Flight Centre Independent- Sandra Raw

23/06/2024

Great day at Twickenham supporting the Springboks!

Still can’t get over having to pay £7.50 for a beer (approx R170 😳)

Amazing to see how many Springbok supporters there were - felt like I could’ve been at a game in South Africa!!

Well done on a great win Bokke!!

19/05/2024

I knew I wouldn’t be home for the elections so I registered to vote in London and today I made my mark 🗳️

Very happy I chose today rather than yesterday as there were no queues when I got there and the whole process took about 5 minutes!!

13/05/2024

21/04/2024

TIᗰE ᖴOᖇ ᗰY EᑌᖇOᑭEᗩᑎ ᗩᗪᐯEᑎTᑌᖇE!

Don’t worry, I’m still available to assist with all your travel needs, just changing my office location for a few months 😜

I will be on leave this week while I explore Doha and travel to London but will be back in the ‘office’ on Monday, 29 April ✈️✈️

24/03/2024

My favourite thing to do is collect stamps in my passport! Pity that a lot of countries aren’t stamping on entry/exit anymore due to everything being electronic but just means that you don’t have to replace your passport that often anymore 😜

I’m currently on my 4th passport since I started travelling in 2000! I think it’s time to collect more stamps….

How many passports have you filled before they have expired? Would love to know!

16/03/2024

I can never tire of this view…. Day or night, there’s just something about this mountain that’s mesmerizing 🩵

01/01/2024

H҉A҉P҉P҉Y҉ N҉E҉W҉ Y҉E҉A҉R҉

May 2024 be filled with new adventures that take you to the most wonderful places ✈️

ＴＨＡＮＫ ＹＯＵ To all my amazing clients for your support in 2023 and I look forward to helping you make all your travel dreams come true in 2024 💚

WHEN SOMETHING GOOD HAPPENS...
TRAVEL TO CELEBRATE.
IF SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS...
TRAVEL TO FORGET IT.
IF NOTHING IS HAPPENING….
TRAVEL TO MAKE SOMETHING HAPPEN. ✈️

19/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 17

𝘾𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙝

Today wasn’t an overly exciting day as it was raining so couldn’t do too much outdoors, was hoping just to wander the streets of Christchurch….

Caught the bus into town and stopped at Quake City - this recounts the 2010-2011 earthquakes that hit the city, destroying most of it. It’s was very interesting and also sad at the same time….

Next I jumped on the city tour hop on hop off tram . It was a quick ride around the city on an old tram with live commentary. City Centre has practically been rebuilt and all the new buildings can withstand and earthquake up to 8.5 magnitude! There are still a lot of empty gravel spaces where buildings used to be which are now being used as car parks so will should never have a problem finding parking here! Some building are yet to be torn down so all boarded up and derelict.

I am definitely not a city girl so I think that, after all the amazing smaller towns I have visited on this trip, the city didn’t wow me - weather played a big part in that too as I didn’t get to visit any of the parks or take a walk along the river….. There’s always a next time!

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18/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 16

𝙏𝙚𝙠𝙖𝙥𝙤 - 𝘾𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙝

What a gorgeous day today!!! Got a coffee and had a nice little walk around the lake front area before hitting the road 🚐

First stop was Three Creeks on Burkes Pass - such a cute little place! I will let the photos show you 😉

Next stop was Fairlie - a girl I had met in Wanaka recommended the Fairlie Bakery, which is famous for their pies and pastries. Of course, when I saw Pork Belly and Apple sauce pie, I knew what I was ordering 😜 simply delicious! They even had a piece of crackling on the top!!!

There wasn’t anything else exciting to see after this….

Wanted to stop at Lake Ellesmere on the way but, when I got to where my maps were taking me, I realised I was on the wrong side of the lake 🙈🤣

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15/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 15 (part 2)

Then headed through to Tekapo. Saw the Church of the Good Shepherd and then walked through the little town. Found a lovely restaurant overlooking the lake and stopped in for a beer 🍺

Went to Tekapo springs in the evening for what was supposed to be stargazing while floating in the hot pools. Unfortunately it was still raining and cloudy so we did a VR presentation - how have I never tried this before! We all looked like minions though! After that we went for a swim in the hot pools and our guide spoke more about what we should be seeing. There was a clearing and a few stars made an appearance but it wasn’t nearly what I was hoping to see in a Dark Sky Reserve ⭐️💫

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15/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 15 (part 1)

𝙈𝙩 𝘾𝙤𝙤𝙠 & 𝙏𝙖𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙂𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙧

Enjoyed a late lie-in in my very comfy hotel bed and didn’t feel the least bit guilty 😜

After check out I took a walk around the village - quite a few accommodation options to choose from but I would think that you would need to book well in advance as I was lucky to get the last room at the hotel for the night, everything thing else was sold out!

Weather was iffy and raining on and off. Wanted to do the Ho**er Valley walk but that was 2-3 hours and didn’t feel like getting caught in the rain half way through so opted for the Tasman Glacier walk - probably would’ve opted for the rain if I knew I had to climb 333 steps to get to the top 🤣🤣

Can imagine how stunning the views must be on a clear day here. There were even icebergs floating in the lake that had come off the glacier.

14/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 14 (part 1)

𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙬𝙣 - 𝙈𝙩 𝘾𝙤𝙤𝙠

Long drive day today (turns out there were more than I thought 🙈)

It was an easier drive than the others with fewer twist and turns!

