17 March 2023

This summer we decided to stay a little closer to home and try something a little different from our usual beach holiday and planned a family road trip to Ireland, and it didn’t disappoint. We decided to travel up to Wales the day before our ferry crossing to break up the long journey. We stayed overnight in Wrexham, which meant we could also explore some of Wales before heading over to Dublin on the afternoon Ferry. We also treated ourselves and upgraded our ferry ticket to have access to the Stena Plus lounge. I can highly recommend doing this as you then have access to drinks, snacks and get to enjoy a comfortable and relaxed lounge area. Once in Ireland we spent our first night in Dublin, which was just a stopover, as the next day we were heading over to the west of Ireland to visit Galway. It was extremely easy to disembark the ferry and our hotel was situated just 15 mins away from the ferry port and approximately 10 minutes outside the centre of Dublin. Galway was fantastic we spent 3 nights in Galway and we stayed right in the centre by the harbour area. It is a very easy city to walk around with lots of shops and restaurants to explore. During our stay in Galway we took the ferry over to the Aran Islands. This was certainly one of the highlights to our holiday. We explored the island with our own private guide in a 4x4 vehicle. After leaving Galway we headed up to Westport driving through the gorgeous Connemara National Park, with a stop off enroute for a family hike up Diamond hill and a visit to Kylemore Abbey. The scenery in this area is breath-taking and definitely worth a visit. Westport was a delightful Georgian Town to visit and we thoroughly enjoyed visiting this area of Ireland. Whilst in Westport we took a cruise along Clew Bay where we saw lots of seals and also John Lennon’s former island. We also decided to head out for a beach day as well and visited Keel Beach on Achill Island in Co Mayo. This has got to be one of the most picturesque beaches I have been to and certainly the only beach with sheep in the background as well. Our final 2 nights were spent back in Dublin. Myself and my husband visited Dublin 20 years ago, but this time we had our 2 daughters with us, so we wanted to show them all the sights. We took them on the hop on hop off bus, but the main highlight of our stay in Dublin had to be the zoo and seeing the elephants so happy bathing and frolicking about in the water. My top tip would be if you have got a car with you then you can park in Phenix park and then use the hop on hop off bus to get about. I would check the schedules though, so avoid any waiting about. We thoroughly enjoyed a visit to Ireland and were blessed with beautiful weather. Driving in Ireland was a real pleasure as well and the roads were a lot quieter than our roads in England. Once we got back to Wales we gave ourselves a final treat before heading home and visited Gwrych Castle in Wales , which will be very familiar to any I’m a Celebrity fans. Unfortunately we were a couple of months too early to see Ant and Dec. We will definitely be returning to the ’Emerald Isle’ again soon.

