We’ve been to Isle of Wight a couple of times as a family and have always loved it. Both times we stayed with Vintage Vacations in one of the Airstream trailers and spent the days playing cricket in the field, barbecuing and generally lazing in the sun or taking shelter from the rain inContinue reading “A day trip to Isle of Wight? Yes!”
Category Archives: Cool UK
Afternoon tea: The Savoy, London
The Savoy, Thames Foyer Strand, LondonWC2R 0EU I love to go to the Savoy, even just to have a peek at the gorgeous Thames Foyer. The room is straight back from the revolving door at the iconic Art Deco entrance on the Strand, past the almost hypnotically beautiful flower arrangement in the Upper ThamesContinue reading “Afternoon tea: The Savoy, London”
Best bars in London: Swans Bar, Maison Assouline
I love, perhaps a little too much, discovering great places to drink. My latest discovery came to light via my friend Mark. After months of trying, we finally got together for a sneaky afternoon drink — girding ourselves for our separate, taxing evenings to come. He suggested Swans Bar, right smack on Piccadilly. I’d neverContinue reading “Best bars in London: Swans Bar, Maison Assouline”
Review: Jumping in the trees with Windermere Treetop Nets
Kids can sometime drive us up a tree. I discovered on a recent trip to Cumbria that Treetop Nets at Lake Windermere is a great chance to return the favour. This activity centre features actual nets strung up in the trees with walkways, tunnels and slides to play in. When fellow family traveller Kirstie from Family AdventureContinue reading “Review: Jumping in the trees with Windermere Treetop Nets”
Lake District: The Swan Hotel & Lake Windermere
I drove through sleet and rain, roaring traffic and endless dark roads to make it to the Swan Hotel one weekend with two tween girls in tow. “That’s a long way,” London friends said when I told them about this weekend trip, and it was a good amount of driving. I would make outContinue reading “Lake District: The Swan Hotel & Lake Windermere”
Hampshire: The Peat Spade Inn, Stockbridge
Sometimes you just get lucky. A friend of a friend or a colleague or someone you know from somewhere recommends a place to stay and it looks good online so you book it. We’ve all been on the other end of this. Where you book someplace whose website looks marvelous and it ends up youContinue reading “Hampshire: The Peat Spade Inn, Stockbridge”
The luxury hotels that love bees
Honey makes the world go round. It’s not the usual way that phrase goes, but it was certainly the motto at The Joy of Bees, an immersive art installation that took place this month in Soho with the brilliant guys at Bompas & Parr along with Relais & Chateaux. At the event, you could driftContinue reading “The luxury hotels that love bees”
Bath: A video room review of Bath Mill Lodge Retreat
Recently we did that rare thing for parents, we spent a weekend away just the two us. We went to Bath and stayed in the lovely Bath Mill Lodge Retreat, self-catering accommodation situated in a lovely little landscaped campus, just minutes by car from the city centre. We had breakfast and shopped at a fantasticContinue reading “Bath: A video room review of Bath Mill Lodge Retreat”
Review: Trentham Monkey Forest, Staffordshire
They scamper, they play, they consume a massive amount of fruit. In the event your own little monkeys would enjoy meeting their animal kingdom counterparts, swing over to Trentham Monkey Forest, just outside Stoke-on-Trent. It’s a must-visit activity in Staffordshire. We visited Trentham Monkey Forest with two tween girls, who loved every minuteContinue reading “Review: Trentham Monkey Forest, Staffordshire”