Category: Holiday destinations

Holiday destinations: Zagreb, Croatia

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Two weeks ago, I travelled with my husband to Zagreb in Croatia. Zagreb is not the first city that comes on anyone’s mind when thinking of Croatia but it should definitely change. For me, it was the third Croatian city we’ve seen so far as we previously visited Split and Dubrovnik known from Game of Thrones.

Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of Croatia. It is located in the northwest of the country, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb’s metropolitan area is the biggest in Croatia with a population of over one million.

Zagreb is a city with a rich history dating from the Roman times to the present day. The city smells of roses and there are many flower shops as well as a flower market located in center of the town.

I love how colorful and vibrant it it. It is a perfect destination for a weekend / city break. There are hundreds of great restaurants and bars located in there and even the most demanding foodies like me can choose from a range of local and international cuisines.

If you like sightseeing then there is a lot to see. Here is a short list of my suggestions of places worth visiting:

  • The Upper Town
  • Zagreb Cathedral
  • Zagreb Eye
  • King Tomislav Square
  • Maksimir Park and Zagreb Zoo
  • Ilica Street (for a bit of retail therapy)
  • Museum of Broken Relationships (if you would like to read some heartbreaking stories told by hundreds of personal belongings of past lovers from all over the world).
  • And many more hidden gems like these:

How to get there?

Monarch, the scheduled leisure airline, operates year round flights and holidays to Zagreb from London Gatwick and Manchester airports with fares, including taxes, from £42 one way (£79 return). It is a great cheap airline with the friendliest flight attendants I have ever met.

For further information or to book Monarch flights, Monarch Holidays or Monarch Hotels, please visit www.monarch.co.uk

I hope you enjoyed reading this review.

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: Cologne, Germany

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Last week, we traveled with my husband to Cologne for 3-days weekend break.

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Cologne is the fourth-largest city in German located within the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region, one of the major European metropolitan areas, and with more than ten million inhabitants, the largest in Germany.

The city is less than 80 km from Belgium and it is located on both sides of the Rhine River.
IMG_3109When we arrived to Cologne, before we started our sightseeing we decided to visit Cologne Tourist Information Center which is located just opposite of cathedral.

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We bought two KölnCards, that provided us with free public transport as well as reductions at various restaurants, museums, bars and so on around the city. As Cologne is a major cultural center it hosts more than thirty museums and hundreds of galleries so the discounts we received using KölnCards were significant.

There are lots of places worth visiting whilst in Cologne. Here is a short list of my suggestions:
  1. Cologne Cathedral – beautiful Roman Gothic cathedral that is the main tourist attraction of Cologne and attracts over 6 million visitors per year.
  2. Museum Ludwig – great place to visit for art lovers. It holds extensive collection of Picasso works.
  3. Romano-Germanic Museum – holds a lot of Roman artifacts and antiques.
  4. Cologne Cable Car – a gondola lift that runs across the River Rhine.
  5. Fragrance Museum – perfume museum that holds artworks from 1685.

In addition, I would also recommend one of the city sightseeing bus tours. They take around 1.5 hour and you will be able to see all of the main attractions. There was a couple of companies running them and the tickets were 11 EUR.

I hope you enjoyed reading this review.

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: Helsinki, Finland

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At the beginning of March I was on a business trip in Helsinki in Finland. It was my third trip to that city and honestly speaking it is not one of my favorite destinations.

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Helsinki is the capital city of Finland. It is located in southern Finland and has a population an urban population of over 1.2 million. Helsinki is located some 80 km north of Estonia, 400 km east of Sweden and 388 km west of Russia.
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Here is a short list of my suggestions of places worth visiting while in this city:
  1. Esplanade Park;
  2. Helsinki Cathedral;
  3. Helsinki Zoo;
  4. Market Square;
  5. Old Market Hall.
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I hope you enjoyed reading this review.

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: Milan, Italy

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A couple of weeks ago, I traveled with my husband to Milan in Northern Italy. I’ve been in Milan a few times before as I love the cosmopolitan vibe offered by this global city which is perfect for anyone who loves the art, design, entertainment and fashion.

Milan has been recognised as one of the worlds fashion capitals and the famous Milan Fashion Week takes place here on a yearly basis. It is also one of the key European financial capitals and Italian stock exchange is based here.

Over 8 million visitors are attracted by Milan every year as the city has lots of heritage with some great museums and art galleries featuring some of the most famous collections in the world including works by Leonardo da Vinci.

If you like sightseeing then there is a lot to see and the city will appeal to a wide range of different visitors.

Here is a short list of my suggestions of places worth visiting:

  • Duomo di Milano – one of the largest Gothic cathedrals in the world which completion took almost 600 years. Located on a Piazza del Duomo with many lively cafes and the elegant fashion shops.
  • Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II – one of the most beautiful and oldest shopping malls in the world featuring many designer boutiques based in a four-storey arcade opposite of Duomo di Milano in central Milan.
  • Sforzesco Castle – a castle built in the 15th century by Francesco Sforza who was a Duke of Milan.

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  • Sempione Park – a large park leading to Sforzesco Castle which was established in 1888.
  • Teatro alla Scala – a well-known opera house which was established in 1778.

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How to get there?

If you live in the UK then you can easily get to Milan from most of major cities. We’ve flown from London Heathrow and it took us slightly over 2 hours.

I hope you enjoyed reading this review.

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: Barcelona, Spain

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It was my husband’s 30th birthday last week so I decided to treat him to a mini-break to Spain. I love Barcelona and as he has never been there before, it was a very easy decision to make whilst deciding where to take him.

Barcelona is the largest city of Catalonia, and the second most populous municipality of Spain. It has a population of 1.6 million within city limits which makes it the sixth most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris, London, Madrid, the Ruhr area and Milan.

There are many places worth visiting in Barcelona. Please find a quick summary listed below:

  1. Sagrada Familia – a landmark church designed by Antonio Gaudí
  2. Park Güell – a lovely park with mosaic-covered buildings, steps and sculptures providing amazing panoramic views of Barcelona. It was meant to be an exclusive housing complex with 60 houses however only 2 houses were build and a show home where Gaudi stayed was transformed recently into a museum.
  3. Casa Milà – another beautiful building by Antonio Gaudi popularly known as La Pedrera or “open quarry”, a reference to its unconventional rough-hewn appearance.
  4. La Rambla – a street in central Barcelona, popular with tourists and locals alike. Great for shopping or a bit of relaxation in one of its many eateries.
  5. Plaça de Catalunya – the most famous square filled with fountains and sculptures surrounded with many shops & cafes.
  6. La Barceloneta – a beach located short walk from the central Barcelona.
  7. Palau Nacional – hilltop museum for 11th- to 20th-century Catalan art plus important Romanesque collection.
  8. Arc de Triomf – Classical archway built as the main entrance to the Universal Exhibition hosted by the city in 1888.

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: New York, USA

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I have recently traveled to the USA with my husband for our autumn / winter holidays. Our first stop was New York City.  It is the most densely populated city in the USA and it has a population of 8.5 million. New York City is one of the most famous cities worldwide and it has been described as the cultural, financial and media capital of the world. New York City consists of five boroughs – Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, The Bronx and Staten Island. I have recently read that there 800 languages are spoken in New York, which makes it the most linguistically diverse city in the world.

Many districts and landmarks in New York City are well known and 61 million tourists visited the city in 2016. There are many places worth visiting in New York. Please find a quick summary listed below:

  • Empire State Building – a perfect way to see the city’s major highlights from the highest building in New York.
  • Statue of Liberty – a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City.
  • Grand Central Terminal – beautiful train station with a wide range of shops and eateries to relax in.
  • Fifth Avenue – a famous shopping street with a range of boutique and high-street brands where you can shop until you drop.
  • Times Square – exciting and colorful square that just cannot be missed. Sometimes referred to as the Crossroads of the World.

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  • Rockefeller Center (Top of The Rock experience) – an observatory on top of Rockefeller Center, with great city views.
  • National Geographic Encounter: Ocean Odyssey – amazing entertainment experience in the heart of Times Square which uses ground-breaking technology that takes its attendees on a journey into the ocean. It is super interactive with escaping sea creatures and underwater maze. A perfect destination for a day out with a family especially if you have kids as everyone can experience being face-to-face with whales and sharks, squids or sea lions.
  • Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum – an American military and maritime history museum. I especially enjoyed learning more about the Space Shuttle ‘Enterprise’ – the first space shuttle, a Cold War-era submarine Growler and British Airways Concorde, the world’s fastest commercial jet that can take passengers from London to New York in under 3 hours.

I hope you enjoyed reading this review.

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: York, UK

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A couple of weeks ago after work, we drove to York with my husband to celebrate our first wedding anniversary.

