The Venice of "Don't Look Now"

If like us you’re a bit of a movie fan, then this section is for you. The Venice of Don't Look Now is encapsulated in a 1973 British-Italian thriller directed by Nicolas Roeg, adapted from a short story by Daphne du Maurier.

It was filmed at a variety of locations throughout Venice, showing a se

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/venice-dont-look-now/

Maldives Planning a Break

Maldives Planning a Break: The luxury of some of the smaller islands in the Maldives comes at a price. However - if included as a short addition to a longer trip through other countries in the region - this unforgettable experience can be enjoyed without drastically over-doing the budget.

The

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/maldives-planning-a-break/

Malay Peninsula West Coast - Open-Jaw Trip

If you're planning a multi-destination road trip, then booking an open-jaw flight can be a godsend. Our Malay peninsula west coast journey would actually start in Phuket, Thailand - just north of the Thai-Malaysian border.

The trip would end in Kuala Lumpur, after visiting a sequence of

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malay-peninsula-west-coast-open-jaw-trip/

Getting Around Panama by Shuttle Bus 🚌

Without any real train infrastructure, buses are the primary way that most Panamanians — and many travelers — get around. The buses run frequently and are cheap enough, but if you have a few more dollars to spend you may want to make your travel a little easier. The Hello Travel bus shuttle com

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/getting-around-panama/

South Goa Beaches - Agonda

When we arrived in Goa, fresh off the night train from Kochi, we hadn't yet decided which south Goa beaches we would visit - Agonda beach or Palolem beach. We had nothing booked, so left it to chance. As it turned out, our first experiences would be on Palolem beach.

After an hours march from

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/south-goa-beaches-agonda/

SandSpice Travel Essentials - The Things We Carried

When you're traveling from country to country...
...with a maximum rucksack load of 7 kgs, we tend to be fairly selective about what we carry and what gets left at home. It all depends on the climate of the countries we're visiting and the type of accommodation (if any) we plan to use.

Most of

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sandspice-travel-essentials-the-things-we-carried/

Tioman Island Ferry

One of the highlights of our trip around Malaysia and Borneo would be our visit to Tioman island on the east coast of the Malay peninsula. To get there, we needed to reach the port town of Mersing from where we could take a ferry across. Although we arrived at the terminal building in the morning,

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/tioman-island-ferry/

Inexpensive Rome Restaurants

Rome is like one giant restaurant. Every street seems to host a series of eateries tempting visitors with their delicious Italian kitchen aromas. In our experience, it's pretty difficult to get a bad meal in Rome, but if you're looking for inspiration, here are our current favourite and

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/rome-restaurants/

Ceylonica Beach Hotel Negombo

For many visitors to Sri Lanka, Negombo will be your first port of call. This actually makes a lot of sense if you are planning to head east to the central areas. For us also, this was the logical choice since our flight arrived in Sri Lanka in the early evening, and Bandaranaike International

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/ceylonica-beach-hotel-negombo/

Istanbul Eateries and Accommodation

We would only have 2 nights and days in Istanbul. To optimize our time in the city, and to find the best Istanbul eateries, we did as much planning as we could before leaving home.

After sorting out our transfers, our next priorities were accommodation and food. Following a good deal of online r

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/istanbul-eateries-accommodation/

Doha Airport Layover

Our Qatar Airways flight from Rome to Jakarta included a lengthy 10-hour Doha airport layover. There was really no way of avoiding this when we booked the flight.

