Copenhagen Travel Guide - What To Do, Where To Eat & Where We Stayed

Copenhagen is a city that's been on my 'Places To Visit' list for years now, so I'm delighted to have finally gotten to go there. While I will say it wasn't my most favourite European city that I've been to (Amsterdam, Budapest and Bruges would probably be my top 3), we did have a lovely weekend, and if you're planning a trip there soon, I have some great recommendations for you!

Where We Stayed: 25hours Hotel Indre By

I couldn't recommend 25hours Hotel Indre By enough if you're planning a trip to Copenhagen anytime soon. It's right in the middle of the city, the decor is absolutely gorgeous, and I think it's excellent value for money. We booked a large room, and had the most amazing floor to ceiling windows. The room even had underfloor heating, although it wasn't cold enough to use it yet. A big comfy bed, a lovely rainfall shower, and USB sockets beside the bed, it ticked all of the boxes for what I'd consider a perfect hotel room. 

The hotel offers a breakfast style buffet, with the usual European breakfast options of cold meats, cheese and bread, but as the hotel is home to a NENI restaurant location (a fantastic chain of restaurants that serve the most delicious eastern Mediterranean food), there was also mango hummus and fresh olives in the buffet too. 

One of our favourite parts of the hotel was the happy hour that takes places in The Boilerman Bar at 5pm daily, where delicious highball cocktails are free for guests of the hotel. There was also a record room, where you could pop on a record and sit back and relax. Like I said, I truly do recommend this hotel, and as 25hours Hotels have quite a few locations around the world, I'll definitely be booking another of their hotels soon.

Where To Eat: 

There definitely isn't a lack of great places to eat in Copenhagen, but one thing I will say is that when everyone goes on about how expensive Denmark is, they aren't lying. Now, nothing was extortionately priced, but overall, things were a good bit more expensive than most European cities. It's hard to give an exact example but I would say when you convert the prices over to euro, everything has at least €3-4 added onto the price compared to what you'd pay in Dublin. Anyway, enough on that, below are some of the places we ate that I'd highly recommend saving for your next trip to Copenhagen.

- Cantina: I'd seen quite a few people recommend Cantina for delicious Italian food and it didn't disappoint. Anywhere with burrata on the menu is good in my eyes, and the rigatoni was also delicious!

- Apotek57: There's certainly no shortage of coffeeshops or bakeries in Copenhagen, and I think Apotek57 had to be my favourite. Amazing filter coffee (that was the only hot coffee option, and I appreciated the simplicity), and delicious baked goods, it's definitely one to pop into.

- La Neta Nørrebro: So some of you may have heard of Mikkeller, who make delicious beer, but they actually also have quite a few different restaurants (from ramen to tacos), and La Neta is one of those. My favourite food will always be Mexican, and I have to say, La Neta was one of my favourite taco places I've tried in quite a while. I'd highly recommend ordering the Chillakillers!

-Warpigs Brewpub: Another of Mikkeller's food offerings is Warpigs. This place isn't one for vegetarians or vegans, so I apologise in advance, but if you love rock/metal music, smoked meat and good beer, then Warpigs is the place for you. Served in a canteen style, this is a great place to go and try out lots of Mikkeller and Warpigs beers (they have loads of taps in the walls which is really cool), and eat good old southern American barbecue food.

Things To Do: 

Usually on weekend city breaks like this I'd have a jam packed itinerary with a schedule for all the sights we're going to see each day, but as this trip was for my birthday, I wanted to take it a bit easier than usual and just enjoy the city. We did see quite a few cool things though, so I'll pop them below for you to take note.

- Studio Arhoj: A visit to Studio Arhoj is a must when in Copenhagen. You can actually see the colourful glass mugs and ornaments being hand-blown in the back of the studio which is very cool, and the designs are just so bright and lovely. A great place to get some gifts to bring home with you, or even just treat yourself!

- Kastellet: This was probably our favourite thing that we saw whilst in Copenhagen. It's an amazing fortress that you can walk through, and you'll find a picturesque windmill to the left hand side. If you walk through Kastellet to the north gate, you can then walk around to the famous Little Mermaid statue and back towards the city. 

- Nyhavn: The famous harbour is definitely worth having a stroll along, we even stopped for a drink in one of the bars on the left hand side as there's lots of outdoor seating so you can people watch until your heart's content.

So there we have it, my definitive (not really) travel guide to Copenhagen. It's a fairly compact city, so we actually didn't use public transport all that much, but they do have a very handy app called DOTs that you can download and buy a travel pass on that works on pretty much all of their transport, and also includes journeys to the airport. I hope you've found this helpful, and if you are heading to Copenhagen anytime soon, enjoy!

Copenhagen Travel Guide - What To Do, Where To Eat & Where We Stayed

13.10.22

My Favourite Way To Spend - Revolut (AD)

Disclaimer - This post is sponsored by Revolut but as always all opinions and thoughts are honest and 100% my own.

