26 October 2025

I was very lucky to win 2 nights hotel in Marseille with a 48 hour city pass included. As we wanted to go away in October half term anyway, I had a look at where we could fly to from Marseille to extend the trip! Majorca (and a chance of sunshine) won and so we did a 5 night trip in total.

22 May 2025

We were definitely in need of a chilled week for this holiday and so an all-inclusive with slides was the ‘easy’ option for us! We love Greece and when the Grecotel Costa Botanica came up, it seemed like the perfect option. The hotel has an on-site waterpark with plenty of choice of slides, a games pool and a lazy river. We hardly had to queue and there was a bar on-site where we could get snac

21 May 2025

Holidays don’t have to cost a fortune! Sometimes just a break from the every day is all you need. This Easter holidays we had a week away in the Midlands, close to Tamworth, and we chose the location based on where I could find a good value lodge with hot-tub! Once we had found somewhere, we then researched what to do in the local area. We were very fortunate with the weather which did help a l

22 April 2025

Another holiday affected by Covid! I was given the opportunity to take the children onboard our first cruise in February half term – it was still early days of cruising after the ships were sitting empty for so long after Covid. The rules at the time meant if anyone tested positive in the 2 weeks before your cruise, you couldn’t travel. 1 week and 6 days before we were due to travel, my son tested

06 March 2025

We were booked for our second family ski holiday to France and with the “fun and games” of Covid, 5 days before we were due to travel, France closed the border to Brits and our holiday was cancelled! With lots of umming and ahhing we finally decided to take the risk and travel to Italy instead albeit with pre-travel testing at the airport the day before. So, we rebooked our holiday, booked our Co

05 March 2025

We really wanted a longer holiday this summer but I also wanted to tick something off my list rather than do another beach holiday and so we compromised on duration to get on a Royal Caribbean ship in the Med for a week and it was 100% the correct decision. I picked the departure based on the ship and the itinerary combined. Ideally I wanted to sail on one of the bigger ships but they were all do

28 September 2021

Such wonderful news! I'm delighted to say that Travel Counsellors has won the award in the best homeworking agency category at the Travel Weekly Agent Achievement Awards! These awards celebrate excellence in the travel trade and are highly regarded in the travel industry. At Travel Counsellors we work hard to show our customers the highest level of care and support, so winning this award means a

06 April 2021

It's not often we receive postcards now, so you can imagine how delighted I was to get this one through the post with a chocolate bar attached! . It was a Thank You from the Grenada Tourism Authority for a booking that travelled just before the first lockdown but this was the first opportunity they had to send it! . Now all I need to decide is whether to keep it for myself or share it with the ki

22 March 2021

Wow-factor accommodation and it's adult only! . This has got to be one of my most favourite wow-factor rooms, doesn't it look just amazing!!! So, where is it? Thailand... . Conceived as though by Nature’s own Architect, TreeHouse Villas, is a visionary new adults-only luxury resort design for those with a love of the environment, beauty of nature and a desire to rediscover their inner child. Set a

10 February 2021

Are you getting married in 2021, 2022 or 2023? Or do you know someone who is? We have honeymoons available to book for all those years for some destinations and our fantastic Gift Registry service is ideal for those who prefer not to have a traditional gift list. Our Honeymoon Gift Registry Service -An easy, stress-free way to manage your dream honeymoon online - courtesy of your personal Trave

11 January 2021

Earlier this month I took part in a Thailand training with Thai Tourism. . As well as learning some top tip ideas for luxury days out whilst in this beautiful country we also had a spotlight on the stunning Six Senses Yao Noi - 56 villas with private pools, their own space and a rustic but luxurious feel. The hotel showcases amazing views and blends in seamlessly with nature! Message me for more i

17 December 2020

I'm delighted to say that Travel Counsellors has been crowned winner of the best National Travel Retailer category in the British Travel Awards once again! This prestigious award is voted for by customers, so I'd like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of my customers for your support this year, and I look forward to helping you with your travel plans in the coming weeks and mo

