We had planned to camp the night before we collected our little Cairn Terrier puppy but we decided the stress of bringing our new arrival home from Wales would be enough without adding putting up our new tent into the mix. Instead we treated ourselves to a stay at the beautiful Caer Beris Manor in Builth Wells.

The historic manor house has 23 bedrooms which are almost as impressive as the stunning exterior.

We booked a Heritage Double Room and were given The Harcourt-Wood Room (Room 18) which features a large, authentic leaded window and boasts views out over the courtyard.

The room was beautifully decorated and had everything from a flat screen TV to fluffy towels to use in the modern bathroom.

The courtyard makes it easy to see why the Manor is now a listed building after being restored by its current owners.

Set in 27 acres of parkland and with The River Irfon winding through its grounds the Manor’s gardens are perfect for an evening stroll.

It even has its own suspension bridge with a sign that warns only one person should use it at a time, making it a little bit nerve wracking!

The next morning we headed to breakfast early so we had plenty of time for another walk before we checked out.

I decided on a cheese omelette while John went for the traditional full Welsh Breakfast with a pork and leek sausage, bacon, fried egg, tomato, mushroom, black pudding and wedges, all of which he said was delicious!

We paid £74.00 for bed and breakfast which we felt was very reasonable especially considering the sheer beauty of the surroundings and the attentiveness of the staff who were all curious about our journey to collect our new puppy. They were quick to point out Caer Beris Manor is a pet friendly hotel so maybe one day we’ll head back to let Maisie explore the extensive grounds and swim in the river!

What do you get the girl who has everything? A mini cruise to Amsterdam! It was my 27th birthday recently and John decided to whisk me away to Amsterdam. Knowing I love boats he booked the Amsterdam Mini Cruise with DFDS Seaways where you spend two nights on-board and 5 hours exploring the Dutch capital.

The ferry leaves from Royal Quays, North Shields which is near Newcastle and pretty easy to get to from the A1. My birthday was on a Monday so we chose the cruise which left on Sunday afternoon and returned on Tuesday morning.

We checked in at 2.30pm and had plenty of time to explore the ship before our 5.00pm departure. First we went to find our cabin and see where we would be laying our heads. John had upgraded to a room with a window so we could enjoy the view and the cosy cabin had everything we needed.

Once we were settled in we headed to the upper decks to watch as our voyage got under way. On the top deck we found the Sky Bar, ordered a drink and enjoyed the sea air.

In the evening there were plenty of restaurants to choose from and we settled on Little Italy which is also the cheapest except for the cafe. It offers fresh stone-baked pizzas and classic pasta dishes. A margherita with fresh basil set us back €15.50 while a large portion of spaghetti bolognese was €18.50 so it was on the pricey side but we were expecting to pay over the odds for food on-board.

After dinner we had a few drinks and listened to music in our cabin before heading to the Columbus Club to see what entertainment was available. We had brought our own bottles of wine but needn’t have bothered as the shop was duty free making it cheaper than the supermarket at home.

The Columbus Club is the main bar and spans the width of the ship. It has a stage, dance floor, casino and even offers table service. We watched the live band while we drank and left when the bingo started, it’s really not our game!

Our 2-berth cabin had an en-suite bathroom, air conditioning and bunk beds. We had already agreed John would take the top bunk (he was worried I might fall out after a few glasses of wine!) but the bunk beds were a decent size and very comfy so we both slept soundly.

In the morning the ships tannoy woke everyone up an hour before we arrived in Amsterdam. We grabbed something to eat in our cabin then went out on deck to watch as we docked.

The buses were waiting for us after we came through passport control and we began the 45 minute journey to the centre of Amsterdam.

We had five hours to explore so first thing was first. Cheese!

So. much. cheese.

Then we took in the sights and smells of the world famous flower market.

These ones didn’t smell quite as good.. and I didn’t notice they were wooden until after I had taken the photo!

At 12 noon we were surprised to hear an air raid siren blaring. We had no idea what was going on but since none of the locals were batting an eye lid we decided everything must be fine. When we returned home we did some research and found that on the first Monday of every month at noon a network of 4200 sirens are tested all over The Netherlands. It’s called Waarschuwingsstelsel and no matter where you are in the country you should be able to hear the sirens. If it’s not the first Monday of the month you should go instead, shut all doors and windows and turn on your radio!

After that little drama we decided the best way to see the rest of the city was by boat and booked ourselves a canal cruise. We chose Lovers Canal Cruises which was €16 each and spent an hour touring the harbour and the many scenic canals. Unfortunately my camera was having a wobbler so I had no choice but to sit back and relax. Lovers Canal Cruises also offer evening cruises with dinner and drinks and if we stay overnight in the future I would love to go on a candle light or even a pizza cruise!

We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the city centre, enjoying the architecture and dodging the April showers.

At 4.00pm we headed to our pick up point and took the coach back to the ferry terminal. Boarding was much quicker when we were getting back on the boat and before long we were heading home.

The evening was spent watching the sunset and enjoying a few drinks. We ate in Little Italy again and watched people gamble in the Casino before calling it a night.

We docked in North Shields at 9.00am the following morning and immediately started thinking about our next voyage on the high seas!

If you want to have your own adventure Amsterdam mini cruises with DFDS Seaways start at £85.00pp.

Cueva de los Verdes or the Green Caves is one of the attractions John was keen to take me to see while we were on holiday in Lanzarote and it didn’t disappoint.

The caves were created by lava flows from a nearby volcano over 3,000 years ago and two kilometres have been opened up for tourists to explore. The lighting in the caves was designed by Lanzarote’s beloved artist Jesus Soto and combined with the sound is used to tell the story of how the unique tunnels were born.

In times of slavery and piracy the islands inhabitants would hide in the caves. Its vast caverns known locally as a jameo offered protection but locals were often snapped up when setting foot outside to gather supplies.

Nowadays the caves house a concert hall which can seat up to 500 at any one time.

The tour climaxes with “the great Secret of Lanzarote” which you’ll probably be able to figure out by looking at the photos below!

The Lanzarote Express Caves Tour is run by Last Minute Travel and is €20 per person. It runs on Wednesdays and Fridays and you get a choice of visiting Cueva de los Verdes or Jameos del Agua. I would love to visit again and see Jameos del Agua, the world’s longest lava tube where a rare species of blind albino crab has made its home.

While on our winter holiday in Lanzarote we decided to buy some snorkelling gear and venture into the sea. I had my new bikini from David Swimwear to try out and John was excited to test the underwater camera I had bought him for his birthday.

We found a beautiful bay about 20 minutes’ walk from our hotel, made sure our things weren’t going to get swept away by the tide and dipped our toes in the clear blue water.

It was freezing! Tentatively venturing further we could see fish swimming past our feet and as we moved deeper into the water the fish got bigger and distracted us from the temperature of the water.

There were so many different types of fish and they certainly weren’t shy. People were feeding them in the shallows and huge shoals circled us to see if we had anything for them.

We swam around the rocks getting up close and personal with the sea life and even spotted a star fish!

And what about my new bikini? I was really pleased with the comfort and fit it provided and it looks great. It stayed on without any problems and didn’t hug my curves too tightly, perfect when you’re doing your best breast stroke trying to catch up with a particularly pretty fish!

The bright pattern of the bikini is eye catching too, ideal when your snorkelling buddy is trying to find you in a sea of other swimmers.

The gem details add to the luxury feel and it’s obvious from the quality of the material that this bikini is a piece of high fashion beachwear. It was a real treat to wear something so lavish!

I was hoping I would feel confident enough to share a photo of myself in the bikini but here’s a photo of it on a stunning model instead! I was also given a beautiful Iconique cover-up in blue to complete my beach look. The image on the right is the same style and it’s plain to see that Iconique pieces are inspired by the Mediterranean coast and are designed to be easy to wear.

The David Swimwear collection for 2016 features more bold prints inspired by Italian design and focused on comfort.

Patricia Eve is the UK distributor for David Swimwear so if you would like to see more from the new range you can visit www.patricia-eve.co.uk.

In November John turned 30 and we decided to celebrate by spending a week in the sun. We chose Lanzarote as John had visited before and really liked the island. We decided to stay at the same hotel he had stayed at previously, Santa Rosa Apartments in Costa Teguise and flew from Newcastle. After a few days of relaxing and trying to acclimatize (I am useless in the heat!) it was time to explore.