If we had arrived early in the day, we could have enjoyed one of Qatar Airways complimentary 3-hour tours of the city. However, we wo

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/doha-airport-layover/

Malta Saint Julians Penthouse for Sale - Seafront with Roof Garden

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Malta Saint Julians Seafront Penthouse for Sale
South-facing luxury penthouse apartment overlooking the fishing boats of Spinola Bay

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malta-saint-julians-penthouse-for-sale/

Budget Accommodation Highlights

Traditional & cost-effective budget accommodation: The hotels and guesthouses you book will have a dramatic effect on your overall travel experience. Check out our recommendations for some of the best, most cost-effective budget accommodation we've discovered in our recent

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/budget-accommodation-highlights/

Vaporetti Essentials: Get a Day Pass

One of the reasons we all go to Venice is to travel on their unique vaporetti water transport system. And unless you are particularly flush with cash, you’ll want to do this in the easiest and most economical way possible. For a short weekend, a Vaporetti Day Pass is the answer.
Vaporetti Day P

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/vaporetti-day-pass/

Makunudu Island Paradise, Maldives

Travelling with Emirates from Europe to Makunudu Island, we had an initial stop in Cyprus. We then had another stop in Dubai for our connecting flight to Male - The Maldives capital.
We had a couple of hours to kill in Dubai, so spent most of it queuing up to spend a penny in a toilet not big

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/makunudu-island/

Tropical Travel Plans

Tropical Travel Plans
Free independent travel is rapidly becoming the preferred way to arrange trips for many adventure-seeking holidaymakers. The abundance of enticing destinations advertised on the Internet makes the prospect of going it alone even more tempting. Most of the time though you'll n

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/plan-your-travel/

Valencia Eating Out? Eating Late is the Norm

For our 4-day trip to Valencia, we selected in advance a number of interesting restaurants with good reviews. The only problem was these restaurants were dotted around the outskirts of the city and not particularly easy to get to. Our Valencia eating out plans therefore had to be revised to fit in

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/valencia-eating-out/

Isla Bastimentos Bocas Del Toro - Panama

Following our 5-day tour of Isla Colón, we were ready to venture further afield to one of the other large islands of the archipelago - Isla Bastimentos Bocas Del Toro. We were looking forward to pristine beaches and fascinating jungle trails, similar to what we had discovered on Isla Colón.
Isla B

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/isla-bastimentos-bocas-del-toro-panama/

Philippines Best Beach Destinations? 50 Shades of Pink

If getting a suntan is high on the priority list, then unless you want to stay pale pink you need to choose your Philippines beach destinations carefully.

Our 3-week trip around the Central Visayas - Cebu and Bohol - presented us with several unexpected challenges, one of these being to find a

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/philippines-beach-destinations/

Indian Railways Sleeper Class to Kochi

Travelling north along the West coast of India, our next destination after Varkala was Kochi. 5 days earlier, while we were still in Kovalam, we had purchased our train tickets from a Travel Agent. He had explained to us which ticket classes were available for a trip from Varkala to Kochi. He also

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/indian-railways-sleeper-class/

Miserable in Mersing Malaysia

Mersing Malaysia is the gateway to Tioman Island, a very popular destination for travelers. We had a pleasant coach ride down to Mersing from Cherating, on a very comfortable Adik Beradik coach.

The 240 km trip took around 4 hours, including a 20-minute stop along the way where we could eat and

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/embassy-mersing-malaysia/

Terravision Rome Airport Bus

Getting from either of the airports outside Rome to the city center can be an expensive business. Fortunately, there are some inexpensive and efficient alternatives to taking a taxi. On different occasions, we've used the Terravision Rome airport bus service to travel between both Fiumicino and

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/terravision-rome-airport-bus/

A Sri Lanka Travel Plan - Central & South

Our Sri Lanka travel plan comprised a 21-day rollicking rollercoaster of a ride to the World’s End and beyond, taking in the Central Highlands and the South Coast. It promised to be an eventful trip, with all content published from a tiny Samsung smartphone.



 
Researching the Trip - Sr

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sri-lanka-travel-plan/

Our Turkish Airlines Inflight Experiences 💺

How the mighty have fallen... Considering they were once the No.7 airline in the world, Turkish Airlines dropped to No.12 in 2017, No.18 in 2018, and then to No.27 in 2019 (see SkyTrax World's Top 100 Airlines). The jury is still out for 2020, but you can see where this is heading. We were quite

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/turkish-airlines-inflight-experience/

Visit the Canary Islands ✈️ Via Spain!