This is a blog post I am very excited to share with you because I am working with Revolut as one of their Pioneers, which if you've followed me for a while you'll know I am the BIGGEST Revolut advocate, so getting to work with them is a dream come true! If you haven't already checked out the first blog post I wrote last year about why I love using Revolut so much you can check that out here, and it covers a lot of the basics and lots of the general features available to all users of Revolut. You can also get a FREE Revolut card by signing up with this link - bit.ly/39qUq1W.

My Favourite Way To Spend - Revolut (AD)

11.2.20

Paris Travel Guide - What To Do, Where To Eat & Where We Stayed

Back in October, Dara and I finally took a trip to Paris, and it was everything I'd ever dreamed of. Paris for me was always one of my dream cities to visit, but one I'd just never gotten round to actually visiting. Before our trip, I was slightly worried that it might just be a very over hyped destination, and that we'd find it too touristy with not enough soul, but luckily it was the opposite of that, and it truly is one of the most enchanting cities I've ever visited!

Paris Travel Guide - What To Do, Where To Eat & Where We Stayed

2.2.20

How I Spend Money Whilst Travelling - Revolut Review

Well here's a blog post I've been meaning to write for almost a year now, but as they say, better late than never! As you can probably tell from a quick glance at my blog/Instagram, I LOVE to travel, and I also like to shop, but sometimes, if you're travelling to a country with a different currency than you're used to, it can be a bit daunting/stressful, so today I thought I'd share what I use to spend money whilst I'm away.

I know lots of you have probably already starting using Revolut, and if not you've definitely heard of them, but I do still get people asking exactly why they should get an account and how it all works so hopefully this post will be helpful for anyone still on the fence. I've also included some screenshots of my own Revolut app to help explain some of the features for those of you who haven't used it yet.

At the moment, Revolut have an offer on where if you sign up through this link, they will give you a free card (I think I paid €5 for mine a few years ago).

So why is Revolut so good and why do so many people rave about it? Well there are a few reasons why I love it:

• No charges for paying in a different currency.

This is probably my most favourite part of using Revolut, becomes it comes in handy when I'm travelling to a country that doesn't have Euro as their currency. Basically I just pay with my Revolut card like I would back home, and that's it. Revolut will work out the exchange rate, and they actually have it on real time so it's very accurate, and there isn't a charge for paying in a different currency like there would be with some other more traditional banks. It's made travelling so much easier because now I don't need to go and change money before I travel as I hate carrying cash anyway. As you can see from one of the screenshots below when I was in Poland, on the app, when you spend money in a different currency, it will show you how much it cost in your own currency (mine is obviously euro) and how much it cost in the currency you paid in. Very straight forward and simple, I love it!

• Budgeting

A feature I haven't looked into a huge amount yet is the budgeting feature in Revolut. There is an option to view your months spending by catergory, which is good, so I can see if I need to cut back on my shopping, or excessive taxi use, but they also have a feature where you can set a budget each month and even set budgets for each category, like shopping, restaurants and transport. This is great if you are trying to be more conscious of your spending and I just love the breakdown of my expenditure in this simple form, it definitely helps me think twice!

• Instant transfer

Another super handy feature of Revolut is the instant transfers between Revolut accounts. By now, literally all of my family and friends have a Revolut account because I bang on about it so much, so whenever we go out for meals or trips, splitting the bill is so easy because I can just send my portion straight to whoever is paying. They actually have a specific bill splitting feature that I need to use more often where you can create a bill, so say €50 total, and then invite your Revolut contacts to pay their half. Super easy, and instant too, unlike some bank transfers that can take days.

• Apple Pay

Now depending on what bank you're with, you might have this already but unfortunately I think most Irish banks are a bit behind with the times so my traditional bank account still doesn't have Apple Pay, but not to worry, Revolut does! This means that when I lose my wallet (which I'm afraid to admit happens far too often) I can simply double tap the home button on my phone and up pops my "virtual" Revolut card and I can use contactless payment to pay. Honestly paying with your phone feels like we've finally made it to the future!

• Saving is very easy.

If you find you struggle to save, then this would be a very good feature for you! Revolut have these things called "Vaults" that you can set up to save money in, almost like a virtual piggy bank. They also have the option to round up your spare change so that each time you use your Revolut card, they'll round it up and put the difference into your vault automatically for you. You can also set up a certain amount to save each day/week/month too, so for example I have it set up that I put €10 into my vault every week. 

So that's a bit about Revolut and why I love it, and if you've been on the fence about it, or unsure what it was all about, I hope it helped you! I've been using it for over a year and a half now and I really couldn't recommend it enough. If you do want to create a Revolut account, remember that you can get a free card by signing up through this link!

I hope you enjoyed this post, thanks so much for reading!

