Places I Travelled To in 2018

In 2018 I kept my travels within Europe, which is unusual for me. The year turned out to have a clear theme: castles. Most of the trips were in the UK and Ireland, and many of them were made by train. ## Bath, England The first trip of the year was with my friend and flatmate Rosianna. We both enjoy a good day trip, but for Bath we decided to stay overnight. I had only visited when I was much younger and was keen to see some Jane Austen-related spots too. It was one of the first really sunny days of the year. Highlights included buns at Sally Lunn’s — we went for the classic cinnamon butter, and I even took a jar home — a wander down the Royal Crescent, hunting for bookshops, and a rainy detour to the beautiful Prior Park. ## Arundel, England For our anniversary, my boyfriend Ger and I headed to Arundel Castle. The town itself isn’t large, but it’s perfect for spending an afternoon once you’ve finished at the castle. It rained again, but it’s a great spot for history lovers or for a quick break from London, since you can take the train directly into the town. ## Hay-on-Wye, Wales My trip to Hay-on-Wye was technically a work trip. There was a big Bookstagrammer event — that’s Instagrammers who post pictures of books — and I was speaking on a panel about social media and publishing. I got to roam the town quite a bit while also shooting a video for work. Hay-on-Wye sits just across the Welsh border and is a bookshop town. It’s a bit of a pain to reach: I had to return to the nearest town by bus to catch my train, so I had to make sure I didn’t miss the bus that only runs every three hours. If you love second-hand bookshops, though, it’s the place to be, and the people in the town are lovely. ## Hastings, England This one is sad to talk about, because our friends Fran and Ed, whom we visited frequently in Hastings, moved to New York last year. We wanted to see them one last time before they left, and we were lucky to have a beautiful sunny day. Our visits were always filled with lovely views, beach walks and excellent vegan burgers. I’m not sure when I’ll be back, but I’m keen to explore more coastal towns around England. ## Kasteel De Haar, The Netherlands Who knew the Netherlands had gorgeous castles too? I did, to be honest. I visited them as a child but had somehow never thought to go back as I got older and was busy hunting down castles across the pond. I was visiting my parents in the Netherlands and it happened to coincide with one of my London friends being there too, so when she invited me on an excursion to Kasteel de Haar I obviously said yes. It looks like it’s come straight out of a fairy tale and is pretty easy to reach by bus from Utrecht. I’d highly recommend a visit. ## Glasgow, Edinburgh and a Scotland road trip Scotland was the destination of the year for me. I’d visited before with my parents when I was a teenager, and I did a train trip to Edinburgh with Marion about seven years ago, before I moved to London. I had already planned a road trip with one of my Dutch friends, after we suddenly realised we didn’t always have to visit each other — we could just meet up in a different country. She’s a big hiker and she did manage to get me up some mountains this time. I’m usually more of a flat forest walk kind of person, but the views and adventures were definitely worth it. We visited Loch Lomond, Glencoe, the Cairngorms, Dunnottar Castle, the Highland Games and, of course, Midhope Castle — that’s Lallybroch from Outlander. My other trip to Scotland was with my boyfriend and was on a paid commission for a hotel brand, so the trip was complimentary. We spent one day in Glasgow, where of course I had a deep-fried Mars bar and visited the Kelvingrove Gallery. Then we were off to Edinburgh, where I pretty much begged to visit the Botanical Gardens — so worth it — and we went on a book lovers’ guided tour. And I might just have another good excuse to return to Scotland this year. ## Dublin and Galway, Ireland My boyfriend Ger is from Dublin, so every year includes a trip or two to Ireland. Going back several times means there’s time to fine-tune the restaurant and bookshop wish list, and I also had the chance to go on not one but two guided tours in Dublin on a press trip for the Happy Pear cookbook. Marrowbone Books was a brand new discovery, as was Token, an arcade with old-school games and some very nice vegan junk food. I’d always wanted to go to Galway, so when I knew we’d be staying in Dublin for a while over Christmas, I sneakily added in a day trip to the west. It wasn’t quite what I expected, and after one day and a lot of rain we’d probably seen all there was to see in the city. If you go yourself, I’d recommend planning some day trips to the surrounding sights — there are plenty of castles, cliffs and islands. We did manage to entertain ourselves well by spending a few rainy hours in a lovely board game and doughnut café, having an incredible breakfast and lunch at Ard Bia (the Galway food scene is amazing), and finding a local pub to enjoy some whiskey and live music in the evening. ## Amsterdam and Leiden, The Netherlands Every year includes a few trips home to the Netherlands. Most of my family and some of my friends still live there, and with the direct Eurostar from London to Amsterdam — though you still have to transfer on the way back — the journey has become even easier. I’m trying to visit more new places in the Netherlands, as I really didn’t explore much during the 23 years I lived there. Highlights were a day trip to Haarlem with my parents for King’s Day and spending a bit more time in Amsterdam. ## Dorset, England We ended the year with a trip to stunning Dorset with friends. We crammed everyone into a rented van, as we wouldn’t have been able to reach our cottage without a car, and spent lots of hours without phone signal playing board games, reading and wandering through the forest. We also passed through the New Forest, stopping to admire the wild horses, and took an old-fashioned steam train to the coast from Corfe Castle. I have a feeling we might repeat this one in 2019. If you spotted anywhere on this list you’d like to visit this year and want further recommendations, let me know.