Family Travel

Travel: Why I waited 40 years to love British camping

I snuggled down in my sleeping bag, and wriggled my ten-year-old toes. I was far too excited to sleep, my Dad’s torch flicking signals on the canvas, fearful shadows urging me to stay in the tent. Joanna lay next to me, but she wasn’t asleep either. Both of us were eagerly awaiting midnight, so we could eat our Blue Riband biscuits and declare that we had experienced a real-life midnight feast. In the event, we wore ourselves out giggling well before the appointed hour, and I set my purple-faced alarm clock so we wouldn’t miss it, as we dozed off. …

Read more

Perfect Somerset Country Cottages, and a Wedding!

There is nothing more wonderful than the English countryside. Especially on a glorious sunny day, sitting in a garden full of buzzing bees, with a glass of something cold. Except perhaps a whole weekend of it. We’d looked forward to my nephew’s wedding with the kind of anticipation that comes of receiving an invitation to an August date in the cold, dark months of Winter. We’d booked Poppy Lodge with Sykes Cottages right away, and pored over the photographs, dreaming of summer. But we hadn’t counted on such a perfect weekend – you never know what the English weather will do, …

Read more

Dinosaur Takeover at Whipsnade Zoo

The otters at Whipsnade are usually out and on form

Yesterday we went to the zoo. The Bug turned 9, and his birthday wish was a trip to the zoo. Not a surprise. He is obsessed with animals. He longs to be the next David Attenborough, and I know better than to question his knowledge of the natural world. His school report this year said: Evan has particularly shone during science lessons on animals this year, his subject knowledge is amazing and he has enjoyed sharing weird and wonderful facts with the class. Proud mother alert. So it wasn’t a surprise that Whipsnade zoo was his choice. What I didn’t …

Read more

Easy Family Trips with Virgin Trains

Liverpool's iconic Liver Building, against a stunning blue sky

Twenty hour queues to Dover. Holidaymakers camping out like waifs and strays on airport benches. The car park of the M25, M4, and M6 as Summer starts. Motorway logjams from the moment the schools finish, until well into the following week, when seemingly 75% of Brits have finally made it to their holiday destinations. Travelling anywhere in the UK by car in the school holidays is always fraught with stress and boredom. Take the train instead! Last weekend we took a trip to Liverpool. We had a rare free day as a family, and fancied something different to our usual …

Read more

A Day Out at Liverpool’s Albert Dock (review)

Imagine a square half mile that provides enough entertainment for the whole family for an entire day. It’s not a theme park, or a festival (although it has a festival atmosphere this summer); it’s just a city attraction that will keep all ages happy just hanging out together. I’m talking about the Albert Dock, in Liverpool, a small but vibrant commercial centre built around the historic old dockyards of Liverpool’s port. It’s years since I’ve been to Liverpool, but it’s only 2 hours from London on the train, so we decided to have a day out somewhere different now that …

Read more

Travel: Treehouse Glamping in Norfolk

Sunrise treehouse at West Lexham in Norfolk is the perfect home from home for a relaxing glamping break.

Advertising disclosure: this post contains affiliate links. I may receive a small commission if you click them, for which I thank you. All opinions and imagery of West Lexham are my own.  Treehouse Life Is there anything more lovely than camping in the woods? Waking early to sunlight peeping through the leaves, and the sound of birds singing the sunshine into the day. Or snuggling down by a log fire in the dusk of evening, hot marshmallows roasting in a flame as fairy lights twinkle. It turns out there is. Sleeping (and living) in a treehouse. I have always wanted …

Read more

50 Secrets you Need for an Incredible Trip to Somerset

#SecretSomerset: some hidden gems in Somerset and Exmoor.

