I've combined the travel day to Gatwick and our day trip to Jersey together, otherwise it would've seemed like it was taking forever to get to Florida!



Wednesday 3rd August

Journey to Gatwick

Had a restless night due to the excitement of the day ahead! I’m not a brilliant sleeper at the best of times but with a Florida holiday approaching I knew I’d be lucky to get any sleep. Scott had decided at the last minute to have the morning off, it made sense and it meant that we could sort out the last bit of packing together.

I checked in online, everything was fine, I’d been able to get us all seated together with no issue. I showered got ready then popped out to the petrol station to fill the car up. When I’d returned home, I Was pleased to see that everyone else was up and were happily eating their breakfast too. Didn’t take long for the kids to change, think somebody was eager to get ready, I wonder why. Bless em though, we still had stuff to sort out so couldn’t leave straight away much to the kids disappointment. Still they were soon cheered up once I suggested putting Youtube on - they soon settled down to watch yet more Florida vlogs until we were ready.

Got on with the last bits of packing, it’s amazing how long it took though. I’m not the best of packers but I needed to have a bit of order what with staying in 2 different hotels before we left the country. Any way it was eventually sorted, we had some lunch, good old Spaghetti Bolognese, before we said goodbye to our home for nearly 4 weeks. The kids, well mainly Hayden, helped Scott load the car up with the cases and the bags. Thankfully everything went in easily. We’d just got the 4 cases/bags, I’d packed a case inside another ready for all the goodies we were going to bring home with us.

I know this might sound a bit sad but wouldn’t leave until after the bin men had been. We have a refuse collection once a fortnight, on a Wednesday, so we had 2 weeks of rubbish in our bin. If it wasn’t emptied today it would be left in there another 4 weeks, so 6 weeks in total! I dread to think what it would’ve smelt like. So we just waited for them to arrive, which is around lunch time. I know I could’ve asked a neighbour to bring our bin in but never mind it didn’t delay our departure in any way.

Finally ready early afternoon, we set off on our journey down to Gatwick after checking and double checking doors, windows and finally turning the water off!



Got to the end of the road and realised that I’d forgotten Poppy’s cream for her Eczema! Quick u turn and we were back home. Of course once I’d retrieved the cream from the kitchen cupboard I then had to check the doors again lol. Anyway we set off again all in great spirits. Our tunes for the journey were all sorted with the various Disney cd’s that we’ve collected over the years - there's nothing better than a good old Disney singalong


The drive down was fairly uneventful which we were very grateful for. We stopped off just the once for a toilet break and to fill up with a few drinks. Asked if anyone wanted some food but nobody wanted anything. We didn’t hang around long at the service station and after our coffee’s we were soon back on the M1.


We encountered a little bit of traffic on the M25 but really nothing too bad. Before we knew it we were within miles of the airport, I phoned ABC parking who gave us instructions on where to meet them. I’m sure it was the same location as the last time we visited. They were waiting for us, which was brilliant. It was very windy there like we were in some kind of wind tunnel. We sorted the paperwork out, had to be careful that it didn’t blow away, then took our hand luggage out of the car and that was it really. The driver explained what we needed to do tomorrow and wished us a pleasant trip. 4 hours from setting off from Sheffield we’d arrived at our first airport.

We’d been dropped off at the North Terminal whereas our hotel was at the South. Thought it would be easier for our return journey dropping off and picking up from here as the Meet and Greet would only come to the one location. This meant, which much delight from the children, that we’d be catching the shuttle between the terminals.
As we walked into the North terminal Scott noticed the check in desks for BA, made a mental note of the location so at least we had a vague idea of where to be in the morning.


We did get a little bit lost within the South terminal as we tried to locate the Hilton hotel. Jamie saw the sign for the hotel, after then it was an easy walk on. First impression of the Hilton was good, Scott checked in whilst we had a look round.

We’d booked a family room with breakfast. Easily found our room and we were so happy with it, plenty big enough for us all. Couldn’t believe that we’d be getting this room for free!


We noticed that there were just the 3 beds and wondered where the third single bed was but a quick call all down to reception soon sorted that problem out. A fold up bed was promptly brought to the room.


