Marmaris - Turkey

 

M A R M A R I S

Turkey


So we booked a last minute summer holiday through TUI, to an all inclusive resort in Marmaris, Turkey. We did 8 nights as it was the last week of the school holidays and I wanted to have a couple of days to recover and get ready before school, and if we stayed longer like 10 nights the flight times for other days were not that great especially with the new school year starting. Sadly we had a delay coming out of 2 hours 55 minutes, and they also ran out of food which was a big disappointment. And again on the way home a 2 hour delay and the food ran out again. Im not sure why but we have never had something like this happen in all the many trip we have done, so slightly put off doing an all inclusive again with TUI...








The hotel we stayed at was called Blue Bay Platinum and we had a family room which consisted of 2 bedrooms a lounge area, bathroom & balcony. The room was lovely it did have a few things which need fixing, like you could see where people have been locked in or out and they have had to break open the door on a few occasions by the look of it. There was also tape keeping part of the main door frame together, some of the floor tiles had been cracked but other than that it was fine. The main downfall is how the hotel has been designed. This 'family' block was right above the evening entertainment area (This will be in a YouTube video) and the entertainment started at 9:30pm going on till past 11:30pm and sadly it was the loudest speakers I think we have ever heard. We had asked reception to move but unfortunately because it was such a specific room there wasn't many available and the only one that was going to be free while we were there, was the floor above us and that would have made no difference. The children managed to get to sleep through it eventually but safe to say Jaime and I didn't. 





The hotel had 3 pools, 2 main big pools and a little pool next to the 2 water slides. The girls loved the slides they weren't too big so were just enough for them. We had to have one of us in there to catch Tahlia but otherwise it was great.



The buffet was really good, it did get busy but we were up early for breakfast and early for dinner so seemed to avoid the rush because of this. Always good variety and everything we had was great. There was also an ice cream restaurant which was included and perfect to break the day up for the children. We never ate in the restaurant for lunch as the pool bar always had the most delicious pizza, battered chicken wings (I loved these better than a KFC - not healthy I know) and chips, spaghetti or pasta, onion rings and kebab wraps. This was perfect as the children loved it and could bring it back to their sunbeds to eat then once food had gone down they were straight back into the pool.


The all inclusive drinks here were good, they had lots of coffee machines scattered round which did great cappuccinos and lattes and then soft drinks of Fanta, coke, sprite and fruit juices etc. They also did a lovely iced coffee in the bar and beer or wine but we didn't drink much of that, Jaime just tried the beer which was he seemed to like.


This hotel has its own section of the beach with sunbeds and umbrellas right by the water activities, but because it was so hot we only ventured there twice, once to have a little look and a second time we did enjoy the sea but only for a short while. There are more bars and restraints out here which I would love to explore more of next time!





There are lots of shops in Marmaris which were fab, we did purchase a few things for the children, and lots of other bars and restaurants. We only ate in one of the restaurants outside the hotel twice it was called The Ledbury and was a steak house, the food was amazing we had a chateau briand twice and it was beautiful! It also had fabulous cocktails, the margarita was my favourite. Highly recommend. 






If we do ever go back I would like to try a few more restaurants outside of the hotels so maybe wouldn't do all inclusive but that is so nice and easy with the children. 




I will have more to come on the blog, one was a fabulous day trip we did to a beautiful, historical place, and we also did a boat trip I will tell you all about.

Have you ever been to Turkey? If so where have you been? And if you haven't a great place to start is Marmaris!




Alexis 
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Krka- Croatia

 

K R K A   &   C A M P I N G

Croatia


Day visit to Krka National Park, what a beautiful place it is. Sadly you used to be able to swim in these lakes and waterfalls but this stopped a couple of years ago to protect it. We arrived just after opening time so early enough to miss the crowds, which started to get more and more as we were leaving. It was a very very hot day but the kiddies did well for walking, we only chose to do the shorter educational trail which was more than enough for us. 













We also took a little boat trip out to the town Skradin which was beautiful, however it was very hot and we were very tired so literally did a hop off and straight back on to travel back on the river to the park again. 






