06 October 2019

Alton Towers Resort is one of the boys favourite breaks, hence why we have stayed 4 years in a row now. It is also my time to sit down, relax and maybe enjoy the odd spa treatment.- I like my feet firmly on the ground! If your family love thrill rides- then Alton Towers is a must for you. We stay in the treehouses as usually we have a few extras who come along to fill my space on the ride. They are very roomy and perfect location. A 2 day break is enough to get all around the theme park in the waterpark, mini golf and tree trekking. Jack and Wills favourite ride are either the Oblivion or Smiler, where as mine is definitely the cleansing facial! After 4 years, I did put a brave face on and tried the ride "Rita"- only 28 seconds long and I remember every second! There are numerous restaurants around the resort, my favourites are the Alton Towers Hotel restaurants and the Rollercoaster restaurant as everything is served via Rollercoaster.

06 October 2019

Our summer family holiday this year did not disappoint! We stayed a week in Protaras on the beachfront bed & breakfast. There are so many places to eat here we were certainly spoilt for choice. We stayed at the Vangelis hotel in a 1 bedroom suite which was lovely, very tastefully decorated and spacious. Most of our days were spent on either Fig Tree Bay or Bikini Beach. The amount of water sports on offer here is brilliant! We were never short of something to do. The waters are crystal clear with white powder sand. The only downfall in August is you do have to get up early to get a sunbed on the beach as it is very busy! We could not go to Cyprus without trying a traditional Meze- this was gorgeous! But be warned you will need a nap afterwards. The highlight for my holiday was the Kamakura Tepanyaki restaurant, the food amazing and the chefs entertaining throughout. Another place we must come back to!

06 October 2019

So the upside and downside of my work is that I see all the brilliant offers that come through which sometimes is just too tempting! As was Tenerife for this week, as our holidays for the year were already organised but a sneaky extra break wouldn't hurt anybody! We stayed in Costa Adeje which is not quite as busy as Playa de las Americas. We were perched at the top of Cardiac hill which we loved, the views were amazing. Coming down was easy, going up was definitely harder but helped burn off the ice cream and waffles! Costa Adeje has everything to offer, from quiet upmarket local restaurants to bustling music spots. Our holiday in Tenerife was intended to be a fly and flop type of holiday, so not much to write on the excursion front apart from Siam Waterpark. My husband and the kids loved this. I learnt from my experience in Dubai and decided to hold the bags and relax by the wave pool whilst they made the most of it. The beaches are vast and lined with cafe bars, shops and restaurants and at night the resort comes alive.

06 October 2019

So the summer's nearly gone and we weren't ready to put our summer clothes away just yet! We had just enough holidays to sneak in a bit of end Summer/Winter Sun to Fuerteventura. We stayed at the Labranda Corralejo Village for a week which has a fantastic location in the centre of Corralejo and also within walking distance to the beach and water park. Our rooms were spacious for 4 of us and very modern. As we were all-inclusive we ate in the hotel restaurant a few times and it was delicious! I'm not personally a fan of all-inclusive as I prefer to be waited on and sometimes it can be repetitive and have a canteen feel. Well done Labranda as this definitely didn't have that feel! My highlight has to be our family horse riding trip in the hills! None of us are experienced and the instructors were so friendly and accommodating, the views up there were brilliant as was the wind! Brrr! Music Square in the centre of Corralejo was brilliant, very vibrant and plenty of eateries and bars to sit and watch the entertainment and people watch. The beaches were definitely my favourite, huge white sands with rocky peninsulas which are ideal for rock pooling!

06 October 2019

Dubai is a place my children have been asking to visit for a long time, in particular The Atlantis - the Palm. This hotel did not fail to WOW! From our direct flight with Emirates from Manchester with plenty of legroom arriving relaxed at the Atlantis in our private luxury transfer, we were greeted like VIP's at the entrance. The lobby is something else! We stayed in a Oceanview King size Club Room with fantastic views looking back onto Burj al Arab which is stunning by night. My children aged 12 and 9 loved the Saffron restaurant which had so many international food choices, whilst mine was definitely the Gordon Ramsay restaurant. Obviously the Aquaventure water park was the highlight of both my children's holiday, mine not so much when I was coerced into going backwards down the famous Zoomerango slide! Once is definitely enough for me! Atlantis beaches were beautiful and in July it was like a hot bath, crystal clear waters and if you haven't seen enough fish then there is the fantastic Aquarium with Atlantis! The pools are brilliant for all ages and so big it never felt crowded. You cannot visit Dubai without going up the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in Dubai, the views are jaw dropping from the top! Just in case Jack and Will hadn't enough thrills, we also booked to go skydiving at iflyDubai which was amazing and funny all in one, see the pictures! This is definitely a place we will return back to, Dubai captured our hearts.

