Imagine green rolling hills, honey-stone villages, delicious food, grand mansions and manicured gardens…this sounds like somewhere in Italy or France but no, you can find this all in the Cotswolds!

The Cotswolds is the quintessential English countryside destination. Whether you go for a summer break or during the winter chill, there is plenty to do and the quaint villages and towns are beautiful all year round. We visited during the summer for three days and stayed at a gorgeous boutique hotel in Cheltenham (No38 the Park). We wanted to be located somewhere with plenty of restaurant choices, especially as Covid-19 led to fewer restaurants being open and operating at reduced capacity with limited availability. However, we certainly made the most of visiting all of the main villages and getting our fill of delicious country pub food.

We were greeted with pure sunshine on our first day, making it perfect to walk around the Upper and Lower Slaughters, including past the infamous old mill, around Bourton on the Water and Stow-on-the-Wold. Whilst Bourton on the Water is typical of all the pictures you see of the Cotswolds, our favourite was the Slaughters as it was much quieter and equally as stunning. We stopped off to have a late lunch at the Chequers, Churchill which was delicious and one of the best steaks I’ve had (I highly recommend eating here).

Our next day was very grey with continuous rain, but that didn’t stop us from venturing out to see the lovely views from Broadway tower, although I was quite windswept by the end of it! By this point I thought all of the villages and towns would be quite similar but our next stop on the tour to the charming town of Moreton-in-Marsh and the remote village of Blockley proved otherwise and I was glad we didn’t skip past them. We ended at the Kingham Plough for a very long pub lunch (another highly recommended pub) before returning to our hotel for a well deserved bottle of wine ahead of our dinner reservation at the Giggling Squid.

On our final day we visited Bibury, which was once described by William Morris as "the most beautiful village in England" and it was easy to see why. It was by far my favourite and I would definitely recommend not to miss this one out, especially if you are already visiting Cirencester as it is so close by. We finished our trip at the Potting Shed for lunch, a favourite of the Royals, before heading back to work in busy London!

Whilst I was desperate to go on a holiday abroad, I was happy that Covid-19 gave me an opportunity to explore England and see all that it has to offer. It was the perfect countryside escape after a busy few months at work and exactly what I needed. If you plan on visiting the Cotswolds please feel free to email me to get any tips and recommendations, but also to help find you the perfect accommodation!

From long breaks to short breaks and everything in between, the Lake District is a must visit!

If you want to get away from it all, the Lake District is perfect and offers some of the best views in the UK, famous for its enviable landscapes and stunning scenery. We only went for a short 3-day break in August due to time constraints, but I am already itching to go back as there is so much to do and so much to see.

We arrived on the first day to Lake Windermere, and luckily for us there was not a single cloud in sight. Finding parking is a pain, especially on a warm summer’s day when it is peak time, but you have to be patient and choose a car park to wait for a spot in. After finally finding a parking spot, we had a quick pub lunch and then set off on a very long walk around the lake, up to the town of Windermere, and up again to the Orrest Head viewpoint. What a view it was! On one side you could clearly see miles and miles of the glistening lake, trailing off into the far distance, and on the other side you could see beautiful green rolling hills. It is definitely worth the walk up to the viewpoint and should not be missed! We then headed slowly back to Lake Windermere via Queen Adelaide’s Hill to make the most of another, and much closer, viewpoint, although not as impressive as Orrest Head.

Our next stop was to Ambleside, near to the top of Lake Windermere. There was a conveniently located ice-cream van and we got ourselves a late-afternoon snack to enjoy on the pier of the lake. Although Ambleside is a very small town, it has some of the best food and again it should not be missed. We had dinner here on our second night at a restaurant called Lucy’s on a plate, which was extremely hard to get a reservation for as it was so popular! The food was incredible, but what made this place special was the fact that the owner would print the names of every single guest on the menu each night to welcome them to the restaurant and to make note of any special occasions being celebrated!

After finishing up in Ambleside we finally made it to our hotel (the Forest Side Hotel) which was located in Grasmere. It was absolutely stunning, with a free-standing roll top bath and welcome cakes! The hotel bar made their own gin infusions which we thoroughly enjoyed as a pre-dinner drink before heading to another amazing restaurant called the Drunken Duck Inn. Again the food was incredible and the secluded location and cosy interiors made it perfect for date night.

On our second day we woke up to the best cook to order hotel breakfast possible! The first course of the breakfast was to warm your palate up, and both mornings I opted for this little grapefruit number with a side smoothie. The second course was much larger and the real deal, ranging from wild mushrooms and poached eggs on sourdough to the best Cumbrian sausage bap I have ever had. It definitely set us up nicely for the long day ahead. Unfortunately it was pouring outside but nonetheless we set off in the rain to Ullswater lake. This is meant to be the most beautiful lake in England, although we could hardly see a thing in all the rain and mist. Near to the lake is a hiking route up to Aira Force Waterfall, and although it was very wet to walk up it was worth it as the waterfall is beautiful. The rest of our plans for the day were ruined by the rain as we wanted to do more hiking, but we opted to go to the Lake District distillery instead for lunch and of course some gin. If you do get a rainy day in the Lake District, I would highly recommend spending some time at the distillery, especially if you are a gin lover like myself (the lake explorer gin was my favourite).

On our final day we were greeted by sunshine again and so we set off on a morning walk to Grasmere town and Lake Grasmere. It is a beautiful and quaint town and home to the Grasmere Gingerbread shop which even at 9am in the morning had a huge queue. We then headed off to the medieval village of Cartmel, famous for the 12th Century Cartmel Priory, with its beautiful stained glass windows, modern sculptures, and ancient choir stalls, and also home to L’Enclume, a two Michelin star restaurant with five AA Rosettes and named the number one restaurant in the UK by The Good Food Guide 2020. We were lucky enough to have a lunch reservation at L’Enclume and it was one of the best meals I have ever eaten. They truly showcased local Cumbrian produce and 4 hours and 15 courses later we said goodbye to the Lake District and headed back home.

If you are planning a trip to the Lake District please feel free to email me to get any tips and recommendations, but also to help find you the perfect accommodation!