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On this visit to South Africa I was eager to check out as many safari lodges as I could squeeze into my week-long itinerary in the Kruger and a visit to Royal Malewane was understandably high on my list. Royal Malewane has a reputation for being the most genuine colonial-style safari lodge, complete with vibrant prints, wooden ceilings, ancient artifacts and everything you could imagine to complete the safari style we’ve come to expect of a visit to the continent. Checking In to My African Villa Have you ever had one of those “pinch me” moments where you walk into your room and think you’ve been given the wrong keys? Me neither, ’til now! For my two night stay at Royal Malewane I was upgraded to the 2 bedroom villa, complete with an oversized living area, full kitchen (with a private chef – what!?), dining table for four, outdoor patio, pool, and private access to game drives. No matter the size of your room, each suite is luxuriously and intricately decorated in traditional colonial style, managing to transport you to another era entirely. I spent so much of my time in the villa walking around the various works of art […]

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Hello my loves and welcome back to another new reading list, this time for the month of March! I’ve got two topics on my mind this month: being my best self (I’m sure you’ve all seen my recent youtube video on the topic) and finally making a full attempt at eating vegan (yay!) Half of this month’s reading list I picked up in the Perth airport terminal while waiting 9 hours between flights, so suffice it to say that I’ve done my research and picked the best books for the month… here we go! 1. Truly, Madly, Guilty by Liane Moriarty I shouldn’t publicly admit to this, but I will: there’s a strong chance I stole this book from a hotel library collection… it was as if they were just begging for it by having all of these wonderful books there, with no signs to indicate otherwise. Consider it now mine. This book grabbed me in the title and I was absolutely convinced when I read the recommendation by Jojo Moyes. Truly Madly Guilty follows a narrative of lies and family drama and sounds like just the kind of escape from reality I need on a long-haul flight journey. 2. […]

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Hipster Guide to Amsterdam: Neighbourhoods Amsterdam centres itself around a glorious canal ring that presents the perfect opportunity to get lost. Make your way to each of these neighbourhoods to get a real local’s insight into the many personalities of this fascinating city! My Fave Hoods Jordaan – Easily the hippest hood of them all, Jordaan is full of quirky cafes, bespoke boutiques and a myriad of concept stores to work your way around. Oud-West – Outside of the centre of town, my favourite neighbourhood to wander around at leisure (particularly on weekends when the locals are too wandering) is Oud-West. The accommodation is a little cheaper here, making it a great alternative if you plan to cycle in to the centre each day (just don’t forget where you parked your bike!) A couple of my favourite eateries are here also, including the super hipster Vegan Junk Food Bar (which sells food as the name suggests). De Pijp – This neighbourhood centres itself around the most iconic market in Amsterdam; Albert Cuyp Markt, which operates daily. Around this area you will also find some of the best brunch spots in Amsterdam, including my personal favourite; Little Collins.  Read More: Amsterdam Photo Diary […]

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This year I’m back on the road solo for another round of me myself and no one else adventures (ha!) and I thought would better time than now to share the many reasons I still choose to travel solo and the life lessons it has taught me along the way. If you’re reading this with the intent to travel solo this year, I salute you! There’s a great support network out there to help calm the nerves and keep solo adventuring fun, so be sure to join the #WOWARMY on twitter if you have any questions, concerns or funny stories from the road! 1. Focus on the solution, not the Problem Travelling abroad you are almost always guaranteed for things to go wrong. Whether I’ve found myself on the right train but in the wrong direction or in a mad rush to the airport knowing I will miss my flight, I have learned through solo travel that the only person who can fix my problems is myself and the sooner I find the solution, the sooner I don’t have a problem! There have been so many instances in my adventures abroad where I have thought ‘this would be so much easier […]

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On my recent fleeting visit to New York, I had just enough time to check out what was happening on the bakery scene in the city and sample my way around some old favourites. Below you will find my handpicked selection of the 10 best bakeries in NYC and what each of them specialises in to make over-the-counter ordering a breeze! Supermoon Bake House (The Cruffin) New on the scene and only open a few days before my arrival, the creator of the cruffin (an Aussie himself) has departed Mr Holmes Bakehouse (West Coast) and branched out on his own with Supermoon Bake House in the lower east side. Of course, the speciality is still the croissant-muffin hybrid “the cronut”, but you’ll have to arrive bang on opening time to get your hands on one. If you miss out, the croissants are really good in terms of technique and flavour, but be ready to flake the whole thing all over you. Bonus: the coffee is great thanks to some Aussie baristas. 120 Rivington Street, Lower East Side, New York Woops! Bakeshop (The Cuteness) Over in Williamsburg I came across this little gem of a place that I’ll admit, looked better than it […]

