Christmas may be the most wonderful time of the year but it can also be the most stressful – especially when you have a lot of gifts to buy for as lot of people who already have EVERYTHING! Add to this a busy schedule, a tight budget, and every high street being so manically busy …
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When was the last time you received a postcard? Go on, wrack your brains and think about it. I was about nine years old and it came from my neighbours who were on holiday in Spain. They sent the postcard because I was looking after their cat while they were away and I have a …
Next Wednesday I’ll be joining gocompare to co-host a Twitter chat all about Christmas travel. We’ll be talking about the places we’d like to go, tips for travelling during the festive season and exciting plans for New Year’s Eve. It’s going to be the perfect chat to get you into the festive spirit – …
Isn’t it funny how by doing something that you don’t think you’ll like you usually end up learning a lot about yourself? And sometimes you even end up loving the thing you thought you’d hate? When No Becomes Yes Take for example, the venture into the rainforest that I did in Cairns, Australia. Pre-trip there …
You know you’ve been busy when you’re almost a week late announcing it was your birthday on your blog! I have been busy but in the very best ways possible. Last Saturday was a very special day for me for two reasons. Firstly, I watched one of my very best friends get married and it …
It’s been a while since I’ve done a monthly update here on The Travel Hack. I love reading other blogger’s monthly recaps so I’m not sure what happened to my own. I guess things get busy and priorities change and I forgot how important it is to share something more personal and unstructured on the …
Hang on a minute. You hadn’t heard? Yep, slippers have suddenly become cool. Slippers are no longer the unwanted Christmas gift you get every year from your nan. They’re not just the things your granddad wears in front of the fire. And they’re not those ridiculous novelty things you loved when you were 12 with …
Today I’d like to introduce you to Steph and Leah, our two new contributors to The Travel Hack team. They have both left busy, career driven lives in London to live their dream together of travelling and seeing the world, and their first stop is Australia. They’re currently on what we like to call ‘A …
Once a year I like to give The Travel Hack a revamp and a shake-up. I like to refresh old posts and get planning and plotting for the future. September feels like the perfect time of year to do this. It’s something that’s been ingrained in my since school. The new school year begins in …
Hands up if you’re a stationary geek. Go on, don’t be shy. You’re not alone here! I’m the biggest stationary geek ever. I genuinely get excited over fresh notepads, colourful pens and picking out my diary for the New Year. Everything I do for work and for this blog is digital and based on either …
I don’t know about you but I’m always searching for bucket list inspiration. I love it when I scroll through my social media feeds and stumble across something that makes me stop and think, ‘Wow, that looks incredible, I really want to do that!’ Chances are I’ll pause for a few seconds, maybe mention it …
This is a new feature we’re testing out to bring together all of our favourite things each month. We’re talking new hotel openings, gorgeous new travel accessories, new travel beauty products to try, travel competitions, special deals and offers and everything in between. Enjoy! €100 off Azul Fit Retreats A few years ago I …
Ahh, summer holidays – a highlight of each year for as long as you can remember, right? There’s the excitement of planning and booking your summer holiday, the anticipation as the date draws closer, maybe a bit of excited frustration as the weeks drag by. Then you have the thrill of buying new summer clothes …
The travel blogging community is obsessed with the term ‘digital nomad’. It pops up on every travel blog with top tips on how to be a digital nomad, why it’s so awesome being a digital nomad, a typical day in the life of a digital nomad and why everyone should quit their jobs to be …
Hands up if you’ve ever tried to write a journal but given up 3 days in? You begin with a beautiful new notebook and possibly even a fancy new pen. You wait for the beginning of the month to start writing (because who starts a diary in the middle of the month!?) and for a …
Is anyone else completely and utterly fed up of winter and ready for spring to hurry up and start warming us up? I always feel like this towards the end of February. It’s been winter for years (10 years, surely!?) and I barely even remember what it’s like to have the sun on my skin …
Is anyone planning a holiday and feeling a bit overwhelmed? There are so many places to go, so many things to see, so many things to do. If you’re anything like me, your bucket list is just getting longer and longer and holiday planning can be tough when you just want to go everywhere! To …
Welcome to the first Weekend Reads of 2016! It’s been a big and busy week in the blogosphere. The first week of the year sees bloggers sticking to their New Year’s resolutions and posting more so there’s a lot for us to read! And please tell me I’m not the only one who has spent …
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 …
Well hello there and happy Sunday. I hope you’re all having a fabulous weekend. I’ve been enjoying the last of the autumn sunshine this weekend – and a hell of a lot of autumn rain too! Autumn is my favourite season. I love the chilly mornings and the blue skies, the amazing colours and the …
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 …
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 …
Have you ever been to a festival where the star of the show isn’t the headline act but the location? How about a festival where the food is so good you wish you could grow a second (or third) stomach so you could try everything? What about a festival where you constantly stumble upon surprise …
I took this photo as I toasted my toes against a roaring log-burning fire.* I had a glass of red by my side and I was about to press play on a DVD. I’d just eaten an enormous Welsh oggie followed by homemade toffee cupcakes I’d picked up from the local bakery. We’d eaten on …
Did you know that I’m ‘Winglish’? OK, it’s not a real thing but it should be because there are lots of people who feel a little bit Welsh and a little bit English. Therefore we’re Winglish. I was born in England but I moved to Wales when I was five. I learned Welsh in school, …
I’ve been taking the concept of a ‘staycation’ to a whole new level recently as I’ve been taking holidays close to home. REALLY close to home. A few weeks ago I even went on holiday just half an hour from home when I visited Llangollen. Yes, I packed a suitcase, filled up the car and …
As a blogger I’m always looking to improve and grow because I want The Travel Hack to be best it possibly can be. I have a million and one ideas about how I’d like to improve the blog in 2016. I’m one of those people who wants to do everything. I want to learn to …
You probably already know that I’m an ambassador for Lumix and their range of 4k cameras. Over on my announcement post I gave you a brief introduction to 4k photography but today I’d like to tell you a little more about it – and explain why it’s so flipping fantastic. The main advantage of …
Before I hit the slopes I didn’t think there was much of a different between skiing and snowboarding. Obviously, I know the physical differences but they both seemed to be ways to get you down a snowy mountain, right? Oh no, so wrong. Skiing and snowboarding are both exhilarating winter sports but the attitudes …
Have you noticed all the recent hype around 4k photos? I hope so because I’m about to add to it with a very exciting announcement. I’m working with Panasonic Lumix and their 4k cameras as a 4k ambassador! You guys probably know that I love photography and travel and photography go hand in hand. …