St Tropez & Monaco Road Trip

St Tropez & Monaco Road Trip

Wednesday, 9 September 2026

After our trip to Champagne in July, we were hooked on the idea of another Ferrari road trip. Unsurprising. 

This time, we left London with no idea where we were going. 

There was a loose idea of going to Lake Como, but that was scrapped the minute we saw lightning on the weather forecast. So, naturally, we followed the sunshine and that too us to the French Riviera instead.

The first leg took us from London, to Folkstone, under the chanel and as far as Lyon which was as far as we could manage for the day. Ten hours later, we arrived, during a thunder storm to a cute little converted barn complex in the middle of a field; which I found from the passengers seat along the way.

We spent hardly any time there as we knew the sun was further south so from Lyon, we got up early and made our way to Monaco, taking a wrong turn and a very unnecessary detour through Paris. 

There was a momentary consideration of staying there and heading to soho house but we were both desperate for some sunshine so Monaco prevailed. 

Monaco was awesome, and so was the trip there. Twisting turning roads, carved into the side of the mountain, roof down, sun shining. Perfect. 

We did a couple of laps of Monte Carlo to get a feel for the place, tick off all the necessary sights and try to work out which hotel we wanted to stay in. We settled on the Fairmont, and were lucky enough to get upgraded to a sea view room, so there was a brief moment of stillness whilst we just took in the views from the balcony but it wasn't long before we were ready to go again. 

We grabbed a couple of rooftop cocktails and some dressed oysters at Amazonico and headed down to the harbour for yacht watching with champagne and a fresh seafood dinner.  

Waking up to the sound of the ocean; again there was no real plan for the day so we decided to go hang out by the pool and work out what we were going to do.

Conveniently enough, the pool at the hotel was part of Nikki Beach, so what started as a quiet matcha on the roof turned into a day party so we ended up staying there. I'm not usually a fan of beach clubs, but on a city rooftop, it was much more my vibe! Our bed was set back from the pool so away from all that chaos and it was 5pm before we realised we should have left hours ago. 

When the time finally came to leave (6 hours after we had imagined) we jumped back in the car and headed west towards St Tropez - catching golden hour along the coast as we arrived.

It was late and we didn't make a room reservation so we hoped for the best and got lucky. A very cute boutique hotel, with one ocean view garden room left. 

We dumped the bags and headed straight to the hotel restaurant as the sun dipped down behind the mountains. The food, the views, and so it turned out, the hotel itself were all incredible - another very good find! 

Refreshed and raring to go, the next morning started with a quick swim before heading out to explore St Tropez town. I didn't really have any expectations but what we found was a cute little cobbled old town, lined with designer shops and seafood restaurants. 

We spend hours wandering around from shop to shop before finally stopping for a late lunch - a bowl of fresh mussels and a glass of champagne at one of the waterfront spots. It was a awesome day. 

I'd been saving for a pair of designer flats all summer and the opportunity to buy them in St Tropez was not wasted on me. RE below: very pleased with my new shoes.

I had wanted to go to Club 55 but by the time we were bored with the old town, we'd been there all day and we're well and truly spent (lol) so we drove down to have a look but couldn't be bothered to get out of the car so skipped that and went back to the hotel.

I had another swim and then we had the most dreamy sunset cocktail situation by the pool during what felt like a never ending golden hour.

After such a wonderful meal the first night, we stuck to what we knew and had dinner in the same spot at the hotel, except tonight it was a huge steak and local red wine! 

We were back by the pool early for a swim and a croissant. The pastry in France, as suspected, is next level! The playlist this morning was whimsical piano music which set the perfect scene for a peaceful morning. Again, we were very delayed leaving; I definitely could have spent a few more days there!

The drive back north was much longer than predicted because of traffic but by 8:30, we finally arrived (back) in the middle of nowhere at another very cute little chateau where I promptly fell asleep. The next morning we were woken up by natural daylight streaming in and the sound of songbirds which was quite nice.

It was our last day, and although we were slightly tight on time, I was able to make the most of the roll top bathtub that sat in the middle of the bathroom and have a lazy breakfast (and a croissant snuck into my bag) before we left. 

