Top 3 Brunch Spots in Barcelona

So you're looking for some delicious food spots to hit up when you go to Barcelona? Well when I say Barcelona has some incredible food, I mean it. Supposedly Barcelona is not as a "brunch" place, but I beg to differ, as we found so many places serving incredible brunch dishes. Here are my top three brunch recommendations that you must visit.

#ad A Budget Stay in Kensington | Point A Hotels

A budget stay in Kensington?! I know, I hear you, I didn't think such a thing existed either, but Point A Hotels have well and truly proved me wrong.

Last weekend, they kindly gifted me a stay at their Kensington hotel and I was honestly so impressed. I am not a hotel snob, normally me and Andy stay at a Travelodge or a Premier Inn, so trying out another budget hotel chain was right up my street. 

We book hotels in London probably four times a year, not living together has many disadvantages so it is nice to actually get to spend some quality time together once in a while. London is always a good middle ground for both of us, with Andy living in Essex and me living in Surrey, but both of us commuting into London for work. 

5 Days in Dubrovnik

As a big Game of Thrones fan Dubrovnik was very high on my list of places to go, mainly so I could recreate Cersei's walk of shame *just kidding - or am I...?*.  It definitely lived up to my expectations, so I thought I would put together a little Dubrovnik guide for those of you who are maybe thinking of heading there yourselves.

My Trip To: Budapest

What can I say about Budapest....? It was very different to what I expected I'll tell you that. 

We stayed in Budapest for 4 nights, and in terms of travel, we flew from London Stansted with Ryanair pretty early in the morning. I'd never flown with Ryanair before, and as a pretty anxious flier I was petrified, but surprisingly the flight there was one of the best I have ever had. The flights, return, only cost £129.30 for two of us, not including baggage.

Our hotel was absolutely gorgeous, and the only fault I had with it was the wifi being a bit dodgy, but I had intended for this to be a relaxing break anyway so I guess it was a blessing in disguise. We had breakfast every morning which was a buffet style, and we were given a free hot drink of choice, naturally I went for a soy latte. The breakfast buffet was so unique, with foods such as Chia Pudding, Homemade Granola and Smoked Salmon on offer, as well as the usual cooked eggs and bacon etc. The interiors of the hotel were what attracted me initially, and I can honestly say in person they were just as impressive. I would highly recommend staying at the Hotel Rum Budapest if you want to grab a couple cheeky instagrams!

On our first day we walked along the Danube just to get an idea of our surroundings, and on our way home stumbled across our first restaurant, Good Bar Good Burger, one I would highly recommend to any of you going. It's just a general burger restaurant, a bit like GBK, but the staff were insanely friendly and the cocktails were amazing, and cheap! Day two was a bit more action packed, with us hitting the famous Citadel, a fortress at the top of Gellért Hill. The view over the city was amazing, and well worth the massive uphill climb. For some reason we wanted to do a bit more walking and went to investigate Budapest Palace, which was stunning. We only saw the outside as the inside was closed on the day we went, but I got some lovely photos and it looks even more beautiful up close. We discovered a local italian for dinner called Perfetto, which served homemade pasta, I highly recommend the Pesto Pasta if anyone goes. 

The Szechenyi Thermal Baths did not disappoint either, even offering an old school gym, which was handy as we were feeling extremely lazy. The baths were really relaxing, and although some of them were a bit stinky, and it was 4 degrees outside, the two thermal baths outside made the trip worth it. This was probably the highlight of the trip for me and I highly recommend going. On a less positive note, I wouldn't bother going to Margaret Island unless you are going in the Spring/Summer, it was just a shabby park, but we did see the Shoes along the Danube memorial on the walk there.

Fisherman's Bastion is something I would definitely go to see if you are in Budapest. Another place for amazing views, and we climbed up at sunset and it was stunning. As well as this, St Stephen's Basilica is a must see for those of you who appreciate amazing architecture and beautiful stained glass windows. On our last night we decided to treat ourselves to a more upmarket dinner at a Lebanese restaurant called Baalbek, where we shared a mixed grill. Compared to what you would pay in England, this was great value for money, and made us feel a little less stodgy after all the carbs we'd eaten. How could I almost forget to mention The Donut Library?! It was possibly my favourite thing about Budapest, is that bad...? I'll leave the pictures to explain, but the donuts were incredibly cheap, and better than any Krispy Kreme I've ever had.