12 October 2020

With 2020 being such an unusual and strange year, we swapped our 3-week Florida holiday for a week in God's Own Country, Yorkshire. We have been to Yorkshire before, but have never explored this particular area. We decided to stay in a beautiful cottage which was in a tiny hamlet called Beck Hole near Goathland. You may be familiar with Goathland, as it is where the TV series, Heartbeat was filmed and is better known as the fictional village of Aidensfield. The area is stunning, and you can see why so much television is filmed here, it’s like stepping back in time. The train station also appears in the Harry Potter films as Hogsmead Station. Driving was such a pleasure, and the roads are lovely and quiet, you just have to steer clear of the local wildlife, with sheep roaming freely across the roads. The scenery was breath-taking and alive with all the wild heather. Due to Covid restrictions we had to really plan out our itinerary in advance and map out what we wanted to see and do each day, as everything needed to be pre-arranged. This worked well for us and really paid off. We even prebooked a lunch stop on the way to Yorkshire to break up our journey from Kent, followed by a further pit stop to pick up a click and collect shopping order in York. On our first full day we explored Goathland itself and completed a treasure trail which led us around the quaint village and allowed us to indulge on some of the local history. This is such a fun way to enjoy the area. There are so many wonderful walks and trails. We also wandered down to the Mallyan Spout, which is the tallest waterfall in the North York Moors. It is well worth a visit, but does involve clambering over rocks, so good footwear is a must. The weekend we were there would have been the local scarecrow festival and even though the festival did not happen due to Covid restrictions the villagers still displayed their scarecrows. On our second day we ventured into the picturesque seaside town of Whitby, where we made good use of our English Heritage membership and visited Whitby Abbey. We all thoroughly enjoyed our visit and I think out of all the areas we visited, Whitby was one of my favourites. It was also the nearest main town to where we were staying, which made it perfect for a meal out. Other highlights included our visit to Scarborough, which was probably the sunniest day of the week; we made more use out of our English heritage with a visit to Scarborough Castle followed by a walk along the harbour and beach. York was magnificent! We really enjoyed the Jorvik Centre and York Minster cathedral especially and as both attractions were indoors, we were able to escape the rain. My daughters loved the Shambles area which resembles Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter Movies. They took full advantage of spending their money on Harry Potter merchandise. We decided to use the park and ride bus service in York. This took the stress away of trying to find a parking space in a busy city. The North York Moors Steam Railway is worth experiencing. The preserved historic railway stretches for 18 miles through the heart of the North York Moors National park and runs from Pickering to Whitby. The stations that you pass through are all restored and presented to look like how they would in decades gone by. A true hidden gem was the Ryedale Folk Museum, which is nestled in a beautiful village called Hutton-Le-Hole right in the heart of the North York Moors national park. We spent about 3 hours here stepping back in time and exploring cottages, buildings, and shops from the past. I would recommend a visit and it was appealing for the whole family. We didn’t get the warm sunshine of Florida, but we had such an amazing week away and loved the opportunity to see some of the wonderful areas in our own beautiful country and we will definitely be back in the future.

05 July 2019

Last Sunday I had a very bright and early start with a visit down to Southampton to have a look around Cunard's Queen Victoria cruise ship. I have booked lots of clients over the years on Cunard ships, but this was a perfect opportunity to experience this magnificent ship and all her beauty for myself and she didn't disappoint! She has a very homely feel with her Edwardian dark wood and is very traditional in style. Queen Victoria carries 2061 Guests and a crew of 981 and is the smallest in the Cunard fleet. She is perfect for both regular cruisers looking for more value, flexibility and choice and also first time cruisers. There is plenty to do onboard and you will certainly feel special and well looked after. Cunard are very proud of their famous white star service and there is always one crew member for every two guests. Cunard are one of the only mainstream cruise lines to maintain this on their ships. The crew have to complete white star training, which is very intense, but unless they pass then they cannot work for Cunard. They have four values charismatic, thoughtful, refined and proud. First stop on our tour was to visit the staterooms. We saw the main four types of cabins – Britannia (inside, outside and balcony), Britannia Club, Princess Suites and Queen Suites – each category has its own restaurant. You can’t dine up, but you can dine down if you wish to dine with friends who are in a different category to you. We headed straight to one of the grand suites, which are the most lavish suites on the vessel. By staying in this suite you will also have the advantage to be able to dine in the Queens grill. These suites also enjoy a butler and concierge service as well as lots of other privileges. We then proceeded to see a variety of different staterooms. I was really impressed with the size of the interior staterooms. They were very roomy. The outside staterooms all have picture windows as well. If you are wanting to book a balcony stateroom on Queen Victoria, a great tip would be to try and get a corner stateroom. There are 8 to choose from and they all have larger balconies. There are also 20 accessible staterooms onboard. They do sell out extremely quick though, so you need to book well in advance. If you are wanting a stateroom with a bath the first category with baths are the Princess Grill staterooms. After viewing the staterooms we then headed to the front of the cruise ship to view the Commodore Club. This is a great bar to come to for a pre-dinner cocktail, whilst enjoying the panoramic views. We also visited the Yacht Club as well, which is where you should aim for if wanting to dance the night away to live DJ's and bands until the early hours. My highlight was the Royal Court theatre. For a special treat you can hire a private royal box for the evening, which is bookable for up to 4 people and includes a half bottle of champagne and nibbles. This would be fantastic if celebrating a special occasion whilst on board. By the time we got to the outdoor decks the sun was shining and I could just imagine what it would feel like to be relaxing by the pool on a day at sea. There are two swimming pools onboard the Lido pool and the promenade pool. Onboard Queen Victoria there are plenty of sunbeds and areas with shade as well. I loved the Winter garden area, which is a really airy lounge area and if the weather is bright the roof retracts as well. One of the most popular bars on board is the Golden Lion pub, which is very casual bar and designed to feel like a traditional London pub. You can enjoy a fish and chip lunch or even some karaoke of an evening here. This is also one of three venues you can go to if wanting to dress casual on a formal night. The other 2 venues are the lido restaurant and the Winter Garden. Formal nights onboard the Queen Victoria are a real occasion and all part of the fun. Cunard have more formal nights than other mainstream operators so on a week-long cruise you might expect 5-7 formal nights. The dress code for the gala evenings for men is either a dinner jacket, tuxedo, or suit and tie and evening or cocktail dress for the ladies. Although you can opt to stay casual and visit one of the casual venues the majority of guests will be dressing up on these evenings. They often have grand themed nights too such as Cunard Balls, Masquerade Balls, White & Black Theme Nights, Egyptian Nights, Royal Ascot themes and more. Another unique experience onboard is the afternoon tea in the Queens room. This room is so elegant and is a ball room as well. It was designed in the style of Osborne House - Queen Victoria's holiday home and every afternoon at 15:30 you can have afternoon tea. This is all included in your cruise fare. The Captain’s Cocktail Party is also held in this room. It has a large dance floor and bands often play in here. They also have dance hosts available for those travelling by themselves as well. I hope this has given you an insight into what you can experience travelling on Queen Victoria. If you would like to experience this elegant ship for yourself, please do get in touch as I would love to help you.

