Travellia

Recently we had a few days off work to do some travelling, however we had left it a bit late to book any cheap airline seats . We thought of alternative, cheap methods of going into Europe and devised a way of getting to Belgium, somewhere we had never been before. We were prepared for a day of travelling. We took a ferry, once again, from Dover to Calais - we took the first one that was leaving, which happened to be P&O . Once in Calais, we took the bus from the port to the main train station, outside of which we waited for another bus which would take us to Dunkirk. Leaving from the front of the train station, the bus journey to Dunkirk took about 45 minutes. From what we saw of Dunkirk, it looked a bit run-down and shabby, not really what we were expecting. Admittedly, we didn't have time to explore the town fully. We arrived at the main station in Dunkirk and the next step was to get another bus to Adinkerke/De Panne station in Belgium. After a bit of fruitless sea

Last Saturday, around lunch time, the weather happened to be sunny and bright. Debating how we could best make use of such a rare occurrence of sunshine, we concluded that it might be a good idea to take a ferry somewhere - in this case, as foot passengers, from Dover to Calais in France. Many people use this route for alcohol, cigarette and other shopping supplies, however we were going merely for the journey, to enjoy a trip on the sea and have a look at the city and port that lay on the other side of the English Channel. We jumped in the car and made our way to the "White Cliffs of Dover" , not entirely sure how long the drive would take, but Google Maps had assured us it wouldn't be over two hours. We were pleasantly surprised that we managed to reach Dover in about an hour and a half - no, not due to excessive speed but because the traffic happened to be rather light. On arrival at the ferry travel and information centre, we had the option of choosing betw

The city of Brighton is a popular seaside escape, particularly with London residents, being only about an hour away by train. Situated on the southern coast, almost immediately due south of London, it has quite a trendy, fun atmosphere (well, it did the day we were there anyway!). Frequent trains leave from Victoria and London Bridge stations in London with Southern Railway and First Capital Connect . It's probably worth taking the train rather than driving, as the city often gets congested and it's difficult to find parking. Admittedly we drove to Brighton from Eastbourne and managed to find some parking, but not without some difficulty (and expense). We began the day by walking to the Royal Pavilion , an interesting and impressive royal residence that was built in the 19th Century for the Prince Regent. The architectural structure has a definite Indian flavour and the interior is richly decorated in mainly Chinese styles. There are attractive gardens surrounding the P

Eastbourne is a quiet coastal town in southern England, most famous for its Victorian style beach front and pier. We have been to Eastbourne a few times to visit friends who live there, and although it's not as vibrant and popular as Brighton , it's still a relaxing place to visit. It seems to have a reputation for being more appealing to the older, retired generation, however it is still possible for the likes of us younger travellers to have a good time there. Eastbourne is about an hour and a half train ride from London, departing from both London Bridge and Victoria mainline stations with Southern Railway . We usually drive, the route being quite scenic, however it does to tend to get quite congested at certain points along the way, making us ponder every time why we didn't take the train! There are a vast array of hotels and B&Bs in the town, most of them lining the seafront, and on one occassion we booked a room at the Langham Hotel through Lastminute .

Stratford-upon-Avon is most well known for being the birth place of William Shakespeare , and therefore host to countless tourists every year, wanting to view the sites associated with the famous Elizabethan playwright. A market town since the Middle Ages, Stratford-upon-Avon is steeped in history and situated in the picturesque English midlands countryside. Having good rail and road links, the town was our destination of choice for a short weekend break from London. We left from Marylebone station with Chiltern Railways , taking just under two and a half hours to get there. Travelling by car, along the M40, takes approximately the same amount of time and a good way of preparing a route beforehand is by visiting a site such as Google Maps and obtaining directions. National Express also offers services to Stratford-upon-Avon, taking about three hours from London. There are also numerous organised one-day bus tours from London, which usually pass through Oxford and the su

When we lived in London we enjoyed venturing out for short day trips to refresh and re-energise ourselves from the madness of the city. It was with much interest we started to hear talk from friends and colleagues of a seaside town in Kent called Whitstable, which, we were assured, was a perfect day or weekend escape from "the Big Smoke", being just under an hour and a half away by train. How right they were! Leaving from Victoria Station, there are frequent train journeys with Southeastern Railway to Whitstable about every half an hour, with day return ticket prices starting at £18.10. Admittedly, train travel isn't cheap in the UK, and if driving isn't an option, then an alternative is to take the bus. National Express has services from London Victoria to Whistab le with day returns from £12.40, taking just under two hours each way. Personally, we prefer to spend the extra money on a more comfortable and speedier train journey. On arrival we headed toward