Emer x

How I Spend Money Whilst Travelling - Revolut Review

16.8.19

How I Travel On A Budget - 5 Tips That Have Helped Me Travel For Under €200 Per Trip

One of my most asked questions on Instagram is always about my tips on how to travel on a budget and just how I've been able to get most of the trips I've been on (Gdańsk, Prague and Bruges to name a few) for under €200 for at least 2-3 nights. I am finally getting round to writing this post with my top 5 tips and hopefully it'll be helpful for those of you who want to see the world, but don't fancy having to take out a loan every time you travel!

1. Do your research. 

My first tip is probably a very obvious one, but it's one that helps me save the most money. Each year I like to come up with a list of cities that I'd like to visit and then I hop onto Google and spend a few hours scoping each destination out. The most important things to take not of are when the location is busiest with tourists, because this will obviously affect flight and accommodation prices. Another thing I look up is the weather, because usually a trip will be cheaper if it's during the colder months, for example our trip to Budapest in February is working out very inexpensive because it'll still be quite cold and not everyone likes to travel to colder climates. Google Flights (the only website I ever use to find flights and to get flight price comparisons) also has a feature that lets you put in the dates you'd like to travel on and shows you the world map with the price of flights to pretty much every city in the world for those dates. This is another very handy way of finding out where is cheapest to travel to at certain times of the year.

2. Track your flights.

Like I mentioned above, Google Flights is the only website I use for finding flights. I know lots of people love other sites like Sky Scanner, or Kayak but for me personally I find Google Flights nice and straight forward to use. One of the best features I've found on there is the ability to turn on price tracking for a flight you're looking to book. I will never book a flight on the first day of researching it as flight prices go up and down all the time. I like to track the flight price for a week or so, and see if there is a trend in the price change. Each time there is a change, Google will send me an email and lots of the time this is how I get super cheap flights because I know straight away if there has been a price drop. There are lots of articles online with advice on which days/times of the day are cheapest to get flights, so that may be something to look into, but for me, I just stick with my price tracking on Google Flights.

3. Look into Airbnb as well as traditional hotels.

If you've read any of my previous posts about Airbnb or if you follow me on Instagram then you're probably sick of me harping on about Airbnb and how much I love it, but seriously, if you want to travel on a budget, Airbnb should be your first port of call. It's definitely where I've saved the most money for our trips, with our Airbnb in Prague only costing €56 per night (in quieter months it's only €35 per night) for an entire apartment which was half, if not a third of the price of hotels in Prague and we had so much more space than we would have had in a hotel room. I have a whole blog post about Airbnb and the tips I have called 'A Guide To Airbnb - How To Find The Best Places To Stay' so if you want any more info on Airbnb then definitely give that one a read. If you haven't used Airbnb before, you can get €30 off your first trip if you sign up through this link and for every person who completes a trip using my link, I'll get €15 travel credit so it's a win win for all! I'm not in anyway sponsored by Airbnb by the way, anyone can share their link with their friends to get them money off, and €30 is a nice little discount to get on already cheap accommodation!

4. Pack light.

What's the point in going to all the effort of getting cheap flights and accommodation if you're just going to pack way too much and pay what are in my opinion extortionate baggage fees for checked or overweight luggage? I always travel with just a carry on suitcase and a backpack/tote bag no matter where I'm going or how long I'm going for. If you pack smart, you really only need a small suitcase like a carry on anyway. I do have a two blog posts about my packing tips and how to pack light, one is called 'The Streamline Wardrobe - How To Pack Light' and the other is called 'How To Travel With Just A Carry On - Travel Tips & Tricks' so hopefully they will be helpful!

5. Plan your trip and budget.

The final tip I have is to plan your trip and budget accordingly. I'm a planner anyway so I love this part of organising a trip, but it really does help to save you money as well as time whilst you're exploring a new city. The first thing I'll do is research the general price of restaurant meals, if the city has any kind of transport cards that last for a couple of days (a great money saver) and if there are any tourist cards like the iAmsterdam card that will give you free or reduced entry to lots of attractions. Then I like to get a good idea of the restaurants we would like to try out and how much it'll cost, how much transport around the city will cost, and how much the attractions we'd like to visit and sight seeing we'd like to do will cost. That way, when I am actually on the trip, I won't be stressed about money at all and won't come home and realise that I've spent triple what I'd intended on spending. Of course I don't stick to the budget 100% of the time, because I am travelling and enjoying the experience, but it does help to have a fair idea before you go.

I hope these tips are in some way helpful and that they'll help you save some of your hard earned money on your future trips! As always if you've any extra questions, just pop me an email or an Instagram or Facebook DM and I'll get back to you. Thanks for reading!