  Finding the real Secret Somerset How do you choose a restaurant in Hong Kong? A gondola ride in Venice? A beach in the south of France? Amongst all the choice, how do you find the really good stuff, the dish that will set your taste buds alight, that perfect little bay with the gorgeous sunset, or the boat that will leave you with lifelong memories? You follow the locals. Of course, you see the Eiffel Tower and you walk the Great Wall, but often it’s the things you don’t think to visit that become the greatest stories of your …

Read more

Ski: Le Hameau du Kashmir – self-catering hotel style.

I am utterly spoiled for every single ski trip I take in future years. Seriously. Totally ruined. The phrase ski-in-ski-out has entered my consciousness, made itself at home, and will forevermore be the barometer by which I measure all future ski trips. This is the view from our apartment at Le Hameau du Kashmir, in Val Thorens over Easter. That slope you see, under the cable car, is not ten steps from the door of our locker room. Which, by the way, contains heated boot posts and glove hangers, so you always start the day with warm, dry fingers, and cosy feet. …

Read more

Where to see Bluebells in Hertfordshire

Photographing in the bluebells at Ringshall

Ringshall, 2008. It’s been years since I updated our photo albums. Since the Bug was born, in fact, and I somehow lost a whole section of time in my day. It was something I always pushed to the bottom of my list, from where it nagged me weekly. For seven years. Last week I finally began the process of sifting through old images on old laptops and even older hard drives; and I found this picture of my daughter, aged 4, in the woods at Ringshall, on the Ashridge estate. It’s not the perfect photo – I don’t do Photoshop, …

Read more

Ski: Tips for doing The Luge Toboggan Run in Val Thorens

Tips for surviving the Luge toboggan run in Val Thorens

  If you’ve always fancied taking a family ski or snowboarding holiday, then Val Thorens is the perfect place to start. Our kids get very excited about our ski trips, and it’s a complete joy to share the antics of the day with them after a long session on the slopes. But even though they love the skiing, children sometimes need a break, or a change of scenery during a week’s holiday. For ours it can be a lazy afternoon in the apartment, or a swim in the hotel pool. But one of the highlights of their holiday in Val …

Read more

Ski: Where to Eat in Val Thorens

Where to eat in Val Thorens - we pick our favourites for eating on the piste and apres-ski

Waffles in the snow – what more could you want? There’s nothing better than sitting out in the cold air, sunshine blazing down on pristine snow, and cold beer in your hand after a long day of skiing. That moment when you loosen your boots, and your tongue, as you relive the stories of the day, from that time the Bug did a 360° spin without meaning to, to the moment when Dad wiped out in the powder and lost a ski, via the epic sneeze on the chair lift that made people on the slopes look up in confusion. …

Read more

Wringer and Mangle: a VERY cool bar in London Fields

Some VERY cool areas to hang out at Wringer and Mangle

Grain sacks and a pommel horse make for lounging seats at Wringer and Mangle. If you frequent London Fields in East London for its social scene, chances are you’re more Superdry than Boden, drink Fever Tree not Schweppes, and prefer Snapchat over Facebook. But make the effort to venture a bit further east than your mainstream safety zone London staples, and you’ll find two great levellers: Time Run – an against the clock maze of team challenges reminiscent of the Crystal Maze (find out more on Space In Your Case); and Wringer and Mangle. Wringer and Mangle (review) We had …

Read more

Travel: Les Carroz – A Relaxed Family Ski Resort in the French Alps

Les Carroz d'Araches may be small, but it's a lovely family ski resort in the French Alps

  Travelling to the French Alps for a half term ski holiday I was nervous. We’d never skied during the notorious French winter holidays, and the hordes of British number plates squeezing into the Eurotunnel did nothing to ease my apprehension. I’d heard about the mammoth lift queues, the production line canteen food, and the crowded slopes sure to tempt injury. It was all a far cry from the idyllic mountain charm I was used to as a term-time skier. But we have kids now, and not the kind we can pull out of school for a holiday. Half term …

Read more

Days Out: What to expect when you visit Tower Bridge London

Great places to visit in England: The view from Tower Bridge is spectacular - if you dare to take it in!

