The Malmo & Moss Guide to the North Norfolk Coast

I am the kind of person who, come the 2nd of January, likes to have their holidays mapped out for the year. Places I had wanted to visit in 2020 included Byron Bay and Bali. Places I actually visited: Worcester, Hunstanton and Truro. However, whilst things may not have panned out as originally planned (owing to the small matter of a global pandemic) we still had a great Summer, revisiting some favorite spots in the UK and adding some new ones to the list as well. With restrictions on UK stays looking likely to be lifted later this Spring, I wanted to share one of my favourite places to holiday at home with you: the North Norfolk Coast. We have been coming to this part of the world for over 10 years now drawn by huge sandy beaches, wide open skies, pretty flint villages and a winning combination of nice places to eat, drink and shop.

Where to Stay

There are so many great places to stay and something for every budget. From self catering to great gastro pubs with rooms, chic bed & breakfasts, glamping spots and comfortably grand hotels. If you are looking for all the advantages of self catering with all the luxury touches of boutique hotel then look no further than Ford House Norfolk.

Ford House Norfolk serves up some serious kerb appeal

It is located in the pretty village of Docking, which is located just ten minutes drive from Burnham Market, one of the buzziest places on the coast and within easy access of two of my favourite beaches: Holme Dunes and Brancaster. It has three bedrooms (two doubles and one bunk room) two bathrooms, a gorgeous kitchen diner with an Aga keeping it cosy and living room with brick built hearth, woodburner and the squishiest of sofas. Outside you have the choice of two gardens, lawn to the front with a kid pleasing trampoline or a lovely courtyard garden at the back with table and chairs and a fantastic mud kitchen to keep the kids entertained whilst you are soaking up the sun!

A sunny spot in the rear courtyard garden with a lovely mud kitchen for the kids

Ford House is beyond well equipped. Every single thing you could possibly conceive to make your stay as comfortable, luxurious and relaxing as possible has been thought of. It starts in the kitchen with a welcome hamper waiting for you when you arrive packed with useful basics and delicious extras, jars of sweets for the kids on the counter and a chocolate traybake awaiting you in the fridge. As a dedicated tea drinker I loved the choice of gorgeous ceramic mugs hung above the kitchen counter for your morning tea or coffee.

In every room there are scented candles from Join and bath foam from the same independent Suffolk brand when you want to run yourself a long hot bath at the end of a day on the beach. If you settle down in the evening in front of the fire there are a host of magazine and interiors books to tuck into and plenty of board games and dvds to keep the kids entertained should the Norfolk weather not be on your side. I am not kidding when I say there were days when we struggled to leave the house as it catered to our every need! I don’t know where Amanda (the owner) sources the duvets on the beds from but it was like going to sleep in a cloud every evening.

It is impossible not to sleep well whilst staying in the beautiful bedrooms at Ford House

The cosy living room has plenty of interiors books and magazines to keep you occupied

If Ford House is booked up (as I know it often is!) then why not try one of these great Air BnB options saved to my North Norfolk wishlist which I know had some Summer availability left (if you are quick). There is a handsome townhouse in the beautiful village of Cley, 5 mins from a great beach), the sweetest two bedroom cottage with great rustic industrial interiors near Holkham, a newly renovated barn with a hot tub for 4 guests near South Creake or a Scandi Rustic chic cottage in the beautiful market town of Holt. If camping is your thing then this Summer, in a secluded corner of the Holkham estate, there’s a new pop-up campsite called Camp Elwood with space for grass pitches, bell tents and a dining hall with a restaurant and fully licensed bar.

For relaxed bed and breakfast in a gorgeous grand country house, book into Stay at the Whitehouse . They have spacious suites that offer plenty of privacy and the breakfasts are worth dragging yourself out of bed for.

Beaches

If you can prise yourself away from the house then within a ten-twenty minute drive are two absolutely beautiful beaches. A new discovery for me this time, Holme Dunes is by all accounts a little bit of a North Norfolk secret so I feel slightly bad for sharing it here! From the car park make your way down to the beach through windswept sand dunes to find a gently shingled beach. There is no cafe so pack a picnic and find a good spot in the sand dunes to hunker down and enjoy the view out to sea. If you want a beach with more facilities, Brancaster slightly further along the coast towards Wells is also one of my favourites. There are vast open stretches of sand, and a hut selling ice creams, coffees, buckets and spades. Although it is more popular than Holme Dunes it never feels crowded because it is such a big beach. Also if you wanted to combine the two beaches in a day you could start at Holme Dunes then stop off on the way to Brancaster in Thornham where the legendary Thornham Deli awaits. From hearty breakfasts to amazing afternoon teas they do it all with plenty of tasty options to takeaway as well. There is also a great playground next door and playing field, always good to know if you have kids like mine who need to burn off labrador like energy levels!

The tranquil sands at Holme Dunes

If you want to venture further field then Wells by the Sea has lines of iconic pastel coloured beach huts , a minature railway leading down to the sea, a cafe serving breakfasts and lunches, and ice cream van and even a mini off shoot of Joules! My other favourite has to be Holkham. Norfolk is famous for it’s wide open skies and nowhere is that more true than on Holkham beach. You make your way down to the beach through pine trees and then come out onto great expanses of sand stretching far out to sea. It is impossibly wild and beautiful and once you have blown the cobwebs away you can head back up the beach to the Victoria Inn. A fantastic foodie pub with goregous rustic interiors. My other favourite beach has to be Cley by the Sea. You make your way towards it through a pretty flint village with it’s own Windmill and a new sell out bakery Pastonacre. The road leading down to it gets water logged at high tide so be careful how you time your visit (I ended up with very wet shoes and socks) but it is a lovely place for a walk as the sun goes down.

Places to eat and drink

There are so many great options that it is truly difficult to know where to start! So maybe I will break it down into different categories to make it easier - although several are great whatever meal of the day you are wanting to eat!

Breakfast & Brunch

I have to start this category with Byfords, a Norfolk institution and rightly so! Located in the pretty Georgian market town on Holt inside a beautiful old building with crooked floors and think wooden beams. There are tables hidden away in every nook and cranny and the breakfast/brunch menu will fill you up for the day. I always have eggs benedict whilst the pancakes are a firm favourite with the kids. On your way out stop into the deli section and pic up a home cooked meal for the evening or a doorstep size slice of one of their many delicious cakes. They also have rooms for overnight stays but make sure to pack elasticated waist trousers!

On the road out of Holt is another one of my favourite brunch spots: Back to the Garden. Located in in a converted barn with huge soaring ceilings it is set around a pretty courtyard garden with brunch options featuring lots of delicious local produce. If you want a more casual breakfast then you can’t do better than a trip to Stiffkey Stores for coffee and freshly baked pastries (more on that below).

Casual Lunches

There are so many great places to choose from in this category that it is hard to narrow it down! Here are some of the ones I enjoyed the most on our most recent trip. If you are visiting Holkham beach then add on a trip to Holkham Hall, a grand stately pile up from the beach with an excellent (and free) forest adventure playground for the kids, huge grounds to roam around in and, during the Summer, a outdoor food market on Fridays and Saturdays. In the shadow of the hall there are vintage style vans selling everything from cheesy chips (my fave) to burritos, burgers, wood fired pizzas and much more.

Wiveton Hall is on a smaller scale than Holkham but in amongst fields and a farmyard they have opened a wonderfully colourful cafe serving casual meals using lots of local produce. Even better for those with kids there is a mini recreation of the hall for climbing and playing hide and seek in.

When it comes to delis from which to source the ingredients for a tasty picnic your cup overfloweth. I have already mentioned Thornham Deli and Byfords in Holt but a couple of others which deserve honourable mention include Gurney’s at the Brancaster Village Store and Picnic Fayre in Cley Next to the Sea. The former is next to a playing field, communal tennis courts and picnic tables and the latter is in a beautiful Old Forge within walking distance of a beautiful beach.

Throw the diet out the window when in North Norfolk! There are so many great delis to pick up local produce

Evening meals

If you don’t fancy cooking your own dinner then there are plenty of great options for evening meals ranging from fish and chips through to fully on fancy fare. Erics Fish and Chips just outside Thornham has rapidly become a local institution with it’s modern take on fish and chips. They do all the classics, including gluten free options but also have some knock out side specials like pesto arancini balls that have to be tasted. There is loads of outdoor seating and last time we visited they have also added an ice cream van.

If you want something a little fancier then would really recommend Socius in Burnham Market which offers a British take on tapas with a delicious selection of small plate dishes. We have not yet managed to get a table, but The White Horse in Brancaster Staithe comes highly recommended by others with a stunning terrace overlooking lobster pots, oyster beds and saltmarshes out to Scolt Head Island and the sea beyond. For simple pub fair with boho style interiors (and a huge slide in the middle of the beer garden to keep the kids happy) head to the Gin Trap Inn. Two more great pubs with playgrounds (if you are eating early with the kids) include the Kings Head in Letheringsett and The Victoria Inn, Holkham. The food at the latter is seriously delicious.

Socius in Holt serves up great mini plates of food in British tapas style

Shopping

I could probably dedicate this entire section to my favourite North Norfolk shop: Stiffkey Stores. It is part general store, part cafe part amazing interiors shop in what was once the local post office. The L Shaped building frames a pretty courtyard garden where there are plenty of places to sit with the newspapers, freshly baked croissants and a coffee. My kids love the selection of sweets stocked inside which always buys me a bit of time for browsing in the interiors section of the store. The owners have an amazing eye for display, pulling together a selection of homewares that sits perfectly against the white wash and brick walls, wooden beams and stone floors of the building. In summer they often have plants and flowers to buy displayed in old iron bath tubs outside the front of the store. It’s a truly lovely place to while away an hour or three.

I challenge you to come home from Stiffkey Stores without making a purchase

Burnham Market has a nice selection of independent shops stocking a mix of fashion, jewellery , gifts and homeware and is a nice place to pass a happy hour or two browsing shops like Anna, Norfolk Living, Foras and Barefoot Living.

Another favourite shopping destination of mine is Holt, a handsome market town set slightly inland. It is a great place to stock up on provisions with an Adnams shop for those seeking locally brewed beers as well as butchers, green grocers and delis. There used to be a fabulous vintage store in a converted shop which was great for a rummage but that has sadly closed. A new find for me on our last visit was Sprout offering homewares right up my Scandi Rustic Street.

I loved the displays at Sprout in Holt

Just outside Thornham, another favourite shop of mine is Joyful Living. A treasure trove of gorgeous interiors products, from cushions to candles and everything inbetween that are not outrageously priced. It is great for combining with a trip to Eric’s Fish and Chips which is just next door.

I hope you love North Norfolk as much as we doo.

There is so much more I could share with you about this amazing part of the world but I will leave it there for now!

I received a small discount on my stay at Ford House Norfolk but with no obligation to blog about our stay.

10 Great Ideas For A Staycation This Summer

The 4th of July 1776 was the day America declared independence from English rule. The 4th of July 2020 will see citizens of the UK celebrate their holiday independence as campsites, hotels and self catering accommodation reopen after lockdown. Granted we probably won’t commemorate the moment that the gates of Elvedon Centre Parcs swing open for the next 300 years but right now it feels pretty momentous. Demand for UK holidays has soared leaving many of us scrambling to lock down a staycation that doesn’t involve camping in a layby off the A1. But I am here to save you many hours of google research with 15 great places to stay in the UK that still have some availability for July and August. All of my choices offer Scandi Rustic rather than Skegness style and I have tried to include options for every budget.

Agricultural Chic in Norfolk

North Norfolk is one of my favourite staycation destinations with its wide open skies, sweeping wide sandy beaches and flint stone built villages full of great little places to shop and eat. Nestled in the Norfolk countryside 30 minutes from the coast, Great Barn Farm is a collection of barns expertly converted to maintain the historical, rustic look of the farmyard, but combining it with modern comforts and practical design. Spacious, neutral interiors that blend seamlessly with the surrounding countryside make this an excellent option

Cottages in a Cornish Cove

With plenty of time on my hands during lockdown I have enjoyed using my evenings to learn another European language, master Origami and write my first novel. Who am I kidding I have actually been collapsing on the sofa, eating Rich Tea biscuits slathered in Nutella whilst rewatching Poldark for the fourth time. The harbour in Charlestown on the South Cornish coast often pops up as a location and it is home to a gorgeous cluster of self catering accommodation known as Antonia’s Pearls. There are 6 different properties and if you are quick some of them still have July and August availability. The all feature the same fresh, white interior with lots of quirky interesting vintage finds. We have stayed in the Sail Loft before and had a lovely week, pottering around the harbour, swimming in the sea and picnicking on the secluded pebbly beach.

Scandi Suffolk Cabin

The Stables is a centuries old former stable converted into a modern rustic rural retreat. Set deep in the Suffolk countryside but within easy reach of the Suffolk coast it is a holiday cottage for four people with with original brick floors and oak beams throughout. Surrounded by lots of land to let the kids roam free/feral this idyllic rural retreat still has good availability for August.

Get Cosy in a Cotswold Cowshed

A few years ago we rented Bledington Barn for a break between Christmas and New Year and fell in love with its picture perfect location on the edge of a Cotswold village green a stone’s throw from the fantastic Kings Head pub. Sleeping up to six the owners have renovated the 300 year old barn in an eco-friendly way recycling and re purposing original materials. Think lazy breakfasts around a gorgeous old wooden table, evenings playing games in the double height living space and nights snuggled up in beds with the softest sheets and linen.

Camping in Kent

Last Summer just before we moved house we spent a very happy couple of nights in a bell tent in Kent. Blocking thoughts of packing/stamp duty and removal lorries from our mind we loved this small family friendly campsite with great facilities. Whilst Fallowfield weekends are now booked up there is still weekday availability in the bell tents. It makes a great base for exploring some of Kent’s nicest coastal spots including my personal favourite: Whitstable

A Highland Adventure

At the end of a four mile, loch-skimming, possibly buttock clenching single track drive past hedgerows thick with purple thistles and fields of shaggy Highland cattle, lies Monachyle Mhor - a boutique hotel owned and run by the Lewis family. In the grounds of the hotel, across a handmade bridge, is a very special Highland hideout.

The Ferry Waiting Room Cabin sleeps 4 and is built around two huge picture windows that connect the cabin to the amazing highland views around it. if you want to get back to nature this is the place for you. Climb a mountain, go fishing in the loch and embrace your inner Highlander.

Shed Chic on Skye

If I could close my eyes and transport myself to any of the places I have picked out this would be the one I would teleport to. The Black Shed sits on the side of a remote hill, surrounded by Hebridean sheep grazing under vast skies with Loch Dunvegan shimmering in the distance. The Black Shed replaced an old agricultural building and offers airy interiors made up of pine-clad walls, textured concrete floors and big windows to frame the view. This is a retreat for two so pack your bags and

Run Away to Rye

If you haven’t left the confines of your house for the last three months bar socially distant trips to the supermarket (the new going “Out Out”) then blasting the lockdown cobwebs away standing atop the vast sand dunes of Camber Sands will feel like heaven. This tranquil harbour-side hideaway sits two miles downstream from Rye town (hello cute cobbled streets) and only six miles from Camber Sands. Hawkhurst was once used to spy on trespassing smugglers and enemies, today the former watch house which sleeps six exudes Scandi rather than smuggler chic.  

Timeout in Thorpeness

An apartment virtually on the beach with stunning sea views and light bright interiors sounds like just the place I would like to be right now. 4 Truman Lodge is in peaceful Thorpeness on the Suffolk coast. The apartment sleeps 4 and is next door to the Thorpeness Country Club which offers facilities including tennis courts and steps away from the popular Dolphin Pub. It still has weekend availability in August from £95 a night so go forth and book quickly.

Days on the farm in Devon

Berridon Farm is a small family farm in a gorgeous part of Devon, with access to secret beaches and rolling countryside. Gather eggs straight from chickens, splash in the stream and swing on the tyre swings and then warm yourself by a woodburner on chilly Summer evenings in one of the five rustic tented cabins.

They still have availability for a couple of weekends in August but be quick because this slice of the Good Life is sure to get booked up soon

A Weekend on the Suffolk Coast staying at The Dunns

Suffolk: land of my father’s birth and fictional birthplace of Harry Potter (true fact Potter fans). Inland it is dotted with lovely towns and villages featuring pastel coloured cottages with thatched roofs. But head to its easterly side and you will also find a stretches of glorious unspoilt coastline abutted by tasteful towns where you can queue up for gluten free fish and chips and wash them down with a craft ale or two like a proper DIFL.

Since discovering the charms of its coast 15 years ago we have been regular return visitors. I spent my 30th birthday eating chips on the beach in Aldeburgh, we celebrated my mum’s 60th birthday with a meal at the Crown & Castle in Orford and we returned (without my mum) for a dirty weekend in Woodbridge back in the days when that wasn’t shorthand for clearing out the garden shed.

Its charms are endless and I am always on the look out for great new self catering places to stay on this stretch of coast now that our days of holing up in hotel rooms are over. So I was delighted when Jodie got in touch to ask me if we would like to come and stay at The Dunns, a newly converted cedar clad Scandi style holiday home in the heart of Orford, one of my very favourite Suffolk spots.

The Dunns definitely has coastal kerb appeal

I love how they have brought the bungalow up to date with the use of timber cladding

Orford sits on the mouth of the river Ore and you reach it via a soul stirring drive through Rendlesham Forest. There is very definitely a sense of leaving the world behind behind you as you whizz past pine trees under huge open skies. Whilst Orford is a vision of cute cottage loveliness it also has some really cool contemporary houses as well which take full advantage of the amazing views out over Orford Ness Nature reserve.

Orford is full of pretty houses like these red brick beauties

The Dunns is one such home. It sits nestled in a great spot just yards from the castle and the quay and has been newly renovated by Jodie and her family to create a light, bright and spacious holiday home. Downstairs it has a brilliant open plan layout with a newly installed navy kitchen which leads out to a courtyard at the back and a great garden at the front.