We visited another national park to at the end of our trip to Plitvice so looking forward to sharing that!









We stayed on a lovely little campsite right near Krka, it looked like it was in the middle of nowhere, very basic but had a little swimming pool the kids loved and a bakery where you could put your order on the board the day before & they would make the most delicious fresh bread & baguettes! The drive from here to the national park was literally 5 minutes so it was perfect!






Let me in the comments if you have ever been here or plan to go. It is a beautiful part of the world.


Alexis 
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New Forest Wildlife Park

New Forest Wildlife Park

New Forest, England


It’s the wonderful summer holidays and the great British weather is doing its usual round of wet & cold. We did however manage to book a day to visit the New Forest Wildlife Park on a beautiful sunny day which I think made the visit all the more perfect. We went we some friends which the girls were very excited about. 



The New Forest Wildlife Park is based near Ashurst in the New Forest. Postcode is SO40 4UH. It’s literally a 10 minute drive from where we are. 

https://newforestwildlifepark.co.uk/


                                              


It is open daily from 10-5:30 and there are lots of different animals here including a huge variety of otters, lots of deer which can roam all around you along the path and it they come you are allowed to stroke them, a larger variety of owls, bison and lots more! They have lots of really informative talks around each feeding time for the animals, which the children loved to watch and listen too, and there are a couple of parks, on is a sand park with lots do to near the entrance/ exit and the other is a large fun play park in the middle with lots of tables and benches for you to have lunch on. 



                                              


They have a cafe where you can get hot/cold food & drink and ice creams if you wanted. We grabbed an ice cream at the end on our way out as we had all brought lunch with us. 

                                              


                                              


DAY TICKET PRICES

Adult - £14.75

Child (3 to 15 Years) - £11.25

Family (2 adults & 2 children or 1 adult & 3 children) - £44.00

Seniors (Over 60) - £13.75

Registered Disabled Adult (1 designated carer free) - £13.75

Registered Disabled Child (1 designated carer free) - £9.25

Serving military personnel (with ID) - £13.75

Student concession (with ID) - £13.75


They also do experience days, gift vouchers birthday parties & educational visits. If you ever make it to the new forest I highly recommend a visit!


We had one of the best days of the whole summer holidays. 


Let me know if you have been or plan on going in the comments below.


Alexis x

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Amazon Fashion Finds Summer Edition- Spotlight

Amazon Fashion Finds

Summer Edition


Hey I wanted to add a few things I have purchased this summer and for my holidays, and bits iv been eyeing up! Hope you like.


This is a beautiful straw hat, it’s the perfect colour as I find sometimes the cream can be too light (and dirty a lot quicker) it fits perfect and a huge bonus for me was that this hat comes with a plastic shaped hat inside so when it’s delivered it didn’t lose it’s shape at all which a lot of the hats iv seen are folded to be able to be posted. I also really liked the black ribbon around it as a bit of detail to break the hat up and can match anything from beachwear to a smart evening dress.

Sun Hat Link



I tried these gorgeous sunglasses which I think look fab! They are a Louis Vuitton dupe, they feel a bit lightweight but they fit perfectly and I love how smart they look with anything! It’s great that they can just be my pair I chuck in the car or the kids grab etc and I don’t need to be too worried about them. Great price and think great value for money. 

Sunglasses Link



I purchased these chunky gold earrings, iv been after a stand out pair for a while now and these are lovely! They come in a beautiful gift box and look really expensive. 

Gold Earrings Link



I love the look of this straw beach bag, from the reviews it isn’t huge but does the job. This would look great with the beach dress and hat I purchased! 

Straw Beach Bag Link


I purchased this beautiful knitted dress to wear a beach day dress over my swimsuits, I am really happy with the fit and shape of it and the material was so nice and soft. I had shared this on my instagram and it has since sold out in this colour but have this lovely coral/red which I think would look so chic on the beach or having lunch at a beach club. It would definitely make a statement, in fact I may have to purchase it in this colour too! 

Red Beach Dress Link


Let me know in the comments here or on my socials Instagram link if you purchase any of these and what you think! Don’t forget to tag me on instagram @alexisjmason_

Alexis x


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