TRAVEL - Leo Leo Hostel, Best place to stay in Hoi An!

Hey Everyone!

[Image from Leo Leo Hostel  Facebook page]

We're half way through our Vietnam trip and currently staying in a wonderful little city called Hoi An. Hoi An is a must see destination for backpackers travelling the country. Hoi An holds a stunning historical old town center with canals offering boat rides, traditional Chinese style shops and some of the best beaches I have even stepped foot on.



We're staying in Hoi An for three nights, and are fortunate enough to be staying at the Leo Leo Hostel. I wanted to write this post to tell you about our favorite place so far on our trip! Leo Leo Hostel is in the perfect location for those who want to do everything. It's a 5 minute walk away from the old town, where you can find tailors, food, clubs, colorful decorations and so much more. We've so far walked down every night and found something new.

When we arrived at Leo Leo, we were greeted with the biggest smiles and friendliest hellos! Given free Vietnamese tea on arrival and given a map full of tips of the top places to go and see. The staff at Leo Leo are happy to help with any questions and can recommend the best places to try new food, see some history or pick up the best custom made garments in town.

Check in was an easy procedure, gave our names, gave our passport information and were taken to our room. Our room was great! We shared a dorm room with another three friendly backpackers. It consisted of five single beds (not a bunk bed in site!) The beds were super comfortable and included large locker drawers under the bed for luggage. Each room has AC and a fan, and our room also had a small balcony that looked over the street out front.

I love that the rooms don't have bunk beds, it made the stay a lot more homely - Leo Leo definitely thought about quality over quantity. The room was the cleanest room we have ever stayed it, and was cleaned every day by the staff which made us feel so comfortable. Our room had a bathroom included which felt a lot more homely than having to walk across a hallway. The bathroom included. BY FAR the best shower we've discovered so far! It has a waterfall shower head with just the right amount of pressure, a standard shower head you can take off the wall to use as you please and also a running tap. Everything you need to clean yourself after coming home from the beach.

That's the next good thing about Leo Leo Hostel Hoi An, The location. It's located on a lovely street near the old town. There are clothing shops, mini marts, spas and plenty of food stops within two minute walking distance from the hostel. We walked the a maximum of five minutes every night to reach Hoi An's old town - I'll create another post about everything you can see and do in Hoi An as a follow up, but old town is on the top of the list!

Hoi An also offers some fantastic beaches near to the hostel. We headed to a different beach each day using the bicycles we rented from Leo Leo. You can also rent scooters or private taxi straight from the front desk too! Everything was arranged for us whenever we wanted it, and the process was so quick and easy.

Your stay at Leo Leo also includes free breakfast! I can highly recommend their banana pancakes with chocolate syrup, I had it every morning.... but they have plenty to choose from. In addition to breakfast, it includes free water and tea, free pool table and please take advantage of the roof top social area. Every night we would socialize upstairs on the rooftop until the early hours (But also became quieter when others went to bed... best of both worlds!) They ran events, like family dinner when the hostel is busy enough, dress up nights and drinking games.
Highlight of my trip was Sh*t shirt night and Fear Pong (If you haven't heard of it, Google it)



I didn't see the staff as staff, they became friends straight away. We played card games together, talked about our travels, had a few drinks. We never had an issue with communicating, all the staff have advanced English and were happy to teach us some Vietnamese to.

Last, but not least - They also have two adorable Corgi pups called April and May who will join you on the roof for the evening. They are the sweetest dogs in the world who just love having everybody's attention.

The whole experience is some homely, I didn't feel like I was in a hostel at all. Facilities were great, staff were the best you will find in all of Vietnam, location was perfect and I can guarantee you would love every aspect of this sweet hostel.

You can book Leo Leo Hostel on a number of different websites, Here is the link for Booking.com
At £14 for three nights including breakfast, you won't be able to find anywhere better!

If you've found the page, I hope you found this review useful and I really really hope you book into Leo Leo Hostel!

Stephanie xoxo

T R A V E L - Hanoi Airport VATC Sleep Pod!

Hey everyone!

We've just finished our 13 day trip around Japan, and we've recently landed in Hanoi! We'll be travelling from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh over the next 30 days and of course, I will keep you up to date with what to do and what to see in this beautiful country.

We've landed shortly after midnight from our flight out of Osaka, bad news is there are no buses running to our Air Bnb for a few hours... Good news is there are places to rest our head in Hanoi airport itself and I've been lucky enough to collaborate with VATC Sleep Pods for this post!

We've just spent the night in the Sleep Pods located at Terminal 2, and I want to tell you all about it!