05 October 2020

I can’t believe we’ve been living with Covid19 and the massive consequences it has had on our lives for over 6 months now! Travel, as I am sure you can imagine, has been pretty badly affected and we’re not even close to being back to normal. But over the past couple of months I’ve had clients away again and it feels great! The most popular country by far for my current bookings and enquiries i

26 February 2020

Last weekend I was very lucky to be invited on board Virgin Voyages Scarlet Lady! Virgin Voyages is a brand new product and something very different to anything on the market and Dover was Scarlet Lady’s first visit in the UK after being delivered on 14th February! Over 24 hours we were able to sample some of the restaurants and entertainment and view some of the cabins. The food and restaurant

06 January 2020

As a child I was fortunate to travel to Europe 5 times for skiing holidays but until recently hadn’t skied for 20 years! So, I was a little nervous but mostly excited to be taking the family on our first ski holiday just before Christmas. We stayed in Les Arcs 2000 in France in a chalet with 2 other families. None of the six children had skied before and it was ideal as they were all placed in th

11 December 2019

I’ve been booking customers to Sandals and Beaches for the past 20 years but until last month had never made it myself, so when the opportunity arose for me to visit for a few days, I could hardly say no! I stayed at Sandals Grande in St Lucia and booked a Club Level room. So, what makes Sandals different from a regular all-inclusive? For me there were several things that stood out compared wit

09 December 2019

It’s been a while since we’ve visited the Caribbean, in fact I’ve not been since we had children so I was super excited to be going back and even better that it was in our winter! St Lucia didn’t disappoint either. It’s a very green and very, very hilly island. At 27 miles by 14 miles it is more than twice the size of Antigua but the long windy roads mean it’s pretty much a three hour car journey

08 October 2019

Today I spent a few hours training with our rep from Inghams, Ski Esprit and Santa's Lapland. It was a really informative training session as it was only a small group so we were able to ask lots of questions! Having already been on a Santa's Lapland trip I already knew lots about the product but it was great to get a refresh and also learn about their Aurora breaks which have more inclusions tha

20 September 2019

On 15th September myself and 8 other Kent Travel Counsellor's walked the London Monopoly Board for one of Travel Counsellor's chosen charities for 2019 - Reuben's Retreat. We set the date back in 2018 and over the course of the year planned how we would go about it! Several people had done this before so we used their blogs to get ideas and came up with our own route - we decided doing the most

30 July 2019

It’s been a busy month for cruise ship visits and trainings! Earlier this week I was lucky to be invited on board Brilliance of the Seas with Royal Caribbean in Dover. Brilliance is one of Royal Caribbean’s smaller ships, although at 90,000 tonnes, still not particularly small! But Oasis of the Seas is three times the size of Brilliance so it gives you an idea of just how big some ships are now!

11 July 2019

Earlier this week I was lucky enough to be invited on board Sea Princess at the Dover Cruise Terminal. The thing that most impressed me on board was the outdoor space and two swimming pools - one of which had a large, shallow overflow area which meant you could paddle or sit on the side and dip your toes in - I'm sure small children would love this feature too (and it was warm, even in Dover!) The

01 July 2019

Last month I was very fortunate to be invited on board Cunard’s Queen Victoria for the day. I’ve done quite a few ship visits over the years but until now I had not made it onto a Cunard ship so I was very excited to see it! The ship has a lovely welcoming and homely feel, quite relaxed and understated. The ship is Edwardian in style and is decorated in dark wood throughout much of it. (Queen Eli

18 June 2019

For our summer holiday this year we had to take it easy on price as we’ve been updating a couple of rooms (including a new en-suite!) at home. We are really lucky to have access to a family villa in Spain and so we were able to get an almost 2-week holiday in the sunshine still! We stay around 20 minutes south of Alicante and, as we’ve been a few times before, the kids had a list of things they

