I think I've really underestimated how good for you a weekend away from the hustle & bustle of everyday life can be and you really don't have to travel far around the UK to find some absolutely beautiful locations for a night or two to make you feel like you've travelled further and had a proper break!

Luckily in the South of England where we live we're only a couple of hours away from some of the most beautiful stretches of beach the UK has to offer so at the weekend we booked an AirBnb, packed our bags, loaded up the bikes on the roof-rack and headed down to Weymouth for the night for a little adventure.

We arrived on Friday afternoon around 1pm and we were so lucky to have incredible weather for the whole duration of our mini-break, the sun was shining and we couldn't wait to offload the bikes and get going but first we checked into our AirBnB. We chose a lovely static caravan (for nostalgia's sake mainly, neither of us had stayed in one since we were children) and it was perfectly clean, had a large seating area with a big TV, two bedrooms & a shower-room/bathroom.

After we'd checked in we got straight on the bikes and began our ride into Weymouth town centre, the caravan park we stayed in was a little distance from the town, perhaps a 10 minute drive but cycling in took us about 40 minutes along the coastal path to avoid cycling down the main roads - we took a couple of wrong turns on the way but it was worth it for the sea views!

We got lunch from Fish n' Fritz which is #1 in the Weymouth area and it didn't disappoint - we sat and ate our battered sausage, chips, curry sauce (for Rob) and gravy (for me) on the beach before we hit up the arcade! After lunch we cycled back a shorter route through town and chilled for the evening as we wanted to be up early the next day to keep exploring!

On our second day we had quite a lot planned, we wanted to head over to Portland Island which is adjoined to Weymouth by a single bridge in and out, there's a lot to do on the island and we will definitely be making a return visit sometime soon to stay on the island.

We parked in Chesil beach car park which was popular but has a lot of spaces, we then cycled across the very windy bridge to Portland marina, we cycled along the promenade to our first destination; Portland Castle!

I'd made a note to visit the castle before we left for the trip so knew it was definitely a must-do for us as we love history and it's an English Heritage site so if you're already a member you're in luck! We're not so entry was £7.50 each for us.

Portland Castle was one of Henry VIII's gun forts & was then turned into a house later down the line so it has a LOT of interesting history, especially surrounding it's time as a defensive fort. The tour is very good with a free audio guide, lots of posters to read and interactive features as you make your way around. You can do the tour at your own pace & as we liked to stop and take in the sea views & the odd picture it probably took us around 45 mins-1 hour.

Note: if you're cycling around Portland like we did, there's nowhere near the Castle to safely lock up your bikes so we were allowed to keep them inside the Castle grounds just outside the reception window so they could keep an eye.

Next stop on our trip was the Castletown D-Day Centre, we only found out about this place from a poster we saw on the beach the day before but wow I'm so glad we discovered it!

Rob is a huge history buff with a particular interest in World Wars so we were really looking forward to going back in time for an hour or so and this attraction did not disappoint. Entry is £7 for adults with family and concession tickets available and it's worth every penny.

The D-Day centre is fully interactive which is incredibly cool, you can get in the majority of vehicles, hold guns, try on helmets and backpacks and there's plenty to read about as you go round. There's so much to see and do there and we really enjoyed our time there which you can see from the photos we took!

Note: Don't miss heading up to the German bunker on your way out for some more interactive displays and some Nazi memorabilia - it's a real step back in time!

We absolutely loved Weymouth and especially Portland Island and I'm already excited to head back there next spring/summer again to explore more of Portland Island!

Lauren xo

A Day Out At Warwick Castle

Whilst I was having a browse through my emails on Saturday morning, one from Wowcher popped up that caught my eye, 48% off Warwick Castle tickets - erm, don't mind if i do!

I haven't visited the castle for years! I went once as a child on the way back from Alton Towers to break up the journey down South and loved it, I'm a big history buff and have always particularly enjoyed the gruesome side of a medieval castle, those people were savage.

I snapped up two tickets and we headed up on Sunday. The vouchers from Wowcher were fantastic, instead of £30pp we paid just over £15pp which was a whopping discount and they were valid everyday from July until October 2019, including summer hols and weekends which is very rare for a discount ticket usually!

We arrived shortly after 11am and parking was a little way from the entrance, there is disabled parking much closer but the main overflow car park is around a 20 minute walk from entrance, fine for us as two adults but something to bear in mind if you have little ones in tow! The car park also costs £6, you can purchase a token at the entrance/exit or you can pay by card at the barrier.

Visting Mottisfont, Hampshire

So like the 90-year-old granny that I actually am on the inside, my mum and I became National Trust members a few weeks ago as we just bloody love to mooch round old stately homes, castles and gardens to soak up the history. We've already worked our way through 3 properties on their extensive list of properties to visit and I thought I'd share some snaps with you from Mottisfont, the location we visited today.

I've not shared any photos of inside the house as I wouldn't want to spoil it for anyone who's thinking of visiting anytime soon but there are some beautiful walled gardens and walkways to enjoy all over the property so I would really recommend making a trip there if you're down South.

Visiting Ilfracombe, Devon

So this post is little (read: three months, oops) overdue but it was such a beautiful break away I have been meaning to write this post for a while now so I can share some of our recommendations and tips with you incase you're heading down that way any time soon.

We booked our trip to Hele Bay, Ilfracombe after looking for somewhere to get away for New Years - because neither of us are huge NYE fans and we really just wanted to shut ourselves away somewhere for a few days, eat lots of nice food and go on nice walks. Devon was our first choice as it's around three hours drive from where we live (and a nice scenic drive at that, very little motorway driving involved) and we stayed at a Hoseason's location; Beach Cove Coastal Retreat.

Beach Cove Coastal Retreat consists of a small number of one-bedroom (so perfect for couples) beach-hut style accommodations which are all located right on the beach front. You can see them in their pretty pastel colours all along the wall in the picture below.

We arrived at night so had no idea just how close we were to the seafront. Unfortunately, the cabin we had been booked into seemed to be overrun by cluster flies (don't Google if you don't like creepy crawlies) which apparently were lured in by the abnormally mild winter we'd had here and also they love the water so there wasn't much they could do in terms of keeping them away. The staff at Beach Cove were super helpful though and came in and got rid of as many flies as they could but as soon as one disappeared another three buzzed in from somewhere else. 

Luckily, we ended up being relocated to another property on the site which didn't have any flies whatsoever so we were able to finally settle in for the night. Waking up the next morning was incredible, we'd not seen the view but we could hear the crashing waves as we slept so we knew we were close. I enjoyed my favourite breakfast of avocado toast and a cuppa whilst enjoying all the dog walkers taking their fluffs for a stroll along the sand early in the morning. 

It's a very quite part of Devon, with only a handful of attractions in the area (one being Exmoor Zoo which we loved and would 100% recommend if you're in the area) so if you like a lot to do this might not be the place for you. We decided to hike up the large hill next to the retreat into the small fishing town of Ilfracombe which was a stunning cliff top walk with amazing views over the retreat where we stayed. At that time of year my fitness levels are at their lowest and I did struggle a little (it was mortifying, there were elderly people walking their dogs who were overtaking me...) with the steeper parts of the hill but it was well worth it for the view at the top over the town/bay.

We ended up eating in Ilfracombe on New Years Eve at a restaurant that I'd booked way back in August (as it was tiny and I imagined it would get booked up so quickly). I was right, it was full from 7pm and that's because the food was insanely good. Seventy One is a family run restaurant and hands down the three courses I had there were probably three of the best I've ever had anywhere. If you visit Ilfracombe then you simply must check it out for dinner.

The bay is a great area to walk around too, we didn't know before we visited but it's actually where the artist Damien Hurst is from and there's a huge statue he commissioned which is located on the fishing pier, probably not the sort of thing you'd imagine in a quiet Devon town but definitely worth a look at. He also has a restaurant on the seafront too I believe so if you're a fan that's worth checking out. As we were out of season a lot of the attractions such as the aquarium and a lot of the shops were all shut for the winter but I can imagine in the peak of summer it's a lovely place to visit.

On our way home we passed Stonehenge so spent our New Years Day there which was interesting. It was busy even on New Years Day and there were a lot of tourists so I think it's safe to say whenever you visit expect it to be crowded. There's a bus which runs up to the site itself but we chose to walk up to the stones which is well sign-posted from the visitor centre.

I hope you've enjoyed this post about our visit to Devon - if you have any questions then feel free to comment below and let me know if you're planning to visit anytime soon too!

24 HOURS IN PARIS

If you were reading my blog just over a year ago you'd remember that I travelled to Paris with my best friend for a girly weekend away in the city. I also mentioned in my post that unfortunately we happened to be in the centre of Paris on the night of the awful terror attacks on the Bataclan theatre, the Stade de France and nearby cafe's and restaurants.