The open plan kitchen/dining space

The super well equipped kitchen

A tap like this is on my kitchen renovation wish list

I liked how Jodie had mixed some vintage pieces into the Scandi inspired decor

There are two bedrooms at The Dunns, a double and a twin that can also be a double. The twin is on the groundfloor with an ensuite shower room whilst the double is upstairs in the dormer with its own balcony, stunning floor to ceiling windows and access to an eaves bathroom with the kind of roll top bath you will struggle to get out of.

The master bedroom upstairs with access out to a balcony

I loved the floor to ceiling windows and the views out to Orford Ness

There were so many lovely touches with plentiful interiors books to read in bed

The bathroom in the eaves. I loved the cement tiles they had used in the shower

The view from the bathroom through to the bedroom

The twin bedroom downstairs

With its own ensuite and some more show stopping tiles

Back downstairs, the living room has a lovely squishy corner sofa and woodburner for days when the sun isn’t shining so bright. There is also a sideboard stocked with board games to keep everyone amused as well as a Smart TV.

The squishiest of sofas

As you can see it wasn’t long before everyone had made themselves at home!

A cosy corner by the woodburner

The interiors have been kept simple and Scandi so were right up my street but what really sets The Dunns apart is the level of thought and detail that Jodie has put into making this a truly comfortable and cosseting hideaway. There are stacks of gorgeous interiors books that you will want to sit down with in front of the fire, back issues of Simple Things mags to stay in bed on a Sunday with, Plum & Ashby bath products, lots of board games (and most thrillingly of all for my 3 year old a set of Power Ranger figures) and then also wine, chocolate and biscuits from local producers awaiting you on arrival.

Arriving to find the new Modern Rustic was bliss

I loved this mural in the hallway

There is an honesty shop in the house offering a range of lovely locally made interiors items

So you can stock up on all your favourite Plum & Ashby products whilst you are there

Things to Eat, See and Do in Orford

If you can tear yourself away from the house Orford itself has enough on its own to keep you happily amused for a whole weekend. Mere metres from the Dunns is the legendary Pump Street Bakery. If there is a purer slice of pastry pleasure on this earth than their Rhubarb and Custard donuts I am yet to find it. If you want to enjoy breakfast in the cafe then make sure you get there are soon as it opens (if not a little before) as there are basically only 4 tables and lots of competition for them! Pump Street also now have a shop in the same square if you wanted to take some chocolate goodies home with you.

People come from miles around to get one of the Pump Street Bakery donuts

They also have a chocolate shop just across the square

Inside the small but perfectly formed cafe. Be sure to get there early if you want a table!

Donut heaven

Parking our posteriors outside Pump Street Bakery

Walking away from the main square you have the choice of going right to the castle or left to the Quay. The castle is defo not of Windsor sized proportions but our boys loved rampaging around its walls and ground playing hide and seek. If you have worked up a hunger from hide and seek you can call into the Crown & Castle (formerly owned by Ruth Watson of the Hotel Inspector) for a lovely meal or a drink by their fire. Or back on the market square you can enjoy a truly locally sourced meal at the Butley Orford Oysterage. Pinneys who own the restuarant (and a shop down on the Quay) have been growing and smoking Oysters in nearby Butley Creek since the 1950s.

Orford castle: small but perfectly formed

The Crown & Castle is definitely worth a visit for lunch or dinner

If you are not too full of seafood or sausage and mash head down to the Quay to walk it off at Orford Ness a ten mile shingle spit with marsh, lagoons and waterways. If you prefer to gentle cruise to a stomp through marshland there are daily river cruises from which you can take in all of the same scenery. Sit on the quay at sunset and you will see fishing boats coming back in as the light catches the water and seagulls swoop over head. You can warm up in the nearby Jolly Sailors, one of many excellent Adnam’s brewery pubs on this stretch of coast.

The Quay was my coastal heaven with faded black clad huts

The perfect place for a pint after a wintery walk in Orford Ness

Things to Eat, See and Do on the Suffolk Coast

If you can tear yourself away from Orford there are numerous other lovely spots to explore, almost too many to mention in one blog post! Orford is within very easy reach of all the hotspots on this coast. Head slightly inland to Snape Maltings to enjoy a wonderful combination of music concerts, galleries, cafes and shops set in amongst an expanse of reeds and water in a gorgeous old red brick building. Further up the coast from Orford the delights of Aldeburgh await with its bustling high street and two fish and chip shops so good that they have people queuing around the street for their cod and chips. Our favourite is the Aldeburgh Fish and Chip Shop . Go and eat them sitting on the expanse of pebbly beach and if you have room for dessert be sure to head to the Two Magpies Bakery . Keeping heading up the coast from Aldeburgh and you also have great beaches to chose from at Thopeness, Dunwich and Walberswick not to mention all the delights of Southwold to the south.

If you can tear yourself away from the beach the nearest town to Orford is Woodbridge, set on the river and full of lovely old buildings, shops and cafes. Our favourite is Honey & Harvey. Shops to visit include Vanil, New Street Market and Matisa Market for brilliant secondhand clothes. And it would be remiss of me not to mention the Unruly Pig on the way to Woodbridge which is the best Sunday lunch I have ever eaten. If you have time and room in your belly after that list of recommendations then head to Darsham Nurseries for a lovely lunch and spot of plant shopping. There is also a great antiques/vintage place in which to have a rummage just over the road.

The cafe at Darsham Nurseries

Writing this list of recommendations has just completely wet my appetite to book a return stay to The Dunns this Summer. Thank you so much to Jodie for hosting us for the weekend. The Dunns is available to book through Best Of Suffolk. Click here for the link and here for The Dunns Instagram.

Best Places to Stay UK: Carbis Bay Hotel, Cornwall

With February half tem just around the corner and Easter just a couple of Creme Eggs behind it I thought it was high time I featured a Cornish gem on the blog that would make a perfect break for either holiday. If you have been following me for a while you will know that I am a big fan of a Cornish staycation. Not even the memories of a nightmarish 14 hour return journey after a caravan breakdown on the A40 can dim my love for this corner of the UK.

Miniest Malmo has inherited my love of Cornwall

We have spent many a happy holiday in a clotted cream coma on the Cornish coast. However, we have always tended to stay on the Roseland Penninsula or up on the North coast rather than heading west. So when we were invited to stay at the Carbis Bay Hotel, a mere hop and a scone away from St Ives, we eagerly accepted!

The heavenly setting of the Carbis Bay Hotel

The hotel is majestically perched just above its very own blue flag beach (the only hotel in the UK to have one!) with wide sweeps of soft golden sand stretching out to sea. It feels like you have discovered the best beach in Cornwall and no-one is in any hurry to tell other people the secret! The main hotel is in a sprawling white washed Victorian villa. However, we were invited to test out one of the newly added Scandinavian style self catering beach lodges that are nestled into hill below the hotel and which open directly out on to the beach.

The Beach Lodges at the Carbis Bay Hotel which front directly on to the beach

The front door of the beach lodges is actuallly at the top of the house (so far so Hobbit) with a roof terrace that features a large hot tub in which you can soak whilst taking in spectacular sea views. My youngest son loved this feature so much that he broke down in tears on the M4 when we had to break it to him that we had not been able to pack the 10ft by 8ft hot tub into the back of our already crammed full estate car to bring home with us.

Talk about a hot tub with a view!

As you can see we would have struggle to pop this in the boot of the car to bring home

The lodge we stayed in had three generous double bedrooms (all en suite) with two enjoying balcony’s and views out over the beach. To the boys delight they all have flat screen TVs and to my delight the master bedroom came with a cast iron slipper bath.

The cast iron slipper bath in the master suite

On the ground floor, at beach level, is a large open plan kitchen/dining/living space with huge sliding glass doors which lead out to a garden with sun loungers from which it is then mere steps to the beach. We visited in October so it was not exactly bikinis on the beach weather (or in my case sensible swimsuits on the sand) but it was still crisp and sunny and the boys absolutely loved the freedom of being able to run in and out between the lodge and the beach.

The open plan kitchen is super well stocked

There were lots of lovely touches like a lemon drizzle cake awaiting us

The kitchen is open plan with the living space

The views from the bedroom

When it got too chilly, even by their Lad-Labrador standards, we retreated back inside, turned the fire on and hunkered down on the squishiest of sofas to watch a film. The fireplace at the Beach Lodge was actually major inspo for our recently completed contemporary fireplace revamp (click here to read more about that). I loved how they had clad it in white washed rough sawn wood and the way the flames spring, James Bond style, up from the gas fire.

The contemporary fireplace at the beach lodge that inspired our own

I loved the curvy concrete staircase that ran through the middle of the house

The beauty of the Beach Lodges is that whilst they are set up for self catering but you also have the option to tap into the two great restaurants on site as well ( for days when your inner Delia Smith is feeling a bit down trodden). For casual dining that works well for those with kids we loved the relaxed surfy vibes of the Beach Club restaurant which serves up Mediterranean food with an amazing view. If you fancy a treat then the hotel also offers fine dining at its Sands restaurant. We didn’t brave that one just because we didn’t think the other diners would appreciate their Michelin dining experience being accompanied by the soundtrack of the number of episodes of Paw Patrol that would be required to keep my three year old in his seat for more than 30 mins.

The Beach Club restaurant was right up my modern rustic street

If you are feeling even lazier you can actually also order food from either restaurant to be delivered to your lodge instead. Breakfasts are served in the conservatory restaurant up at the hotel (where you can also enjoy afternoon tea) and received the thumbs up from Mr Malmo who could add breakfast buffet connoisseur to list of his hobbies behind running and watching Sheffield Wednesday tussle with annual relegation.

The terrace outside the conservatory restaurant

For the warmer months when you can venture outside without a coat without fear of losing a nipple to frostbite the hotel also has an outdoor swimming pool and year round non nipple risking relaxation is on offer at the C Side Spa.

We could easily have spent the whole weekend just happily flitting between the lodge, the beach and the hotel but a five minute drive or brisk walk along the coastal path brings you to St Ives, brimming with nice shops and places to eat, and, admittedly, in the height of Summer a lot of pensioners on coach trips searching for scones and souvenirs. To escape the crowds, if you carry on walking around the corner from the main bay you will come to Porthmeor beach. It is less crowded and has much more of a surf than silver haired feel to it.

Just one of the many lovely shops in St Ives

We loved getting lunch at the Porthmeor Beach Cafe, nestled into one of their (heated) outdoor booths and watching the surfers attempting to ride the Cornish waves whilst we ate a delicious lunch. We then tootled up to the Tate St Ives which is just minutes away from the beach. We didn’t visit owing tothe combo of our three year old and ceramics being a bad one, but the Barbara Hepworth Museum is also in St Ives and supposed to be beautiful.

The view from the outdoor terrace at Porthmeor Beach Cafe

We reluctantly left the beach lodge and Carbis Bay behind at the end of our stay leaving well truly converted to this corner of Cornwall. The cheapest way to stay at the Carbis Bay Hotel is by booking a stay in the main hotel, where the decor is nice but not as contemporary/Scandi as the lodges. Out of season at this time of year they often have good offers running as well . If you have a bigger budget or are looking somewhere for a special treat or celebration with family then I cannot recommend the beach lodges enough, they really are the most special place to stay. We are dreaming of one day returning and spending Christmas there as waking up on Christmas morning and walking straight out onto the beach would take some beating.

We would love to return to those stools one day

Goodbye Cornwall until next time

This February half term we will actually be Norway rather than Cornwall bound having booked 4 nights away in Oslo. I lasted visited 15 years ago for 2 night so if anyone has been more recently or is a Norwegian native then I would love all your tips!

Our stay at the Carbis Bay Hotel was kindly gifted to us

Best Places to Stay UK : Elmley Nature Reserve

Have you ever been on a road trip? The kind where you hire a classic car and head off down a route of impossibly gorgeous scenery with plenty of nice stopping points along the way? Our last big holiday before we became parents for the first time was a road trip down the Big Sur in California which definitely ticked the scenery and nice places to stop boxes. The only thing missing, owing to budgetary constraints, was the classic car. North London’s answer to Thelma & Louise (with Mr Malmo as Louise in this analogy) toured the route not in a convertible Mustang but a sensible Hyundai Hatchback that bore close resemblance to a large toad. The 9 years and three boys that followed have mainly featured roadtrips to visit our parents punctuated by rows about how to fit the mother f#cking travel cot in the boot and stops at Watford Gap services to change horror nappies and wolf down a Chicken Royale meal. However this Autumn, for Mr Malmo’s 40th Birthday( thanks to a kind babysitting offer from my parents -in-law) Thelma and Louise hit the road again and this time in a classic Mustang instead of a #TouringToad.

This would defo look cooler on the school run than our estate car come Variety Club Minibus

Our destination this time? The Isle of Sheppey. The Isle of where I hear you ask. Sandwiched between Gilligham, Gravesend and Herne Bay it is not, at first glance, the most obvious candidate for a scenic road trip I grant you. But bear with me because hidden away in this lesser known corner of Kent is Elmley Nature Reserve. We arrived on Sheppey just as the sun was starting to set on one of those perfect, crisp, Autumn days. Turning off down a bumpy track to reach Elmley Nature Reserve was like driving into the wide open plains of the American Midwest. It is truly one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. It took us 20 mins to get from the gate to the farmhouse because I must have stopped the car at least 15 times to take photographs

The Isle of Sheppey but could easily pass as the American Mid West

Mustang Malmo

Stopping the car for my 15th photo break

What awaited us at the end of the track was equally special. Gareth and Georgina, who run Elmley, took over the land from Georgina’s parents in 2012 and over the last 7 years have added a small series of Shepherd’s Huts and cabins for guests to stay in across the Nature Reserve. Elmley is the only place in the UK where you can stay on a nature reserve. All of the huts and cabins are in a palette of materials which ensures they blend seamlessly with their surroundings.

The Saltbox, my favourite of the Cabins scattered across the Nature Reserve

You can bath under the stars and roast marshmallows on fire pits

I would love to have cladding like this as part of our renovation

There are also smaller Shepherd Huts to hire with the same amazing views

On the inside they are a cocooning mix of Farrow & Ball colours, silver larch clad walls and reclaimed materials and they have all the mod cons to ensure a truly comfortable stay with bathrooms stocked with delicious Bramley products and a cute kitchenette for making meals in. But the star of the show has to be the surroundings. You can fall asleep to the sound of owls and wake up to the sound of migrating geese flying overhead. It is enough to turn even this townie into a twitcher.

I loved the mixture of reclaimed materials used

The little kitchenette has all you need to see you through a stay

I loved these copper taps like the ones in my old bathroom

Not a bad view to wake up to

With the huts and cabins having proved a runaway success, the couple have turned their attention to renovating the Farmhouse and another cottage on the land so that Elmley now boasts two other exceptional places to stay. We were kindly hosted by Georgina in the Farmhouse which sleeps 14 in 6 truly amazing bedrooms, with an enormous kitchen diner and a choice of three ridiculously comfortable living rooms. The whole things is a masterclass in Modern Rustic Luxe. The kitchen is housed in a contemporary extension to the original farmhouse and combines traditional materials with modern architecture to great success.

The contemporary kitchen addition is a beautiful contrast to the original farmhouse

I loved the view through to the nature reserve from the floor to ceiling glass kitchen window

I think our trip may have been the first time in our entire relationship that I have woken up before Mr Malmo and volunteered to get out of bed to make him a hot drink rather than the other way around! Watching the sunrise over the nature reserve through the huge glass doors in the kitchen was worth going downstairs to put the kettle on for!

The kitchen from the inside is equally stunning

The side window floods the space with lights

A view worth getting up before 7am for

If you are looking for a place to stay for a large family or group gathering I literally don’t think I have ever come across anywhere better! It sleeps 14 in 6 double bedrooms. There are also three different living rooms to chose from ranging from an elegant parlour style room, a sophisticated library and a gorgeous cosy snug with sexy velvet sofas and an exposed brick fireplace

I loved the blend of old features with modern accessories liked this rug in the hallway

Just one of the 3 gorgeous sitting rooms to choose from

Pink to make the boys and Malmo wink

This cosy snug was my favourite of the living rooms

With its exposed brick fireplace and wood burner

But the front sitting room in a rich teal blue gave it a close run for its money

All of the rooms combine insanely comfortable beds with lovely touches like hot water bottles and the kind of bathrooms that belong on a Pinterest board.

Huge comfy beds await

With lots of lovely luxe touches like white robes and hot water bottles in all the rooms

I loved all of the different colours that had been blended together seamlessly

With every room enjoying stunning views over the nature reserve

There are two cosy rooms in the attic with a bathroom which would be great if you were staying as a family of 4

The room we stayed in had a four poster bed and a cast iron bath at the end of bed in which I tried to pull of the insta legs akimbo in alluring fashion pose which ended in me looking less like a graceful swan and more like a dying duck

The stunning bedroom with 4 poster bed where we stayed

Doing my best Elizabeth Taylor impression

I will spare you the photo of me doing the dying duck pose in the cast iron bath that looks out over the nature reserve

If you are a smaller group there is also a freshly renovated clapboard cottage to hire. The black clad exterior belies a light, bright Scandi interior that has more of a coastal cape cod feel.

The interiors in the cottage have a fresh coastal feel

If I were ever to have a pink bedroom this is the perfect shade of blush

I loved the contemporary twist of painting the cladding in two colours

The gorgeous sitting room in the cottage with wood burner

It is often hired for yoga retreats and it is easy to see why

Oh and did I mention there is a fairly light festooned barn with an honesty bar where you can gather for a gin on a hay bale of an evening. Seeing the inside of the barn had me mentally getting down on one knee and proposing a wedding vow renewal to Mr Malmo.

The festoon strung black barn that made me want to re propose marriage to Mr Malmo

Both the cottage and the farmhouse are well set up to self cater but if you are feeling lazy (we were) you can rest your inner Delia Smith for the evening and let the Elmley team rustle you up a relaxed supper, delivered to your door in a hamper. It is basically like staying in the nicest of boutique hotels with all the comfort and relaxation of home. If I were ever to make (an unadmittedly unlikely) switch into agriculture this would be my fantasy farmhouse.

