Are you bored of staying in regular hotels during your holiday in France? Well there is no need to sleep anywhere conventional again! Normandy has a range of wild and wacky places for you to stay from up in the air to down with the animals. Rosie Khdir explains…

Just beyond the beautiful port town of Honfleur lays one of only two lighthouses in France that invite staying guests. Le Phare (lighthouse in French) was converted into a guesthouse in 2000, 110 years after it was first put into operation.

You can enjoy breakfast on the ground floor of the building after spending the night in the lighthouse keeper’s home. Those staying will also be allowed to climb the 164 steps to the top of the tower and take in the beautiful Seine estuary and Normandy Bridge – a privilege only available to guests.

If you fancy a stay somewhere that will not only give you beautiful views but inspiration to paint them then visit the Land of Cockaigne. This little getaway used to be frequented by famous Impressionist painters who used it as an escape and as stimulation for their masterpieces.

The Vie de Cocagne is a beautiful country mansion that has retained its old charm, along with a log-burning stove and half-timber structure, and mixes this with modern luxuries such as an LCD TV and Wi-Fi. If you really want to spoil yourselves you can request a live-in chef for the duration of your stay and a full fridge upon arrival!

If you are wild at heart, then a night at an eco-lodge in the middle of a safari park might suit. In the midst of the Auge country lays Cerza Zoo where, if you are feeling adventurous, you can spend the night in a lodge with animals at your door.

Each lodge, which is built on stilts, has amazing views of the park’s Asia valley where you can meet and greet with Bennett wallabies and muntjacs. Each lodge houses up to six people and is great fun for all the family.

Camping is always a fun experience, but how about camping in the tree tops? At the Arbre en Arbre leisure park you can do just that. Not only can you explore the wonders of the forest but you can sleep in a tent that is suspended from the trees. If you’re ever wondered what life as a bat would be like, here is how you find out!

Oh no, we’re not done yet. On a farm along the Normandy cider route you can sleep in a Calvados barrel, yes that’s the barrel used to store that delicious Norman apple brandy!

The barrels have been converted into small rooms, for no more than two people, and are firmly anchored into the soil, so no fear of rolling away during a windy night.

So, before you go booking a hotel or quaint B&B in Normandy, think about trying something a little extraordinary. Visit the official Normandy Tourism site for more details on the mentioned locations and much more.

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Image © www.calvados-tourisme.com

Tags: France, History, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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Look out over Rotterdam and the river, feel the salt air coming from the North Sea, and watch countless cargo ships motor by and you might just get an idea how vital the sea is to this Dutch city. And one of the best ways to get a feel for the role the sea has played in Rotterdam’s history is to visit the Maritime Museum, says Tomas Mowlam

Right on the river at Leuvehaven 1, Waterstad, the museum covers the entire port’s history.

Rotterdam first flourished as a vital Spanish port, then in the Spanish Netherlands, during the religious wars of the 16th Century.

After the long war against Spain for independence, the new Netherlands transformed itself into a rich and powerful merchant nation. The Dutch navy ranged through the East Indies, exploring strange new lands and making a fortune in the process.

Rotterdam remained a vital port, but was savagely bombed by the Luftwaffe during WWII as a warning to resisters. Today it is the busiest container port in Europe and the world’s seventh largest port.

There is plenty for the kids to enjoy, learn and play with including the museum ship, the Buffel, a Dutch Naval Frigate from 1868.

New exhibitions running include Animals on board. A look at how animals have crossed oceans, hitching a lift on boats. The family exhibition gives you a chance to “hoist a cow onto the quay, help look after the animals, play the droppings game and shell out for a dodo drumstick at meal time in the galley.”

MainPort Live brings the grandeur of the old back to the centre of the city. As the port has grown it has moved farther and farther from the heart of the city, MainPort Live brings the hustle and bustle back to the many stately ships moored in the river in the centre of town.

Glamour on the Waves exhibition looks at the classier side of life on the ocean wave, with six luxury boat interiors from the past century of luxury boat building.

Open 10am -5pm Tuesday to Saturday, 11am-5pm Sunday.

Image Credit: JeHu68

Tags: Netherlands, P&O Ferries, Uncategorized by Gabriel Grant
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The French capital is a city heaped in history and tales of conspiracy, murder and even vampires! Rosie Khdir gets a fright on a Parisian ghost tour.

While the evenings are still cold and dark enough to set the scene, take a walk around Paris, a city haunted by its eerie and often violent past.

You will be surprised to learn that unlike in the capital cities of the UK, Paris does not have many ghost tours, but one that every fan of the paranormal should experience is the Mysteries of Paris Ghost Tour.

