A round-up of Heather on her Travels around the web

I try to do a regular round-up of places my articles have been published around the web, but I must confess that my concentration has lapsed a bit recently - I guess I’ve been so busy doing the writing that I just didn’t quite get round to telling you about them all. Shame on me! So here’s a rather longer than usual round-up of where else you can find Heather on her Travels in November through to February.

Hotel Reviews

If you got the feeling that I was staying in some fabulous hotels recently - the type of places that I’d normally only aspire to before booking something more budget friendly for the family, then you’d be right.

I was invited to do a hotel review of the luxury boutique hotel Heritage Av Liberdade in Lisbon, a mixture of Modern-luxe design and Heritage - read my review of Heritage Av Liberdade for Mr and Mrs Smith Hotels here and my guest post on Platefuls of Portugal: Lisbon’s tasty treats here.

I also took my teenage daughter for a night at the gorgeous Mandarin Oriental, Hyde Park in London where we were treated like princesses and enjoyed every minute of living in luxury - read my review for Kiwi Collection of the Mandarin Oriental, Hyde Park here.

Blog Mentions

I was thrilled in January to find that Lastminute.com mentioned me as one of their top 50 blogs about good stuff - in fact I was number 4 on their list - and what great company I’m keeping!

And that came on top of my nomination around the same time as best European blog in the 2010 Bloggies which brought me loads of extra readers and I hope some of you have stayed to hear more of my travel tales.

Thanks to Louise Brown who featured me as Site of the day at Travelblogsites.com, the blog about the best travel blogs around.  I also appeared in the Top 100 list which is published regularly on the site and am in the top 40 worldwide on the latest count. Although rankings aren’t everything, the list is a useful way to find some other great travel blogs out there to enjoy.

Although it’s a while ago now, thanks to Liz at Travelogged for including my Cedars of Lebanon post and video in her Blog Carnival along with some other great stuff worth reading.

And also to Mary Jo for her mention of my review of Fawsley hall among her travel favourites in this post.

And to Mindaugas at Abroadening who featured my travel photo from Lebanon in his post about photos that encapsulate enspiring moments in travel - mine was the free cakes I was offered outside the mosque in the souk at Sidon in Lebanon.

Europe a la Carte

As usual I’ve been posting weekly on a Thursday over at Europe a la Carte where you’ll find heaps of great Europe travel tips and ideas on things to do and see around Europe.

A boat trip to the Islands off Brittany in France - exploring some the islands that you can visit close the Vannes and the gulf of Morhiban where I visited a friend in July last year.

Visiting the sights of Belem in Lisbon, Portugal - A neighbourhood of Lisbon that has more than it’s fair share of great things to see and is worth a day on it’s own.

London attractions: Things to do in Hyde Park - When I visited London for a weekend recently I stayed at the wonderful Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park and realised that there were some great things to do in Hyde Park nearby - can’t wait to explore more as the weather warms up.

Explore the history of Zakynthos in Greece - Some interesting sights that will give you a taste for the historic past of Zakynthos, and an antedote to the package holiday image of the island.

Climbing St Peter’s church tower in Munich - It was certainly chilly as we climbed this tower to peer down at the Christmas markets below, but there are towers like this in many European cities to give you a different perspective on a city.

Stay in a bunkhouse in Wales and enjoy the great outdoors - A way of travelling that’s half way between B & B and camping, and great for those who enjoy the great outdoors but like to sleep with a roof over their head.

Visit the Pergamon Museum in Berlin - One of the must-see museums of Berlin with practically entire ancient buildings transported into the museum and a good audio-tour.

The Christmas lights of Lisbon and a Happy New Year - in which I advocate trying some Southern European destinations for a Christmas or New Year break - you can see the Christmas lights and still catch a bit of sun if you’re lucky!

Will Easyjet fly to Zakynthos in 2010? - And I was right, as soon after this article was published, Easyjet did announce they would start flights to Zakynthos.

