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Les Villages Nature Paris: a different way to do Disneyland

Les Villages Nature Paris: a different way to do Disneyland

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I’m always up for a different approach to a Disney holiday, and I’ve recently discovered one that I think you’ll really like - a beautiful resort just a stone’s throw away from Disneyland Paris with tons of space and all sorts of things to do. If you’re a bigger family, this is absolutely perfect for you: a perfect, self catering apartment option with a little Disney magic thrown in. Here’s everything you need to know about Les Villages Nature Paris: a different way to do Disneyland!

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Everything you need to know about St James Club, Antigua

What it’s like to stay at St James Club, Antigua

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So after my life-changing few days celebrating the launch of the W8 GYM, I thought you might be wondering what it’s like to stay at St James Club, Antigua, and I’ve been looking forward to sharing more about this beautiful resort. This was my first time in Antigua, but my Dad travelled and worked - and indeed played cricket - a lot in the Caribbean, and adored it there. I grew up listening to stories of Curtly Ambrose and Viv Richards so it was lovely to finally experience the island for myself. St James Club occupies a stunning 100 acre peninsula on the south east coast of Antigua, with pretty shell-coloured villas and small clusters of hotel rooms dotted around a wide, vanilla ice cream scoop of beach facing into sheltered Mamora Bay on one side, and the other, smaller Coco’s Beach open to the cooling breezes of the Atlantic. When we arrived, we were taken to our rooms by golf buggy, and snatching tempting glimpses of the turquoise bay and swaying palm trees, I wanted to pinch myself a bit just to make sure it was real. Tempted yet? Here’s everything you need to know.

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Christmas at Universal Studios

Christmas at Universal Studios

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So in my last post all about our family Christmas in Orlando, I told you about our journey in Virgin Atlantic’s new Economy Delight class, and what it’s like to stay at Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach resort. The next morning we hit Starbucks early ready for a full day at Universal Studios. The weather forecast was sun and showers, but still, it was so much better than the weather in the UK - shorts and t-shirts in December? Bring on Christmas at Universal Studios! Read more

Our Florida Family Christmas - Universal's Cabana Bay Beach Resort

Christmas at Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort

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I’ve been promising that I’ll update you all on our Florida family Christmas, and as I’ve got so much to tell you and I don’t want to miss anything out (I’ve had so many messages from people considering Christmas holidays at Universal Orlando Resort and Walt Disney World) I thought I’d split it into a few different parts, with this first bit covering the journey and Christmas at Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort. This was a big ask as a holiday: we had a pretty varied age range, from young adults to my 78 year old Mum, and a lot of different bucket list items to tick off too. I got myself into a bit of a flap planning it all and in the end Jim had to sit me down and tell me to chill out a bit, as it was starting to look like a bit of a military operation getting everyone to see and experience everything I wanted. As it turned out, we had a lovely mix of relaxing and exploring, and there were loads of wonderful memories made. I’m not going to lie to you: six adults being together 24/7 for 10 days was never going to be 100% without stress, but although it was pretty tiring (and the weather wasn’t great), it was definitely one of the best holidays we’ve ever had.

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News from D23 Expo - what's coming up at Walt Disney World, Florida - MINNIE VAN SERVICE COMING TO WALT DISNEY WORLD

News from D23 Expo: what’s coming up at Walt Disney World, Florida

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‘Oh, I’ve been to Walt Disney World, I don’t need to go again’, said no-one ever. One of the things I love most about the happiest place on earth is that it’s ever-evolving. One of the best places to hear all the news and future plans for the Disney Parks and Resorts is D23 Expo, Disney’s official fan club’s brilliant biannual gathering, billed as the ultimate Disney fan event, which took place in Anaheim over the weekend. There have been some pretty jaw-dropping announcements, so if you’re a Disney fan, grab a cuppa, and I’ll take you through what’s coming up at Walt Disney World, Florida (and a few bits from the other parks too). Excuse all the artist’s impressions but obviously that’s all there is at the moment, apart from the pic I took of the hoarding hiding the new Toy Story Land!

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The Departure Beach from Virgin Holidays

The Departure Beach, Barbados, from Virgin Holidays

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We all know that feeling, right? After a gorgeous holiday, the last day is such a massive come-down: you’ve got to be out of your room by midday but your flight doesn’t leave until the evening, you don’t want to get sandy and have nowhere to shower, so your last day is spent miserably killing time, sweating in your travel clothes, before heading home. While I was in beautiful Barbados, though, Virgin announced a brand new concept that’s going to change all that, and I think you’re going to love it. Step forward The Departure Beach from Virgin.

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Those Kissimmee sunrises

Family holidays in Kissimmee: fab villas and outdoor fun!

