North to Scotland – 2026 – Day 4 – Falkirk.

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We finished Day 3 with a little treat a meal out at “BEIJING BANQUET – ALL YOU CAN EAT, ALL YOU’LL EVER WANT.”… about an eight minute drive ( mainly due to the road works), this restaurant is situated next to the Travel Lodge. It’s a self service predominantly Chinese restaurant, although it also had some English, pizza, Indian food….probably more but as we wanted Chinese I didn’t really explore the other options….the Chinese food was good quality…delicious duck pancakes, huge king prawns, nice chicken satay, beef in black bean etc etc…The desserts were also delicious…pineapple and banana fritters, fresh fruit, cheesecakes and numerous other choices…very yummy…all for the price of £21,99 Monday to Thursday and £23,99 Friday to Sunday….

We returned to the Premier Lodge with happy full tummy’s.

Day 4 – Out and about in Falkirk

Unfortunately the room had quite a lot of light…a flashing fire alarm system, a green emergency light, two lights in the bathroom which stay on and shine through the door cracks and street lights which shone around the window blinds….not great as I like a very dark bedroom…about 2.39 am I fashioned an eye-mask out of a clean hanky and two hair bands!!!!! Sleep at last….

John rose early and proclaimed it was a great shower. He is having the next 3 days chasing around the Glasgow and Edinburgh railway lines seeing as many trains as he possibly can….I called him an Uber to take him to the Falkirk High Station…alas the App kept saying it was cancelling my order….I later found out that 5here is no Uber in Falkirk..!!!! So dragging on my clothes I set the ever faithful Waze sat nav and off we went. It took about 10 minutes or so to get to the station where I dropped John….I reset waze to the nearest Tesco and headed off. We had brought cereal with us and the picnic hamper, so only needed milk to provide Dad and myself with our preferred breakfast. We had also decided to take advantage of the Premier Lodges microwaves and fridge….so Tesco provided us with microwave ready meals for the evening meal and sandwiches for our lunch and yoghurts and milk to complete our breakfast….job done…On returning I collected Dad from his room and we breakfasted together in our room. After breakfast I had a lovely shower, before Dad and I headed out.

We headed out to the Falkirk Wheel. This is the world’s one and only rotating boat lift. A marvel of engineering, the Falkirk Wheel links the Forth & Clyde Canal to the Union Canal 35 metres above. It allows vessels to sail through the sky thanks to a unique fusion of art and engineering. The half turn only uses the same power it would take to boil eight kettles.

Transforming the contaminated site of a former tar works, The Falkirk Wheel opened in 2002 and replaced a flight of 11 locks that once stepped the Union Canal down to the level of the Forth & Clyde, more than 100 feet below. Whereas weary travellers once had a day’s heavy work opening and closing lock gates to complete the journey between the two canals, The Falkirk Wheel allows vessels to transit between the two waterways in just a few minutes.

Today it is one of Scotlands main tourist attractions. Dad and I have been on it before but one can never have enough of this strange phenomenon…. The boats enter the cradle, or gondolas and it is lowered, while the opposite one rises, keeping the vast, 1800 tonne boat lift in perfect balance. At only £16.50 for over 65’s and £17.95 for adults it is extremely affordable. There is plenty of parking and blue badge disability parking is right next to the visitors centre.

We purchased our tickets and had a cup of coffee in the cafe while awaiting our time slot and watching the previous tour boat being raised.

We had only ever seen one boat at a time being raised and descending however today we witnessed the tourist boat and a long boat coming down together…

Once our boat had reached the top level we continued through a tunnel up to the next lock before turning around and coming back.

The return trip is equally as fascinating, with the Captain pointing out all the sights on the horizon.

Back with our feet on terra firmer we enjoyed looking at this feat in engineering and the information on display.

After showing our blue badge at the visitors centre the barrier was lifted and we headed away for our next stop…..The Kelpies.

The Kelpies, are a pair of 30-meter-tall horse head sculptures located in The Helix park Falkirk, inspired by the working Clydesdale horses of Scotland’s past. The Kelpies stand majestically above all around them and pay homage to the working horses of Scotland which used to pull barges along Scotland’s canals and worked in the fields in the area where they now stand. Towering over a new canal extension which links the Forth & Clyde Canal to the North Sea, The Kelpies are the result of a unique collaboration between the partners and Glasgow-based artist Andy Scott. Almost a decade in the making, the project has transformed 350 hectares of underused land between Falkirk and Grangemouth into a vibrant parkland, visitor attraction and marine hub with the canal and The Kelpies at its heart.