18 June 2018

In April 2018 I was extremely lucky to visit California on an educational with four of my colleagues. It was a short visit of five days, but we certainly packed a lot in whilst we were there and had an amazing time. We flew from Heathrow with American Airlines into Los Angeles airport and from there we hired a car with Alamo and drove to Huntington Beach. It was very easy to get to the car hire office from the airport, however I would try to avoid arriving in rush hour if possible, as the roads get gridlocked and it takes a long time to get anywhere at that time of day. I would also recommend having a Sat nav as it proved to be essential for us. Huntington Beach was our first stop where we spent 2 nights. We stayed at the Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort hotel, which is a fantastic choice with great facilities and literally across the road from the beach. Huntington Beach is known for Surf City. You can spend ages just watching the surfers from the pier. The area has a very relaxed and chilled out feel and the beach here stretches for 11 miles. I loved Huntington Beach and could have easily spent longer here. The location is ideal as a base for anyone looking to visit Disneyland as well. On our first morning we hired bikes. This was great fun. The area alongside the beach is all flat and paved, so felt very safe and easy to cycle around. There are lots of shops and restaurants to have a meander around and there was even a craft market as well. Next stop was San Diego. We drove down the coastal road and it took approximately 3 hours to get there, but well worth travelling this route to admire all the lovely views and towns along the way. We visited Sea World first although we had very limited time there and too experience the park properly, I would recommend arriving first thing. San Diego was a beautiful city with so much to see and do. I just got to see a taster of it! During our trip we also visited the USS Midway – Aircraft carrier museum which was used during the Korean, Vietnam and Falkland wars. This is a must visit whilst in San Diego. After visiting the USS Midway, we enjoyed lunch at the Seaport Village which is only a 10 minute stroll away and a really pleasant area to eat and watch the world go by. We also had a site visit and breakfast at the Hotel Del Coronado – The most famous hotel in San Diego and just minutes from downtown. The Hotel is Beautiful and has the wow factor. It was where Marilyn Monroe’s film some like it hot was filmed and where author L. Frank Baum wrote at least three books in the OZ book series. It is overlooking the most gorgeous beach with views of Mexico in the distance. Our last and final stop on our itinerary was Palm Springs. It took approx. 2 hours to drive from San Diego to Palm Springs and when we arrived we got to experience the Palm Springs Ariel tramway. You get to ride on the world’s largest rotating tram car which travels up for over two and half miles along breath-taking cliffs of Chino Canyon. Once at the top we were able to explore Mt. San Jacinto State Park with its many walking trails and stunning scenery. The views were magnificent. Palm Springs has lots of Hollywood history - with stars such as Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley both having homes here in the 1950’s and 60’s. It was popular with celebrities due to the close distance to Hollywood and the sunny climate. The highlight of my stay in Palm Springs was the jeep tour excursion we did on our last morning. We were picked up by jeeps and taken into the Dessert. We then had a guided walking tour of the canyons and leant all about the native American Indians and how they lived. The scenery was stunning although we did have to watch out for rattlesnakes along the way. I thoroughly enjoyed visiting all these locations in California and if you would like to find out more about my trip or would like some help to tailor make your own Californian Adventure then please get in touch.