Our journey home took a detour via Maison Moet to restock on that delicious imperial nectar we tried last time we were there, and the rest of the drive home was wonderful. No traffic meant long stretches of empty roads and not seeing another person as we drove through countryside. There were a couple of close calls with the petrol, arriving at the tunnel with about 5km left in the tank but it all worked out fine! The train got us back to the UK in 35 minutes which meant I was back at home and in bed by 9 o'clock.

And thus, another awesome road trip in the bag!

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A weekend in Champagne.

A weekend in Champagne.

Friday, 24 July 2026

No plan.

Long drives.

Loud music.

French château.

Flaky Pastry.

Champagne flights.

Salted Butter.

Slurred words.

Imperial Nectar.

Summer dresses.

Lazy afternoons.

Early nights.

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Bali Highlights

Bali Highlights

Monday, 12 January 2026

And with that, another Bali trip comes to an end. I worked out that my recent Christmas visit was my 7th trip to Bali and I'm still not quite bored of it yet. Here were this times highlights:

The White Palm Boutique Hotel

Three of the four hotels I stayed at were amazing but the room at The White Palm particularly stands out as a favourite. It's a small boutique hotel with just a few rooms bordering a pool. The aesthetic was very black and white which is right p my street and the rooms themselves were super simple and very clean. I was upgraded to the suite which had a lot more space and added a lot to my overall enjoyment of the place! Sadly, there was construction next door so whilst the room was perfect for outside the hours of 9-5, spending time by there pool was a no go as not only way it loud, but it was very overlooked by the builders.

Lazy pool days

I didn't let that stop me enjoying my pool days however. I love to swim whilst I'm on holiday, and that was all I really wanted out of this trip so I spent most of my days lazing around the pool at the previous hotel I'd stayed at which was a 3 minute walk away. 

It was more of a traditional, island resort type place with two pools and a restaurant so I picked my favourite of the two and set up on a shady sun lounger. Between swimming, sleeping, reading and drinking one iced tea after another, whole days disappeared. 

Hiring a photographer

This was a case of serendipity I think, because usually I really enjoy taking my own photos on holiday, but this time around, I just couldn't be bothered. 

The first hotel I stayed at offered a free photographer session and I was really happy with the outcome. A week later when I realised I hadn't taken any holiday photos, I reached out and asked if she'd come to my new location and take some photos for me. 

The results was a fun afternoon activity, and some great, professional looking memories!

Spring Spa

I usually like to find new, niche salons and I did a couple this time around but often, I'm disappointed so I've realised that sometimes, it's best stick with what you know. 

Spring Spa is a popular chain in both Bali and NZ and have never failed me before. They'd opened a new location in Bingin since my last visit so I got the benefit of trying somewhere new paired with the quality I have come to expect from them. 

I booked in for a reflexology session on my penultimate day and it was great. I had a male therapist and his thumbs were so strong. After a bit of research, I now understand why I enjoy reflexology so much - it's all about nervous system regulation. Fine, makes sense. Anyway, it was so good that I went back the next day for another half hour on my feet and a wonderful facial just before I left for the airport. I'll definitely be doing that again next time. 

Flight upgrade 

I was adamant that I was going to fly business at some point on this trip and it was a definite highlight; of the year, not just the trip. I've flown upper classes before but I was so proud of myself for the first business class flight I had bought for myself. 

Ice tea

I get hyper fixated on food in Bali. In the past it's been smoothie bowls, but this time around, it was iced tea. You never know what you're going to get when your order an ice tea in Indonesia, sometimes it'd get sugary, sweet milk tea, other times it was refreshing lemon iced tea and quite often it tasted like jasmine. I'm not quire sure what that one was but either way. I enjoy them very much.

Yoga Class

I did three yoga classes whilst I was away and I probably would have done a couple more if I felt like my back could handle it. My favourite class was Morning Light Yoga at Uluwatu surf villas. Their open air shala was overlooking the ocean and surrounded by palm trees which meant gentle stretching to the sound of the waves!

