Andrew Brittain, Author at Footsteps Family Travel Inspiration

01Jul 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Visiting Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland

We picked Lauterbrunnen for the first half of our two-week summer road trip to Switzerland and Italy. It's a small town in the middle of the 'Bernese Oberland' region, close to the famous Swiss ski resorts of Wengen and Grindlewald. Bev had been here camping as a child and remembered its reputation as one of the most beautiful towns in…

01Jul 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Jungfraujoch With Children: Our Family Day Trip to ‘The Top of Europe’

Switzerland

The highlight of our week in Switzerland was our trip to the Jungfraujoch. We were here with our four children and had an amazing day. Here's our advice on visiting the Jungfraujoch with children... During our stay in Lauterbrunnen, the one excursion that stood out amongst them all as the big one to do was the trip up to the…

30Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Mallorca in April

Mallorca

We decided to visit Mallorca in April, when the UK weather was still cold and wet and we were starting to get desperate for some warmth and sun after a long British winter. We found a last-minute deal for a week half-board in Port d'Andratx, which was too good to miss. It was cheap because it was in the off-season and…

29Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Visiting Trummelbach Falls

Switzerland

One day of our week in Lauterbrunnen was very rainy so we decided on visiting Trummelbach Falls, which is at the end of the Lauterbrunnen valley. It’s an enormous waterfall of melting glacier ice which cascades down inside the cliff face, through caves and crevices. There is a walkway that takes you up and down right next to the waterfall…

29Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Murren, Allmendhubel and Gimmelwald from the Grutschalp Lift

Switzerland

Another beautiful sunny and warm day for exploring the Lauterbrunnen region. This time we headed in to Lauterbrunnen centre, parked the car by the railway station and got on the 'Grutschalp' lift, which takes you up to a train which runs from there to Winteregg and then on to Murren. Murren is a classic Swiss postcard town, dotted with chalets…

29Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Grindlewald Grund to Mannlichen Gondola and Hike Back Down

Switzerland

We awoke on this day of our holiday to Switzerland to glorious sunshine and blue skies so decided to drive the few miles along the road to the village of Grindlewald - a place so insanely beautiful it just has to be seen to be believed. We seemed to be permanently in a state of amazement as we gazed around in…

29Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Driving from the UK to Switzerland (Lauterbrunnen)

Switzerland

Taking a family of six on holiday on a plane is always an expensive business. For us to fly to Switzerland, we were looking at the best part of £2,000. Hiring a car that fits all six of us ramps the cost up even further. We need a seven-seater and they are always a lot more expensive than hiring a…

29Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Boat Trip on Lake Thun from Interlaken

Switzerland

We took a paddle steamer boat trip on Lake Thun from Interlaken. Here's what we got up to... The weather in and around the Lauterbrunnen valley on the first day of our trip here wasn't great. We woke up to heavy cloud shrouding the surrounding mountains and rain showers, making it less than ideal to head up in to the…

29Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Grindlewald First and Mountain Carts

Switzerland

After our previous visit to Grindlewald earlier in the week we headed back here again and tried a different lift, heading up to 'Grindlewald First'. This was a longer lift and a higher altitude where it was noticeably colder at the top compared with the bottom. Here they have a range of activities for kids and adults including a brilliant…

28Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Restaurants in Lauterbrunnen: Weidstuebli Review

Switzerland

This restaurant in Lauterbrunnen is in the Camping Jungfrau campsite, but is open to guests who aren't staying in the campsite... Most things in Lauterbrunnen are expensive by UK standards - restaurants included - and we were advised that this was the best value of the restaurants in Lauterbrunnen, which I would agree with. It's quite a small restaurant with…

28Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Francis Flat, Lauterbrunnen Holiday Apartment Review

Switzerland

'Francis Flat' is an apartment on the top floor of a large chalet in Lauterbrunnen. It's a private holiday rental operated by the owner Helena, sleeping up to 6 people, located in what has to be the best position in the whole of Lauterbrunnen. *** UPDATE: Unfortunately the owner sold the property a couple of years after this post, so…

17Jun 2017 by Andrew Brittain

Moorhead Country Holidays North Devon – Review

Devon

We spent a week at Moorhead Country Holidays - a holiday complex in North Devon near Bideford. It's a collection of 16 self-catered apartments set within farmland and with on-site facilities including a restaurant, a pitch-and-putt golf course and an indoor swimming pool. The location is beautiful - classic Devon countryside surrounded by fields and farms. Peaceful, tranquil and with…

10Jul 2016 by Andrew Brittain

Restaurants in Marcellise, Verona: Our Reviews

Italy

During our stay in the small town of Marcellise, which is in the Veneto / Verona region of Northern Italy, we visited a few of the local restaurants for our evening meals. Two in particular stood out and really impressed us - here are our reviews of our favourite restaurants in Marcellise... Ristorante San Briccio Review Address: Via Casetta, 10,…

16Apr 2016 by Andrew Brittain

La Pergola Hotel, Mallorca Review

Mallorca

We booked our week-long stay in April at La Pergola through Travelzoo as a last-minute break and had no real idea what to expect. We'd got a cheap deal including flights with Ryanair, airport transfers and half-board (breakfast and dinner included) at La Pergola for a price that, even if the hotel turned out to be a bit of a…

08Apr 2016 by Andrew Brittain

Port d’Andratx, Mallorca

Mallorca

We'd never heard of Port d'Andratx before we picked it for a last-minute Spring week away as a result of a special deal that came up on Travelzoo. It seemed like a good option to hopefully get away from what had seemed like an endless UK winter and get some much-needed sun - just a 2-hour flight away from Bournemouth…

03Jul 2015 by Andrew Brittain

East Fleet Farm Touring Park Campsite Review

Weymouth

Not all of our family are great lovers of camping. Some are, but those who aren't need to be promised of a particularly good campsite in order to tolerate it (and to remain in a mood throughout the trip that's tolerable to everyone else!) Much to our relief on arriving at East Fleet Farm for a weekend with the children,…

20Aug 2014 by Andrew Brittain

Aiguille du Midi With Children

Chamonix (Summer)

The Aiguille du Midi towers over the Chamonix Valley, dominating the skyline with its tall antenna tower, which sits on top of the viewing platform building, visible from pretty much everywhere in and around Chamonix. Aiguille du Midi is the highest point that it’s possible to reach in Chamonix by cable car, bringing you in to what feels almost like…

19Aug 2014 by Andrew Brittain

Rock Climbing at Les Gaillands, Chamonix

Chamonix (Summer)

We'd travelled past the beautiful Lac de Gaillands lake several times on our travels around Chamonix, each time marvelling at the rock climbers scaling the high rock face that rises up out of the surrounding parkland, so we decided to stop off to check it out and see if there's an opportunity for total beginners like us to try out…

19Aug 2014 by Andrew Brittain

The Beach at Lake Passy (Lac de Passy), Near Chamonix

Chamonix (Summer)

Having dragged the children up and down mountains for several days in a row, we thought best to find something a bit more relaxing to do - and discovered Lac de Passy (Lake Passy), a huge lake about 30-minutes' drive from Chamonix centre with a man-made sandy beach open in July and August. In Chamonix you're obviously pretty far removed…