Candyfloss & Dreams

Category: Travel

Are Cruises for Young Couples?
I wouldn’t exactly describe myself as ‘young’ anymore now that I am steadily approaching my thirties but I do appreciate that there are things I enjoy doing which typically cater to an older demographic – cruise holidays being one of them. My partner and I are both in our mid-late twenties now and whilst some may still say we are young and have a lot to learn about the ways of the world we don’t quite feel like we’re in that category anymore. Nor are we an ‘old’ couple, really, we are sort of stuck in this inbetween place where you’re not quite sure what kind of leisure activities we ‘should’ be doing if we wanted to fit into our stereotypes.

We have never been interested in pubs and clubs, or 18 to 30 holidays…as the years go by I favour a glass of water or a cup of tea over a glass of wine and hangovers take far too long to get over if we’ve had a night out. We are also finding our feet and enjoy exploring the world, our holiday destinations are not based on typical young choices such as big cities, great nightlife or amazing shopping. I suppose some of that comes with having a child in the household however we are lucky enough to have plenty of time together as a couple which means we want to see what the world has to offer us. Even so, with or without children, we are the sort of people that favours good food, amazing scenery and a comfy bed when it comes to our trips and holidays.

Because of this, we really do favour cruising as our way to travel and I have quite a few reasons why.
1. Check-In is less stressful at a Cruise terminal than an Airport.
  It really, really is. On our last cruise we waited around twenty minutes to check in and as soon as that was done we breezed through security and we were on board the ship. Our holiday began as soon as we walked on. I love that. I love that we could go and check out our cabin straight away and get stuff put away before grabbing a coffee. Check In was so straightforward.When you arrive at the departure lounge, ours was in Southampton, you are given an embarkation letter and when that letter is called you join the queue for the Check In desks. This is staggered throughout the afternoon so you’re not left waiting around too long. However in Dock 10 there was plenty of seating, clean toilets and refreshments available whilst you do wait. When you reach the Check In desk you hand in your tickets, show your passports and have your photo taken for your cruise card. This is all with P&O Cruises but I assume most others have a similar embarkation routine. This was less stressful for me than any other mode of transport I’ve ever used, and I’ve used a lot in my time.
2. Great Food 24/7
  On our last cruise we had some amazing food from the restaurants on board the ship. Food is available all day, every day and with P&O pretty much everything is included in the price, it it isn’t you’ll see how much it is and you simply charge it to your on board spend account which is settled at the end of the cruise. For us we had breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and five course dinners. There’s a buffet restaurant available throughout the day for snacks, hot and cold meals and even late night treats. Even room service is included. Drinks are what will cost you but with P&O everything was in £’s and it was what we would expect to pay in our local pub or restaurant anyway. It was really, really affordable. Plus there’s good quality tea in your cabin anyway.
3. Ability to Explore
  What we really love about cruising as a young couple is the ability to see lots of different places in a short amount of time and whats more there are excursions at every port to cater to everyone. Or, you can just go and explore on your own which is what we really love to do. Just having a wonder around, taking in a new culture, trying new food, enjoying our day really. Our next cruise is in August and as well as a few coach tours there is the chance to ride a cable car up a mountain and ride in a RIB boat along the Fjord.
4. Kids Club for young families
  We’ve yet to take Mini Kat on board a cruise with us but we will be next year knowing that she can have loads of fun with us, eat whatever she wants, whenever she wants and have a great time playing and making new friends in the kids clubs, which are supervised so they can stay there whilst you’re on the ship. If you do disembark at port you do need to take them with you! Lots of our friends have young children and the idea of a kids club appeals to them. An area where they can have fun whilst you relax.
5. A chance to dress up
  With P&O cruises they have a couple of casual and black tie events so it gives everyone a chance to dress up for dinner in glamorous attire. I love getting ready for a great night and with cruises that can include pre-dinner drinks in a cocktail bar, a five course meal followed by a live show in their on board theatre. Or perhaps there will be a comedy gig you want to make, or a film you want to see – our next cruise has an open air cinema and I love the idea of relaxing under the stars with a great film. I love a chance to get glammed up and feel good about myself and a gala dinner is a great reason to do so.
Adam and I on our recent cruise for our Anniversary

