05 August 2020

Our 2020 holiday plans had not gone according to plan due to the Coronavirus Pandemic. We were supposed to escape the UK and head off to Crete in May, but this was unfortunately cancelled. At the end of July 2020, I spent the weekend in Devon with the family and in-laws and it really was great to getaway from the everyday routine and explore a new area. Our base for the weekend was the amazing Shire Stables at Otter Falls Resort. The Shire Stables is a lovely 5 bedroom cottage with plenty of space for our family of 10, with the added bonus of a hot tub. Otter falls is a quiet resort but still had a small swimming pool that was bookable for hour slots and adhered to Covid-19 restrictions so the showers weren’t open but luckily for us the pool was just over the courtyard from our cottage! There are also some fishing lakes and a great little bar and restaurant which we ate at on our first night. The staff put on a fire pit and provided a free bag of marshmallows to roast on the Sunday night which the kids absolutely loved! Otter Falls is around 20-30 minutes from the Jurassic coast. We spent our first day at Lyme Regis and were lucky enough to have some sunny weather, great for fish and chips on the beach and ice cream to finish it off! We also managed to avoid the showers on Saturday and visited the lovely town of Sidmouth and again enjoyed an ice cream and some pebble skimming along the beachfront. We treated the kids to a visit to Crealy Theme Park on the Sunday, which again only took around 30mins to get to. We all had our temperatures taken on arrival and all tickets needed to be Pre-booked to ensure the park maintained its reduced capacity. There were plenty of sanitisation stations around the park and social distancing measures were in place. All in all it was a fantastic weekend away and just what we needed after being stuck at home for so long.

18 July 2019

I have recently returned from a week’s holiday on the beautiful Greek island of Zante. Located just off the west coast of mainland Greece in the Ioanian group of islands, Zante can be reached within a three and a half hour flight from the UK. We arrived the second week of July, in the midst of a heatwave, with temperatures soaring at 35 degrees, thankfully the hotel we stayed at had a beachfront position, so there was always a gentle sea breeze to keep comfortable. Having 2 young children aged 3 and 18 months, we settled on a TUI family holiday, staying at the Alykanas Beach Village, in the small resort of Alykanas situated in Alykon Bay on the North coast of the Island. We had a large room, with a partition wall, so the room contained one double bed and 2 single beds – ample space for our party of 2 adults, 2 children. Our room came with a large balcony overlooking the main pool. This hotel is really geared up for families, there are 3 large pools with ample sunbeds, one situated a stones throw from the beach, a splash park with a toddler section and slides for older children, a playground and kids clubs. We stayed on an all-inclusive basis. There was the main restaurant which served breakfast, lunch and dinner and a snack bar where you could get lunch and ice cream throughout the day – a massive hit with the kids. You could get soft drinks, water, local beer and wine and limited cocktails throughout the day as part of the package. The resort centre of Alykanas was a short walk from the hotel, here you could find your usual tourist souvenir shops, as well as lots of Tavernas and bars. We decided to treat ourselves a couple of evenings and went out to the Tavernas to eat, I was amazed to find the whole family could eat for under 40 euros, including beer and wine, and the food was delicious, the husband opted for fresh fish dishes, while I enjoyed local dishes such as chicken souvlaki. The restaurants here were great as well as they all contained a play area for the kids, so they were kept entertained. On average an adult meal cost around 8-10 euros and a kids meal around 5 euros. Wine and beer were around 3 euros for a large glass, and you could even get a cocktail for around 4 euros. We booked (locally) a boat trip to visit the iconic Shipwreck cove and Blue Caves. This half day tour was 25 euros per adult and the kids travelled free of charge. The boat ride was slightly bumpy to say the least and unfortunately the weather was not good enough at Shipwreck Cove to disembark the boat, but we did get close enough for photographs. Onto the Blue Caves and the water was much calmer, here the waters are perfectly clear and blue, after a quick tour of some of the caves, we were able to get off the boat for a swim, although my kids weren’t keen to do this, so I stayed on board whilst the husband had a swim. The tour also included a stop at Xigia Beach where the waters contain sulphur, letting off quite a distinctive aroma! The water is allegedly very good for the skin, and there was an opportunity to get off for a swim again. The boat trip was a great way to see the rugged Zante coastline, and I was amazed at how green the island was. Well worth the money and rough crossing! Travelling on an all-inclusive basis, it is so easy to stay in your hotel and never see what the local area has to offer which would have been such a waste here as it really is a lovely island to visit and I am sure we will return, but maybe on a self catering basis to experience more of the tavernas and delicious food.

