A Fairy Tale of camping in mid-Wales

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There was once a princess who lived in Bristol with her travelling mother and father and her stay-at-home brothers, who longed for adventure with her friends. Because she was dearly beloved (although she never kept her room tidy) her parents granted her heart’s desire to go camping with her fellow princesses, and waved a magic wand to make it so.

And so it was that the ten princesses set off in the palace mini-van, driven by the king (the chauffeur was on holiday) and arrived at their fairy dell in the kingdom of Welsh Wales. They found a friendly miller and his wife who had an old water mill with a bunk house and an orchard that was perfect for camping. Here it seemed the perfect place to experience the joys of Welsh camping (damp grass, fresh air and camp fires). They took with them provisions for the finest spaghetti bolognaise, tinned tomato soup and bacon and eggs (for everyone knows that you must have bacon and eggs for breakfast when camping).

The king and queen watched over them as they frollicked in the river and chatted around the campfire about things that interest princesses. Soon the next day dawned and the real adventures began. They found a leafy glade and tiptoed barefoot and bikini-clad through the ferns and the beech leaves that surrounded the mill. There in seclusion they bathed in the river, even jumping bravely into an icy plunge pool to prove their daring. No frog princes were seen, kissed, or even thought of, for these were independent minded young princesses.

Then shivering deliciously, they made their way back to warm up with cups of tomato soup and hot showers.

In the afternoon, when they’d had their fill of leafy glades, they visited the nearby town of Hay-on-Wye where people came from far and wide to buy and sell books. There was even a festival held there once a year, where bards and prophets, such as Bill Clinton and Desmond Tutu could be heard to utter wise words. They sought out yet another bathing spot nearby in the river where canoists drifted past and spent an afternoon relaxing and sunbathing. Naturally they kept their sunglasses on at all times, in order to remain incognito. During the evening they toasted marshmellows over the camp fire and sang songs of friendship.

All too soon the adventure was over and they returned to their kingdom of Bristol to resume their princessly duties, vowing that their little adventure was not one that would show up in any paparazzi book of fairy tales, although they might graciously give permission for it to appear on some obscure little blog.

If you would like to take your princesses (or princes) on a camping adventure in mid-Wales, we can highly recommend Trericket Mill, where Alistair and Nicky Legge will offer you a warm welcome for B & B, Bunkhouse or Camping Accomodation, and vegetarian home cooking.

Trericket Mill, Erwood, Builth Wells, Powys, Mid Wales, LD2 3TQ
Tel 01982 560312
Website http://www.trericket.co.uk/

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Budget boutique bliss at Circus Hotel in Berlin

Circus Hotel where we stayed in Berlin was a real find for me and I’d recommend it to anyone. It’s full of contemporary charm, with warm and friendly staff, plenty of personal little touches and best of all it won’t break the bank.

I was looking for an apartment within a hostel or hotel for the five of us and contacted the sister Circus Hostel just across the road, but as their apartment was already booked they referred me to the newly opened Circus Hotel. In the end I booked a 4 person apartment for the teen princesses and a twin room for myself and second mum, Wendy.

After an easy train journey direct from Schonefeld airport, we took 45 minutes to arrive at the hotel, following the directions on their website. It’s situated on the busy intersection of Rosenthalerplatz and first sight is of the takeaway bar on the ground floor, but just around the corner is the hotel entrance and fabulous Fabish restaurant. We were warmly greeted by one of the staff who walked us through the internal courtyard to our rooms, explaining that the hotel had originally been a group of shops and warehouses before it was renovated to make the hotel which opened in October 2008.

The teen princesses couldn’t believe their luck with their apartment - with well equiped kitchen (for making hot chocolate with marshmallows of course) with i-pod home to create the musical ambiance. Then there were two well-sized bedrooms which they quickly converted to a sleep-over den and not one but two stylish shower rooms between the three of them. The decor was upmarket Ikea with some quirky pictures and accessories to give it a slightly kitch feel. Best of all the mums were banished to the other side of the interior courtyard with no-one to nag them to turn off the lights and stop talking.

Our room was a little more sophisticated in neutral shades of taupe and marine blue with accents of turquoise, leather and bamboo furniture and some slightly strange but not displeasing picures with a Polish Olympic theme. The room was on the small side and if I went again, I might ask if they had one overlooking the courtyard rather than the street, but the double glazing kept the street-noise to a minimum. Anyhow, there’s something atmospheric about hearing a tram rattle beneath your window in the morning. 

The shower room was the same modern neutral style with a walk-in shower big enough for two and large, powerful shower jet. The hotel operates an eco-friendly policy of not putting toiletries in the room, but a selection of Weleda miniatures is freely available on reception as you need them, and very nice they were too. There was also a handy safe in the room which was big enough for a laptop and if you’re having withdrawal syptoms at the lack of a minibar, then stock up on miniatures of local liqueurs at the shop across the road.

The first night we were too tired to explore the surrounding area so we ate in the Fabisch restaurant which serves German favourites with a modern twist, sourcing ingredients as locally as possible. Wendy and I both had the 2 course daily special for €11 which was a delicious stuffed chicken leg followed by Tiramasu, washed down by the local wheat beer.

The breakfasts were also delicious with either the ‘Berlin’ platter of cold meats and cheeses with crusty brown bread, croissants with jam, or the ‘Vitality’ breakfast of fruit salad, yoghurt and meusli. I tried a different one each day and enjoyed them all. Only one morning when the hotel was full did we have to remind the staff several times before our coffee arrived. The restaurant had a relaxed feel, with a colourful bar where we could have sat and sipped Mojito cocktails all night had we not been slumped in the squashy leather chairs after a hard day’s sightseeing.

