6:44am UK, Saturday July 10, 2004

They could afford to jet in to any luxury holiday destination.               

But Hollywood superstar Harrison Ford and actress girlfriend Calista Flockhart - aka Ally McBeal - have chosen the canals of Shropshire for their family holiday.

The stars spent time on a canal boat before checking into a three-star hotel in Llangollen, Wales.              

"They just came in because it was not comfortable in the boat," said manager, Ashraf Elsergany.               

"To be honest when he came in I thought I was just dreaming or something.               

"They said, `Do you have any available rooms ?', I said, `Fine, no problem'."               

The Indiana Jones star, one of Hollywood's biggest earners, is reportedly enjoying a down-to-earth holiday in England and Wales, even stocking up on essentials at a supermarket.               

Flockhart practised yoga in the hotel garden during an early morning exercise session.               

The management even surprised Ford with a chocolate cake after discovering on the internet it was the star's birthday.               

"He couldn't believe it," he said,               

Mr Elsergany added: "To be honest they were just absolutely normal. He just started to play with his son in the middle of the restaurant on the carpet.               

"We had a few visitors and that was absolutely brilliant - everyone was enjoying it, couldn't believe they were sitting in the same restaurant.               

"He was very much a gentle man, normal, you know, not arrogant."