The tour group gathers every Friday and Saturday at 8pm in Black Dog Bar where you will meet one of two enthusiastic tour guides who will take you back in time, as they recant tales of Parisian horror.

These guides are like walking historical encyclopaedias, spouting interesting fact after gruesome tale as you huddle together on old cobbled streets. The tour is described as “The Dark Side of the City of Lights” and covers all things macabre including torture, executions, cannibalism, serial killings, Satanism and unexplained phenomena.

The guides are funny and engaging and make this a really unique and enjoyable way to spend an evening. You hear about the less romantic and darker side of Paris, which although at times is quite grim, is also an eye opener!

Previous visitors who have written on the Mysteries of Paris website have labelled the experience “a mix of rock & roll, urban legend and haunted history” but be warned it is not for the easily frightened!

The Black Dog Bar is situated at the 24 rue Lombards, Paris 75004 and the tour lasts about two hours. Some language can be explicit so it might not be the best family activity but for anyone who is up for a good scare and dose of gruesome French history this tour is ideal!

The Mysteries of Paris Ghost Tour is now a member of the Office du Tourisme in Paris you can get more information about the tour through them.

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Image credit: boklm

Tags: France, History, Lifestyle, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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All aboard, as Tomas Mowlam experiences the delights of the grand age of steam trains at Utrecht’s Spoorwegmuseum.

The Spoorwegmuseum is an immersion into the world of trains from the very start, as you enter through the restored 19th Century Maliebaan station, and buy your entrance tickets at the old ticket booth.

The first ‘land’, The Great Discovery takes you back to 1800, to the coal mines and the birth of steam engines in 1829 with George Stevenson’s Rocket. There’s even a replica of the very first steam train in the Netherland’s the Arend.

The second ‘land’, Dream Journeys takes you onboard the Orient Express, the luxurious train route that whisked the great and the good of 19th Century Europe from Paris to Constantinople.

Steel Monsters is the third land, and takes you into amongst the smoke, dust and dirt of the railway yards. It also takes you into the lives of the men who worked with the trains, like the Gommers family, who for three generations worked the Dutch rail yards as signalman, pointsman, engine driver and chief engineer.

Finally in the workshops you can see how the trains were built, and marvel at the restored locomotives. The EduTRAINERS [terrible I know] are on hand to explain things to the kids, with interesting and informative displays and talks about the engineering behind the trains.

A Royal Exhibition

From 15 April the museum will hold Royal Class, Regal Journeys, an exhibition which promises to recreate the grandeur in which European royalty travelled, with carriages that once belonged to King Louis II of Bavaria, Tsar Alexander II, Franz Ferdinand, Carl Gustav of Sweden and King Albert I of Belgium amongst others.

I’m far from a fan of trains (they’re normally late and uncomfortable) but something about the lovingly restored metal monsters was breathtaking.

Getting There

The museum is open Mondays during the school holidays, rest of the year open Tuesdays to Sundays 10.00am to 5.00pm. Parking is limited to 200 vehicles but a shuttle train runs between Utrecht CS and the Railway Museum. Check it out at spoorwegmuseum.nl

Image Credit: Marcin Wichary

Tags: Netherlands, P&O Ferries by tmowlam
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If you are sick of visiting museums where you have to be silent and constantly obey “do not touch” signs then you should try visiting NEMO. Rosie Khdir takes a look at the largest science centre in the Netherlands.

Just moments from the Amsterdam Centraal Station sits a bold, green building that looks like a ship that’s docked. Do not be fooled, for this is the famous NEMO science centre, design by Italian architect Renzo Piano.

The five floors of this museum are dedicated to science and technology, a place where people can use all their senses to discover how the world works. A trip to this museum is great for children and for the adults out there who are kids at heart.

It is a fun and educational experience to learn how bridge become so strong in the Amazing Constructions exhibit, find out how the brain works with the Journey through the mind display; you can even discover the language behind computers at the Bits & Co exhibit.

People who are more hands-on can blow soap bubbles big enough to fit a whole person inside, experiment in the Wonder Lab and find out how to make glue from potatoes. In the summer you can splash about on NEMO’s roof in the Splashing Water Wonder.

The latest exhibition to be introduced to NEMO is “The search for new life”. This interactive exhibit questions the difference between lifeless objects and living things and whether there is life beyond Earth.

The museum has workshops, games and theatre shows are held during almost every school holiday. There are cafes inside the museum but if you prefer to bring your own food, you can snack in the assigned places.

NEMO is not only a fun and educational day out for the whole family it’s also a great sight to behold for fans of great modern architecture.

Image credit: o palsson

Tags: Lifestyle, Netherlands, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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Think of Belgium – jazz, moules e frites and chocolate. Well the stereotype isn’t that far off and Belgium is embracing its potato based heritage with a whole museum. Tomas Mowlam investigates Bruges’ Frietmuseum.

