Favourite Holiday Destinations

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Disclosure - This is a collaborative post

Summer is almost upon us and for most people that means they will be heading off on their Summer holidays. Whether it's in the UK, Europe or further afield, getting away is something we all love to do. It's nice to know that we can 'switch off' for a week or two and forget about the real world and just float about in our holiday bubble. When it comes to choosing where to go we all have different ideas of the perfect holiday. Whether it's somewhere you've visited before, a recommendation from a friend or through browsing sites online.

city skyline

We tend to visit places we have already been to before. We like the familiarity and also the no stress worrying whether it is okay, as we've been before. I recently asked a few blogger friends what their favourite holiday destination is and why? The results are fab and it has actually given me a few new places to take a look at.

Long Haul Destinations

We have been over to America twice now, first we went to New York and earlier this year we went to Walt Disney World. They are 2 of our favourite destinations and I'm glad to see that others think so too.

Carrie from Flying With a Baby loves Cape Town. " outdoor fun, stunning beaches, amazing food, penguins, sharks, whales all in the wild. There is just so much to see and do. It's (only 12 hours away - I say only as we are used to 24 hours as hubby is Australian) hardly any time difference and perfect for Winter sun too "

Angela from The Life Of Spicers chose Walt Disney World. " there is something for everyone. Our once in a lifetime trip three years ago sees us revisiting for the third time this year. It's truly magical "

Ann from Rainbows Are Too Beautiful also chose Florida. " especially in the Spring . . because it's good weather and has the best Disney park "

I have to agree with Laura from Mama Eden & Me about New York.  " It's magical. The energy, the people, the theatres. I love the place. Hopefully going back next year "

Lynne from New Mummy Blog loves holidaying in the UK however . . . " my favourite holidays (other than honeymoon) were always the American road trips hubby and I did pre-kids, we can't wait for the little ones to be a bit older so we can go back and do more, including Disneyland " 

Michelle from Mummy2Monkeys loves America. " Everything is just so big and better. We went to see our first ever basketball game and I absolutely loved it seeing all the cheerleaders doing their half time dance routines in their cheerleading uniform."

the canaries

The Canaries

I have visited Lanzarote and Gran Canaria and both are stunning. The weather is always lovely, people are friendly and they are real family friendly resorts.

Suzy from Our Bucket List Lives also loved her holiday this year to Gran Canaria.  " The weather was lovely in January/February. There's lots to do there as a family and we loved the hotels that we stayed in. We'd not been there before and we would love to go back "

Becky from Mummy Est 2014 has visited Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands  " It was amazing. We took our little man when he was 20 months and he loved the beach, the pool, and the lights and fun of the evening entertainment. I loved the fact it was hot, all inclusive (so nice not to have to worry about food and drink) and family friendly. Travel time was only about 4 hours which wasn't as horrendous as I thought it would be "

Africa

Not a place I have visited yet but somewhere I would love to try. 

Naomi from Not A Perfect Parent tells us why she loves Tunisia. " There are so many amazing places I've been to including Florida, Lanzarote and other places but Tunisia has totally stolen my heart "

" I've been twice and the culture and history is so interesting. Both times I was given tours of the markets and that was a whole new experience. It is so rich in history and culture that many people don't know about and I loved learning all about it! We were taken around Mosques and a Mausoleum and the Tunisian People showed us so much respect for being interested in it all "

 " Tunisia has such a bad reputation and is a country that many either love or hate "

" Added bonus is that it's only about a 3 hour flight but it's North Africa so amazing temperatures "

harbour

The Balearics

I have to agree with both Laura and Kerry on their choices. Both beautiful and lots to see and do. We have stayed in Alcudia, C'an Picafort and Sa Coma in Majorca. Sa Coma is by far our favourite and hopefully we will visit again next year.

Laura from Mum On A Mission favourite holiday is Mallorca. " Anywhere on the island. Many reasons but primarily because it is beautiful. It's also only 2 hours away and there are plenty of cheap flights. I lived there for 5 years and it still feels like my second home. I'd recommend it to anyone "

Kerry from Kerry Shaw Mummy Of Four loves Ibiza " One of the most beautiful Islands I have ever been to, especially when you fly in just after the sunrise, on a really quick and very cheap flight "

Europe

Proving to be quite popular for the perfect holiday destination.

mickey, minnie, donald and goofy

France

Beth from Twinderelmo and Jade from Mummies Waiting both agree that Disneyland Paris is the perfect getaway. 