15 May 2019

I'm recently back from Travel Counsellors' annual Gold Weekend, which was hosted in Marbella, Costa del Sol this year. The last time (and only other) time I have visited Marbella was in 2008 at our annual main conference so I didn't get to see much of the area as we were in sessions for a lot of it so it was a great opportunity this time to see a bit more of the resort. I've booked many, many cu

02 April 2019

Yesterday evening I was invited to a Caribbean Training event in Canterbury at the Abode Hotel. It was a fun evening and I picked up a few new contacts and a lot of useful information. Here's a very quick snippet of some of the knowledge I gained - ARUBA "One happy island" Aruba is in a great position outside of the hurricane belt making it a great year-round destination. It has many award-winn

15 February 2019

If you haven't already downloaded our amazing App MyTC you really should think about doing it! Here are some of the main benefits and features of it: - -It's free of charge and it's constantly being updated with new features. -Clients rate it 4.5/5 as an average score. -It can eliminate the need for any physical paperwork (but only if you want it to!) -There is a holiday countdown for each

09 January 2019

There is no other way to describe Lapland other than magical. It felt a bit like I imagine Narnia to feel! It's a trip I've always wanted to do, even before I had kids, so to have been and done it is amazing! We had a cabin for eight of us over Christmas with our own host (you have to register around two years in advance for this so if it's on your list for the future get in touch now!) As a s

19 November 2018

Travel Counsellors annual conference this year was held in Glasgow and having not been to Scotland before it seemed a good opportunity to extend my stay by an extra night. Despite the forecast being pretty awful, we were really lucky with the weather and didn’t really get wet the whole weekend which was a pleasant surprise particularly on the first afternoon where we opted for an open top bus

04 October 2018

Our Gold Conference Weekend this year took place last week in Anantara Vilamoura, Algarve. We were very lucky to have around 10 degrees above the average temperature for this time of year, so we enjoyed temperatures in the 30s every day. The Anantara Vilamoura is a stunning hotel with a golf course on-site. The rooms are large with open plan bathrooms also of a good size. It’s around 5km from

20 September 2018

There aren't many companies out there that put on training days and invite your whole family along! Travel Counsellors is one of them though! In the school summer holidays Club Med kindly sponsored a day of training, games and fun for me, my hubby and the kids along with lots of other TCs and their families. We headed up to Norfolk (it was a long day) where we met the Club Med ladies. Games wer

03 July 2018

I've tried to remember as much as possible and I hope these tips will help make the most of your Disney holiday! Before you go you can also personalise your band - this includes choosing the colour and choosing the name written on the back. (You'll need to be able to differentiate because of who the fast-passes will be linked to!) You can also buy bands in the shops there if you want something

02 July 2018

OLIVIA’S CAFÉ, Old Key West Hotel We ate here at the hotel the evening my parents surprised the kids by arriving for our second week. Their flight landed into Orlando at around 5.30pm and I knew my mum and dad would be bursting to see the children and finally give up the surprise we’d been hiding for the past year or more so we booked a meal here, so we could see them the evening of arrival. It

02 July 2018

GARDEN GRILL, Epcot This was a set menu of meat, potatoes, veggies and mac cheese and it was all you can eat – the food was very good. Four characters came around and we saw each one at least twice. We didn’t realise until a good hour into the meal that the restaurant was rotating! It was expensive so glad we were on the Dining Plan! Would we go again? Yes! Matthew - “We got to meet Mickey,

18 June 2018

Where to start? Two weeks in Disney (just Disney!), very tired feet, hundreds of photos but definitely memories to last a lifetime. It was my fifth visit to Florida but the first time for my youngest (second for my eldest but as he was 2yrs old last time he can’t remember it!) We booked it over a year in advance and as a result we all had quite high expectations after a long countdown! It didn’t d

24 April 2018

I attended a cruise event at The Old Brewery/Cutty Sark in London last week where we were treated to canapes and cocktails (non-alcoholic ones for me as I was driving!) Several of our cruise suppliers were there and this is a little bit about each of them. Cunard Cunard feature the transatlantic crossing between Southampton and New York. This is such a famous experience and one that features

