Emma Pamley-Liddell

Staycations in the UK seem to be on the agenda so if you’re looking for ideas for staycations and the best UK staycations, we’ve got you covered. With picturesque cobbled stone steps, a garden chiminea, a luxurious hot tub, a village pub, canal-side walks, Peak District hidden trails and even an electric vehicle charging point, what more could you possibly want from an idyllic countryside cottage in Derbyshire? Troopers Cottage near Frome in Somerset is a 1720s Georgian Cottage just a fourteen-minute drive to the Weir and a fifteen-minute walk to the artisan area of Catherine Hill. Located in a 19th century Manor House on the River Ely, Cardiff, Lanelay Hall has indoor pools, saunas, enormous baths in the rooms, a magical terrace with a bar, pretty flower gardens and there are only seventeen rooms guaranteeing you an intimate and relaxing experience.

Surrounded by high cliffs, the beach is short and pebbly when the water is in but at low tide, the sand seems to stretch for miles and you can even walk all the way round to Porthtowan. At low tide there’s a small section of sand and some rock pools that you can explore. From here you can also reach Porthcadjack Cove and Mirrose Well Cove, as well as Deadman’s Cove and Greenbank Cove. At high tide, the cove becomes inaccessible so do check the tide times.

Now that you’ve been to see Bulgaria, been house hunting and bought your Bulgarian house, how is best to heat it in winter? Air to water heat pumps take heat from the outside air and transfer it to a water-based system. In climates with very low winter temperatures, ground source heat pumps may seem a more suitable choice, however, air to water heat pumps can work with temperatures lower than -25°C. I have found two installers of the air to water system, one in Vratsa and one in Sofia, although other heating companies will tell you this system does not work & is impossible in Bulgaria, it isn’t.

We love to read but let’s face it, life is usually so busy that despite our best intentions we don’t read as much as we probably should do. You can also buy this book independently through: For us Brits of a certain age, Only Fools And Horses was a right of British passage and a key moment in British comedy. I’ve included this 2018 book because I think it’s more relevant now than it was two years ago and also because I feel that she’s a largely unknown & underrated writer. You can buy these independently through: Released in 2020’s second British lockdown (although third for those of us in Merseyside),