Photo diary: A long weekend in Krakow

We first started our two week tour of Poland in the country's second city of Krakow. We spent four days in the city and it was a perfect amount of time - especially as we decided to squeeze in a trip to the Salt Mines and Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. It's a great city with plenty to keep you occupied, and thanks to it only being a few hours away from the UK,  it makes a great long weekend trip. One word of warning though. In August it is absolutely scorching! The heat at times was unbearable so be prepared for lots of cafe stops to refresh with an ice cold drinks.

We stayed in the Well Well aparthotel which was located just across the river from the castle. It was great value, did a decent buffet breakfast and the bed was comfortable. It's about a 15 minute walk to the castle but it was pretty straight forward and we didn't begrudge it any day we were there. To be honest, it was quite a pleasant walk. So what did we get up to?

We spent a lot of time hanging out in the Jewish Quarter. Enjoying delicious meals in the abundance of restaurants, sipping on cold beer in the quirky bars and soaking up the chilled local vibes in the winding roads. It's about a 15-20 minute walk from the old town. In the city centre we visited the gorgeous Krakow castle, St Mary's Basilica, the Main Square and the Cloth hall. Whilst we didn't enter any of the attractions, it was so lovely too see the landmarks up close.

As I mentioned above, we took trips out of the city to the Salt Mines and Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. The latter was an incredibly moving experience and something that I'm still thinking about, considering what is happening all over the world today. Growing up in Europe, WWII is something that is always at the forefront of your mind. You learn about it all throughout school, from grandparents - my grandad was an evacuee who left London for Devon as a small boy and my nan's family looked after a German PoW on their farm - and the holocaust is something that is frequently remembered. But nothing quite puts it into perspective than seeing first hand the horrors that were inflicted. Auschwitz-Birkenau sent chills down my spine and something that I will never ever forgot. Whilst it wasn't something I enjoyed, it was something that I am so pleased to have finally seen. I think it's a place that everyone should visit once in their life.

The Salt Mines were a much cheerier affair.  Opened in the 13th century, the mines are one of Poland's official national historic monuments. Deep underground - 327 metres to be exact - it's so incredible to see it in the flesh. You'll find a chapel, restaurant, gift shop and a playground.

Although I wasn't blown away by Krakow, it was a great place to visit. Thats the problem when a place is so hyped up! There's no end of things to do, the food scene is brilliant and the history is fantastic. I'm not sure I will rush back but it's certainly somewhere I'm very glad to have ticked off my list. 

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Three places to visit in Warsaw outside the Old Town

Wilanov Palace
When we go away I always drag everyone to some sort of palace or castle. I love them. Everyone else? Not so much. But this one was a winner for everyone. Over my 28 years I've seen lots and lots of palaces but this 17th Century one might just be my favourite - it's one of the most beautiful buildings I've seen. It doesn't hurt that yellow is my favourite colour too! It's an easy 30 minutes bus journey from the Old Town and couldn't be simpler to get to. Just one straight journey and you can use your travel card (a must for getting around Warsaw). Amazingly this grand royal palace survived the Second World War. I find this incredible as so much of Poland was destroyed and rebuilt. A stunning yellow colour, the palace is now an art gallery so we never made it inside as galleries aren't really our jam. But we did pay a couple of pounds to go in the gardens and they were absolutely beautiful. There's a lake where you can hire rowing boats, a gorgeous rose garden, the Baroque garden which is the oldest part of the park and an English-Chinese garden.

Neon Museum
Located in the Praga district of Warsaw, the super cool neon museum is a collection of vintage neon signs from the communist area. It is quite a trek from the Old Town but Praga is said to be the hipster district of the city so it's a great place for a bar crawl. It's very different from the Old Town, a lot more grittier but it's a great place to get a 'real' feel for the city, away from the hoards of tourists. The museum reminded me a lot of God's Own Graveyard in Walthamstow. It's not a place you'd spend hours wandering around but it's really interesting, cool and something a little bit different.

Palace of Culture and Science
Built by the Soviets in 1955 as a 'gift', the tallest building in Poland has such a presence in the Financial District of the new town. Now it's home to a huge congress hall, theatres, a multi-screen cinema and museums. Catch the lift to the top to the observation tower and you've be rewarded with amazing views over the city. It's well worth a visit just for this but beware, it gets windy on the 30th floor!

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Three places to visit with your Gdansk city card

As I mentioned in my first post about Gdansk, we were very kindly gifted city cards to help us get to know the city in depth. So many different attractions and free public transport was included so we made sure we got our use out of them! They absolutely worth it if you have quite a few days in the city to enjoy so you can make the most out of it. These are my favourite places that are included free of charge with the city card...

The Crane
One of the most defining landmarks of the city, represents Gdank's trading history with the current design dating back to 1444. Amazingly it was 80% destroyed during the battle for Gdansk in 1945. You would never have thought it! Part of the Polish Maritime Museum, it offers a fascinating insight into the port's history and the view from the very top is pretty impressive. The best way to get a feel for any city is from above it!

SS Sołdek
Sitting majestically in the port, this ship was the first one of it's kind built in Poland after the Second World War. Originally built as a coal and oil freighter, it is now part of the Martime museum in Gdansk. It's well worth exploring with a great insight into the city's shipyard history.