Once again it is an area which allows disabled parking right next to the visitors centre. We used the very tidy toilets before sitting in the car and munching our lunch. After which we walked up to the sculptures and looked at the lock.

Dad photo bombings the Kelpies!!!

They used to do tours up the inside of the Kelpie, I think the viewing gallery was from its mouth….but there was no evidence of this today..

We returned to The premier Lodge for a hot coffee and one of my Dads favourites- choc-chip mini muffins !!!!

North to Scotland – 2026 – Day 3 – “Goodbye England”, “Hello Scotland”….

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Yesterday evening we took an Uber to The Crows Nest …a Greene King Pub, with good old fashioned ‘pub grub’. We didn’t want a posh restaurant just some decent food….thats what we got…Dad had hunters chicken, John had gammon steak, pineapple & egg & chips. I had 3 Cumberland sausages, mash, peas, gravy and a Yorkshire pudding …we each had a soft drink and the bill was less than £35…. Half the price of the night before and more tasty….a great choice.

Day 3 – time to leave Newcastle and head for Scotland

John walked up to the station and brought back 3 bacon butties which we had in our room with coffee. Heading down to reception to book out we meet a delightful receptionist. When he heard how old my Dad was he rushed across to shake his hand and chatted to him while John and I went to fetch the car. The Leonardo Hotel discounts your car parking which was a very pleasant surprise…if you stay longer than 2 nights it would be cheaper to buy a week’s parking.

Returning to the hotel the lovely receptionist assisted us with our bags and then gifted us some wonderful fruit jelly pastilles, which he said he and his wife enjoyed on their trips to Scotland….he was right we did enjoy his kindness and the jelly pastilles……what a kind gentleman….I must say we would definitely stay there again….we were made to feel very welcome and the Northern Kindness shone through.

We had a good steady trip up the A1… until we saw……

We crossed into Scotland and headed for South Queenferry a favourite haunt of ours. Filling with petrol at a garage with a Marks & Spencer’s we picked up sandwiches and sausage rolls for the boys and a wrap with yoghurt for myself. …we sat in the carpark almost beneath The Forth Bridge eating our lunch. I fetched a couple of coffees from the Forth Bridge cafe & Bistro….we spent an enjoyable hour watching the world go by…trains, boats, ferry’s etc…

We headed on to our hotel in Falkirk. It’s not the Premier Lodge’s fault that their lodge is in the middle of massive roadworks at the moment. We are here for 4 nights so that John can go to Edinburgh and Glasgow stations, while Dad and I see the tourist sights….so we wanted somewhere cheap and cheerful….. that is exactly what we got …we were greeted by two delightful receptionist who went beyond the norm to give us information and to make us welcome. A lift deposited us on the 2nd floor. The rooms have double beds ( we’re used to kingsize so we will be very snug!), a kettle and coffee and a hanging area, a tv, desk and en-suite. Everything we need…there are 2 communal microwaves and fridges near the reception…..so all good…basic but clean and ok for what we need.

We’ll need to negotiate the road works again tonight to find somewhere to eat….more about that tomorrow.

North to Scotland – 2026 – Day 1 & 2

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We set off from Bedford…..the car resembled a jigsaw – 2 cases, a mobility scooter, two over night bags, a bag of pillows, two camera bags, two laptop bags, a picnic cool box, a box of Diet Coke, 12 small & 6 big bottles of water, a large jar of coffee /flask/ mugs in a bag…and everything else as well as the kitchen sink!!!!….somehow it all fitted in with no gap unused…We picked Dad up and off the 3 of us went…on our holiday.

We trundled up the A1 with the accompaniment of Smooth Radio and John and I singing along, while Dad turned his hearing aid off !!!!!! Stopping at a rest area just short of Scotch Corner for the loos, coffee and the sandwiches we’d brought with us. We arrived at The Leonardo Hotel in Newcastle, mid-afternoon. Having off loaded Dad and the overnight bags, John and I found a convenient 24 hour multi story carpark a short stroll away.

We were quickly booked into the hotel by a very helpful receptionist. We had two superior double rooms on the 7th floor, next to each other… The rooms were nice enough with a small table and one chair, kettle mugs, coffee and a nice clean bathroom. I am pleased we had opted for superior rooms because we wouldn’t have wanted anything less…..but for £71.50 per room per night, I think it was good value for a hotel in the heart of the city of Newcastle, a stones throw …or 10 minute walk from the Central station .