What particularly impressed me were the little personal touches that the hotel had thought of to enhance our visit to Berlin such as the DVDs of Berlin films you could borrow, the i-pods charged with Berlin music or the yoga equipment to borow. The staff were all particularly charming and falling over themselves to give help and recommendations in flawless English.

I was puzzled by the fact that I rarely saw the same face twice, and when I quizzed them I found out that many are students, who were selected for their customer care skills and informal but professional attitude. I found them all so helpful that the little devil in me was tempted to test their patience by asking several of them in turn for restaurant recommendations in the area, and they all came up with plenty of excellent suggestions. The hotel has Wifi throughout, although unfortunately their whole internet connection went down while I was there, so I had to sit in the restaurant using the Wifi of the cafe across the road.

If you can get an apartment, I thoroughly recommend them as excellent value - they have two for four people and two for two people. The price of the 4 person apartment at €160 was cheaper than the price of two double rooms which cost from €88, and with the extra living space. If you’re travelling alone on a tight budget then they also have cheaper single rooms, but if you’re not in the not really in the market for hotel prices, then I’d go to the sister Circus Hostel across the road where they also have apartments and en suite rooms as well as dorms.

After three nights in Berlin I felt that we’d hardly scratched the surface of things to see and do and If I return some time in the future, you can be sure that I’ll be checking into the Circus Hotel again. I left feeling that I’d come from the cosy home of a most stylish new best friend who’d welcome me back warmly any time.

Circus Hotel, Rosenthaler Strasse 1, 10119,  Berlin

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Camping in sunshine and showers - on the Gower in Wales

After the wet weekend camping in Cornwall last August, when our tent practically blew away and we had to decamp to a friend’s holiday cottage, I’d vowed my camping days were over. Nevertheless, when my sister in law suggested a camping weekend together in South Wales, on the beautiful Gower peninsula, I took the optimistic view. In my imagination I was already basking in the sunshine with a view across the fields to the sea, nibbling on strawberries with a bottle of white wine chilling in the cool box.

The realist in me remembered to pack the cosiest sleeping bags, fleeces, wellies and waterproofs although my husband managed to leave my down pillow behind. We set off from Bristol in sunshine but by the time we passed Swansea 2 hrs later the rain was pitter pattering on the car windscreen and on arrival at the campsite we had to rush to put the tent up before the rain really set in.

The Saturday dawned a little brighter and after the morning ritual of shower, mug of tea and bacon and egg rolls with lashings of ketchup, I set off across the fields with by husband to search out the nearest beach. We followed the footpath signs, climbed several stiles, said good morning to a herd of grey and white cows and scrambled down to a rocky cove, which had once been an area for stone quarrying. I pictured smugglers landing here in secret but it was not really suitable for the sunbathing and surfing we had in mind.

Instead we drove 5 minutes up the road to Rhossili, owned by the National Trust, with a wide sweep of sand stretching into the distance in one direction and the rocky peninsula of Worm’s head in the other. After a steep climb down the path, laden with all our beach gear, we settled ourselves down for a few hours of relaxation, playing rounders and body boarding for those with wetsuits. Luckily the sun shone but the wind was deceptively cooling and later I discovered a few red patches of sunburn. The beach was so big that it never felt crowded and we found out later that many people are put off by the long walk down to the beach - all the more room for us, I thought.

By early afternoon we were feeling a little hungry so we settled ourselves on the terrace of The Bay cafe, with a great view over the beach, and ordered some big bowls of chips, baked potatoes and paninis. It was all very pleasant, so we returned for dinner there the next evening - unlike Cornwall there didn’t seem to be so many stylish places around to eat, but this was a cut above the rest. Otherwise we relied on the portable gas barbie to cook up bacon for breakfast and steaks and sausages for supper - all typical camping food.

The next day we decided to give Port Eynon beach a try, 10 minutes in the other direction, as I was keen to check out the Youth Hostel there in an old lifeboat station, thinking of possible alternatives to camping for a weekend break. The village was surrounded by several caravan parks and the beach had many rock pools which were exposed at low tide. The concensus was that it was not as nice as Rhossili, but we spent a couple of hours there sheltered in front of the sand dunes. I followed to path up on to the cliffs, through the yellow gorse to take in the stunning views over to the next bay.

On the way back, we decided to check out another nearby beach at Mewslade which had been recommended. When we parked in the nearby field it didn’t seem very promising, but we walked down a small valley with a nature reserve, scrambled over the rocks and arrived at a fabulous beach with wide sandy stretches at low tide, rockpools and steep cliffs around. This could have been a happy place to spend an afternoon, but already the rain was setting in, so we decided to return to the campsite.

Although we were due to return to Bristol the next morning, we decided that we’d pack up before dark and drive back to Bristol that evening, drawn on by the promise of a warm house and our own comfortable beds, rather than a lilo and sleeping bag. Camping in Wales and Cornwall is popular for families on a budget, but you have to be prepared for the changeable English summer and pray that you’ll enjoy some sunshine in between the showers.

If you fancy a camping break yourself, we stayed at Pitton Cross Campsite near Rhossili. The other recommended campsite which was sadly full when we tried to book is the one at Three Cliffs Bay, regularly picked as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

You can also read more about what’s going on on the Gower peninsula on the blog at Welcome to Gower.

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