Category Archives: Travel
What to bring back from the U.S.?
If you are a Brit, what would you most like me to bring you from the U.S.?
I’ve been thinking a lot about this since we’ll be visiting and want to have hostess gifts at the ready (yes, I said hostess gifts, not Hostess gifts, people!). Here’s what I’ve settled on:
1. See’s candy. I clearly don’t understand this when Brits have much better chocolate than we do, but it’s been requested before.
2. Ziplock bags. They’ve got nothing over there like Ziplock.
3. Covermate Food Covers. So much better than Saran Wrap.
4. Speculoos Crunchy Cookie Butter. I have no idea if Brits like this, but I like this and mentally thank its inventor every day.
5. Clothing. Shoes, jeans, whatever! I take requests!
What am I missing? What would you most want from the U.S.?
Paris? Oui!
So, we’ve added a few days in beautiful Paris to our upcoming European holiday!
We’ve been to Paris a couple of times (most notably, our honeymoon! Miel du lune!) I’m so looking forward to some amazing sights and even more amazing eats!
We’re getting into the French state of mind by watching a lot of Julie Delpy movies – especially Before Sunset, one of my all-time favorites.
(Check out the “Before Sunset” map of Paris! I will absolutely be adding some of these to our itinerary!)
Do you have a favorite spot in Paris? Any must-sees? I’m all ears!
Best shoes for traveling
I’m giving some serious thought about what shoes I should take on our upcoming trip to the U.K.
I was in complete spring mode, until I realized that the weather actually could still be wet and cold – particularly considering that they are getting fresh snow falling this week.
The secret to cheap rail travel
In my younger days traveling around the U.K. for fun, I relied heavily on the Young Persons Railcard (now called the 16-25 Railcard) to get the best train fares.
Fast forward quite a few years and I’m scoping out rail travel for our upcoming trip and holy bejeezus is it expensive to take the train! Our last trip out, we opted for renting a car (which believe me, is NO big discount considering the cost of gasoline in the U.K. but it certainly fared better than the cost for our family of four). It made sense at the time and we had a LOT of luggage.
But this trip, we’ve bought our Family & Friends Railcard, which provides 1/3 off adult fares and 60 percent off kids’ fares for a family of two adults, two children. All this for £28! There are a few restrictions – notably, you can’t travel during peak rush hour times (but why would you want to?) and it’s always advisable to book tickets in advance in case seats get sold out.
I’m looking forward to seeing the U.K. by train – it will certainly bring back a lot of great memories! Beautiful patchwork countryside, perfect little villages and when that gets dull, I’ve heard that some of the new trains even have individual TVs on the back of each seat! All aboard!
The trouble with booking a British hotel room
Premier Inn
I’ve been investigating hotels in the U.K. for our upcoming trip. Sounds simple, right?
I assumed my biggest challenge would be finding a room available, and maybe finding something in my price range (after all, the current exchange rate is 1.49, which means that a gorgeous room at the Savoy for £330 pounds converts to $494 and is decidedly out of our price range). And so it goes …
But no. The real challenge has been finding a hotel willing to accommodate a family of four. I’ve discovered that many nice hotels have a person limit and two adults and two children exceed capacity, unless you’d like to book a second adjoining room. I’ve realized that I’ve taken for granted the all-suite family hotel options that are a dime-a-dozen in the U.S. (with Embassy Suites being my #1 pick, particularly when Manager’s Reception comes around) but really it’s a concept that is sorely lacking in the U.K.
Which isn’t to say that there aren’t any “family rooms” available in the U.K. Some are available for a steep price. Others seem to get booked up months in advance. But thankfully I have tracked down larger family rooms with the Premier Inn hotel group, which have worked well for our needs. It’s still one big room (usually two double beds and a sofa bed, along with the option of adding a crib) instead of the suite-style option so it isn’t perfect, but we stayed at a Premier Inn near Heathrow Airport at our last visit in 2010 and it was very easy to book a family room for four (at a very good rate of under £200, as well). I’ve also read good things about Base2Stay, which has locations in Liverpool and Kensington. And of course, there’s always Airbnb.com, HomeAway.com and any of the other vacation rental sites if you’re looking for some extra space.
Do you know of a good family-friendly hotel in the U.K.? Please share!
4 tips to get your child’s passport renewed in 1 week
My son’s first U.S. passport was issued when he was about 2 months old. He couldn’t sit up yet. In his passport photo, he looked like a little potato (don’t get me wrong, he was a cute potato), head akimbo, slouched over a bit.
Five years later and his passport expired. Opportunity for an updated passport photo that resembles the boy that he is now – hurray!
What I hadn’t expected was how involved the process is to renew your U.S. passport for minors under the age of 16. Yes, I went through it the first time in applying but clearly it’s something that can be forgotten by the time the passport expires.
Alternate London tube maps
I love these alternate tube maps, as offered by steveprentice.net. There’s the realistic geographical tube map, as well as maps detailing the distance and travel times between stations. But my favorite is the “It’s quicker to walk” map, which will inevitably save me some time and trouble the next time we’re in London!
Thanks to I know this great little place in London… which led me to this site!
To England we go!
Exciting news! We’ve booked our flight to visit friends and family in England next year. It’s been nearly two years since we’ve been back and we’re looking forward to the holiday!
Double-decker buses in Davis
If you thought double-decker buses could only be found in the U.K., check out this photo! The college town of Davis, California uses authentic London double-decker buses in their transport system known as Unitrans. I particularly love the fact that the London destinations (Piccadilly Circus, Charing Cross, Baker St.) haven’t been swapped out in favor of Davis stops. Read more fun facts about these buses!
How the Virgin Atlantic credit card let me down
So let me begin by saying I LOVE Virgin Atlantic. It’s a fantastic airline that has never let me down (well, until now. Read on …). For years we have been faithful followers of the brand.
When choosing a credit card, it made sense for us to go with a Virgin Atlantic American Express card. We could earn Flying Club points (we’ve become Silver members) and have continued to rack up enough miles to take the family to the London. Or so we thought.
BRITRISH.COM 