We decided to eat in the bar, where they serve meals in the evening. Unfortunately just as we sat at a small table, to study the menu, a coach party arrived. We joined the end of the queue which was being serviced by one rather grumpy member of the bar staff. We ordered fish and chips for Dad and minute steak and chips for John and myself. We feared a long wait but surprisingly enough it arrived quite quickly. The food was palatable enough, and the ice creams to follow yummy. However it was relatively expensive for the quality and ambience so we hatched a plan to eat else where the following night.

Having had what seemed like a long day we decided to go to bed early. The bed was comfortable, and there was a selection of firm and soft pillows.

After a good nights sleep, John headed to the station for a day out on the trains with his camera. Dad and I had a more leisurely start. We meandered across to the carpark to get our extra thick coats, it was not only drizzling but it was also very cold.

Having dressed in more appropriate attire we walked up to the station arriving wet and ready for a sit down…..thank goodness for Greggs….a bacon butty and a strong Americano coffee each, soon warmed us up.

We had decided to take a circular route on the Metro and get off where we fancied…2x all day one zone tickets were around £9.00.

We were doing the yellow circular route.

The metro runs regularly every few minutes and we were soon speeding our way out of the underground and enjoying the views of the open countryside.

After several stops we disembarked at Whitley Bay. A lovely old station, which is presently being renovated. The beautiful mosaics in its entrance set the scene for this delightful station.

We decided not to go further as it was still rainy. So we hopped back on the metro after using the toilets and exploring the station.

Two Stops further on we disembarked again at Tynemouth. Another beautiful station from a bygone era. The station platform area is huge. Today it is home to several shops with a big market every Saturday and Sunday.

Off we went again. This time the metro hugs the estuary, which we caught several glimpses of. We changed trains at Monument and headed back to Central Station Newcastle.

I used the convenience of Marks & Spencer’s, Sainsbury’s and Greggs to get sandwiches, sausage rolls and yummies for lunch and we passed John his goodies over the platform barrier as he had an afternoon of train chasing planned.

We took a taxi back to the hotel to avoid anymore inclement weather. Lunch was eaten in Johns and mine room, prior to having an afternoon rest, readying ourselves for our evening supper.

Getting ready for a road trip around Scotland

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THE PLANNING STAGE

We are shortly off on another road tip around Scotland. The itinerary and planning document is below…. It is all for 2 double rooms, because we are lucky enough to be joined by my father .. so if its just one or two of you its half the price…. most of the bookings are with Booking.com although one apartment is with Airbnb. With most hotels you have the option of adding breakfast at the booking stage…. we normally don’t because Dad likes a double bed but doesn’t want 2 breakfasts!! so we pay at the hotel for the breakfasts as and when we want them.

The airb&b is a ground floor apartment in Inverness. We usually stay at The Royal Highlander, which is next to the station. But when planning this trip they were fully booked and even if I’d changed our dates around I wasn’t keen to pay their hugely increased prices.

In Carlisle we are staying in an apartment because I really cant face once again staying in the Carlisle Station Hotel, Sure Hotel Collection by BW…. The last time was just a step too far for me. It has always been quirky but last time was more surreal than usual……We’ve had over the years:- crashing down or stuck open sash windows, toilets which fill up and flood, toilets which don’t flush, a step in the middle of a bathroom floor etc….but last time the shower wouldn’t turn off, so I left it running got dressed and waited until John came back from fetching bacon butties for breakfast. John gave it a tug and the knob came off in his hand as it covered us both and the bathroom in spurting out water in all directions. John managed to reconnect the knob which sent the water thundering back into the bath-tub direction but we still couldn’t get it to stop…….we were of course fully dressed and looking like drowned rats…. The manager did apologies profusely for it and assured us ‘the next time we visit our room will be half price’….ummmmm no thank you…eventually we came to an agreement that he would discount our room so we ended only paying for one night instead of two……which was acceptable to us….but the thought of going through the usual drama in the only decent hotel within walking distance to the station was too much for me on this trip so it is a lovely sounding apartment instead.

DAYPLACECOST
1Leonardo Hotel
Scotswood Road, Newcastle NE1 4AD
2 nights x  2 Superior King double room Booking.com		£286.74
3Premier  Lodge
Westmains  Road Grangemouth Falkirk FK3 8YE
4 nights x 2 Double Rooms Booking.com		£540
74 nights Airbnb 2 Crown Circus Braevellie Apartment No 1 Highland Council, Inverness IV2 3NQ… contact Claire  for check in details.£920
11Muthu Queens Hotel
Corran Esplanade Oban PA34  5AG
2 nights x 2 Standard Double rooms Booking.com		£357
13Western House Hotel at Ayre Racecourse
66 Craigie Road Ayr KA8 0HA
1 night x 2 Double in Courtyard Buildings. Booking.com		£187.12
14Carlisle City Centre The Foreman’s Residence
9 Earl Street The Foreman’s Residence Carlisle CA1 1DP
2 night x 2 double ensuite bedroomed apartment. Booking.com		£232.20
16Steeton Hall Hotel & Restaurant
Station Road, Steeton BD20 6RY
2 nights x 2 Deluxe King Double breakfast included. Booking.com		£277.20
18Home
TOTAL COST£2800.26

A quick weekend trip to Spain – Day 4.. time to go home.