So there you have it, five reasons why I think cruises are for young, or at least in our case, younger couples. They’re also a really affordable way of holidaying. Mainly because all of your food is included in the price you pay and each time we’ve booked a select price with P&O we’ve gotten free on board spending money to go towards drinks and other purchases. It gave me and my partner a chance to get away and enjoy ourselves for a couple of nights and we can not wait to go on our next cruise. Two months and counting!
June 7, 2016
Disneyland Paris – Travel Diary Day 4 and 5

As you know we’ve just returned from a fantastic time away in Disneyland Paris. We travelled light and spent four nights and five days over in France making sure we took in some of the sights of Paris before heading home. If you want to take a look at the whole of our trip take a look at my travel diary day one with tips on how to get to Disneyland Paris from Paris Gare du Nord. You can also check out my video of the Disney Princesses dancing when we had lunch with them and read all about days two and three which have loads of great pictures of our time. If you’re interested you can also read all about the perks of having a Golden Forest room in Sequoia Lodge.

Day 4 – Final Day In Disneyland Park

On our fourth day we rushed into the park for the extra magic hours at 8am and headed to the first character meet and greet queue to meet Minnie Mouse! Luckily Mickey was there too so we got a picture of both of them together which was great. We then headed over to meet Goofy and Pluto who quickly became a firm favourite of my daughters as he gave her a lot of hugs and kisses.

After that Adam braved Space Mountain alone and said it was a great ride, if a little dated, but I think that’s the charm of the ride. It’s pretty old now and is due for refurbishment next year in honour of the 25th Disneyland Paris Anniversary. During that time Mini Kat and I headed around the some of the stores in Discoveryland looking at all the fantastic merchandise. You could literally spend a fortune here – stay strong!

We braved a few more rides as it was nice and sunny including It’s a Small World before heading back to our hotel as my partner was feeling a little rough and suffering with toothache. It was also really cold that morning so I took the chance to have a lovely hot bath and we spend a bit of time relaxing before heading over to the Rainforest Cafe for a late lunch. We did have to wait for about fifteen minutes to get a table but there’s so much to look at in the shop before the restaurant and the environment itself. Mini Kat loved watching the fish swimming in the pillars and over the entrance. Afterwards we spent a little time grabbing souvenirs and finishing of Mini Kat’s spending money on Lego in their fantastic lego store in the Disney Village. We then headed over to Ratatouille with our fast pass, watched the parade and went back for an early night.

We actually spend a little bit of time in the bar before heading up to our room and I got to sample a delicious Blue Glowtini which comes with a glowing ice cube that you can keep. It’s a vodka cocktail and is €14.95. Childrens versions are also available but Mini Kat wanted a rainbow slush puppy.

Day 5 – Checking Out and Wondering Around Paris

Check out is at 11am so we had a late breakfast, finished packing and were at the desk for eleven. We decided to head into Paris for a bit before our Eurostar connection rather than spend the last few hours in the park so we will definetly be going back next year for the anniversary celebrations, more rides and lots more character meet and greets. Next time we are going to look at staying at Newport Bay or Hotel New York with a Premium Meal Plan so that we can book tables again at ADC, Inventions Character Brunch and Cafe Mickey in the Disney Village. I love the character dining experiences as you can sit down whilst waiting for the characters so it means we can then queue for others we hadn’t had the chance to meet. We also want to go back when Big Thunder Mountain has reopened because I loved that ride as a child.

As we were travelling on a Tuesday we got two Mobilis tickets and one child Paris Visite as they allow you on all modes of transport in Paris. We got off at Charles de Gaulle to take a peak at the Arc de Triomphe first before walking over to the Eiffel Tower. The walk took around 40 minutes but it was a lovely sunny day and it was great to take a chance to walk around.