York is located in North Yorkshire in England. It is a historic city that has a rich heritage and was part of major political events in England throughout the history of UK. It is also a popular tourist destination for millions and, nowadays, tourism is an important element of the local economy.

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The city was founded by the Romans. In the Middle Ages, York grew as a major trading centre and became the capital of the northern province of the Church of England. In the 19th century, York became a known hub of the railway network and a confectionery manufacturing centre.

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The city offers a wealth of historic attractions and I would definitely recommend a visit to:

  1. York Castle Museum
  2. The Shambles
  3. York City Walls
  4. York Minster Cathedral
  5. Yorkshire Museum and Museum Gardens
  6. Jorvik Viking Centre

During our stay we had some great meals but I will review them in another post.

If you consider visiting York then Booking.com has a range of great properties where you can relax and unwind after a day of sightseeing. In addition, if you book your accommodation via this referral link, you’ll get £20 in cash.

I hope you enjoyed reading this post!

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Pauline

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Holiday destinations: Rome, Italy

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Rome is the capital of Italy and of the Lazio region. It is the country’s largest and most populated and fourth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits. The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula.

Rome’s history spans for more than two and a half thousand years so it doesn’t matter how long you are planning to stay here-you should be prepared to step into the world’s biggest open air museum. I would personally advice you o travel for a minimum 4-5 days so you can see all the famous areas and monuments. It was my third visit to Rome and with each trip I enjoy it more.

Last time, I travelled there for my fiancé’s birthday and firstly we decided to follow the typical tourist paths and then we became brave enough to go off the usual tracks and discover the hidden germs of the city. The places and monuments that you definitely need to visit whilst in here are:

  • The Vatican City-an independent country geographically located within the city boundaries of Rome, the only existing example of a country within a city: for this reason Rome has been often defined as capital of two states.
  • The Trevi Fountain.
  • St Peter’s Square.
  • Spanish Steps.
  • Colosseum.

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Rome is one of world’s most picturesque capitals and if you’ve never been here then you should definitely visit.

Hope you enjoyed reading this post!

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: Trieste, Italy

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Another week, another holiday destination review.

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This week, I would like to tell you about Trieste in Italy. I recently traveled there and even though the weather wasn’t great I enjoyed a walk around this pretty Italian town. It is a lovely destination for a day-trip

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Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is in one of the richest regions of Italy, and has been a great centre for shipping, through its port, shipbuilding and financial services. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of Italian territory lying between the Adriatic Sea and Slovenia and the city is physically isolated from the rest of the Italian peninsula. In addition, Croatian border is located closely (further 30 kilometers south).

We started our trip by visiting the tourist information office in Piazza dell’Unità d’Italia, where we equipped ourselves with some informative leaflets and maps. The whole tour around the main city attractions took us under 2 hours.

The main attractions we saw during our short walking tour were:

  • Piazza dell’Unità d’Italia -a large and elegant outdoors space opposite the waterfront, with some impressive buildings.
  • Castello di San Giusto – it is located on the hill so it is a great place to enjoy some nice views from a memorial garden outside the walls.
  • Roman theatre.
  • Castello Miramare – one of Trieste’s most vaunted sights, the a nineteenth-century castle.

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Pauline

Holiday destinations: Venice, Italy

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This week I would like to tell you about one of the most romantic destinations in the world-Venice. I love Italy and it is definitely one of the cities you need to visit at least once in your lifetime.

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Venice is located in northeastern Italy and is sited on a group of 117 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by bridges. Venice is known for its beautiful setting, architecture and artwork. Both the lagoon and a part of the city are listed as a World Heritage Site.

I’ve been to Venice 3 times. My latest visit to Venice was in June and summer brings some of the most daunting crowds… nevertheless there’s a reason why they come: you are never more than a bridge and an alley away from beautiful palaces, squares and monuments.

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Venice has a very lively neighborhood full of restaurants, wine bars and famous Italian gelaterias. I adore Italian food so I am always looking forward to trying some local food. Main squares (especially St. Marco Square) are quite pricey and you might end up paying 4-5 times more than in the other parts of Venice so I would always advice to check the menu and prices if you are on a tight budget. You need to be also aware of the ‘coperto’ charge-it is basically a fee for sitting down in the restaurants. We ended up paying 30 Euros for a bottle of water and a beer as we weren’t made aware of this fee…

Unquestionably, it is a great destination for a short break but you should go there for a minimum of 3 nights to see all the famous sites.

Time to start thinking, who would you take with you?

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Pauline