A trip to the Canary Islands had long been on our agenda. The availability of cheap budget-airline flights with stopovers in Spain finally made this trip too good to resist. So we carefully put together a 14-day Canary islands itinerary.

Instead of getting return flights direct to the Canary

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/canary-islands-itinerary/

Madrid Budget Break 💃 Where to Eat & What to Do

Our 9-day tour around the Canary Isles started and finished in Spain. We spent a few days at the beginning of the trip in Girona, and finished off with a few days in the capital - Madrid.  So - as the finale to our trip - we were keen to find out what there is to do, see and eat during a short

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/madrid-budget-break/

Venice Off Season 🎭 Save Time & Money

How much should a short 2-night break in Venice off season really cost?

With low-cost airlines flying from numerous destinations, the return flight is possibly one of the cheapest items of a trip to Venice. However, even this can be deceptive: The budget airlines fly to Venice Treviso, not to

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/venice-off-season-saves-time-money/

Sleeping in a Shipping Container - Dash Box Hotel Cyberjaya

As an addition to the wide and wonderful variations of ‘Glamping’ accommodation, sleeping in a shipping container shouldn't raise any eyebrows.

At 20 feet (6.1 m) long by 8 feet (2.44 m) wide this certainly isn't the tightest hotel room we've ever squeezed ourselves into: The Pearl Premium Gues

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sleeping-in-a-shipping-container/

The Soná of 'Prison Break' Fame

Any fans of the mini-series will be familiar with the infamous Soná of 'Prison Break' fame. This fictional prison featured in much of Season 3 of the series.

The good news is that if you're planning to travel by bus from Panama City (or from Boquete) to Santa Catalina, you will get to visit S

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sona-prison-break/

Maldives Under the Reef

Your first underwater experience of the Maldives is likely to be your local house reef. All the islands have their own unique house reefs, and Makunudu is no exception. For many people, this is all you actually need. Just put on a mask and step into the shallows. You don't have to go further than

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/maldives-under-the-reef/

Cherating Accommodation: Will you choose Top-end or Budget?

After our first night in Kuala Lumpur, we made an early start: We needed to get to the bus station to take an early coach to Cherating, on the east side of the peninsula. Cherating accommodation options are a little limited, but for this occasion we'd decided to choose one of the larger beach

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/cherating-accommodation-top-end-or-budget/

Rome - Inexpensive Start for a Long-Haul Flight

Rome is not exactly South-East Asia, but this is where our journey to the Philippines began, following a short flight from Malta.

The reason for this was our discovery of some very reasonably priced Emirates flights running from Rome to Manila (€528 return). Since Italy is a small hop from our b

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/rome-inexpensive-start-for-a-long-haul-flight/

Getting Gringoed in Isla Colon Bocas del Toro

After spending a couple of days in Bocas del Toro, we decided to spend some extra days in a more secluded spot where we could enjoy beaches and jungle. The Tesoro Escondido Guesthouse seemed to be the answer, located by the sea just 5 kms north of the town, but still on Isla Colon Bocas Del

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/getting-gringoed-in-isla-colon/

Malaysia My Second Home - Our Personal MM2H Application Experience

Our interest in the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) program started after several visits to Malaysia and some long trips through the Malay Peninsula and Borneo, all spread over a 5-year period.

If you have the time, then taking an extended multi-week break in Malaysia works out much cheaper

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/our-mm2h-application-experience/

London City Stopover 💂 What to See & Do in just 6 hours

We arrived back in London Gatwick at the end of our multi-stop flight to Hong Kong and Bali, courtesy of Cathay Pacific. With just 12 hours between our arrival at Gatwick and our onward flight home from London Luton airport, we were optimistically hoping to cram in some essential sightseeing on o

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/london-city-stopover/

Langkawi Long-Term Stay - 3 Months in Malaysia

Ever considered a long-term stay in just one location in South East Asia?  An opportunity to get an in-depth feel of the region at a more relaxed pace, while actually saving on your daily budget? We did just this on the chilled-out paradise island of Langkawi in Malaysia: An excellent destination

