Facts-Old Gits Gap Year

Barbados:

2009-05-15T09:13:00.000-07:00

Hotels:

Bayfield House, small friendly family run hotel with 10 rooms, all immaculately finished, lovely garden and pool. Trevor RC Ramsay, Proprietor Tel: (246) 419 0497, email: trevor@bayfieldbarbados.com www.bayfieldbarbados.com

The Ramsey Family at Bayfield House

Restaurants:
The Cove, Cattlewash on the East coast. Run by Laural Ann Morley who has produced a wonderful award winning Caribbean Cookery Book Tel: 433 9495 email morley@sunbeach.net great food

Mullins, at Mullins Beach Tel: 246 422 2044

Waterfront Café, Bridgetown Marina Tel: (246) 427 0093 www.waterfrontcafé.com Live nightly entertainment. Particularly good on Thursday night, great atmosphere and food

Car rental:
Stoutes Car Rental Ltd, www.stoutescar.com Tel: (246) 416 4456

Sightseeing:

Animal Flower Cave: there is the most spectacular view from this point, great for photography

Great walk along Cattlewash Beach on the east coast, spectacular waves, not for swimming.

Cherry Tree Hill, great spot for photography

Sunbury Plantation House in the Parish of St Philip, an interesting historical building

Four square Rum Factory Parish of St Philip – a tour shows you how the rum is distilled.
St Nicholas Abbey

Mustique:

2009-05-15T09:08:00.000-07:00

Basil’s Bar: Restaurant in Britannia Bay (See below)

Firefly Mustique: Restaurant and five rooms, fantastic view from the bar.

Mustique Company:
Owns this private island. You can rent out villas from $8500 upwards per week!

The Cotton House: The only resort on the island

Bequia:

2009-05-14T08:02:00.000-07:00

Bequia is a small (7 sq miles) island situated to the south of St Vincent in the Grenadines and north of Mustique. It is a volcanic island and used to have plantations. The beautiful beaches are a feature of the island on both the leeward and windward sides. Port Elizabeth is its capital and the main industry here is around the yachting world. We flew into St Vincent on Liat Airways and then got the ferry across to Bequia

Tourist Information: http://www.bequiatourism.com/

Car Hire:

Grenadine Island Villas www.grenadinevillas.com email: islandvillas@mac.com

Hotels:

The Frangipani Hotel Tel: (784) 458 3255 http://www.frangipanibequia.com/ Situation on the waterfront in Port Elizabeth, overlooking Admiralty Bay, charming old-style rooms in the original family home.

Typical morning view from Frangipani

Gingerbread Hotel (784) 458 3800 http://www.gingerbreadhotel.com/. Situated on the waterfront in Port Elizabeth, overlooking Admiralty Bay, has apartments too.

The Goingerbread from the bay

Friendship Bay Beach Resort Tel (784) 458 3222 http://www.friendshipbayhotel.com/

Apartments:

Grenadine Island Villas is an agency dealing in accommodation, car rental, boat charter in the Grenadines http://www.grenadinevillas.com/ email islandvillas@mac.com

Island Inn Apartments, Friendship Bay (784) 458 3706 http://www.islandinnsvg.com/

Kingsville Apartments Lower Bay (784) 458 3932 http://www.kingsvilleapartments.net/

Deja View Apartments, Belmont (705) 897 6537 (Canada) http://www.dejaviewapartments.ca/

De Reef Apartments, Lower Bay (784) 458 3484 dereef@caribsurf.com

Orchard Apartment, Belmont http://www.bequiaorchardhouse.webeden.co.uk/

Sea Shells Holiday Apartments seashellsbq@vincysurf.com
http://www.seashellsbequia.com/ Tel 784 458 3656

Eating places:

The Frangipani Hotel, Port Elizabeth, as above

Gingerbread Bar and Restaurant, Port Elizabeth, as above

Portofina, Belmont Walkway Tel (784) 457 3008

Mac’s Pizzeria, Belmont Walkway Tel: (784) 458 3474 (MOG's favourite!!!)

Jack’s Bar on Princess Margaret Beach (784) 457 3762

Typical view at Jack's bar on the beach

Dawn’s Creole Beach Bar and Café

Diving:

Dive Bequia situated along the Belmont Walkway, http://www.bequiadive.com/
(Don’t get this confused with the dive school next door...its called adventure diving but have a very similare e-mail address)

Best Beaches:

Princess Margaret Beach (Jack’s Bar)

Lower Bay (Dawn’s Creole Beach Bar )

Friendship Bay (The Friendship Bay Hotel and Bequia Beach Hotel’s Beach Bar)

Yacht Charter:

TMM Yacht Charters http://www.sailtmm.com/ email: tmmsvg@sailtmm.com Tel: (784) 456 9608

Day Trips:

To Tobago Cays, Mustique etc – there are two ships:

Friendship Rose Schooner http://www.friendshiprose.com/

Passat Schooner http://www.sailholiday.com/

Both boats seen here moored in Mustique

Hairdressing:

Emma Boucher specialises in European hair and has worked in a to London salon in Chelsea Tel: 455 5820

Dominica

2009-04-10T10:31:00.000-07:00

A typical Dominican smile...

