14 June 2023

I had the pleasure of visiting Nashville which gave me a great insight of all the wonderful attractions that Nashville, Tennessee has to offer. Broadway in downtown Nashville has live music playing each day in all the bars and venues from 11am to 3am (15 hours per day) if one has the energy to stay going. It is an amazing experience for music lovers with all the live gigs there is to see. It is just “electric” and “awesome.” We sampled some of the honky tonky and the wonderful atmosphere while there. We flew with American Airlines from Dublin to Nashville via Philadelphia in premium economy class. I would highly recommend upgrading to premium economy class as you get a much wider seat and loads of leg room and the meals served on board were amazing. Supplements start from just €200 per person per journey to upgrade to a premium cabin on board American airlines (subject to availability at time of booking). We stayed for 3 nights at the Hutton Hotel which was a lovely 4-star hotel boutique style hotel situated a short drive approx. 6 minutes from Broadway in downtown Nashville where all the action happens. There was music in the lobby each afternoon and the atmosphere was very relaxing at this hotel. The bedrooms were really comfortable and nicely decorated. During our stay in Nashville, we used the Lyft app, which is just like the Uber taxi system, you request a pickup on the app from your location and your driver is there within a couple of minutes to take you to your destination. It is a really good value way of getting around Nashville. On Tuesday morning after a leisurely breakfast, we went for a tour to the RCA studio, home to musical titans such as Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison and many more. This studio was once one of the world's most famous recording facilities. Today it serves as a popular cultural attraction and as a classroom for students who visit the country music hall of fame and museum. We then continued on for a tour at the country music hall of fame located in downtown Nashville. It has been called the “Smithsonian of country music” celebrated for its brand cultural impact, educational mission and unrivalled collection of historically important artifacts. The country hall of fame was launched in 1967 on Nashville’s music row. The museum opened its current downtown location in 2001 and in 2014 unveiled a $100 million expansion that doubled its footprint in size. The country music hall of fame and museum now includes 350,000 square feet of dynamic galleries, archival storage, retail stores and event space, performance space in the CMA theatre and Ford Theatre which regularly host nationally recognized live music and cultural events. After a leisurely lunch in downtown Assembly food hall, we enjoyed another tour at the Ryman Auditorium, rich in history and built in 1892, well known as the mother church of country music. It was also revered as a long-time former home of Grand Ole Opry from 1943 to 1974. On Tuesday night, we had the most amazing experience at a live show at the Grand Ole Opry radio show which began broadcasting back in 1925. Today, it is an entertainment phenomenon showcasing a mix of country music greats, new stars, superstars, and legends. Before the show we got access to the Grand Ole Opry VIP lounge in the Auditorium called the Circle which I would highly recommend as you get drinks and get to meet a star in person who will perform at the live show on the night. We met Jennie Seely who performed that night. She has played at the grand ole Opry over 5,000 times during her career. Wednesday morning after breakfast we embarked on a tour to Belle Meade Historic Site and Winery situated a short drive outside of Nashville. The 1853 Greek revival mansion was home to English Derby winner Iroquois and renowned as a thoroughbred stud farm. As one of the premier thoroughbred racing and breeding farms in the south, Belle Meade was always the centre of hospitability, today that tradition continues. In 2009, Belle Meade opened the only winery in Nashville and they offer complimentary wine tastings after each tour. After the tour of Belle Meade mansion we enjoyed a lovely lunch. I found the venue a lovely relaxing experience, steeped in history. I would highly recommend Belle Meade as a must do tour to experience the culture and history of the past associated with horse breeding. That afternoon we enjoyed a great tour of the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum. The musician’s hall of fame is a premiere Nashville attraction and the one and only museum in the world that honours the talented musicians who actually played the greatest recordings of all time like Johnny Cash and many more. On Wednesday evening we went for dinner and a live music gig at the Listening room café. The Listening Room Café hosts up and coming artists and the star song writers behind Nashville’s biggest hits. It reminded me of an open mic event and the food, drinks and atmosphere was excellent while we listened to lovely music being played live. I would highly recommend this as a must do for visitors to Nashville. If you wish to plan your next getaway to Nashville please get in touch and I can share my experience with you and put together a bespoke itinerary to suit your requirements.