Overall, I'd say it's not the sort of city I feel that I need to return to, unlike Paris, but nonetheless it is an absolutely stunning city, especially in terms of its architecture and old fashioned trams. I would highly recommend going at some point, especially if you love a drink or two!

Places I Want To Visit By The End of 2017

I always find that if I write things in a blog post I am ten times more likely to do them, and that's why I am sharing with you guys 5 places I really want to visit by the end of 2017. (Here's to saving up more money than I could ever earn in a year...)
1) Budapest Almost all of my Uni friends have been to Budapest and have said how beautiful and how cheap it is. I'm keen to visit the thermal baths and also see the castle at night as it looks stunning. If anyone has any blog posts on their trip to Budapest please link me up, inspiration would be lovely so I can plan how much money I need to save.
2) Amsterdam Amsterdam is just somewhere you need to visit once in your life, and I think going when I'm 21 is the perfect time. I genuinely am interested in going to Anne Frank's house, and there's something about strolling along the canal in Spring that is really appealing to me. I'm not a massive cyclist, but I think Amsterdam would, be a perfect place to explore by bike, and this is something I am super keen to do. 
3) New York I've always wanted to live in New York, I think it's from the Ugly Betty days...it just looked like such a fun place to live - a better version of London if you will. I refuse to go to New York when I have no money so perhaps I'll have to save this trip for when I've finished my studies. 
4) Disneyland Paris Can we all appreciate that my first email address was "disneylover_daena", and I have never been to Disneyland?! Madness. I'm not a fan of rides, but I just want to go to meet the characters and I just think the whole experience will be magical so I'm determined to go for my 21st. If anyone has any recommendations or tips on how to make the trip slightly cheaper please holla at me because it's looking like £300 for three nights which kills me a little inside...
5) Edinburgh For somewhere a little closer to home I really want to visit Edinburgh. It's just one of those cities that really appeals to me, from the shops to the scenery and the history, I just want to see it all. It's surprisingly expensive though so I think this trip will have to be pushed behind Disney.
Where would you love to visit?! Let me know in the comments! 

Planning a European City Break

Having just come back from one of my favourite European Cities for New Years, I thought it would be a good idea to write a post sharing my top tips for planning a city break. I find that planning City Breaks is fairly stressful, as unlike a beach holiday you sort of need to plan stuff to do whilst you are there. 

1) Find your best accommodation options When planning Paris, initially I was hit with the dreaded thought of having to find a cheap hotel which was still pleasant enough for sleeping in, and within a good location (trust me, after much searching, no such thing really exists in Paris!). With City Breaks I personally believe that AirBnB is the best way to go. It's a website where people put their apartments or spare rooms etc up for rent. This is what we used when in Paris, and it honestly worked out better. We had a fully equipped studio with free wifi and a kitchen to cook, which meant we saved a heck of a lot on food! If you are on a budget then I highly recommend using AirBnB, it also makes you feel much more like a local when you arrive in the city! 2) Write a list of places you want to visit No one wants a rigid itinerary written precisely down to the hour, however knowing where you want to go each day can be really helpful. I bought a cheap notebook and wrote down all the places in Paris which we wanted to visit. That way we could research exactly which Metro was nearest the attraction, and could also find out the quietest times to visit. It also meant we didn't wake up in the morning stuck on what to do that day. 3) Check out nearby supermarkets etc If you are planning to stay in a hotel then this doesn't really apply, however if you are staying in rented accommodation such as an AirBnB it is a good idea to research where the nearest supermarket is. Some supermarkets are much better priced than others for example in Paris, however we didn't find this out until we were there ourselves, and I sort of wish we had researched this beforehand. If you are in a hotel then it is also a good idea to research nearby restaurants, this way you can read reviews and hit up TripAdvisor before paying out for a meal that really wasn't worth it. 

