Top 10 holidays

10. New York

I was bought a trip to New York by my partner for my 30th birthday. An awesome present although prior to receiving it New York had never appealed to me and I really couldn't put my finger on the reason why. Nevertheless I was extremely excited about it and planned the itinerary. 

We stayed in the Row on 8th Avenue, a block away from Times Square, an epic location (kudos to my missus!). Personally, I believe spending extra on a hotel in a prime location pays for itself, admittedly we love to walk everywhere but additionally you can save money on transport. That's not to say we don't use any transport, New York had a quirky type that I would recommend called the RIDE. It's a bus where the seats face to the left rather than the front of the bus and it takes you on a tour of the city with commentary plus unexpected surprises along the way. We bought a 3-day New York Pass (click New York Pass to go to the webpage) another item I'd recommend you purchase, the cost includes a vast array of different excursions and admissions. New York should be on everyone's bucket list, there is so much to do, you could go back again and again with a unique itinerary. We went on a boat trip to Staten Island to see the Statue of Liberty, we used the hop on hop off bus to get to Brooklyn bridge and walked across the bridge into Brooklyn (hint: you can get a great picture of the city from the other side of the bridge), we went to the Rockerfeller (top of the rock), Empire State building, 9/11 memorial, two separate trips on the RIDE (mentioned above), Radio City and a Planet Earth interactive experience, plus more. Not to mention all of these are covered within the pass! We also went to a Broadway show, Beetlejuice, which was excellent, went to Madison Square Garden to watch a NY Knicks basketball game, another awesome experience. The adventures and experiences in the Big Apple really are endless, if you get an opportunity to go, do it!

9. Salou

Some of you might be wondering where Salou is, it's actually along the Costa Dorada in Spain, about an hour south of Barcelona.

I might be biased with this one, we've been there about four or five times. Being from the UK, it's a short flight, just the two hours, and it's one of few places that our local airport flies to. Not only that, it's regularly one of the cheapest package holidays available as well as being one of the cheapest places I've been to in Europe, strangely cheaper than other parts of Spain.

This is probably the least adventurous place on my list, categorised into a more laid back holiday, but Salou has got a lot to offer. Although busy during summer, the beach is lovely offering soft golden sand and a gentle tide, a promenade which runs alongside the beach for just over 1km, although there is a walkway that continues far longer than that. There are plenty of bars, cafes, restaurants plus amusement arcades and games centres if you fancy a game of pool or air hockey. You'll even get street entertainers in the evening generating crowds and performing acrobatics. The promenade also boasts a water fountain show, similar to what they have in places like Las Vegas and Dubai, albeit not as extravagant. If you're travelling as a family there are also local theme and water parks.

8. Miami

Miami was the second leg of my 30th birthday trip, we flew from New York down to Miami, I decided to keep them separate because they both had so much to offer. It would never happen but I did look at purchasing property in Miami, I was captivated by it. Houses on the water, the roads that connect each of the islands over the water, the beach, the Bayside marketplace, the colourful buildings of little Havana. It's a melting pot of cultures, colours and styles.

I underestimated how huge Miami is, we stayed a block back from Miami beach at the Washington Park hotel which was in another great location, but we had 4 days in Miami when we could have explored for a couple of weeks. Ocean Drive at South beach is instantly recognisable from tv shows and films, it's got an exclusive vibe only supported by the conveyor belt of luxury cars rolling past. It definitely isn't cheap here though, from memory we paid about $25 for a large beer and $50 for a extravagant cocktail. Between Ocean  Drive and the beach you've got a promenade with people roller blading, beach volleyball courts which never seem to be empty and an outdoor gym. The beach has colourful lifeguard watchout points dotted along the shore and when we walked to South Point Park pier we realised that Miami is a hub for Cruise liners departing which was cool to watch they chug past.

