A lot of things may have changed for our family over the last few months, but if anything, that's made me want to make this summer as special as possible for my three. Of course I had to create a summer holidays bucket list for 2022 to go alongside this! I've created a summer holidays bucket list the last few years (2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 can be found here), as I think they're a great way of not only documenting what fun plans we have for the summer, but also making sure we do something a bit different and new as well.

As always, I've made sure to only really add things that we've already got planned, or simple things that won't be too difficult to achieve. Just because you've made a list, it doesn't mean it needs to be full of fancy and expensive things - at the end of the day just getting outdoors is good enough! Do let me know if you're going to create your own summer holidays bucket list this year. I'm always on the hunt for more ideas for years (and other school holidays!) to come.

What plans do you have for this summer?

Family Fun at Bewl Water - Paddleboarding, Adventure Play + More!

We love spending time with family over the Bank Holidays, so last Monday we all decided to head to Bewl Water for some family fun. Bewl Water is located near Lamberhurst on the outskirts of Kent, and is the perfect place to visit for all kinds of indoor and outdoor activities that the whole family can enjoy. If you're in to walking you can enjoy the 12.5 miles around the reservoir - or you can just enjoy a leisurely wander and turn back whenever if this suits you more. You can bring bikes (or you can hire them there too), book on to the laser challenge or aqua park, and for younger ones there's a decent sized soft play. There are two fab adventure play areas located close to the car park too - one of which features a fab pirate ship and a giant slide. 

The main reason for our visit this time though, was for Jack and my two brother-in-laws to enjoy some water sports. There are plenty of options to enjoy including sailing, windsurfing, canoes, rowing and sailing. But they decided to give stand up paddleboarding a try! They booked a 1 hour session for £20, which included the paddleboard and paddle, leash, a wetsuit and a buoyancy aid. Although they didn't really get much instruction with what to do (you can book actual lessons but these are more expensive), they still managed to have a great time. I can imagine it was really relaxing just being out on the water within Bewl's beautiful surroundings.

Myself and my sister's stayed firmly on dry land during our visit though, keeping all of the cousins entertained with a walk along the reservoir bank, water sport spotting, and of course playing in the play areas. We managed to spot the boys on their boards too, although I think the children were more interested in trying to throw pebbles as close to them as possible... children huh? It was so lovely to see all of them playing and laughing together though, and it was especially lovely watching them helping each other on the big slide. Just a note if you are going to visit, the slide isn't the slipperiest so it's worth getting them to sit on a coat or something shiny so they slide better!

Despite it being the May Bank Holiday, it still was a little grey and chilly during our day. The Littles were super excited though as it meant they got to wear their new raincoats! We worked with Lighthouse Clothing a few years ago (and I bought my pink coat of dreams from them last year), so of course when they got in touch again I couldn't say no. Now Indiana is that little bit older I decided to pick a more 'grown up' design for her, so she has the Olivia Jacket in Parma Stripe. We love Parker in bright colours so he has the Anchor Jacket in Orange Navy, and with Lilah being 4 and obsessed with bright colours and designs, I had to get her the Olivia Jacket in the Sweet Pea Farm print. All three jackets and fully waterproof, windproof, have soft jersey linings, and most importantly they can be machine washed! All three have commented on how cosy and comfortable they are, and I've had numerous compliments on their designs too. So thank you Lighthouse Clothing for working with us again.

We had a lovely morning at Bewl Water, and if you bring a picnic (or there's food available at the cafe) you could stay for the whole day. There's so much to do to keep everyone in the family entertained whether you want a big adventure or not. Parking is £6 for the whole day, so it can be a relatively cheap day out if you just take advantage of the parks and walks too!

We received items from Lighthouse Clothing in exchange for a mention in a post. All opinions are honest and my own, and I wasn't compensated for this post.

5 Tips for Visiting London with Children

Whether you're visiting London with children for a fun day out or for a practical reason, you're in for a treat. The city is brimming with fun things to do and explore for little ones (and grown ups) of all ages, including culture, history and those beloved tourist attractions too. So I thought I'd put together this post to share some of my top tips for visiting London with children, so that you can hopefully have the best trip possible.

Pack as Light as Possible

The easiest way to have a successful trip with young children is to bring as little as possible. There's nothing worse than carrying heavy bags around the city - especially if you have children like ours that enjoy a carry themselves now and then. One trick to travelling light is to get each child to select one item that they want to bring as entertainment. This could be a specific toy, a book, or even a puzzle - it's best to avoid bringing their extra special toy just in case it gets lost in the city. A pad of paper and a pencil case full of pens can keep everyone entertained and are relatively easy to carry too.