Stops along the way today were:
* 𝙇𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙃𝙖𝙮𝙚𝙨 - Lake Hayes is a beautiful lake located between Queenstown and Arrowtown and known for its perfect reflections. There are various viewpoints if you just want to stop and have a quick look, or you can walk the full lake circuit which is an easy track offering gorgeous views from every angle.
* 𝙆𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙪 𝙂𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚 𝙎𝙪𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙙𝙜𝙚 - the home of the worlds first commercial bunny jumping site (I wasn’t brave enough to try it!).
* Ō𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙢𝙖 𝘾𝙡𝙖𝙮 𝘾𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙨 - The Clay Cliffs are a stark sight - tall pinnacles separated by narrow ravines. These otherworldly formations are made up of layers of gravel and silt, originally formed by the flow from ancient glaciers over a million years ago. The cliffs are on private land. There's a donation box at the gate where you can pay the $5 vehicle admission fee.

13/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 13

𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙬𝙣 & 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙨

Wind was howling so I took a drive around Lake Wakitipu round to Glenorchy. There is a nice little walk through the lagoon.

The nice thing about the drives here is that they are just as much of an adventure as the final destination with so many places to stop along the way.
After my little roadie I had a walk round Queenstown - love this little town. It has so much to offer for everyone - it really is the adventure capital but there is also a lot to do in town. There is a casino, shopping, ice bars, lots of restaurants and bar, river cruises and the list goes on

I stayed a tonight - this is one camp site I have been looking forward to and it didn’t disappoint! It’s located in Frankton, just a bit out of town Centre but it right on the lake and, because it’s new, it had the best facilities - highly recommended 💯

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11/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 11 (part 2)

𝘼𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙩𝙤𝙬𝙣 - 𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙬𝙣

Todays route took me over the Crown Range pass - another very twisty road but with beautiful views over the valley from the top.

As the sun was out, I decided to take advantage and stop in Arrowtown as rain is predicted for the rest of the week. This is another old gold mining town with a lot of history and walks.

Arrived in Queesntown and checked into the campsite for the night and took a walk into town as it wasn’t far.

I walked pass the famous Fergburger and there wasn’t a long queue at all so took this as a sign to get a burger for dinner 😜 (you can sometimes wait up to an hour in peak times)
It was really that good!!!

Made my way back to the camp for an early night as it’s an early start in the morning…..

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10/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 11 (part 1)

𝙒𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙠𝙖 - 𝙌𝙪𝙚𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙬𝙣

Woke up to another gorgeous day with blue skies. Packed up my van and headed to Queenstown. The picturesque Cardrona hotel is 20 minutes outside of Wanaka - this is one of NZ’s old seat and most iconic hotels. Just before this is ‘Bradrona’ - The Cardrona Bra Fence is a controversial tourist attraction in Central Otago, in New Zealand. At some point between 1998 and 1999, passers-by began to attach bras to a rural fence. The fence gradually became a well known site as the number of bras grew to hundreds. I didn’t leave a bra there but I did make a donation to the Breast Cancer Foundation for our amazing warrior, Michelle, and everyone else that has been affected ❤️‍🩹

Todays route took me over the Crown Range pass - another very twisty road but with beautiful views over the valley from the top.

08/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 10

𝙒𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙠𝙖

Good call on coming through to Wānaka yesterday! Was a gorgeous day here (15°C but at least the sun was shining!)

Started the morning with a 5km walk around the lake and visited the famous tree 😜 I was warned about all the tourists that would be there (including me) and boy were they right!! Tripods, long lense cameras, walking through the water to be next to the tree, you name it, I saw it all this morning 🤣

Then I decided to hire a bike and ride to Clutha River - there was a track and it was all paved… in town only! I am not mountain biking fit 🙈 if it was a level track that would’ve been ok but it was up and down and my legs felt broken 🤣 Did a 20km round trip as I needed to be back before the bike hire place closed. WOW! What a gorgeous river 😍 crystal blue waters again so, when I just couldn’t pedal up the hill and someone was coming towards me, I just pretended that I was staring at the scenery and then pushed my bike once they were gone 🤣🤣🤣

There is a Lavender farm just outside town and, I know that the one I was hoping to visit in Taupo closed last weekend, I thought I would head out there. Unfortunately no lush purple fields, like I was hoping for but still a cool little farm with some Alpacas 🦙 I can imagine that it must be gorgeous when the lavender is in season as it’s quite a big farm.

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05/09/2023

𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚉𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚑 𝙸𝚜𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎 - day 8 (part 2)

𝙃𝙤𝙠𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙠𝙖 𝙩𝙤 𝙁𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙯 𝙅𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙛

Next was Lake Mahinapau. Did a nice 2km round trip walk to ‘swimming beach’, which was not what I expected! The walk there was nice through the forest.

Next lake on the way was Lake Ianthe/Matahi and the last one for the day was Lake Wahapo

Been craving meat and salad but my fridge isn’t big enough to go out and buy everything so stopped in at The Landing Bar (by suggestion from the lady at the camp). When the restaurant serves popcorn on arrival then I know I have found a winner 😜
I decided on some ribs and salad 🥗
There is enough here to feed me for the next 3 days!!! Salad was meh 🙈

Staying in Franz Josef tonight and have something exciting planned for tomorrow…. You will have to just wait for tomorrow night’s update to see what is is 😜

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