When travelling it’s very important to do and have some basic things, these include but are not limited to: ✅ have travel insurance ✅ research your destination so that you have a basic understanding of culture and things to be aware of whilst visiting ✅ check health requirements such as recommended or required vaccinations
If I hadn’t had travel insurance when Martin (my husband) passed away whilst we were abroad l don’t know what I would have done. They helped and guided me through the process of returning Martin back to the UK and paying for everything that was needed to do this. At that time the last thing I needed was more worry. I am also very lucky to have had such amazing friends that were travelling with us and supporting me.
You never think it’s going to be you but you just don’t know and if you’re happy to travel then you should make sure and be prepared to take on everything that comes with that.
With many rivers and lakes in the UK exploring them safely whilst having fun is key. The excellent Canoe Wild in Grove Ferry Kent is a must if you are in the area. You can explore the River Stour using one of their canoes, SUPs or kayaks. Running from Grove Ferry and Fordwich or you could even take a trip down river to Plucks Gutter. They also do a raft building session at the Fordwich site so if there is a group of you this would be great fun activity.
They also have collaborated with ‘Euro cycle Adventures’ and ‘Cols Kent Bike Tours’ for a ‘Pedal and Paddle’ adventure break and day trips.
The River Stour
The second longest river in Kent originates as the Great Stour in Lenham and flows towards and through Canterbury where it becomes tidal and then finally enters the sea at Pegwell Bay.
The river drains many of the marshland areas with Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve being one. Stodmarsh National Nature Reserve hosts the largest reed bed in the Southeast making it an ideal place to bird watch. So, if you love nature your sure to be happy here.
Whitstable Castle and Gardens are nestled to the side of the main town and are a fantastic free to visit morning or afternoon out.
The Castle Gardens had a renovation completed in September 2010 when extensive work was undertaken on the grounds to achieve a stunning tranquil setting. The gardens have won numerous Green Flag awards with the latest in 2020 and I’m sure they will be awarded another one soon.
The Orangery Tearoom is open daily from 10 am until 5 pm with a great selection of food and drinks. They also offer afternoon tea, but you will need to book at least 24 hours before you visit.
There is a lovely pirate ship play area and the paths in the gardens are easy for pushchairs and wheelchairs to use. A great place to visit all year around with the scenery constantly changing as the plants and trees change with the seasons. The castle gardens and play area is open 8am until 6pm daily, there is a car park but note the gate is locked at 6pm.
They have a calendar packed with events on all year round, some highlights coming up in August include nature detective week and mummy mania. The castle can be hired for weddings, business events and more.
I was lucky to be invited to take the Kent Wildlife Dusk Wilder Kent Safari Tour to learn about the beavers re-introduction project.
Based at Ham Fen near Deal in Kent the beaver project is a hidden gem. Not open to the public you will need to book one of their experiences to enjoy and learn about the amazing work they do at the fen. I can’t tell you how many times I have driven past and known nothing about the work they have done. And I’m not going to spoil it by telling you everything so you can all go and enjoy one of their experiences too.
The project started in 2001 and has grown from 100 acres to 130 acres of beautiful wild land inhabiting not just the beavers but, birds, insects, cattle and water buffaloes.
I had a fantastic evening and although I hoped we would see a beaver I know these are wild animals and we are not guaranteed to see any. I saw so many other animals and learnt so much about something that is right on my door step.
I would recommend to anyone interested in nature and wanting the chance to explore somewhere not many can to take a look at Kent Wildlife’s Experiences here.
Set in the Yorkshire Dales National Park Ingleton Waterfalls Trail is a great place to get outside and explore.
As we hit April 1st the trail is now open later into the evening (9am – 7pm) so you have even more time to get outside and explore this wonderful trail where you will find 6 wonderful waterfalls.
The trail is 7km (4.3 miles) and should take between 2 and 4 hours to complete depending on your pace and if you take a picnic break. Please note the trail is currently running a one way system and remember to respect social distancing, there are some narrow parts of the trail and everyone would like to enjoy the views.
Unfortunately the path is not suitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs due to the close proximity to rivers and large number of steps.
There is a cafe and toilets at the car park entrance but then not a lot for a long way so I would take plenty of food and drink. We did come across a ice cream van after the mid point snack shop (unfortunately had not been open). Please remember to take your rubbish home with you; respect, protect and enjoy.
There is parking included in the entry price, parking does get busy but some people will come and go during the day however some will spend the day there. All payments are required to be completed by card.
Love is holding on to the memories only the heart can see. 💙 I can remember so much of our road trips, from working out what budget I had to play with to planning what we could do when we got there. I will never change that, making memories so we can remember with laughter when things didn’t go so right or when we ordered food that we didn’t really know what it was or the stunning scenery and so much more. My heart hurts so much that I now don’t have the other half of me but I have the wonderful children to continue to explore the world with. 🌍 We have some great trips planned so I’m hoping that most of them can go ahead with the ever changing world around us.
Black Rock Sands in North Wales holds many precious memories for us as a family. You can drive on the beach in your car with all your kit and enjoy a fantastic day at the beach. We are looking forward to visiting this beautiful beach again soon.
With a population of just over 34,000, only 29km of roads and just over 2.6 square miles in size Gibraltar is British Over Seas Territory and an excellent place to take a vacation.