Despite it being a rather tense, worrying day/night holed up in our hotel room watching everything unfold on the telly and then having to leave first thing the next day, Paris was one of the most beautiful places I'd visited and still remains top of my list of cities to visit (again) and I wanted to share with you the things I would love to see and do this time round if I was given just 24 hours in the city of luurrve,

NOTRE DAME

This was top of my list of things to see when in Paris, even above the good old Eiffel Tower and the main reason I want to visit is yep, you guessed it, the Disney movie. We crossed a bridge on our first day in the city last year  - the old padlock bridge to be precise - when we were just exploring, making a list of things to do during the weekend and I saw Notre Dame towering over the Paris skyline and just felt so excited and giddy. I'm all about that gothic architecture and seeing the Gargoyles in real life is definitely on my bucket list, even if they don't sing or dance much to my disappointment.

THE CATACOMBS

I'm a sucker when it comes to all thing eerie and creepy and I don't think it can get much creepier than ancient tunnels which run underneath the streets of Paris and holds the remains of more than six million people, can it? The endless rumours of weird goings on and ghostly sightings down in the tunnels makes it one of the most interesting and fascinating locations on my Paris to-do list.

THE LOUVRE

This was another spot that we wandered along to and mentally added it to our sightseeing list in Paris. I've never been a massive art gallery fan despite having a love for all things design, weird I know, but the Louvre is just a must-see mainly due to a few of these classics: Mona Lisa, Liberty Leading the People and Nymph and Satyr just to name a few. I also don't know if you've seen Passport to Paris with Mary-Kate and Ashley but that's also another reason for wanting to see a gallery.

FOOD

Of course, there's only 24 hours in the day and along with wanting to see classics such as the Eiffel Tower and my faves above there's only one other thing to do on a city break and that is to eat and drink until you can't eat or drink any more. One of my favourite things about the city was the amount of quiet, narrow alleyways which contained some of the cutest looking cafe's and restaurants. I'd make it my mission next time round to stop at multiple for a different course, finishing up with a Nutella crepe of course because I am one classy mademoiselle. 

Which city would you love to visit if you had only 24 hours?!

WHAT'S IN MY TRAVEL BAG?

At 4am on Thursday morning I'll be waking up, drinking lots of tea and getting ready to head off to St Pancras Station where I'll jump on the Eurostar with one of my best friends to spend four days in the city of Paris! I am hugely excited about going back to the City of Lights, I haven't visited since I was a child so I'm really looking forward to experiencing all the city has to offer including food, shopping, Disneyland, sight-seeing, more food and more shopping.

Along with the standard things I'll be packing for this trip like everyday make-up and toiletries etc there were also a few extra special things I'm throwing into my travel bag for this trip and I wanted to share them with you.

First is my beloved Lush Tea Tree Water spray. I can't go a morning or evening without using this product now as it just makes me skin feel so clean and fresh. I wrote a whole post dedicated to this awesome product which was basically just me going on about all the incredible things this product can do so if you want to know more then click here.

My trusty Bourjois Paris 123 Perfect CC Cream will also be joining me for the trip. Choosing one foundation is tricky when you're only away for a few days but this product is one of my absolute favourites because it's lightweight enough for the daytime and I can also add a little more for a fuller coverage in the evenings when we go for dinner and drinks. This CC cream also targets tired looking skin, redness and dark spots so after a 4am start on Thursday I'm gonna be needing as much anti-fatique as I can get!

I'm a sucker for a book to read when I'm away even though I don't think I'm going to have much time to relax and read, I will need something to distract me during the 2 hour Eurostar train journey from London to Paris. At the moment I'm hooked on Joe Sugg's graphic novel Username: Evie. Not only is it apt because the best friend I'm going to Paris with is called Evie but it also happens to be a bloomin' good read which I really recommend even if you've never bought a graphic novel before!

If you can't wear fancy, brightly coloured lipsticks in Paris then when can you? This was my thinking behind packing these gorgeous two shades from MAC; Candy Yum Yum and Vegas Volt. Both are bright, daring shades that I'm very excited to wear as I usually stick to much more muted, nude shades such as Pure Zen or Honey Love.

Finally, I'll be packing Zoella's light and lovely Let's Spritz body mist. Although recently I've discovered a real love for perfumes thanks to Vera Wang's Lovestruck, I've only ever really been a body-mist kinda gal after falling in love with the Victoria Secret and Hollister sprays. I like how light and fresh they are without smelling too musky and this one of Zoella's does the trick perfectly.

Visit Mallorca

I recently travelled to the Spanish island of Mallorca for a week-long vacay with one of my best friends.

As we've gotten older the choices of holiday activities has drastically changed, with partying coming way down the list this time round and exploring was our priority!

The island is beautiful, tiny but beautiful. It only takes about 2 and a half hours to travel the widest distance across the island so exploring is super easy. We wanted to see more of the besutiful landscapes that the island has to offer, here are my must-visit places around the island of Mallorca.