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/plan-your-travel/langkawi-malaysia-long-term-stay/

Malta Saint Julians Penthouse for Sale - Seafront with Roof Garden

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Malta Saint Julians Seafront Penthouse for Sale
South-facing luxury penthouse apartment overlooking the fishing boats of Spinola Bay

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malta-saint-julians-penthouse-for-sale/

13 Weeks in Langkawi - Where to Stay and What to Do

Our plan for this trip to Malaysia was quite unlike our other adventures to date. Having spent many years touching the surface of different Asian cultures through shorter visits, we now wanted to understand how it feels to live in just one locality. Spending 13 weeks in Langkawi seemed an ideal

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/13-weeks-in-langkawi/

13 Weeks in Langkawi - Where to Stay and What to Do

Our plan for this trip to Malaysia was quite unlike our other adventures to date. Having spent many years touching the surface of different Asian cultures through shorter visits, we now wanted to understand how it feels to live in just one locality. Spending 13 weeks in Langkawi seemed an ideal

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/13-weeks-in-langkawi/

Apartments at Sri Lagenda, Kuah Langkawi

Looking more like the location for a post-apocalyptic movie than a condominium in a tropical paradise, Sri Lagenda is a prominent 13-storey apartment block located close to the center of Kuah in Langkawi, Malaysia.

Here it is possible to rent apartments for short or long-term lets, either

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sri-lagenda-apartments-kuah-langkawi/

Sri Lanka 21-day Budget & Costs

Our Sri Lanka 21-day round trip started and ended in Negombo. From there we traveled inland to Sigiriya to visit the Lion Rock.

We then took a bus to the central highlands, taking in Kandy, Polwaththa ECO lodges, a tea plantation and the Knuckle Mountains.

Following a dizzying descent from

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sri-lanka-21-day-budget/

Georgetown Penang - A Cultural Smorgasbord

Following our island hops through Phuket and Langkawi, we planned to spend 7 days on the southernmost island in our itinerary - based in Georgetown Penang.

Although it is an island, Penang is connected to the Malaysian mainland via a very long and narrow 13.5-kilometer bridge. We would travel

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/georgetown-penang-a-cultural-smorgasbord/

Madrid Airport Transfers & Where to Stay

Arriving late in the evening at Madrid airport, we were keen to discover how straightforward our transfers into the city would be, and how our selected hotel on the Gran Vía in the center of the city would measure up.

Following a 9-day trip through the Canary Islands - including Tenerife and

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/madrid-airport-transfers-where-to-stay/

Turkish Airlines Hotel Desk Istanbul - Beware Scammers!

For many years we had heard a lot about the complimentary hotel services offered by Turkish Airlines for unplanned Istanbul layovers exceeding 10 hours. Many people try to game the system in order to qualify, but the rules are quite specific. If you are not a truly genuine candidate, the Turkish

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/turkish-airlines-hotel-desk-istanbul/

Checkout Our 360 Degree Panoramic Images

Using Google Street View and some post processing software, its possible to produce some pretty nifty 360 degree panoramic images from a standard smartphone, without having to splash out on an expensive dedicated 360 degree camera. Having said that, a 360 degree camera is definitely on our

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/360-degree-panoramic-images/

Exploring Songkhla Thailand 🧜‍♀️

Songkhla is a large city located in southern Thailand, near the border with Malaysia. We were inspired to visit this province not so much to admire the architecture as to renew a 30-day Malaysian visa, which was due to expire. It also seemed to be an ideal excuse to spend a few days exploring this

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/exploring-songkhla-thailand/

Climbing Gunung Raya, Malaysia

Among the most impressive features of Pulau Langkawi in Malaysia are the mountains. The highest of these is known as Gunung Raya, which dominates the island at 881 meters above sea level. Although not for everyone, climbing Gunung Raya by foot is a challenging but massively rewarding

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/climbing-gunung-raya-langkawi-malaysia/