Beth " not too far to travel and pure magic from start to end "

Jade I love to get away, but completely away from everything with so many distractions to take in. It makes our whole family so happy and the experiences always bring a tear to my eye"

Italy

Kate from Five Little Stars likes to get away to Lake Garda (specifically Desenzano and up around the west of the lake). " It's beautiful, so easy with children, and the food is immense. We have been several times, pre and post babies, and always have a lovely time. And we are off to Corsica in September and I have high hopes that it will be a top holiday location contender for us too "

Louise from Pink Pear Bear also is a fan of Northern Italy " Amazing food, stunning scenery, lush weather, some of the most breathtaking art and architecture on the planet, less then 2 hours flight AND super duper child friendly! We love it "

Joy from The Sensory Seeker is also a fan of Italy " We loved our trip to Italy - Gelato and culture what's not to love. It was a place where the whole family loved with our various ages and the public transport system is fantastic "

Denmark

Nadia from Scandi Mummy loves Copenhagen " especially in the summer months. There is so much to do whether you are going for a childfree romantic getaway or for a family trip. Some of the best restaurants in the world, fantastic attractions and it's close to the sea and great beaches "

beach

UK

We love visiting different parts of the UK. It is a beautiful country and if you get the right weather it is definitely a perfect holiday destination. 

Katy from Katy Kicker enjoys a visit to CenterParcs " One hour from home, lots of activities and lovely facilities "

Hollie from Thrifty Mum chose The Isle of Scilly " Amazing. Only off the coast of Cornwall by small plane or ferry, they're beautiful islands, some are free of traffic and that low in crime no-one locks their doors. Perfect for an Enid Blyton friendly childhood. They have the best weather in the British Isles so you're guaranteed a nice tan too "

Emma from Me and B Make Tea would have to say good old Blighty. " Specifically Devon. We holidayed abroad with the little one but i've found I had a better time at Center Parcs and places like Ladram Bay and Cofton Holiday Park. We love Haven too. They are so geared for kids and there is so much to do even in rainy weather. Often when we go abroad the pools are freezing even though the heat is 30. So the UK - don't underestimate what you have on your doorstep "

*****

I have absolutely loved reading everyones 'perfect holiday' destinations and it doesn't seem to matter whether its a long haul trip to America, a villa in the Canaries, or a weekend in the UK we all love to get away and we all have our own favourite destination. 

Michelle


*collaborative post - all images thanks to Clickstay*

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Now that the weather has started to improve and the days are getting longer we have been sorting out the summer toys ready for the late nights and longer weekends.  This weekend we wanted to try out the Giant Gazillion Giant Power Wand as Little J loves bubbles and especially big bubbles that he can chase around the garden. 
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 Now that big J is growing up buying for his birthday isn't as easy as it was. We asked him what he would like and even he couldn't think of anything. After listening to the radio one morning he heard about the Capital FM Summertime Ball so he asked us for tickets for his birthday.
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Well today when I got home and started to browse through Facebook I did not expect to see this news trending - STEPS ARE BACK. Woohoo I am so excited. I have been a very loyal fan for 20 years so I am delighted that not only are they back with a new album but a tour too. I have seen Steps live many times and obviously their music is poptastic but they were born to perform on stage, their live shows are amazing. #20YearsOfSteps here we come.

Steps tour poster
So over the years I have continued to listen to Steps, watch various programmes featuring individual members of the band and also their reunion a few years back. There have been rumours since late last year that they would reform but sometimes those type of rumours fizzle out so I didn't want to get my hopes up. 

I quickly popped over to the Steps Official page and there was the news that their album Tears On The Dancefloor will be arriving on April 21st and the tour will commence in November 2017. Tickets go on sale March 10th and I've popped a list of dates below.