The Frietmuseum aims to show the entire world of the humble fry, broken down into three sections: the history of the potato, the history of the fry and then when you’ve had your fill of starchy information you can then taste some traditional Belgian fries.

Humans eating and enjoying the tuber dates back over 10,000 years, and wild potatoes have been found in tombs in Peru and Chile, the Frietmuseum itself even has Inca vases representing the potato (above).

The museum goes onto detail how the snack made it from the wilds of America to Europe, potato recipes, and how it goes from the ground to your plate.

The main attraction is the final section where you can sample fries with traditional Belgian food such as stews, moules and other delights.

If fries seems bit of an esoteric subject for a museum then check the lighting museum, Lumina Domestica, and chocolate museum, Choco Story, all created by Cédric and Eddy Van Belle.

The museum is also housed in a surprisingly grand building, the Saailhalle built in 1399, and a second building built a few years later as a centre for the Genoan consul and trade in medieval Bruges.

On the museum website Eddy explains why they chose the Saailhalle, calling it a “one of the masterpieces of Bruges.”

“This house certainly deserves to escape from the major building work which would very likely have been needed had it been converted into anything other than a museum.

“It is one of the great advantages of our project that we can show off this magnificent building to the many people who visit it, not only from the outside, but the inside as well.”

The museum is open daily from 10 am – 5 pm and for prices and more information check out the website, frietmuseum.be.

Image Credit: Friet Musuem

Tags: Belgium, P&O Ferries by Gabriel Grant
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This stunning building was once home to the royals of the Netherlands and now stands as an icon of their luxurious and artistic lifestyle. Rosie Khdir takes a tour around the Royal Palace Het Loo.

Paleis Het Loo, meaning “The Woods Palace”, was bought by Stadholder King William III of Orange in 1684 with the intension of building upon its medieval structure.

By 1692 the symmetrical Dutch Baroque style royal residence was completed and in 1693 the gardens were embellished further by famous French designer Claude Desgotz.

This palace was inhabited by the Royal family of the Netherlands, the House of Orange-Nassau, from 1686 until 1975 and even though they no longer walk the halls, the beautiful and decadent furnishings, paintings and sculptures still decorate its rooms.

In 1960 Queen Wilhelmina, the last inhabitant of the palace, declared that the property would be passed on to the state after her death and has since been turned into a wonderful museum for the public.

Various rooms of the palace are laid out as if the royal family still lived there, with tapestries covering the walls, chandeliers hanging from the ceilings and elaborate fabrics decorating the four poster beds.

The wings of the palace hold museum exhibitions such as the current “Through the lens of Professor Pieter Van Vollenhoven”, which is a presentation of beautiful photographs taken by Van Vollenhoven around the palace in the last five years. This show runs from now until 5th September 2010.

The splendour of the palace itself is no doubt a sight to behold but the real beauty of the Royal Palace Het Loo lies in its gardens. The palace is surrounded by woodlands (hence its name) and contains pergolas, terraces, statues and fountains, which are always in motion. These stunning seventeenth century grounds are completely unique, and are even more breathtaking in spring or summer.

The Palace Het Loo and its gardens are open from Tuesday to Sunday from 10.00am to 5.00pm. Visit the official site for more information.

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Image courtesy of Holland.com

Tags: History, Netherlands, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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When spring returns and the weather takes a turn for the better it’s time to start planning your first caravan trip. And where better to start than with a caravan trip to France, says John Hillman

As we turn into the home straight and race towards the finish line, I think it’s safe to say that even the most diehard fan, of these dark and frosty months, will be glad to reach the welcoming arms of spring after this particular winter.

And of all the people in the UK to rejoice the return of warmer climes, there are perhaps none more eager and more grateful than the nation’s caravan owners.

March marks the beginning of the caravanning season. Any of you toying with the idea of joining this troupe of intrepid roadsters can now begin registering with the Camping and Caravanning Club, who run courses from March to September.

The short course will teach you everything you need to know about towing, loading, hitching and unhitching, reversing with safety, and any legal issues surrounding caravans and the roads.

Once you’re ready to hit the open road there really is an endless list of possible destination for you to consider. P&O Ferries has been transporting caravanners over to France on the Dover to Calais route for many decades now. This is because the French have a very strong tradition of camping holidays, in their culture, so as a result they have the excellent facilities to match.

Whether you wish to explore the foothills of the Alps, the rugged coastline of Normandy or the rural charms of Provence, you’ll find an endless supply of excellent locations to hook up your pitch, open your deckchairs and fire up the barbeque. Then sit back and marvel at the scenery.

Image Credit: MGspiller

Tags: France, P&O Ferries by John Hillman
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