The second half of my month-long trip to Australia with my 16-year old son Max was wonderful. Having spent a week in Sydney and then a week in Queensland exploring the Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest (you can read about the first half of our trip in this post), we headed into the heart of […]
2-week itinerary: Sydney & Great Barrier Reef with a teenager
I used to live in Sydney in the 1990s and absolutely loved my time there. My children have grown up hearing stories of big skies, wonderful scenery, sea and sunshine. It was hardly a surprise when my 16 year-old son Max declared his burning desire to go to Australia when we were deciding on a […]
Free things to do in New York City with teenagers
New York City is one of the most expensive cities in the world for travellers – and it’s also one of the most popular to visit, especially for teens. If you’re exploring the Big Apple with teenagers, and you’d like to keep your costs down, I have some tips for you. There are plenty of […]
How family travel changes as your kids grow up
Ad: Bathing Solutions have commissioned me to write this article.* This is the first year in our kids’ lives that we’re not having a family summer holiday. I’ve always wanted to keep having family holidays for as long as possible, and previously I’ve written about what to do when your teenager doesn’t want to go on […]
Top things to do in Sicily with teenagers
As a family, we love Sicily, and it’s not just because half our ancestors come from there. The “ball” being kicked by mainland Italy’s “boot”, Sicily has so much to offer and also feels very different to the mainland. If you’ve visited Italy before, Sicily will be familiar but will also feel very different to […]
Best places for vegan food in Budapest
Traditional Hungarian food seems to always contain meat – the most famous national dish is goulash, a beef and vegetable stew. But these days I find that cosmopolitan Budapest has plenty of places which cater for vegetarians and vegans – you just need to do some research to find them. When my vegan daughter and […]
60 free things to do in London with a teenager
If you’re visiting London with a teenager, there’s a huge range of fun, interesting and quirky things to see and do in the city for free. From world-class museums to unique festivals to outdoor activities, there really is something for everyone to enjoy in London – without paying a penny. There are also some hotels […]
Thailand with teenagers: a two-week summer itinerary
If you’re planning a summer family holiday with a teenager, have you thought about Thailand? This south-east Asian country is a friendly and welcoming place to explore, the food’s amazing, it has more than 5,000 miles of coastline and it offers great value. AD – Some of our accommodation on this trip was provided for […]
Guide for parents: how to choose a secondary school
How do you choose a secondary school for your child? For my kids, I looked at the websites for schools in our area, read their Ofsted inspection reports and went along to open days. I also asked the advice of my children’s teachers and talked to other parents. I tried to think about what would […]
Things to do at The Tongsai Bay, Thailand
We were hosted at The Tongsai Bay for five nights.* We spent the second week of our summer family trip to Thailand on the island of Koh Samui, in the Gulf of Thailand. My husband, our kids (15 and 20) and I stayed at a marvellous luxury resort, The Tongsai Bay. Our stay was arranged […]