The kitchen is super well equipped but you can also opt to have Supper delivered to your door

Breakfast with a view

This is the kind of farmhouse that could persuade me career change into agriculture

Sadly after 24 hours we had to return both the Mustang and the Farmhouse but this is one road trip we will remember for a very long time.

Thelma and Louise before they reluctantly left Elmley behind

Whole Farmhouse hire is available throughout the year but for certain weeks of the year it is also possible to book individual rooms on a self catering basis (be quick because these get booked up fast!). The Cottage sleeps 10 and must be rented as a whole property. If you would like to enjoy 10% off a stay in the Farm House or the Cottage quote Malmo19 when you phone or e-mail to book.

Stays in the shepherds huts start at just £85 per night and the cabins, which sleep 2 adults with room for 2 children as well, are from £115 per night. So whatever your budget there is a way to stay at Elmley and enjoy it’s magic. For all the details of how to book click here

Our night in the Farmhouse was kindly gifted to us by Georgina

A Weekend Break in The Cotswolds at Bibury Farm Barns

If I had to name my least favourite month of the year it would be a straight shoot out between January and February. January because it begins with a chocolate and cheese hangover and seems to last longer than a Caribbean cruise with Bobby Davro. February because it always just feels so grey and sensible. It is the calendar equivalent of John Major. To get through #MalmosLeastFavouriteMonths the first thing I do on the 2nd of January is start holiday planning for the year ahead.

I often get asked where I get my travel inspiration from so let me let you in only a little secret from my modern rustic rolodex: Sawdays Travel. Long before Mr & Mrs Smith were on the scene Alistair Sawday was searching out and recommending great places to stay in the UK and Europe. From self catering to hotels, bed & breakfasts to pubs with lovely rooms he has it all covered. I honestly cannot think of a more comprehensive guide of places to stay in the UK that caters to all tastes and budgets. So there are simple minimal places for the Scandi like me and more traditional grand properties for a cluttered Gothic like my dad!

Sawday Guides look good on a coffee table but there is also a comprehensive collection online

Having using Alistair as my holiday wing man for well over 20 years I was therefore delighted to be asked by Sawdays Travel to go and review Bibury Farm Barns, one of the new kids on their amazing holiday block.

Bibury Farm Barns

The five newly renovated stone barns are nestled in a particularly lovely corner of the Cotswolds (although to be honest am not sure there are any crappy corners unless Cirencester gets a bit lairy on a Saturday night). They are set on the edge of a working farm but the interiors are definitely more Daylesford than Old Macdonald. The focus of the renovation was apparently “luxurious comfort” and it is definitely a case of mission accomplished.

The exterior of the Cart Shed at Bibury Farm Barns

We stayed in the Cart Shed which sleeps six in three incredibly comfortable double bedrooms all of which are ensuite. The star of the bedroom show (in a non porn film sense) is definitely the ground floor master suite. You could probably fit the entire downstairs of our house into it with a bed so large that you could be sleeping with Eamonn Holmes and his three burly brothers and still feel like you were the only one in the bed.

This way to the master suite!

The enormous bed in the master suite of the Cart Shed

I loved the rattan pendants beside the beds

The spacious garden at the Cart Shed with a big lawn

I loved the rattan style pendants either side of the bed which add contemporary edge and the Roberts Radio is on my bedroom bucket list. There is a separate dressing room area and then a large ensuite bathroom with an enormous freestanding bath and a generous supply of 100 Acres Bath products. The room also enjoys lovely views out to the garden.

The Roberts Radio that is on my bedroom bucket list when we start our renovation

The enormous bath in the master ensuite

With his and hers sinks

And a generous supply of 100 Acres products

However if you lose the race to bag the biggest bedroom (is it just my family who do this on holiday?!) then the two upstairs rooms are equally comfortable and decked out in the same calming neutral tones. One of my favourite features of the house were the copper wash basins in the ensuite bathrooms of both these bedrooms.

Upstairs Bedroom number one

Upstairs bedroom number two

The copper basins that captured my heart

If you can drag yourself out of bed of a morning the kitchen and living space are equally appealing. We visited in December so so enjoyed a cozy Saturday night on the sofa with the log burner blazing, Strictly on the TV and plenty of sheepskin blankets to snuggle under. The boys also enjoyed being able to watch Football Focus on a TV approximately 3 times the size of our ancient number at home.

A view through to the open plan living/dining space at the Cart Shed

The sofa on which we spent plenty of time happily snuggled up!

I think you can probably guess from this picture what the boys favourite feature of the barn was and it wasn’t the ceramic vases.

The log burner waiting to be lit

In the Summer you can shed the sheepskins, slide open the huge glass doors and enscounce yourself instead on one of the dreamy looking sunloungers in the garden. If you are part of a bigger group then rent the Grain Store next door which sleeps 10 and comes with the added bonus of a hot tub.

A view of the large Grain Store barn next door which sleeps 10 and has a hot tub

The kitchen in the heart of the barn was our favourite place to gather. What I really liked about it’s design was that the owners George and Polly had not gone down the traditional country kitchen route (nice as those can be). It was rustic with a contemporary twist - my favourite kind of decor. There are shaker style units but they have been paired with a geometric tile splash back which works brilliantly. It is also super well equipped. My Mum and Dad (the family chef) came with us.. My dad is not one to litter compliments around like confetti but he was praising the pan selection and was basically in #UtensilUtopia.

The contemporary kitchen that is the heart of the Cart Shed

For coffee lovers there is a seriously impressive looking coffee machine

There are several different seating options to choose from ranging from a huge limed oak dining table to more casual seating around the Island and my favourite: a butter soft curved leather banquette build into a corner of the kitchen. It was here I sipped tea and worked my way through the stack of lovely magazines and coffee table books provided.

The rustic oak dining table with statement curved mirror

My favourite corner of the kitchen

Three years on Instagram and still look like I am holding in a fart in most photos

The view from the kitchen through to the living room

I also popped my parents Instagram cherry filming a video about our stay around the capacious kitchen island with them as my co stars. I know they say never work with kids or animals but I think that list might also need to include “your seventy one year old father” after he threatened Mariah Carey style to storm off set after a failed first take.

We got there in the end though with the perfect team teacup boomerang

If you manage to leave the luxurious comfort of the barns then a short walk away is Bibury, the nearest village which is nothing short of picture postcard perfect. Rows of honey coloured cottages, winding streams and frosty fields and a lovely cosy pub in which to warm up your frozen fingers after you have taken 1001 photos of said honey coloured cottages for the gram.

My 6789 photo of these dreamy cottages in Bibury

5 minutes further on is Barnsley House Hotel, home to a delicious spa, gorgeous gardens and a lovely restaurant. It is well worth popping into even just for a drink or a meal at the more affordable Village Pub. On a previous visit to the spa I encountered Mark Owen doing a topless yoga handstand on the lawn. That was in 2014 so he is probably not still on the lawn but the Cotswolds is the kind of place where you are never far from a celeb spot (although you are potentially more likely to see Jeremy Clarkson filling up on diesel than a half naked Take Thatter ).

Half an hours drive from the cottage is Daylesford Farm which offers up next level lifestyle goals although before you enter be prepared to triple the amount you thought you would ever spend on a Scotch Egg. I came away with a new mug, a toy tambourine and a candle in exchange for 34% of my monthly salary. If you can avoid looking at the price tags it is a gorgeous inspirational place to spend a couple of hours.

Poshest Santa’s Grotto ever at Daylesford Farm?

You will come away with lots of inspiration and a large credit card bill

One (okay 3) of these mugs may have come home with me from Daylesford

If I could have afforded or fitted this sofa into the car it would have been coming home with me

Five minutes down the road in Kingham (also owned by Daylesford) is the Wild Rabbit Pub where I would happily pay £70 to eat just one of their Yorkshire puddings again. We had the best Sunday lunch I have ever eaten there and the decor is every bit as gorgeous as the food. Closer to Cheltenham, Winchcombe is also possessed of a very nice pub in the Lion Inn and afterwards you can walk off your lunch with a scootch around Sudeley Castle.

Contender for best bread rolls ever tasted

The Cotswolds hold many more delights too numerous to list here all within easy reach of Bibury Farm Barns. A few of my other favourites things to do include a visit to Tetbury which is stuffed full of gorgeous antiques and vintage shops followed by a walk in nearby Westonbirt Arboretum. For the kids Cotswolds Wildlife Park and Adam Henson’s (of Countryfile rather than the Muppets fame) Cotswolds Farm are both good options.

* Our stay at Bibury Farm in The Cart Shed was hosted. If you would like to find out more about how to book a stay through Sawdays click here *

Girl Meets Scandi Rustic Cabin of Her Dreams: Our Week Glamping in Belgium

If you did a straw poll of 100 people asking them where they went on holiday this year I am guessing the results might be: Spain (40), Greece (20), France (20), UK (10), Belgium (1). That one would be me! So why did we choose Europe’s least obvious holiday destination for our Summer break this year? There is actually a very obvious reason : two of the national culinary specialities are chocolate and cheesy chips. What is not to like?!

But if you are more of a plant than prailine based diet person there is a actually another great reason to flock to the Flemish land. Enter the Scandi/Rustic cabin of my dreams. About 6 months ago this image popped up on the explore page of my Instagram. It had me at festoon light. When I discovered it was located in the pine forests of Belgium rather than the plains of the American Mid West I was sold on a glamping holiday for 2019.

The rustic cabin picture that popped up on my Instagram explore page

We booked 4 nights over the August bank holiday. At 700 Euros it was approximately half the price of the equivalent break in the UK with a significantly reduced risk of coming home with a veruca. I am not going to lie, I was a little bit worried that I had gone completely off piste as we drove ever deeper into Belgium past all the places I had heard of and could easily pronounce but when we arrived all of those fears evaporated and hopefully after reading this Belgium will also be top of your holiday hit list for next year

The Setting

There are approximately 28 of the cabins at Nutchel located in a beautiful pine forest close to the border with the Netherlands. It is the perfect mix of being secluded/an escape from everyday life whilst also 10 minutes drive from a supermarket that stocks toilet roll and marshmallows should you run out of either in the middle of the night, There are a mix of different cabins depending upon your party size and budget. We stayed in one of the cozy cabins which has all of the living accommodation at ground floor level and then a raised covered platform with seating for outdoor dining up in the trees.

Our own slice of Scandi cabin heaven for the week

This was one of my favourites. It overlooked a lake and had a hot tub

If you were there as a couple one of the smaller cabins would be really cosy

There are some which are all elevated though which looked really cool and a couple which come with their own hot tubs which I would definitely splash my Euros on when we return next time. But to be honest you really can’t go wrong as all of them have the same great combo of crittal style doors/windows, contemporary cladding and festoon lights

This is the cabin in the trees that we have our eye on for next time!

The Interiors

Where do I start? They were my wildest Little Modern Rustic House on the Prairie fantasy!

THe kitchen was small but perfectly formed

I loved the industrial interiors touches like the copper taps

Wooden clad walls, flowing linen curtains, cosy woodburner, industrial inspired kitchen, fairy lights and lanterns, cosy corners to curl up and read a book in, fluffy white duvets and a view of the forest from your bed, hell even copper piping taps in the bathroom!

My favourite spot to curl up in the window

The layout is basically one open plan room for the living space that has a sofa, a kitchen, a table and built in seating (as well as the woodburner) and then a separate bathroom and sleeping area with the beds sort of stacked up on top of each other. Hopefully you can see what i mean from the picture below.

The view through from the living space to the bedrooms

The sofa had lots of clever storage so the cabin never felt cluttered

The sleeping arrangement did mean that marital relations were pretty much off the cards for the week on account of us having children directly below and above us at all times but I did have a really good book I was reading so that actually worked out quite well for me!

I am going to miss waking up in the trees

I loved how much the kids enjoyed the whole experience

A Camping Experience with Glamping Comforts

The cabins definitely deliver on the back to nature front and offer the chance to live a simpler life for a few days. There is no television, no WiFi, no microwave and no fridge (though there is a clever cold box before you start worrying about where you will store your almond milk).

The two sources of lighting were fairy lights and oil lamps

ANd of course candles!

I want o say that without Wifi the kids were reading books but I think he was scrolling my phone in this picture!

Running hot water and no compost loo!

But before you worry that you will be pooing into compost and unable to charge your phone, I should reassure you that there are power points flushing toilets, warm water and 4G reception in the cabins. So it is back to nature with data roaming still intact!

Crucially there is a kettle

Things to Do

In all honesty your really won’t miss the TV because there is so much to do on the site and in the surrounding area. What i hadn’t appreciated when I booked is that there is a actually a really nice common area that all of the cabins have access to that includes a lake with a sandy beach around it which is dotted with Tiki style parasols, lazy boy bean bags and happy looking parents. The lake has a series of stepping stones in it for jumping off , a mini water slide and then in the landscaping around the lake there are also some adventure challenges like log stepping stones, a net bridge to navigate over a pond and some tightropes. On a Wednesday night there is a big barbecue in a cosy tipi strung with fairy lights over looking the lake and they open a bar up on the sand. Our kids loved this whole area (as did I Aperol Spritz in hand as I watched them play) and we easily spent 3-4 hours each day hanging out there.

The lovely lake and beach area

It had definite Ibiza vibes!

This water slide provided hours of fun

If you can prize your bum off a bean bag there is also a Go Ape style adventure park which culminates in a huge zipline across the forest and for littler ones there is a woodland playground that doesn’t require a crash helmet or for you to conquer your fear of heights! One of the things our boys loved the most though was just playing in the woods! They set up a mini cricket pitch in a clearing by our cabin and played a woodland version of the Ashes (with perhaps a greater proportion of tantrums and runs ending in one of them calling the other an idiot).

The Go Ape style adventure park

But our boys just loved playing in the woods

They used this little area as their cricket pitch

On our last day we booked a session in the hot tub set in the woods in a bid to persuade the boys that sitting in gently bubbling warm water is more enjoyable than trying to find a cricket ball in a bramble thicket. There is also a sauna and a Finnish wooden hut you can hire for a barbecue experience!

Romantic hot tub for……..5!

I am hoping I have won them over to a Spa experience!

We also ventured into nearby Masseig one of the days which has a pretty square with restaurants and bars around. The boys declared our meal their the best they had ever had on account of the waiter giving them both a football and a plate of fizzy sweets at the end of the meal. Note to Heston Blummenthal if you want that fifth Michelin Star swap Petit Four for fizzy dummies.

Two holidays in one

The other thing I loved about this as a break is that you can really easily combine it with a city break on your way there. We drove and from Calais to the cabin it was about 4 hours but we broke the journey up by both having lunch in Bruges and then staying a coupe of nights in Antwerp. I would really recommend Antwerp. It has not perhaps got the Belgium Venice good looks of Bruges or Ghent but it has lots of great museums, cafes, restaurants, parks and, as the fashion captial of Belgium, shops!

The MAS Museum in Antwerp

Would definitely recommend it for a city break

So have I persuaded you to swap Greece for Ghent next year? This is the link to Nutchel so you can have a closer look and if you are interested I would say it is worth e-mailing and asking them to let you know when availability for Summer 2020 is released as I hear it gets booked up really fast!

Hopefully we will be back soon!

The Malmo & Moss Guide to Majorca

We recently got back from spending the week in Majorca. It was my fourth visit to the Island and it is rapidly becoming one of my favourite holiday destinations. Although when we first visited on honeymoon 11 years ago we left feeling a little underwhelmed. It was the weather rather than Majorca’s fault though. It tipped it down almost the entire time we were there meaning we spent most of our time sheltering from torrential rain rather than dipping our toes in turquoise waters.

The view of the mountains from the pretty village of Fornalutx

The winding old streets of Fornalutx

However, 3 years ago we hired a villa in the Tramuntara mountains on the North-West side of the Island with my cousin (who is conveniently married to one of my husband’s best friends) and finally fell for its charms.  In fact so much so that we returned for girlie city break in Palma just 12 months later losing ourselves in the winding streets of the old town and the changing rooms of Mango and Zara.

Palma’s beautiful Old Town

Being on a girlie break meant lots of time to pratt around getting Instagram shots against graffiti walls

This time round we hired a villa in the middle of the Island in a village called Consell.  It is not really a touristy type of a place lacking the postcard good looks of Deia or Fortnalux but it still has plenty of flaky paint doors, white washed buildings and winding alleyways to fill up your camera roll with and felt much more like we were discovering the “real Mallorca”. So with four trips now under my belt I thought I would do a little roundup of my favourite places to stay, eat, beach and explore on the Island.  Please do add suggestions in the comments below as I feel like I have probably only explored about 35% of this gorgeous place so far oh and Rafa Nadal’s home address if you happen  to have it…..

Best Places To Stay in Majorca

Hotels

Son Brull

When we visited on honeymoon we stayed up in the North of the Island near Pollenca in a boutique hotel called Son Brull.  If you are unencumbered by children and want to stay somewhere Mr Tumble free with beautiful crisp clean interiors, an infinity pool and a bartender who memorises your favourite cocktail after the first night this is the place.

Hotel Nakar

On our girlie break we were looking for somewhere right in the middle of Palma that had nice interiors but which wouldn’t break the bank.  We chose the Nakar Hotel which I would whole heartedly recommend for the following reasons a) it is very centrally located so very easy to get to the Old Town, Cathedral and Harbour as well as to pick up buses to get to places along the coast b) the rooms are large, clean and contemporary c) it has rooftop terrace and infinity pool which look out over a view of terracotta rooftops, blue skies, the twinkling sea and magnificent Cathedral (in the evening a DJ plays so you can go up there after a few Roses and two step dance like it’s 1998 again) d) there is a breakfast buffet that features both limitless chocolate cake and cava and e) the concierge staff are almost exclusively very handsome young Spanish men who smell and look great as well as obviously being great fonts of knowledge on Palma’s cultural sights.

