I watch a reasonable number of Ring Road vlogs and apart from the fact that there are a load of things that infuriate me (mispronunciation of any and all names, neglect of Þingvellir, non-existent flicking through of guidebook – for crying out loud, the last one I watched knew about “Diamond Beach” but had no … More How to travel Iceland on a budget
In my last post, in which I visited Bath Thermae Spa, I called it “bathing like a Roman”, on the grounds that the modern spa uses the same source as the 2000-year-old Roman bathhouse but other than that, there’s no similarity at all between my spa trip and Julia Ennia Caesianus’s visit to the baths. … More Bath Roman Baths: how to actually bathe like a Roman
I went to Bath Thermae Spa about ten years ago, having been sent up to Bath College on a couple of days’ notice to replace a colleague on a social media course. The course was terrible, the hotel I stayed in was so unmemorable that I don’t even remember it and I don’t think I … More Bathing like a Roman: how good is Bath Thermae Spa?
Back in August, I did a post about the benefits of tour guides and I’m starting to wonder how much this post is just going to be a rewrite of that one, but let’s give it a go. Iceland attracts a lot of tourists and a substantial chunk of them hire a car or a … More Things you shouldn’t do in Iceland without a professional guide
One thing that’s on everyone’s bucket list for a trip to Iceland or Lapland is seeing the Northern Lights. The magic of the dance of the heavens, the supernatural displayed in front of our eyes… who wouldn’t want to see that? Let me break that bubble for you. The Northern Lights are extremely capricious; they … More I went looking for the Northern Lights for the eleventh time
“The Cave” is a ludicrous way to start this but it’s the way the landowners are marketing their lava caving trip into Víðgelmir, Iceland’s biggest lava cave – or at least, the biggest one discovered that it’s possible to go inside. I have a hypothesis that a lot of things in Iceland are very self-explanatory … More Visiting The Cave, Iceland’s biggest lava cave
Since I’m on the subject of pools, I’m going to carry on and introduce you to the revamped geothermal pool at Húsafell in the west of Iceland. Not that I ever went there pre-revamp so I can’t compare it to what it used to look like but it’s been on my to-do list for years … More Visiting Lindin Húsafell
On Monday, I talked about the best swimming pools in Reykjavik and today I’m going to go over how you actually use a local swimming pool in Iceland. When you arrive, they’ll ask “have you been here before?” and even if you say you have, they’ll still ask “So you know all the rules?”. If … More How to use a swimming pool in Iceland
Why not follow a best pools post with a completely different best pools post? Today I’m in Iceland and I want to talk about the best swimming pools in Reykjavik. I’m not talking about the likes of the Blue Lagoon and the Sky Lagoon, fine as they are. I’m talking about public pools, the kind … More Which is the best public swimming pool in Reykjavik?
Welcome to 2025 and let’s leap straight in with one of my favourite subjects: hot water! Budapest abounds in hot water and I’ve talked about some of the thermal baths but I think it’s time to compare and contrast and decide which is best. I had some of these recommended by a colleague who was … More Which is the best bath in Budapest?
I Am A Polar Bear 