Hi! I'm Elena! Welcome to my travel blog Creativelena.com.
For me, it is all about “life-seeing instead of sightseeing”: Join me as I create, eat & live my way around the world. Curious?
*Check out my book, “The Creative Traveler’s Handbook”, for learning more about what we mean by creative travel. Travelling means the world to me, makes me fit for everday life and sometimes, I trust, also calmer on the inside. Read this blog with a smile, share what you love and remember to check back regularly: After all, when was the last time you did something for the first time?
“Dear Elena, we have read about your many trips involving farm stays in Lower Austria back in 2017… would you like to come and visit our farm, too?” This is Birgit Gruber reaching out to me earlier this year, Birgit who with her family runs Ofnerhof farm, a member of the Austrian Farm Holidays association. Like a […]
It’s early in the year. Georg mentions to me, rather casually: “I’ve taken some days off over a long weekend in June to walk the Camino from Vienna to Linz.” If there’s something I’ve felt, it’s not just approval, but also a certain kind of longing, even jealousy for his adventure. Especially as I’ve already […]
The Algarve in Portugal. What comes to your mind? Summer, sun, beaches, golf and likely, mass tourism? Luckily, I can assure you that the Algarve is far better than its beach tourism reputation, and that you may also find some quiet corners and precious gems of nature (and culture) here. First of all, it’s definitely easier if, […]
“Heidi … Heidi … Deine Welt sind die Berge … Dunkle Tannen … grüne Wiesen im Sonnenschein …” Words from a song every child in Austria knows: Famous Heidi and her happy life in the mountains! Since our son Liam has been born, we have started to dig up and revive our own childhood memories […]
“Seven weeks old!” – “My oh my, what a cute little boy …” – “Look mum, there’s a baby …!” Many times, we’ve heard similar comments upon our first journey with our baby Liam. Yes, he’s been the youngest guest up here at the Heidi-Hotel Falkertsee, an Austrian hotel specialised in holidays for kids and babies, part […]
Have you ever heard about Kamloops in Western Canada? Those eager explorers among you may have heard of the “city at the confluence” as a central point of the VIA Rail train service passing between Vancouver and Jasper, a particularly beautiful track through the western Rocky Mountains. But Kamloops deserves more than just to be […]
Our journey to Jasper kicked off with a stormy beginning. If the vast wilderness of Western Canada is what you are looking for, then stormy weather should not bother you at any time of the year: At its highest point, just near the turnoff to iconic Peyto Lake, the road from Lake Louise to Jasper leads […]
There is no way of travelling through the Rocky Mountains in Canada without visiting the world famous places (and landscapes) around Banff & Lake Louise. But what if I tell you: “There’s much more to the Rockies than just Banff and Lake Louise …?”! Especially on your first road trip here, you should also choose […]
Oh, Banff. Somewhere “along the travel lines”, I’ve fallen in love with this place. While it’s my third return to Banff in three years of travelling to Canada, it’s the first time for dear Georg by my side. Exploring the settlement history, soaking in the wonderful local hot springs right off the mountainside and climbing […]
“And then, when each and everyone in my group realises the untamed power of the Alpine plants, this ‘medicine’ around us, I thank God for my gift and smile …”, says Christine Sperner, who is our hiking guide for the day and a sort of plant whisperer, too. You could also call her the translator […]