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Monica

Hi, I'm Monica! This is my family lifestyle blog where I share posts about motherhood and microadventures.

If you’re looking for Corinthia Hotel Budapest reviews then here is my honest hotel review from my stay there. If you’d like to read more about my trip to Budapest then you can see my Budapest travel blogs here. Budapest is one of my favourites places for an affordable city break so I hope you …

Read More about Review: Corinthia Hotel Budapest, Hungary

Solo female travel is one of the hottest trends in the travel blogging community right now. I feel so proud to be part of a movement that encourages women to live out their travel dreams and not sit at home waiting for their perfect travel buddy to magically appear. Most of the time I don’t …

Read More about 8 of the hardest things about solo travel and how to overcome them

Today I’d like to introduce you to EarnAway, a hotel booking website that allows you to earn cashback on the hotels you book. I used the website for my recent trip to Budapest and here’s my EarnAway review… You may already be familiar with cashback websites. Basically, when you buy something online, the website you …

Read More about EarnAway Review: The hotel booking site that sounds too good to be true

  If you’ve ever heard Budapest being described as a ‘fairytale city’ it’s because of this place; Fisherman’s Bastion. Fisherman’s Bastion is in Budapest’s Castle District located next to Matthias Church on the Buda side of the city. This gorgeous, neo-Gothic viewing platform is dramatically medieval looking and provides one of the best viewing spots …

Read More about Capturing the early morning light at Fisherman’s Bastion, Budapest

Did you see my last posts about why I think Valencia is the perfect destination for a weekend escape? If you didn’t, check that out first! I fell head over heels in love with Valencia, Spain’s third city. I had a little longer than a weekend in Valencia but it’s the perfect city for a …

Read More about How to have a perfect weekend in Valencia: Your 3 day Valencia itinerary

Like all things in life, there isn’t a quick and easy way to grow your social media following. I know, I know; it’s the 21st century and we want quick and instant results. We’re used to seeing blog posts with flashy, jazzy titles like, ‘How to instantly grow your blog by millions of followers without …

Read More about Blogging tips: 6 Simple tips to REALLY grow your social media following

It took me almost 22 hours to reach Florida Keys. It began at 6.30am on Sunday morning with a drive to Manchester Airport, a quick flight to Heathrow, an 10-hour flight to Miami and finally another quick flight to Key West. Whoever said travelling is glamorous had clearly never spent 12 hours in economy and a …

Read More about My first day in Key West: Ernest Hemingway, Jet Skiing, Lobster and Ghost Busting

I’ve just returned from a weekend in Valencia and I’m still buzzing from the trip. It had everything I could possibly want from a weekend away; culture, history, art, shopping, great food and drink, affordable prices and easy flights. Everything about it was absolutely perfect and Valencia makes such a great city for a weekend …

Read More about 10 reasons why Valencia is perfect for a weekend escape

Since uploading the post on Wednesday about the ‘What vacationer are you?’ I’ve been thinking a lot about my travel style. It took me a long time to figure out what my travel style is because I so often followed guides and ‘top 10 lists’ and recommendations from other people. When I was taking blog trips …

Read More about What makes my perfect holiday and realizing there is no ‘right way’ to travel

I’ve stayed in more than my fair share of airport hotels. They’re usually pretty depressing with views out to brick walls, overpriced mini bars and the same bland décor across the world. The staff are usually rude, the breakfasts are inedible and I usually have a terrible nights sleep before catching an early morning flight. …

Read More about Hulhule Island Hotel in the Maldives: More than just an airport hotel

Driving into the village of Downham is like driving through a portal and emerging into a world that existed 100 years ago. If I were to describe it as ‘quaint’ it wouldn’t quite do it justice, as it’s so much more than quaint. Downham is beautiful and charming and cosy. It has an old fashioned …

Read More about The perfect wintry weekend at Assheton Arms

  “Why have I not been here before!?” This was a genuine question I kept asking myself just a few hours after I’d landed in Valencia. This city is gorgeous. It’s warm and it’s beautiful and it’s interesting. It’s historical and filled with culture but also modern and filled with young creativity. It feels a …

Read More about Travel update: I’m in Valencia and I’m in love with this city!

I find that searching for accommodation and finding ways to save money when booking hotels to be the hardest part of holiday planning. There are so many gorgeous hotels, so many websites to book them on and lots of confusing reviews. The hotel is often the most expensive part of the trip so it’s really …

Read More about Travel Hacks: How to save money when booking hotels

Welcome to the new feature on The Travel Hack called Weekender of the Week! Each week I’ll be bringing you a quick weekender idea to inspire your next weekend escape. This week it’s all about a weekend in the Algarve, Portugal. Most of us think of the Algarve as being a week-long destination. Of course, it’s a …

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I feel like New Years resolutions aren’t the cool thing to do this year. Everyone is talking about celebrating your achievements rather than setting yourself unrealistic challenges. Other people are talking about small ‘goals’ and other people have ditched them all together but they never stick to them anyway so what’s the point? But I …

Read More about The Travel Hack’s New Years Resolutions

One of my favourite rooms in our whole house to decorate has been George’s room. It made me weirdly sad that I wasn’t able to decorate a nursery while I was pregnant as we were living with my parents while we renovated our own house. I guess it was that nesting instinct kicking in but …

Read More about Decorating a travel themed child’s bedroom

  Do you know what ‘Shiok’ means? No, I didn’t either until I watched this video by the Singapore Tourism Board. It’s a word mostly used in Singapore and is used to express pleasure or the highest quality. It means ‘amazing’ or ‘awesome’ but it’s shorter, snappier and all together cooler. Shiok is a good …

Read More about Sponsored Video: #GetIntoSingapore

  I was absolutely overwhelmed by the amount of people who responded to my reader survey. Thank you all so much! At first I was nervous about getting people’s honest and brutal opinions. The Travel Hack is my baby, I’ve worked so hard on this blog for the past 6 years so the thought of …

Read More about The Travel Hack Reader Survey: The results are in and what to expect from 2016

I love weekend escapes. Come on, who doesn’t!? There’s nothing better than leaving the office early, pulling a little suitcase behind you and strutting out with that happy, ‘I’m taking a weekender’, swagger. This swagger is a real thing. Embrace it and get your Weekender Swagger on. It’s a swagger that lets everyone know you …

Read More about The 12 best weekend escapes

  I’ve been very lucky to spend Christmas in some amazing and exotic destinations. I’ve spent Christmas Day on the beach in Sydney, one Christmas scuba diving with manta rays in Bali and even one year I was cruising around the Canaries. But, do you know what? My favourite place in the world to spend …

Read More about Why I love Christmas in the countryside