Mon Nov 13 - Dublin 3Arena
Tue Nov 14 - Belfast SSE Arena
Thu Nov 16 - Glasgow SSE Hydro
Fri Nov 17 - Aberdeen AECC
Sat Nov 18 - Liverpool Echo Arena
Mon Nov 20 - Newcastle Metro Radio Arena
Tue Nov 21 - Leeds First Direct Arena
Thu Nov 23 - Brighton Centre
Fri Nov 24 - London The O2
Sat Nov 25 - London The SSE Arena, Wembley
Mon Nov 27 - Bournemouth BIC
Tue Nov 28 - Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
Wed Nov 29 - Cardiff Motorpoint Arena
Fri Dec 1 - Birmingham Barclaycard Arena
Sat Dec 2 - Manchester Arena

So the big question is are you excited that #20YearsOfSteps are back and if so are you going to buy the album or tickets to the tour. I'm guessing it's obvious that I will be doing both. Can't wait - roll on April and November.

Michelle


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A few weeks ago I was reading another blog and noticed that The Gruffalo Trail was at Delamere Forest. I was so excited because I knew little J would love hunting through the woods in search for the Gruffalo. It's been one of his favourite books for a few years now and last year he even had a Gruffalo birthday party. So last weekend we headed to Delamere Forest in search for the Gruffalo.

The gruffalo sculpture


If you have been to Delamere before you will know that there are quite a few car parks, however we decided to head straight to the Forest Centre car park as we wanted to buy a map of the Gruffalo trail. 

The Forest Centre car park is situated by cafe, toilets, bicycle hire and the starting point to all trails. It is a sharable car park with an all day charge of £6. You can pay less if you are only staying for a hour or two.

Once we were parked we headed to the shop to purchase our map which was £1.50. The starting point is just outside by the picnic benches. There are 12 points to follow on the trail so once we had a quick toilet stop we were ready to go. I would recommend going to the toilet beforehand as once on the trail there are no toilets available. It is approx one and a half miles however it does seem longer especially if you venture off track and go exploring in the woods and den building. 

boy in wellies
The trail is accessible for all ages and abilities however it was very muddy and I did see people struggling with prams at some points throughout the trail. 

We wandered in to the woods a few times firstly to do den building although there was a den already built so after playing in it for a little while we knocked it down. We found big logs and sticks and had lightsaber fights with them.

a gruffalo sign
There is a point at the beginning of the trail were you walk over a bridge. The bridge is over the railway tracks although we didn't get to see a train unfortunately. As you go along the trail there are 12 sign posts to look out for - this lets you know you are going the right way. They have questions on and if you have bought the map you can answer them in the activity booklet.

We got almost half way before we stopped to have a snack. It was the first time we had seen a bench so took the opportunity to have a quick drink and a cake that I had brought with us. 

Boy holding a leaf
We went in to the woods a few more times looking for leaves and pine cones. Little J loves exploring and getting muddy. 

boy in the woods
Shortly after we had got back on to the path we saw a crowd gathered ahead so we assumed the Gruffalo was close by, we were right.

The Gruffalo sculpture
When we got to the Gruffalo little J was so excited. He was huge and looked like the real thing. 

After we had posed for a photo we noticed just behind the Gruffalo there was another den. Was a this were the Gruffalo sleeps at night? We went down to have a look and little J climbed inside. 

The Gruffalo isn't actually at the end of the trail there are still 3 more sign posts to look for until you come to the official end of the trail.

It took us about one and half hours to complete the trail although like I said earlier we did go off the trail quite a bit so I suppose the time it takes depends on whether you stick to the trail or not. 

When we headed back to to the Forest Centre we were going to stop for a hot drink in the cafe however the queue was huge. In fact every time we have visited Delamere the queue in the cafe has been large. We brought our own lunch so decided to give it a miss. 

We will definitely be back to Delamere Forest again for more Gruffalo adventures after April 1st 2017 when the Gruffalo Spotters Trail begins.

You can also now take part in the Highway Rat activity trail, check out Captain Bobcat's Highway Rat Adventure.  Have Kids Will travel also did the Fforest Fawr Sculpture trail which looks fun, check it out.

Michelle


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Droidbox PlayOn, Handheld Console, Buttons, Screen,
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playdays and runways logo
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Hollands Micro 2 Go Pastie Slice Review

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When I was younger Hollands was the only brand of pie I knew. It was the brand my Nana and Grandad bought, My Mum and Dad and whenever you had a pie from the chippy it would always be a Hollands. Growing up I was never a lover of meat based pies but I loved Cheese and Onion. A cheese and onion pie with lots of tomato sauce, yummy.

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