How I Travel On A Budget - 5 Tips That Have Helped Me Travel For Under €200 Per Trip

11.1.19

How I Got Past My Fear Of Flying - Tips To Make Flying Less Stressful

 A quick glance at my blog and Instagram will tell you that I love to travel and have been very lucky in that I've actually travelled more this year than any other, but what you might not be able to tell is that I am a very nervous flyer. I haven't always been scared of flying though, when I was younger I travelled a good few times to America, and never really even noticed that I was almost 42,000 feet in the air. It's only been in the last couple of years that I've become rather scared of flying which isn't ideal as travelling is my absolute favourite thing and almost all of the places I want to visit require a plane journey of some kind. Since I'm never one to let things hold me back, I've come up with a few little tricks that help me to get through the flight without completely panicking and thinking that we're all going to die. I'm finding that every new flight I go on, the less nervous I feel and who knows, maybe I can even train myself out of this fear of flying!

1. Pretend you're not even on the plane.

This might sound ridiculous but bear with me as it's the tip that has helped me the most with flying. Get yourself an eye mask and a good pair of headphones or earphones and just completely tune out the fact that you're flying. I find that when I can't see or hear the plane, I'm a lot more relaxed and not overthinking every little sound, or watching out of the window as the plane turns. The headphones I have actually have something called Active Noise Cancellation which basically creates an "anti noise" to combat the sound waves from external noise so it's almost completely silent with the headphones on. This does an amazing job of getting rid of the plane's loud engine noises and I find myself falling asleep almost instantly on flights, which brings me onto my next tip...

2. Go to sleep. 

This might sound easier said than done, especially if you're super nervous about flying but if you can get your head down for a bit of shut eye it helps the flight just fly by, if you'll pardon my pun, and you'll wake up at your destination relaxed and well rested. I used to always get a coffee before I flew as my flights were usually quite early in the morning but I found it was keeping me up for the entire flight and if anything, making me a lot more anxious too. Now, I just get a water in the airport, wear a nice comfy outfit and pop on my headphones and eyemask the minute I get on the plane and usually I can drift off pretty easily.

3. Watch a film or a tv show or read a good book.

I am going to preface this tip by saying do not watch a scary film on a plane, even if you're not that scared of flying because last month I very nearly boxed the man sitting next to me straight in the face after jumping out of my skin watching a horror movie... With that being said, like the other tips in this post, I find if I can't sleep, watching a film or a tv show is the next best thing to help me zone out and it also helps the time to just fly by too. If you have Netflix they have a very handy feature where you can actually download movies and tv shows onto your phone/iPad/tablet to watch whilst you're offline, so I always download lots to keep me occupied. The same goes for reading a book, it helps me to focus on the story I'm reading rather than the fact I'm on a plane.

I know most of these tips are just distraction methods and don't actually combat the actual fear itself but I've found that by flying enough times and not being completely terrified, it's actually helping me to overcome my fear, so hopefully these tips will help you too! What are your tips for overcoming a fear of flying?

How I Got Past My Fear Of Flying - Tips To Make Flying Less Stressful

30.10.18

A Guide To Airbnb - How To Find The Best Places To Stay

Even though I only used Airbnb for the first time back in March, I like to think that I've become very good at finding the best places to stay in, for the best prices and it'd be rude of me not to share some tips on how to do that, right? While I absolutely love staying in hotels, there's nothing quite like having your own apartment to stay in when travelling to a new city. It gives you the option for cook, and just generally gives you a lot more space than a regular hotel room would. Even better, if you're on a budget but still love travelling, you can pick to rent  a private room in a house or an apartment rather than an "entire place" like they call it on Airbnb and sometimes this can be up to a third cheaper than a hotel would be. You can read my first post about Airbnb and what we thought of our first experience here, and if you want some tips on how to find Airbnb gold, then just keep on reading. I must also preface this post by stating that nope, I'm not working with Airbnb to promote them (although I'd definitely love to do that), I just genuinely really love this way of finding accommodation for travelling.

1. Make Use Of The Filters

When you first use Airbnb it may be a little confusing as it just throws a big old list of places to stay at you. I always filter first, and then start to look through the list so that I'm not looking into apartments or rooms that don't have what I'm looking for. For example, if you're looking for a place to stay for 4 people, make sure you put that option into the bar of filters on the top of the screen. Or if you are on a budget, use the price filter to set how much you're willing to spend on a place to stay.  I will often go into the "More Filters" option and check options like "hairdryer" because no matter how light travel hairdryers are, I need that extra space in my suitcase, or "wifi" for obvious reasons. This helps to cut down on the list of places that are available for your trip and should help the decision process be a lot easier.

2. Use The Map To Your Advantage

As well as the list of accommodation, Airbnb also has a handy map on the right hand side of the screen that I always use to find the best places to stay. If you're looking to stay right in the middle of the city, make sure you zoom in on that area so that only the central places to stay are shown, or if there are a few sights that you want to see all in a particular area, you can use the map to choose an Airbnb that's closest to this area. The map can also be used in places like Croatia (which I'm currently researching for a possible trip) to find Airbnbs with amazing views of the sea, so it's definitely a good tool to use.

