I’ve just returned from an amazing weekend in Barcelona. I went with my partner, Sam, and our baby boy, Joseph, who was 12 weeks old when we travelled. Since getting home I’ve had a few readers ask me what it was like to travel to Barcelona with a baby and if I thought it was …
City break
I couldn’t help but giggle as I sat on the Eurostar with a glass of champagne in one hand and over €3,800 in cash in the other. I couldn’t believe this was actually happening and I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to have been selected for this ‘challenge’. In case you missed it, I …
Yes, you read that correctly, Holiday Inn Expresses are getting cool. Last week I was in London and had the pleasure of staying at the Holiday Inn Express on Ealing Broadway, London. I’ve stayed in more than my fair share of budget London hotels and they very rarely make it onto the pages of this …
In my previous post about the beautiful Swiss city of Lausanne, I talked about how accommodating I found this place. Rarely have I felt so welcome, or… looked after by a city. Turns out, it was just one of the surprising things about this hidden gem of a destination. If you don’t know too much …
It’s hard to believe that one of the biggest cities in the world doesn’t have an extensive 24-hour transport service. You can feel a little like Cinderella if you’re out past midnight in London, except instead of your carriage turning into a pumpkin you’ll just have to pay an arm and a leg for …
Colourful gondolas bobbing up and down in the canal. Ancient, rust-coloured buildings which look as though they have a story to tell lining narrow, winding streets. Yep, Venice is pretty much a blogger or photographer’s dream. Recently, I went wandering the streets of Venice, armed with the new LGG4 phone to test its camera out …
Remember that scene in Hugh Grant’s failing travel bookshop, when Julia Roberts tells him that she’s ‘just a girl standing in front of a boy, telling him that she loves him’? It was this film, named after and set in Notting Hill, that brought a small area in West London into the world spotlight …
The problem with luxury hotels is that old-fashioned, stuffy air they often have. They can be formal and uncomfortable with outdated routines and overly complicated menus. The décor might be fancy but it looks a hundred years old and I feel like I can’t relax. Why can’t luxury hotels be young and stylish? Why …
I’m delighted to welcome Rachel Kershaw to the blog today. Rachel is the blogger behind Life in Geordieland, an awesome blog about Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead in the UK. She’s bringing us an Insider’s Guide to Newcastle, which is the UK’s favourite city. Keep reading to find out why…. Photo credit: Mick_Gallagher_1959 1. Can you …
My third day in Paris began with a gloriously lazy morning and leisurely breakfast at Citadines Louvre Paris before setting out towards Notre Dame. La Conciergerie: A Fairytale Palace Along the way I stopped at La Conciergerie, a former royal palace on an island in the middle of the River Seine. With its grand façade …
“Lille? For three days?” The Parisians would ponder this for a few seconds after I’d told them that, yes, my next stop was Lille, for three whole days. “Hmm, it’s very different to Paris but you will like it,’ they’d tell me. “It’s very pretty.” And this is my first impression from Lille. It is …
Please tell me I’m not the only one who hasn’t even thought about Christmas shopping yet, let alone even bought anything. Christmas is in 9 days away and every year my circle of family and friends seems to double (you guys really need to stop getting married and having children!) I’m away for the next …
I’m wrote this last week while sat on my balcony overlooking the ocean. I spent the week cruising from Venice to Dubrovnik to Mykonos to Istanbul and here’s how I got on during my first few days at sea… I can see some islands in the distance I think might be Greece as we left …
Any Game of Thrones fans will be well aware of Dubrovnik’s incredible beauty because this is where the King’s Landing scenes were shot. I found myself watching the hit TV program in a kind of trace; not just because of the twists and turns in the plot but because of the amazing film locations. I …
Is there anything better than being greeted at a hotel with a beautiful bunch of fresh flowers and a box of macaroons? I was being given a tour of my Citadines Suite when I spotted them and got a delightful waft of sweet and floral scents. I already knew I’d be spending the next half …
Venice is more than just a pretty face. It’s also home to some of Europe’s cultural highlights – from music and film to food and drink. When you’ve had enough of gazing, gondolas and gelato – check out La Biennale festival. What is La Biennale? La Biennale di Venezia is a biannual festival, celebrating contemporary …