26 February 2023

I first visited Cape Town in December 2019 and its was one of our last holidays before the dreaded lock downs and my memories helped me through. I returned in January 2023 for a flying visit and it is now firmly my favourite city in the world. Cape Town has something for everyone, magnificent scenery, world class beaches, weather, history, food, adventure. I flew from Heathrow on a direct flight to Cape Town with British Airways to meet my husband who was there for work. It’s approx. 11 hour flight but there is very little time difference so you don’t get jet lag. I flew in one of BA’s club suites as I was there for a short time and I hit the ground running on arrival. We stayed in the Victoria and Albert Waterfront Complex. There are lots of fantastic areas to stay but this made a great central location from which to explore everything. Most parts of the city are safe in daylight hours but caution is needed after dark in certain parts. I felt safe for the duration of my stay. We hired a car and its easy to get around, the following are a list of my favourite things: Cable car up Table Mountain. The feat of engineering is astounding and the views are incredible and then we drove to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens Do a day touring – Take in Kalk Bay, Fish Hoek, Glencairn, Simons Town and Boulder Beach, this is where the African Penguins are and you can walk on the beach right beside them. We travelled from there down the Cape of Good Hope where the oceans met. Oranjezicht City Farm Market is open on Saturdays & Sunday Mornings and Wednesday nights. It’s a covered market right by the sea and has a chilled vibe. Camps Bay is a gorgeous costal town just 10 mins out of Cape Town and a lovely place to catch the sunset and chill in one of the many bars and restaurants that line the beach front. Robben Island is a humbling experience. The prison is now a museum and you will be guided by a former prisoner. It’s a 7km boat ride from Cape Town. Things to note: The city is suffering from an energy crisis so they do something called load shedding which means electricity can be turned off for several hours every day. Make sure you bring a charging pack. Also means that food can be compromised so be careful eating sushi etc When you park, there will usually be a local person in a high vis jacket helping you whether you want it or not. We were not hassled by these people but did offer them a small tip and they’ll ‘mind your car’. Bring converter plugs, SA has a very unusual plug and is not part of the standard kit you buy. Download an app called DinePlan for making restaurant reservations. It gets chilly in the evenings, even in their summer and especially if you are higher parts like Table Mountain so pack some layers. If South Africa is on your bucket list please get in touch. I would love to help you make it happen!

28 March 2021

A little bit about the Maldives: Maldives is a series of tiny Islands sprawled across 90,000 Km2 of the Indian Ocean South West of the coast of Sri Lanka. There are over 1200 islands but only 200 are inhabited by locals and 80 of them be-long to luxury resorts. No one island is longer than 8km and the average size is 1-2km When is the best time to visit: The best time to visit the Maldives is during the dry season, which is November to April. Very little rain and the weather is warm however that is when the Maldives is busiest and will the most expensive time to visit. May to October is considered the rainy season. Peak season is December to March so No-vember and April are perfect for skipping the busiest times. I went in March / April time. It rained for a couple of minutes on a few days but very quickly cleared up and beautiful weather resumed. Getting there from the UK: The main airport is on the Island of Male and can be reached in peak season direct from Heathrow Air-port with British Airways or indirectly all year round via the Middle East with Turkish, Emirates, Qatar, Etihad or Oman Airlines. This makes it ideal for a twin centre holiday in one of those destinations or in Sri Lanka. We flew via Dubai with Emirates. Its pprox.. 12/13 hours flying time whichever way you go. Transfer: There are various options to transfer to your resort from Male. You should take this into consideration when choosing your resort. Some resorts are closer and can be accessed by speedboat which helps keep costs down. Although seaplane is an amazing experience and offers incredible views of all the islands. Important to note though that seaplanes only operate during daylight hours so you need to ensure your international flight lands at a time to accommodate this or you could end up having to overnight in Male. Some of the resorts have beautiful private lounges at Male airport which adds that extra luxury to your transfer. Choosing the right resort: There is something to suit everyone in the Maldives but you need to choose wisely. Are you looking for adult only or adult focused. Does it need to be child friendly and include kids clubs and activities. Some area of Maldives are better for diving than others, is this important to you. Are you looking for unique experience such as an underwater restaurant or a glass bottomed room which are only available in cer-tain resorts. Room Type: Most islands have over water bungalows and beach villas. Some have private pools, some even have slides from your bungalow straight into the Indian Ocean. Also once you’ve chosen your resort con-sider where your room is positioned on the Island, most resorts have maps online. You do not want to end up sitting in the shade in your beach bungalow. Finally consider that you can swap rooms half way through your stay. If your desperate for an overwater bungalow but your budget doesn’t stretch that far, consider a couple of nights in one as a treat at the end of your holiday. General tips: - Pack wisely. Everything is imported to the Islands so if you forget something crucial its really hard to replace it. We moved rooms halfway through our stay and my food bag containing my son’s formula got accidently dumped. The hotel replaced it free of charge but the brands were different and I had a very unhappy baby for the last day until we got to Dubai and got the pre-ferred brand. - Save some of your budget for the Spa! I love a spa treatment on holidays but the spa’s in the Maldives are the most incredible I’ve ever been in. I could have gone every day! - Buy an underwater camera or a case for your existing camera/phone. The sea life is incredible and you won’t want to miss out capturing those memories. My husband is a diver and says that you see more snorkelling in the Maldives than diving anywhere else in the world - Bring your own snorkel, mask & fins – saves having to potentially rent them locally and possibly pay extra charges