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I have so much to tell you about my amazing trip to Kissimmee with Norwegian - I can’t believe two weeks has flown past since I was there. I travelled with such a lovely bunch of people and we had great fun exploring - honestly, it was one of the best trips I’ve ever taken. If you’re considering a holiday to Florida, whether it be to the theme parks, or to discover a bit more of the area, I highly recommend Kissimmee as a base. There’s so much fabulous accommodation, beautiful scenery, loads of fun things to do, and, it’s so close to all the parks too. Here are my recommendations for fun family holidays in Kissimmee.

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Out and about on Amelia Island: the boys with our beautiful pearly Hertz 4x4

Out and about on Amelia Island

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Recently, you’ll remember, I shared my little Florida secret with you – a deliciously quirky and lovely little barrier island just off the coast of northern Florida called Amelia Island. The boys and I spent a wonderful week there making some treasured memories together, and I wanted to tell you a bit more about what we got up to. We sat down and had a little head to head and came up with our favourite five things to do when you’re out and about on Amelia Island. And guess what’s number one…?

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Pirate Playground signpost, Fernandina Beach, Amelia Island

Amelia Island: the coolest place you’ve never heard of

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If you’ve been following me on my social media channels over the last week, you’ll know that I’ve got a secret to share: an island so rich in history, so naturally lush and beautiful, so authentically old Floridian that everyone should visit. Situated just off the coast of the north eastern edge of Florida near the border with Georgia, what this quirky little barrier island lacks in size, it makes up for in character; with a chequered history and a beauty that will steal your heart. Say hello to Amelia Island.

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Villa Thymari, Katelios, Kefalonia

Planning a 2017 villa holiday!

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We all absolutely adore Christmas, but the funniest thing is that while we were all sitting around the fire, Christmas Radio Times on hand to pick the best Christmas movies, sipping on a Baileys, talk actually turned to planning for the summer holidays. I was telling them that the fab villa holiday company, Villa Plus had asked me to talk about our holiday plans for next year, and, as a family with older children, it’s sometimes difficult to pick a holiday that suits everyone. As we were chatting, it was interesting to hear what the boys want from a family holiday. Whereas Jim and I really both want somewhere comfy to lounge and read a book and some sunshine, the boys have different ideas:

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Team Wiggo and the Celebrity Eclipse

A family cruise on Celebrity Eclipse

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So I’ve had an absolutely MAD bout of travelling and can’t wait to update you on all the exciting things we’ve been up to. Firstly, we’ve just returned from a lovely two week family cruise on Celebrity Eclipse, Celebrity Cruises’ beautiful Solstice class cruise ship, where we sailed from Southampton and visited Gibraltar, France, Italy, Spain and Portugal. It was our first time as a family on a Celebrity Cruise (Mr E and I did a wine cruise on Celebrity Infinity a while ago) and we did wonder what it would be like to spend two weeks in a relatively small stateroom as a family (as it turned out, we were treated to extra room, which was fab). Here’s how we got on:

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Holiday bucket list: Mallorca

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My very first holiday as an adult, away from my family for the first time ever, was in Mallorja (or Majorca). My friend Clare and I went to Palma Nova. We chose it because it was it was supposed to be a bit quieter than its slightly noisy neighbour, Magaluf, and we had the most wonderful week of sunbathing, cocktails and lazing on the beautiful beach. One thing we didn’t do, though, was explore much, which is one of the reasons why Mallorca continues to rate quite highly on my holiday bucket list and why I was delighted with Booking Mallorca asked me to pick a few faves from their selection of lovely villas and apartments.

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The Disney Dream docked at Port Canaveral

Disney stay and cruise: our week in pictures (part two)

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After our magical 24 hours in Walt Disney World, Florida, we woke early and grabbed a quick breakfast at the Cape May Café with Minnie Mouse (as you do), before waving her goodbye and jumping on a coach which took us to Port Canaveral. There we caught our very first glimpse of the Disney Dream. Here’s part two of our Disney stay and cruise photo diary: all about the Disney Dream.

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The Seaside Palm Beach Hotel, Gran Canaria

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I wonder if it’s just me, or if all mums of older teenagers approach every family holiday opportunity with a bit of a heavy heart, thinking: ‘this could be the last one EVER’? I mean, frankly, it’s ridiculous, because, as a friend in a similar situation rightly told me recently, ‘it doesn’t matter how old they get, they’ll always be up for a free holiday’. Especially one as heavenly as this one.

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My top tips for planning a family villa holiday

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If you’ve ever thought of booking a holiday with a big group, either for a family get together, or with a group of friends, it can all seem a bit daunting. Villa holidays are ideal for larger groups - sharing the cost means that you can book something bigger and more special, and more importantly, unlike with a hotel, you can have the entire place to yourselves. Oliver’s Travels asked me for my top tips for choosing and booking a villa for a group holiday:

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