We then got the metro from Champs de Mars over to St Michael Notre Dame where we found a little cafe aptly named Cafe Notre Dame for lunch. I tried French Onion Soup for the first time which was really warming on a cold day. I also tried pickles and found out I quite like them, especially with ham. Mini Kat was happy with a Pain au Chocolat.

Getting home took a while but it was a fantastic holiday. There’s a few things I would do a little differently. I would consider upgrading our Eurostar seats just to make it a little more comfortable and booking a later train into Paris and an earlier train home. I will always book a club room with Disneyland Paris hotels because of the ability to get free drinks and I will book a meal plan next time so the money we save for Euros between paying off the holiday and actually going can be used on spending money for us all. I would have loved to get all the Lego sets available over there as well as a cuddly toy or two or a snowglobe. That being said, we came back with €100 so I don’t think we did too bad and we didn’t scrimp on anything.

February 20, 2016
Disneyland Paris – Travel Diary – Day 2 and 3

Day 2 – Saturday – A very wet and windy morning at Disneyland Paris

If you’re following on from my Day One travel diary then thank you for coming back. Day two and three fell over the weekend for us and the official start of half term for us Brits which meant on the Saturday it as absolutely heaving. If you can visit midweek then I think you’ll be able to enjoy so much more. It was also incredibly wet on the Saturday raining all day which I think caused my daughter to be quite sick that evening with a raging temperature. I would strongly advise taking painkillers, calpol, nurofen or any other medication that you may need just in case someone gets sick. It can get very busy and hectic in the park and it’s noticibly colder. There’s also nowhere on site you can buy any form of liquid painkiller for children and the nearest chemist is Val d’Europe which is around 5 minutes on the train and closed on a Sunday.

In an emergency the hotel can call a fireman over to address the situation and call paramedics if necessary or there are a few small medical centres on site which, in an emergency, will give out painkillers. We didn’t use any of these services so I can’t comment on them, however, I’ve heard that there is no charge, but my word is not gospel!

Day 2 – Disneyland Park, Extra Magic Hours & Parade

We didn’t really have a plan for getting around the park as it was our first time there but next time I think we’ll attempt a few more things and plan a little better so we see some of the shows. On the second day it rained a lot and my daughters shoes were soaked through by 9am so off we searched for wellies. We found a gorgeous pair of Minni Mouse Wellies in Disney Clothing Store on Main Street for €25.99 – expensive but necessary. I think a lot of children either already had these wellies or bought them there too because we saw these red boots everywhere we went.

The extra magic hours are great for those staying in a Disney hotel as it means you can get into the park from 8am and meet a few characters. On the first day we saw Chip and Dale who were great. They loved my homemade autograph book and made a big fuss as well as gave us some really cheeky photo’s. My daughter found them really funny! We were also able to get on to the carousel and have a good wonder around. We attempted to ride Rataouille and queued for around 30 minutes whilst waiting for the ride to be fixed only to have our fast passes returned to us and asked to come back later. It’s a fantastic ride, very innovative but very, very technical and because of this it does break down quite a lot. Still if you use a fast pass you get it again which is great as it means you can go back later and still not wait ages in the queue. This includes fast passes from the machines and the hotels.

Entrance to Ratatouille in Walt Disney Studios Park

After that we headed over to Annettes Diner for lunch which was brilliant. Food was tasty and some of the waiters were on roller skates which made it look like a really fun place to work. I admire their talent, I can’t even ride a bike let alone roller skate carrying food and seating people! Really worth a trip though and for three of us it only cost around €60 which included drinks and a three course meal for my daughter.

After heading back to the hotel we went for a swim in the Sequoia Lodge Swimming pool which was heated but felt very cool. There is a slide in the pool which my daughter loved and went on with Adam a couple of times. The pool also has a jacuzzi and steam rooms which really helped warm me up and I had the steam room all to myself. It’s probably key to note here that men don’t have to wear speedos at Disney! They can wear regular swimming shorts in the Disney hotel pools. However if staying off site and there’s a pool like Explorers hotel, you’ll need your speedos! We warmed up with some hot chocolates, tea time treats and then headed back to the park for the parade at 5.30pm.

Mickey Mouse in the Parade on Main Street

Day 3 – Disney Princess Day

Meeting Ariel at ADC Restuarant

You may have already seen my post about the Dancing Disney Princesses and the video to go with it! Take a look if you haven’t. It’s one of our biggest highlights. Before heading off for lunch my daughter had her face painted which was just under €15 next to our chosen Cinderella’s Restaurant where we had a table booked. We booked with our holiday which cost £145 for the three of us and included two drinks each, three courses and a bread basket. During lunch we met Cinderella & Prince Charming, Ariel and Snow White at Auberge de Cenderillon which was a very rich but very tasty french cuisine restaurant. The Princess interaction with my daughter was just amazing and they all gave my daughter a huge hug and lots of waves. She had a great time seeing them all. Why not take a look at our full Disney Princess lunch experience?

We then headed over to Princess Pavillion and queued for around 30 minutes to meet Sleeping Beauty and she was completely perfect. She spent so much time with my daughter and loved the book we made. We didn’t feel rushed at all which made it a very memorable experience for us.

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February 19, 2016
Disneyland Paris – Travel Diary Day One

Our 4 nights and five days in Disneyland Paris have been amazing and I wanted to share a run down of our time there and some of our favourite pictures. We left our home to travel up to London on Thursday evening as we had a hotel booked so we could catch our early morning Eurostar train at 5.40 am. We had minor lows throughout the whole time but other than that it’s been a great holiday and I’m already planning when we can go again!

Mini Me was determined to carry her suitcase. It’s the first time she’s ever insisted on carrying anything anywhere.

Day 1 – London to Disneyland Paris, Checking In & First Impressions

Checking in at St Pancras International – make sure you’re there 30-45 minutes before your scheduled department time. It gets busy, you’ll need to have passports checked, scan in your tickets and go through security. It’s a pretty quick process but worth getting there nice and early. Boarding happens around 10-20 minutes before you depart and there’s plenty of space in the departure lounge, cafe for breakfast and hot drinks, toilets and a bureau de change which was handy for us as we needed change for the RER ticket machines in Paris. The Eurostar journey took around 3 hours to get into Paris Gare du Nord.

Travelling via Eurostar is really simple

How to get to Disneyland Paris from Gare du Nord, Paris

Getting to Disneyland from Paris – It’s such an easy journey! We followed the signs to the RER trains which are down two escalators. Very well signposted. Plenty of ticket machines down there so if there are queues for the first ones you see chances are if you pop around the corner you will find some more. You need to have change for the machines, or pay by card as they don’t accept notes. Toilets can also be found down here and are 70 cents per person.

To get to Disneyland Paris from Gare du Nord you’ll need the Ile de France tickets. They’re around €8.30 per adult each way as you can’t buy a return and around €3.60 for a child – (price at the time of paying, February 2016). You then simply walk your way round to the RER B train and you’ll want to get to the next stop which is Chatelet des Halles in the direction of Robinson/Remy. It’s very simple. Changing at Chatelet des Halles is really easy, a quick walk to the other side of the platform gets you on the right side for RER A train to Marne la Vallee-Chessy which is where you’ll find Disneyland. To make sure you’re getting on the right train look up at the boards and if the station of your destination is lit up then you can get on this train and you’ll get to where you need to be.

Our hotel room had a great view

Be aware that there are people on the trains that will walk around asking for money. Keep safe, keep your children close by and do not hold any valuables in areas of clothing that are easily pickpocketed. My phone stayed in my bra for most of our travel time in Paris.

If you’re staying on site like us, you can grab a free shuttle bus service from the train station to your hotel which was incredibly handy. We jumped on with our bags and were checking in at the Golden Forest Club Room desk within 20 minutes of arriving. Check in was effortless and as we arrived around 11am we were given our park tickets and asked to return after 3pm to collect our room keys. We were all feeling a bit hungry so headed over to Earl of Sandwich in the Disney Village which is about half way between Sequoia Lodge hotel and the parks for a quick bite to eat.

