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 …
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When I first saw today’s Podmas prompt I thought it wasn’t the most exciting but then I realised I’d never actually told you much about where I live and why. I live on the border of Chester and North Wales and the simple reason I live here is because this is where I was raised. …
Why is it that travelling far away always seems so much more exotic than travelling close to home? What is it that makes us want to spend hours in the car, hours queueing at airports, hours crammed onto tiny planes and hours waiting to get through immigration when we could travel to very similar places, …
If you’re looking for things to do in Chester then you’ve come to the right place! I’ve lived on the outskirts of Chester for most of my life so here are some of my favourites! Chester is one of the country’s most important heritage cities and, in my opinion, it’s also one of the most …
I’ve been using a sleep tracking watch for two years now and I’m regularly asked if tracking my sleep helps me get a better night’s sleep? It’s a hard question to answer because, for some people, tracking your sleep can actually be detrimental. Some people find it stressful and the anxiety of waking up to …
This is the first year we’ve made homemade damson gin using the damsons that grow in our garden. We’ve lived here for five summers now and I can’t believe we hadn’t done it sooner because damson gin is so delicious! Our first batch of homemade damson gin is rich and fruity and sweet. It’s so …
It’s no secret that I’m a massive fan of Amazon. The convenience of quickly ordering something on my phone and it arriving the next day is too much, so I order virtually everything I can via the app. Everything from nappies to books, spices to dog food, clothes for the kids and everything for our …
In case you missed this announcement in my weekly newsletter…. As many of you have already guessed, the exciting announcement I’ve been hinting at is a second baby! I’m 21 weeks pregnant with another baby boy!! 🙂 I went to the hospital last week for the second scan and was told he’s a healthy (and …
It’s been such a long time since I’ve put together a Weekend Reads post and I thought it was time to revive it. Since having George I’ve spent A LOT of time reading blogs and it’s turned out to the perfect way to keep me entertained during those long night feeds. Here’s what I’ve been …
I’m so excited to introduce you to the new Travel Hack Team! For nearly four years this blog has been a one-man-band and all of a sudden we’re a team of 10. I had over 280 applications to join the team. I was absolutely amazed that so many people were interested and I’d like to thank …
It’s been such a long time since I’ve written any kind of personal blog post so I thought a quick catch-up was long overdue! You may have noticed that last week was a worryingly quiet week on The Travel Hack. Just one post in 7 days. What on earth is going on!? Here’s what… Home, …
If you’re looking for sustainable Christmas gift ideas for your loved ones this year then you’ve come to the right place! I love Christmas and, if I’m totally honest, I love all the excess and abundance of presents that comes with it! But what I don’t love is the waste and the cheap tat and …
Whether you’re visiting Rome for the first, second or seventh time, there are so many things to do in Rome I doubt even the locals have seen, visited or eaten everything on this list! They say Rome is the eternal city and I honestly think you could spend every day of your life in a …
If you’re thinking about buying a holiday caravan then I’d like to share 10 things to know before you invest in your own static caravan. The sale of new holiday caravans is up by 47% this year and second hand caravans are up by a whopping 65%! Staycations are obviously on the rise due to …
A few weeks ago I shared an article I was featured in on Metro about passive income and how I earn passive income through my blog. Since then I’ve had so many chats and questions from you guys so I thought I’d go into a bit more detail about making money from a blog in …
2017. What a year. 22 flights. Approximately 20 trips. Lots of staycations. Lots of glamping. Lots of laughs. Lots of good food with good friends and long evenings under the stars. But most of all…lots of memories. This is my favourite thing about travelling, the memories you make and treasure for a lifetime. For me, …
This is a post I write every year but I wasn’t going to write one for 2021. We spent the first part of the year in lockdown, the majority of our travel plans were cancelled and it was a difficult, stressful year on all accounts! But it was also a truly wonderful year and I …
With just a few days until my due date all of my thoughts are baby, baby, baby. I’ve been desperate to decorate a nursery but we’ve been living with my parents for the past few months as we’re renovating our new. It’s a massive project and seems to get bigger every month as we add …
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 …
Packing your carry on for long haul flights doesn’t need to be difficult. Here are my top tips to pack the perfect carry on for your long haul flight. This post has been created with SOCKSHOP – because you can’t fly long haul without a pair of cosy socks! I like to keep my carry …
Screen time for kids is something most parents are a little concerned about so today’s post is all about my tips for limiting screen time. Most of us adults grew up with TVs and computer games, but we didn’t have the incredible array of tablets and phones and handheld gaming devices that many kids have …
I’d like to introduce you to someone very special. Say hello to our baby girl, Alba Rose. Alba arrived in October weighing 7lb and she’s a snuggly bundle of absolute perfection, if I do say so myself! I’m not sure how I’m going to write this post because all I can think of is a …
We’re coming to the end of the summer growing season in the garden. It’s an exciting time when there’s lots of harvest. Tomatoes are tumbling from the vines and fruit trees are laden with juicy treats. It’s not quite time to tuck the garden up for the winter but it’s the perfect time to reflect …
Welcome to the first post in a new series here on The Travel Hack! I love a good series of posts and I’m excited to start sharing monthly updates from my garden. As you guys know, we’ve recently finished extending and renovating our house so we’re finally at the stage where we can just enjoy …
I’m so pleased I’m writing these monthly garden updates because it’s so lovely to see the progress I’ve already made in just 4 weeks. My little plants have grown so much and I’ve learnt so much too. Last month I had no idea what I was doing but this month I feel much more confident. …
Well these months come around quickly don’t they! It’s not a massive update from me this month because all I can say is that I’ve planted almost everything out in the garden and it all seems to be doing pretty well! Now it’s just a waiting game to see how things grow! If you’d like …
I didn’t write a garden update from June because I didn’t feel like I had much to say other than ‘Yes, everything is growing!’ but now when I look back on my May garden update I can see that so much changed in just four short weeks. June and July have been amazing months in …
I’m currently on a mission to prove that short holidays are surprisingly affordable. You can visit exciting, new and adventurous destinations without breaking the bank. I’m aiming to have 3-day breaks for £200 or less and the latest challenge was Vilnius in Lithuania. In today’s blog post I’m sharing more info about the prices in …
Last week I had the absolute joy of joining 1085 Adventures for their Introduction to Bikepacking course, held in Beddgelert Forest in North Wales. If ‘bikepacking’ is new to you, let me explain. Bikepacking is where you travel via bike with everything you need strapped to you or the bike, including whatever you plan to …
Today I’m sharing our experience visiting Zipmas, an incredible underground grotto in a Victorian slate mine in Wales. Our family loved Zipmas as it was such a unique and exciting Christmas experience. This Christmas I’ve made the decision to go easy on the Christmas presents and instead spend our Christmas money on experiences. For me, …