Visa Runner - Langkawi Malaysia to Songkhla Thailand

If you're planning an extended stay in Malaysia, then its likely that at some point you'll have to renew the limited tourist visa you are given on first arrival. This procedure is often referred to as making a ‘visa run’, and will vary according to your nationality and location in Malaysia. In our

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/visa-runner-langkawi-songkhla/

Kuala Lumpur - First Impressions

Following a short transit through a decidedly chilly Holland and Belgium (see If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium), we were ready to take a flight to warmer climes. Our KLM flight went non-stop from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, departing at 20:50 in the evening and arriving at 15:45 the following

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/kuala-lumpur-first-impressions/

If It's Tuesday 🤡 This Must Be Belgium

Funnily enough, it was a Tuesday when we arrived in Belgium. We knew this must be Belgium because of the bicycles and the scary clowns...

For those of you (especially Americans) who aren't familiar with the movie, If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium is a 1969 romantic comedy film made on lo

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/must-be-belgium/

Planning a Travel Itinerary Around Malaysia

We always wanted to visit Borneo - even more so than Malaysia. So when we found reasonably priced flights from Amsterdam, we didn't hesitate to snap them up, and started working on our Borneo and Malaysia travel plan.

At this point, I need to regress a little in order to share a really useful w

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malaysia-travel-plan/

Denpasar Souvenir Shopping 🛍

Our last port of call in Bali was Denpasar, not far from the airport. Here we had just one day and night before taking a Cathay Pacific flight back to London, via Hong Kong. Our plan for this 24 hours was to get in as much souvenir shopping as possible, since we had discovered that Denpasar is know

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/denpasar-souvenir-shopping/

Our Philippines Impressions? It's not what we expected

Our Philippines impressions were formed gradually over the 3 weeks we spent there. We arrived in the Philippines with open minds, though it's difficult to erase all the preconceptions you have about a place before you visit it.

In our case, we were anticipating white sand beaches, relaxed

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/philippines-impressions/

Airlines, Airports & Transfers

The single most expensive item of your trip to the tropics will no doubt be your air fare. Getting a great deal here could easily be worth an extra week or two in your chosen destinations. But it's not just about the cost - How about reliability and service?... and most importantly of all -

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/airlines-airports-transfers/

INDIA 🥴 I'll Never Do It Again

‘INDIA - I'll Never Do It Again...’ I first came across this expression while chatting with a fellow traveler at a beach cafe in Agonda, South Goa. She pointed out a table on the beach with this inscription carved artistically into the wood.

It sums up the conflicting emotions felt by many tra

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/ill-never-do-it-again/

Philippines Tokay Gecko - The "Little Britain" Lizard

Wherever we travelled throughout the rural areas of the Philippines, we were entertained most evenings and nights by the strange and intermittent Philippines Tokay Gecko night call.

The call was too loud to be emitted by an insect. It sounded more human - like a negative response occa

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/philippines-tokay-gecko/

Videos & Soundtracks

Videos & Soundtracks from our favourite destinations
Be sure to crank up the volume!





Looking for more Inspiration? Take a look at some other highlights for the Free Independent Traveller:








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Penang Malaysia - Welcome to China

On a first visit to Penang, you could be forgiven for thinking yourself in mainland China. As with the unbalanced demographics of Tenerife North in the Spanish Canaries, which is permanently occupied by a majority of aging Germans, Penang Malaysia seems to be home to a disproportionate percentage o

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/penang-malaysia-welcome-to-china/

Bland Filipino Food 🥢

Before we started this trip, from our research we gathered that there was no distinctive Filipino cuisine. From our actual experiences in the Philippines, this appears to be true. On the menus everywhere you find pork and chicken, most often barbecued in a sweet and sticky marinade. This bland

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/bland-filipino-food/

Easy-Access Snorkeling Locations

Tropical beaches are fine, but if you enjoy exploring the scenery below the waterline it's fun to hire a mask and fins and go checkout the marine life. The ideal way to do this is directly from the beach. Often however you'll find the best snorkeling is offshore - in which case you'll need to hire

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/easy-access-snorkeling-locations/

Istanbul Walkabout 🕌 Turkey's iconic mosques & monuments

We dedicated our first full day in in the city to visiting some of the “must see” Istanbul mosques, museums and monuments. Because there are so many of these, and with a limited amount of time, we had to be quite selective.