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South Coast Staycation

South Coast Staycation

Tuesday, 26 August 2025

With the weather hitting late teens back in March, we wasted no time in deciding to head down to the coast. After a well remembered overnight charge for the car, at 9 am on Saturday morning, we hopped in and headed south. 

It was still a little overcast when we arrived, but warm enough to sit out and enjoy breakfast on the seafront. Breakfast breakfasts and tea for two cost less than £20 - one of the few benefits of leaving London. Being at the seaside is so peaceful, I really enjoyed just slowing down a little bit. 

As the clouds cleared and the sun peeked through, we wandered down to the beach and made our way to the pier. 

My penny machine skills are yet to fail me, I won 3 key rings and spent the rest of my change on an ice cream. A must by the seaside; always mint choc chip with a flake.

After that it was just about time to check in & we seemed to have booked the nicest hotel room in Eastbourne, the studio apartment at The Port hotel.

Dan went off to his car race that evening so once he left, I took myself for a walk to find some food -  I was very tempted by the local Chinese but decided I probably wouldn't thank myself in the morning so instead went to the supermarket in search of girl dinner. 

I spent a good hour or two by the big bay windows in the room, eating, journalling and watching the sun go down over the sea before making full use of the massive freestanding bath (with bubbles, obviously).

The next morning we did a little section of the Seven Sisters hike along the cliffs in search of a red and white striped lighthouse. Success. 

ad then headed home via Brighton, spending the afternoon lazing by the Soho house pool.

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Five problems we encountered on the road

Five problems we encountered on the road

Thursday, 19 June 2025

Road trips, I think like a backpacking trip, have so many moving parts that there is way more opportunity to encounter problems than on a traditional, beach hotel holiday.

Solving them however, is all part of the fun!

Here are five problems we encountered on our latest road trip:

Road Closures

Whilst we were in California, both the Tioga Pass and Big Sur were closed due to ‘seasonal conditions’ and landslides. These are two iconic tourist routes so they were both on our original plan. Luckily, we had done our research so were able to substitute Yosemite with Lake Tahoe and still make it work but this could have been disastrous if not. Some areas of California are so remote that a single road closure can add hours to your drive.

Car issues

Our car was really great but since Turo cars are personal vehicles, they aren’t always freshly serviced like standard rental cars. We quickly realised that one of the tires had some kind of puncture which was affecting the air pressure. Most days, we were able to easily pump it up at a gas station but there was one morning, in Mammoth, where we went from one gas station to another and all of their air pumps were out of order. The tire was getting flatter and flatter as we were driving around searching and in the end, we had to take it into a garage. Dan was getting very stressed. 

When we got to LA, our Turo host very quickly sent someone to properly fix the problem.


Restaurants shutting early

We really enjoyed the driving days so often, they were quite long. We’d usually arrive at our accommodation for the evening at around 6pm, get settled, shower and then head out. In the bigger cities, this was fine but in more often than not, in the smaller, local towns, we struggled to find restaurants that stayed open past 8:30. It was really quite odd and left us with very little choice when it came to dinner. In the end we would drive to the restaurant with all our stuff still in the car before checking in and just eat earlier. 

Mobile Connection

Large stretches of the Mojave Desert, Route 66, and Death Valley had little to no phone reception. At first, I thought this was an awesome opportunity to be fully present, with only my favourite downloaded songs to listen to but actually, having google maps is quite helpful when you are driving 6 hours though a dessert without another person in sight. To get around this, we set off on our route whilst we had wifi, and just had to hope that the map got us to where we needed to go without any changes or updates.

Driving Times

This seemed to happen last year too but we’d plan our route, Google would say it took 4 hours and somehow it took us 6. I guess when you plot a route, you don’t take into account all the photo stops, wrong turns, toilet breaks and the gas refills. This wasn’t a problem for us, as we were quite casual with bookings but it did mean that we often arrived much later than planned so that is definitely something to keep in mind.

These things all made our trip what it was, so they weren’t necessarily bad, just things to look out for!

My recommendation is to just go with the flow and don’t stress, it’s all part of the adventure!

And usually nothing a little snack wont fix.

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