Dominica is a beautifully lush island of tropical rain forest. The main reason for visiting Dominica would be to appreciate the spectacular rain forest by hiking, walking and visiting the waterfalls, freshwater lakes and sulphur springs. The people are helpful and friendly. Tourism is not as well developed in Dominica but this is its charm, making accommodation and eating places more difficult to find, however it may have been quiet because of the credit crunch. We did self catering in the beautiful house (Harmony Villa) in the middle of the rainforest.

Accommodation:

Traditional House: Harmony Villa, Pont Cassé owned by Carla Armour, UK Tel: +44 1273 273 074. It is a delightful traditional wooden house set in the middle of the rainforest, providing a tranquil setting, which is central to many of the sights http://www.harmonyvilla.com/

Main bedroom at Harmony Villa

Main living room/kitchen with cathedral roof

Claudia, who really 'ran' Harmony Villa!

Apartments/lodges:

Calibishie Lodges Sea View apartments Tel: 001 767 445 8537
http://www.calibishie-lodges.com/

Boutique Hotels:

Beau Rive on the east coast one mile north of Castle Bruce, an elegant boutique hotel run by 'Brit' Mark Steele Tel: (767) 445 8992 http://www.beaurive.com/ or mark@beaurive.com

View from Veranda at Beau Rive

Silks Luxury Boutique Hotel http://www.silks-hotel.com/ Tel: (767)
445 8846 Pagua Valley

Hotel:

Anchorage Hotel + Whale Watch and Dive Centre http://www.anchoragehotel.dom/, Tel: 767 448 2639

Eco Retreats:

There are various eco lodges on the island from very cheap at approx $50 to more upmarket ones at $179 pp.

Three Rivers Ecolodge, Rosalie run by ex-London cabbie http://www.3riversdominica.com/ Tel: +1767 446 1886

Eating places/bars:

Mano’s a little bar on the way to Emerald pool

Purple Turtle Beach Club Bar & Restaurant, Portsmouth, situation right on the beach – locals and boaters frequent

Calibishie Beach

Coral Reef Restaurant & Bar, Main St. Calibishie Tel (767) 445 7432 situation on the beach

Pagua Bay Bar and Grill, only opened last week, great food and atmosphere with the most stunning views, run by Americans Alicia and Rick, Tel: (767 455 8888)

MOG enjoys a birthday drink (She's 21 AGAIN) with Alicia

Alicia also recommended Red Rock Haven run by Gina and Stacey (767) 275 7997

Supermarkets:

Brizee’s Mart in Roseau and HHV Whitchurch in Roseau.

Car rental company:

We used Road Runner Car Rental. Hiring a four by four is essential for this island 235 2952/440 2952 email: roadrunnerrental@cwdom.dm

Beaches:

There are not many sandy beaches on Dominica.

We visited beaches at Portsmouth (pictured) and Batibou Bay

Sights to see:

Dominica’s beautiful rainforest interior makes it an island for walking, hiking and appreciating the flora, fauna and wildlife in abundance. A guide is recommended for a lot of the sights.

Sari Sari Falls – we did it without a guide but maybe if it wasn’t for locals cooking lunch in the rainforest we may have got lost.

Emerald Pool, a fantastic sight but more touristy than Sari Sari.

A drive through the Carib Territory on the east coast.

Trafalgar Falls and the Sulphur Springs.

There are freshwater lakes to visit and hike to such eg Freshwater Lake, Boeri Lake.

St.Kitts & Nevis

2009-03-26T10:17:00.000-07:00

St.Kitts & Nevis

We found both St Kitts and Nevis the most stunningly beautiful Caribbean islands which were safe and the people so friendly. (Nevis did however have the edge on St.Kitts and Charlestown, the main town on Nevis, was wonderful)

St Kitts:

Accommodation:

In my opinion the bed and breakfasts and condominiums are very good value for money. The plantation houses are beautiful and certainly give you a taste of history. They are more expensive than the bed and breakfasts, however deals can be done. The resort hotels are on par with the plantation houses in price. Good internet sale prices can be obtained periodically.