We used the hop on hop off bus again, they're so convenient when there is a lot of ground to cover. We got off at Wynwood Walls to check out the street art, we really enjoyed it and is not something you get to witness often. Little Havana was another stop you should check out, the Cuban culture is prominent with mojitos on tap and the locals in Domino park playing a game of, well dominos. On the way back we got off at the Bayside marketplace which had an array of bars and restaurants in addition to live music at the waters edge. From here we boarded for the Millionaire's row boat cruise which was decent if you're nosey like me and want to see some of the most expensive houses in the area.

7. Cuba

Cuba was our first holiday post COVID pandemic, in hindsight it wasn't the right time to visit, we still had to wear masks and from speaking to the local people the usual hustle and bustle and vibrancy had not yet returned after the outbreak. I hadn't considered the poor economic state of the country and didn't know about the restrictions placed on them regarding imports. Anyway I've digressed slightly.

Putting that aside, Cuba is a beautiful and fascinating country, you can travel all around the island but be warned, it is the largest of all the Caribbean islands. Not to mention they don't have proper high speed roads so to travel the entire length, all 1,240km of it, it will take you around 18 hours averaging about 40mph. That is something that I did look into before booking anything so I limited our trip to a two stopper, Havana and Varadero.

We began in Havana and its such a cool place, seeing the vintage cars driving around, there are a lot of narrow streets leading on to plazas, some of the architecture is stunning and as long as your careful the Malecon that runs all the way along the sea is a nice walk and you end up reaching Havana port and across the water you face the fort where they still fire cannons every night which is another unique experience. We took a ride in a vintage car and it took us the other direction towards Revolution square. And guess what, we even got on a bus to really see as much of the place as possible.

When we transferred to Varadero it was a completely relaxed vibe. Look at Varadero on the map, its crazy, essentially a 13 mile long beach coming off the north of the island, I guess it's kind of like Key West. There was a bit to see outside of the hotel too, we wandered the streets (there is 13 miles of them to be fair) visited a few local markets, Downtown Varadero is nice and has shops, bars and restaurants, Parque Josone and Parque Central too. We had a look at Varadero Marina, guess how we got there... hop on hop off bus! We did a trip which was a Catamaran ride and  a visit to the Varadero Dolphinarium where we interacted with the dolphins which was really special. For us, there was a pièce de résistance, which was Varadero beach. Incredible. One of the best I've ever been to. The sand was super soft, powdery and bright white. The water was like looking into a swimming pool, crystal clear and more transparent than blue. I pretty much spent the majority of the days with my goggles on swimming in the sea. If you went further out there was an old rocky reef so the sea life was pretty good considering how clear the water is. All in all I'd really recommend you go to Cuba, just keep in mind how big it is and plan your itinerary if you go to Havana.

6. Nissi Beach

Like Salou, some of you might not know where Nissi beach is, it's on the South East coast of Cyprus. You might have heard of Ayia Napa, which is about a 40 minute walk away. We went late September to early October to catch some autumn sunshine. I imagine this is a better time to visit than the peak summer months because Ayia Napa is known for being a party place. Obviously if you go for a party it's probably excellent but for us, we prefer some entertainment or music, a bit of people watching but nothing too crazy.

Our hotel was a 15 minute walk away from Nissi beach itself, we actually stayed on Vathia Gonia beach, it's decent walk alongside the sea and you get to visit Secret bridge en route. Nissi beach has a shallow walkway over to Nissi island which is pretty cool and the stretch of beach is home to a few bars and restaurants whilst a few large hotels back onto it also. When we walked in the opposite direction from our hotel the promenade leads you all the way along the seaside to Ayia Napa harbour where there are a number of boat trips you can take or restaurants to eat at. If you head inland from the harbour, you'll find the main strip of Ayia Napa so you can enjoy even more restaurants in addition to bars, clubs and shops (which are always handy if you collect fridge magnets like me!). Something a little different is the underwater museum which is a collection of art placed onto the seabed, you pop on your snorkel and follow the route out to see which finishes at a jetty out at sea.

Similar to Varadero, the main draw for me is the beach, lovely powdery sand, clear water and remember to take your googles because the rockery is home to a ton of different sea life. 

