Placing incense sticks by the graves of the 47 Ronin Sengaku-ji is a lesser‑known temple in Tokyo  that often gets overlooked by first‑time visitors, who tend to focus on the more central and popular temples like Sensō‑ji , Meiji Jingū  or Zojo‑ji . In fact, we only ended up visiting because it was an easy walk from the Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo Hotel where we were staying, and on our first full day in Tokyo we wanted to stay fairly close to our base. What we expected to be

Discover the charm of Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo with our in-depth review. Experience first-class service and serene Japanese gardens at Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo.

7 January 2026 Fun at the ASB Classic in Auckland Today was the final day of our trip , and we had to be at the airport around 6pm for our flight home to Canada. Rather than spend the day exploring Auckland, we decided to do something something a little different, and bought tickets to the ASB Classic Auckland tennis tournament. As many of you know, me and Susie play tennis, are huge tennis fans , and Jess used to play a lot, so it seemed like the perfect way to end our trip

Have you seen those beautiful calligraphy stamps on Instagram and wondered where people get them? Or maybe you’ve heard about goshuin  but aren’t quite sure what makes them so special, or even whether tourists can collect them. We’d heard of them too, but it wasn’t until the Japan leg of our 100‑day family sabbatical that we truly understood how meaningful (and fun!) they can be. What started as a small curiosity quickly became one of the girls’ favourite traditions as we c

6 January 2026 Steps: 9,004 Today we headed back to Auckland, but not until 6 pm, so we had a relaxed morning exploring Oneroa, the largest town on the island, before heading to Mudbrick vineyard, for some wine tasting. There are some really lovely shops in Oneroa , although it is definitely busier than anywhere else we’ve visited on the island, and it has a distinctly upmarket and expensive feel. Oneroa Beach We wandered down to Oneroa Beach and spent some time relaxing b

5 January 2026 Steps: 3,620 We made it to 100 days! What better way to celebrate our 100th day travelling, than spending some time relaxing by the pool before heading to a vineyard for some drinks, tapas, an afternoon swimming in the sea ! We definitely have mixed feelings about reaching this milestone. We feel incredibly proud to have made it this far, and it feels even more special being surrounded by family. At the same time, there’s a hint of sadness knowing we only have

5 January 2026 Steps: 3,620 We set off this morning for a two-hour drive to Half Moon Bay, where our ferry to Waiheke Island departed . The crossing took about an hour, and we spent the entire time on the sun deck soaking in the stunning views. After picking up some groceries, we headed to our Airbnb close to Palm Beach - and wow, what a place ! It’s an absolutely gorgeous house. This was a surprise from Uncle Michael, so we had no idea what to expect. To say we were pleasan

4 January 2026 Steps: 4,728 We arrived at the Shire's Rest early in the morning, which is  where you check in for your guided tour of the Hobbiton Movie Set (a tour is the only way you can visit Hobbiton) and grabbed a quick coffee from the café while we waited. From there, we hopped on the bus to the movie set , which is around a ten minute ride. Our tour guide introduced himself and we were shown a few short videos on the bus to set the scene and give us some background o

3 January 2026 Steps: 4,976 We got up quite early this morning as we had an early start at the Waitomo Caves. Before heading out, we went in for breakfast at our B&B and were immediately greeted by so many cats! There were adult cats wandering around the kitchen, and in the next room was a group of kittens that were only a few weeks old. Breakfast itself was quite basic - bacon and eggs and cereal, but the hosts were lovely. The girls absolutely loved playing with the cats,

2 January 2026 Steps: 9,479 This morning we left Napier and made the two hour drive to Lake Taupō . There aren’t too many stops along the route, but we did briefly pull over at the Waipunga Falls lookout to see the falls thundering down below. We stopped in Taupō for lunch and I have to say that while the lake itself is beautiful, the town didn’t really impress me that much . The restaurants were mostly “burger, chips and a pint” type places along with lots of fast food, an