Disneyland Paris hot chocolate is amazing and free from 12noon-10.30pm for all those staying in Golden Forest Rooms at Sequoia Lodge Hotel

Walking around to the parks takes around 15 minutes so it’s not too far however the free shuttle bus runs all day, every day until pretty late making it nice and easy for those with little legs! We didn’t do much on our first day other than the teacups and the Dumbo ride which my daughter loved. We took a little walk around Frontierland to see get our bearings a bit before walking back to the hotel in time for afternoon treats and to collect our room key. Having free drinks in the Golden Forest lounge was a perfect way to warm up after a very early start and a very wet arrival in Disneyland Paris! After getting into our room and deciding we didn’t really feel that hungry thanks to the complimentary tea time treats we decided to snack on what we had in our bags, watch a film on Disney Channel – one of the only English channels available and get an early night. You can find out how we spent the rest of our trip on Day 2.

Golden Forest Club Room with Lake View on 7th Floor

February 18, 2016
A Taste of Bruges, Belgium – November 2015

A stunning view from the Canal Boat, you can just see the Belfry in the distance, Bruges

You may have recently read that I went on a fantastic mini-cruise with my partner of three years to celebrate our time together. During our two nights and one day in port onboard the Oceana P&O Cruise Ship we spent some of our time in the city of Bruges. Bruges is located in West Flanders, Belgium and is a beautiful city close to the seaport of Zeebruges which I believe translates into Sea Bruges. Prior to embarking, we hadn’t booked any trips or excursions and had just planned to free flow for the time we were docked in port. However, my partner decided that if we could get a last minute trip we should or we would end up coming back far too early and not really seeing any of the city. So after an early breakfast we headed to the Shore Excursions desk located on Deck 5 in the main Atrium and asked if there was any availability and ended up with the last two places on the A Taste of Bruges trip at £46 each. Excursions are notoriously expensive but I really think this was worth the money as it meant the Euro’s we had could be spent on shopping and souvenirs rather than getting a train into Bruges and waiting for shuttle buses. There were a great choice of trips including ones to Flanders Fields which would have been lovely as it was Remembrance Sunday, a trip to Ghent and also a scenic village and chocolate factory tour. All of these have made us think about booking a long weekend away in Belgium to see a bit more about what it has to offer – basically sample more chocolate and more beer!

Multi Archeticture Square in Bruges

A Taste of Bruges offers you a two-hour walking tour, a 30-minute canal boat tour and around one hour of free time. If you feel this isn’t enough and you just want to do things your own way, other excursions were basically coach transfers to and from Bruges or you could make use of the free shuttle bus which was every 20 minutes or so to the railway station where trains to Bruges were every hour and took around ten minutes. Because we got an excursion I am not sure how much the train fare would be and I feel one train every hour is not very frequent. Plus having to find your way from the rail station to the city centre might have been difficult. However, there may have been the option to rent a bicycle to ride around the city which is a very popular method of transportation. In the centre of Bruges you also have the option of having a horse and carriage ride around the city which looked beautiful. Carriages were big enough for families and would have made my daughter very happy. Bruges is mostly cobblestones so easy for little feet to slip – I did a few times – or get caught in the cracks. Pushchairs and wheelchair users might have found this difficult too, with uneven roads and pathways as well as lots of bridges with little steps.

There is quite a few references to Greek Mythology throughout Bruges, this is Pegasus

Getting into Bruges did not take long at all by coach, only around 20 minutes in fact and we had a helpful guide onboard pointing out various points of interest on the way into the city whose name I can’t remember but the coach driver was Theo and I remember that because above his seat was a ‘Theosaurous’ picture of a coloured in dinosaur which made me smile. As we walked onto the coach we were given a small box of Belgium chocolates which was a very nice thought as well as a receiver to use when on the walking tour to hear all the information clearly and a map of Bruges to use as a guide too as we were walking along. I couldn’t even begin to remember everything we were told on both the walking and canal boat tours but Bruges is a very old city with a lot of history and we were handed a lot of information that day so I would definitely recommend having a guided tour around this city if you would like to find out more information. I remember seeing a sign for the canal boat tours with the price of 8 Euros for an Adult and 4 Euros for a Child which I thought was quite reasonable for 30 minutes with a guide who was quite funny as well as informative.

The most breathtaking thing about Bruges is the stunning architecture. There are many views, sightseeing spots and a huge variety of

Some Bruges Architecture

different styles from gothic to post-modernism and you can find all these types of buildings in one square which was just so interesting to look at. There is also a church going under renovation at the moment which houses a famous statue by Michelangelo and is one of the three statues that were ever sold by him out of Italy. Another point of interest is the Church of the Holy Blood which is found in the main square with a variety of administration buildings and the old halls of justice with the most beautiful gold plated statues. We also headed over to the Markt Square which is where the Belfry is located, another beautiful piece of architecture and we arrived just as the clock struck eleven so we were able to hear all of the four tunes it plays as well as the bell chimes. The walking tour was great and the guide was full of useful, helpful and interesting information about the city.

Our first stop on the walking tour was to view the Begijnhof across the canal. It is a small community of houses that have been a home to women since 1245. The Beguines were unmarried or widowed women that wanted to live a simple life without attaching themselves to a covenant. They took two of the three vows a nun would take except the vow of poverty which meant that they still held onto their wealth and if they wanted to leave the community they were free to do so. In the 1900’s it became a Benedictine Covenant. Other posts and reviews of this little place inform that it’s a lovely place to visit in the spring when Daffodils are in bloom.

Walking through the smaller streets of shops was lovely and as it’s approaching Christmas there were some really beautiful window displays. One thing Belgium is famous for is handmade lace which women used to make to earn a living. Many shops sell lace but it’s important to find the right one if you’re looking for authentic hand-made lace – usually it comes with a higher price tag but is much better quality and with many beautiful, intricate designs. We stopped by to purchase some lace keyrings and a decoration for our Christmas tree this year as I always like to get something a little different each year. There are many small, narrow walkways through the city of Bruges and, one in particular, was an entrance into what used to be the local bathhouses which has a cheeky little picture of some of the women that used to ‘assist’ the men when there.

The walking tour took us around all the major landmarks in the city and it has definitely made me wish to go back there to actually go inside the churches and Belfry and see more of that fantastic architecture. The canal boat tour was really enjoyable too because we got to see a bit more of the city and a few other statues and landmarks that would be difficult to see by walking or that you might not notice. One thing we did see on the canal boat tour was a very cute, sleepy golden labrador who was in the film In Bruges and just so is Bruges most famous citizen. It was lovely to see him and snap up a quick picture. After our dash around the canals we had an hour to shop. We found an artisan chocolate shop for gifts and looked in a few of the Christmas shops before sitting down with a beer in the Half Moon Brewery. Two half pints of blonde Belgium beer at this Brewery was just under 7 Euros and it was lovely to just sit down and enjoy the surroundings for a few moments. My partner then went in for three other bottles of the beer to bring home and enjoy

Enjoying a beer!

and is hoping to be able to get some for Christmas too.

Everyone was really polite and the city was very clean. One thing to take into consideration when visiting, something I didn’t even think about, is you will need small change in Euros to be able to use the toilets, at least a few 50 cents or so and there we were carrying notes! Luckily we found a public loo that didn’t require payment, but then the coach station did and the prices range all over the city. We weren’t warned of any crime except to be aware of pickpockets, but this is something I am sure you would be vigilant about in any city at home or abroad. We found the shops were all reasonably priced and spent all of our 60 Euros which was more than enough for a drink, some gifts and something for ourselves too. I particularly enjoyed our little selection box of chocolates!

Bruges really is a beautiful city and I really haven’t done it justice for what is there to see. A good few hours is needed to walk around the city and that’s exactly what we had. I thought the price of the excursion was on the pricey side, however, it was worth it for all the information that was provided to us and the fact that we had two guided tours in one session was brilliant – although a lot of information and dates to take in!

Bruges Most Famous Citizen

November 11, 2015