Tri Service Charity Rally October 2026

Three days of fun, laughter, great cars and some fantastic places visited

Day 1

An early start as our meeting point was at RAF Lakenheath viewpoint at 8:00am. Parking up at the viewpoint we had just got out of the car when we were greeted by the thunderous sound of jet engines, an F-15 was getting ready to launch and, in what seemed like a blink of an eye, it thundered off down the runway. Wow! The power from those engines was immense — you could literally feel the vibration in your chest. Not a bad way to start the morning!

4 days exploring Cinque Terre, with £50 return flights, we just had to go September 2026

Day 1 – Arriving in La Spezia

Our destination was La Spezia, which would be our base for the next four days. We started with an early-morning flight from Stansted, and after a slight delay at security, when my bag was pulled aside for some extra checks, we eventually made our way through the airport crowds and, of course, stopped for the traditional beer and breakfast at Wetherspoons.

Our flight was to Pisa Airport which is fairly small, and as ours was the only flight landing at the time, a result, we were quickly through passport control. Now, rather than taking the PisaMover, we decided to walk the 1.5 kilometres (20 minutes) to Pisa Centrale station and in the morning Italian sunshine it was a really pleasant way to stretch our legs after the flight.

Knebworth House Car Show August 2026

Knebworth is probably better known for the massive concerts they’ve had over the years — Queen, Oasis, Robbie Williams and many more — but today it was all about the cars!

We ventured out solo to Knebworth, mainly because we hadn't put our name down for the event the car club, we belong to was off to today. So, with the sun shining and, thankfully, not a drop of the rain that had been forecast!  off we went on the just-over-an-hour journey, squeezing in a quick breakfast stop on the way as after all, a car show requires fuel for the humans as well as the cars!

Driving up through the grounds and getting our first look at Knebworth House was pretty impressive; the place is huge! Following the other cars it wasn't long before

Berlin Germany Christmas Market A Festive Four-Day Escape December 2025

Berlin at Christmas? Oh yes. Add fabulous friends, comfy boots, overflowing beer steins, and a very ambitious step count, and you’ve got the recipe for a perfect long weekend. We flew out Friday and floated home Monday, full of memories, mulled wine and hot eggnog and mildly sore feet.

Friday: Getting Our Bearings (and Our First Beer)

Friday was all about settling in and soaking up the vibe. After arrival at our hotel, we headed out to get our bearings — and by “bearings,” we mostly meant finding Christmas markets. Berlin doesn’t do things by halves, so before we even realised it, we’d already ticked off several markets, each twinkler than the last.

The night ended on a high at the legendary Hofbräu Bar — and what a way to start the weekend. Think phenomenal hospitality, steins flowing freely, hearty food, dancing, laughter, and that infectious beer-hall atmosphere where strangers become friends and everyone’s having the best time. If Berlin had a “welcome party,” this was it.

14-Day European Road Trip: 10 Hotels, 6 Countries, 4,178 km of Pure Adventure

A journey through open roads, along canals, stunning views and fantastic mountain passes — from the Channel to Champagne country.

Day 1 – The Adventure Begins: From Calais to La Louvière, Belgium

Crossing the Channel, canals, and Belgian beer.

Route: Calais → La Louvière (205 km)
Highlights: Eurotunnel crossing, Strépy-Thieu boat lift, Belgian brasserie dinner.

And so, the road trip begins. After three hectic days of planning and packing, the adventure truly started with the Eurotunnel crossing — a smooth glide beneath the Channel that always feels like the true beginning of any European drive.

5.5-mile / 8.8 kms circular walk around Kersey via Lindsey

Wednesday's circular walk started from the pretty village of Kersey, Suffolk's quaintest village, with its many medieval timber frame houses estimated to date from between the 12th and 15th centuries, and are one of the biggest collections preserved in Suffolk and East Anglia.

The village itself sits in one of Suffolk's crumpled valleys “where the landscape corrugates”, with its principal claim to fame, apart from one scene from Lovejoy being filmed there, is that a coarse woollen cloth called Kersey cloth takes its name from it.

Parking the car on church hill leaving the handbrake on the car firmly on! The first thing that catches your eye are the original road signs from the early days of motoring.

Coddenham and Hemingstone 4 mile circular walk

Approximately 8 miles north of Ipswich is Coddenham a small village which has a rich history dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period.

Having driven through the village of Coddenham many times over the years on my way to various car shows. I was aware that the road that passes through Coddenham, High Street road, is very narrow in places and I wasn't sure I could park safely along it. A quick google search showed that along school road was a parking area at the community centre, this turned out to be a great move, as the community centre looked to be only a few years old and it also had lots of free parking.

The weather today was a nice 15 degs and sunny, with the walk taking us along the gently rolling suffolk countryside, through woodland, along field edge paths and quiet roads but more importantly it had no major hills .

5 mile circular walk from the village of Lavenham

Parking in the lay by near the beautiful Lavenham church, its free to park there then walking down to the magnificent Lavenham guildhall. The walk heads off out to the east of Lavenham into the countryside along the gentle hills, woods and ancient tracks.

Our walk today was chilly at the start as it was about 3 degs, and in places quite muddy, the walk was mainly countryside views and also at times following along a river for a short stretch.

Along the route you will come across one of the walks highlights in the beautiful village of Brent Eleigh, the historic medieval church St Mary which was built around 1250. Its old door with its ironwork latch is probably the original one provided by the village carpenter and blacksmith back then, and the sanctuary

7km circular walk from Stoke-by-Nayland village,

Stoke-by-Nayland formerly a market town situated near the river Stour in Suffolk, and along this walk you will also pass through the village of Polstead as well. The walk took us about 2.5hrs with the stops to look around.

Along this walk there are plenty of things to see. As we walked past some of the beautiful old properties I do wonder what they used to be, then when you read the properties name they can sometimes give you the clue to it's past history. We also passed through wooded areas, passed some very large lakes, along the river and also visited several spectacular churches, one of which had a link to Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, and the snowdrops were out everywhere.

Although the majority of this lovely walk was easy going there were a couple of unexpected calf burning steep climbs, but the reward for the climb did give some great scenic views.

Roseau, Dominica Caribbean Cruise Feb 2025

Known as the island of waterfalls, 29 I believe, and unlike many of the neighbouring islands in the region which encourage lounging at the beach with a cocktail in hand, for us a full itinerary in Dominica did not include a beach day at all. The key value of visiting this unspoilt tropical paradise is the lush greenery of the rainforest which covers about two-thirds of the land, and it also has nine of the Caribbean's 16 active volcanoes located on it

We opted not to go trekking through the rainforest, we don't mind a nice trek but passed on that one this time, as on one of our last trips recently we were a tasty meal for the bugs and the bites hurt for ages afterwards. So we opted for a scenic rainforest drive, visiting the Emerald pool and then some river tubing along the Layou river.