Church of St John
One of the special perks card users can enjoy is climbing the tower of the Church of St John. Dating back to the 1300's (I never stop being in awe of Europe's incredible history), it is now an exhibition space. But it still holds mass once week. Twice a day city card holders are able to climb the tower to be treated to great views of Gdansk.

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Why Gdansk should be your next European city break

I think I stumbled across Gdansk on a blog somewhere and soon popped it top of my list if I ever made it back to Poland. When we started planning our two week jaunt across the country, we decided to peg it onto the end. I'm very glad we did! Gdansk was my favourite city on the whole trip - there's just something so serene about being close to the water.

Located in the north of the country, Gdansk is a port city with a rich history. It's the place where the first Polish shots were fired in WWII and the place which is said to kickstart the fall of the Iron Curtain in Eastern Europe. Part of a 'Tri-city' with Sopot and Gydnia, the narrow, cobbled streets are perfect for getting lost and spending a few hours admiring the architecture. It's a great location to base yourself to enjoy the Polish Baltic coast.

Still fairly undiscovered, it doesn't have the insane hustle and bustle that many other popular European cities have. Sure it's busy but it isn't unbearable. The heart of the city is Main Town where you'll find numerous restaurants, cafes and bars to refuel. Check out the city's landmark Żuraw for a fantastic view over the city. Or, head to MS Sołek to find out about the rich maritime history. The European Solidarity Museum offers a fascinating insight into the Gdansk Shipyard movement that kickstarted the fall of Communism. It's worth investing the Gdansk tourist card* as you get invaluable unlimited public transport around all the Tri-City, free entrance into certain attractions and discounts off others alongside restaurants. If you're looking to really take advantage on everything on offer, it's worth investing.

But the best way to enjoy the city is to simply walk. Walk and walk and walk. Always remember to look up and don't worry about getting lost. It's a small city so you'll always find your way back home. It's so rare to find somewhere in Europe that feels so new and authentic. Make sure you visit before too many people find out about this gem of a place.

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How to get European flights for £20 with Ryanair

People always remark how I manage to travel so many times a year so I'm about to reveal my secret. £20 Ryanair flights. Yes £20. Amazing right? Simply click on Farefinder, select your local airport and the maximum price of £20. Once you've clicked search, then the magic begins.

Book last minute
I've found the flights tend to come on sale the same month or the month before. If you're lucky, you might get them two months before like we did for Ireland. So book a period of time off work and sit and wait. I recommend to keep checking daily until something tickles your fancy. Book fast as they soon sell out!

Be flexible
I know it's good to make the most out of your annual leave by booking weekend and bank holidays. But this isn't where you're going to find cheap flights as it's when EVERYONE wants to go on holiday. So be prepared to go midweek. I tend to find Wednesdays to Saturdays work really well for finding flights.

Be willing to go anywhere
The key to this whole shebang is not to be fussy. There tends to be lots of German cities and French cities listed. Some you haven't really heard of but this is all part of the fun of discovering somewhere knew. Recently I've found a couple of cities in Denmark and you can usually find places in Ireland to venture too.

This isn't a sponsored post at all, I'm just obsessed with finding £20 flights and thought you should be all in on the secret too!

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Exploring Europe: Villa Noailles, Hyerès, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France

During our weekend in the South of France, we drove to Hyerès to check out the exhibition at Villa Noailles. Located in the hills overlooking the town and set within pretty grounds, this gorgeous early modernist house is a sight to behold. Every year it holds the Hyerès International Fashion and photography festival exhibition and this is what we were here to check out.

Free to get into, it's such a wonderful place to spend a sunny afternoon. Walk around the various exhibitions, marvel at the cubist colourful garden, wander around the pine trees or bring some snacks to enjoy the stunning view over the town. The list is endless of things to enjoy. It was one of my highlights from the trip and a place I'd definitely visit again if I'm lucky enough to find myself in the area. 

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A weekend in the South of France

Like I mentioned in my Marseille post, we spent the day in the port city before getting the last train back to Elodie's hometown. We didn't see much as we got into Sanary-Sur-Mer around 11pm. Plus we were too busy fawning over Elodie's incredible pink house. Yes a pink house. The dream eh? We retired to bed just after midnight, looking forward to doing some more exploring the following day. 

We had a lie in before getting ready and walking down to the beach for a breakfast filled with pastries. It was just as glorious as it sounds. After hitting up what was said to be the best bakery in town, we found a bar to tuck into. My sugary brioche and cheese and ham croissant were amazing. Still dreaming about that croissant actually. After what seemed like hours of gossiping and drinking orangina, we decided to check out the (ridiculously windy) beach as we cheered on Michelle taking some outfit snaps.

After a slow walk into the centre of town we realised that Elodie actually lived in some sort of alternative Disney town and started to regret not coming over sooner. Have you seen the cinema below?! We walked passed a bustling farmer's market filled with delicious looking plump vegetables, tempting creamy cheeses and traditional biscuits. Surrounded by tall palm trees and basking in 25 degree heat, I could hardly believe this was just a short flight away from home.

Elodie gave us all a tour and we being the fickle bloggers we are, we fell in love with every single winding street we stumbled across. That architecture really is something else. The French Riviera really captured my heart. After climbing to the top of a hill for a cracking view of the town, it was time to go home as Elodie had an fun afternoon planned for us in Hyeres. More on that in another post!

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