For our first excursion we chose to go on the Short South Island tour, mainly because I got a little over excited at the prospect of riding a camel…

The tour took us to Timanfaya National Park in the southwestern part of Lanzarote where we saw the stunning scenery created by eruptions in the 18th century. Brimming with different colours and textures the lava fields look unearthly and photos of the area where apparently shown to Nasa astronauts to prepare them for what the moon would look like.

To demonstrate how hot it is below the surface of Montañas del Fuego we were shows geothermal experiments.

At the restaurant in the heart of the Fire Mountains they even cook the food with the natural heat from under the ground.

Next we were taken to the base of Fire Mountain where the camels were waiting.

We took our seats on either side of our camels hump and up it got. The camels were all connected and in convoy took us round a track on the side of the mountain.

The last stop on our tour was a traditional vineyard where we tasted some very sweet wine.

The vines are grown in sunken pits surrounded by semi circular walls built with volcanic stones. This protects the vines and means that around 2 million litres of wine are produced each year.

The Lanzarote Short South Tour is run by Last Minute Travel and is €20 per person. It runs Monday-Thursday and if you’re visiting Lanzarote I really recommend it.

On a whim we decided to visit Gibraltar whilst on holiday in Portugal. After booking we discovered it was a five hour coach journey.. each way! We did consider cancelling but after a fairly lengthy discussion decided it wasn’t likely we would be in striking distance any time soon and went for it.

We left just before six and the coach journey wasn’t as bad as expected (I’m sure Tom would disagree!). We were able to see some beautiful Spanish scenery and watch the sun rise while we travelled.

The coach dropped us off beside border control and we walked into the country before being transported over the airports landing strip towards the city. We opted for a tour as we were there for such a short amount of time and had a lot to pack in! We visited the famous St. Michael’s cave, met the monkeys and soaked up the atmosphere. It was national day so everyone was wearing patriotic red and white, all the shops were closed and everyone was having a great time. Karaoke filled the streets and the party atmosphere really made a difference to our trip.

We really enjoyed our visit and apparently John Lennon was married in Gibraltar which made Tom’s choice of t-shirt very appropriate, he swears he didn’t know!

We stayed in the beautiful Aqua Pedra Dos Bicos in Albufeira, Portugal. I have to admit I’m over cautious when booking hotels and had driven myself batty looking through reviews and Trip Advisor posts to find the perfect holiday. When a colleague at work said she had had a wonderful time at Aqua Pedra Dos Bicos we looked at prices and decided to follow suit.

The hotel was modern, clean and well maintained with friendly staff and everything we needed.  Aqua Pedra Dos Bicos doesn’t allow children which was a clincher for us and meant the pool area was blissfully quiet. We opted for B&B, had a snack for dinner or lunch and ate out for our third meal. We were spoiled for choice at breakfast,  they even served sparkling wine!

The pool was beautiful with a bar that served cocktails and food at lunchtime. If you didn’t fancy sitting by the pool the roof had a lovely area for sunbathing and a bar which started serving around 6 so you could enjoy the view whilst watching the sun go down.

There was entertainment most evenings ranging from pleasant piano music in the lounge bar to guitar by the pool.

The design features really made the hotel for me and the attention to detail made it feel like we were enjoying a 5 star stay.

We like to visit new places each year but we’re more than tempted to return in 2014.

We are just back from a fantastic holiday in the Algarve where we stayed in a beautiful hotel by the sea, saw the sights, ate lots of seafood, drank a bit too much and visited Gibraltar. This is the first of my photo diaries from our trip.

Old Town, Albufeira / Old Town Lane / Jeep Safari and Cork Tree / Cacti / Fire Water which can contain up to 48% alcohol! / Rural Portugal / Popular Swimming Spot / Catamaran Trip to the Caves / Sunlight in the Caves / Swimming from the Boat / The Coast / Palm Tree / Sunset on the Beach

Our holiday highlights were the “Jeep Safari” which took us into rural Portugal allowing us to sample local honey and the famous drink Fire Water (illegal in this country) and the Catamaran trip along the coast with a stop for swimming and trips into the caves on small glass bottomed boats. We also visited the British territory of Gibraltar where it was national day which will definitely require it’s own post!