South America here I come...

Very excited!

I've just booked my multi-city flights for an upcoming 5 week South America trip.

Got a good deal on flights from STA travel - even though I don't fall into the category of student or teacher – they offer price match too - http://www.statravel.co.uk/
I found them to be the most competitively priced during my search.

Just have the itinerary to finalize now.  We usually go it alone with a Lonely Planet or Rough Guide but wanted to get the most out of our ‘short time’ in this amazing part of the world. Hence, we have decided to consult a travel agent for this trip as we plan to cover a lot of ground in just 6 weeks ~ taking in the highlights of Peru, Chile, Bolivia, Argentina & Brazil.  The only other times I’ve used an agent/tour operator to plan trips were for my South Africa (3 weeks) & India (10 days) trips.  From my experience, I would thoroughly recommend using one when time is limited. I found a great agent for South America and we are drawing on all their expertize - http://www.saspouk.com/

I look forward to letting you know how I get along….

Alpine Antics

Alpine Antics

Morillon - Late March 2012

I just had to take advantage of the great snow this season so I bagged a Swiss flight www.swiss.com to Geneva - @ £49 each way, cheap when you book early.  I enjoy flying Swiss – especially during ski season as you don’t have to pay extra for ski gear– plus I love the free chocolates!

Booked a rental car via www.carhire3000.com , they usually offer a good deal and there are regular promo codes available if you do a quick Google search.

Just a 45 minute drive to France & after a quick stop off at the supermarket, I  headed straight up to the Chalet https://www.homeaway.co.uk/p1149480

The apartment, Chez Amis, is my favourite place to stay in France.  It’s a beautifully converted self-catering farmhouse only a 5 minute drive to the Telecabine in Morillon.  The Grand Massif, www.grandmassif.com is a fabulous place to ski with 365km of pistes over 5 linked resorts - Flaine being the highest point at 2500m.

When buying a ski pass you have the option to ski the Massif (Morillon, Samones, Sixt, Les Carroz) or the Grand Massif (all previous resorts including Flaine 1600-2500).  You can buy various ski passes including, 4hrs (30.90 euros - Massif), 1 day (41.40 euros - Grand Massif)  and there is a terrific ‘Happy Days’ offer where you can ski 3 days for just 70 euros – an absolute bargain!

I always hire any ski gear from the guys at Neige et Montagne next to the Morillon telecabine http://www.neige-montagne.com/index.php?lg=1 . They are always very friendly, efficient and helpful with the daily snow report too.

The snow was great for so late in the season although there was not enough left to ski all the way down to the village.  The days were full of beautiful spring sunshine - not so much that it melted all the snow but plenty for me to burn my nose!

The Grand Massif is a wonderful place to ski.  It’s a beautiful part of the world, often overlooked as better known Morzine & Chamonix are either side of it.  There are a good mix of slopes for all levels of skiers and boarders.  This trip was taken with a group of friends who were a mixture of skiers/boarders and beginners/intermediates.  There are plenty of places to meet up on the slopes for food, drinks or packed lunch if you are splitting up for skiing.  We spent one day at the top of Flaine with a packed lunch of fresh bread & French cheese sitting in the show & sunshine with the most inspiring view of Mont Blanc – absolutely priceless.

It’s a very family friendly resort and not the most ‘happening’ place for Après Ski.  There’s a variety of places to eat/drink on the slopes and at the end of the day, for a vin chaud, ice cold beer, hot chocolate or nutella crepe down by the telecabine .The lack of ‘pumping’ Après Ski here suits me just fine as the apartment I stay at has a fabulous wood burning stove and when you’re there with good friends and a few bottles of vin rouge – who needs ear piercing euro pop?

The slopes were pretty quiet most of the time (busier on Sunday) which was bliss.  We had a really fun day skiing/boarding in fancy dress to shouts of ‘Where’s Wally’ & ‘Ou est Charlie’?

Restaurants visited this time:

La Puzze – good value, nice selection of regional specialities – love the mushroom risotto and tartiflette, open for lunch and dinner

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g658273-d1338675-Reviews-La_Puzze-Morillon_Grand_Massif_Haute_Savoie_Rhone_Alpes.html

Mezzanine – stylish décor, relaxing atmosphere and very tasty food.

I recommend the beef cheeks if they are still on the menu – delicious!

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g196712-d2026714-Reviews-Restaurant_Mezzanine-Samoens_Grand_Massif_Haute_Savoie_Rhone_Alpes.html

This is one of my favourite parts of the world - I try and get out at least twice a year if I can.  It’s an amazing place for both winter and summer holidays. 

Disclaimer

Just a quick disclaimer:

With my blog, I don’t claim to offer an exhaustive guide.  On the whole, I’ve tried to put together a bit of what I wished I knew before I went as well as my travel highlights/favourite places.

Please bear in mind these are my experiences & my opinions.

If I didn't have a full time job, I'd be blogging a lot more so my entries may be a little sporadic.

I will try to be as accurate as I can be.  I will be writing about some past trips so bear with me if I can’t remember the exact name or location of a place.  I'll pop in some photo's including iPhone snapshots where I can.

Do feel free to contact me if I can help with any queries you may have about your trip.

Enjoy & if you like it or would like to see more (or less of anything), please let me know!

The first of many...

Hello World,

Welcome to (hopefully) the first of many blogs!

I hope you will enjoy following me on my travels & pick up helpful suggestions, tips & hints to enhance your own journey.

I love to travel and take photographs whenever I have the opportunity but also like to get the most out of my own city - London.

When I don't have any overseas trips to write about, I'll aim to get out and about in London and come back here with anything interesting I find.

I've never done anything like this before so please be patient with me.  Comments, suggestions and encouragement are all welcome.

Watch this space...please.

From your friendly (non-biting) TravelBug