The Scandi style outdoor seating on the roof terrace of Hotel Nakar

The view from the roof terrace where breakfast was served

The rooftop infinity pool

Self Catering

I actually deliberated long and hard about writing this blog and sharing the details of the Villa we stayed in this time round as it was such an amazing find and I am slightly worried that when I let the secret out it will get booked up and I won’t be able to go back!

One of the the gorgeous outdoor seating areas at the Villa

As I mentioned above it was located in a village about 20 mins North of Palma called Consell and it’s location was perfect as we could explore all over the island without ever having to drive more than an hour.  There is a little bakery, a bar on the local square, a newagent, supermarket and a couple of nice restaurants (of the local rather than trendy variety).

A view of the street on which the Villa is located

Give me all the flaky paint doorways

But to be honest most days it was hard to drag ourselves away from the Villa compound!  It really was heaven.  Sleeping 12 in total there are 5 double bedrooms all ensuite with air conditioning and two with their own private roof terraces.  Downstairs is a huge dining/living space with a whopper of a kitchen table and a massive corner sofa with access to Netflix.  Outside there is a lovely enclosed courtyard garden, a further outbuilding with seating and a table and chairs and then through a gate is the stunning infinity style pool and outdoor dining area.

The pool was a lovely temperature and had shallow steps in so perfect for little ones.  It also had colour change lights for the evening which the kids said were their favourite bit of the whole holiday.  Around the pool dotted amongst lemon and orange trees are sun loungers, parasols and ridiculously comfy bean bags

The pool glistening in the early morning light

There wwas lots of stylish seating around the pool and shady spots to retreat to

It really has got everything you could ever hope for and more.  If you are in a smaller group then the neighbouring property is owned by the same person and has the same great combo of stylish, simple interiors and a knock out pool.  If you travel as a group in peak Summer months it works out at about £350 per person for the week which is amazing value compared to some of the other far far less nice places we looked at.      

So if you would like to book this slice of paradise for your holiday click here for the link. Promise to leave me a week free in July 2020 though?!

Best Beaches

Majorca has a lot of great beaches to chose from it just depends what you are looking for.  My personal beach criteria are: turquoise clear waters, access to shade, a secluded/cove like location if possible, beach bar in easy reach, parking in close proximity and a walk down to the beach that does not require you to have previously gone on a survival skills course with Bear Grylls.  Oh and if there happen to be Rafa Nadal types playing Beach Volleyball near my sandcastle all the better.

Blue skies, turquiose sea and white sand = my beach paradise

Our favourite find from our first trip was Cala Fornells down in the South of the Island.  It is not a huge beach but we rocked up late afternoon and found a lovely shaded spot in amongst rocks with plenty of shade from pine trees and it delivers the full turquoise sea experience.  It is theoretically possible to hire loungers although we had a stand-off with a German man in very small trunks after some confusion about which ones belonged to the hotel that backs on to the beach.

One of the idyliic coves at Cala Fornells

This time round we headed East for a day and our favourite find was Cala Mesquida . We parked easily and it was a simple five minute stroll down on to a sandy beach with loungers under Tiki Parasols to hire (with no stand offs with Bavarians in Budgey Smugglers).  The water was incredibly clear and warm and there is a great Beach shack serving up snacks and a mean mojito.  There is a resort above the beach but it is very small, low rise and unimposing.  If you are child free or have somehow ended up with the kind of kids who will walk for more than 5 minutes without asking to turn back/be carried/be given sugar then from Cala Mesquida there is a tail you can walk over to Cala Torta a more secluded beach with no resort attached and the famous Dolores and Manolo’s beach bar which is renowned for serving up great seafood in this beautiful setting.

A walkway leading away from Cala Mesquida to Cala Torta

Beach heaven at Cala Mesquida

There is an option to hire a more deluxe sun lounger if you are flush with Euros. the standard sun loungers we hired were 15 Euro for two for the day

Our other new discovery was Playa D’Albercuix up in Port de Pollensa.  Port de Pollensa has a big wide sandy beach well served for water sports and family friendly facilities but the bit that we explored and fell in love with was at the end of the Pine Walk that stretches along the harbour in the Port.  We parked up near the Hotel Illa D’Or (which itself looks like a lovely spot) and then based ourselves on a lovely little stretch of sand on Playa D’Albercuix just along from the hotel which had stone jetties reaching out into the water for the kids to fish from and beautiful clear, shallow water for swimming and cooling off in.  If you fancy an ice cream walk from there towards Pollensa under the shade of pine trees whilst taking in some of the beautiful Villas that back onto the beach.  We had a beautiful seafood lunch on the terrace of the Hotel Illa D’Or (whose rather nice loo facilities we also used for the day) which is lovely and shady and has a great menu that changes daily.

Hotel Illa D’Or just off the pine walk

The shade stretch of sand that we made our base

The lovely shady pine walk in Port de Pollensa

If we come back to the Island I would be tempted to base myself in Pollensa or Port de Pollensa and then to go off exploring the stunning Cap de Formentor.  If you don’t fancy the slightly butt clenching journey to the end of the Cap you can catch a boat from Port de Pollensa to Formentor beach which would make a lovely day trip. 

Beach Clubs

Puro Beach

When we were on our girlie break we took a bus from Palma to Illetes Beach which in itself is a lovely little beach with a couple of great bars from which you can watch the sun set whilst sipping a cocktail.  You can hire loungers from the beach club there which was our original plan.  However when we arrived we discovered there had been a mix up and our booking lost.  However whilst we were waiting for them to reveal this fact I spotted just around the bay the glistening of white Balinese beds on a rock above crystal clear waters. 

The Balinese beds that caught my eye from across the bay

Enter Puro Beach. To know it is to surrender your credit card and fall hopelessly in love.  For 60 Euros a day you can lie back on a white lounger and spend a further sum of your monthly salary on Rose Wine, perfect crispy squid and at lounger Spa treatments.  We made our way back there again this time and it was just as heavenly as we had remembered. 

The view as you walk down to Puro Beach

Two (ok three) Roses down happy faces

The turquoise sea view from my lounger at Puro Beach

Assasona Beach

A new opening since our last visit and located in the trendy Portixol suburb of Palma, Assasona has more than a little flavour of Ibiza with its boho beach good looks.  The setting in the harbour right on the beach is amazing.  There are loungers to hire but we visited for dinner just as the sun was going down and enjoyed a gorgeous open air dinner looking out to sea

New for 2019 Assaona Beach Club (their image)

Roxy’s Beach Bar

Not strictly a beach club but on our girlie break we visited Puerto Portals and loved this place.  It is right at the end of Puerto Portals beach on a pontoon out in the water from where you can watch yachts coming into harbour and tanned young types on jet skis whilst sipping Sangria and listening to a chilled out sound track.

Roxys Beach Bar in the distance

The view when sat in Roxys Beach Bar Sangria in hand

Puerto Portals itself is sort of like a Majorcan version of St Tropez.   Think a harbour full of yachts, boutiques full of clothes that look like they have got caught up in a Swarkorski Crystal hurricane and boulevards full of Sugar Daddies and their twinkies.  That makes it sound awful but if you take it with a pinch of salt and add 10 Euros to what you thought was your previous ceiling price for a pizza then it is a great fun place to while away a few hours people watching.

Places to Eat

Because we were staying in such an amazing Villa (and had 5 kids between us) quite a few of the nights were there this time we just ate in. 

Palma

We visited Palma one evening and parked near the Cathedral.  Parc de sa Feixina is just adjacent with a great playground to let the kids burn off some energy and then from there you are a short stroll into the winding streets of the Old Town.  Just off the square is a Tapas place we didn’t eat in but which has great reviews called S’Angel.  We were due to eat at the Mercado de San Juan but realised it was actually 30 mins from the centre so instead nabbed a last minute table at Forn .  It has great industrial style interiors and tapas style menu and they were very family friendly although the prices were a bit eye watering.

Just across the Street was the sister restaurant Koi which came recommended by a friend and is known for its great oven cooked Pizzas.  We rounded off our evening with an icecream at Can Miquel which is located through a maze of the beautiful old streets.  The Hazlenut flavour is not to be missed.

Both of the times we have holidayed as a group we have traded babysitting so we each got to go out to a more special occasion type of place.  The first time we wen to Hotel Castell Son Claret and I cannot recommend the magical setting enough.  It is an old castle and the enter courtyard was strung with tiny fairy lights making it look so pretty on a clear starry night.  The food was almost as pretty.

This time my Cousin visited Cap Rocat and ate at the Sea Club (we were also meant to but I booked for the worng week!).  The food itself is ok but the real draw is the amazing setting on the cliffs from which you can watch the sun go down with a huge gin and tonic in hand . I guess I will just have to go back next year to experience that sunset!

A snapshot of images from the Cap Rocat Instagram to wet your appetite

So there you have it the Malmo & Mos Guide to Majorca. It probably only scratches the surface of all this gem of an island has to offer. I guess i will just have to keep going back for the purposes of research. Puro Beach 2020 here I come.

Best Places To Stay UK: The Fife Coast

Do you ever get stuck in a holiday rut where you end up packing your suitcase to head back to the same places over and over again? When it comes to UK staycations we have fallen into the habit of heading South-West in search of Cornish beaches, cream teas and the opportunity to potentially spot Poldark indulging in some topless farming. However this Easter we headed North rather than South of the border after a chance conversation with my Sister lead me to discovering a secret the Scots have been keeping under their Sporrans: the East Neuk of Fife. This stretch of coast between Leven and St Andrews is where well heeled Edinburghers come to spend their Summers drawn by the miles of sandy beaches, gorgeous little fishing villages and some of the best food and drink in Scotland.

Beautiful Elie our base for the holiday

The harbour in Pittenweem

Granted you may have more chance of spotting Gordon Brown paddling in the sea with his trousers rolled up than Poldark tending a field with his top off but that is pretty much the only drawback of visiting this beautiful part of the world. We travelled up from London by train (which takes about 4.5hrs) and then hired a minibus from Edinburgh for the final hour or so of the journey. Before you start thinking that I am a secret mormon with enough children to fill a bus I should point out we were travelling with friends so there were 12 of us in total. I would highly recommend getting the train as the stretch of the journey north of Morpeth runs alongside the sea and includes coastal views stunning enough to cause kids to look up look up from their I Pads.

Ruby Bay beach in Elie which our holiday house led directly out onto

Where We Stayed

There are four or five different places to choose from as a base on this stretch of coast. St Monan’s, Elie, Anstruther, Crail, Pitenweem and St Andrews itself are all charming.  We chose Elie after I lucked out and found a stunning contemporary house right on the beach.  For all of you who asked for the link  click here.  Midrock House sleeps up to 12 and has a wonderful open plan layout downstairs with floor to ceiling windows to take advantage of the stunning views out over the beach. 

The entrance to Midrock House with bags of coastal kerb appeal

The design of the house maximised its stunning coastal location

The back of the house and the path down onto the beach

This side of the house has a bedroom with 4 beds for kids and a separate living space and TV to keep them entertained

There are polished concrete floors throughout, an open plan kitchen/diner, five double bedrooms, three bathrooms, three living rooms, a utility and boot room. Everything is built around the stunning views which in the Winter you can enjoy snuggled up inside in front of the beast of a log burner.

I loved the concrete seating bench which also housed a woodburner

Plenty of room on the sofa for six

We lit the woodburner one of the colder nights and cosied up watching the sea as the sun went down

There is an amazingly well equipped kitchen at the centre of the living space that had every pot and pan you could ever desire and then there is a gorgoeus (and enormous) vintage farmhouse style table for dining at. This is positioned to take full advantage of the views and in the Summer there is an outdoor seating area on the terrace that runs the width of the house that is steps from the beach.

There is a huge island in the centre of the kitchen which makes it a really sociable space

We easily fitted all 12 of us around the vintage farmhouse style table

The open plan living/dining space. There is a further seating area with TV beyond the wall behind the table

When the sun was shining you could open up the doors and eat outside on the terrace

Upstairs the bedrooms have been designed to take full advantage of the view. The decor is fresh, white and neutral but huge picture windows flood the rooms with light and offer an outlook over the bay and beyond. I can’t tell you how soothing it is to fall asleep at night with the blinking light of a lighthouse reflecting at you over the sea. There is almost an annex/separate wing of the house that is designed as a cool kids crash pad with four single beds and a separate living space with its own tv.

One of the bedrooms with views of a lighthouse

Another bedroom which had an enormous picture window running the width of the room

Five things to see and do

Exploring Elie

We chose Elie as our base mainly because the house just completely bowled me over but when we got there I realised it was actually a great choice for a number of other reasons as well.  If you come out of Midrock House and turn right you come to the huge, flat main beach and, most importantly, The Ship Inn.  This lovely pub has great interiors that have just the right amount of nod to the nautical and is the place to eat in Elie.  The menu majors on amazing locally caught seafood and they have just added a new outdoor Gin Bar for 2019 which means that you can sit outside, drink in hand watching the sun go down whilst the kids play happily on the beach just metres from you. 

The famous Ship Inn which was just 3 mins from the house

The house itself looks over the second beach which is the more sheltered Ruby Bay (so called because garnet stones have been known to be found on the beach). And beyond Ruby Bay you can follow the coast around to the lighthouse and explore a ruined temple. For the more adventourous (who do not have a toddler hell bent on throwing himself in the sea) there is the Elie Chain walk. We didn’t do it because of aforementioned toddler but is basically a bit like coasteering but with chains to help you navigate the rocks.

We loved doing the walk around to the lighthouse from the house

Even if it was a little windy

There is also the option of further exploring the coast on the Elie Chain Walk

The Bowhouse Market

Ten minutes up the coast from Midrock House is the Bowhouse.  A monthly food and craft market in a super cool converted agricultural building that gathers together some of the best local food and drink producers and adds in some great local designers and makers so that you can chow down on a freshly baked Creme Egg Brownie whilst perusing locally made ceramics and jewellery.  There is a brilliant atmosphere with lots of great stalls.  The are big communal wooden tables to sit, live music and some great food demonstrations.  It is an absolute must visit

I loved the concrete planter in the entrance to the market

Just some of the great stalls to peruse

I loved this jewellery stall

There is a great and lively bar area

And a separate barn with huge communal wooden tables and more great food trucks

When at a farmers market dress like a footballing farmer?!

St Andrews

Hands up anyone born between 1983 - 1986 who considered popping St Andrews on their University application form to have a go at #WinningaWindsor.  Prince WIlliam is long gone but this great little town is definetely still worth visiting.  It has great beaches, oodles of lovely architecture, golf if you are that way inclined but most importantly of all in Janettas potentially the best ice cream parlour I have ever visited (and I am a veteran #parlourpurveyor). 

Scotland’s Hidden Bun ker

Whilst the Fife Coast is Scotland’s sunniest spot this is still Scotland so you will get the odd overcast/rainy day.  In which case this place is defo fun to visit.  Declassified in the 90s it turns out that in a non descript field in the middle of nowhere there is in fact a huge underground bunker built to withstand a nuclear attack from which the cold war was being fought.  Well I say fought, it mainly seemed to involved lots of men looking at maps and practising their morse code every now and again.  If you are used to London Museums where the cafe is part of the attraction you may want to adjust your expectations before visiting though as the err facilities are more of the formica table and vending machine than avocado on toast and filament bulb variety.  Although the vending machine did sell Wham bars which I am pretty sure may have been outlawed some time around 2003 on account of their e-number account but which I would still happily lose a tooth to eat.

The err retro cafe which looks like it is still trapped in the Cold War era

Young secret agents in the making

Craigtoun Country Park

If you are, like us, in possession of kids who seem to share their DNA make up with Labradors and thus require exercising everyday in wide open spaces then Craigtoun Country Park is great.  It is about 30 mins from the house and great to combine with a trip to St Andrews.  There are loads of different adventure playgrounds and activities to choose from as well as the park itself being rather beautiful and it is the number 1 visitor attraction in Fife for good reason

A couple of soft southerners struggling with the Scottish breeze at Craigtoun Park

Anstruther

There are lots of lovely villages to explore on this stretch of coast with lovely fishing harbours, sandy beaches and pastel and sand coloured houses but Anstruther might just edge prize of the prettiest.  It has some nice indepdent shops and an award winning fish and chip shop (the Anstruther Fish Bar) right in the beach to round off your visit. 

Best Places to Eat and Drink

I should probably caveat this heading as best places to eat and drink if you have kids with you who have a maximum restaurant concentration time of 25 mins.  Any meal that takes long than that to arrive  and be eaten usually ends in carnage so unfortunately I am not able to offer my review of some of the more fine dining establishments ( Seafood Restaurant and Craig Millar @ 16 West End  both look amazing).  However the beauty of this stretch of coast is that there are loads of great farmshops so even if you are not eating in restaurants you can still fill you tum with fabulous food.  One of the best is Adross Farmshop and it is just five mins from Midrock House.  Here is my round up of my favourite places we chowed down

Cocoa Tree in Pitenweem

It doesn’t look very promising from the outside and the decor does have a slight feel of Mystic Meg’s dressing room but this is the best place for a Hot Chocolate for miles around.  It is part chocolate shop part cafe run by the Pitenweem Chocolate Company so you are guaranteed an amazing chocolate experience.  They have a stove in the winter that creates a cosy feel and a sheltered courtyard garden to enjoy in the Summer and the owners were extremely friendly and accomodating of our party which included 6 kids between us.  Pitenweem itself has a lovely little fish harbour and pretty pastel houses and buildings.

The pretty streets of Pittenweem

I loved the pastel coloured houses

The perfect place for a hot chocolate

The Cheesy Toast Shack

Mr Malmo tends to take a back seat when it comes to our holiday planning but every now and again he comes up with a gem out of the blue that makes me think he would make a very good substitute #ModernRusticJudith Chalmers were I to retire.  The Cheesy Toast Shack is one such gem.  A chance read of a Jay Rayner review in the Observer led 20 of the best minutes of my life sat in a steamy mini bus looking out to sea whilst eating a macaroni cheese filled toasted sandwich which may have furred my arteries but was worth every ounce of cholesterol.  I cannot recommend this place highly enough.  No pretty flat lay for you of this one just a full frontal shot of the melted cheese magic.