To start with, it's really easy to find which is great when you're super tired after a long day. Walk out of luggage collection towards the main exit, go up the escalators on the right hand side for one floor and then walk straight down. It's so convenient!

Once we arrived we met the welcoming members of staff at the reception desk, had to fill out a quick form to confirm our booking and then were shown to our room. The rooms are pretty small, but more than space for what you need them for (to sleep of course)

The rooms have bunk beds, one for me, one for Michael. There's a desk next to the bottom bunk which is big enough to squeeze one bag in. We had to leave Michael's bag next to it on the floor as it wouldn't fit.

The room includes a wifi, a flat screen television, free water and chocolate cakes, mugs, flip flops, tooth brush/paste and a hair comb for your use. In addition the room had a fan with three different speed settings installed in the wall. The beds were comfortable, I slept like a baby after my long day of travelling without any distractions!

I loved how easy it all went, I didn't have to wait around for anything and could just rest before heading to my next place to stay. Being able to wake up feeling refreshed and ready for another busy day made a big difference to my mood!
I can't believe how convenient it was and I would happily stay again if I had a early/late flight in Hanoi.

If you're heading to Hanoi soon and need a place to stay I can 100% recommend it. You can use hotel booking websites such as Trip Advisor, and Bookings.com to look at other reviews and book a nights sleep, but the best price guarenteed comes from the Hanoi Airport Hotel offical website!

https://hanoiairporthotels.vn/ << Use this website for the best price!

Thanks so much for accommodating for us!

** Disclaimer - This post was written in return for a complimentary stay, but all opinions are my own.

What do you think of VATV Sleep Pods? Would you stay in one to?

Stephanie xoxo

T R A V E L - 48 Hours in Kyoto!

Hello again!

As previously stated, I'm currently making my ways through Japan and loving every second of it! I'm just getting to my last few hours in Kyoto and thought I would share just some of the highlights of our last 48 hours in this truly magical city! With Kyoto being the ancient capitol of Japan it's no surprise just how much tradition and cultural attractions are on offer.

Here are just a small number of things to see and do in Kyoto that won't break the bank! Happy planning!

1  | Fushimi - Inari Shrine

The shrine has over a thousand orange tori gates snaking around the Inari Mountain. Each tori gate has a different donator's name engraved into it's wood.  It's honestly a must see attraction. If you don't visit the Fushimi Inari Shrine have you even been to Kyoto?
If you would like to just visit the screen and see the tori path way it's a simple walk and easy to reach by bus or train. If you're feeling ambitious and you'd like to follow the path up the Inari mountain feel free too! It'll take around 2-3 hours for the round trip so make sure you'be packed your walking shoes.

2 | Golden Pavillion, Kinkaku-Ji Temple

This is the place you see in all the travel guides and posters for Kyoto, and we can see why. This stunning temple really is as good in real life as it looks in the photographs. It's perfectly clean and really stands out. I felt like I was watching a movie when I arrived at Kinkaku-ji Temple. The top two floors of the Zen Temple are covered in gold leaf that make the temple a must see in Kyoto. Set within the Mirror Pond and a lushes green garden it's heaven! #homegoals

3 | Kiyomizu - Dera Temple

The Kiyomizu-Dera Temple is an immense Buddist temple in kyoto. The Temple is location on a small hill with a huge terrace with offers a breathtaking view. If you walk on further through the temple you will reach the view point. Which gives an incredible view of much of Kyoto. 

4 | Ryozen Kannon 

The Ryozen Kannon is a war memorial for those who died in the Pacific War in Eastern Kyoto. Not just to the Japanese but all the unknown soliders who lost their lives during this horrible time. The Kannon statue is 80 ft high! (hard to miss) and is made of steel and concrete. The site has a number of small shrines, you can go into Kannon from the back and you might even see a monkey or two hanging around.

5 | Gion neighborhood

Head down to the Gion neighbourhood for your chance to see one of the fifty remaining geisha's in the town. Located betweek Yasaka Shrine and the Kamo River, the geisha district is filled with shops, resturants and Ochaya (tea houses) 

Now it is amazing to see Geisha's, but they are super busy! If you are able to see one be happy and take it in. Please don't stop them and ask for pictures, they're on their way to work.

If you have some money to spend, head to Geisha Corner where you can watch a tradition show :) 

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Are you heading to Japan soon? Have you recently come back? 

What's your favourite thing about Japan?

Lots of love,
Stephanie xo

T R A V E L - Nagoya Traveller's Hostel! - Review

Hey Guys!