Visit the Christmas Markets in Munich - Taking you through the different Christmas markets we visited in Munich just before Christmas including some that aren’t the obvious choice for the tourist.

The Painted Hall and Chapel at Greenwich, London - One of the beautifully painted historic buildings in Greenwich and it’s free.

A winter break at the Christmas Market in Bath - trying out the Christmas markets closer to home in anticipation of our visit to see the German version in Munich, as well as some other things to see in Bath that you may enjoy on a winter break.

Chill out at Kunsthaus Tacheles in Berlin - It’s grungy, it’s street-art, it’s hip and it’s the authentic side of Berlin, but not the place to take your granny for tea.

The murals of Orgosolo in Sardinia - The wonderful murals that you’ll find in the village of Orgosolo in the heart of mountainous Sardinia, formerly better known for it’s bandits.

Free things to see on London’s South Bank - a walk along the South Bank where you’ll find many great things to see and most of them free.

Battlefield Tours for Remembrance Sunday - Battlefield Tours you might like to make if you’re interested in military history or have an old soldier in the family.

Silent nights for Christmas at the Dennis Severs House in London - One of my most favourite atmospheric places in London to step back in time and see how a prosporous weaving family lived in the 17th century - best seen by candle-light.

A treat for the family at l’Oceanographic sea world in Valencia - A treat for the families, as my kids loved seeing the dolphin show at the Oceanarium in Valencia.

Well - what a relief to get all that off my chest! I hope it won’t be quite so long before the next round up of what I’ve been up to elsewhere on the web.

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Heather on her travels is finalist for Best European blog in the 2010 Bloggies

I’ve just come back from a weekend in London to find that Heather on her travels has been nominated as a Best European blog finalist in the Bloggies 2010 awards - what an honour! Thank you so much to those who nominated me and I do hope you’ll take a few minutes to go to the Bloggies 2010 website here and cast your vote for me.

In the Travel Category, there are some other great travel blogs - last year’s winner, Camels and Chocolate as well as Go Backpacking, Everything Everywhere, The Vacation Gals and a Traveler’s Library . Do vote for your favourites and for those travel blogs in some of the other country or region categories - some of my favourites are there such as My Marrakesh for Best African Blog and Susie’s Big Adventure for Best Asian Blog. If you’d like to vote for me for Best European Blog to go to the Bloggies 2010 website here and cast your vote.

I’ve also recently been featured as Travel site of the day on TravelBlogsites.com and in their weekly updated list top 100 travel blogs (Number 37 to be precise). This ranking is based on a combinationg of Alexa and Complete.com rankings for each blog. Of course there are many different rankings out there and you can check my sidebar for the rankings from some of the other Blog Directories I’m registered with - I seem to be in the top 30 of most of them and heading on up!

So just one more time! If you’d like to vote for me for Best European Blog to go to the Bloggies 2010 website here and cast your vote. Thankyou.

My Top Three Travel Secrets - and a game of tag

I’ve been tagged. Not once but twice! Both Liz from Travelogged and Barbara from Holeinthedonut were kind enough to nominate me in this travel blogger’s game of tag, where I have to let you into my top three travel secrets and then nominate a few more willing victims to continue the game. The idea started at Tripbase.com to build up a whole range of great tips from blogger throughout the blogsphere.

But firstly I’d better start with a caveat, which is that no-where in the world is really secret (especially not if you live there) and for every tip I give for getting more from your travels, someone will say “But I’ve known that for years”. Anyhow, here goes with some things I’ve enjoyed and would like to pass on to you.

Tip 1 - Use a social networking sites to meet the locals.

For over a year I’ve been a member of Hospitality Club, a network of travellers who enjoy meeting other travellers and can offer free accommodation or advice. There are other well known sites like Couchsurfing that offer a similar service. It’s no secret really that using these websites is a great way to find free accommodation when you’re travelling on a budget. But the thing I believe is less well known is that you can join Hospitality Club, even if you don’t plan to use it to find accommodation but just as a means of meeting the locals.