A heart-stopping view from Tower Bridge When you step on the walkway of Tower Bridge, you might wonder what’s in store. It’s a bridge, admittedly a pretty cool, rather iconic bridge, but still, it’s just a bridge, right? We had travelled into London for a rare family day out (rare because it’s unusual to find all four of us without plans on a weekend day), with the goal of exploring the Tower of London. We hadn’t bargained on the queues though, had set off a little late, and required stops for toilets and coffee along the way. We decided the cost …

Read more

Travel: 36 Great places to visit in England

Great places to visit in England with the family

Tomorrow sees the start of English Tourism Week. Visit England are champions of English tourism, and this year is the fifth anniversary of the week long event. To celebrate everything that makes England such a special place for a break, a holiday, or just a day out, we’re highlighting some of the great places to visit in England with your family starting with some lovely experiences in London. Great places to visit in England with the family Tower Bridge   What could be more English than Tower Bridge? So iconic the Americans tried to buy it and take it home with …

Read more

Travel: Keeping Kids Safe and Happy on a Family Ski Holiday

Tips for keeping children safe on a ski holiday The girl sharing my lesson must have been around eight years old. “So, we’re in this together then?” I tried to make conversation. “Absolute beginners, you’ll probably do way better than me!”  “Oh no,” our instructor shook his head. “She’s a really good skier. But she broke her arm last season when some idiot lost control and careered into her. She just needs to get her confidence back.” I was 21, having my first ever ski lesson, and the eight year old girl with a broken arm was already a much better skier than I was. Fast forward a …

Read more

3 Things to do with Kids at Half Term in London

As the half-term holidays loom, frazzled parents know that unless they keep children busy and having fun, a week off can easily turn into a struggle to get through till term starts again. But it doesn’t have to be like that, provided you have a few plans to keep them active and engaged. Here are our tips for things to do with kids at half term in London. Scroll down for a list of ideas from elsewhere around the UK. Things to do with Kids at Half Term Try a Freaky Rivet day out Freaky Rivet is an organisation dedicated to …

Read more

Theatre: A Curiouser Alice in Wonderland for teenagers

A new kind of Alice In Wonderland in London examines teen issues in the digital world - Wonder.land review

  “I totally, utterly hate being me!” Not something we’ve heard yet here, but at 11, I’m aware that this statement is a possible assertion for my daughter at some point in the next few years. Just before Christmas we went together to see Wonder.land at the National Theatre, to discover what might be lurking round the corner of her teenage years. The first thing to say about Damon Albarn’s musical adaptation of the Lewis Carroll classic, is that it’s not suitable for children under the age of 10. It says so on the website, and it’s true, not just …

Read more

Food, Beers, Beds, and Shopping: The Old Stocks Inn – review

It's never too early for cocktails at the Old Stocks Inn (review)

The first thing we noticed at the Old Stocks Inn, in Stow-on-the-Wold (after the lovely warm welcome) was the bar. Quick, let’s go and explore, so we can get back here and have a drink! we decided, and we did. We visited the Cotswolds on a typical British winter weekend, and the dark afternoon made our frosty breath and the twinkly Christmas lights feel festive and exciting. All we needed was a cosy bar and a pint to top it off perfectly. As we wandered around the market square, popping in and out of charming little shops, marvelling at interesting gifts and old-fashioned …

Read more

A Reggae Catamaran, and a Dolphin Kiss at Beaches Negril

A Reggae Catamaran cruise is exactly what you need on a Beaches Resorts holiday!

How beautiful is that? That’s the catamaran you’ll dance on. Oh yes you will, because you won’t be able to stop yourself. Once you’ve arrived at Beaches Resorts Negril, there’s not much you’d want to leave for. It truly is paradise (take a look at our virtual tour review if you don’t believe me). But there are one or two things on offer that you really will be glad you paid the extra for. Here are our two favourites: Reggae Catamaran Cruise I have to confess I was dubious. I had visions of Club 18-30, and whilst that does look …

Read more