05 June 2018

It’s that time again, our family holiday to Estepona for nine nights. I chose to stay at the H10 Estepona Palace this year as it’s on the beach, near the Marina and not too far from the centre of Estepona. On arrival my room is huge with an ever bigger balcony! Although a slight moan from my eldest - apparently a double sofa bed is not suitable anymore! The sun is shining, and he’s seen the pool so its quickly forgotten about! There is a children’s play area right by the main pool which is ideal and entertainment of an evening although we did prefer to head out into Estepona Centre itself. I don't know about you but part of our holiday is trying new places to eat and you must go to Casa Del Rey Tapas bar! It is divine! Estepona is definitely all geared up for families at the centre with plenty of parks on the beach to keep them entertained. There is also a craft market on the front in the evening which is lovely to wander round when deciding where to eat. There are a few squares in Estepona centre where the Spanish all congregate of an evening with their families and it has such a bustling atmosphere which we loved! The marina is a good option if you don't want to venture into the centre as its half way between the hotel and centre and has a couple of good restaurants to eat.

05 June 2018

Another fabulous find is the Domes of Elounda. Seven nights of laidback family time! I loved this hotel! It’s in a beautiful location- to the left is Plaka which is like a scene out of Shirley Valentine. A tiny village with local craft shops and a handful of fantastic truly Greek restaurants with a super friendly atmosphere! All with a view of Spinalonga. To the right is Elounda and Aghios Nikolaos which are more commercial with a bit more to do for the family. The pool is definitely the main focal point here and my kids loved it! The restaurant has a different theme every night so we never bored of the food. The spa looked very nice but I wasn't quick enough this year to sneak in! The water sports as usual were like a magnet to the boys, so I took full advantage of the beachside café/bar and enjoyed the view. I would definitely recommend this hotel which is fantastic for couples and families with younger children.

08 June 2015

Having just come back from The Sani Beach Resort in Halkidiki, I can thoroughly recommend! The Sani Beach Resort has thought of everything to cater for every family, from the baby watch service on the beach, excursions for the children, rollerblading, bike hire and fantastic shows of an evening. The beach here has crystal clear waters and is very shallow which makes it perfect for the children to paddle. It also has a inflatable assault course which both my children aged 6 and 9 loved! There were so many " favourite" parts to Sani that I had a new favourite every day! My favourite area in the Sani beach was the infinity pool overlooking the ocean! Followed by the Bousoulas Bar with the best Club Sandwiches and seafood!! I loved the dine around theme that Sani had, it gave us the choice of 18 restaurants with the added bonus that all weren't situated in the hotel so gave us the feel of an actual resort. The Marina restaurants were lovely with fabulous views. Sani Resort has a family friendly ambience whilst keeping the five star luxury and laid back atmosphere. I would definitely return in a heartbeat!

24 May 2011

I have recently returned from a trip to Kalkan and Kas in Turkey where it certainly exceeded my expectations! I spent 4 days in Turkey and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The local people are very warm and welcoming, and the resorts were spotless! I stayed at the Asfiya hotel in a suite but I also looked at all other room types of rooms. The hotel was traditional and in a great location to access the centre. Kalkan harbour is beautiful with restaurants to suit every taste and budget. The beach clubs are very different - small jetties with plush sunbeds and usually a cafe/bar. Kas was definitely busier than Kalkan but was more my cup of tea. I sat in one of the harbour restaurants watching the world go by and I loved the local shop to buy all my Turkish memorabilia!!

24 May 2011

I have recently stayed at the Cala D'or Playa aparthotel in Cala D'or. This is a brilliant place for families of all ages. There are 7 cove-like beaches, which are really safe for children and all within easy walking distance from the centre of Cala d'or. My children are 1 and 4 and were very welcome in all the restaurants. The transfer was good as it was only just over an hour. The centre of the resort has different areas; in the main square there are open air performance venues, restaurants and cafe bars, and a beautiful marina with boutiques and stylish restaurants. From all the beaches you can take a local boat trip around to the other coves nearby, which is definitely worth doing! My family and I had a very relaxing stay and we were sad to leave!

08 May 2008

For everybody who maybe thinking of a trip to New York, do it! This is one of the best places in the world I have had the fortune of visiting. The city is vibrant, it is just like walking onto a film scene. You cannot fail to be amazed by this city. It has the lush, green Central Park for an afternoon stroll - I decided to take the lazy option and hire a rickshaw. This was fantastic, taking in every part of Central Park. We then decided to do as everybody does and hit the shops! There are shops to suit every budget and the buildings are spectacular. We felt a little dizzy by the end of our weekend as we had been constantly looking up at the magnificent, huge skyscrapers. We hopped on a tour bus to take us all around the sights of New York, including the Empire State Building, Wall Street, Chinatown and South Street Seaport. We stopped for a bit of lunch around South Street- this was really strange as we felt we were somewhere completely different to New York, as it has a quiet harbour feel about it, unlike anywhere else in the city (well worth a trip). As the weekend drew to an end, we just had time to fit in the Rockafella Center. I am so pleased we decided to go up here in the evening as the skyline is beautiful. The advantage of going up the Rockafella as opposed to the Empire State Building is that you can see the Empire State in all its glory from so high up. A thoroughly enjoyable experience that I will never forget and hope to enjoy again!