In part, this was made easier for us by the opening times of some of the

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/istanbul-mosques-minarets/

Maspalomas Gay Paradise 🌈 Gran Canaria

Following a 6-day break in Tenerife, we continued our Canary Islands journey by taking a ferry across to Tenerife's sister-island, Gran Canaria. The ferry dropped us off in the north of Gran Canaria, from where we took a bus down the east coast of the island to Maspalomas. What we were hoping for

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/maspalomas-gay-paradise/

Malta Saint Julians Penthouse for Sale - Seafront with Roof Garden

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Malta Saint Julians Seafront Penthouse for Sale
South-facing luxury penthouse apartment overlooking the fishing boats of Spinola Bay

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malta-saint-julians-penthouse-for-sale/

Malta Saint Julians Penthouse for Sale - Seafront with Roof Garden

Indoor Outdoor Living

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Malta Saint Julians Seafront Penthouse for Sale
South-facing luxury penthouse apartment overlooking the fishing boats of Spinola Bay

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malta-saint-julians-penthouse-for-sale/

Philippines Trikes Taxis & Other Transport Options

Before coming to the Philippines, we read a lot of articles about people being ripped off by trikes and taxi drivers. We was therefore initially wary on the occasions we decided to use Philippines trikes taxis or other transport options.

However, as with a lot of the other information we read on

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/philippines-trikes-taxis/

Best Bites & Spicy Delights

From our perspective, the local food on offer can make or break an extended travel agenda. If you have an adventurous palette, more often than not you'll discover some amazing flavours and experience a diversity of unforgettable snacks and dishes. Here is a summary of our favourite eating

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/best-bites/

Lembongan Snorkeling Tours 🥽

Snorkeling and diving are among the great attractions of a trip to Lembongan, providing an enjoyable and more active alternative to soaking up the sun on the beaches. If you're not keen on swimming out from the shore to find a snorkeling spot, another option is to take one of the full-day

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/lembongan-island-snorkeling/

Philippines Buses & Jeepneys

During our trip through the Philippines, we had the opportunity of trying out a myriad of transport options. In addition to Habal Habal motorcyle rides and Trikes and Taxis, there were a few tips we picked up using the Philippines Buses & Jeepneys.
Which Colour Bus?
Always take the yellow a

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/philippines-buses-jeepneys/

Budget Accommodation Nightmares

We're great believers in checking and double-checking the photos, descriptions and reviews of hotels and guesthouses before making a booking. What we've learned though is that you can't always rely on the integrity of your research. Reviews can be faked, photos and descriptions can be misleading

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/budget-accommodation-nightmares/

Sri Lanka Top 10 Activities

Sri Lanka has it all - beaches, mountains, wildlife, cuisine, culture and history.
Our Sri Lanka Top 10 Activities list is just the start…






 

 
No 10 - Eco Living
Try out a tree-top cabana. Everywhere you look in Polwaththa, you'll see a wealth of fascinating insects, bu

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/sri-lanka-top-10-activities/

Langkawi Accommodation Options

With just 1 week in the archipelago, we didn't have as much time as we'd have liked to experience Langkawi island life. Between hopping over from Phuket and then boating onwards to Penang, we hoped to pack as much into our schedule as possible while varying our Langkawi accommodation

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/langkawi-accommodation-options/

In the Philippines Karaoke is King 🎤

In the Philippines Karaoke is treated almost as a national sport - and taken very seriously indeed. Everywhere you go you'll hear it - morning, noon and night.

There always seems to be some tone-deaf hopeful drawling out the lyrics to "My Way" or Jennifer Rush's "I'm Your Lady".

