Buenaventura Hotel and Great Moments It’s a bit of a weird name - Buenaventura Hotel and Great Moments. But leaving that aside, my observations from my recent stay - May 2026. A La Carte Restaurants The a la carte restaurants are a welcome change from the buffet food. It was pretty easy to find availability on the online booking system for evening dinner each night. We also had breakfast in the Sunset restaurant each day - why wouldn’t you want to enjoy the sun over a leisure

Meet Noddy Car - which I picked up from Budget last week at Belfast International Airport. I called it Noddy car - as it reminded me of this. It’s not exactly the sort of car that I’d want to own. If I got given it, I’d probably give it back, or sell it and buy something else. The colour could be better, the ‘va va voom’ is questionable, it has zero curb appeal. It’s basic - with its 4 doors, 4 wheels, 4 seats, a steering wheel and brakes. There’s no Sat Nav, reversing camera

Last time we visited Puerto Vallarta it was 1996 - back when nobody in the UK really knew about Puerto Vallarta. It was lovely - it felt fresh and young, not yet corrupted by tourism. Nuevo Vallarta had only started to be built. Since 1996, it has clearly been well fed on a western diet. It’s grown into a 30+ year old overweight party animal, wearing a shit shirt and trying too hard. It hasn’t become dangerous or unpleasant — just generic. Mexican culture is still there - but

Cheap all-inclusive beachfront hotel in Central Puerto Vallarta sounds brilliant until you remember you have to share it with everyone else who also found the deal. None of this came as a surprise. Cheap all-inclusive comes ALWAYS with terms and conditions, AKA people that you need to live with. Children There are loads of kids. Now we aren’t in the same category as Cruella De Vil, but we have done our time and now enjoy a kid free environment from time to time. Yes there is

I shouldn’t complain, but…. I will even though I pretty much brought this upon myself. I’m done with cheap all inclusive finds on booking.com. This is driven by a combination of what you get and by the people that holiday there. I know, I know - and I include myself in there - but we’ll cover that a little later and elsewhere. £1400 for 9 nights at a beachfront All Inclusive hotel in central Puerto Vallarta - cheap all-inclusive sounded brilliant… until living it. It requires

The Austrian capital Vienna is hosting the 70th Eurovision Song Contest. And we are going to be there next week for the final. The Grand Final will be held on Saturday 16 May at the Wiener Stadthalle. The logo remains terrible. My Eurovision Gamble I had already booked our flights and hotel before the host city was announced. Gambling that Vienna would be the host city, and the Eurovision final would be on Saturday the 16th May 2026. When Vienna was confirmed - I was a winner

Retirement gives loads of time to muse over things… much of this musing leads to being grumpy - but sometimes you see the sense. Let’s start with the musing. My wife and I checked in together for our recent flights with United to Puerto Vallarta. We’d booked separately after I managed to save £700 using an AMEX offer — a story for another day. My wife, we’ll call her Jane, as well that is her name, and wife sounds a little formal for us friends. So Jane would always be assig

What is it with airport lounges. For me, it’s a comfortable seat, a coffee, a snack, maybe a couple of beers, and an easy way to ease yourself into holiday mode. I certainly wouldn’t pay for it — we get access through a credit card or airline status. What it definitely isn’t is a stage for people to hold court… Boss Man Particularly if you’re loudly reminding your staff that you’re the important one on the Singapore trip.. Yes Andrew, No 1 lounge, terminal 2, Heathrow @ 09:30

How airlines quietly run your sleep cycle The more I travel, the more I notice how airlines quietly control us. You think you’re choosing when to sleep on a flight - but that isn’t the case - the airline knows best. That probably sounds more like paranoia or a conspiracy theory, but read on. Boarding and first nap We got on this flight and even though we had already been fed and watered in the airport - we were given a first meal. 2.5 hours later the lights were dimmed, the w

Let’s be clear - this isn’t a review of review of Americans - as both nationalities (US and UK) were more than represented within the United staff that we encountered. We had lots of mixed feelings; Ground Crew (Heathrow - London) Wasn’t impressed. Lots of people standing around and not doing a lot. Scott - I’d have a look at this. Pretty sure none of the staff would recognise you - as they didn’t seem to give a crap. I did self scan and screwed it up as I was firing the scan

Either this aircraft is 40% fuel and 60% catering storage, or United Airlines has cracked physics

Yes, in short - it’s shite. Somewhere over Scotland on the way to the US, on a 9-hour United flight, I made what should have been a simple decision: “I’ll buy the Wifi”. It should have been simple task. But it did’t work like it should. It should be as simple as making a cup of tea or turning on a tv - but it’s not. It also does that thing with the lead in prices. So what I thought was $7.99 for the flight, became $7.99 for just one hour, and the price for the duration of the

Yes I know I said the world of work was behind me, but sometimes an opportunity presents itself that you’re just drawn to. And even better when it is the perfect fit - no skills required

Before this trip, packing felt like a bit of a guessing game. Multiple climates, long flights, internal travel, and the vague hope you won’t regret what you’ve shoved into a 23kg suitcase. Now that we’ve done it, and home, sorted through the suitcase to what was worn and what wasn't - across places like Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Santiago and Lima - there are a few clear winners (and a few things I’d leave at home next time). This is the reality, not the internet version.

There’s a certain type of traveller who gets off the plane in a new country armed with nothing but a credit card and blind faith in contactless payments. And then there’s the rest of us, wondering how much cash is too much, too little, or completely unnecessary, and how the credit card traveller has the balls to take his approach. We found on our travels that the truth is, the cash vs card debate when travelling isn’t clear cut. It changes city by city, sometimes street by st

If you're like me, there is a very specific moment in any flight that I don't enjoy. You’ve landed. You’re tired. You’ve queued for immigration & customs. Your bag eventually appears. And now all you want is a simple, seamless airport transfer. You've had the warning about the taxi scams, and you enter the arrival hall to face the onslaught of drivers claiming to be uber, grab, official, best price, official etc etc... I'll take a train, metro, bus, or pre-book a transfer if

If you’re doing the classic South America loop, you’ll likely tick off some combination of Lima, Santiago, Buenos Aires or Rio de Janeiro. On paper, they’re all “big Latin American cities”. In reality, they couldn’t feel more different. First Impressions When we landed at each of these cities - I went through a familiar set of emotions. Concern - moving through immigration, customs, finding transport to the hotel The journey from airport to hotel - together with the sights an

If you’re doing a South America trip and flirting with the idea of going “a bit further” for something special, but restrained by time or money, you’ll probably end up weighing up the Galápagos Islands versus Easter Island. They’re both remote. They’re both expensive. They both look incredible on Instagram. But beyond that, they’re completely different experiences—and picking the wrong one for your travel style may feel like a very costly mistake. Here’s the honest view - we

Planning a long-haul trip to South America can be complex, especially when trying to combine multiple countries efficiently. This 33-day South America itinerary covers five countries—Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil—plus two of the continent’s most unique destinations: the Galápagos Islands and Easter Island. This guide breaks down the route, flights, travel times, and costs , making it useful for anyone planning an extended South America trip. Overview of the Rou

Day 1 - Arrival in Rio de Janeiro We flew up to Rio de Janeiro with British Airways. By this point we’d grown used to LATAM Airlines, where announcements came in Spanish first, then English, and sometimes a third language if needed. Good old BA mostly stuck to English. When the crew had to deal one-on-one with “Johnny Foreigner”, they either hunted down the one Spanish-speaking colleague, reached for a translation app, or—failing both—resorted to pointing and raising their vo