Bed and Breakfasts:

Rock Haven Bed and Breakfast, Frigate Bay, http://www.rock-haven.com/ Tel: 1 (869) 465-5503. Keith and Judith Blake were very kind to us during our stay in their lovely home and were extremely helpful and great fun. There are stunning views over both the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic from Rock Haven.

Rock Haven

Judith with FOG on veranda at Rock Haven

Condominiums:

Island Paradise Beach Village, http://www.islandparadisevillage.com/ email: islandparadise@sisterisles.kn

Plantation Houses:

Ottley’s Plantation Inn, http://www.ottleys.com/ email: info@ottleys.com The best place we saw on the island, but we actually preferred Rock-Haven.
Rawlins Plantation Inn http://www.rawlinsplantation.com/

Resort Hotels:

St Kitts Resort and The Royal Beach Casino, Marriott
http://www.stkittsmarriott.com/ Tel: 800-223-6388

Bars/eating places:

Frigate Bay Beach Front: The beach front has several lively bars/eating places worth visiting:
Mr. X Shiggidy Shack
Ziggy’s
Cathy’s (We ate here and thought the food excellent but service slow)
Monkey Bar

All good down this beach and good value.

Cockleshell Beach: Reggae Beach Bar open until 6.00 pm. Relax on sun loungers along the beach listening to reggae music and sipping cooled drinks from the bar.

Sights:

West Coast: Brimstone Hill Fortress, dating back to the 18th Century and known as the ‘Gibraltar of the West Indies’ is a must.

East Coast: Kate Spencer’s art gallery, next door to Ottley’s plantation.

Southeast peninsula: Beaches such as Cockleshell Beach, Turtle Beach, South
Friar’s Bay and Shipwreck Beach are worth a visit.

Car Hire: We used Avis. They will pick you up from your accommodation and take you to the Avis office. Suggestion: Try and book a small 4*4 such as a Suzuki Jeep if you want to go to more remote places.

Ferry: Sea Bridge car ferry, located in Major’s Bay, at the very south of the island, can be taken across to Nevis: EC$190 return. Be aware that you need good parking skills.

Nevis:

Accommodation:

Once again we stayed in the bed and breakfast and beach villa type accommodation which were superb value for money as well as being in contact with local and interesting people, giving a real feel for the Caribbean. The beach villa accommodation had its own small kitchenette which enabled us to eat in as desired. Again the Plantation Houses are more expensive but I believe that due to the recession deals can be done during this time of recession.

Bed and Breakfast:

Banyan Tree, http://www.banyantreebandb.com/ Tel: 869.469.3449. Ann and Jonathan Rose were delightful hosts and couldn’t do enough for us. Sitting on the balcony of the Bamboo House, watching the monkeys in the most beautiful tropical garden was a real treat.

Bamboo House at Banyan Tree and Anne & Jonathan by the actual 'Banyan Tree'

Beach Villas:

Hurricane Cove Bungalows, http://www.hurricancove.com/ Tel: 1(869) 469 9462. Althea and Bob Turner were extremely hospitable and certainly gave us a very happy time here. The views from the bungalows are stunningly beautiful looking out over the turquoise blue sea.

View from our Villa at Hurricane Cove:

Plantation Houses:

Montpelier Plantation Inn http://www.montpeliernevis.com/ Tel: 869 469 2932
The Hermitage Plantation Inn http://www.hermitagenevis.com/

Sights:

The Botanical Gardens is a pleasant way to spend an hour or two especially if you don’t want to walk in the rainforest, but a touch ‘touristy’.

Walks/hiking:

Nevis is abundant with rainforest walks although quite difficult to find as there is a shortage of signposting. However, you do need a car to get to these walks. We found that the island appears to be very safe and the people extremely friendly. They are certainly worth attempting; a guide might be advisable if you want to know more about the flora and fauna.

Beaches:

Pinney’s-Close to Four Seasons Hotel and a lot of nice bars.
Windward Beach. Hard to find and get to but worth it. The most stunning of roller coasters and nice long quiet walk.

Cades Bay/Qualie(A bit ‘sea-weedy’ when we were there)/Lovers(The only recent mugging on the island-very remote)/Paradise Beaches are all worth a visit.

Eating/bars: Bananas Tel: 469 1891, about ½ mile from the Banyan Tree. Fine dining on the veranda. Moderate to Expensive. It didn’t quite hit the mark in value for money though.
Mem’s Pizzaria Tel: 469 1390 or 0492 Pizzas and local food, also takeaways. Modest to Moderate pricing.
Gallipot Restaurant at Jones Estate Tel: 469-8230, a lovely restaurant, moderately priced.