If your children are slightly older why not get them to bring and carry their own backpack for the trip. This way they can be responsible for their own items and things such as snacks and a drink, and you're not left carrying everything! A pram is always good for carrying items, but I would advice to only bring one if you 100% need one. A baby carrier and backpack is much easier for navigating around London, especially if you're wanting to use the Tube.

Plan your Travel in Advance

Before you leave for a trip, it's always a good idea to map out the best route between everywhere you're visiting in London. This will not only help you plan your travel and better understand how long it will take to get from one place to another. But by planning travel in advance, you can usually save money on any tickets that you need too. Make sure to always allow extra time to account for delays, or children becoming tired and not being able to move as quickly as you think. London is a big place and takes a lot of walking.

Go at your Children's Pace

It's tempting to schedule all the museums and attractions, but that can result in super tired (and therefore grumpy) children. Instead, let them pick their pace and stick to it. They'll love exploring the city at their own pace, and you'll better understand what they like. Plus, you might find that the more free time you have, the more adventures you can create instead of sticking to a strict schedule! 

A great idea it to get each child to pick one thing they definitely want to see or do during the visit, and then plan your day around these plans. It is best to still do this ahead of time though just incase you need to prebook tickets, as I know certain attractions such as the Science Museum, Aquarium, and The London Eye definitely require you to prebook before you visit.

Book a Child-Friendly Hotel

London has a plethora of hotels for every kind of traveller, but make sure you check out the hotel and it's facilities carefully to be confident you are staying in a child-friendly hotel. Ideally you want to find a hotel that is close to your location, for example there is plenty of family-friendly accommodation near Shepherds Bush, which would be perfect for a day shopping at the Westfield Centre. Family friendly hotels usually have more rooms that fit larger family groups, and other bonuses such as child-friendly menus and even evening entertainment sometimes.

Enjoy the City for Free

It can be easy to think of a visit to London and assume you need to book the top tourist attractions. But when you're on a day out with children we all know how expensive things can get (and very quickly too!). You really don't have to spend much on a visit to the city though, as there are so many things to see and do that are completely free!

There are so many museums that you can enjoy for free - just make sure to check ahead about pre-booking like I mentioned above. London has numerous parks and green areas where children would love to run around and explore such as Kensington Gardens which has the Diana Memorial playground. Don't forget there's the fab shops such as Hamley's (the biggest toy store), The Lego Store and The Disney Store that little ones would enjoy looking around too, and Covent Garden always has plenty of free fun to enjoy throughout the year too.

What top tips would you add to my list?

This is a collaborative post.

A Visit to SEA LIFE Brighton - January 2022

We recently celebrated our youngest daughter Lilah's 4th birthday. We spent her special day painting pottery and eating all the cake, before a big family birthday gathering (with of course even more cake) the next day. And for her final birthday treat, we decided to head down to Brighton for some seaside fun! A big draw for picking Brighton as our seaside destination of choice, was so we could take the children to SEA LIFE Brighton using our Merlin Annual Passes.

History

The Brighton Aquarium was thought up and designed by Eugenius Birch and opened in 1872 - making it the oldest aquarium in the whole world! It was bought by SEA LIFE in 1991 where it has been redeveloped and restored to the beautiful aquarium we know and love today. The most recent development was in 2012, when SEA LIFE Brighton was closed so that the Victorian Arcade could be beautifully restored to it's original glory. I really think that this area of the aquarium is the highlight and make's it one of the most beautiful SEA LIFEs I have visited.

The aquarium is really easy to find once you make it to Brighton as it's located right on the seafront, opposite the main Brighton Palace Pier. We visited on a Sunday in January and only just managed to park along the seafront, so do keep in mind that it can get really busy and parking is pricey. 

What to Expect from your Visit

Once you enter SEA LIFE Brighton there are 5 zones inside that you can currently wander through along a one-way route. You start off in the Victorian Arcade which includes the rock-pool area where you can have 'hands on' experiences, and the ray pool. Like with most SEA LIFE aquariums there's the rainforest adventure area (we love watching the leaf cutter ants here), Reef area, Conservation area, and of course the ocean tunnel too - made extra special here by the two beautiful giant sea turtles Lulu and Gulliver who are around 82 years old! Something unique about Brighton aquarium is that the seawater tanks are fed from a large tank under the building, which actually gets its water from the nearby sea twice a day. Cool right?