4) Get to grips with the transport system Getting a taxi everywhere is not an economically friendly decision, and transport systems in other European countries seem to be far cheaper than England. The Metro for example in Paris was super cheap, with a one way ticket to anywhere costing €1.80, and a bundle of 10 tickets costing around €14. Being able to understand the transport system will save a lot of confusion when you are trying to get somewhere. 
5) Book tickets in advance for attractions This is yet another mistake we made when going to Paris, we did not book any tickets in advance, luckily in our case it did not set us back by much, but some attractions charge a lot more on the day. Not only the cost, but booking attractions in advance will save you queueing for ages at ticket kiosks too. Be aware that the most popular attractions do require you to book around a month in advance.

I hope my tips have been helpful, let me know where you are off to this year!

A Long Weekend in Newquay

A couple of weekends ago the boyfriend and I packed our bags and headed down to Newquay for three nights with our Sun Holidays Caravan. I in particular was very sceptical about whether or not this would be a good holiday, as I have never stayed in a caravan and for £90 for three nights, you don't really expect luxury, however I was particularly impressed. The caravan was stocked up with all our kitchen requirements and had a working fire and electricity (I guess that's what modern caravans are like, but definitely not what I expected!). 

We stayed at Newquay View Resort, which was a fairly quiet resort considering the location being in Newquay, which seems to attract the younger visitors. There was a pool on site as well as a handful of options for food and drink. We didn't really explore the food and drink as we were out most of the time and decided to cook every night. Unfortunately the campsite wasn't within a walking distance from town, so we did have to drive in. Luckily we were located very closely to Watergate Bay, which was by far our favourite beach out of all the ones we visited over the four days.

We also visited the extremely popular Fistral Beach, which was pretty quiet considering the time of year and the fact that the waves were decent that day. As one of the best surfing beaches in the UK we were very surprised, but weren't complaining as it meant we got a top table at the beach bar. I really recommend heading to the beach bar at Fistral, especially when the weather is nice, as it is such a brilliant atmosphere.

Padstow was also another town we visited, and it is one I have visited many times before as a young child, and have tonnes of fond memories there. It seems to have got much busier since I last visited, and it was slightly unpleasant to see such a quaint town so heaving. Nonetheless we had a lovely day, visiting the beach and doing cliff walks. I also picked up some fudge from a lovely little sweet shop (who could go to Cornwall and not pick up any fudge?!), and we had some pasties on the harbour front from Pasty Presto which were lovely. 

The food options in Newquay town itself were so vast, with everything you could imagine available, plenty of pasty shops and bakeries serving Cream Teas. We found a lovely little bakery called Paulines Creamery, which did a huge selection of cakes (I highly recommend the Peanut Brittle Cake), and a delicious Cream Tea. Needless to say, don't go to Newquay if you're on a diet!

I cannot recommend using the Sun Holidays more, as the process was so easy and everything was super cheap. Next year I might look into the caravans abroad, as they are a very good deal also.

Have you ever been to Cornwall? Where did you visit?

A Wanderluster's Must-Have

As someone who dreams of travelling the world someday, I had been lusting over this book for quite some time, but never quite got round to buying it until I was in Waterstones looking for a good holiday read. 

Travel Listography is basically a book where you can write all the places in the world that you want to visit, and each page is a different 'place' or 'thing'. For example, you have a different page for each of the continents, a different page for beaches you want to visit, and another for landmarks etc. I haven't quite finished writing in all the places I want to go yet, however the United States page is pretty much filled up already, since that is the place I am most desperate to travel. Once you have visited a place you can tick it off (I love nothing more than a good old fashioned Check List!). 

I love how organised this book is, if you are someone who really wants to travel I cannot recommend this enough, as it is a great way to keep track of places you have been, and plan future trips. There's even a page where you can write all the things you pack on a holiday so you won't be forgetting anything on your next trip!

The RRP is £13.00, however I believe it is on sale on the Waterstones website at the moment so it is worth grabbing quickly to save a couple extra pounds.

Have any of you got the Travel Listography book? What do you think of it?