03 June 2019

We recently took the kids on their first visit to Disneyland Paris. They're only 3 and 1, so I was a little concerned there wouldn’t be enough for them to do, how wrong was I? We were non-stop throughout our 3-day visit! Our adventure began with a mammoth train journey, taking us from our home in Wiltshire, to Marne-Le-Vallee, which is right outside the gate to the parks. Our 3-year-old has a fascination with trains, so had the time of his life as we made our way through the snowy French Countryside. We arrived into Marne-Le-Vallee 3pm local time, and having pre-booked Disney Express Check-In, were able to drop our luggage at the counter in the station and collect our park tickets without having to check-in to our hotel first. We headed straight for the Disneyland Park, on entering Main Street, got our first glimpse of Sleeping Beauty’s castle. Both kids were in absolute awe, and our son found a burst of energy and excitement he had previously lacked following the long journey! Now, what to do first? It was the last week of January, so it was cold, and the sun was already beginning to go down. We decided to stick to Fantasyland and let our little boy explore. He was a little nervous about going on any rides so was just happy to watch all that was going on around him. After a bit of exploration, we ventured onto ‘It’s a Small World’ boat ride, perfect for little ones, where 300 dolls from around the world sing about peace in their native languages. Both kids loved it, and we decided to head to our hotel on a high! The Santa Fe Hotel was a 20-minute walk through Disney Village from the Parks. On arrival, we collected our room key and our luggage which had been delivered from the station. The room was great, Disney Pixar’s Cars themed with 2 double beds and a cot set up for the baby. We booked our trip with a complimentary half board upgrade, so we headed down to 'La Cantina’ restaurant, located inside the Hotel Santa Fe for some dinner. This is a self-service buffet style restaurant, plenty of choice for kids and the food was pretty good. The following morning, we were up early to take advantage of Disney Extra Magic Time, an hour where the park isn't open to the public, exclusive to guests staying in Disney hotels. The ideal time to visit the most popular attractions which will have the longest queues later in the day. The breakfast included was available as counter service in the park, a breakfast roll, pastry, hot drink and juice, so we stocked up and headed to Walt Disney Studios. This park has a different feel to Disneyland, the fairy-tale magic replaced with a more modern feel, almost like you're behind the scenes of a movie. Needless to say, there is a huge amount to do, including catching numerous shows, the one I recommend is the Moteurs…action! Stunt show. A great show demonstrating how car and motorbike stunts are filmed. Now, onto explore the Studios, and to Toy Story Playground where you can meet Buzz, ride Slinky Dog and even join Toy soldiers on a Parachute Drop. I challenge anyone, young or old not to have a fab time here! Further on, we turned up in a Parisian square, the home of Ratatouille: The Adventure. A 4D experience, putting you in the footsteps of Remy as you are chased by the chef through Gusteau’s. Great fun for myself and my husband, our 1-year old daughter wasn’t phased by it as she couldn’t keep the glasses on, but a little frightening for our son – just a warning if you are travelling with little ones! Late in the afternoon, we returned to Disneyland Park and caught the afternoon parade, which was lovely, my little girl enjoyed the colourful floats and singing and dancing. We then decided to explore the other areas of the park, and soon ended up in Adventureland, here the music from the Pirates of the Caribbean films enticed us onto the ride, I was assured by the ride attendant this was a family ride, so off we went. It started as a gentle cruise through 17th Century pirate territory Caribbean, but soon enough we were sent plummeting down a flume, which took us all a little by surprise. We left Adventureland and made our way to Frontierland, home of Big Thunder Mountain, our 3-year-old wasn’t big enough to ride this but enjoyed watching the ‘Runaway Train’ make its way around the mountain. In the evening we made our way back to the castle for Disney Illuminations show, and all I can say is ‘wow’! Projections on the castle, a water show and flames all made this a highlight of the trip. After a long day in the parks it is so easy to go back to your hotel and rest your aching feet, but this is something that can’t be missed, I can’t even put into words how spectacular it was. Up bright and early again for our final day. We checked out of our hotel and left our luggage in the storage room to be transported back to the station and jumped on the shuttle bus to make the most of the parks. We let our son decide what he wanted to do, so we spent the morning on all the rides in Fantasyland – Dumbo, Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups and countless goes on It’s a Small World which we couldn’t walk past without our daughter trying to climb out of the pram! Finally, we let the kids loose in the shops! They have everything – food, clothes, toys, home accessories, there is even a barber shop on Main Street. After trying to reign our son in (mostly unsuccessfully), we paid for our purchases and made our way back to Marne-Le-Vallee station for our journey home. With a delay on the train to Lille, we made our Eurostar back to London by the skin of our teeth. After a long 3 days and an exhausting journey home, we were one very tired family, but what an amazing time and unforgettable memories we made. My Top Recommendations for a family trip to Disneyland •If you get the Eurostar, try to book the direct train from UK to Marne-Le-Vallee, we found the most stressful part was on the connecting trains in France. •Stay in a Disney Hotel, the benefits of extra magic time, being on-site and some of the meal upgrades are worth their weight in gold. •If travelling by Eurostar and staying in a Disney Hotel, pre-book the Disney Express check in service. You can drop your bags at the counter in the station, pick up park tickets and head straight to the magic, which is invaluable if you are on a tight schedule. •Organise where you might like to eat before you go and pre-book any restaurants you are keen on eating in (this can be done up to 2 months before travel)