With the iconic ‘Rock of Gibraltar’, now a Nature Reserve the backdrop of Gibraltar is truly stunning and steeped in history. Standing at 426m high the imposing rock covers over 40% of the counties land area and is made from Jurassic limestone. With no rivers, streams, or large bodies of water on the peninsula rain water is a valuable resource with huge underground reservoirs excavated under the Rock of Gibraltar both for the drinking water and a separate supply of saltwater for sanitary purposes.
The Gibraltar Rock is home to the only wild apes/monkeys in Europe (Barbary macaques, officially monkeys but often referred to as apes). When visiting please remember to respect the animals they are wild, ensure you keep your personal belongings on you at all times, don’t litter and don’t feed the monkeys; there are fines if you are caught feeding them. We love to explore but we must also remember to respect, protect and enjoy at all times where ever you are.
There are several options for getting up and down the rock, Cable Car, Taxi Tour, e-bike, Guided Tours and walking. If you are looking to explore the rock you will need to pay for a ticket to the nature reserve, there are many options on how to do this we opted for the Cable Car ticket including the nature reserve as this provide the best value for us. You can also look to book a tour which will generally include the attractions in the price. With so many options there is something to suit everyone, we took the cable car up and walked the rest; although Gibraltar is small remember its very hilly up and down to get to the different sites of interest.
With many attractions on ‘the rock’ I would say it’s a good day by foot to explore, in the taxi it takes about an hour and a half. I felt that on foot we got to take our time and see a few hidden gems, and soak up the culture.
Attractions on ‘The Rock’: Apes Den, Mediterranean Steps, St Michaels Cave, WWII Tunnels, Cable Car, Nature Reserve, Pillars of Hercules, Jews Gate, Great Rock Gun Battery, Siege Tunnels, Windsor Suspension Bridge, O’hara’s Battery, Rooke Battery, Hayne’s Cave Battery, Douglas Lookout, Lord Airey’s Battery, Skywalk Gibraltar, City Under Siege Exhibition, Moorish Castle, Military Heritage Centre and Princess Ann’s Battery. With so many places there is sure to be something everyone in the family would like.
St Michaels Cave was impressive and I would have loved to go for a tour in the lower sections of the cave but unfortunately we didn’t get time.
Dolphins are frequently seen in the Bay of Gibraltar and you take can a boat trip to explore the bay and search for dolphins. We opted for the Dolphin Safari Gibraltar as they offered a smaller group capacity of 25 with others up to 110 people per boat. They were incredibly experienced and friendly, we were out for just over an hour and a half seeing dolphins several times, check out my video here . We were also provided with a voucher that we could use to gain discounts at some restaurants in the ocean village area.
Beaches are in on the Eastern and Western sides of Gibraltar with Sandy Bay, Catalan Bay, Eastern Beach on the Eastern Side and Western Beach, Little Bay and Camp Bay on the Western side. With their own dedicated website providing weather information and live stream online cameras you can check out how busy the beach is before you go. We opted for Sandy Bay as we could see it from the top of ‘The Rock’ and put it on the must visit list. We got a taxi there and back dropped and collected at the steps side of the beach, taxis require that you to be dry and not sandy which was ok as we had taken spare clothes.
Gibraltar Botanic Gardens – The Alameda is free to explore, we headed there in the evening before sunset to take a look; open daily 8am – Sunset and are at the base of ‘the rock’ south of the town centre. The glasshouse ‘Bicentenary House’, is open to the public Fridays 10am-12pm, or by appointment. The open air theatre can hold a maximum of 450 people where events are held. There is also the Alameda Wildlife Conservation Park situated on the upper south-west side of the gardens.
Shopping is VAT free with many perfumes and other shopping at great prices. There are some English stores, a small Marks and Spencer, Next and Mothercare the international shop Tommy Hilfiger and more. There is also a McDonalds, Costa, Burger King, Pizza Hut and Pizza Express. There are also many fabulous local restaurants and shops, one of my favourite was chök which had an amazing, beautiful and delicious selection of doughnuts, kronuts, cookies, chocolate and much more.
Gibraltar airport is 1.8km long and intersects with Winston Churchill Avenue Road, the road is shut off for take offs and landings. A tunnel under the runway has been long planned but so far has not been completed.
Gibraltar has the Gibraltar pound and are used alongside the Bank of England bank notes and coins. Some retailers accepted Euros and US Dollars but most accept UK Sterling (Gibraltar Pound and UK Sterling Pound).
The official language spoken is English although many are bilingual and also speak Spanish.
Gibraltar has a Mediterranean climate with mild, rainy winters and then summers that are very warm to hot and humid and with very little rainfall. Making it a great place to visit all year round, we enjoyed a Winter break with the February temperature at 18-19°C with the days clear and sunny.
There is not many places where I can say I have walked the length of the country more than twice in a day or even more than that in a week. Gibraltar was an excellent holiday we made lots of amazing memories and it’s definitely worth a visit if you’re looking for something other than a just a beach holiday.
February Half Term Ideas – time to get walking and maybe jumping in muddy puddles. It’s cheap it’s fun and the kids won’t forget it. I mean really let them have fun, go prepared take spare clothes a towel and don’t forget your wellies ❤️
Today I spent walking on the North Downs Way with a group of fellow ambassadors training and sharing knowledge.
It was such a lovely day with everyone really supporting each other in every way. So watch out as we are going to share with you some of the amazing hidden gems of the North Downs Way.
You can explore the North Downs Way yourself with many self guided walks available from Explore Kent or the National Trails website. If you’re looking for an ambassador guided walk I will share them as they become available across the whole North Downs Way network.
My Jones Life 