I’m happy to have people to stay for a couple of days in my spare room, but to be honest, I’d rather find a nice hotel or pension to stay in comfort. But what I love is to be able to e-mail someone and say - “Hey I’ll be in your city next weekend, can we meet up for drinks or dinner”. That’s how I met up with Sergio and Marco on our recent weekend in Lisbon - we’d visited the Castelo of São Jorge and then went for tea at their appartment nearby and talked about the things they love to do in Lisbon, how the city is changing and even got a tour of a little flat above theirs that we could rent if we wanted to come again.

And as well as using Hospitality Club to meet the locals, when you’ve hosted a few people, you’ll have a long list of invites from friends you’ve made, who can’t wait to show you their city. I now have to find ways to visit Cologne, Malaga and Cagliari next year, and that’s just from the folks I’ve met in the last couple of months.

Tip 2 - Stay in a Monastery, Convent or Religious Guest House

In many places of interest in Europe and further afield, you’ll find convents and monasteries that provide excellent accommodation at budget prices. This is not a secret among those with religious affiliations who are visiting as part of a pilgrimage, but others may not realise they can stay in accommodation that is so central, well priced and often in beautiful. historic buildings.

Two examples of this are the Residenza Madri Pie where I stayed in Rome, which is a stone’s throw from St Peter’s Square, and professionally run, with excellent facilities such as a lovely garden and parking. You can find other religious accommodation in Rome and other Italian cities listed on the Santa Susanna website here.

Another was the Monastery of St Anthony of Qozhaya where I stayed for a night in June, while touring Lebanon with a friend. The Monastery is one of the places of interest in the UNESCO World Heritage Quadisha Valley, a rocky gorge with rock hewn churches, and grottos. This is a most beautiful place to stay and one that wasn’t featured in my guidebook, but you can easily contact the monastery directly to book into their guest house.

Of course, as a Catholic I feel at home staying in this kind of accommodation, and if you’re looking for a party time on that backpacking round the world trip, then this won’t be for you, but otherwise if you want simple, homely and moderately priced accommodation then give it a try. I’ve just ordered the Good Night, God Bless book that I saw reviewed on HoleintheDonut, with details of this kind of accommodation throughout Europe where I hope to find a few more hidden gems like these.

Tip 3 - A couple of less known museums in London

For places to visit in London, I’d hesitate to suggest that these are secret, but they are things I really enjoyed and are missed by most travellers if they’re only visiting London for a few days. If you have more time, or regularly get to London, then do seek them out, as they’ll give you a real insight into London life and English society and culture.

The Geffrye Museum in East London

The Geffrye Museum is set in an old Almshouse in East London, and you’ll find room sets, each filled with the domestic interior of English homes through the ages, giving a glimpse into the society of the time. There’s a wonderful cafe in a modern glass annex and at the back there are a series of gardens with the style and plants of different eras. And it’s all free, although there’s a small charge for the audioguide.

The Denis Severs House in Shoreditch

At the Denis Severs House in Shoreditch, you can step into a townhouse, owned by an 18th century family of prosperous silk weavers. Everything is just as they might have left it - you’re in a stage set for a costume drama, where the characters have just left the room. You’ll breathe the air, take in the smells and sounds of life at the time as you tour the house in silence and by candle-light. The house is open only at certain times and days, but worth planning a visit if you can - check their website for details.

So there’s my Top three travel secrets, do share yours in the comments. I’m now passing the challenge to some other bloggers, who I hope will be able to add to the list. They are;

Rosalind at Farsighted Flygirl
Monna at Monna McD
Abi at Cheap Weekend Breaks

P.S. For another moneysaving travel tip, although not so secret, do check out my post on discounts and money-saving vouchers at Vouchercodes and you could win a $50 Amazon Voucher.

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