Took literally just minutes to do the little bit of unpacking that we had. It was just the one change of clothes for us all. The weather was forecast to be dry for Jersey, which was brilliant.

It was coming up to teatime now, the previous day we’d nipped into Sainsbury’s to get some food for our little indoor picnic in our room. I’d seen this a few times on people’s trip reports and thought what a lovely idea. Whilst ours might not have been the most picture perfect picnic it was all good and tasty and got a thumbs up from the kids. I’d forgotten some chocolate muffins and realised that they’d be left in the kitchen cupboard, oh well there’s always something that you forget!


Did our second lot of online check in for the day, this time for the return flight from Jersey. Again no issues at all. Decided to have a little walk round, headed over to M&S for a few supplies, Scott picked up a couple of cans of beer and I got a couple of those little glasses of wine. The weather was still lovely, if not a little breezy, the kids wanted to watch the airplanes for a while so we found a quiet spot and watch the airplanes coming in. Over the wall there was a car hire place so we could also see all the cars coming back and going through the carwash. It’s amazing how it’s just the little things that keep the kids happy.


Once the kids had had enough we went back to our room. I had a drink of wine whilst we were watching a bit of TV. I also checked the weather again for Jersey just to see if it had changed from the previous time I’d checked! It was still showing a dry clear day, just so long as it wasn’t foggy I was happy, I knew I would feel so much more settled in myself once we were on the island.



Showered and changed, ready for bed. We didn’t need too much of a late night as we had an early start in the morning. Lights out around 9.30 and so thankful for a stress free start to our holiday.

Continued below

Thursday 4th August

Day Trip to Jersey


I’d set the alarm early but we didn’t need it. Had a really restless night, could hear the neighbours banging around from around 3.30! I know people have early flights but there’s no need to make so much noise. They were so noisy in the corridor, could hear him having a very loud conversation with his mum. Anyway Scott and I decided to get up at 5 o’clock, kids were still asleep, left it that way until it was nearing the time of the alarm clock going off. They easily woke up, Jamie said he’d heard the noisy neighbours too. We were soon making our way down to the breakfast room, which opened at 5.30am. Arrived just after 6, there were a few people in there but not many. We were seated in a lovely table near to the buffet and soon tucking into a lovely English breakfast.


At this point I was still trying to eat quite healthy, I’d managed to lose a few pounds by following Slimming World so thought I’d carry it on, mind you it only lasted for about 4 more days lol.


There was so much choice. Really impressed with the varied selections, even had some black pudding which Scott said was delicious! The waiter kept topping up our drinks so all in all an excellent breakfast and a fab start to our day. Picked up our bags from the room before catching the shuttle back across to the North Terminal.


We arrived there in no time. Remarkably Scott had remembered the location of the BA check in from the afternoon before, so we were soon at the BA desks where they printed off our boarding cards. It was really quiet there but as we turned back from the desk we saw that a big queue had formed.

Went straight over to security, again really quiet, where we were directed through the family security area. All went through ok but Poppy had to go into the full body scanner, they were really nice and chatted with her all the time whilst I was stood at the side watching. Had a very quick look in the shop but we didn’t buy anything. Got some drinks and magazines from WHSmith, it was then that we noticed the time, 7.45, our flight was at 8.20. The time had flown by! Quickly walked to our gate and was shown onto a bus, shortly after the doors were closed and we drove over to our awaiting BA plane.



There was no messing around, found our seats, sat down then within a few minutes we were ready to leave. I sat with Hayden and Jamie who were happily plane spotting, which turned out to be mainly EasyJet planes, whilst we made our way across to the runway. Scott sat with Poppy, the seat stayed empty next to her. All settled in and ready for our short flight.


Much to my surprise, not quite sure why it was, we were served with a breakfast and a hot drink. Think I just had it in my head that we wouldn’t for some reason. Any way it was a pleasant surprise even though we were still pretty full from our Hilton breakfast, we did manage to eat the yogurt. I saved some of the croissants for later – the extra drinks were handy to have too.


