09 May 2013

Where do I start to tell you about this amazing City? Firstly I have to agree with the popular opinion that you will either love it or hate it. There are some very beautiful areas up in the hillside or by the Castle de Egg and along the promenade where the food and wine is simply delicious. Yet on the other hand the main shopping area is very bustling and there is a lot of rubbish around and graffiti, saying that we never felt unsafe daytime or night. I have stayed in both areas and prefer the hotels on the coast line with the views out to sea and Mount Vesuvius. What I love about Naples is the accessibility to some wonderful areas of Italy including visits to Pomei and you can easily jump on the ferry to Capri for the day, or why not spend the day in Positano which is so beautiful and very quaint. The ride from Naples to Sorrento or Positano will take you along the Amalfi coast which is just breath-taking but it can be a little scary in parts! Although I haven’t done this you can also visit Rome, there is a direct train from Naples which only takes a couple of hours. All in all I do love Naples and my top tip would be to go on the bus tours, there are 3 routes and you have earphones with English speaking guides. When she is not talking they play classical Italian music which is lovely as you can listen and see all the wonderful views and the smell of the bougainvillea from the open top bus. The other good thing is that you can hop on and off all day and it’s only 18euros if you buy the ticket from your hotel. PS: look out for the mad drivers they are fun to watch, a little like dodgems at a fair!

07 October 2010

My Family and I have visited Florida many times and we LOVE it, weather you want to just chill in the Sun or fill your days with Action packed fun then Florida is the place, we have travelled at all different times of the year including Christmas and New Year when the place is truly Magical! The accommodation in Florida is great from your cheap and cheerful motels to the most luxury Villa’s with your own pool, we have done both and found we like the Villa holiday the best as the kids love to come back after a busy day and jump straight into the pool, allowing us adults to chill over a glass of wine whilst watching the Fireworks in the distance! PERFECT! We have visited most of the Disney/Universal Parks and have also been lucky enough to swim with the Dolphins at Discovery Cove, so if you need any advise as to where to go or what to do just give me a call.We also stay at one of the Universal Hotels for 1 night which gives us 2 day fast passes on all rides at Universal and Islands of Adventure the kids love this as they can do the rides as many times as they want without the queues! Not everyone loves the big rides including my husband but he still love Florida for lots of other reasons number one is the food, there is lots of choice from all you can eat buffets, Italian, Japanese and wonderful steak houses, The Out Back is our favorite if you go try out the Bloomin Onion! Its worth flying 9 hours for! My other favorite thing after the Parks of course would be the shopping, they have great outlet stores selling reduced price designer gear plus the Florida Malls have everything you need for a day of retail therapy! Maybe after a week or too fun filled days at the Parks you might want to consider a few days or a week at the beach you can head over to Daytona or the Gulf Coast both can be reached in an hour so you can even go for the day if you wish, we stayed a Clearwater and St Pete’s beach the beaches are gorgeous with crystal clear waters and pure white sand covered in the most beautiful shells, the sunsets are fabulous too especially with a cocktail in hand! All in all if you are thinking about visiting Florida stop thinking and give me a call and book it, you will have the time of your Life, it is without a doubt may favorite place to spend quality time with my Family, please look through some of my photos and you will see that my kids faces say it all!

05 October 2010

My Escape to Lake Garda! My husband and I managed to get away from the kids for a few days so decided to visit the Italian Lakes. I have always wanted to go here and I have to say I was not let down. We stayed in Garda Town and it was so breathtakingly beautiful. The La Perla Hotel rooms were quite basic but the food was fantastic the best I have had in Europe everything very fresh and flavoursome.The pool area was fantastic with a Jacuzzi and jets coming into the pool massage your back it was lovely! The town itself is great quite busy during the day but its lovely to walk up and down the lake stopping for a coffee every now and then or a famous Italian Ice-cream, I have never seen as many flavours of ice-cream in my life, we were only there for a few days so didn’t visit any of the other resorts but I have got many clients who have been all over the area so I can source any information needed. At night the town is different again, you can wonder around the little cobbled streets and enjoy a glass of Bardolino wine (local to the region) whilst watching couples dancing the tango or listening to an Opera Singer in the Square, it has a very cosmopolitan feel about it and with the Lake lit up it is very romantic. Kevin and I loved Italy and when the kids are a little older we will definitely return and travel all around the different parts of the Lake as they all have a little something different to offer.

05 October 2010

Who says you have to travel to the Caribbean to get white sands and crystal clear water, I have never seen water as clear as in Menorca and with its many lovely coves its very safe for children too. We travelled to Menorca for many Years when the kids were little, my children loved it here so I figured if they are happy then I get a good holiday too and the fact it’s a 2 hour flight with small children is an added bonus, all the resorts are less than 1 hour from the airport so the transfer times are great too. All the resorts are pretty quite some more than others but all cater for mainly families, the busiest is probably Cala n Forcat which has a small water park too. The entertainment is generally hotel based although there are some bars and restaurants within the resorts to choose from. The Capital Mahon is worth a visit and the old capital Ciutadella is beautiful with a very impressive Cathedral and old cobbled streets with some lovely shops, they also have a market once a week in the main town square and you can also walk down to the harbour and along the promenade watching the fabulous yachts coming in and out. The Seafood restaurants by the harbour are lovely too. We visited Menorca year after year and I have to say it came to have a very homely feel to me that kept wanting me to return again and again. Why not try it and see if Menorca has the same affect on you?