Today we left our temple stay at the Eisho-Ji Temple, Nakatsugawa and headed to the next destination on our route through Japan.

Nagoya!

Nagoya is a colourful city situated around 150KM away from Kyoto, it's easy to reach by public transport, you can get a highway bus direct from Tokyo to Nagoya. The bus takes around 5 hours altogether but you can split it up by staying Magome to break the trip up. Nagoya is an up and coming city for travelers due to it's cultural background and vivid nightlife, but as it's less well known not many hostels are available for the increasing market.

I'm staying in Nagoya for 3 days, and plan on cramming as much into the stay as possible. I am staying in a twin room at the Nagoya Traveller's Hostel! The Nagoya Traveller's Hostel is every budget travelers best friend! With room options starting from 2500 JPY per person there's something for everyone.

Now, the hostel is best known for being the best known hostel in Nagoya for couples and solo travelers  - but don't let that put you off booking in groups too! There are mixed and female only dorms priced at 2500 JPY, Single rooms for 3600 JPY as well as double rooms and twin rooms for 2600 JPY per person. Additionally, if you're travelling in a large group and want to guarantee you're all in the same place, you can book a shared room for between 3- 8 people for just 2500 JPY per person. Told you there was something for everyone! If you're a bargain budget traveler like me too, you'd be happy to know that if you Tweet on Twitter or Share on Facebook about the hostel, they'll give you an extra 5% off your booking on arrival.

PS; It even includes free breakfast in all the packages, so don't forget to wake up early in the morning!

There are plenty of things to do and see in Nagoya. As the hostel is located pretty central, with Sakae station within a 10 minute walking distance from Nagoya Traveller's Hostel it's easy to visit attractions in no time.  Look out for a post including my favourite things to do and see in Nagoya coming soon!

On the other hand, if you'd prefer to stay within the hostel that is not a problem, it has plenty to offer too. The staff are very warm and welcoming, be sure to ask them any questions you may have about the areas as they're the experts! All the members of staff we have met are very good at speaking English so a language barrier hasn't been an issue yet which is reassuring as nervous travelers!

The hostel includes a communal lounge and kitchen area where it's guests tend to relax and make new friends! When we arrived today two ladies we're making traditional Malaysian food for other guests to try. It includes a micro save, plenty of table space and also plugs for when you need to do some work/charge your phone. The wifi is good on all floors of the hostel, not as fast on the top floor but still very usable. If the lounge area isn't enough, that's fine - you can head to the roof for some fresh air too. they have a roof terrace that is great in the sunshine!

Other useful aspects of the hostel include the a laundry room, bike rentals and organised events regularly! (This weeks event is Sushi making.. YUM!) Each floor also includes toilets and hair driers so you don't need to worry about packing your own for your trip. Showers are located on floors 1 and 3, they all come with shampoo and body wash ready for you too!


I would highly recommend the Nagoya Traveller's Hostel to all!
It's cheap, clean, can be loud in the day but guests tend to be respectful at night - there are signs advising visitors to be quiet in the later hours. Staff are friendly, rooms are nice and has everything you'd want from your hostel!

With a 4.4/5 rating on Trip Advisor, you can see others agree with me too!


Are you heading to Japan soon? Anything in particular you are looking on information about?
Just ask in the comments below :)

Stephanie xo

**Although my stay at Nagoya's Traveller's Hostel was complementary, all opinions are my own.

T R A V E L - 72 HOURS IN COLOGNE, GERMANY

Hey guys!

I thought I'd share what I got up to during my 72 hour stay in Cologne, Germany. Once again, the other half won at Christmas with my 3 day break to Cologne, Germany. Including flights and a nice Air Bnb apartment for the weekend with I'll also share below.

Cologne (or Köln in German) is a very bustling city, it's the 4th biggest in Germany and you really need to add it to your 'to do' list of citys in visit in Europe.

We landed our Easyjet flight straight into the Cologne Bon airport - the tiny airport was a bit of a nightmare to get through security due to the small venue and a lot of planes landing, but it's worth the queue I promise. We were able to get the train straight from the airport, through central Cologne to Ehrenfeld - which was within a 15 minute walking distance from our Air BnB.

Where we stayed

Air BnB is a great alternative to hotels, We first used Air BnB on our trip to Portugal and we've never looked back. Michael picked an Entire Flat in Ehrenfeld. Named the coolest quarter in Cologne. It's a bright and vibrant area that is well worth discovering. Full of interesting boutiques, mouth watering restaurants and an easily accessible tram service that can take you anywhere around the city.

