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You are here: Home / ADVENTURE / Christmas in London with National Express

Christmas in London with National Express

December 18, 2018 by Molly 2 Comments

Christmas in London lights in Covent Garden

It’s been five years this week since we moved into our house in Devon. Which means it’s been five and a half years since we last went to London as a family. But last weekend, National Express changed that with the offer of a trip to London by coach, to soak up the festive atmosphere in the capital for the weekend.

It’s something we used to do all the time when we lived so near London, but haven’t done in years. In fact, Freya couldn’t remember the last time she’d been to London, despite visiting many times. She had no memory of the lights, the excitement, the fact London at this time of year holds a certain magic that instantly makes you feel Christmassy…

Christmas markets on the South Bank in London

This weekend saw many firsts for us as a family, including two things I’d never considered before: travelling by coach and staying in a YHA hostel. To be completely honest, I was bit nervous about both. I imagined tantrums on a packed coach, noisy backpackers and dirty corridors in the YHA and went through every worse case scenario in my head before agreeing to the trip. I needn’t have worried. 

At the beginning of the year, when I was in a bit of a rut, I knew 2018 needed to be a year of firsts, adventure and challenging the cradle of comfort I’d put around myself which was actually holding me back. I think we all go through these phases, where new things seem scary, or our inner mean voice holds us back from jumping at new opportunities… but I knew I was done with that, and this final trip of 2018 was the final nail in the coffin for that side of me that would whisper “But what if it all goes wrong?”. 

Winter Wonderland Hyde Park London

We had an absolute blast, fitting so much into our weekend and making special memories that will last forever. It goes to show that ignoring that negative little whisper can reap huge rewards.

Travelling by coach

I haven’t travelled by coach in years. My memories of coach journeys include school trips, never being cool enough to sit on the back seat and shouting “BAGSY!” to sit next to a window. 

This trip couldn’t have been more different. It’s a fair old ride to London from where we are in Devon (just over five hours) but within an hour of being on the coach Effie was asleep – and Freya wasn’t far behind. Both the journeys were effortless, with the girls sleeping while I listened to podcasts and Si napped. I’d never actually imagined the journey could be relaxing, but relaxing it was! 

Staying in a YHA

We stayed in YHA Central London in Fitzrovia – within walking distance of lots of the major London attractions and a short tube ride away from everywhere else. The location couldn’t have been more perfect, but it turned out the inside was pretty good too. 

We turned up at around 11pm, with two tired girls. Within minutes we were checked in and in our private family room – not a dirty corridor in sight. The family room had everything we needed for a base considering we planned on spending very little time in our room and far more time exploring London. There were two sets of bunk beds and an en-suite bathroom with shower. Everything was spotless and the beds were surprisingly comfy. 

Downstairs, there was a bright and friendly communal area with a bar and restaurant which we ate at on the Saturday evening. It didn’t look anything like the drafty youth hostel I’d pictured in my head – and I’d stay there again in an instant, especially as it’s a fantastic way to stay in the city for a fraction of the price of a hotel. 

YHA London Central youth hostel budget accommodation in London

London activities

We were kindly given tickets to Shrek’s Adventure, London Eye and Madame Tussaud’s on our trip, which were all activities we’d never done before – even when we lived so near London. 

Shrek’s Adventure was fantastic, a really interactive, immersive experience unlike anything we’d ever done before. Freya absolutely loved it, although Effie got a bit scared at some points – proving the talent of the actors to make it all so real.

Shrek's Adventure in London

We went on The London Eye straight after Shrek’s Adventure, which was convenient because it’s literally right next door on the Southbank. It’s an incredible way to see London and Freya loved pointing out all the landmarks she recognised. 

After our spin on The London Eye we wandered along the Southbank to Strada for lunch, then mosied along to the markets to drink some mulled wine (turns out mulled wine with Amaretto is a very delicious thing), soak up the festive atmosphere and eat some festive chocolate pancakes (!). 

By this time the rain was pouring, so we headed back over the river to for a quick look around The National Portrait Gallery (art galleries are my most favourite thing ever and I’m looking forward to going back without the girls so I can really immerse myself in it) before a wander around Covent Garden to look at all the pretty lights. 

Sunday was equally busy and equally festive. We started the day with a short walk from the YHA to Madame Tussaud’s, where we took way too many photos. I wasn’t sure if the kids would be that interested in Madame Tussaud’s but the interactive element and the little cab ride through London’s history turned out to be a big win – plus Effie got to see Spiderman so her day was basically made. 

The sheer number of activities available in London can be overwhelming, but some of my favourite parts of the weekend were when we just wandered around, looking at the lights, soaking up the atmosphere, people-watching. 

Freya was keen to see Buckingham Palace so we went straight there from Madame Tussaud’s, which involved a lovely walk through St James’s Park and a chance to catch our breath in between the busy crowds. We did the typical tourist thing and posed for a couple of photos before walking ten minutes to Hyde Park Winter Wonderland – also at the request of Freya. 

So Winter Wonderland probably wouldn’t have been on our To Do list if we there without the girls, but we had a couple of hours to kill before our coach journey home and it was so close it seemed a shame not to pop in. But beware: Winter Wonderland is craaaaaazy busy, so if you’re not a fan of crowds then this is not the one. 

The girls loved it though, and I got way too excited by the Christmassy vibe and selection of sausages and pretzels the Bavarian village. We limited them to one ride each and got persuaded into letting them do two, before we walked the mile back to Victoria Coach Station. The walk through Belgravia was arguably Si’s best bit as he got to oggle all the cars (he counted seven Ferraris on one street), telling me exactly how much each one cost. 

Amidst the walking and the twinkling lights and the smell of mulled wine and spiced cider, I realised something. Any activity or new experience is always going to carry an element of risk. No matter what it is, there is always something that could wrong. But actually, this is kind of what life is all about. As parents so often we want to plan for every eventually – make sure we’ve got a routine in place, pack extra snacks in case of hangry tantrums etc – but sometimes the best experiences are the ones we don’t think too hard. 

And that’s the mantra I’m taking with me into 2019. More adventure, less thinking, more memories, less over-planning. 

Thank you National Express and YHA for helping to remind me of the brilliant experiences just waiting to be had. Here’s a vlog I made of our weekend if you’d like to see it all in action…


Thanks to National Express, YHA and Merlin Entertainment for working with me on this post. For more information about how I work with brands check out my Work With Me page. All opinions, words, image and footage remain my own. 

Filed Under: ADVENTURE Tagged With: adventure, family travel, London with kids, travel on a budget

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Comments

  1. Rebecca Day says

    December 18, 2018 at 4:27 pm

    Mulled wine with amaretto! Hello! Sounds amazing!
    I know what you mean about new experiences – there’s always a chance things will be stressful. But when it works out there’s a little sense of glee that you just went for it!
    Here’s to 2019 and new adventures!

    Reply
    • Molly says

      December 20, 2018 at 12:52 pm

      So exciting – and what an adventure you’ve got coming up! xxx

      Reply

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Hello and welcome! I'm Molly Forbes - podcaster, presenter and blogger with a passion for positivity, confidence and body image chat. Regularly writing and vlogging about empowering female issues from a motherhood angle, I also cover lifestyle and fashion topics for like-minded mums who want to rediscover themselves after having children. Thanks for stopping by! Read More…

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My body is good and excellent and my body only bel My body is good and excellent and my body only belongs to me ✨ (Words by Effie May, age 6 💕) #BodyHappyMum
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Image description: A close up of Molly’s bare skin as she hugs herself. It’s dark and part of her body is illuminated by light. She has her eyes closed and is smiling.
“Mummy I wrote a letter to myself,” she said. “Mummy I wrote a letter to myself,” she said. And my heart swelled. Maybe I’m doing an OK job after all 🤞❤️💕 #BodyHappyKids 
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I could leave this caption here but I need to make something clear: if you think it’s great that my daughter - a thin, white, nondisabled, cisgender kid - feels good in her body but you’re not here for the self-love of any kid who doesn’t look like her.... then you’ve missed the point.
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ALL bodies are good bodies, and without this important piece of the puzzle ALL children will be at risk of doubting their body. And what happens when they doubt their body? Well... hating our body doesn’t make us treat it with love, and the same is true of kids. 
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Great, now we’ve cleared that up, can we take a moment to appreciate the incredible phonetic spelling on show here?! 
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Image description: Effie, age 6, stands against a white wardrobe holding up a letter she has written to herself. It is spelled phonetically and reads “My body is good and excellent and my body only belongs to me.”
I used to struggle to buy stuff for myself if I ha I used to struggle to buy stuff for myself if I had any spare cash - not just treats, but basics like pants and tights that fit properly. I’d tell myself I didn’t need it, didn’t deserve it, couldn’t justify the expense. There’s still that little voice (the habit of putting everyone else’s needs first and my own last dies hard it seems) but I’m leaning into exploring why it still sometimes rears its head, instead of always listening to it. 
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I’m trying to buy as much as I can from pre-loved places or small businesses these days, which is why I’m very happy to share with you some of my latest finds: a star dress from Depop (£5), earrings from @kelzojewellery by @ourtransitionallife (£12) and the comfiest tights I’ve ever owned in Raspberry Pie by @snagtights (£6.99) 💕💕💕
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Have you found any great small brands lately? Shout them out in the comments so we can all support in the run up to Christmas. ⬇️⚡️
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Image description: Molly is smiling and sticking out her tongue to the camera. Her hair is freshly dyed a light shade of pink. She’s wearing a pink t’shirt underneath a black and white star patterned slip dress, with bright pink tights and black and pink earrings decorated with a boob design.
This is what teaching kids to idolise thinness and This is what teaching kids to idolise thinness and fear fatness looks like and it hurts my heart 💔
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This is what happens when we only give children a very narrow representation of what health / beauty / success / happiness looks like, and when we don’t incorporate mental health into conversations about health. The body image, self-esteem and wellbeing of children suffers. And it IS suffering.
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Last week @Childline_official launched their #NobodyIsNormal campaign and released figures showing they’ve run 43,000 counselling sessions for children since the first UK lockdown earlier this year. These are quotes from children they spoke to, showing that low self-esteem is a major issue for many of the kids they’ve been in touch with. 
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Head to their page for more information and resources, and to see their fantastic video. It’s a great way to open up a conversation about mental health and self-esteem with the children in your care. 
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If you’re a teacher or youth leader looking for ways to create body happy settings so the kids in your care can thrive then we’ve opened up booking on the final two #BodyHappyKids workshops of 2020. I’ll be leading these myself and you can book via the link in my bio. 
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It really doesn’t have to be this way ✨
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Image description: a series of slides showing quotes from ChildLine. Full text can be found in Alt Text.
I was at my desk all weekend so here’s a throwba I was at my desk all weekend so here’s a throwback to September when we hiked along part of the South West coast path and discovered three new beaches. I miss the outside. 
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This post is dedicated to anyone who says opting out of diet culture and a weight-focused health narrative means you automatically won’t move your body. Actually, the opposite is true. 
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Research shows exercising for intrinsic reasons (how we feel) is more likely to lead to consistent movement than if we do it for extrinsic reasons (how we look). 
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There’s so much research on this subject and about why diet culture and weight stigma is harmful. Suffice to say if you’ve not read the research, or any books, or listened to any podcasts, or even read the captions of some of the amazing people educating about this subject then you won’t know it all... despite what you learned at school or what your own unexamined internalised bias is telling you, or what the newspaper headlines say. 
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If you’re interested in learning more about this stuff there are lots of resources in the link in my bio, but for fitness specifically I recommend following @emmafitnessphd @tallyrye @thephitcoach & @amysnellingpt for starters and also check out @drjoshuawolrich recent post on this subject too ✨ #JoyfulMovement #BodyHappyKids
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Image Description: Molly and her two daughters on a beach, smiling. They wear hiking boots and Molly is wearing purple leopard print leggings and a neon yellow jumper. The sky is blue and the sun is shining.
Did you know the same area of the brain lights up Did you know the same area of the brain lights up when we experience the pain of social rejection as when we experience physical pain? True fact. Which is why I think 
it’s wild we spend so much energy in kids’ health education on nutrition (or “good food and bad food” as is so often the case) and so little on prepping them with the skills to navigate social media in a positive way. 🧐
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Social media can be a great thing, but it can also be a scary and anxiety-inducing place too (watch The Social Dilemma on Netflix for more on this!). We’re having conversations with children about the dangers of sugar but not even touching on the dangers of social media and the impact it can have on health (because mental health is health too FYI). 
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I’m a 37 year old woman and social media still messes with my head. What chance has a tween got? 
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I could lie and say that I always take the “other people’s opinion of me is none of my business” approach but the truth is I’m a sensitive people-pleaser so when I experience negativity online it stings. 
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I don’t read hate forums and am quick to block trolls, but that doesn’t mean this stuff has no impact. 
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I had a conversation with my pal @jskychat that helped me through a difficult phase recently, and I’ve shared the tweets that started it off in case they’re helpful for you too. I think Jsky should be brought in by the government to help design a PSHE social media lesson for the curriculum to be honest, but that’s a fight for another day. ❤️
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In the meantime, I’m teaching my kids the affirmation that “Their opinion is not my truth”, which works well in all life but seems particularly apt when it comes to social media.
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[Image description: Molly’s hand covers her face. On her hand are written the words “Their opinion isn’t my truth.” She is smiling. Full description of second slide in Alt Text.]
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