10 July 2017

Wow! I have had the most amazing 5 days staying at Universal Orlando Resort and experiencing all the excitement and fun of the rides, attractions and entertainment including the brand-new waterpark Volcano Bay. I travelled with 28 colleagues and we started our trip in style, flying with Virgin Atlantic in Premium Economy class. We stayed at Universal’s newest hotel, the Loews Sapphire Falls Resort, which is a fantastic Caribbean-themed hotel located a short water taxi ride from Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure theme park. I really loved the pool area at this hotel. The water was a perfect depth and well suited to families with young children. There was even a waterslide. I liked the fact the pool was open until 11 o'clock at night, which means if you have had a fun packed day in the parks you can still have an evening swim and sometimes they even show movies, which you can watch whilst in the swimming pool. The hotel itself was light and airy and had beautiful spacious rooms with extremely comfortable beds. Our week started in Universal Studios with a VIP tour. We explored the Wizarding World of Harry Potter first. If you are a Harry Potter fan then this is not to be missed. I loved the Harry Potter and the Escape From Gringotts ride and Diagon Alley is a must. We then caught the Hogwarts Express, which takes you across to Hogsmeade where we experienced some Butterbeer – the Frozen Butterbeer was really refreshing. After exploring the rest of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter we then moved onto to Marvel Super Hero Island and Jurassic Park. My favourite rides in Universal’s Islands of Adventure were the Incredible Hulk coaster and the water rides. Top tip though is to not wear denim or white as you will get absolutely soaked!! We rounded our day off at Universal CityWalk with a meal at the Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen – a must for any chocolate lovers and then a good singalong in Pat O’Brien’s with the duelling pianos. On day two we visited the brand-new waterpark, Universal’s Volcano Bay which only opened in May 2017. We were given TapuTapu wristbands, which are a waterproof wearable and mean no standing in long queues as you simply check in for a ride and then go back when it is your time. I loved the amazing Krakatau Aqua Coaster. I also really liked the fact that the ground didn’t get too hot as they have sprays cooling the floor down. There are five Universal hotels on site with a sixth hotel called Aventura due to open in 2018. The next day we set about viewing all the brilliant and differently themed hotels. If you are looking for the most affordable hotel then Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort is the perfect choice. The hotel is motel themed from the 50’s and 60’s and has two massive pools and a lazy river. The hotel is also the only Universal hotel with a bowling alley. I would have no hesitation in staying here with my family. It is situated right by Volcano Bay and some of the rooms have magnificent views of the waterpark. There is even a direct walkway into Volcano Bay if you stay at this hotel. If ultimate luxury is what you are after, then Lowes Portofino Bay Hotel is splendid and you really feel like you are in Italy with its beautiful squares and alleyways. If you want to be within walking distance and literally next door to Universal Studios, then the Hard Rock Hotel is ideal. It is also the smallest hotel at Universal. Some of the benefits you get if you stay at an onsite hotel include early park admission, priority seating at selected restaurants, fast passes included (at Portofino Bay, Hard Rock and Lowes Royal Pacific Resort), complimentary transport by bus or boat to the parks and you can also get any shopping transported back to your room. In the evening, we headed back into Universal Studios to eat at Lombard’s Seafood Grill where we also enjoyed a cinematic spectacular celebrating 100 years of Universal from a private viewing area. Our last full day at Universal Resort was spent in Universal Studios. It was a brilliant day. Highlights included the fabulous Despicable Me Minion Mayhem ride, Shrek 4-D, the lovely ET Adventure ride, which is one of the original features at Universal Studios and still a favourite and the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit which we saved until last. My top tip when visiting Universal Orlando Resort would be to try and get around the outdoor attractions earlier in the day. Florida has a tropical climate and it often rains mid to late afternoon and if there is thunder and lightning the outdoor rides must shut down. This trip certainly lived up to all my expectations and I am now looking forward to going back next year, but with my family in tow to do it all over again!