3. Superhosts Are Where It's At

We've only recently come across this tip but it's one that I would say is an essential if you want to have the best Airbnb experience. Superhosts are hosts that are highly rated, very responsive to messages, and a very reliable, so just all around good eggs. On the "More Filters" section there's a toggle you can click to only show Airbnbs from Superhosts so if it's your first time using Airbnb and you're a little sceptical as there are some horror stories out there, then I'd definitely click it just to have peace of mind. 

4. Always Read The Reviews

I'm sure this tip is a bit obvious but every time you stay in an Airbnb you have to leave a review afterwards and when I am looking up places to stay, I will always read a few of the reviews to get a good idea of what the Airbnb is actually like to stay in. Reviews are great for letting you know if the Airbnb is in a busy area, if there are any good cafes near by, how well the Airbnb actually fits the description given on the website etc. The apartment that we stayed in on our trip to Prague was chosen purely because of the reviews as lots of the people recommended the area for it being so close to public transport and also recommended the host as she provided a local travel guide which came in handy.

5. Self Check-In Makes Everything Easier

Another new discovery for us with Airbnb is self check-in which we had on our most recent trip to Gdańsk. Self check-in means that the Airbnb either has a key lockbox, smartlock, keypad, or that you can pick up a key from the building staff (which is what we did). I love this option because having to organise a specific time to pick up the keys with your Airbnb host can be a little stressful especially if you're trying to navigate a new city or if there are flight delays. Self check-in means you can arrive anytime you want (as long as it's after the designated check-in time) and you don't have to worry about keeping in contact with your host.

Those are the main tips I'd have that have helped me to find the Airbnbs that we've stayed in and so far we've stayed in some gorgeous apartments so my track record is pretty good! I know I probably sound like a broken record but honestly Airbnb is one of the best things I've ever discovered as it's allowed myself and Dara to travel to new cities without breaking the bank. For any of you who have never used Airbnb before, you can get €30 off your first trip if you sign up through this link and for every person who completes a trip using my link, I'll get €15 travel credit so it's a win win for all!

I hope this post was helpful to anyone who hasn't used Airbnb much before and of course if you have any more questions about it, just pop me a message. Thanks for reading!

A Guide To Airbnb - How To Find The Best Places To Stay

14.10.18

Gdańsk Travel Guide - What To Do & Where To Eat

Poland is a country I've always wanted to visit, but never really knew what to expect. Last week, myself and Dara visited Gdańsk for the first time and let me tell you, when I say it was nothing like I had imagined, I mean that in the best way possible. There are so many reasons as to why I loved Gdańsk, from how cheap the food was, to how gorgeous the city is and how friendly the people were. We loved it so much that we're now dying to visit lots of the other Polish cities with Kraków being top of the list. If you've ever thought of visiting Gdańsk and want to know more, or if you already have a trip to this gorgeous city planned and want some inspo, then in today's post I'm going to share where we ate and what we did, so I hope you enjoy!

Where We Stayed

First of all I'm going to share the link to the gorgeous Airbnb that we stayed in because it was such a bargain (only €53 a night including the service fee) and so many of you wanted to know the details. You can find the apartment here and if you're looking to book a trip to Gdańsk I couldn't recommend it enough. We were just a few minutes walk to the centre of the Old Town, an even shorter walk to the World War II museum and about a 10 minute walk from Gdańsk's train station. You can also sign up to Airbnb through this link to get €30 off your first trip which is always handy!

 Where We Ate

If you've been following me for a while, or have read any of my other travel blog posts then you'll know that I love to experience different countries and cultures by eating ALL of the food (any excuse, right?). Much to my delight, food in Gdańsk was seriously cheap. We're talking less than €20 for a meal for myself and Dara, including alcoholc drinks. Most of the time in Ireland it'd be €20 for just one person so we were delighted! Not only was it cheap, the food in Gdańsk was delicious too.

1. Original Burger

The first restaurant I found whilst researching places to eat for our trip was Original Burger. If you look a good burger, and even better fries, then I'd definitely check this place out. It was only €6.50 for a burger with two sides and it was absolutely delicious. The desserts looked incredible too but sadly I was way too full after my main course which is a very rare occurrence! It was so good that we almost went back on our last day in the city but we knew we needed to try some of the pierogi (Polish dumplings) so had to give it a miss.

2. Pierogina Mandu Centrum

Like I mentioned above, we really wanted to try pierogi, which are basically dumplings stuffed with all kinds of things. I didn't know if I'd like them or not, but now as I write this post, the cravings I have for them is unreal! Pierogina Mandu has a huge menu, with both sweet and savory pierogi to choose from. I also ordered their baked pierogi too as our waitress said this particular one tasted like a hamburger and I kid you not, it tasted exactly like a Big Mac and I was fascinated. In hindsight we should have just ordered 2 plates to share as the traditional pierogi come with 10 dumplings and the baked ones came with 8. We were so full after our main course that again, we couldn't possibly fit in any of the sweet pierogi but I guess I'll just have to go back to Poland to try them!