18 August 2022

I had the pleasure of treating my 4 nieces and nephews to a magical trip to Lapland for 2 nights / 3 days on 3rd December 2019. The trip started off with an early morning Aer Lingus charter flight from Dublin to Rovaniemi airport in Lapland, the official airport of Santa Claus. The flight was fun packed, we got a light breakfast on board and the elves on board the flight kept the children entertained with singing, colouring and drawing pictures. All of the children really enjoyed themselves. On arrival in Lapland we were met by more elves who were our guides for the 2 nights / 3 days action-packed itinerary. After we cleared passport control and collected our checked in luggage we headed off to the depot to get kitted out with our thermal gear to wear during the trip which was included in the cost of the package. We then set off for a short snow mobile safari though the snow covered forests. It is dark pretty much all day long except for a few hours during the day which makes the experience wonderful. The adults travel in the snow mobiles and the children travel in the sledges pulled by the guides. Afterwards, we headed to our accommodation at the Ouscharvarna chalets and checked in to our two bedroomed chalet with a buffet dinner and breakfast included in our stay. The accommodation was really cosy and warm and felt like a real home from home. Day 2 started off with a lovely early morning buffet breakfast before we headed off on our adventures for the day. First we headed to the husky farm where we learned all about the life of the husky dogs and enjoyed a short speedy ride in sledges pulled by the artic huskies. Afterwards we were treated to a hot drink and biscuits in the warmth of one of the cabins. We then boarded the coach to head to the reindeer farm where we experienced the magical ceremony of crossing the Artic Circle in a kota-teepee. We then got to enjoy a magical reindeer ride pulled by reindeers. The children were all in amazement at the experience. We boarded the coach after this visit to the reindeer farm and were taken for a well-deserved lunch break in a nice cosy restaurant served by a number of elves. All the children loved the experience of being served their lunch by elves. After a relaxing lunch we boarded the coach to head to the middle of the deep forest in Joulukka where the magic of Christmas comes alive. We visited the elf school and Santa’s command centre and even got a private audience with the man himself and he gave each of my nieces and nephews a very generous gift. We then headed back by coach to the Ouscharvarna chalets where we had some free time to relax before meeting up to go to a festive dinner and show in Santa park, the evening even consisted of a surprise visit by Santa and his cheeky elves. The children all had great fun and there was wooden train rides at Santa park for them to enjoy after dinner and drinks and entertainment before we headed back to the hotel by coach. Day 3 started off with breakfast and checking out of our accommodation and we headed to a shopping centre where we had free time to explore and buy some souvenirs. The children even got the opportunity to play outside in the snow as they still had their thermal gear. We headed back to the airport and dropped off our thermal gear on route to the airport. I would highly recommend this trip as it’s a once in a life time experience for both adults and children alike. Get in touch early in the year to plan your magical trip for your family to Lapland and I can share my experiences and knowledge.

18 August 2022

I had the pleasure of travelling with some friends to Bilbao in Spain on 15th November 2019 to do part of the Camino de Santiago walk or the way of St James from Pamplona to Burgos over 5 days. We spent 7 days overall in Spain. We flew with Aer Lingus from Dublin to Bilbao. We were extremely lucky as the weather was mild each day, we just experienced some rain and snow on our last day of walking. It was a great experience walking the Camino with the peace and quiet of the paths. We were blessed to meet up with other pilgrims each day and shared our experiences over lunch and relaxing pilgrim dinners each evening before we retired for the night in our private rooms at each of the hotels we stayed at after walking an average of 25 kms each day. May-June and September are the best time to walk the Camino de Santiago, as the weather is lovely, downpours less likely, and you'll have plenty of company along the way – but it won't be quite as crowded. Each day consisted of an early start at 7am walking and we took regular coffee breaks along our walk in lovely quaint villages which were dotted with beautiful churches, simple restaurants, cafes and lovely gothic buildings dating back for hundreds of years. There is pretty much a little village every 5 kms which gave us the opportunity to take a break and have a coffee and experience the peace and quiet of these lovely villages. I did not find the walking difficult, I recommend anyone to have a good pair of hiking boots or comfortable walking shoes with a good grip and light rainproof jacket also. We had no problem staying well hydrated each day as the opportunity to stop and take regular breaks was wonderful. Our last night finished in the lovely town of Burgos which is home to the famous Cathedral of Burgos, its architecture is very Spanish and Gothic. The town hosts many historic and religious buildings. The old town is lovely and we enjoyed pinchos or tapas as they are known with some beers. The company was brilliant and we met up with a lot of other fellow pilgrims and shared our experiences about our wonderful trip. Everybody was so friendly. Our last night was very memorable in this lovely town of Burgos before we took a bus back to Bilbao the following day to fly home to Dublin. I really recommend this trip as it is a great life experience for walking enthusiasts. I would be delighted to plan and tailor make a trip for anybody that wishes to walk this pilgrimage route which goes back hundreds of years. Please get in touch to plan your experience. I look forward to hearing from you.

02 November 2022

I had the pleasure of spending 7 nights with my sister and my nephews and nieces at the 5-star camping Playa Montroig Campsite on the outskirts of Cambrils Spain for a week from the 27th of April 2019. We flew from Shannon to Reus which was very convenient. We then took a taxi transfer for the 15-minute journey from Reus airport to Playa Montroig. The campsite is definitely a 5-star campsite and has a vast range of facilities to keep all ages from young children up to teenagers happy and content. The fact that we were right on the beach was a huge bonus. The campsite has four swimming pools and waterslides for all ages. Down at the kiddie’s pool there are small waterslides and waterfalls, and the parents can sit, relax, and have a coffee or cool drink while watching their children play safely in the kiddie’s pool section. There are plenty of sports facilities to keep the family busy, from mini golf, boules and paddle tennis to beach volleyball, basketball, and kayaking. There is even a spa on the campsite to take some time out to relax. We hired bikes on one of the days and cycled into Miami Platja the neighbouring village and had some lunch. We took a day trip to Port Aventura theme park which was only 25 minutes away and accessed Ferrari land, the aqua water park and the theme park. It was a very enjoyable day out. The campsite offers evening entertainment at the new entertainment complex, although this was not fully open during our stay at the end of April as it was of season. We still found loads to do after dinner in the evenings such as walks on the beach and my nephews and nieces went in to play with other children near the restaurant and bar. I was amazed at the range of options on site to purchase food. The bakery opened early each morning and there were queues to get fresh breads and pastries. We ate at the campsite bar a few evenings and there were lots of nice options on the menu. They also had an ice cream stand where the children could purchase an ice cream after dinner. We treated ourselves on two evenings to a meal at Friends restaurant right on the beach, I would highly rate this restaurant to be like a Michelin star restaurant. The service and food were excellent. I would highly recommend this 5-star campsite right on the beach for a family holiday. Please feel free to contact me to plan your next luxury mobile home family holiday in France, Spain, Italy, or Croatia. I would only be delighted to share my knowledge having experienced this style of holiday first hand.