28 May 2012

Having been to Disneyland Paris before without any children, we were really looking forward to visiting again this time with our 4 year old daughter Lilia. We broke the news to her a few weeks before we departed and she was so excited. We took the Eurostar from Ebbsfleet and travelled in standard premier class, which meant we had breakfast on the way out and an evening meal on the way back. We departed around 10:35 and just over 2 hours later we were there. All the children were given a Disneyland Paris bag, which was full of activities they were able complete onboard the train. Lilia loved completing the puzzles and reading about the Disney parks. Once there we took our cases straight to the Disney Express luggage desk. I had paid extra for the Disney express service and I would really recommend doing it, as it meant we could go straight into the parks and our cases were delivered to the hotel for when we checked in later that day. It also meant I could take a case with all our clothes and toiletries in and then another case with snacks and drinks in, which saved us money and meant we did not have to buy any food or drink in the parks. It saved us time and the hassle of getting our luggage to and from the hotel. We were there for 2 nights and had 2 days. When we arrived the weather was very wet so we headed straight to the studios and spent the afternoon seeing various shows which meant we were able to stay out of the rain as much as possible. I booked Disney’s Newport Bay hotel which is a 3 star hotel and was about a 10 minute walk from the park gates. The hotel was great, but we spent very little time in the room. Our room was on the Admirals floor where we had a lovely lakeside view. The breakfast at the Newport Bay was buffet breakfast and there was plenty of choice with everything from croissants and toast to fruit and cereal. We were also very fortunate to have our photo taken with Minnie Mouse on the last morning, as the characters are in the reception area at certain times of the day. We spent the second day in the main Disneyland Park and took advantage of the ‘Magic Hours’ which meant that we were able to enter the park two hours before the general public were allowed in. We headed straight to Fantasyland as this was the main area that appealed to our little girl. The highlights were definitely the ‘It’s a Small World’ ride and for our daughter she will always remember having her photo taken with Rapunzel, a truly magical moment for any 4 year old little girl who likes princesses. I would thoroughly recommend taking advantage of any rides offering a fast pass, which means you take a ticket and return to the ride in the designated time slot. That way you only have to queue for a very short time and it’s free. Other highlights that day were Thunder Mountain and the Buzz Lightyear ride, which is a laser gun ride where you score points for hitting targets and I have to confess to being beaten by a 4 year old. But the best moment of all was the Disney parade, which was magical. We got in our position about 30 minutes before to ensure we were in a good spot and at the front. We eventually left the park at 9pm and had a lovely meal in Planet Hollywood before heading back to the hotel for a good night’s sleep. We spent our final day back in the Walt Disney studios park and enjoyed going on all the rides that we still needed to fit in. My little girl loved the magic carpet ride, Crushes Coaster from Finding Nemo and the Lilo and Stitch show. The parade was also well worth seeing. Snow white made my little girl’s day by waving at her and recognising that they were both wearing the same dress. We finished the day with a little bit of souvenir shopping and then headed back to the station for our train home. We all had a fantastic time and can’t wait to return one day with our younger daughter as well.