Best cheese sandwiches in Scotland

Sex in a sandwich

The Ship Inn

I have mentioned it already but I am going to mention it again because we had such a great meal here.  If budget had allowed I would happily have eaten here every day of our stay.  Seriously amazing food in a lovely relaxed atmosphere.  In the Summer the Ship Inn also organises beach cricket tournaments with a barbeque. No pressure but they have been known to attract ex professional cricketers from the West Indies so make sure to pack your cricket A game.

The upstairs dining room with great views of the beach

The Millhouse Pizza Company

Whilst the Bowhouse market that I mentioned is only on once a month, there is a permenant woodfired pizza restaurant in the same building that is open 6 days a week and serves up the most delicious pizzas in a gorgeous beamed ceiling space.  They also do coffee and cake if you are not in the mood for pizza (if that is even possible).

So there you have it my round up of the best of the Fife Coast. I would put this in out top 5 holidays of all time. I loved it that much and we are already planning a return trip next year having spotted these amazing looking Cath Penny Safari Lodges just outside Elie.  We also added a night in Edinburgh into the mix on the way back which I would highly recommend. Although I would probably not recommend climbing Arthur's Seat with a toddler who (within 1 minute of starting the ascent loses all of the power in his leg batteries).

No leg batteries but a big smile at least

A Weekend at Eden Hall Cottage, Norfolk

Does anyone remember the TV programme ‘Challenge Anneka’?  The basic premise was that Anneka Rice (sporting a blue jumpsuit that made her look like an errant Kwik Fit employee) had 48hrs to complete a seemingly impossible task like reintroducing an obscure species of Owl to the UK or persuading Lawrence Llewellyn Bowen to wear beige.  It sadly disappeared from our screens some time around 1994 but I think the BBC should bring the show back and set Anneka a new challenge. Find a holiday cottage near the coast in the UK that sleeps 10-12 people (without anyone having to sleep in a drawer) with interior’s that don’t look like the inside of your Auntie Pat’s conservatory all for less than £5000 a week.  I suspect it would make reintroducing that obscure owl look like child’s play.  But fear not Anneka, I’ve got this one.  In my little black book of holiday cottages is a place that ticks all of those boxes and more: Eden Hall Cottage.

The gorgeous back porch of Eden Hall Cottage which is a traditional flint cottage on the North Norfolk coast

About the Cottage

The cottage is located on the North Norfolk Coast on the so-called secret side (i.e. the stretch that is not overrun with men called Tarquin down from London for the weekend who are partial to red trousers).  Eden Hall’s owners are Vicky and Chris White.  If I tell you that Vicky is the founder of the beautiful home and lifestyle brand Plum & Ashby you will start to appreciate that this is going to be a pretty special place.

Edenhall as it looked when Vicky and Chris first went to view it

Vicky, Chris and their dog Bertie live in Olney (Bedfordshire) but have always been regular visitors to the Norfolk coast.  They got engaged there and, in 2015, they started to look for a property they could turn into the coastal holiday home of their dreams.  After two years of searching and several close misses, in November 2017 (on their shared birthday) they went to view Eden Hall Cottage and fell in love. 

The Renovation

It took some vision to see it’s potential as a beautiful beach bolthole because it was, at the time, completely run down with rats in residence and a random toilet in the middle of the drive.  However they were able to look past the loo and having secured the property, brought an architect on board to help them restore it to it’s former glory. Their ambitious goal was to have the property ready for its first visitors by the summer of 2018.   

The inside of the property had seen better days but the potential was easy to see

Some gorgeous period features were still shining through the gloom

Having hired a team of local builders following a tender process, their first step was to strip the property back to it’s bare bones (including taking out and replacing all of the upstairs floors the joists of which turned out to be rotten).  This is what the cottage looked like when I first popped round “Kevin McCLoud” style at the start of their renovation journey.

The upstairs landing and staircase. The entire upper floor had to be removed as part of the renovation and replaced after the joists were found to be rotten

Vicky and Chris kept and restored the original brick fireplace

The Interiors

By the time Malmo McCloud returned to stay as one of their first guests in October 2018, it was virtually unrecognisable.  With the renovation complete, the cottage has five double bedrooms (three of which are ensuite), a stunning kitchen diner with vaulted ceilings, a relaxed sitting room with open fire, a family bathroom with a gorgeous cast iron roll top bath and a boot room and separate utility.  There is a lovely secluded patio garden at the front and a large lawned area at the back (perfect for letting our pack of lad labradors off the leash). 

Vicky battled her builders to have vaulted ceilings in the kitchen/dining space that is at the heart of the house

The rowing oars are a subtle nod to the cottage’s coastal location

The family bathroom blends contemporary and vintage features with a huge rolltop bath to relax in

Vicky said that her aim for the interiors was to create an English take on an American beach house and it is a triumph of Nantucket come to Norfolk.  The walls are painted in a pallet of clean minimal neutral colours which act as the perfect backdrop to some seriously luxurious furnishings from brands such as Neptune, Rowen & Wren, Also Home and the White Company.  There is not a jaunty anchor or whimsical shell in sight. 

The relaxed sitting room is at the front of the house and opens on to a secluded patio courtyard garden

The star of the show has to be the duck egg blue Humphrey Munson kitchen which is at the heart of the house and fabulously well equipped.  I loved the way that Vicky and Chris had chosen to leave sections of the original flint walls exposed in the kitchen to provide a rustic contrast to the contemporary units. 

The Humphrey Munson kitchen Vicky chose in duck egg blue works perfectly with the flint walls left exposed

The perfect shelfie

Those flint walls

Marble worktops and brass taps add a vintage edge to the

We stayed at the house as a group of ten (with 5 friends rather than 5 children I have previously failed to mention in case you are wondering).  The layout of the cottage is perfect for groups of friends or families..  Upstairs are two generous double bedrooms (one of which is ensuite) and a further single with bunk beds and some lovely touches for children staying like a minature teddy version of Bertie the dog. Upstairs is also host to the family bathroom of dreams which has Georgian style panelled walls, a huge roll top bath and gorgeous brass taps. The bath products are all from Plum & Ashby’s beautiful range made in the UK.

The upstairs ensuite bedroom with gorgeous striped headboard and exposed wooden beams

I have this thing with the amazing honeycomb tiles on the floor in the ensuite

The second upstairs double bedroom which is a great size

The family bathroom with fabulous Georgian style pannelling

The lovely single bedroom complete with bunk beds and lots of thoughtful touches for junior guests

I love that Vicky and Chris were able to keep the original window frames

Downstairs are two further double bedrooms both of which are ensuite.  This layout meant that those in our party with kids could sleep upstairs whilst those without occupied the bedrooms downstairs so that they were spared a 7:30am wake up by the Octonauts/Fireman Sam/Mr Tumble emptying his spotty bag.

One of the downstairs double bedrooms. I love the panelling painted in a lucious dark green

Pinstripe cushions from Also Home up the comfort levels in all the bedrooms

The bedrooms are all beautiful but the one to fight over is definitely the master suite off the kitchen which has both a four poster bed and roll top bath of it’s own.  It is set off the kitchen/diner and is like a mini hotel in it’s own right. I loved the vintage boathouse sign that hangs above the doorway to this room adding a nod to the coast.

Prepare to duke it out for who gets to sleep in the stunning master bedroom

The four poster bed of my dreams from the White Company in the master bedroom

A peek into the ensuite which has a roll top bath of it’s own

And a shower to with marble metro tiles

We all then enjoyed big communal breakfasts together with papers around the huge kitchen table which can easily seat 12.  Bacton, where the cottage is based has a small local shop which stocks all of your bread/milk/Sunday papers essentials. Though it is not the kind of the place where you will be able to source artisan pate or gluten free granola so maybe stock up in advance if those things are your daily essentials.

Evenings were spent slobbed out on the two huge comfy sofas in front of the fire. The zinc coffee table is truly a sight to behold, I am pretty sure that it may be bigger than one of our bedrooms at home. If you have been out taking the sea air during the day then coming back and running a bubble bath in the stunning main bathroom of an evening is also to be recommended.

The living room with open fire and that zinc coffee table!

I love all of the subtle nods to coastal decor that Vicky has included in the cottage without it ever feeling beach themed

Settle down on one of the two huge sofas and enjoy a film

The kind of bath you want to linger in with Plum & Ashby products on tap

The Surrounding Area

If you can bring yourself to leave the comfort of the house then there are two stunning (and nearly deserted) beaches close by.  The one at Carts Gap has a little café and Happisburgh boasts a Lighthouse and an excellent playground.

The seafront in Bacton on a slightly stormy day

The lighthouse at Happisburgh which is just ten minutes drive from the house

Bacton woods close to the house offer excellent dog walking/Gruffalo hunting opportunities and if you are in need of a National Trust top up then Felbrigg Hall is just 10 minutes away.  The delights of the rest of the North Norfolk coast are also within easy reach with Holt (a lovely Georgian market town) just twenty minutes drive and beyond that gems including Wells on Sea, Blakney, Stiffkey, Holkham and more.

The harbour in Blakeney a lovely place to visit about an hours drive from the cottage

HUge open skies and miles of sand on Holkham beach

Disclosure 5 minutes after this idyllic mother and son photo was taken he did an emergency poo in a sand dune

We enjoyed a delicious pub lunch at The Victoria at Holkham and then a run on the vast and beautiful beach.  We also called in at Stiffkey Stores for a coffee and spot of modern rustic interiors shopping.  The kids loved a) the cabins for sitting in outside and b) the excellent selection of sweets for less than 50p on offer. I should also mention that the Gunton Arms (rated in the Top 50 places for a pub lunch by [    ]) is also just ten minutes away from the house.  Be sure to reserve a table well in advance of your stay though as it gets really booked up!

The Victoria Inn at Holkham where we enjoyed a delicious pub lunch

Stepping inside Stiffkey Stores in like stepping into my Modern Rustic paradise

Some of the beautiful displays in Stiffkey Stores

So Anneka hang your jumpsuit back up and return to presenting the Sunday Morning Sizzle on Radio Colchester as this is one challenge I have solved without your helicopter even having to leave Broadcasting House.  If you would like to book a stay at Edenhall Cottage click here you can also follow the cottage on instagram here. We were lucky enough to be guests of Vicky and Chris when we stayed but at less than £2000 for a stay even at the height of peak season it is a complete bargain compared to anything I have found of similar size/quality anywhere else in the UK!

*We did not pay for our stay at Eden Hall but I was not asked to produce any content in return for our stay. I am writing up our stay for the blog because it is genuinely one of the nicest places I have ever stayed and I wanted to share it with you *

A Weekend at Ivywood Cottage, Norfolk

Mr Malmo and I are not really country people. He grew up in Nottingham surrounded by bus fumes rather than bushes and, although I hail from Northumberland, 20 years of living in London have rendered me twitchy whenever I am more than 300 metres away from a filament bulb and a flat white. However, having three boys has given us a new found appreciation of wide open spaces where you can let lad/labradors off the leash with less people around to hear you loudly telling them to stop what they are doing and go for a poo or to take a SuperZing out of their nose. With this in mind my google holiday search have increasingly started to feature more escapes to the country than city breaks which is how I discovered Ivywood Cottage on the Norfolk/Suffolk border .

The black timber clad exterior of a rustic shed in the garden of Ivywood Cottage in Norfolk

About the Cottage

Ivywood Cottage is owned by Laura and James who live in the big house next door with their 3 year old identical twin boys and new baby. It was the discovery that they were expecting the twins that prompted them to trade in their one bedroom flat in Islington for James’ native Norfolk and a Georgian House in the country with the added bonus of Ivywood Cottage attached. Moving from such a busy part of North London to Redenhall was, Laura admits, a massive change. Instead of the emergency services hurting past at all hours of day and night and noisy neighbours stomping around, they now have the odd tractor trundling past and a cockerel crowing next door. But having grown up on a farm herself and James a country village it wasn't the huge shock it could have been.

The dreamy cottage exterior of Ivywood with a picture perfect porch. I love the whitewashed bricks and clematis growing up around the door

In the summer this would be the perfect spot to sit out with a glass of wine watching the sun set

Their adjustment to country life has, therefore, been fairly smooth bar some standard country-newbie errors (running out of oil...several times, forgetting they have a septic tank, not realising they had a soak-away pond, not realising the lush green garden was actually thick with ground elder and bind weed…. Reading this list revealed the depths of my own #urbanignorance because I initially thought Laura was referring to running out of olive oil here and thought a soak away pond might be some sort of cool Grand Designs style contemporary garden water feature rather than a tricksy pond drainage system.

Where most people see an old shed I see my dream modern rustic cabin with black cladding. I would love to add a garden studio at home a little bit like this. I loved the bunting strung from it

Downstairs at the Cottage

Ivywood Cottage has been beautifully restored so that you get the best of old and new. So there are gorgeous flagstone floors, exposed beams and quirky staircases but also the comfort of having a beautiful contemporary kitchen in soft grey with metro tiles and on trend copper taps and the very 21st Century pleasure for soft linen bedding from Loaf on all the beds.

I loved the whitewashed brick flooring in the living room laid in a herringbone pattern

The living room at the cottage was painted in neutral colours with texture and warmth added through touches such as the jute rug and woolen cushions and blankets

We visited in January so took full advantage of the cosy woodburner in the living room which comes complete with all the urban comforts you need to ease you into country life gently i.e. ready access to the latest copy of Kinfolk. I loved how Laura has carefully mixed interiors styles together in this room, introducing vintage pieces such as two 1950s midcentury armchairs covered in gorgeous mossy green and smokey grey velvet.

One of the changes that Laura and James made to the cottage was to add a woodburner

Laura has been really clever at blending contemporary and vintage in the cottage. I loved these velvet mid century armchairs she had had restored

City dwellers relax, the cottage was fully stocked with the latest issues of Kinfolk and Cereal Magazine

The nearest town to the cottage is Harleston where we stocked up on locally baked bread, bacon from Norfolk bred pigs and fresh orange juice for breakfast (and if I am honest also Weetabix, Nutella and Robinsons squash because my kids regard Granola and Fresh Orange Juice as their breakfast enemies ). The kitchen has a gorgeous farmhouse table, bench and tolix seats and I loved the industrial touches like the vintage lights over the island and the concrete worktops.

White metro tiles on the walls give the kitchen a contemporary feel that works with the medieval bones of the cottage

Concrete worktops contrasted with the shaker style kitchen units to add a shot of industrial style to the kitchen

Restored vintage brass taps in the kitchen with my dream Belfast sink

I loved the vintage industrial pendant lights hanging over the kitchen island

The dining table and chairs which comfortably seat 6-8 for large family breakfasts, lunches and dinners

Upstairs at the Cottage

Upstairs are two double bedrooms (one with an ensuite) and a large landing area with vaulted ceiling which houses a sofa bed meaning the cottage can comfortably sleep six making it ideal for a family break, a weekend away with friends or a romantic retreat with your partner where you can enjoy spaces in your togetherness i.e. escape their snoring if you need to!

The vaulted ceiling landing space which has a sofa bed. I loved the pinstripe blinds

High ceilings and gorgeous exposed oak beams in the landing area. I liked the modern twist added by the contemporary bulb lights

I loved the panelling that had been added to the second double bedroom and the smoky grey colour on the walls

The combination of linen bedding and cast iron radiators in the bedrooms make them super warm and toasty

There are a plethora of lovely country walks you can do from the cottage and a host of country pubs dotted all around. Laura’s favourite walk is a big loop from the house which just happens (!) to pass three pubs along the way. The last pub (about a 10 minute walk from the house) has a super children's play park a stones through away #parentingwin. After you have been out to take in the country air come home and warm up in the huge roll top bath. I have never been a huge shower curtain fan but the yellow and white candy striped one at Ivywood totally changed my view. I would happily have it cling to my naked body (if you are reading Ryan Gosling have similar thoughts about you).

The vintage sink and vanity area in the gorgeous rustic bathroom

Pale pink metro tiles add a contemporary twist in the bathroom and provide contrast to the timber walls and wooden floors

The yellow and white shower curtain that frames the roll top bath

Exploring the surrounding area

Whilst the cottage is perfectly positioned for enjoying the best of the countryside there are also plenty of lovely coffee and cake shops nearby should you need a #FlatWhiteFix. One of Laura’s favourite cafes, Marsh Larder, is on a local farm and when it's warm, you can sit outside with a glass of prosecco, eating homemade cake whilst the cows in the field next to you gaze on. Or, if, like me, you have a slight fear of bovine animals, why not try the Earsham Street Cafe in Bungay who serve up an awesome homemade cake. Bungay also has some great antiques and interiors shops and Laura recommends checking out Naken Interiors in Beccles who stock great brands like Ferm Living. Slightly further afield are all of the delights of the Suffolk coast. We worked our way over to Southwold one day via Darsham Nurseries which serves up delicious breakfasts and lunches in a garden nursery (think Petersham Nurseries rather than Dobbies Garden Centre).

Darsham Nurseries is a must visit place for delicious lunches and brunches close to the Suffolk Coast

I loved the vintage mirrors and industrial pendant lighting in Darsham Nurseries cafe

The reclaimed wood clad bar at Darsham Nurseries was ticking all my modern rustic boxes

There are great beach walks to enjoy at Dunwich, Covehithe, Aldeburgh, Thorpness and Southwold to name but a few and even more great pubs and bakeries to sample. No self respecting instagrammer (or donut fan) should leave Suffolk without calling in at the Pump Street Bakery in Orford. And if you are looking for the perfect place for Sunday lunch look no further than the Unruly Pig near Woodbridge.

