There are many wonderful areas in New Zealand to explore. The following regions are my favourite spots in New Zealand. North Island Northland We have spent many wonderful holidays up in the North. The North has so much to do and see. It has magnificent beaches, islands, forests, inlets, walks and cycling. Mathesons Bay only…

We had a few days in Sicily back in 1992. What a wonderful place! The history, architecture, culture, coastline, small villages, Mt Etna and the countryside were fantastic. We visited over Easter and were reminded of the significance of Easter. Beachside apartment looking up to Taormina Magnificent architecture in Catania We always love to hire…

Helle and I visited parts of China in June 1989. It was just a couple of weeks after the Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. Foreigners were advised not to enter China and foreign students and tourists had left. However it was a fantastic time to go as the iconic sites of Beijing were empty. Main…

Midnight Express was one of my favourite movies. Set in Turkey in the 1970s it portrayed Turkish prisons as being violent and brutal – the movie is a based on a true story of a young American who lands in prison after smuggling hashish out of Turkey. So I knew nothing about Turkey when I…

Samoa was our best family holiday. We hired a car and toured around the coast of Upolo and Savaii- the two main islands. We stayed in about 8 different places in 2 weeks. The islands aren’t big so we only travelled an hour or so to get to our next slice of paradise. Only a…

We had a wonderful week in Nuie – post covid. It is a glorious Island in the Pacific. If you want to get away from it all, away from people and tourists, snorkel and swim in crystal blue water and explore caverns and caves then go to Nuie. Its tropical, warm and deserted. If you…

What a great place to visit. Cheap, warm, lovely people, great beaches, interesting history, top cuisine, different culture. We had a wonderful 3 weeks pre covid visiting the South, middle and North. It is a long skinny country so suggest you splash out and fly the long distances! Places we visited in Vietnam Beer is…

We had nearly 4 weeks in Sri Lanka over Christmas. We loved our trip. Sri Lanka is a wonderful mix of history, forts from the 16th century, archeological sites, beaches, wild life parks, hill country tea plantations and gastronomical delights. Map of some of the places we visited in Sri Lanka We travelled in style…

We only spent a couple of weeks in Cambodia. We will definitely go back. We loved the small taste of this wonderful country. Map of places we visited in Cambodia The food and of course beer is fantastic. We arrived by boat from Vietnam up the Mekong River and into Phnom Penh. We highly recommend…

If you are looking for a more authentic South East Asian country to visit, with less tourism, then look no further than Laos. We loved our 4 weeks in Laos. We started in Luang Prabang and went all the way South to the Cambodian border. What a gem of a place! Map of some key…