13 April 2012

My husband, four year old little girl and six month old baby and I all booked to stay in Coral Bay Cyprus for a week in October. This was very much a last minute decision as we were going to stay in the UK this year because our baby daughter was still so small, but our desire for some warm sunshine got the better of us and with just one weeks’ notice we were on our way. The journey all went smoothly. We even reserved some baby milk at Gatwick airport, which I picked up once airside from Boots. It meant I didn’t have to worry about how much liquid I was taking through security. We stayed at the Aquasol Village in Coral Bay in a one bedroom superior apartment. We opted for the superior apartment mainly because it had a microwave, which meant I was able to use it to sterilise the baby bottles. The apartment was very clean with a separate bedroom, kitchen, living area and balcony. We were also given a ground floor room, which was really convenient for the pushchair. We stayed on an all inclusive basis. The complex is set out like a village and overlooks the sea. There was an onsite water park, which was fantastic for my four year old. We all had great fun relaxing and bobbing along the lazy river, even the baby had a go. There is a separate section for three to eight year olds and for older children and adults looking for some fun there are six large waterslides. There were two other pools, a large pool which you could walk into via a gentle slope and then a smaller pool which we used a lot. It is situated right next to the children’s club. My eldest daughter really enjoyed the children’s club and she went every day to both two hour sessions. They would do various activities from colouring, rock painting to t-shirt painting. On the first day we also made use of the indoor pool as the weather was cloudy. My daughter also used the play area and I was really impressed at how nice and safe it was. There was one main restaurant for evening meals and at lunch time you could either choose to eat in the main buffet restaurant or have a meal or snack from the pool bar. The restaurant would have a different theme every night and there was lots of variety, so even the fussiest eater would not go hungry! Every night there was an entertainment programme. The evening would kick off with the children’s mini disco, which my daughter absolutely loved. It was definitely the highlight of her day. After the mini disco you had the chance to play bingo. Then the main entertainment varied it could be a dance show one night and a live band the next. The complex was also only a ten minute walk from the resort centre of Coral Bay which had bars and restaurants to suit all tastes. We had previously stayed in Coral bay a few years back before having a family , so we ventured out a couple of times and revisited some of those old haunts. I love Cyprus. There is so much to do and see there. This was our fourth visit to the island and on past visits we have visited the Troodos Mountains, Paphos, Famagusta in Northern Cyprus and even cruised over to Egypt. It is great for all types of holiday makers and I am sure it will not be too long before we visit again. We had a lovely holiday, which was the first of many as a family of four.

19 January 2010

In May 2009, I was fortunate enough to visit Lanzarote where I spent a lovely two weeks with my family and friends in a villa . This was my fifth visit to Lanzarote and it will definitely not be the last. In previous years I have always stayed in the resort of Puerto Del Carmen, however this year it was time for a change. With slightly different requirements and a 1 and half year old daughter now in tow, it was decided that Costa Teguise would fit the bill. Costa Teguise is the islands third busiest resort and was perfect for us on holiday with a toddler. Everything is situated very close by and it was only a short walk to the lovely sandy clean beach. My daughter loved running in and out of the water and although the sea is quite choppy the water is very shallow and perfect for small children. The resort itself is purpose built and very family orientated and the restaurants and bars provide well for children. We spent many a night enjoying a glass of wine in the delightful square called ‘Pueblo Marinero’. On Friday nights the square is also host to a craft market. Another advantage was the very short transfer time from the airport which took approx 20 minutes. Whilst in Lanzarote, we decided to visit Fuerteventura for the day. We took a ferry from Playa Blanca over to Corralejo. It is the largest resort in Fuerteventura. Once a fishing village, it still retains the air of the small port it once was. The beach there is the main attraction, which is absolutely gorgeous and behind the sands there are lots of restaurants and bars to offer refreshments and snacks when the heat gets too much. Another good day out was our visit to Rancho Texas Park. You only need half a day there, so it is worthwhile visiting the park in the morning before it becomes too hot. The park is very well presented with lots of unusual animals to enjoy, including some armadillos. There are three shows put on throughout the day – a sea lion show, parrot show and bird of prey show. The bird of prey show is fantastic, although little children will probably enjoy the sea lion show more. Rancho Texas Park also have country and western evenings, which is an all inclusive night out with free flowing drinks, food, live music and entertainment, including the chance to learn how to line dance. Lanzarote really is an Atlantic gem and anyone visiting Lanzarote for the first time should definitely make sure they visit the Timanfaya National Park and Fire Mountain. Where you can stare wide-eyed at the lunar- like landscape and watch cups of water turn into steaming geysers as guides perform amazing volcanic experiments. I have some lovely memories of Lanzarote and I hope there will be more in the future.