30 March 2021

A week in Paphos (during a pandemic) We were extremely lucky and managed to squeeze in a week long holiday in between lockdowns during half term in October 2020. We choose Cyprus out of necessity to be honest because it was the only place with low enough Covid numbers that we could travel to with a negative PCR test. Cyprus hadn’t really been on my radar but we loved it and would be delighted to go back again. PCR test: We had ours done by Epistem in Manchester. You buy the test kit in advance, they send it to you and you do the test on a specific day. At the time we needed to do it up to 72 hours before so we were travelling on Friday so we did the test on Wednesday for same day results. We had a long nerve wrecking day waiting for the results and then getting them loaded into the Cypriot Government website to get a certificate (this is all part of my service if you book through me). Travelling during Covid: The airport was well set up for social distancing. Seating was cordoned off so that parties could remain two meters apart. You must wear your mask at all times except when eating. There were plenty of options open to grab a quick takeaway. We flew with Jet2 and the flight was 90% full. Everyone was abiding by the mask rule and if they didn’t the crew were hot at getting them to put it back on. The toilets were open for the whole flight and although they discouraged queueing there wasn’t any formal system of having to press the call button etc. Arrival in Paphos: Our flight was pulled for a random test. The whole thing was organised with great efficiency – they tested the entire plane, and we were through to baggage in less than 45 mins. Again the airport was quiet and it was easy to social distance. We choose to hire a car rather than using a transfer. The car hire desks were quiet also and we were processed and on our way within 30 mins. All of the car hire companies have their cars on site so the pickup and drop off process is really simple. Paphos: The airport is only 15 mins away from the town centre and driving is on the left-hand side as UK so it makes driving really easy. Hotel options: We stayed at the Louis Paphos Breeze. It was a decent 4 star hotel, the reviews were great and the hotel lived up to the reviews. Only downside was there was only one restaurant open and no kids activities due to Covid. That said, the buffet had plenty of options and it was reasonable price for our all-inclusive deal so we ate outside the hotel 3 times. I viewed some other hotels whilst I was there: Annabelle – Very elegant hotel, beach front, walking distance to Paphos Harbour. Almyra – High end sophisticated hotel Elysium -Very polished hotel with great location Olympic Lagoon Resort – great children’s facilities Constantinou Brothers – Athena Beach hotel – great hotel, lots of facilities, perfect for families. Aphrodite Hills – villa complex a bit further out of town. Amazing range of activities for children including football camps I would recommend any of those for a family or couples holiday depending on your budget and priorities. Happy to advise you further on your specifics. Things to do in Paphos: Day trip to the Aphrodiate Water Park – kids had a ball Spend some time by the harbour. So many amazing food offering. The Gelato is a must! Take a boat to the Blue Lagoon – various options but a great morning activity. Visit Petra Tou Romiou Aphrodite’s Rock Visit the Old Town Hire a car and take a tour up the coast