Miniest Malmo enjoy a romp through the sand dunes at Walberswick

The sand dunes at Walberswick beach on the Suffolk Coast

We stayed at Ivywood Cottage at a discount but even at full rates it is great value for a weekend away at around £100 a night depending on the time of year. A single hotel room can easily cost that without any of the comforts, luxuries and style that Ivywood offers. We are already thinking about coming back not least because I can’t wait to see the renovations that Laura is carrying out on their neighbouring Georgian House. I am hoping I can convince her to let me come back and do a house tour when she is finished! In the meantime if you would like to book a stay at Ivywood Cottage the link is here

Discovering the Dutch Coast

Tell people you are going on holiday to the Maldives and you will be greeted with reactions such as "wow that sounds amazing" or "you lucky thing I am so jealous" or "you are going to have such a fabulous time".  Tell them you are going to spend a week taking in the beaches of the North Sea in Holland and you are more likely to encounter perplexed looks (think Joey from Friend's smell the fart acting face) and querying comments such as "Holland?  That is an unusual choice" or "What made you decide to go there?"  Chances are nobody will say "Ohh Holland, you are going to love the stunning coastline, oodles of beach clubs with amazing boho interiors and tiny hamlets over looking the water with cobbled streets and clapboard houses." Well, unless you tell Kinship Creative, my Scandi Sister from another mother that is.

The gorgeous interior of Branding Beach Club

It was on her instagram feed a year or so ago I first spotted an amazing looking beach bar with bleached rattan furniture and rustic textures galore that I mistook for a hotspot in Ibiza but which turned out to be on the Dutch coast just 30 mins away from Amsterdam, a city we had a one night stand with (not in) last February.  One night was enough to make me think I would very much like to go steady with the Dutch capital city.  Dotted as it is with beautiful buildings, amazing cafes, cool lifestyle and homeware stores and great museums and parks to keep kids entertained.

Amsterdam through the eyes of Petite Passport

So just after Christmas I started doing my Air BnB research.  It quickly became apparent that to stay in central Amsterdam itself in the Summer holidays in something that was not a shoebox or a youth hostel (although to be fair some of those looked quite nice) would potentially cost more than the UK's Brexit bill.  I was about to give up when I widened out my search area a little bit and spotted a clapboard house located on a dyke (an inland sea) about 15 mins drive outside of Amsterdam which fitted the bill perfectly.

Talk about kerb appeal, our Air BnB for the week

Sometimes in life things which look great in a photo or on the TV turn out to be disappointing in real life.  Like Dermot O'Leary for example who I used to be rather partial to until I spotted him in Euston WH Smith and realised he is about the size of a small Irish Leprechaun in the flesh.  Happily when we arrived out our home in the Holland for the week it turned out we had the luck of the Irish on our side.  Click here for the Air BnB link but the pictures really can't convey what an amazingly idyllic setting it is in.  Durgerdam is a tiny Hamlet of impossibly appealing houses looking out to sea.  Our view to the front of the house was of boats bobbing in the harbour and sailing in the sea beyond and from the back there were meadows with sheeps and cows grazing with a stream running out throught the field.

The beautiful veranda looking out over meadows

The house is arranged over 3 levels and is a perfect base for a family break.  The owners also have three sons of very similar ages to ours so there were a wealth of toys and activities to keep the trio of todgers entertained including a pool table, a mini astroturf pitch a full scale basketball net and a sandpit  all in a safely enclosed garden.  This meant that I actually managed to spend ten minutes lying in the huge hammock on the veranda which wraps around the house without anyone under the age of 8 appearing to tell me they were bored, had accidentally flushed their lego down the loo/wanted to use my phone to play a game that involves a sausage on legs running an assault course that would consume my annual data allowance.

I had competition for the hammock

Anyone for Tennis/Volleyball/Football/Basketball ? The mini astroturf pitch in the garden kept the boys very happily entertained as did the cows who would occasionally pitch up to spectate over the fence

There was also a huge range of indoor toys to keep them happy

There are 4 bedrooms, two double, two single kids room and two bathroom all decorated in a crisp clean Scandi inspired style with some gorgeous rustic features like the pine cladding wall in the main bedroom and concrete sinks in both of the bathrooms.  It is a style I am going to call Netherlands Nordic.  

The stunning master bedroom

I loved the wood cladding wall which added a rustic edge to the Scandi decor

Miniest Malmo's bed for the week

The real jewel in the crown though is the kitchen which leads out on to the wrap around veranda I mentioned.  This is where we spent most of our time with breakfasts around the huge oval table which had a really cool built in plywood benches to sit on with lots of storage incorporated.  Dinners were taken out on the deck watching the sun go down over the fields.  The kitchen leads through to a living space and kids play corner and I loved the crittal style windows that linked the two spaces and the timber ceilings in the kitchen which added a touch of cabin chic to proceedings.

I loved this idea of having custom built ply seating with storage incorporated

The wooden clad ceiling was one of my favourite features

As were the crittal style windows linking the kitchen to the living space

Breakfasts al fresco on the veranda

10 minutes up the road from the house is a Landmarkt supermarket for all of your grocery requirements.  I think it might be the Dutch equivalent of Whole Foods judging by the amazing range of mouthwatering fresh produce and slightly eye watering prices.  It is definetely not the cheapest place to stock up on nappies and bin bags but all of the food on offer was delicious.  There is also a lovely little restaurant in Durgerdam with tables right on the water and seems to be the place that Amsterdammers like to come and moor their boats and grab a bite to eat and glass of wine of a weekend so make sure to book in advance.  

The local bar and restaurant in Durgerdam

Spotted on one of our evening strolls, my dream house though think it is technically a boat shed....

The weather when we were there was amazing so we were happy to have the option of cooling down by going or a swim in the sea from the pontoons leading out to sea or to let the kids paddle in the shallow waters from a little beach just 5 mins walk from the front door of the house.

At the end of this track was a little beach where you could swim in the inland sea just 5 mins walk from the house

If you can tear yourself away from this little corner of paradise then Amsterdam is just on your doorstep and you are within an easy drive of the beaches to the North.  I have rounded up below a few of my favourite places that we visited but it is a far from comprehensive guide to all of the delights that Amsterdam and the coast have to offer (and definitely doesn't include delights including ping pong balls I am afraid).  I hope to go back many times to this gorgeous area to build up the Malmo & Moss guide gradually!

Amsterdam

Westergasfabriek

Having kids is a wonderful life enriching experience but it does mean sacrificing some of the things you previously took for granted.  Like the ability to cough without also doing a little wee or any hope of going to the toilet without someone bursting in within two minute of your cheeks hitting the seat.  Mooching whilst on a city break is another one to add to the list.  By which I mean idly wondering pretty streets with no clear aim other than pottering in and out of little boutiques and stopping in whichever bijou winebar, cute cafe or rustic restaurant takes your fancy.  If, like me, you are exploring Amsterdam whilst also keeping an eye on 3 boys, 3 footballs and with a buggy more heavily loaded than an Eddie Stobbart lorry then head to the Westerpark neighbourhood and explore the Westergasfabriek, the site of a former gas works which has been redeveloped into a beautiful park and cultural complex with indie shops, elecetic eateries, an arthouse cinema and brewery all housed in gorgeous old buildings.  We ate at Westergas Terrass which had statement boho lighting, industrial textures and vintage features and tables opening onto a huge public space in which the boys could run around and play whilst we waited for the food to arrive.

Parental heaven: a table overlooking an open space so the kids don't have to sit down until the food arrives on the table at the Westergas TerrassWestergas Terrase

The interiors of the former industrial building were right up my street

Dignita

On the other side of town, the Vondelpark runs through the centre of the City with miles of cycle paths, open space and playgrounds for kids to explore.  Just aroound the corner from the park is Dignita which sounds like it might specalise in Euthansia but which is actually a kid friendly cafe that serves a mean brunch,  They have a play area to enterain the kids and a licensed bar should you fancy a bloody mary with your eggs benedict.

Pluk

If you are in Amsterdam unencumbered by junior chaperones then the 9 Streets is the area to head to for mooching.  There are a myriad of gorgeous lifestyle stores and cafes to while away the day in.  By allowing the boys to plunder my annual data allowance watching Thomas the Tank Engine/Angry Birds/Fifa rerun videos on my phone we managed to squeeze in an instagrammable brunch at Pluk, a cafe within a lovely lifestyle store with plenty to tempt you in the way of food and homewares.

Hello lovely herringbone tiles at Pluk

The cakes were as delicious as the decor

And there was lots of lovely home ware to tempt you over your cup of tea

Zandvoort & Noordwijk

The nearest beach to Amsterdam is in Zandvoort about 30 mins drive away and then slightly further up the coast is Noordwijk.  The towns themselves are nothing to write home about (there is a slight air of Soviet by sea about the drab concrete buildings that line the seafronts) but when you get down onto the beach all thoughts of Gorbachov will be forgotten.  The beaches are miles long, wide open and, compared to Majorca or the South of France, relatively deserted.  The sea is perfect for swimming in and surprisingly warm and there are shallow inland channels perfect for kids to paddle in without any fear of being swept out to the North Sea. 

On the beach in Noordwijk

The real stars of the show are, however, the beach clubs which, with their relaxed rustic boho vibes will have you thinking you are in Ibiza not the Netherlands.  Think bleached wood, rattan lampshades and lashings of botanicals mixed in.  Our three favourites (all under the same ownership) were Hippie Fish on Zandvoort beach and Tulum and Branding Beach Club in Noordwijk.  The atmosphere was super relaxed and friendly with great brasserie type food with an asian fusion twist being served up.  The prices were not the cheapest but definitely not as eye watering as St Tropez.  When the sun goes down bonfires are lit and festoon lights turned on to add to the magic

I loved the floor to ceiling crittal style windows in Tulum beach club

I loved all of the statement lighting at Tulum

The concrete hexagonal tiles in the kitchen at the Branding Beach Club really caught my eye

I loved this idea of creating a feature wall with old door panels at Branding Beach Club

Best Places to stay in Malmö and Skåne County

Oh goodie our plane is delayed by two and half hours said no parent travelling with 3 young children ever.  With all electronic devices capable of playing C-Beebies having been drained of their batteries before we even left the tarmac at Gatwick, by the time we arrived in Malmö at 1am in the morning I would, quite frankly, have happily slept in the stockroom of the local Ikea.  I think the passenger in seat 11E who was hit in the face by a polystyrene recreation of Mr Tumble during an in flight toddler meltdown would have happily seen us locked in said stockroom.   Luckily, however, we did not end up bedded down amongst the Billy Bookcases and below is my round up of the best places to stay in Malmö whether you are travelling Hans Solo, in a couple, with friends or as a family.

Malmö

The Story Hotel

The first hotel we were booked into the was the Story Hotel.  Centrally located on the waterfront, it is a great place to stay if you are after somewhere that has Scandi interiors with an industrial edge.  Rooms come with great views over Malmö although you may find yourself just lying in bed staring at the amazing concrete ceilings instead.  If that sounds a little bit multi-storey car park then let me assure you there is not a whiff of the NCP about the decor as industrial features are balanced by warm tones and textures such as velvet chairs in deep burnt orange, warm copper lighting and thick natural linen curtains. 

The hotel is also home to the only rooftop restaurant and bar in Malmö which has amazing views across the city and then out across the water to Copenhagen.  Being in the company of three kids under 8 we naturally had about as much chance of sipping a quiet cocktail at sunset as I have of slipping into size 6 skinny jeans and going out on a date with Ryan Gosling but we did get to enjoy the views of Malmö over our museli in the morning instead. 

The stunning rooftop restaurant

The miniest Malmo enjoying breakfast with a view at the Story Hotel

Downstairs off the lobby looking out over the harbour is the restaurant Lokale 17.  It mirrors the industrial interiors of the hotel and had a really great atmosphere, with a cosy seating area and a buzzy bar.  Whilst the Story Hotel may not be predominantly marketed at families we did still find it worked really well as we had interconnecting rooms (the wholly grail for a family of five) .  It had a really relaxed friendly atmosphere and there were lots of lovely touches like a teddy left in the cot for our youngest and chocolates in the room for the eldest two (even there beige palettes were slightly affronted by the liquorice flavour choice).  It's location is also perfect for exploring Malmö.

The Lokale 71 bar

The Loakle 71 restaurant

If I was travelling with just Mr Malmo or some girlfriends and therefore had more than a 1 in 1.6million chance of a lie in, then the other hotel that caught my eye is the Hotel Duxiana.  The rooms all look beautifully designed with less of an industrial edge and more of a classic Scandinavian simplicity about them and because the hotel is owned by the luxury bed manufacturer Duxiana, you are pretty much guaranteed an amazing nights sleep!

Picture credit: Hotel Duxiana website

If you have less Kroner clunking around in your pocket then the Clarion Hotel & Congress which is literally right next to the Malmo Saluhall (so maybe pack extra elasticated pants if you stay here) also looks a good option.  I did not visit it personally but I like the industrial styling in the restaurant and bar area from the website 

Picture credit: Clarion Hotel & Congress

The OhBoy Hotel

For the second half of our stay in Malmö we moved to the OhBoy Hotel which has 31 loft type rooms split over two levels and equipped with kitchenettes meaning you can easily self cater if you are facing a #ryebreadrebellion from your kids. The interiors are light and bright using natural textures such a wood and brushed concrete and all the rooms feature locally designed and produced furniture from southern Swedish creatives. There is a strong emphasis on sustainability with every room being provided with a bike free of charge meaning you can easily navigate Malmö without needing a car.

The bedroom at the Ohboy Hotel

The kitchenette at the Ohboy had gorgeous concrete worktops

The hotel is located in the Västra Hamnen area of the city which is a former industrial area by the water which has been completely redeveloped and is now one of Malmös most exclusive neighbourhoods .  It is the perfect place to stay if you are travelling with kids as there are some lovely cafes, brilliant playgrounds, a beach and gorgeous long wooden walkways stretching along besides the sea which are perfect for scooting and cycling down. Oh and if your kids are of the teenage variety they will love the shiny new skate park that is just opposite the hotel.

Air BnB Options

The Ohboy is a good compromise between a hotel and self catering accomodation but if you would prefer a little bit more space then there are also some great Air BnB options in Malmö.  Two to save to your wishlist include this 1 bed close to the city centre with great Scandi/Industrial interiors or, a little further out, this 3 bed villa with rugged Swedish good looks would make a great base for a family.  

Skåne County

Hus 57

We used the small town of Ängelholm as our base for exploring Skåne County which is about 1.5hrs away from Malmo.  It is quite a quiet small town and we stayed in the Hus 57 whilst we were there which is part of the Best Western group.  But this was no functional business hotel it has been designed with an instagram generation in mind as the decor is an super cool mix of industrial textures, luxe fabrics and quirky design touches all for a super affordable room rate.  I particularly loved the velvet sofas in the lounge areas and the restaurant design.

The Hus 57 lobby

I loved the concrete walls and floors against the luxe fabrics in jewel colours

The restaurant at Hus 57

We stayed in interconnecting rooms on the top floor (the ultimate family of five travel goal!) which opened on to a securely enclosed roof terrace.  The hotel works great if you are travelling with kids as the rooms are really spacious and in the basement there is a huge games room with table tennis, table football and lots of board games.  It was hard to lure the mini malmos away from it to explore the stunning coastline!  There is also a small spa, pool and jacuzzi to enjoy.

Our bedroom at Hus 57

The bathroom made me go home wanting to scallop tile something!

Hotel Skansen

If you want to stay somewhere a little more lively and closer to the sea (and have a bit of extra budget!) then without a doubt I would say book the Hotel Skansen  in Båstad.  It overlooks the most stunning golden sandy beach and had a gorgeous restaurant with floor to ceiling windows that let you lap up that view as the sun goes down.  It was home to the Swedish football team when we popped in for a drink meaning I got to sip a glass of wine whilst taking in an even more pleasant view.

The stunning beach that Hotel Skansen overlooks and the sauna at the end of the pier for use by hotel residents

Air BnB Options

There are a pleotora of lovely Air BnBs you could make your base for exploring Skåne County.  A few of the my favourites include this gorgeous modern bungalow with a pool in smart seaside town Bastad or this simple, contemporary timber house in the countryside need Torekov

*Thank you to Visit Sweden for hosting us whilst we were in Malmo and Skåne County and covering the cost of our accomodation*

Malmö and Skåne County with Kids

When I was pregnant with my first child, one of my friends (who is admittedly a pessimist) told me that there is no such thing as a holiday once you have had kids.  By which I think she meant I could kiss goodbye to the days of lounging around an infinity pool with nothing more pressing to worry about than where my next margarita was coming from and whether I had brought enough books with me to last the fortnight (#kindleluddite). 

Image from Oh Couture

It is certainly true that the arrival of the trio of todgers has cut down the amount of time I spend horizontal on a sun lounger (it is hard to lounge when you are worrying about a toddler falling/pooing in the pool) and ensured that I am now more likely to go home having read the New Adventures of Spot rather than anything off the Booker Shortlist.   However, I am a firm believer that you can still have a relaxing time on holiday with kids without handing over 3 months salary to Centre Parcs.    If you are looking for a destination where you can lap up great design, interiors and impossibly beautiful blonde men named Lars whilst the kids experience premium playgrounds, sandy beaches and acres of open space then look no further than Malmö and Skåne County.  Here are five reasons why it is the perfect place to holiday with kids and my top tips for things to do with them whilst you are there (none of which cost the earth).

Perfect Playgrounds

It is fair to say that with 3 kids under 7 approximately 33% of my time is spent either in search of or in playgrounds.  So I know my swings from my roundabouts when it comes to what makes a good one.  Malmö has hands down some of the best I have ever experienced.  There was not a dog poo, broken swing or treacherous slide in sight (I am looking at you Oakwood Park).  In fact they are so good that you will need all your best parental negotiating skills to get the kids to leave them without the kind of reaction Donald Trump would have if he was served a quinoa burger.