Sunshine’s Beach Bar and Grill on Pinney’s Beach, great atmosphere and comfortable couches to relax on. Modest to Moderate pricing.

View from Sunshine Beach

Lime Bar and Grill, a new restaurant with a character of an owner.

Owner and the claimed Britney Spears Hat

Qualie Beach Resort, restaurant and bar, lively on a Tuesday night.

Journey from Les Gets to UK

2009-03-07T06:23:00.000-08:00

Highly recommended is the website; Alistair Sawday's Special Places to stay: http://www.alistairsawdays.co.uk/

La Montgoniere, 1 Rue Saint-Georges, Harricourt, 08240 Buzancy.

Tel: +33-(0)3-24716650

E-mail: regnault.montgon@wanadoo.fr

http://www.lamantgoniere.net/

Fabulous room and excellent food. Very quiet village and suggest it is best to eat in!

Visit: http://www.oldgitsgapyear.blogspot.com/ for more on these places.

Alagna, Montarosa, Italy

2009-03-07T06:04:00.000-08:00

Staying in Alagna, Italy

Accommodation:

Indren Residence: apartments with bed and breakfast if required, in Alagna. http://www.indrenhus.it/ Tel: +39 0163 91152

Zimmer Casa Prati: lovely old style chalet, (but brand new!) with five bedrooms, inc breakfast, beautifully furnished, in Alagna http://www.zimmercasaprati.com/ tel +39 0163 922802

BaitiReale: old tradition chalet with one and two room apartments with kitchenette, 200m from centre of Alagna, 300m from ski lift, fitness centre, sauna, hydromassage,
Tel +39 347 3496053 Fax +39 0163 91168

Pietregemelle Resort: situated in Riva Valdobbia 2 km from ski lifts in Alagna, wood and stone chalets divided into 1 and 2 bedroomed apartments with kitchen, shuttle to and from the Monterosa Ski Resort, http://www.pietregemelle.it/ Tel +39 0163 917006

Hotel Cristallo 4 star: in the centre of Alagna with fitness centre, sauna, swimming pool and SPA. http://www.charmerelax.com/ Info@CharmeRelax.com Tel +39 0163 922822

Mountain Restaurants:

La Baita: The first restaurant on the right of the piste on the red run down from the Cabina to Alagna. Tel: +39 0163 922991

Vittine: http://www.vittine.it/ The last restaurant on the left of the piste on the red run down from the Cabina to Alagna. They will take you up on the Ski-Doo for dinner but not for anyone with a weak heart! (As MOG lost all the details of this restaurant on the journey home I will be updating these details in the future!) Tel: +39 347 1047090, +39 348 3307292

Restaurants/Cafes

Caffè delle Guide: internet café in centre Alagna, by the Church. Lively après-ski, not the time to visit for the internet!

Caffe’del Centro Luisa: Tea House in centre Alagna by the church: Tel: +39 0163 91290

An Bacher Wine Bar: In Alagna on the same street as the church, next to the Pizzeria. Great atmosphere and good food, wines and service. +39 0163 91301

Dir und Don Pizzeria: next to the wine bar mentioned above. A touch pricy but good food albeit service is slow in busy periods: Tel +39 0163 922642

Unione Ristorante & Bar: Just across the road from the Pizzaria with excellent food and wine. Service and atmosphere excellent.

In Riva:

Mario’s: Not sure what this placed is officially called but it is known as Mario’s, right next to the church. Great atmosphere nibbles and drinks and the host Mario is an excellent host. Try the Negroni if you’re not driving!

Travel Costs: Mont Blanc Tunnel 33.20 euro, single
Autostrade: Mont Blanc Tunnel – turn off for Alagna 15.50 euros

Ski Passes: 264 euros for 10 days

Tourist Information: http://www.atlvalsesiavercelli.it/

Food Shopping: There is only a small ‘Spar’ style shop in Alagna but if self catering we bought food in Bennets Supermarket just off the Autostrada (A26) on the road up to Alagna

Staying in Essert Romand, nr. Morzine/Les Gets

2009-02-01T08:05:00.000-08:00

The village of Essert Romand: Is a small village between Morzine and Les Gets. It is in the heart of the Portes du Soleil ski domain which is an extremely large ski area with 248 ski runs appealing to all levels.

Accommodation: We stayed in Chalet Les Echos in Essert Romand, http://www.chaletlesechos.com/ +44 (0)845 638 0717 a large chalet split into separate apartments which can be self catering or catered. Very comfortable, well appointed and Dennis and Sue are very welcoming.

Sue & Dennis in mountain attire...

Tourist Board website: http://www.morzine-avoriaz.com/ Has plentiful information on accommodation and restaurants etc in the area.