Make sure to collect the free children's guides/maps as you enter, as the littles loved finding the answers to the questions as we went through the aquarium, and if you show them to a member of staff in the gift shop you receive POP badges as a reward. There's also a small cafe in the Victorian Arcade area if you need refreshments during your visit. The aquarium is quite small though so you are probably best heading out to grab food as there are many yummy treats to find around Brighton.

How to Book Tickets

You currently have to prebook tickets to enter SEA LIFE Brighton, however ours were not checked when we arrived and they let us in before our timed tickets. Standard tickets costs £21.50 per adult and £17.50 per child (under 3s are free), but you can save money by booking online. You can also pay extra to go on the glass-bottom boat and VR experience. We visited with our Merlin Annual Passes which was really easy to do, as I just simply booked a slot online and then they scanned our passes to go through.

Have you visited SEA LIFE Brighton or any other SEA LIFE centres?

Hever Castle at Christmas 2021 | Review

We absolutely love visiting Hever Castle as a family. Whether it's to cool down in the water maze during the summer, or to search for the first signs of spring, there really is so much to see and do throughout the year there. I think one of my favourite times of year to visit though has to be during the festive period. We were lucky enough to experience Christmas at Hever castle in 2020, however this was during a period where there were lots of restrictions because of the pandemic. So visiting again in 2021 just after Christmas was the most magical experience that I just had to write about.

We decided to arrive later in the day this time (around 3pm) to make sure we got to see everything fully. Hever Castle offer Twilight tickets which are a fantastic idea if you are wanting to visit just to experience the festive additions. These tickets let you enter from 4pm and stay until 8.30pm. We decided to arrive just a little earlier than this as we wanted the littles to be able to enjoy the playgrounds whilst it was still light - they really are a must do if you're visiting with young children!

Once we were done in the playgrounds we headed straight to the main hub (the area next to the Moat Restaurant and Shop) to purchase tokens for the fairground attractions. Tokens cost £2 each and each attraction was 1 token per person. You could buy bundles which helped lower the cost - we paid £18 for 10 tokens, which was enough for our family of 5 to go on both the carousel and the ferris wheel. Also keep in mind that there are height restrictions for the ferris wheel, so worth checking before promising rides to smaller children.

The ferris wheel was great fun and a definite highlight of our visit! The ride was a great length and the views from the top were spectacular - you could see all over the grounds of Hever which looked especially lovely with all of the festive lights. The carousel was in a fantastic location right in-front of the castle and the lights and traditional music made it feel extra magical! This area also had a hook-a-duck stall, as well as doughnut and coffee trucks. We purchased from both and thoroughly enjoyed our treats despite them being on the slightly expensive side (5 doughnuts for £5 for a rough price estimate).

Next stop was the children's trail - this year based on the classic tale of Pinocchio. We loved the Peter Pan trail last year but this one was definitely better! There were lots of models and decorations that told the story, as well as the addition of story boards which really helped the children to understand what was going on (they haven't seen the film!). We even spotted characters from the story whilst walking around the grounds too which was such a lovely touch.

The last stop of our evening visit to Hever Castle was the festive light trail. Even longer than previous years, the trail takes you all around the gardens and grounds where you can see beautiful light displays, fountains in the lake and even a glittering disco ball or two. It really is beautiful to walk around once the sun has gone down - but do remember to bring a torch (or phone with one built in) just in case, as some of the lights had gone out due to technical difficulties during our visit, so some areas were pitch black!

Of course you can also visit the beautiful Hever Castle itself during your visit (you need to purchase a castle and gardens ticket for this). The Castle is traditionally decorated for Christmas and I can only imagine how beautiful it looked! And if you are lucky enough to get tickets, you can also see Father Christmas in his Grotto if you visit before Christmas too - something we are really hoping to do in the future!

Visiting Hever Castle during the week between Christmas and New Year really was the perfect way to 'blow away the cobwebs' but still sneak in that last bit of festive cheer. And I know it would be even more magical in the lead-up to Christmas too. Either way, if you're looking for a fun and festive day out during December I would 100% recommend a visit to Hever. I can imagine it will be even better in 2022!

We received our entry tickets in exchange for our review and coverage. All opinions are honest and my own.