3. Manekin
This restaurant is a little bit outside of the city but right near a train station so we went there for lunch on our way out to Sopot. Before I get into what we thought of the food, I will mention that we waited a long, long time for our food to arrive, which wasn't ideal as we were starving and wanted to get out to the beach. It was super busy and when we were leaving there was a queue for about 10 people waiting to be seated, so do keep that in mind if you want to try it out. With that being said, the food was incredible. Manekin is basically a pancake restaurant, they have every single type of pancake imaginable, with savoury options as well as sweet. I ordered the lasange pancake and it was delicious and then for dessert I had the apple fudge pancakes which very nearly put me into a food coma. Again it was very cheap, only €18 for the both of us and we both had a main and dessert as well as a couple of drinks!

 What We Did

1. Climbed To The Top Of The St. Mary Church Tower

For some reason, every time Dara and I travel somewhere new, we always find a tall tower of some sort to climb to the top of. After climbing to the top of the St. Mary's Church tower, I have now decided that I am not doing this anymore as I am way to afraid of heights. The view was absolutely stunning, and if you're not afraid of heights by all means go for it. If you are a bit nervous, I actually wouldn't recommend this one as the last section of the stairs to the top just felt so dodgy and I ended up having a mild panic attack which wasn't ideal. It is a killer leg workout though, but yeah, my tower climbing days are over.

2. AmberSky Wheel

Lots of people recommended that we check out Gdańsk's version of the London Eye and I'm glad we did because the view was amazing, especially as we went just as the sun was setting. It was only €12.99 for the two of us and it lasted for about 15 minutes. Obviously with me being a total scaredy cat, I was a little nervous especially when it stopped to let someone on and we were at the top, but I mean it was a brilliant way to see the city so it was worth it. It's just across the river from the Old Town and right next to the PURO hotel which has an amazing roof top bar so it's the perfect excuse to go for a nice, relaxing glass of wine afterwards!

 3. Museum of the Second World War
Visiting this museum was one of the things Dara really wanted to do whilst in Gdańsk and while it was of course very sad, and hard to read and see lots of the terrible events that occurred during World War II, it was a fantastic museum and very interesting to walk around. There was some kind of offer on so that it was half price admission which was 20 złoty (about €4.60) for the both of us. I must admit that it was upsetting at points to learn about the awful details of the suffering imposed by Hitler on the Polish people but the museum presented all of the information so well, and in lots of different formats such as videos, photos, displays of artefacts and even mock streets of what Poland would have looked like in the 1930s, that I would really recommend checking it out.

 4. A Day Trip To Sopot
Since Sopot, a cute town on shores of the Baltic sea, is only a 20 minute train journey from Gdańsk, we thought it'd be rude not to check it out. The beach was gorgeous and there's a huge pier that you can walk down and what looked like some sort of pirate ship at the end of it that I think you can go out on. If you're visiting Gdańsk for a couple of days and want a break from the city, then a day trip out to Sopot is a brilliant idea and the best part is you can stop off and get pancakes in Manekin!

So there we have it, that's what we got up to and where we ate on our trip to Gdańsk. If you have anymore questions about this wonderful city then just pop me a message either on Facebook or Instagram and hopefully I can answer them. Thanks so much for reading!

Gdańsk Travel Guide - What To Do & Where To Eat

10.10.18

The Comfiest Bed I've Ever Slept In - Midlands Park Hotel Review

Ready to hear all about a hotel that offers not only a luxurious, relaxing stay with delicious food but also won't break the bank like some other hotels might? Myself and Dara spent the past weekend as guest of the stunning Midlands Park Hotel and I was so excited to share this gem of a hotel with you all that I actually started working on this blog post as soon as I got home from our trip to Portlaoise! When I mentioned on my Instagram story that we were heading up to the Midlands Park Hotel, straight away I had at least 5 messages all raving about the hotel, which actually doesn't happen too often so I knew we were in a for a treat. Kelly's Steakhouse was also mentioned a few times which had Dara and I very excited for dinner as we had booked in there for 6pm. Upon arrival to the hotel (which was only just over an hour and fifteen minutes away from us which is a nice change from lots of hotels in Dublin/Cork) we were greeted by such lovely, friendly staff which is another thing that the people messaging me on Instagram had mentioned. 

The Room:

We stayed in one of the hotel's suites which are actually located in a separate building to the main hotel but are still connected to the hotel by a walkway meaning that it's a nice, quite area. Our suite was room 505 or the Glenbarrow suite and honestly, it was the most incredible hotel room/suite that I have ever had the pleasure of staying in. Firstly it was HUGE, with really high ceilings, a massive window and so much space that Dara and I were joking that we could happily live there 24/7 and not feel cramped! The room was gorgeously decorated, with a rich purple colour scheme, plush carpets and even a chandelier. Like the title of this post suggests, the bed was the comfiest bed I have ever slept in, it was like sleeping on an actual cloud and I woke up feeling so well rested. Even Dara, who struggles to get a good nights sleep anywhere but his own bed slept like a baby which really says something. 