This amazing playground was just around the corner from the OhBoy Hotel

Our favourites were one off Lillas Varvgatan near where we were staying at the OhBoy Hotel, the Slottsträdgårdens and Folkets Park but rumour has it Pildams Park is also well work a visit (we didn’t make it there on account of my 5 year old’s leg batteries running out that day).  The Swedes are also great at combining their stellar playgrounds with instagrammable cafes.  My favourite has to be the Slottsträdgårdens Kafè (@Slottsträdgårdens Kafè.)  where we headed for for a cup of tea and some fika after a sphincter clenching hour of letting the boys climb the trees in the neighbouring park.  I am not sure my Swedish vocabularly extends to "please could you call the fire service, my son appears to have climbed a tree the size of the Eiffel Tour and got stuck".  You can recover your calm siting outside under the shade of rippling trees or duck inside the greenhouse strung with bunting and dotted with candles

Fun in the sun at Folkets Park

Fantastic Foodhalls

I love almost everything about Scandinavia but if you are travelling with companions who turn their noses up at anything non beige/vaguely textured/potentially containing vitamins it’s cuisine can, at times, be a little bit of a challenge.  FYI if you ever want your kids to tidy their bedroom just plop a herring rollmop down in front of them and tell them it is that or putting their lego away.  However, take them to either Malmö Saluhall or Höganäs Saluhall and you can guarantee you will have no ryebread revolution on your hands. 

The deli counter at Höganäs Saluhall

There are a host of different stalls catering for all palettes and both are located in gorgeous old industrial buildings meaning you can lap up the bare bricks and rustic textures whilst they are tucking into ice cream from Favvo Glas, Pasta from Papi or  cinnamon buns from St Jakob Stenugnsbageri. 

The gorgeous industrial seating area in the Saluhall in Malmö

Sampling the delights of a pastry from St Jacobs Stenugnsbageri

If, like my kids, sitting down for longer than 10 minutes at time, you can grab the makings of a gorgeous picnic and head around the corner to Slottsträdgårdens where there is acres of green space and trees to climb to burn off some post lunch energy.  If you have kids old enough to understand the concept that if you throw yourself out of a boat you will get wet and force your mum to make like a podgy Pamela Anderson to rescue you from the water, then you can also hire a boat to gently explore.

Beautiful Beaches

Malmö itself has a small sandy beach which looks out over the water to Copenhagen but hop in the car and within an hour you can be exploring impossibly pretty cobbled fishing villages with miles of unspoilt coastline to enjoy.  Our favourite spots were Mölle, Torekov and Båstad.  We spent a very happy morning exploring the dunes and rocks of Torekov where old ladies whizzed passed in dressing gowns on their bikes on the way for their daily swim.  In the Summer you can catch a ferry across to Hallands Väderö an uninhabited nature reserve (thanks to @myscandinavianhome for the tip).  If you are in Mölle head for Mölle Krukmakeri.  You will initially think I am crazy telling you to take kids to a pottery but swerve the pots and head to the quirky café where they will be too distracted by quirky things like a giant stuffed tiger dressed as an airline pilot to cause any ceramic calmamities.

Exploring the gorgeous cobbled streets of Torekov

An old fisherman's shelter in Torekov

Our favourite beach of all was in the upscale resort of Båstad where the Swedish Tennis Open is held everyyear.  There is a long flat golden sandy beach, shallow waters perfect for splashing around in and pontoons leading out to sea off which older/more proficient swimmers will love jumping off.  In the Summer months there is cool beach club at the top of the beach and if you can hose them down and wrestle them back into their clothes then the swish Hotel Skansen is actually remarkably child friendly with friendly waiters and kids activitiy packs on hand.   

The harbour in Båstad

The beautiful sandy beach in Båstad

Toddler heaven

Modern Museums

Going round museums with kids can be somewhat of a hit and miss experience.  Find a good one and they will be channelling their inner David Attenboroughs or Mini Monets but visit a dud and you will find yourself setting a new Guinness World Record for the number of times one person can say sshhhhh, don't touch that, don't climb that in one hour.  Luckily Malmo has some great ones.  Our favourites were the Malmo Hus which is a castle in the middle of a moat inside which there is a mini interactive aquarium and ramparts to explore.  The aquarium was a particular hit with my kids because it had lots of things they could touch and climb on without setting off any alarms.  Even Mr Malmo couldn't resist sticking his head inside a giant diving helmet in the middle of a tank of eels. 

For an experience that doesn't involve eels then head to the Konst Hall.  It is in a beautiful old orangery building and had a giant sculpture exhibition inside when we visited.  It looks on first glance like the kind of place that might not love an invasion of sticky fingered noisy kids but it actively welcomes them, running free crafting workshops in a room off the main exhibition space.  There is also a gorgeous courtyard cafe where they can be as noisy as they like and another brilliant playground literally right outside.  If art is your thing then the Moderna Museum is also not to be missed.

Strolls by the Sea

If you are staying in Malmö with kids then I would recommend basing yourself in the Västra Hamnen area of the City, a former shipyard which has been transformed into a sustainable area of contemporary housing with a harbour bobbing with boats.  There are stretches of wooden walkways looking out towards the sea dotted with beautiful Scandinavians (young and old) who have come to enjoy the sunset and a swim in the sea off bleached wooden pontoons. There is plenty of room for kids to run/scoot of some steam and then Vespa is a great spot to grab a pizza and watch the sun go down/watch the sun go down whilst also watching the kids to make sure they aren't about to attempt to swim to Copenhagen.  This area is also home to the famous turning torso building which fascinated our kids.  Questions they asked that I couldn't answer, how do they clean the windows, why does it look like a twiglet and why can't we live there (well I could answer that one, it is something to do with not having a spare 500 million Kroner down the back of the sofa)

Pizza from Vespa as the sun went down was a holiday highlight

Bountiful Buns

I have never known a tantrum that can’t be quelled by a cinnamon bun (well apart from the one Mr Malmo had when I gave away to Oxfam a jumper which he loved by which I thought made him look like he was on day release from a juvenile detention centre).  If you need a little cinnamon related bribery up your sleeve then there are numerous spots around the city to pick up a bun to stifle a toddler rebellion. .  Some of our favourites were from Söderberg & Sara in the St Knut area of the city and on the other side of town the cardamon infused buns from Bagaren & Bonden were out of this world.

Family feast at Söderberg & Sara

Behold bountiful bus at Söderberg & Sara

Thank you to Visit Sweden UK for hosting us whilst we were in Malmö and Skåne County.  Whilst our stay on this occasion was in partnership with Visit Sweden UK, we have visited and loved Malmö as a family and will definetely be returning in the future.  If you have any questions at all about travelling there with kids please feel free to ask in the comments below.  

Malmo & Moss Sleeps: The Vintage Curator House

Growing up the child of Guardian reading muesli eating parents in the 80s/90s meant that our Summer holidays followed a well trodden middle class path across the channel to a French Gite my mum had booked through the Brittany Ferries catalogue.  This being the days before the internet the most you had to go off in determining whether your accommodation was tres chic or a shit gite was usually just one picture of the exterior.  On several occasions we turned up after an 12 hour journey in our Rover 316 (anyone else remember the faux mahogany trim that made you feel like you were trapped inside David Dickinson’s wet dream) to find what waited behind the keyhole was more ‘A Week in a Romanian Orphanage’ than ‘A Year in Provence’. Happily saying Bonjour to the internet has meant we can say Au Revoir to the horrible holiday lottery and these days Gites even come with their own Instagram accounts.  So having followed and drooled over the Vintage Curator House feed it took me all of 20 seconds to say yes when it's owner Sam ( aka @vintagecuratorinteriors) asked me if I would like to go and spend a week there. 

The house is located in the Vendee which on the West coast of France.  The nearest airport, La Rochelle is just over an hour away but because we have 3 small children and therefore travel about as light as a zumo wrestler we decided to take the ferry and drive instead.  Our plan was to hit the road straight after picking up the kids from school thus avoiding rush hour traffic. Obviously the reality was that an hour after picking up the kids we were still trying to find someone to feed the cat and locate the chessboard that my middle son claimed he couldn't live without but then didn't play with all week.  A last minute discovery that I had neglected to pack myself any knickers set us back a further 15 minutes and whilst returning to fetch them avoided this blog being called "Malmo's Muff Gets into Merde"it did, on the other hand, result in us both running into rush hour traffic and Hurricane Brian.  Arriving at Dover to discover our ferry had been delayed by 3 hours merely confirmed my suspicion that nothing good comes from things called Brian.   But when we arrived at the Vintage Curator House the next day all negative thoughts about Hurricanes named after tax inspectors from Wilmslow were forgotten.  

The stunning scene that greeted us when we arrived at the Vintage Curator House.

Sam and husband Oli bought the house back in 2010 after their search for a holiday house that didn't need much work instead resulted in the purchase of something that needed all of the downstairs beams replacing to avoid the top floor falling in, new windows, new doors, new roofs, the installation of two new bathrooms, a new kitchen and a new septic tank.  Having taking care of the sewage and sash windows, the couple then added a swimming pool, outdoor cabana and al fresco eating area.  Whilst the renovation may have had its ups and downs (particularly for a French plumber who had to climb into a pit of raw sewage to fix a leak in the septic tank) the end results are nothing short of stunning. The house has modern rustic good looks in spades with oodles of gorgeous exposed stone walls, wooden beams and flagstone floors.  

Males big and small loved the Vintage Curator House kitchen

With 5 bedrooms and 4 huge reception spaces it is perfectly set up for big groups and there is just as much space outside as in with a swimming pool, outdoor barn with table tennis, and, to my 7 year olds utter delight, a garden big enough to host a mini football pitch.  We visited in October which I think offered us the best of both worlds with warm sunny days and cooler nights when we could light the wood burners in the kitchen and living room and get our hygge on.   I would, however, like to go back in Summer so I can use the pool which I wasn't brave enough to venture in this time having seen Mr Malmo jump in and then rapidly get back out with his manhood resembling a terrified field mouse.  

The lobby sitting area that is the first room you see when you step inside the Vintage Curator House

I loved Sam's collection of vintage carbuoys which she sells through her vinatge business @vintage curatorinteriors

The house is located in quite a rural area so every couple of days we would head to the nearest hypermarche about 20 mins away and stock up with provisions.  This took me back to my teenage years when I would blow all of my holiday money on Hollywood chewing gum, Galak chocolate and Lafuma pencil cases the moment I stepped foot in a L'Eclerc.   My sister is still paying my mum back after suffering a bad case of #HyperMarcheHardOn and sinking all of her cash into buying a crushed silk peach coloured Naf Naf jacket in the Summer of 1993.  To be honest though, the house is so well set up that it was a struggle to leave even with the lure of a L'Eclerc. 

I have this thing about Sam's amazing chandeliers......

With the kids in bed we would light the woodburner in here and cosy up

Even getting out of bed in the morning proved a struggle as our bed in the stunning master suite was so big and so comfortable that if I didn't have an 18 month old who is fond of watching the sunrise I would happily have stayed in it all day.  Well, maybe I would have got up, but only to run a bath in the en suite bathroom which has a toll top bath and huge walk in shower. I know Mr Malmo was definitely wishing he had stayed in bed on the day we took the kids swimming at a local leisure centre only to discover an obscure French byelaw was being enforced which requires men to only wear "spot the sausage" swimwear. 60 Euros and 3 pairs of budgie smugglers later we entered the pool with him wearing swimwear shorter than the hot pants Kylie wears in the Spinning Around video.  He didn't see the funny side when I told him he had, to quote Alan Patridge, "just popped out" whilst bending down in the shallow end. 

The stunning master suite

Our ensuite bathroom

Mirror mirror on the wall who is the fairest modern rustic holiday home of them all

There were so many amazing bedrooms to chose from!

If you prefer day trips that don't require you to leave your dignity and loose clothing at the door then our favourite local town was Fontenauy le Comte which has pretty winding medevial streets to lose yourself in with plenty of instagrammable doors in arrays of fading pastel colours.  Slightly further afield is the Il de Re which has to be one of my favourite places in the world.  It is an island just off the coast of La Rochelle and about 1 hr 15 mins drive from the Vintage Curator House.  In the height of Summer you can't move for Chic Parisians on holiday enjoying it's impossibly pretty villages, wide stretches of sandy beach, cyclepaths through salt marshes and daily food and antique markets.  However it was much quieter in October and we had a great day pottering around in the Autumn sunshine and cycling out to a lighthouse after somehow managing to find a configuration of bikes for 4 adults, 2 toddlers, 1 cycling seven year old and a non cycling 4 year old.   

The Il de Re is full of instagrammable moments like this!

Back at the Vintage Curator House the weather was so mild that we even managed to squeeze in a couple of BBQs on the outdoor terrace and a mini drinks and (L'Eclerc) canapes reception up by the pool cabana before we set off home.  Obviously we were only one Vol Au Vent in before one of the kids had thrown a shoe in the pool and broken the temporary Come Dine with Me calm but if you are child free or have older children less prone to throwing things in water then you will absolutely love all the spaces the house has for entertaining.  

The lovely al fresco eating area at the side of the house

If you would like to find out more about how to book a stay at the Vintage Curator House then click here to book through Air BnB or visit www.vintagecuratorhouse.com.  To find out more about Vintage Curated Interiors, the business through which Sam sells some of the gorgeous french vintage items she has found whilst visiting the Vintage Curator House visit www.vintagecuratorinteriors.co.uk 

Malmo & Moss Sleeps: The Danish Hamptons

Prior to July this year, if you had said Tisvideleje to me I would have said bless you.  Fast forward 3 months and I still can't pronounce the name of this small village on the Danish coast without sounding like I am gargling mouthwash, but I have found my holiday heaven. The name "Tisvideleje" is derived from "Ti's vælde", meaning a place dedicated to the God Tyr which makes me think that he must be the Danish god of coastal chic.  I discovered Tisvildleje after asking Danish instagrammer Kirsten Skovbon where cool Copenhageners liked to go on holiday in Denmark.  It turns out this is their Hamptons, tucked away on the North coast of Zealand just 80 minutes on the train from Copenhagen.  It takes little bit longer by car but it is a beautifully scenic drive through small towns, woodlands and then the last stretch right by the sea.  

Beautiful beach huts dotted the coast as we drove to Tisvildeleje

Where We Stayed

Obviously ideally I would have been gazing out of the window drinking in the gorgeous nordic scenery listening to a soundtrack of Sigur Ros or something similarly etheral and evocative but being in a car with 3 kids I just had to try and imagine that as Imelda Stanton's Calypso version of A Squash and a Squeeze blared out instead.  With Staunton's jaunty acapella rendition still ringing in our ears, we arrived at what was to be our home in the Hygge Hamptons: the Tisjvidleje Strand Hotel.  

The dining room at the Strand Hotel

My favourite part of the hotel, the gorgeous internal courtyard

I had an instant #ClapboardClimax the moment we pulled up outside.  The hotel oozed Cape Cod being housed in a gorgeous white clapboard building on a hill with front and back terraces filled with pale bamboo furniture.  Inside it was like walking into the pages of Kinfolk with effortlessly stylish designer Danes at every turn.  It quickly became apparent that by having a penis but no ponytail Mr Malmo was horribly off message compared to the rest of the male hotel residents.  With his short back and side from AJ's Barber Shop he was little bit like Alan Sugar to their Joaquin Cortes at breakfast. 

We had an interconnecting family room just off the gorgeous internal courtyard which was my favourite bit of the hotel.  It had pale bamboo sofas with huge squishy cushions to lounge on and the whole area was strung with festoon lights and some very swoonworthy rattan pendant lights.  The room itself was decorated in simple neutral colours although we did have a very un kinfolk rear view of the back of the kitchen and a fire escape.  Am sure that for some trip advisors this would have been a big deal but we were just happy to have two rooms together so we didn't have to spend our evenings playing Scrabble in the toilet so as not to wake the kids.  

Simple but delicious breakfasts

Breakfast was included in the rate and it was lovely to sit sipping tea in a room lit by twinkling candles in the morning with a simple selection of breads, meats and eggs to choose from.  There were lots of young Danish families there and babies are well catered for with very instagram friendly vintage wooden highchairs on offer (although if anyone else has a Highchair Houdini on their hands these are not particularly practical on account of their lack of straps).

Ten minutes down the hill from the hotel was the beach which is overlooked by thatched cottages dotted in behind the dunes with rocky groines leading out to sea.  When I was not trying to stop the toddler from eating sand or locating a small lego catwoman my son buried "under a white rock" on a beach of 10,000 white rocks, I enjoyed channelling my inner Saga Noren and gazing out across the sea to Sweden. 

Saga looks out to sea.......

5 minutes walk the other way from the hotel was the centre of Tisvilde which is dotted with lovely bakeries, cafes and interiors shops.  My favourite cafe was Brod & Vin which bakes Kanelsnegle to die for (pop your elasticated waist trousers on and go and try the chocolate Snegle but be warned there will be no going back to Deliciously Ella's sweet potato brownies after you have opened Pandora's chocolate snegle box).  Just across the road from Brod & Vin was also my favourite shop, No 17 Limited, which blended clothes and interiors together in a way that made you want to remortgage your house and buy everything in the shop.

The Snegle laden counter at Brod & Vin

My favourite shop

We also loved Sommerhaven which was essentially a coffee hut in somebody's front garden.  There was a slide, trampoline and clapboard wendy house so the kids were happy whilst we were getting our caffeine fix.    My favourite part was the pallet seating and cool cushion combo that had me rummaging in skips looking for pallets to recreate the look once we got home.  They also seemed to have mastered the art of planting raised flower beds with plants that blend well together and flourish rather than our own attempts at home which always end in everything dying except mint which then spreads everywhere faster than a veruca at a swimming pool.

I loved the super sweet little wendy house

How do they get those flowerbeds looking so abundant?

Another one of our favourites was the pizza place near the station called Den Rode Tomat because, if I am honest, whilst I love almost everything about Denmark, there comes a point for me when rye bread and pickled herrings just aren't hitting the spot.  At which point I need an injection of melted cheese which this place delivered with knobs on.  It serves great, reasonably priced pizza, has a cool bar made out of a shipping container, a lovely outdoor seating area with mini playground too.  The place we fell most in love with, however, was the Helene Kilde Hotel.