13 March 2018

This trip was a reward for 10 BA top sellers to experience Dubai like a VIP and we weren't disappointed. After an eventful Friday of snow and disruption in the UK, eight out of the 10 of us made it to Heathrow and with Club World flights and access to the BA lounge we were soon de-stressed and ready for our trip. It was only my second business class trip and very enjoyable, I even managed to get a

20 February 2018

At Travel Counsellors, we are recognised once we get to and maintain a certain level of sales and service, as a Gold Travel Counsellor. Each year there is a trip we are taken on and in 2017 it was a weekend cruise in the Med with MSC. We arrived in Genoa port to a rather spectacular site of our home for the next few days - MSC Preziosa. Despite being late October, the sun shone and the ship lo

07 December 2016

I've actually lost count of the number of times I've been to Disneyland Paris but we still love it! OK, so it's really not Florida but for a quick fix of Disney, it's brilliant. We're lucky enough to live fairly close to a Eurostar station so getting there is pretty quick and arriving just at the park gates is ideal! We stayed at the Newport Bay hotel this time which has recently been refurbis

07 December 2016

This was the first summer holiday we've actually had to take in the school summer holidays, so I was a little apprehensive about what to expect! I was hoping it wouldn't be too hot for the kids (3yrs and 6yrs) and also hoping it wasn't going to be so busy that it made it unenjoyable! We were pleasantly surprised though! The temperatures were ideal, early to mid-thirties every day and the sea wa

07 December 2016

When I heard I'd be embarking on a river cruise as a reward for achieving 'Gold Travel Counsellor' status, I was a little unsure about what to expect! We sailed onboard Scenic Jewel and the hosts were amazing. I can highly recommend Scenic, the service was unbelievable, the food was delicious, cabins surprisingly spacious and the scenery was stunning. We were lucky enough to have a cabin with

14 March 2016

I have just returned from an amazing weekend in New York. This is what we did - Woodbury Common (shopping outlet) which is around an hour away from the city. It was really good, well worthwhile if you want to shop. Although saying that there were lots of offers on clothes etc around 5th Avenue which I wasn’t expecting, thought it would all just be full price. Allow a full day here – even with t

25 March 2013

This was my first visit to Mauritius and we loved it! The hotel was lovely and I would highly recommend it for a good value, good standard and the all-inclusive option. The deluxe rooms are quite large and I would be happy to stay in this room type again. The food and service was excellent! We went with our two year old and the hotel was very family friendly. We also saw a couple of weddings while

06 December 2012

This was my fourth visit to Florida, but the first time I have stayed on-site at Disney and the first time I’d been as a family (with a two year old) rather than as a couple. I wasn’t really sure what to expect! We booked when they were offering a free dining plan, which they regularly do now if you book early. Any doubts were soon squashed – it was a fantastic experience. We stayed at the Ani

12 December 2008

Las Vegas really is one of those places that everyone should visit at least once in their lifetime as it is impossible to do it justice in words and pictures alone! Everything is on such a large scale, it is hard to take it all in! It wasn’t our first choice of destination but my husband has wanted to visit Chicago for many years and with Las Vegas we wanted to go and see what all the fuss was abo

05 August 2008

When they started operating charter flights to Brazil, we must have been among the first to book! The first thing that strikes you about the country is the sheer size. When we started talking about trips to Rio and Iguassu Falls we realised the logistics of visiting both places in such a short space of time were not ideal so we opted just to visit Rio from where we were staying on the coast. R

21 May 2008

If you want to truly relax and forget about all the stress back home – then you have to try the Maldives. We were unfortunate enough to be in the middle of the plane in row 1 on our outbound journey. While everyone else was admiring the fantastic views before landing we were straining our necks to try and get a glimpse of where was to be our home for the next two weeks. On arrival we waited