10 October 2008

We decided to go to Portugal this year after spending a fantastic two weeks there in 2006. We went with our baby daughter who had just turned one and some close friends. Apart from the fact that we absolutely loved Portugal last time we were there, one of the reasons we chose Portugal again was the advantage of short flying times from the UK – it takes under 3 hours to get there. This was great for us, as we were travelling with a baby. Portugal is also extremely family friendly. We visited the Algarve and stayed in Albufeira. Albufeira is one of the Algarve’s busiest resorts. It was once a sleepy fishing village, but is now one of the most popular resorts in the Algarve, with well equipped beaches and a huge choice of restaurants and bars. The main beach is called Fishermans Beach, probably the most photographed stretch of coastline in the whole of the Algarve. If you visit the beach early you can still see the local fisherman pulling up in their boats. The old town still retains its character and charm. I loved exploring its narrow cobbled streets. There are also some great restaurants, with fresh seafood being the dish of the day. We stayed very near to the old town, in Montechoro. The main nightlife and restaurants are all situated along the 'strip' which runs from the top of Montechoro hill to the beautiful Praia Da Oura (Golden Beach). We found it extremely easy to get around in the Algarve. We hired a car from the airport. If you do not want to hire a car, then reasonably priced taxis are widely available. There is also a tourist train which runs from the strip to the old town and back. There are some great excursions and days out to be had. One of my personal favourites is a boat cruise which took us from the old town in Albufeira to a secluded beach, which is only accessible by boat. Whilst on the beach we enjoyed a delicious BBQ, including grilled sardines - a local speciality not to be missed whilst in Portugal. We also visited Zoomarine. Zoomarine is a enjoyable day out for all the family and it is only 15 minutes drive from Albufeira. My little girl loved watching the dolphin show and seeing all the other marine life. We all had a fantastic time whilst in Portugal and look forward to visiting there again the future.

05 February 2013

In December 2005 I was extremely lucky to get the opportunity to visit Tokyo on a work educational. I never imagined that I would ever go to Japan, as I had never given it a second thought before, but to this day I am so thankful to have had such a brilliant opportunity to visit this wonderful City. The trip really did start in style, as we travelled out business class with Japan Airlines from Heathrow. We stayed at the Conrad hotel which was in a perfect location to explore the city. The hotel itself was top notch with all the latest gadgets including the very plush toilet with its heated toilet seat. Heated toilet seats are very common in Japan! The views from the hotel of Tokyo Bay and the City were amazing. Some of my highlights from my trip included visiting the Tokyo Tower, which is Tokyo's answer to the Eiffel Tower where you can even see Mount Fiji on a clear day. We visited the Meiji Shrine, located in a woodland park area, an imperial shrine that was dedicated to Emperor Meiji. We then visited the Imperial Palace East Garden. This was once part of the Emperor's private garden. The gardens are located in the centre of the city. It is such a lovely area to explore and walk through with its carefully tended gardens and water features. I then spent some time in the Ginza neighbourhood, which is the shopping district and where you will find all the designer shops. It is very much on par with New York's Fifth Avenue. On our second night in Tokyo we were taken to a Karaoke bar, which is a must do, as it was in Japan that Karaoke was first introduced. It was great fun and we had our own booth for the evening. The next day we started off with a river cruise along the Sumida River, where we made our way to the old quarter of Tokyo called the Asakusa district The highlight was seeing the Asakusa Kannon Temple, Tokyo's most famous and popular temple (built in the seventh century) and the five storey pagoda. It was really easy to explore the area on foot; however there were rickshaw's available offering guided tours as well. It is also well worth visiting the Akihabara District - This is where all the electrical stores are located and many a bargain to be had. The end of my trip included going to Yokohama stadium where we watched Liverpool play. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Japan and have many happy memories.