Hello heaven on earth

Helenekilde is located right above the beach in a stunning white house which was originally built as a summer home by a construction magnate called Mr. Grüner for his wife in 1896.  Oh to be Mrs Grüner! In 1904 it was converted into a summer and seaside boarding house and then, in 2008, was renovated into the paradise that it is today by former ballet dancer Alexander Kølpin.  He also owns the Strand Hotel where we stayed so is clearly a major #DanishHamptonsMogul. It has a gorgeous veranda, outdoor terrace and gardens that stretch down to the sea.  When we were there people were preparing for a birthday party winding hundreds of fairy lights into the bushes and hanging photographs from the trees.  What I wouldn't have given to be a guest at that party.  Inside is just as beautiful as outside with log burners for the winter months and lots of hygge corners to hideaway in.

A gorgeous gallery wall in the reception area

I am hoping for a lottery win before we next visit so that we can check in.  We would probably be a few Kroner closer to that dream if I hadn't discovered Esther's Garage on the road out of Tisvileleje.  It is doesn't look like much at first glance but inside it is a complete treasure trove of homeware both contemporary and vintage, all beautifully curated and displayed.

Esthers Garage

If you want to explore a little further up the coast then I cannot recommend a day trip to Elsinore highly enough and not because I am a #HugeHamletBuff.  Bear with me when I say it is, in fact, because of the Maritime Museum.  Don' t worry, I am not a secret naval nerd, I don't know my port from my starboard.  But you don't have to be interested in boats to enjoy this place.  Converted from an old dry dock, the interior is an industrial luxe lovers dream being hewn out of concrete with huge panels of architectural glass.  But it is not just the building that is stunning.  Everything had been so beautifully curated that at times I forgot I was learning about Danish maritime history and just stood spell bound by huge, scrolling projections of old shipping routes.  

One of the stunning video installations at the Martime Museum

It strikes a great balance in appealing to both adults and kids.  When we visited, there was a treasure hunt for the boys to do which ended in a lego workshop room where boxes as big as sheds all filled with lego awaited them.  If you can tear them away from that lego mega load, then be sure to take in the cafe which is housed in an exposed concrete atrium and will take your breath away.

Have you ever seen a museum cafe like it?

We returned home from our trip to Tisvildeleje dreaming of owning a cabin on this stretch of coast but alas only Danish residents are able to buy property in Denmark.  So, whilst I wait for an answer back fromPeter Schmeichelto my bigamous marriage proposal, I will have to settle for the best Air BnB has to offer instead.  I figure this one would do.  If you would like to get your hygge on in the Danish Hamptons then read more here.  

Malmo & Moss Sleeps: Copenhagen

I spent my formative years in the North-East of England where my only contact with Scandinavia was the Gateshead branch of Ikea and even on trips there I was initially more interested in the mini hotdogs and 50p whippy icecreams than the bleached birch Billy Bookcases, Sodermalm sofas and fabulous faux sage.  But somewhere along the way I discovered my inner Agnetha and this North-Eastern girl went Nordic. I began to dream of moving to a Scandinavian country and even went to so far as to take Swedish lessons with Mr Malmo who proved his undying love and devotion to me by spending his Thursday evenings desperately trying to form a Swedish sentence that didn't just sound like he was trying to clear a sticky piece of flem out of his throat.   When it became obvious that we would struggle to ask for a Daim bar in a Netto we downgraded the plans to emigrate to frequent holidays there instead.  Two Summers ago we went Scandi with the kids for the first time (if you don't count frequent trips to Edmonton Ikea) staying in Copenhagen and then crossing the bridge (yes, The Bridge) to Malmo to stay in the house of one of my all time favourite bloggers My Scandinavian Home.  We had a brilliant time so this year, having sired another son (in medieval times I would surely have been given a cow or something by now) we decided to head back to Copenhagen. 

The beautiful living room of My Scandinavian Home

Where We Stayed

I am one of life's nervous flyers. I am about as comfortable on a plane as Nigel Farage would be at a Liberal Democrat conference in a vegan cafe.  However, it was not my extreme fear of flying that led to our last minute decision to drive rather than fly to Denmark.  It was rather the fact that I left it until 2 weeks before the date of departure to book seats by which time return Ryanair flights were about the same price as a small helicopter.  But 14 hours with 3 small children crammed into an overpacked Audi were quickly forgotten the moment we stepped inside our Air BnB apartment in Copenhagen.  Even with my right eyeball still manically twitching from the 4 large cans of Redbull consumed to keep me awake on the autobahn, I could see that it was the apartment of my Danish dreams.  

It is owned by a couple in their early thirties called Signe and Mark who live there with their two young children.  They describe themselves in their profile as civil servants and design entrepreneurs causing me to radically re-evaluate my previous stereotypes of civil servants as people who wear short sleeve beige shirts, keep pens in their top pockets and have an encyclopaedic knowledge of Common Agricultural Policy.  

The apartment is part of a block in which the Danish Prime Minister lived during the second world war.  But as you can see it is no gloomy underground Anderson shelter.  The main living space is a huge, double reception room with high ceilings and gorgeous sanded original wooden floors. The rest of the rooms lead off that main space and are all painted white creating a beautifully spacious, light and serene feel. 

It was a case of love at first sight for the boys as well.  However, it was the massive smart enabled TV loaded with car racing games rather than the Dinesen reminiscent floorboards that captured their young hearts.  Whilst their new found precious bought us a few uncharacteristic holiday lie-ins, the downside was that anytime we left the apartment to take in some Danish culture at one of the many brilliant museums and galleries Copenhagen has to offer, they had a tendency to ask us at 10 minute intervals when we would be going back to the holiday home to play Nitro Blast.

The boys with their precious

I loved the the texture and colour they had added to the living room with their choice of rugs and throws

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My favourite part of the apartment was, in contrast, the kitchen.  It featured all the modern rustic elements that I love.  Rough hewn wood: tick, earthy collections of ceramics: tick, accents of dark metallics: tick.  It was a lovely space to sit with a cup of tea flicking through one of their Nordic cookbooks pretending that I am not the kind of person who thinks that rye bread should be reserved for hamsters instead of humans.  We tended to eat out at lunchtime and then come back to have dinner at the apartment around the lovely rustic kitchen table having picked up ingredients from the local Meny (the Danish equivalent of Waitrose) on our way home.  

There was also a branch of  Lagkaghuset  next door to Meny so at breakfast time, whilst one of us put the kettle on and stood in the weetabix firing line, the other would pop out to pick up the best cinnamon buns I have ever tasted (and believe me when I say I have tasted a lot!).   It is a chain so you can find branches all over Copenhagen should you need a cinnamon top up at any time during the day.  I guess they are the Danish equivalent of Greggs but with polished concrete floors, pale wood, twinkling candles and handsome bakery assistants called Lars.  

In the evenings once we had the kids in bed we would light some candles in the kitchen (when I say we I obviously mean me as there is about the same chance of Mr Malmo independently lighting a candle as there is him suggesting we sit down to watch a Vicar of Dibley boxset) pour a glass of wine and make plans for the next day together. One of my favourite features of the kitchen was the black pendant lights hung at different heights over the table and worktops, they added a little bit of edge to all the natural textures and got me thinking about changing up our kitchen lights at home.

The kitchen looked out over a gorgeous internal courtyard which was a lovely spot to sit in the sun, watching the boys play with toys shared by all of the apartments with the Danes not being territorial over their tiny tikes.  When we visited in late July there were mounds of hydrangeas in whites and pinks in full bloom to enjoy.

There were 3 bedrooms.   The master bedroom was a beautiful tranquil space as it was flooded with light from the two big windows which looked out over the quiet street and a small park.  The only blot on the bedroom landscape was that the bed had, as is the Scandi way, two separate single duvets on the bed rather than one double.  I am not sure if this is because Danish men are chronic duvet stealers so the divorce rate is kept low by everyone having their own duvet, but I found that it meant that I frequently woke up in the night to find that Mr Malmo had rolled off with both duvets leaving me exposed to the Danish indoor elements.  

Bed, Buns and Bolig = Bliss

Getting our hygge on

Although the other two bedrooms were used as kids bedrooms, one had a double bed in and could easily have been used as an adult bedroom if you didn't mind waking up with the squad of FC Copenhagen (on the wall rather than in your bed that is unless you had enjoyed a particularly wild night on the Aquavit.) The other bedroom had a small cabin bed in and the only adult it would be suitable for would be wee Jimmy Krankie.  Although the bathroom didn't have a bath it had a huge walk-in shower which was perfect for hosing down three mucky boys at the end of every day.

The Local Area

The apartment is located in the Østerbro neighbourhood and is about 15 mins walk from the City centre.  It is known as the old wealthy neighbourhood in Copenhagen with lots of beautiful old architecture, broad shopping streets and leafy squares with cafes and shops. Whilst it is definitely not as hip and trendy an area as say Norreborre or Vesterbro, it is super family friendly so will work well if it is first class playgrounds rather than pulsing nightclubs you are after.  If your kids are good at walking without claiming their leg batteries have run out, then take a stroll down to the lakes where there are some great restaurants and a section of townhouses so drool worthy that you will be wondering if having watched every episode of the Killing, Borgen and The Bridge will be enough to qualify you for Danish citizenship post Brexit.

Cafe Bopa was our local brunch spot.

2 minutes walk from the apartment was Faelled Park which our kids completely loved. It has an adventure playground, outdoor trampoline park, beach volleyball courts, football pitches, a mini traffic roadway system, a play equipment recreation of the Danish equivalent of Buckingham Palace and vast expanses of green open space.   The home stadium of FC Copenhagen also borders the park if you have football fans in the family.  Mr Malmo took our eldest son to see a match, buying tickets on the day that cost less than £30 for both of them.  

Make sure you tune into the blog this Autumn when I will be sharing more Malmo & Moss tips on where to eat, shop and entertain kids in Copenhagen (when you can prise them away from Nitro Blast that is) and how Danish design has influenced my interiors style at home.

Malmo and Moss Eats: Cornish Coastal Cafe Guide

Beaching and Eating Our Way Around Cornwall

"What are your hobbies" was one of my least favourite graduate job application questions to answer.  Having spent the preceding 3 years as a student, the truthful answer was: bellowing along to Britney/S Club 7/Steps whilst dancing on sofas in the union bar, discovering that when you mix Baileys and Sambuca in a shot it creates a drink akin to vomit suspended in petrol and speculating with my mates about which of our law lecturers might have the biggest dick. None of the above are obviously application form appropriate, so the extracurricular activities I listed instead were: President and Founder of the University Parachute Society (this was true although we never made it out of the union let alone out of a plane) and long distance running (I did the 5 mile Junior Great North Run twice and my unusual running style caused a spectator to comment that "the poor lass looks like she needs a poo.").  Now in my thirties with 3 kids, I don't tend to get asked this question in interviews anymore.  Probably because people assume (correctly) that my pastimes would mainly include wiping bums, trying to stop the baby ingesting lego and/or poo from the toilet brush and/or the cat's food (3 of his favourite snacks) and researching ways to remove smeared banana from my crotch so that it doesn't constantly look like I have an aggressive case of thrush.  However, on the rare occasion when I don't have a wet wipe in my hand, one of my favourite things to do is head to the beach.  A beach with a nice cafe nearby is pretty much my idea of heaven.  Our recent trip to Cornwall offered several opportunities to develop this hobby further.  Here were a few of my favourite finds for any fellow beach/cafe/beach+cafe enthusiasts.

Tintagel and the English Heritage Beach Cafe

75% of our holiday arguments are caused by my husband trying to park at least 5 miles away from the place we are actually trying to visit.  If we were visiting Paris he would want to park in Cannes. So when we drove into Tintagel and he attempted to prematurely spunk his parking load on a patch of hard standing near some fields, a tense stand off ensued.  Gallingly for me, it turned out that for once we were actually at the closest car park so I had to spit out an apology on our way down to the castle, beach and cafe.  However, it is hard to hold on to petty parking gripes for long when you are looking at this kind of scenery.

I chose the Cafe & Haven over Church and the Coastal Path (sorry God)

Gorgeously brooding coastline

Don't look down!

There is a beach at Tintagel but, in truth, it is not really the star of the show.  Nobody puts a 12th Century Castle where King Arthur was allegedly conceived in the corner. Exploring the ruins of that castle and trying to work out where the royal romping happened affords you stunning views of the windswept coastline. When you are done with the jaw dropping scenery with a side helping of history, it would seem that someone at English Heritage got the modern rustic memo when it came to refurbishing the cafe.  It is like stepping inside a crofters cottage if Tom Ford had taken up crofting.  It is a stylish mix of white washed walls, flagstone floors, ercol chairs, on trend distressed wood cladding, copper lighting and black and white photography.   On a cold windy day you can warm up with a tea and scone inside and on a gloriously sunny day like the one when we visited, grab an icecream and soak up the sun and the views on a picnic table outside. 

Can just imagine Tom in a cable knit jumper looking all brooding in this doorway

I loved the flag stone floors, whitewashed walls and ercol style chairs.

A coachload of pensioners had cleared out the plain scones before we arrived

Watergate Bay and The Beach Hut, Zacry's and Fifteen

Watergate Bay was about 15 minutes around the coast from where we were staying at The Sheepshed and is both a mecca for surfers and well heeled holiday makers called Rufus.  I can't claim it is an undiscovered spot by any stretch of the imagination but for a DFL like myself, the expansive beach and contemporary coastal stylings of the Watergate Bay Hotel were manna from heaven.  When we last visited this part of Cornwall, the owners of the hotel had only just started to redevelop it from its previous incarnation as a slightly tired old family hotel.  

The hotel has also taken over and revamped the old Beach Cafe which is now called the Beach Hut and boasts stylish interiors that I would describe as Coastal Industrial Rustic Luxe! There are cosy corners with banquettes, long wooden tables and a menu they describe as "contemporary British Seaside" which in practice means a mix of burgers, seafood and pasta.

There is lots to like about the hotel itself, it is smart without being stuffy and the interiors are coastal without feeling at all nautical cliche.  You can eat either in the bar bit (called the Living Space) which has the show stopping views over the sea, or, in the slightly more upscale Zacry's.  If you have kids I would say go with the Living Space as we ate in Zacry's and it doesn't have a kids menu which meant a lot of time scouring the menu for something that wouldn't have  butternut squash or spinach or similar incendiary ingredients in it (hats off to you if your kids eat those things without resembling John McEnroe when a line call hasn't gone his way). The benefit of eating in Zacrys is, however, that it has a very cool chevron floor that makes great #Ihavethisthingwithfloors fodder.  I didn't manage to get a very decent pic of it though as my 1 year old had caught sight of a nice big staircase in the lobby on the way in and spent the entire meal trying to escape the table to make an attempt at scaling Stair Everest.

I loved the use of mustard tones to bring the coastal decor bang up to date.

Apologies for the pic of a random man. I was willing him to go to the loo so I could take better pic but he seemed to have an iron bladder.

I would love to come back and stay here some day as it is really well set up for families with an infinity swimming pool, kids club and plenty of other activities on offer.  To be honest I was kind of wishing I could trade places with Max (age 8) who was there on an all expenses paid free trip with his mum and dad.   Whilst I was supervising baby Ranulph Fiennes  I overheard Max being told off for not being" a good friend" to his dad by refusing to go to bed thus impinging on the time that Dad could spend in the bar drinking free Champagne.  Not cool Max, not cool.  Unfortunately, in the absence of someone offering me an all expenses paid trip, I had to settle for a buying a couple of nice cups and this Cornwall guide from the mini shop in the Hotel lobby.  Luckily the stunning views on the drive home were free.

Rather more stylish than the average Lonely Planet!

Porthcothan and the Portcothan Stores

Porthcothan beach was the closest to the Sheepshed where we were staying and is much more low-key than some of the bigger ritzier beaches like Watergate Bay.  I would like to say it is my undiscovered gem, but I think, in truth, the weather on the days we visited was just a bit shit and therefore most sane people were probably just somewhere indoors with a hot chocolate rather than freezing their tits off playing cricket and cops and robbers on the beach like us. It is a lovely little beach backed by sand dunes in a small hamlet of houses that is not at all touristy.  The only shop is the Porthcothan Bay Store which is also a cafe and was taken over in 2016 by a young, bouncy and enthusiastic couple called Barney and Emma.  It has a good mix of things you need (like deodrant and calpol) along with a very tempting things that your waistline really doesn't need but which you can wear elasticated pants on holiday and eat anyway.  So we had very un-Deliciously Ella lunches of Chough Bakery Sausage Rolls and Monster Munch crisps washed down with decent coffee and Cornish tea before embarking on chasers of Roskillys icecream.  There is also a little annex that sells everything that we land locked Londoners always forget to bring to the beach like windbreaks, buckets, spades, balls, beach mats and the like.

Godrevy and The Hut

Godrevy beach is located at the bottom of the North Cornwall Coast around the corner from St Ives.  I have never been to Cape Cod but something about Godrevy made me think of massechutes (if you are looking for a new drinking game, try and get someone to spell Masscetchutes and makes them take a shot everytime they get it wrong.  I tried 11 different combinations before I gave up and spell checked it!).  It has huge sweeping wide flat beaches which are then bordered by rocky outreaches beyond which there is a lighthouse. Our kids loved going exploring across the rocks and looking for creatures in the many rockpools. There is also a really great cafe for when you are done with your Martha's Vineyard fantasy.  It is a bit like I suspect the Hidden Hut on Rosevine beach was 7 years ago.  Before, that is, it became a siren call for all middle class people on holiday in Cornwall meaning you now have to queue up for at least 45 mins to get your fix of artisan bread.  Although obvs come August I will be up there with my Observer Reading elbows at the ready ready to fight for the last falafel, Godrevy offers same great food with a bit less fanfare.  I would love to go back and go to one of their feast evenings this Summer.  

So there you have it, my favourite places to inhale clotted cream and look out to sea.  Will be heading back to Cornwall this week with my elasticated waist trousers ready to bring you more coastal cafe classics.