5 Things To Do Before Your Holiday

I'm off on holiday soon, in 12 days to be precise, and I cannot wait! Obviously, with going away comes a lot of planning and things which you must do, so I thought I would share with you my top 5 essential things to do before you depart (aside from the obvious things!).

1) Make a Playlist - There's nothing like listening to good tunes on the beach and falling asleep in the warmth of the sun. I love making a new playlist every time I go on holiday because music makes amazing memories. I always find that I hear songs that were on my playlist when I come back home, and I am immediately taken back to that week of lying on the beach doing nothing.
2) Exfoliate - now I am not saying just the day before exfoliate your arms and legs, but exfoliate your whole body a few times before you go away. This will prepare the skin and ensure that you get the best and most long lasting tan that you can. Exfoliating gets rid of all the dead skin on the surface of your body, so you will be feeling super soft and smooth before you jet off!
3) Buy A New Perfume - This is perhaps something that is best to do at Duty Free, atleast this is where I would normally do it as it's cheaper. But perfume also works great at helping you to remember memories. I love spraying perfume when I am at home and immediately thinking back to the holiday I took that perfume on. Its just a great way to store your memories as such.
4) Get a Pedicure - A manicure not so much, as this is something you can easily do yourself. I think that there is nothing more important than having smooth and well presented feet when you are on holiday, It might sound a little strange, but who wants to be staring at someone's crusty feet hanging off the end of a lounger....? No one. 
5) Ensure you have something to take photos on - Again this might sound a little bit silly, but the amount of times I have gone on holiday and wanted to take a nice photo and my phone has said "Memory Full". Its the most annoying thing. Make sure that you have cleared your phone so you have enough space to capture your memories. If you're using a camera then make sure you have charged it (again sounds silly, but something I normally forget), and ensure you have enough space on your memory card!
What do you always do before you go away?

A Foodie Break in Brighton

I go to Brighton all year round but there's just something so lovely about it during the Summer, aside from the mass of people. Recently I stayed for three days with the boyfriend in the Travelodge along the seafront. Although Travelodges are known for being absolutely rubbish, this one was quite alright for the price we paid and for the location which was literally a two minute walk one way into town and two minutes the other to the sea. We ate an awful lot of food on the trip, so thought I would write about the lovely three restaurants I visited.

On our first night we were a bit stuck on where to go as we both agreed that Brighton has so much to offer, we didn't want to end up in the usual chain restaurant. This meant a lot of walking was involved to find somewhere suitable that was independently run. We stumbled accross Al Duomo near the Pavillion, which is a lovely bar and restaurant which offers a special set menu with two courses for £9.95 or three for £12.75. I had Garlic Bread with Cheese for starter and a tomato and garlic pasta for my main which was the perfect portion size. The service was brilliant considering the restaurant was quite busy and the food was lovely. Somewhere I would highly recommend if you are on a tighter budget but want good food. 

On my second afternoon in Brighton I met up with my University friend who lives locally and went for lunch. Unsurprisingly I ended up with pasta again. This time the pasta was from a small Italian down the lanes called Si Signore which I regularly visit with my family when we are in Brighton. The owner is super friendly and always provides good customer service. At lunch times the restaurant offers a deal which is any Pizza or Pasta for £4.95, which for the portion size is such a bargain. I went for my usual Penne Alla Pesto, which I would highly recommend to any pasta lover. Si Signore offers such a friendly atmosphere and I think it's a truly underrated establishment. 

I AM Balanced Juice, Massamam Rickshaw Curry, Geisha Creme Brulee

On our last night we paid a visit to a restaurant I had also been to before called Rickshaw Oriental which is a Vietnamese restaurant. I remember the first time I visited I was amazed by the toilets and their design, it was Garden Inspired, not that that's the thing you look for in a good restaurant but hey ho. None-the-less I had another amazing dinner accompanied with a fresh detox juice which contained Pineapple, Pear and Ginger. All their food is cooked in Coconut Oil which I was very impressed by, as this is something I cook with at home and have never heard of a restaurant using before. A very good restaurant for those who love good food but are a bit more health conscious.

After all this food I was in deep need of a detox the next few days, the bloating was unreal!

What are your favourite independent restaurants?