The attendants soon came round collecting the rubbish and before we knew it we were landing. Flight time was just over ½ hour.


It was such a relief to be here, I’d not tried to worry too much, but I knew that what ever happened now it was up to British Airways to get us to our final destination, Miami. I was also grateful that the weather was as forecast, dry sunny and little hazy.

Of course we had no luggage to wait for, after we’d all had a toilet break we left the small, but lovely airport.


Moments outside was the bus-stop and as luck would have it, there was a bus there waiting. Cost £2 for an adult and £1 for children. We hopped onboard for the journey into the capital, St Helier.


Having no plan whatsoever was great, the bus journey felt like a little tour of the island in itself. It was strange seeing all the French road signs as we knew we were still in Britain. We soon saw the bay which looked particularly pretty. Our final stop was at the main bus station, we asked the driver where we’d catch the bus for the return journey and he explained it was the same spot. It must go round it a loop. Can’t remember correctly but I think they ran every 15 minutes.

There were a few shops nearby, Scott took the Poppy and Hayden with him to pick up some more drinks whilst I had a look in the little square. It seemed this was the place where the little train, which ran along the sea front, departed from, along with some other tours. One particular tour caught my eye as it was only a couple of hours long and would be leaving quite soon. I enquired and the lady said that she’d got enough space for us all, the family ticket cost £32 which I thought was good value. It was on an old vintage bus, really cute and we’d be touring the West of the island. I so totally forgot to get a photo of the bus so I’ve acquired this one from Google.


Only spaces left on the bus was at the back - why do you feel like naughty school children when sitting at the back of a bus. We did have to wait a little while for a couple of passengers but once they arrived we drove off on our little tour. There were headphones which you wore, detailing various facts and history about Jersey. I realised the square which we’d just been stood in was actually Liberation Square. It was all very informative without being at all boring. Our driver was really nice too which made for a very pleasant drive around the West of the island.


We stopped a couple of times, the first being Noirmount Point with stunning coastal views. It was quite breezy up there and I kept telling the kids not to walk to near to the edge of the paths. I just had visions of a big gust of wind blowing them over the edge. A bit extreme I know. Scott was carrying the bag which contained our passports and money, so all our important and valuable items. I too feared that this would somehow end up at the bottom of the cliffs! I have a very vivid imagination at times There was a couple of old German fortifications which they wanted to walk on too! Kids don’t seem to have any kind of fear do they. I was happy when our driver called us to get back on the bus lol.


Our next stop was at the lighthouse, the highlight being a Jersey Ice cream which the kids declared was the best ice cream ever! I didn’t have one but managed to sample Jamie’s which was toffee crunch flavoured. Oh my word it was so delicious and creamy.


Another thing that I just didn’t realise about Jersey was that they had their own currency. I just presumed it would be the pound. I got quite a few of the pound notes in our change, luckily I was able to spend the majority of them before we left the island. Just had a couple left which Hayden wanted to keep as a souvenir.


We continued with our tour listening to different stories about the island. One that caught my attention was about a local delicacy called black butter, a conserve made from apples, cider and liquorice. Sounded like heaven!

We ended our journey 2 hours later back near the bus station. All of agreed it had been a lovely tour and gave us a little insight into this pretty island.

It was 12.30 now and the kids were starting to get a little peckish. We walked through the little shopping centre near the square but couldn’t find a eatery that we liked. The kids had noticed a KFC though further along across the main road, so after a little discussion we headed on over there.


There was just the usual in the KFC, I did opt for a salad which was really quite bland and boring. Kids had some kind of chicken burger, I can’t quite remember, I’d not been quick enough with taking the photo’s, but then a KFC is a KFC, they all look the same don’t they?


Time was around 1.30, we said that we’d catch the bus back early so to be at the airport in good time. This didn’t leave us with lots of time to spare but enough for us to have a wander along the sea front and down to the marina. We had a look at the really expensive boats and yachts, the water was really clear too as we easily spotted lots of fish in the marina too. The tide was out now so it was possible to walk to the castle, but Scott said it wouldn’t really be a good idea, we didn’t really have the time. We would’ve have been pushing it a bit. Still it was nice to see it from a distance.