Our suite also had a sofa in front of a huge tv which to our delight had Netflix so of course we ended up watching pretty much all of season 2 of Ozark. The hotel does have a pool and brilliant leisure facilities which I actually packed a swimsuit especially for, but in the end we just loved our room so much and the fact we could totally kick back and relax in front of the tv that we didn't end up making it down to check it out, but I think sometimes you need a nice, totally chilled weekend right? 

As if the huge, comfy bed, the giant tv and sofa weren't enough, the Glenbarrow suite also had a walk in closet, a coffee machine, a separate toilet and the most magnificent bathroom. The bathroom was one of the things that had me saying "Wow" as soon as we walked into the room as it has a glass wall shower feature so you can see straight into the bathroom through the shower from the main bedroom room. The shower itself was actually a double rainfall shower so you could have a shower side by side with your other half if you wanted to. There was also a big bath in the bathroom which had a very cool water faucet (I think that's what you'd call it anyway) and some gorgeous toiletries from Rituals which were a real treat. This suite really did have every single thing you could want or dream of in a hotel room and the best part is that the price of the Midlands Park Hotel suites aren't that much more expensive than what you'd pay for a regular double room in some other hotels that I've stayed in. Particularly if you can stay on a week night, it's seriously good value for money. While we didn't experience the hotel's other room types, I can only imagine that the quality of them was just as good as our suite, and they are even more budget friendly if that's what you're looking for.

The Food:

If you've been following me on Instagram for any amount of time then it's probably very obvious that I seriously love food, so when lots of people were messaging me telling me how good the food in the Midlands Park Hotel was, specifically in the Kelly's Steakhouse, I couldn't wait to try it! Kelly's Steakhouse is right next to the hotel, and actually right below where our suite was. We had looked up the menu beforehand and it all sounded very delicious. I love when a menu has 3 or 4 different options that I'd love to try, although it does make deciding what to order that bit trickier because I'm very indecisive especially when it comes to food! I ordered the nachos for starters, 'The Smokey' burger for mains and the Rocky Road Hot Pot for dessert and Dara had the Caesar salad to start, the very interesting and exciting 16oz Hot Rock Sirloin of Beef for mains and the Warm Chocolate Fondant for dessert. After we had finished our meal we both agreed that it was one of the best we'd ever had. Every single bit of food was delicious and so well presented and we thoroughly enjoyed it. If you are planning on visiting Kelly's Steakhouse then I'd definitely recommend trying out the Hot Rock Sirloin of Beef. It's served on a volcanic rock that's been heated to 420 degrees so you can cook it exactly how you like it. Of course I had to try some of Dara's beef purely for the purpose of this post of course and I can attest to the fact that it was seriously yummy. 

Breakfast in the Midlands Park Hotel was much like our dinner the evening before and didn't disappoint. There was a continental buffet with lots of pastries, fruit, cold meats and delicious blueberry muffins and then there was a breakfast menu so you could order whatever you wanted from the kitchen. Unusually for me, I didn't go for the Belgian waffles that would usually tempt me but instead had the traditional Irish breakfast and a lovely Java Republic cappuccino which was a nice surprise because I love good coffee. We were both pleasantly surprised at how fast our breakfast was served after we had ordered especially since we'd gone down for breakfast at 10am which is always when it's busiest. Again, like with the rest of our stay, the staff were so friendly and really attentive.

Reading back over this review it almost sounds like the hotel has paid me to rave about it but I can promise you that's not the case, I ain't that easy to buy! We genuinely enjoyed our stay in the Midlands Park Hotel so much and I couldn't recommend it enough. It's so lovely to find such a stunning hotel that I can recommend to you all knowing that it's on the more affordable side of things because we all need to treat ourselves to a break sometimes, right?

One thing I will mention just so this post isn't all me gushing over how much we loved the hotel is that parking is only included for guests who are staying on a B&B basis and is only covered from check-in at 4pm until check out at 12pm. For the time you spend there outside of that, you will have to pay for parking as the hotel doesn't own the carpark right next door, but that's the case with lots of other hotels that I've stayed in so it didn't bother us too much and certainly didn't taint our view of the hotel at all.

Thanks so much for reading this review and if you're looking for a lovely break away, I hope you strongly consider the Midlands Park Hotel! A big thank you must also be said to the wonderful staff at the hotel for making our stay so pleasurable and to the hotel for having us as their guests.