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Today was the first day we decided to have breakfast in the hotel. We had deliberately not booked with breakfast because we thought at €15.50 each it was a bit too much for a continental, buffet breakfast. However, we made an exception because we felt it was going to be a long day. It was a nice enough breakfast. John had cold meats and cheese with toast, fruit and yogurt. I had a slice of toast with half an avocado, smoked salmon and the yolk of a cold fried egg and some yogurt…it was scrummy and if I am honest it is my perfect breakfast….maybe I’ll start having it at home but without the egg.

After breakfast we went back to the room, showered and packed. Jak rang and gave me the instructions as to how to get to his..left, right, left and hey presto we were there.

We said goodbye to the boys and then Jak and Nichola drove in front of us to Alicante. It was a scenic route through orange, lemon and lime groves with mountainous backdrops.

We parked my hire car in a big free carpark outside a gym Jak sometimes trains in. Then we all went to the promenade in Jaks car. He seemed to know his way around and parked very centrally in an underground carpark. We walked along past the fabulous marina….some of the yatchs were palatial…..even a euro lottery win wouldn’t have purchased them….

We said “no thank you” to the person taking and printing pictures along the promenade, but he gave it to Jak any way

The 4 of us walking along the promenade

We then headed for the castle…

Alicante castle on top of the hill

Jak and Nichola had walked up before but today we were going to take the lift. We walked up a few hundred steps (or at least it felt like it) looking for the lift. This took us through some quaint and quirky little streets. It soon became obvious the lift wasn’t about to appear and Jak and Nichola ascertained it went from the beach…..so we walked back down a different way …again very pretty.

We eventually found the lift on the beach road, down a long tunnel….

Because we are old we didn’t have to pay and it was a couple of €’s each for the youngsters. The lift took us to the top…

It was well worth the effort as the views were tremendous.

John, Jak and Nichola climbed up a little higher for even more views…but my little legs were tired and I knew we still had a lot of walking at the airports to do, so I sat in the shade and enjoyed the view from where I was.

After taking the lift back down we meandered along the promenade. The beach was busy with sunbathers and the “ looky-looky men were out in force.

We stopped at a restaurant on the promenade and all had chicken and salad. The day seemed to fly past and before we knew it Jak was taking us back to pick up our car. He very kindly drove in front of us to a petrol station near the airport. We struggled to open the filler cap ….lets face it the car was a wreck…but eventually put €38 of petrol in….obviously it hadn’t been completely full when we collected it as we had only driven from the airport to the hotel and back again! Jak and Nichola escorted us to the turning where we had to go to return the car…..our very grateful thanks to both of them for taking the stress out of finding where to go.

We returned the car in minutes, and quickly went through the departures protocol and procedures.

I do wonder why people pay for priority boarding…with Ryan Airways this consists of being the first through to get on the bus which takes you to the plane…but these means you’re the last off the bus and consequently the last on the plane…certainly not priority “boarding”….note to self – never pay for priority boarding🤣

The plane was full and the rather fat, grumpy man who sat next to me had a nasty cough, so let’s hope he kept it too himself….note to self- remember to take neck pillow with you as a germ barrier🤣and for greater comfort on budget airlines.

Arriving in Luton airport we made our way to immigration. The queues were unreal…it was totally jammed. I held on to a railing for support as I was pretty tired. A security guard asked if I was exhausted which I nodded to…he then very kindly escorted John and me through the ‘assisted’ lane and within 2 minutes we had cleared immigration….what a very kind man. …..I now know I am officially old, my legs were a bit wobbly and when I asked John if I looked awful he said ‘yes’🤣🤣…just a bit pale from tiredness. We soon bought tickets for the dart and train to Bedford. On reaching Bedford even John didn’t object to me spending £10 on a taxi from the station to home- a 5 minute walk!!! We finally made it into bed at 1.20 am…..exhausted but very, very happy.

A very big thank you to Jak and Nichola for a superb weekend, for all the lovely food, for their massive effort, for sharing their new life with us and most of all for their love.🥰