Had a slow walk back the bus station, boys spotted quite a few luxury cars along the way, Maserati's (never heard of em) and Ferrari's (I knew what they were). Again we were lucky that a bus arrived really quickly, the number 15, which took us back to the airport. Must say we really enjoyed our bus journey’s round the island.

Couldn’t believe how quiet it was inside, there were literally just us and about 5 other people. No wait at the desk, we picked up our boarding cards then went straight over to security. The kids and I went through ok, but Scott was swabbed, I think for explosives? Not had this done before but everything was clear.


There was a few shops in which we had a little mooch around, and much to my delight one of the shops sold the black butter. They even had a sample which we all tried, and as I thought, it was delicious. I bought a jar to take home.


Needed some more money, noticed a cash machine but wasn’t sure whether we’d receive Jersey bank notes or not? Ended up drawing £10 out first, saw that it was normal money then went on to withdraw more! There wasn’t much else for us to do, we had a wander about and Hayden noticed some stairs. Turned out they led up to some kind of observation area. We sat there and watched our plane land.



Wasn’t long before our gate was opened, think they let the families on first as we were one of the first to board the plane.


We were soon saying goodbye to Jersey, what a lovely day we’d had there.


The drinks service soon came round, no food this time but a choice of snacks instead. Again the flight as very quick, took slightly longer as we had to ‘hold’ for 10 minutes or so due to traffic at Gatwick.


Phoned ABC Meet and Greet who told us where we needed to go to pick up our car. As we walked over we could see the driver was already there waiting for us, what excellent service. The driver asked how our day had been, well more precisely what had the weather been like. Explained that it had been a little breezy but we’d had plenty of lovely sunshine through the day, driver said it had rained for most of the day there, lucky us.

Had no issue’s driving over to Heathrow, it was around 7pm and the roads were clear. We soon arrived at the Novotel, amazingly we didn’t get lost! First impressions again were really good. Scott checked us in and paid for our overnight parking as well, can’t remember how much but think it was around £15. We had the 2 rooms, both of which were the same. They weren’t anything special but they served the purpose intended for. Again they weren’t going to cost us anything so we could hardly complain.


Dropped our bags off then went back downstairs for something to eat, it was getting late, now 8pm but we needed something to eat. Jamie and Poppy wanted the buffet whilst Hayden Scott and I chose something form the menu. I can’t remember exactly what it was, nothing overly exciting as I would’ve remembered what it was, but it filled a hole.


Afterwards we returned back to our rooms for our showers. I then got out our clothes ready for the morning, it was then that I realised I’d forgotten my travel outfit, some comfy leggings and a tunic top! Typical! I couldn’t be bothered rummaging through the cases to try to find an alternative so had to wear my dress from Wednesday, thankfully it was still clean! Said goodnight to the boys has they were sharing a room with their Dad. Quick check of my emails and was pleased to see that Holiday Extra's had returned our money for both the Hilton and the overnight parking, fantastic service. Lights out for Poppy and me around 9.30 again, I wanted Poppy to have a really good night’s sleep as we had a long travel day to Miami the next morning.

What a lovely pre travel day - my parents love jersey and I see why it looks so quaint! Was that the 'find it cheaper' deal to get it free? What a bargain.

Can't wait for the next day. Home poorly very patiently waiting for it X

In your pre-trippy it sounded incredibly complicated but you made that into a lovely day out.

🤗 Hi Julia!
I can't tell you how pleased I was to see your trippie has started!
Sooo looking forward to it!
Great pre/travel day! What an adventure 👍
Becky xx

Yeah you've started! Your boys have grown loads, I'd forgotten you were going to Jersey, I've been reading thinking why are they having a day out looking forward to reading more

Reading along 😀

Great you've started. Loved your last report can't wait for this one

Great start Julia, really looking forward to reading more.
My mum and her partner love jersey , your photos name it look lovely.
Can't wait for next update

What a great start seeing somewhere like Jersey. Though when I started reading I thought you meant you were flying to New Jersey 😂
Look forward to your reports.