5. Mauritius

When we had a chance to go Mauritius we jumped at it and it didn't disappoint. We went back in 2015 and being a lot younger and less experienced travellers we were at a stage where our holidays were a lot less adventurous. Having said that we did still get up to quite a lot and enjoyed what the island had to offer. We stayed in the Poste Lafayette area at the Jalsa Beach hotel & spa. The hotel offered free water sports so we tried our hand at some paddleboarding, kayaking and snorkelling. The aforementioned were great ways to enjoy the clear blue seas although the beaches around our hotel, whilst were lovely, didn't compare to some other places we have since visited. That's not to say Mauritius doesn't have some extraordinary beaches, we drove past a few stunning ones when we hired a driver for the day to show us around the island. We visited the eco park and the sugar cane fields too, but there was so much more we could have added to our itinerary so I would like to think I'll go back to Mauritius again in the future. Another thing I have to add is the people are extremely friendly and happy. We actually went during Diwali and the locals welcomed us into their culture and celebrations like we were part of their family. One evening we did go on a small bus trip to see some of the locals houses, Diwali is the festival of light and it was similar to Christmas where all the houses were adorned with thousands of lights and decorations.

4. Cote D'Azur

I've covered the Cote D'Azur, or the French Riviera as it may be more commonly known, as one destination when in fact it covers anything east of Marseille (keep in mind there is no official boundary). We flew into Nice airport and stayed in the hotel Paganini located in old Nice, a great location not only due to its close proximity to the beach and everything Nice has to offer but because we wanted to make use of the train during this trip.

Nice's Prom D'Anglais, the promenade in Nice, stretches for miles, its a really popular spot to sit and enjoy the beach, we joined loads of people in buying a couple of local beers from the shop and enjoying the view with a cold one. Nice has an awesome marina and you can climb to the top of the hill to the chateau passing a waterfall on the way and enjoy breath-taking views from the top. All in all Nice has plenty to see and I'll be going back again in the future.

Like I said, we picked our hotel to take advantage of the train station. We had 4 nights and 3 full days in total so we utilised our time by using the evenings to explore Nice and the days to venture into other towns. We went to Antibes, Cannes and Monaco and I'd highly recommend them all, each offering different things. Antibes is a fantastic walled city, its picturesque, full of history and culture plus on a warm day the walls surrounding you really lock the heat in! Cannes is home to the film festival, I thought it was similar to Nice in some aspects however it has a more luxurious side especially when you walk down Boulevard de la Croisette which is beautifully lined with palm trees, the beach and exclusive beach clubs on one side and high end designer stores and hotels on the other. Finally, Monaco which takes Cannes' money and multiplies it infinitely. The yachts, the supercars, the lavishness not to mention the prices ha-ha! We couldn't help but take a seat in the Café de Paris Monte Carlo order a couple of extortionately priced drinks and soak in everything going on around us. If you go anywhere on the Cote D'Azur then Monaco has to be on the list!

3. Caribbean Cruise

Our cruise around the Greek islands could have easily been on this list but the Caribbean cruise, for me, was spectacular. Cruising is becoming more popular and this was my 3rd (I've since been on a 4th) so I'll be talking more about cruises in future blogs. I personally think you need to decide what you want from a cruise before booking, for us, its about being able to experience as many places as possible in a short space of time. I enjoy planning my own multi destination holidays but when it comes to the Caribbean its not so easy to get from island to island so this cruise was perfect.

We went with P&O on the Britannia, if you can stretch your budget I'd always get a balcony, but again it depends on what you like from your holiday. I tend to start and end every day of my holiday on the balcony so for me its worth it. Our itinerary sounded immense before going but once we'd been to each place I couldn't get over how much I enjoyed it. We flew to Barbados and boarded the ship there, our ports of call were Aruba, Curacao, Grenada, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, St Lucia, Antigua, St Kitts & Nevis, St Maarten and back to Barbados.

