Travel
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A Day in Florence from Pisa: Must-See Sights and Itinerary
After a good night’s sleep we took the lift downstairs to discover what a post COVID-19 breakfast would be like. At check-in we’d been informed that breakfast would take place in the restaurant as usual so we headed in there to find out what was on offer. To our relief, the buffet breakfast that we…
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Discover Pisa: A Guide to the City’s Best Sights and Hidden Gems
If I had a spring in my step a few weeks ago as I boarded my first long distance train for over four months, I was even more excited at the prospect of taking to the skies again. As soon as travel restrictions had been lifted, we searched for flights and decided that a weekend…
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CitySuites Aparthotel Manchester Review
Hotel Review Location CitySuites is located on Chapel Street in the heart of Manchester city centre and just a five minute walk from Victoria Station. For guests arriving by car, discounted parking rates are available at the adjacent Q-Park Manchester and Exchange Square with its Metrolink tram station is close at hand. The aparthotel us…
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Visiting Altrincham and Sale by Train from Manchester: A Day Trip Guide
Our final day in Manchester and the sun was still shining! After a leisurely breakfast in our cosy suite we gathered together our belongings and checked out of CitySuites, leaving our bags at reception to collect later in the day. Making the most of our weekend tram pass, it was then back to nearby Exchange…
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Exploring Manchester by Tram: Salford Quays, MediaCity & Didsbury Village
We woke to another sunny morning (who says it always rains in Manchester!) and after preparing breakfast in our swish apartment at CitySuites it was just a short walk across to Exchange Square. From a machine at the tram stop we purchased two Metrolink weekend travel cards allowing us unlimited tram rides across the entire…
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Exploring Manchester City Centre on Foot: Top Attractions & Walking Routes
I was so excited to be spending a weekend in Manchester as it’s one of my all time favourite cities and somewhere I visit often. Five long months seemed much too long to be away and as our train approached Victoria station even the sun broke through the clouds to welcome us back. We’d arranged…
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Visiting Kilnsey & Kettlewell in the Yorkshire Dales: Tips and Itinerary
Kilnsey is a small village located in the heart of Wharfedale and is noted for its impressive limestone cliff. Situated 12 miles north of Skipton and easily accessible from the motorway network as it’s just 25 miles from the M65 at Colne or 40 miles from the M1 at Leeds. Leaving the motorway and driving…
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Staycity Aparthotel Greenwich, London Review
Hotel Review Location Staycity Aparthotel is located in the historic centre of Greenwich and is just a few minutes walk from Greenwich mainline railway station with frequent trains to and from London Bridge taking only 8 minutes. The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is also nearby with links from the London Underground at Bank taking 20…
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Exploring the Best of Greenwich and London Docklands: Culture, Views & More
After feeling refreshed following a good night’s sleep at the Staycity Aparthotel we utilised our apartment’s kitchen to prepare some breakfast and with a dishwasher on hand we soon had things tidied away and were ready to go out. After popping our key cards in the express check-out box in the entrance lobby we jumped…
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How to Spend a Day in Greenwich, London: Must-See Sights & Activities
I had a spring in my step as I boarded an LNER early morning train between Leeds and London Kings Cross. Using public transport and travelling by train is something I do constantly but alas not in these strange times so I was excited to be taking my first journey for over four months. I’ll…
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Exploring Malham Cove: A Perfect Day Trip in the Yorkshire Dales
Malham is a small village at the southern edge of the Yorkshire Dales and is an idyllic little place. Nowadays hill farming and tourism are Malham’s main activities with a good selection of accommodation to suit all tastes dotted around the village. Located at the upper end of the River Aire valley, the area has…
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Green World Grand Nanjing Hotel, Taipei Review
Hotel Review Location: This Taiwanese owned, Japanese style hotel opened in early 2017 and is located approximately 40 minutes from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. We took the MRT airport line direct to Taipei Station from where we connected to a service along to Sonjiang Nanjing station located just five minutes walk from the hotel. Step…
