PAST TRAVELS 2018

As 2018 ends and a New Year begins, we thought we’d take a little look back at our first year of Family Travel Blogging.  We hope you’ve enjoyed this journey and we openly encourage you to SUBSCRIBE so as not to miss out on our future posts.

Our aim for 2018 was to visit 18 places; whether that was a full-on holiday, a day out or a weekend break, didn’t matter, so long as we we’re taking a trip of sorts.  And how did we get on?  Well, let’s take this moment as an opportunity to glance back at what 2018 held for The Callaghan Posse.  There is something quite positive about looking back in a way that it encourages us to learn from our PAST TRAVELS and gives us knowledge so that we may look forward and plan ahead for our FUTURE TRAVELS.

In 2019 our aim is to try to do something each month then throw in an additional day out or weekend break locally.  Will our plans work out, who knows, but it would be great if you would JOIN OUR ADVENTURES by subscribing, that way you’ll never miss another post.

Ladies and Gentlemen, without further ado…our 2018 travels in brief!

JANUARY

Quiet one!  January 2018 was officially the launch month for Around The World In 18 Years and although we didn’t travel, we were extremely busy.  Website tweaked, learning how to use WordPress and understanding SEO, social media pages launched and holidays for 2018 researched, planned and booked.

 

FEBRUARY

Had a (child free) sleepover at Smugglers Creek Inn and enjoyed a TRAD Irish Music Night
   |  Read Post:  Rest and Relaxation in Rossnowlagh

MARCH

Indulged in a Weekend Spa Getaway (child free) on home turf
   |  Read Post:  Corick House Hotel and Spa: Guilt Free Indulgence

Lily-Belle and Matilda learned to ski on the magnificent slopes of Alpe Cermis in Italy
   |  Read Post:  Alpe Cermis: Diamond of the Dolomites

Raised the adrenaline speeding along the Alpine Coaster Gardoné
   |  Read Post:  Ski Center Latemar In The Dolomites

Floated high above the clouds and dined at 2096m in the magnificent Oberholz Restaurant
   |  Read Post:  Obereggen in the Dolomites

APRIL

Played crazy golf at Pirates Adventure Golf and climbed to dizzying heights at Clip ‘N’ Climb
   |  Read Post:  Dundonald: Pirates Adventure Golf

MAY

A Daddy and Daughter trip to Anfield to watch our beloved Liverpool play in the Champions League final against Real Madrid.  In a word….robbed.  Lily-Belle was not amused!  Come to think of it, nor was I!

JUNE

The weather in Northern Ireland was glorious, so we stayed at home and enjoyed the sun.  July holiday was around the corner so we used the month to buy holiday essentials and write lists….Mummy likes writing lists!

JULY

Spent 7 days at Marina Julia Holiday Park on Italy’s Adriatic Coast
   |  Read Post:  Eurocamp: Marina Julia Holiday Park

Pretended to be Knights and Princesses at Predjama Castle in Slovenia
   |  Read post:  Predjama Castle: Worlds Largest Cave Castle

Took a train ride into the magical subterranean world of Postojna Cave in Slovenia
   |  Read Post:  Postojna Cave: Slovenia’s Subterranean Paradise

Attended one of Europe’s biggest firework displays known as the Feste del Redentore
   |  Read Post:  Venice: Festival of the Redeemer

Spent 7 days at Park Albatros in Tuscany
   |  Read Post:  Eurocamp: Park Albatros – coming soon

Visited a Vineyard in Tuscany and sampled wines at Petra
   |  Read Post:  Tuscany: Wine Tasting at PETRA

Held up the Leaning Tower of Pisa and admired Renaissance art at Camposanto Monumentale
   |  Read Post:  Pisa: Leaning Tower of Pisa

Marvelled at science in the Leonardo da Vinci Museum in Florence
   |  Read Post:  Florence: Leonardo da Vinci Museum – coming soon

AUGUST

Sampled goodies and watched cookery demo’s at the Omagh Food Festival
   |  Read Post:  Omagh Food Festival

Girly afternoon at the Mellon Country Inn for Afternoon Tea (and Daddy tagged along)
   |  Read Post:  Munchies at the Mellon

SEPTEMBER

Night at the Museum, just like the movie, but thankfully not as eventful
   |  Read Post:  Dippy the Dinosaur Comes to Town

OCTOBER

Dressed in our finest scary clobber to attend a spooky event at NMNI Cultra
   |  Read Post:  Halloween at Ulster Folk and Transport Museum

NOVEMBER

Attended the World Travel Media exhibition at ExCeL London.  A perfect chance to introduce ourselves to key players in the travel industry.

DECEMBER

Watched a classic Christmas film at a Drive In Movie and visited Santa in his own Winter Wonderland
   |  Read Post:   Winter Wonderland at Westport House

Took a step back in time and saw how Christmas Past was celebrated in the days of old
   |  Read Post:  Days of Christmas Past

BE ON TIME…trivial to most but it was a big thing for us in 2018.  We are ALWAYS late and we made a conscious effort to try and be early.  In all honesty, we failed on more than one occasion but we did ‘arrive on time’ more than once in 2018….even if it was ‘only just’ on time!  Promise to try harder in 2019!

We had hoped to do so much more in 2018, but due to one thing or another, some out of our hands; we failed to cross off the following on our 2018 list!

Take a Serenaded Gondola Ride on the twisty canals of Venice – thunder, lightening and heavy rain caused us to give this one a miss.

Explore the Five Towns of the Cinque Terre on the Italian Riviera – booked, but the tour operator cancelled just two hours before we were due to arrive.

Watch seals frolic at Seal Cabin in Strangford, Northern Ireland – sent two emails but received no replies.

Attend the world’s largest Volksfest (carnival) at the Munich Oktoberfest – our fault, we didn’t book early enough.

Take in the history of Belfast with an Open Top Bus Tour – blaming the weather on this one, it’s Northern Ireland…it rains…a lot!

Horse riding along the beach on the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland – we did try to book this but Matilda was too young (she was 3, had to be 5 or over) so we’ll reschedule for 2020.

And that was our 2018 in a ‘link and picture’ nutshell.  We hope you’ve enjoyed reading our posts in 2018 and we warmly invite you to stick with us for our travels in 2019.  Where did your travels take you in 2018?