That's a lot to cover in this blog so I'll be doing a separate blog to cover the entire cruise in a lot more detail. What I'll say is, if this sounds like it would appeal to you, keep an eye out for this cruise on P&O's website. It goes between November-March and the price includes a 15 night full board cruise, flights and transfers, and P&O seem to be reducing the price a few months prior quite regularly. We paid £1500 per person for a balcony room which is insane value for money. Granted you need to pay for your drinks and getting off the ship 9 times will require some spending money but it's a holiday of a lifetime!

2. Thailand

Before booking Thailand, I read and heard a lot of good things and wasn't sure whether the holiday would match the hype... it definitely did!

I booked everything myself and was all done separately, we flew into Bangkok had a night there, flew down to Phuket and had 4 nights there, caught the ferry to Koh Phi Phi and had 3 nights there, another ferry to Koh Lanta having 3 nights there, a final ferry to Ao Nang in Krabi with a further 3 nights before getting a flight back to Bangkok for a final night before flying home.

It worked out really nicely, typically for we had a three day cycle for each destination from the point of travelling we would have the travel, or arrival day to start, book an excursion or trip for the next day and then have a free day to explore the area we were staying in before moving onto the next destination. It's mad to think that we travelled to all these places and they all had their own different aura. Bangkok was, in parts, mental especially Khao San Road at night, super busy and had a bucketload of culture and history to take in. Phuket has Bangla Road which is just as mental but had a lovely beach and was generally more chilled out than Bangkok. Koh Phi Phi, or the Phi Phi islands, in my opinion, was incredible. A tiny island where cars are not permitted, it has an awesome viewpoint and even though its surrounded by the Andaman sea, when you look down on the narrowest part of the 'H' shaped archipelago one side is dark blue like your local beach and the other side is a bright, light bluey turquoise. At the top there is a shop and, when we went, in typical tropical style it poured  down with rain and monkeys came out of nowhere, I thought they were going into the shop to hide from the rain, but instead were stealing sweets and chocolate from the shop until the owner came out shouting and screaming to scare them off! Koh Lanta was unspoilt and, has loads to do and for our trip opted for a sea kayaking and cave exploring day which was really cool. Finally, Ao Nang was probably, in my opinion, more commercialised, there was a Tesco (major UK supermarket for anybody outside the UK) opposite our hotel and a huge market, which sold a lot of souvenirs, but it didn't take away from it's Thai aura. We're thinking of going back to the eastern side of Thailand soon, specifically Koh Samui, Koh Tao and Koh Phangan, and  hope that is just as spectacular!

1. Bali

I bought my partner our trip to Bali as a 30th birthday present so I splurged out extra on nicer hotels. We stayed a few nights in Ubud at the Hanging Gardens of Bali hotel and another few night in Uluwatu at the Banyan Tree.

Ubud was a great location for some of the trips we had planned, we climbed Mount Batur for sunrise and enjoyed the natural hot spring baths afterwards. We went to the Monkey forest which was awesome, swung on the Bali swing, visited the Tegellalang rice fields and went to the Elephant Safari Park Lodge which to this day is one of the best experiences I've had in my life. The elephants have been rescued which is nice to know and you have an opportunity to feed and bathe them, incredible! Ubud town has, what seemed like, an unbelievably long market where you can get pretty much anything including any souvenirs you want.

Uluwatu is on the south coast of Bali and is better known for its beaches and gave off a surfers vibe. We did some watersports at Sunday's Beach Club, headed to Jimbaran beach which is a spectacle at night being all lit up and booked a seat in Single Fin to watch the sunset. There is so much more of Bali we didn't fit into our week long stay, looking back I should have booked to stay longer however we did stop in Dubai on the way home for 5 nights and I have to bills to pay ha-ha! I'll definitely be going back to check out Seminyak, Kuta, Nusa Penida, the Gili islands and more.

Similar to Mauritius and Thailand, the people of Bali are incredibly friendly and super happy, the self proclaimed happiest people on earth if you listened to some of the locals.