The Comfiest Bed I've Ever Slept In - Midlands Park Hotel Review

24.9.18

Valencia Travel Guide - How To Spend 72 Hours In Valencia

Spain is the country I have visited the most, but I haven't really explored it all that much, so during our holiday to Murcia this year, Dara and I decided to take a little road trip up to Valencia and stay in an AirBnb for two nights. I'd heard brilliant things about Valencia, in particular the architecture in the city was supposedly stunning so I was very excited to explore the city and take it all in. It turned out to be a brilliant way to break up a two week holiday which may have gotten a bit monotonous and we totally fell in love with Valencia so I wanted to share what we got up to with you all.

Bluebell Coffee Co.

If you're into good coffee and cute little coffee shops with a nice relaxed vibe, you need to check out Bluebell Coffee Co. It was only a few minutes walk from our AirBnb and our hosts recommended it so highly to us that it was the first place we checked out when we got to Valencia. Obviously it was rather hot, especially in the city, so we went for the cold brew and I'm not being dramatic when I say that it was one of the best cold brews I've ever had. We also shared a slice of banana bread which was delicious. Bluebell Coffee Co. also serve food, but unfortunately we got there just a little after they had finished up the food for the day, but it'd be a great place to go for lunch!

Dulce de Leche Boutique Ruzafa

Another cafe that was just a few minutes away from our AirBnb in the Ruzafa area of Valencia was the Dulce de Leche Boutique. When I was doing a little research for our trip, this was one of the first places I found and I instantly knew it'd be my kind of heaven. The cakes and pastries they make on site each day make your mouth water as soon as you walk through the door, and I kind of wish we'd gone back there a second time! One of the best things about Dulce de Leche was that it was very reasonably priced. Dara and I ordered a lot of food for brunch, I had a fruit tart, a dulce de leche filled croissant, a freshly squeezed orange juice and a cold brew and Dara had a bagel with eggs, bacon and avocado, a ham and cheese croissant, a coffee and a freshly squeezed orange juice and the whole thing only came to €20!  

The VLC Mezcalería

Okay, I promise this is the last food recommendation I'll give you, but I can't help the fact that one of my favourite things about travelling is trying lots of new places to eat! Yet again, this restaurant/tequila bar was only up the road from where we were staying, so the Ruzafa area of Valencia is definitely one to consider when looking for accommodation, and it's totally a hidden gem. I absolutely love Mexican food and I love a good strong margarita and to my delight I got both, of very good quality at the VLC Mezcalería. I wouldn't call it a restaurant per se, more of a Mexican tapas bar if that makes sense? We ordered the guacamole which was divine, and the queso and chorizo which was equally as delicious. It was exactly what we wanted though, and my (very strong) margarita was only a fiver! 

The City of Arts & Sciences

Without a doubt The City of Arts & Sciences were what I was most excited about visiting in Valencia. It's a collection of stunningly designed buildings all with very different purposes and honestly it's quite the sight to behold. There is a performing arts centre and theatre, a science museum, a building that houses an IMAX screen called the Hemisfèric, and the Oceanogràfic which is easily one of the best (and biggest) aquariums I've ever been to. If you're thinking of visiting the City of Arts & Sciences, I would advise you to give yourself the entire day to explore it all. We paid to go into the Science museum and the Oceanogràfic and it was €30 each for the combined ticket, but you don't have to pay to walk around and look at the buildings. We did really enjoy the Oceanogràfic despite the ticket prices being a little steep, it's a huge aquarium park and most of the tanks are actually underground so it's a nice break from the heat.

Ateneo Sky Bar Restaurant

If you want one of the best views in Valencia, the Ateneo Sky Bar is the place to go. We found it very hard to find, and Google maps was absolutely no use so asking someone on the street is your best bet. We did have to pay a €3 each entrance fee which I thought was a bit silly since we were buying drinks anyway but I guess they have to capitalise on the view they offer. The cocktails were very strong (I swear that's not just the lightweight in me talking) and the view of Plaça de l'Ajuntament was stunning, especially as the sun was setting.

Our AirBnb

We stayed in a gorgeous apartment in the Ruzafa area of Valencia that I found on AirBnb (which is becoming my favourite way to find accommodation). It was our first time sharing an AirBnb with the owners so I was a little nervous but Paula and Marino were so welcoming and friendly and had so many helpful tips and recommendations for the city. They also have two of the most beautiful cats I've ever had the pleasure of meeting and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. You can sign up to AirBnb using this link (just click anywhere on this sentence) if you'd like €30 off your first AirBnb stay.

As you can tell, we really loved Valencia and honestly I wish we'd had an extra day or two to explore more of the city, especially 'The River' which is now full of gorgeous parks. One of my biggest tips for the city is that the public transport is very cheap (only €1.50 for the bus, no matter how far in the city you are going), so instead of wasting time, and melting in the heat, I'd definitely make use of that.

I hope this post is helpful to any of you who are visiting Valencia soon, or thinking of taking a trip there. Thanks so much for reading!

Valencia Travel Guide - How To Spend 72 Hours In Valencia

3.7.18