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How to Spend a Day at The Coldstones Cut: Yorkshire’s Iconic Sculpture Walk
The Coldstones Cut is said to be Yorkshire’s biggest and highest piece of public art work. It was created by Andrew Sabin and overlooks the Coldstones quarry on Greenhow Hill just outside Pateley Bridge in North Yorkshire. Perched at a height of just over 500 metres above sea level it can be freely explored by…
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Silsden Canal Walk: A scenic stroll along the Leeds Liverpool Canal
Silsden is a former mill town located in the Aire Valley of West Yorkshire. This small town was a centre for textiles and nail-making and at one time was home to more than 200 small forges. We’d decided to visit so that we could enjoy a walk along a short section of the Leeds &…
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Walking the Basingstoke Canal from Odiham: Tips and Highlights
The Basingstoke Canal was built in 1794 to connect Basingstoke with the River Thames at Weybridge. Its intended purpose was to allow boats to travel between the docks in East London and Basingstoke allowing goods such as flour, timber and coal to be transported. It was never a commercial success and from the 1950’s due…
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Discover Gargrave: Things to See and Do in this Yorkshire Dales Village
The picturesque village of Gargrave is located four miles north west of Skipton in North Yorkshire. The A65 runs through the village linking Leeds in West Yorkshire with Kendal in Cumbria on the edge of the English Lake District. Gargrave has its own railway station on the Leeds to Morecambe and Carlisle lines enabling walkers…
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A Walk Around Addingham: Exploring Yorkshire’s Picturesque Village
The village of Addingham is situated between Skipton and Ilkley and just one mile from the Yorkshire Dales National Park close to Bolton Abbey making it an ideal starting point for numerous walks in the surrounding countryside. The Dales Way long distance path starts in nearby Ilkley passing through the edge of Addingham along the…
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The end of our Indonesian adventure
It was to be our final day in Bali and it began with a relaxing breakfast out on the hotel’s terrace. Our last opportunity to order from the egg station which had served up perfectly poached eggs for me each morning and delivered them to the table. As we’d arranged a late check-out until 3.00…
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Discover Kuta, Bali: Top things to do
Unusually at breakfast this morning, all the staff were looking beautiful wearing traditional Balinese national dress rather than their uniforms. I commented how lovely they looked and enquired why they were dressed in this way. Apparently it was Prophet’s Day when it is customary to wear national dress. The entire team looked wonderful in their…
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The Fishing Village of Jimbaran, Bali: Seafood, Sunset & Local Charm
We slept soundly until 8.00 a.m. it being extremely quiet despite the airport’s close proximity. Breakfast was again a peaceful affair as, apart from our first morning (Saturday), few guests seemed to be around. JetStar cabin crew arrive daily on overnight stopovers and appeared friendly enjoying their mini-breaks in beautiful Bali. For our morning trip…
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Seminyak, Bali Travel Guide: What to See & Experience
After such a hectic previous day we enjoyed a lie-in and didn’t venture down to breakfast until 9.00 a.m. when it was lovely and quiet with a good choice of tables. I diversified my breakfast choices with a bowl of butternut squash soup (yes, I realise it’s a strange choice for so early in the…
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Discover Bali’s Must-See Attractions on a Day Tour
It was just as well that we had set our alarm for 7.00 a.m. as we once again received a knock on the door with our morning newspaper. After enjoying a large breakfast we returned to our room for our cameras, sunglasses and bottles of water then went down to the foyer to wait for…
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Exploring Kuta, Bali
It was still dark when we were wakened by the sounds of someone knocking on our bedroom door, and glancing at the time, wondered whatever it could be. My son went to open the door and was handed a morning newspaper. Apparently as IHG members we were entitled to a complimentary daily newspaper and the…
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Jakarta to Bali with AirAsia: Travel Tips and Flight Info
For the first time this holiday we were both awake before our alarm went off. This wasn’t a bad thing though as the earlier start to the day enabled us to enjoy a leisurely breakfast in the Novotel. We kept with our selection from the previous days and munched our way through this whilst reading…