Travelling Wren

7 tips on preparing to host a 'CouchSurfing' guest

By Andrea Wren

I waved goodbye to my 'Couchsurfing' guest Maryline a few weeks ago now, and I was getting ready to host another guest very recently. This 'surfer' changed his plans last minute so didn't arrive, but expecting him did give me more practice in my hosting preparation.

I thought I'd share some of my hosting tips for others interested in hosting a 'couchsurfer', to make the experience a great one (which it should be!).

Cool tips for hot dogs in the summer weather

By Andrea Wren

It's not as baking today, but over the past few days, my dog hasn't quite known what to do with herself in the warmth. Being a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, and 12 years old to boot, she's not very good at regulating her temperature, so our walks have been short and sweet to avoid heat exhaustion.

So, as many people do travel with their canine friends in hot weather, I thought it would be wise to offer a few tips to help keep dogs cool as a cucumber. After all, the only mechanisms dogs have available to them to cool down is through panting, and sweating through their footpads, so death through overheating is a very real danger. Here then are my hot weather tips for dogs that travel (or stay at home!):

The beach bum's guide to getting more bang for their buck

By Andrea Wren

First things first - I’m blogging for a chance to win a trip to Cuba with On the Beach! Check out their competition at the On the Beach blog. So if you like this post (which has to be about saving money on holiday), please do tweet about it or comment! Big sun-burned kisses all round for those who do :-)

Now to the grit. Your beach holiday is booked but your piggy bank seems to have been on a diet. It fits into your bikini better than you do and your holiday wallet is leaner than Victoria Beckham's calorie-allowance. You have a little cash, but you need to use it wisely.

Is it time to renew your EHIC? (And why you must)

A recent article on MoneySavings Expert said that six million EHIC cards are due to expire in the first half of this year and warned UK travellers not to travel into Europe without ensuring they carried a valid one.

The article prompted me to check my own card and lo and behold, it expires in July 2011. As I've got a trip to Madrid coming up in August, I definitely need to renew it. But why is it so important?

A taste of Hong Kong in Manchester: Egg tarts at Ho's Bakery

By Andrea Wren

When I came back from Hong Kong and Macau last November, the one thing that I was really going to miss was the Hong Kong egg tarts, and even more so, the Portuguese egg tarts (from Macau). I thought my only chance of eating them again was if I went all the way back to China!

Imagine my joy when I found out that in my very own home city of Manchester, there is a Chinese bakery which sells both types of tart? Oh yes, and very good they are indeed.

What to consider when taking other people's children abroad

Next week I'm heading off to Crete for a week with my two young nephews, aged 7 and 8. It will be just me, them and our all-inclusive package deal, and I'm taking them away for a treat. I'm clearly quite deranged, but planning the holiday has brought up a whole lot of new considerations in that I'm taking children abroad that are not my own.

Guest post: Money & Travel

By Laura Porter

While many of us can’t fly off to faraway places at the drop of a hat we can all get nearer to our travel goals with some good money management.

Planning Stage

Timing: School holidays are the most expensive from the UK, but also check your destination’s annual events as arriving a week after a national holiday will be cheaper than a week before. Generally, booking flights 10 months to a year in advance will get you the best deal.

Women travellers: Would you visit bars & clubs as a solo female?

By Andrea Wren

I found a great article on Janice Waugh's Solo Traveler Blog about how to 'Slip into the Scene' as a solo traveller, and enjoy bars, restaurants and festivals even on your own. Janice's site is aimed at all solo travellers, not just females, but as a woman herself, she obviously writes from a woman's perspective.

While I'm in the USA on my forthcoming trip, the Oregon part of it will be busy and I'll be with other people for dinner and drinking. But when I get to Seattle, I'll be on my own for most of time.

5 fast packing tips for women travellers (or how to pack in record time)

By Andrea Wren

Well, I'm almost there with my packing for my Oregon and Washington trip, and it occurred to me that the bulk of this has been achieved in record time - less than a hour, in fact.

It depends on the type of travel you're doing, of course, but a woman's packing is generally going to take longer than a man's packing. This is because we have to consider things like whether a bra will be okay under certain tops or outfits, or which shoes match what. Even women who don't do glamour are unlikely to want black bras under white t-shirts!

Seeing the dingoes of Fraser Island, Australia

By Andrea Wren

Confession: This post is just an excuse to show off my dingo pictures!

There, I've said it. Now with the rest of my post...

I was talking about Australia last night to a friend who will be spending three months in Oz on a round-the-world trip. I told him Fraser Island was a MUST DO. When I was there in May 2009, however, the chances of seeing a dingo were not as high as imagined.