t be cancelled. Looks like those with Doha in mind were to be disappointed! 🙄😞. Again!!

Time to chill out before the gate is called. Looking ahead to our week ahead, the weather forecast in the area wasn’t exactly ‘scorchio’, but in reality, it was already 10°C warmer than Kettering, so that was a plus!

I’m sure we’ll make the most of it 😎

12.40pm: Huzzah! Our flight was called, and we headed for the ‘holding pen‘ lounge. Capacity of the Lounge = 100, number of passengers =150+ 😬

1.33pm: We’re flying! See you on the other side. Oh good! A group of beer-swilling Brits testing their shouting capacity! Welcome to EasyJet!! 😮. Actually, apart from ‘the lads with large lungs’ it was a good flight. We all think that the budget carriers have upped their game in recent years – great customer service, clear announcements and what looked like a newish plane. There’s still some work to do with the seats that were clearly crafted from the hardest substance known to man – recycled ironing boards – and EasyJet had opted for the NON-recline version, but we coped… just… but I wouldn’t wanted to have been on a flight that was any longer! 😫😫

5.47pm: Hello Fuerteventura!

6.00pm: After retrieving our bags in an almost deserted baggage area, we then headed for the car hire desk. Our company of choice? Top Car. All I can say is it’s a good job they aren’t called Fast Car! The process took absolutely ages – and we’d pre-booked online too!😮. And then, just when the paperwork was completed, we had to walk to another of their buildings to actually pick up the car!

Our chariot of choice was an almost brand new (ish) Skoda Kodiaq – but the 7 seater variant! It was almost the size of a Sherman Tank, meaning it swallowed our luggage with ease. After a quick review of the essential switches, and copious photos to prove it wasn’t us that scratched it, we were on our way. With me behind the wheel and Sue navigating, we took the silky smooth road to our destination. Maybe the locals had heard that I was driving – and stayed at home – but we didn’t encounter much traffic where, twenty-five minutes later, it was now dark, as we arrived at the Hotel.

7.30pm: Our home for the coming week is the Marismas Hotel in Corralejo, and we’ve bagged a one-bedroom apartment each with a bed (obviously!) each, Bed & breakfast for the duration of our stay. Check-in was a detailed experience and carried out with a smile. We were flagging a bit, but first impressions were VERY favourable!

It was now pitch black outside – cue phone torches – and the few pictures I took couldn’t capture a real feel for the place (more of that tomorrow).

7.45pm: The Restaurant closed at 9pm, so we needed to get a wriggle on. Time to simply dump our stuff and find the nearest beer! 👍👍. It was then that we discovered the flaw in our recent ‘detailed check-in’ – we hadn’t been shown how to operate the electronic door keys. What could possibly go wrong?!?! 😉. With four of the finest minds in Northamptonshire on the case, we finally cracked the sequence. How we laughed! Not! 😡😡

On the other side of the door was a very pleasant surprise. There’s ‘large’ and ‘large’ – and then there was our room. ‘Spacious’ doesn’t describe it! It was all very well-appointed with everything we needed! 👍👍👍👍.With Paul & Sue next door in a mirror-image version of our layout, we were perfectly placed.

Food was calling, but more especially BEER. We had originally thought of also doing some planning for the days ahead, but our day was catching up with us, so we postponed any further brain work until tomorrow (I think we’d used up most of it, figuring out how to open our Apartment door! 🙂. Corrajevo is a popular destination for the Brits and luckily, Janet & Jo had made a similar trip earlier this year and Ann had tapped into their experiences a few days ago to create a shortlist 👍😊.

8.05pm: The Restaurant punched well above its weight both in service and variety – tonight was Mexican themed, and there’s a different theme each night. At 16 Euros (c£14 each)Tuesday 10 March 2026, it was AMAZING value. The Staff were great, and the variety of food and its presentation were impressive. I think we’re going to love it here! 😍😍

9.15pm: That’s us done for the day. We left our friends to continue their evening, whilst we headed back to Room 1105 to unpack.

10.33pm: Nighty-night! It’s been a late one for us and we’re shattered. Next stop? Breakfast at 9.30 tomorrow! 😴🥱💤