Recommendations:

Mountain Restaurants:

Le Grand Ourse on Mont Chéry, Tel (+33) 06 79 42 58 86 http://www.lagrandeourse.eu/ owned by an English family, serves excellent food Cornish Pasties including, fantastic view of the Les Gets 'bowl', pictured.

Les Lhottys, Col du Ranfolly +33 (0)4 50 34 92 09, just off the Ranfolly chair lift, Les Gets, serves good local mountain food, fantastic view.

La Paika +33 (0)4 50 92 85 22 just off La Terche run, Les Gets, serves delicious chicken, steaks, shank of lamb etc all spit roasted outdoors, spectacular view of Mont Chery, pictured.

Le Vaffieu, at the top of the Pleney, +33 (0)4 50 79 09 43, good food, excellent vin chaud
Restaurant Pointe de Nyon +33 (0)4 50 04 45 64, good food and atmosphere.

Evening Restaurants:

La Pela, Les Gets Tel: 04 50 79 85 02. Cuisine – traditional regional (Savoyarde), wonderful cosy French atmosphere with open fire. Main courses from 20€.

Take aways:

Pizza hut, Essert Romand

La Remise, take away pizza/restaurant, Morzine +33 (0)4 50 79 17 57. great pizza
Ô Kariboo Noodle Bar, Nr The Post Office, Les Gets - serves take away noodle dishes – excellent.

Evening Bars/Après Ski:

La Bar Vin, Morzine, good wine bar.

The Buddha Bar, Morzine, young lively atmosphere. (Underneath Le Crépu)

Le Crépu, Morzine, French Bar, http://www.crepu-lhottys.com/
+33 (0)4 50 79 16 94

Black Bear Canadian Bar, Les Gets, above the Irish Bar, lively atmosphere.
Irish Bar, Les Gets

Ski Areas near Morzine:

As well as Avoriaz, Morzine, Les Gets, Mont Chéry the other ski areas nearby are La Grande Terche/Roc d’Enfer (10 mins drive), Praz de Lys (30 mins drive), Flaine (30 mins drive)

Taxis:

Morzine Avoriaz Tel 06 62 11 91 17, but there are pleanty around.

Buses:

There is a good bus service which runs from Essert Romand to Morzine and Les Gets, timetables available from the Tourist Office in the main square in Morzine.

Ski Lessons:

We use Easy2Ride tel: +33(0)4 50 79 05 16 http://www.easy2ride.fr/

Ski Passes:

For the Portes du Soleil 1 day 39€, 5 day 168€. A tip is to ask if they have any offers on when buying the passes. You often find you can obtain ski passes for other days IF you ask.

Ski Hire:

Ardent Sports, Montriond

Doorstep Skis, mobile ski hire +33 (0)6 74 93 78 96
However there are scores of ski hire shops so sometimes look at one close to you in case you experience a problem with equipment etc.

Food Shopping:

We went self catering. There is a large supermarket – Champion just outside Essert Romand and one also in Morzine. They sell good meat. There is also a good butcher in St Jean d’aulps, just outside Essert Romand.

General

In Essert Romand itself is one bar La Petite Auberge, typically French.

Hirdresser in Morzine is recommended by FOG:
Ross Hair Attitude, Route de la Combe a Zore, 74110 Morzine. Tel: 04 50 79 28 59

Details from Old Gits Gap Year, visit:

http://www.oldgitsgapyear.blogspot.com/

Journey from Cheshire to Essert Romand, near Morzine

2009-02-01T07:40:00.000-08:00

Eurotunnel: Best to book in advance, although we did bring the booking forward by 3 hours on the day at the entrance to the tunnel. Return cost: Folkestone-Calais – we found a deal at £70 each way. (List price is £130 each way) A very efficient and comfortable way to cross the channel.

Hotel in Epernay: Hotel: Les Clos Raymi, Tel +33 03 26 51 00 58 http://www.closraymi-hotel.com/. The French Chateau, owned by Mr Chandon, was simple but delightfully decorated in typical French style and was conveniently situated at the back of Avenue de Champagne. Pictured is the House of Moet Chandon just behind the hotel.

Hotel in Beaune: Hotel de la Poste, +33 03 80 22 08 11 http://www.hoteldelapostebeaune.com/ An old staging house dating back to the 16th century and although on the ring road, very convenient for the town centre; a few minutes walk maximum.

Useful facts:

Mileage: Home (Cheshire) – Epernay 454mls
Epernay – Beune 203 mls (3hrs 40 mins)
Beaune – Essert Romand 184 mls
Tolls: 60 euros from Calais – Essert Romand.