A-Z activities

A-Z countries

What's this blog all about?

Hi, I'm Nicola - welcome to a blog begun in 2012 about family travel around the world, without leaving the UK.

I love travel adventures, but to save cash and keep my family's carbon footprint lower, I dreamt up a unique stay-at-home travel experience. So far I've visited 110 countries... without leaving the UK. Join me exploring the next 86! Or have a look at the "countries" you can discover within the UK by scrolling the labels (below right). Here's to happy travel from our doorsteps.

Around 2018 I tried a new way of writing my family's and my own UK travel adventures. Britain is a brilliant place for a staycation, mini-break and day trips. It's also a fantastic place to explore so I've begun to write up reports of places that are easy to reach by public transport. And when they are not that easy to reach I'll offer some tips on how to get there.

See www.nicolabaird.com for info about the seven books I've written, a link to my other blog on thrifty, creative childcare (homemadekids.wordpress.com) or to contact me.

Saturday 28 April 2007

Travel surprises

Nicola, Pete, Lola and Nell want to travel the world with a difference. We hope to get a taste of loads of countries without adding to climate change (with needless emissions from aeroplanes) or having to waste hours of holiday time in airport terminals. We hope our adventures inspire you to take a Grand Tour of your neighbourhood. This post is from Nicola.

If you're a fan of holidaying in the UK then it's hard not to feel smug when friends say they flew off to Majorca for a week of the Easter holidays and it rained non stop. "People knew the weather was warm and gorgeous in England and they were trying to get planes back,' admitted one Dad. "It was too cold and horrible to even go to the beach. And then when we got back home to Cambridge everyone looked a lot more tanned and healthier than us." As you can see there are some spring benefits to this year of the climate changing - and definitely worth enjoying while we all can.

It's not just the weather that can surprise travellers. Did you know it's quicker to take the train from London to Paris than it is to fly, http://www.eurostar.com/ ? And it's also good for your conscience because the train notches up your annual carbon dioxide emissions by a far smaller amount:
BY PLANE: journey is 3.5 hours. There and back uses up 244kg CO2.
BY TRAIN: journey is 2.75 hours. There and back uses up 22kg CO2.

We know that train hopping is going to cost us a lot this summer - an amount I hope to ease by buying tickets in advance (walk ups can be disastrously expensive) and using our family railcard. We could save by avoiding the sleeper to Scotland, but I think that's one journey everyone in my family will enjoy too much to drop. Pete will like the glamour of getting into Scottish mood with a whisky in the dining car and the kids will adore the bunk berths. I'm usually happiest doing at least two things at once - and sleeping flat as the miles spin by on a train is at least meant to be possible for normal salaried folk in the way that flying first class is absolutely not!

What's your favourite journey? We'd especially like to hear about trips that don't take too long from your doorstep.

No comments: