Summer holidays 2026

There's no denying it, we've all had a very hot summer this year. It was a global event in the northern hemisphere with extreme heat and hardly any rain to speak of for weeks in to months. The ground had become rock-hard and plants and wildlife were suffering through lack of water and the relentless extreme heat.

My husband and I went on a short break to the New Forest in July, We stayed at the lovely Balmer Lawn Spa Hotel, located near Brockenhurst. The hotel had two pools and a spa, with a garden terrace that appealed to guests, including us. It was the perfect place to sit and relax in, the cooling shade from the trees and flowering shrubs was most welcome. We saw New Forest Ponies grazing nearby. And a walk amongst the trees was an unforgettable day of natural beauty to behold.

Not many days passed before we were home again preparing for our next holiday in August. Our eldest son, Tony, and our granddaughter, Amelia, came over to visit us from the U.S.A. We had a great, thoroughly enjoyable time with them. The weather was still very hot and we ate our meals seated outside on our patio under the shade of our parasol.

We had a barbeque one day; a beach day at West Wittering, a day in Brighton, and another in Chichester. We even visited the Chatheral and then on to see Tangmere Aviation Centre. We did a lot of walking I recall, which included the long walk along the prom from Worthing to Goring-on-Sea. We even had the courage to do an Escape Room Experience. Our challenge was called: Smugglers Ruin. We had to solve a series of clues to retrieve our casket of gin that the Mayor had confiscated from us. We had just one hour...

Needless to say we rose to the challenge and ended victorious!