I loved having the comforts of home but in another city. Simple to follow instructions of how to get to the property and where we would find our keys. The apartment is located on a beautiful little side street with a little bar, launderettes and plenty of cafe's just around the corner.

The flat was based in a small apartment block on the ground floor, which over looked a beautiful backgarden (which we couldn't quite figure out how to get out to)  The room was small but it had everything we needed, and more! Even the bed was mechanically adjustable!

(Photos are from the Air BnB page)

Check out the listing here - Oasis of peace in the middle of life.

USE MY CODE TO GET £25 OFF YOUR FIRST SAY WITH AIR BNB!

www.airbnb.co.uk/c/stephaniet11149

What to do

You can pick up plenty of To-Do guides for Cologne all over the city and find the standard tourist things to do around the city. These include the Cologne Cathedral - Which is amazing and you should definitely go visit!
But when you get deep into the city and explore you'll find a number of things that you won't find in tourist guides.

Here's a list of everything we managed to squeeze into a few days in this wonderful city!

The Dom Cathedral

I thought I'd start with the main attraction. The Dom Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral.  Building started in 1248-1473, it was then complete destroyed during World War II, rebuilt in the 1950s up until present day. They were still doing renovation work to the spires while we visited. It's also currently the tallest twin-spired Church coming in at 157m (515ft) tall.

The stunning architecture taking influence from the German Catholicism and Gothic tradition. The view inside includes beautiful mosaic flooring which pictures the history of archdiocese showing the different names and coasts of arms of a number of Cologne's bishops and archbishops, The Christian world order and humankind, as well as the cosmos.
Along with stain glass windows that bounce their stunning colours across the cathedral walls, it's a must see.

In addition to this, the Cathedral also offers a unique panoramic for those brave (and fit) enough to walk the 533 steep stone steps of the spiral staircase to reach the viewing platform around 100m above the ground.  If you're not the fittest, don't worry; There are plenty of places you can stop, There's a floor half way up that houses eleven bells,  with Fat Peter (the worlds biggest bell!) in the middle. Pretty cool to see but also an excuse for a rest.
The stair case is also very narrow so you'll have plenty of resting time while waiting for those coming down too.

Visiting the inside of the cathedral is completely free, to climb the steps is 4 euro, half price if you have a student card though.

Papa Joe's Jazzlokal

By far our favorite place during the trip. Located in the town center, from the moment we walked through the door we were hocked! Papa Joe's has live jazz every night of the week from the traditional to the slightly more modern jazz there is something for everyone. It's packed regulary with a mix of ages. Beers are quite expensive and still in the tiny glasses we see around Cologne but still good fun. It's free to get in and also free peanuts all around the joint. There's nothing quite like it! 5/5 from me.

Click here for the Papa Joe's Website.

Schokoladen Museum Koln

Are you a chocolate lover? (silly question) Then you're in luck! Cologne is home to the Lindt Chocolate museum, it's like something out of willy wonder. The modern architecture is built to resemble a ship. You can't miss it, just follow the River Rhine on the right hand side. An adult ticker is 9 euros.  It even comes equipped with a working 3 meter tall chocolate fountain and plenty of free samples while you discover the story behind how chocolate has been created since the very beginnings and also how it's made today in the Lindt factories. You can even pay to have a bespoke chocolate made for yourself on the top level with all the things that you like.

Love Lock Bridge

Also know as the Hohenzollern bridge that goes over the Rhine river,  you'll find a 400 meters long wall of locks filled with names and pictures of couples who have declared their love in the city. There's no a centimeter free on the cathedral side of the bridge, some smaller gaps as you approach the end of the bridge. If there isn't any space - don't worry, the govenerment take the locks down every once in a while because it becomes too heavy and dangerous. Which means we can all start again!

Koln Triangle

For those of you that still want to see Cologne from above, but don't fancy the 533 step work out. You'd want to go to the Koln Triangle. Just walk over the Love Lock Bridge and it's to the right, you can't really miss it. It's 3 Euros per person. Not a single step in sight just take the elevator and you're done. Another stunning panoramic perspective of this beautiful city!

Cycle around the city

If you're looking for an inexpensive way to get around the city (Not that the tram line isn't cheap or effective) there are plenty of places to go and rent a bike for the day. We travelling to the main attractions via bike as Cologne has great cycle routes throughout the city. The day the River Rhine flooded we were able to cycle through the over flow along the path without a care in the world. Plenty of places to safely secure the bike while we had a drink or two and I promise you will love it!

Are you going to add Cologne to your list of places to see in Europe?