This is no

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/philippines-karaoke/

Gran Canaria Ferry from North Tenerife

Considering the close proximity of Gran Canaria to Tenerife - if you have the time - it can be worthwhile including a visit across to see how the other half live. You can either fly over or take the ferry. In our case, we planned to take the Gran Canaria ferry from the port of Santa Cruz in North T

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/gran-canaria-ferry-from-north-tenerife/

Griller in Manila Shabu Shabu Self-Service

We tactically avoided a trip into Manila on our arrival in the Philippines, but opted to spend just a couple of days there before taking our return flight home. Although we didn't have much time to spare in the city, we managed to visit the older Intramuros area and enjoyed a novel eating

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/manila-shabu-shabu/

Get Inspired - with Free Independent Travel

Free independent travel brings many advantages over a standard packaged holiday deal: Even within a modest budget, there are no limits. Go where you want, when you want - and tailor the trip to fit your own personal aspirations. Get inspired with some of our own favourite travel

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Burj Khalifa Tallest Building in the World - Dubai Stopover

How can you visit Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and not experience the ear-popping heights of Burj Khalifa Dubai - the tallest building in the world?

We're all used to the high-rise skyscrapers of Shang Hai, Hong Kong and NYC, but the Burj Khalifa exudes a slim eloquence, modernity and

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/burj-khalifa-dubai/

The White Sands of Dumaluan Beach, Philippines

Our trip around the Philippines Central Visayas was concentrated primarily on Cebu and Bohol. Panglao island is located within the Bohol Province, and it is here where we discovered the lesser-known Dumaluan beach.

Dumaluan beach is a narrow, white sand beach stretching for around 500 meters on

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/dumaluan-beach/

Death in Lembongan

During our 10-day stay in Lembongan, we had several interesting conversations with the owner of our last guesthouse - TS Huts near Mushroom beach. On one occasion he told us there had been a recent death in Lembongan - a member of his own family - and they would be holding the funeral the

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/death-in-lembongan/

Dubai Mall - Best Retreat for the Zombie Apocalypse...

Dubai seems to be all about extremes. Not only do they have the tallest building in the world, they also boast the Dubai Mall - The largest shopping mall in the world. Here, you can find one of the largest suspended aquariums in the world, with the world's largest acrylic panel.

...oh, and just

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/dubai-mall/

Oasis Hotel Manila

Our trip back to Manila followed a 3-night stay in Panglao. For the capital city, we booked the small Oasis Hotel Manila in north-central area of the city for our 2 last nights.
Travelling from Panglao to Manila
A trike from Panglao to the airport took around 30 minutes (250 pesos).

At T

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/oasis-hotel-manila/

Langkawi Island Life 🦅 Lush, Tropical, Timeless

#Langkawi #Island Life - Lush, Tropical, Timeless (& Duty-free)

http://www.sandspice.com/langkawi-island-life/

Langkawi’s archipelago comprises 99 thickly forested tropical isles dating back half a billion years & is home to the most ancient rainforest on the planet.

#Malaysia

Dubai Desert Safari 🐪

Our short 3-day layover in Dubai included visits to the largest shopping mall in the world as well as to Burj Khalifa - the tallest building. For our final full day in the United Arab Emirates, we were off on the obligatory Dubai Desert Safari.

We were not expecting much, but it turned out to

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/dubai-desert-safari/

Panglao Island Nature Resort

The Panglao Island Nature Resort  (recently renamed as the Mithi Resort & Spa) is a classy 5-star resort located far from the hustle and bustle of the more popular destinations in Panglao, Bohol.



As a day visitor, you get access to the resort and use of their pool, beach and facilities

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/panglao-island-nature-resort/

SandSpice at the Movies 🎬

Travel is all about discovering new places, and many of the countries we have visited have been used as the setting for some iconic movies: ‘From Russia with Love’ in Turkey, ‘Prison Break’ in Panama, ‘South Pacific’ in Malaysia, ‘Game of Thrones’ in Spain. Add another dimension to your trip by che

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/free-independent-travel/sandspice-at-the-movies/

Seaside Boutique, Panglao in the Philippines

We chose the Seaside Boutique for our second stay in Panglao, and we're very happy we did (€27 per night including breakfast).