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There’s no recommendation like that of a friend, so when an old school friend told me “you have got to go to Gozo” while in Malta, I took it as a challenge I was willing to accept. Like something out of a time-warped film set in Hollywood, this incredible island encapsulates everything Maltese living is about: sun, sea, and more sun!! Although I visited at the end of summer, the sun was scorching as the taxi driver translated the radio announcement to me: “the hottest day on record in a decade” he told me. Thank God, I thought to myself. So it isn’t just me… I’m not the only one melting into the abyss! We arrived at the bay area in Valletta and I almost threw myself into the shadiest seat on the boat, before the driver hit the engine and we made our way to Gozo. Arriving in Valletta The first thing to hit you in Valletta will be an overwhelming sense of wonder. Embrace it. The city is UNESCO World Heritage listed and presents one of the most awe-inspiring displays of architecture you will find anywhere in Europe. The church facades, statues and polished marble are just the beginning of this fabulous city that seems to reveal […]

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It was a couple of years ago when I set sail on my first ever cruise, quickly eating my words about how it wouldn’t be “my thing” and since craving life back on board a ship. “There’s something that draws you back to the sea”, I was told by the cruise director at the time. Right she was.

Last year I embarked on my second cruise through the Norwegian fjords, choosing to cruise as a way to avoid the high costs associated with visiting Norway (even on a good day with exchange rates!)

When the opportunity arose to try a Seabourn cruise I was overjoyed, having heard from many fellow cruisers that they were one of the best cruise companies in the biz. “Where would you like to go?” was like asking a kid in a candy store which one lolly they would like to choose.

Greece it was.

The Seabourn Difference

Before embarking on my 7 day cruise through the Greek Islands (with a day in Italy and the last day in Malta), I had read a lot about the Seabourn Difference through other reviews and already knew I was in for something special. The level of service became apparent when I stepped foot off my 30-hour flight journey from Australia, with a driver holding my name on a sign as I exited customs and immigration, waiting to take me to the cruise port nearby.

Once I arrived at the port, it was a speedy check-in process and before I knew it I was stepping foot on board the Seabourn Odyssey, one of the smaller ships in the fleet housing a casual 450 guests on board at capacity. Once on board I began exploring the 10 decks, quickly becoming familiar with the “Seabourn Square” coffee shop and subsequent library, the hardly-ever-occupied hot tub on deck 6 and the all important spa offerings on the upper decks, where I would later enjoy one of the best jet lag cures one could imagine (complete with hot stones and 75 minutes of me time!)

The Suite

After a quick walk around the ship to get my bearings and eat something other than plane food, I made my way to my cabin on deck 7 where my luggage awaited me inside my walk-in robe (yep, you read that right!) A bottle of champagne sat conveniently on ice, setting the scene for my all too short 7 days on board. My verandah suite was the perfect size for a solo traveller or a couple, complete with a large bathroom, walk-in robe, large balcony and a sitting area to enjoy the all-inclusive in room entertainment.

Also included in the suite is 24 hour in-room dining, which I was quick to make use of through the evenings as I flicked through new release movies after a big day of exploring. As Seabourn is an all-inclusive cruise line, there were also one litre bottles of my preferred spirits in my room (party for one!?) and soft drinks refilled every day.

Food, Entertainment & Service On Board

Let us begin with the food because if you ask me, this can make or break a trip. Good food = a good time. There are a few dining options on board the ship with the two most frequented being the main dining room for dinner and the all important buffet at the Colonade Restaurant for lunch. Breakfasts are served here also, however the in-room breakfast was too tempting to pass up, as well as frequent visits to Seabourn Square for a 6:30am coffee and almond croissant (if you ask me, the breakfast pastries at Seabourn Square are the best kept secret on board – they don’t last long!)

Being a vegetarian was a little restricting on board, however the food and beverage manager was quick to point out that I could make a special request for anything I would prefer for my time on board. Not wanting to be a burden, I stuck with the vegetarian menu which was limited but consistently changing and quite good.

Entertainment was for me the lowlight of the cruise, not being particularly interested in magicians or pianists, which took up most of the program on board. I was hoping for a little Broadway action like you get on the larger ships, however being a small ship the shows were quite bespoke and not as theatrical as I was hoping for.

Service was flawless – there’s no better way to describe it.

Destinations: Skopelos, Greece

Our first stop on the Greek Islands 7-day cruise from Athens was Skopelos, a small town made famous for being the filming location for the Abba! film. Luckily the crowds have died down since the initial influx of tourists, and Skopelos remains one of the lesser visited Greek Islands (making for a perfect first stop relatively off the grid!)

Mykonos, Greece

Next stop: Mykonos! The famous party island was a huge shift from the sleepy town of Skopelos, but a welcomed one as I have long had Mykonos on my destination bucket list. On this day we docked early and had until 11:00pm at night to explore, making for the perfect opportunity to take in the sunset from a top the hill where the iconic windmills sit.

Paros, Greece

On this day we were scheduled to arrive at Naxos, another lesser visited island, however with the rough seas we continued a little further to nearby Paros, my favourite stop for the entire cruise! Paros is one of the best-kept secrets of the Greek islands if you ask me – just as pretty and charming as Mykonos but without the crowds (aka bliss). If there’s just one pitstop in Greece that I will return to, Paros  would be it!

Agios Nikolaos, Greece

The next day we arrived in Crete and stopped in at Agios Nikolaos for one of the shorter stops of the cruise, but a surprisingly enjoyable one nonetheless. Each day I chose to wake up early and be the first to rush off the ship, see the stop before any of the other guests and be back on the ship as others were just getting started for the day! This was a great way to see each pitstop without the crowds and enjoy the towns almost all to myself.

Syracuse, Sicily

Towards the end of my 7-day cruise we reached Sicily, for just one day to enjoy the marvellous delight that is Italian gelato (believe me when I say I was hanging out for it!!!) Although Sicily had never been on my radar before this trip, I fell head-over-heels for the laid back culture, low level of crowds in the heat of the summer and of course, the gelato!

Valletta & Gozo, Malta

Where to even begin with my love for Malta – the last stop of the cruise and the point I wanted to pause my trip and stay for a very long time (probably forever). The ship docked in Valletta for the day, the ancient capital I  was eager to explore, but gave up the opportunity in place of a speedboat day tour to Gozo, which had been personally recommended to me by a friend.

This was the only day excursion I chose from the cruise, partly because I like to be a bit of a lone ranger when exploring and partly due to most of the excursions being history heavy and light on the adventure offerings.

Conclusion: Would I Recommend Seabourn?

Totally! I don’t think it is any secret that I throughly enjoyed this cruise and visiting Greece for the first time – I’m just bummed it only lasted 7 days! If you’re travelling all that way and want to make the most out of your holiday I would recommend at least 14 days on board to truly relax, switch off and enjoy sea life. The 7 day taster was a great introduction to Greece, but it has only left me wanting more!

A huuuuuuge thank you to Seabourn for welcoming me on board to experience and share my trip with my readers. I had a fabulous time and all opinions are my own.

As one of the most popular islands in Greece, Mykonos is as iconic and quintessential as they come. With such a renowned reputation thanks to its picture-perfect streets and well-preserved heritage, the island is one of the most populated islands on the tourist-island-hopping itinerary of Greece. Mykonos gained popularity in the 1930s when many celebrities, artists and affluent Europeans began to flock to the island in the summer time. The culture has rapidly evolved and many visitors arriving to Mykonos are drawn to the party scene, international music acts and parties that continue past dawn. Iconic Mykonos: The List The Windmills are located on the western side of town and are considered an icon of Mykonos. Here is where you can also enjoy the best sunset view in Mykonos, overlooking Little Venice below as the night culture begins to kick in to gear. Little Venice is next on the list of things to see, known for its medieval two and three story houses on the water. With colour pops and a certain romance to it, this is a great place to grab a drink and enjoy watching the sunset, from where you can also view the windmills above. Elia Beach […]

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Out of all the places I have been in the world as a full time travel blogger, “where is your favourite place?” is a question I have never been able to answer definitively. Thus I present to you my series of “101 Places to Visit Before you Die”, covering the very best cities, towns, hotels, experiences, and everything travel related to make your bucket list complete. The first in this series highlights the absolute best cities to visit before you die, from the clichés through to the best kept secrets this world has to offer! 1. St Petersburg, Russia The history and sheer opulence of Russia’s imperial capital will leave you speechless. Made great by Peter the Great himself, St Petersburg was the beating heart of Russia un till 1918, when the government bodies moved to Moscow. To this day the city presents itself as a time capsule, showing insight into Russia’s imperial past – complete with palaces, nobility residences and iconic monuments. Be sure to step inside the Hermitage Museum (pictured) for a glimpse in to the legacy of Russian royalty and aristocratic culture. 2. New York, USA A world in itself, there is no city in the world […]

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