This guesthouse is located on the opposite side of the island from Alona and other popular spots. We were made very welcome into this family home, with our bedroom and p

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/seaside-boutique/

A Short Dubai Stopover

Since a lot of South-East Asian flights stop there en route, a Dubai stopover seems to be a great addition to your vacation. In fact, for many travellers this is often where the holiday begins (or ends).

For us, this came at the end of our trip to the Maldives and Sri Lanka. Our Emirates return

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/dubai-stopover/

Secluded Tropical Beaches

Secluded beaches are just one of the great rewards when visiting remote destinations in less-accessible areas of the tropics. Here are some of our favourites. All you need to take along is a towel, a picnic and a long cool drink.  :-)

 


Secluded Tropical Beaches
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2013 Loboc Earthquake Damage, Philippines

Before leaving Loboc, we stopped to take a closer look at the damage caused by the 2013 Loboc earthquake.
The 2013 Loboc Earthquake
The magnitude of the earthquake was recorded at 7.2, with an energy equivalent to 32 Hiroshima bombs. This was the deadliest earthquake in the Philippines in 23 yea

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/2013-loboc-earthquake/

Malta Saint Julians Penthouse for Sale - Seafront with Roof Garden

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Malta Saint Julians Seafront Penthouse for Sale
South-facing luxury penthouse apartment overlooking the fishing boats of Spinola Bay - on sale for the first time.
Price on Request

Contact

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/malta-saint-julians-penthouse-for-sale/

Loro Parque Tenerife 🦜

The town and waterfront areas in Puerto de la Cruz in the Canary Islands are pleasant enough to walk around, but if you're looking for a really special activity that will appeal to all the family, then you need to head out west a little. This is because Loro Parque Tenerife, together with its

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/loro-parque-tenerife/

Fox & Firefly Cottages Loboc

Our 3-week trip through the Philippines included a short break at a small guesthouse resort in Loboc in the province of Bohol. However, don't expect anything fancy at the Fox & Firefly Cottages Loboc.

This is a pure backpackers place, with the smallest dormitory I have ever seen (about 16

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/fox-firefly-cottages-loboc/

Our Karimunjawa Travel Budget & Impressions

Our 19-day journey through Indonesia started and ended in Jakarta. From there we took our return Qatar Airways flight back to Rome. But did our Karimunjawa travel budget cover our costs? and was it all that we were expecting?
Our Karimunjawa Travel Budget
Before leaving, we had worked out a

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/karimunjawa-travel-budget/

What to See and Do in Loboc Bohol

Famous for its lunch cruises along the scenic and winding river, Loboc Bohol is also one of the few locations where you can observe the Tarsier monkey. This is a small nocturnal animal with large red eyes - and one of the world's smallest primates. We planned to spend 3 nights there, as a break f

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/loboc-bohol/

East Malaysia & Borneo

Want to get off the beaten track to find some secluded out-of-the-way places? Our East Malaysia & Borneo travel plan allowed us to enjoy both sea and jungle, with various modes of transport to keep it all interesting. Be sure to first check out our Plan, Maps and Budget for this 21-day tr

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/plan-your-travel/east-malaysia-borneo/

Tenerife & Gran Canaria with Stopovers in Spain

We put together a 2-week multi-destination itinerary which includes Tenerife & Gran Canaria with stopovers in Spain - the medieval city of Girona and the capital Madrid.  It’s quite a lot of travelling for a 14-day trip, but well enriched with a wide variety of locations and potential act

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/plan-your-travel/tenerife-gran-canaria/

India West Kerala to Goa

This India West Kerala to Goa itinerary spans 31 days, primarily in India, but including 3 short city stays in Rome, Istanbul and Edinburgh. Not bad for just €457 per ticket… and flying with one of the top airlines in the world. Be sure to first check out our Plan, Maps and Budget for this 4½-week

Read more... http://www.sandspice.com/plan-your-travel/india-west-kerala-to-goa/