The brutal truth about Bali: It looks idyllic - but the glossy pictures conceal a multitude of horrors. For so many like Molly-Mae's sister, their trip will end in tears, writes THEODORA SUTCLIFFE
Now, clearly, if high-rise, sky-rise, manicured Dubai is your dream holiday, then Bali, where even the poshest hotel room rarely escapes a gecko or two and few buildings rise above four storeys, is probably not for you.
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Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Having one common drink on holiday could make you sick, expert warns
Ahead of the fast-approaching summer holidays, travel experts have warned that a popular beverage loved by Brits could lead to a slew of nasty side-effects including bloating, cramps and nausea Brits have been warned about one popular beverage that could make them ill when abroad - and it's not tap water. With the summer holidays just around the corner, swathes of UK households will be packing their bags for a week or two in the sun. Despite the cost-of-living crisis continuing to hit cash-strapped Brits hard, research from found that more than half (55 per cent) of us are planning an overseas holiday this year. If you have children that are still in school, you'll have little choice but to jet off during the summer months - despite travel agents ramping up their prices. The upside to this is that you're almost guaranteed constant sunshine and scorching temperatures. But, whether you're flocking to the party-mad hotspot of Benidorm - or the tropical delights of Thailand - falling ill can completely ruin your holiday. While most Brits are extra cautious about tap water or ice when abroad, many don't think twice about consuming milk. In a statement sent to the Mirror, Jessie Chambers from Global Work & Travel warns that unlike the fresh dairy milk that is abundant in the UK, many popular tourist destinations use UHT (Ultra-High Temperature) milk instead. This beverage is made by processing milk at 135C for several seconds, killing bacteria but also altering the milk's structure. It's designed to give the quickly-expiring product a long shelf life that can survive in hot climates. But adding it to your tea or coffee could lead to some nasty side-effects. "We get so many travellers saying they felt 'off' after a coffee or hotel breakfast, assuming it was the food," the travel expert said. "But in reality, they've just had a strong dose of UHT milk, which can trigger digestive issues, especially if you've got a sensitive stomach." While many Brits will be absolutely fine with drinking UHT milk, especially in such small quantities, Global Work & Travel says it could lead to symptoms such as bloating, cramps and nausea if you have IBS or gut sensitivities. Often, this is mistaken for food poisoning. Jessie therefore advises Brits to ask hotel or restaurant staff whether they have fresh milk, or only use UHT. If you're staying in self-catering accommodation, it's worth looking for labels such as 'UHT' or 'Ultra-Heat Treated' when picking up a bottle of milk from the supermarket. Even if it is stored in the fridge, you still might be accidentally picking up UHT milk instead of its fresh counterpart. If you're extremely sensitive to lactose or have a dodgy stomach, it could be worth skipping the milk altogether. The pro also warns against drinking unlabelled or room-temperature milk unless you're sure it's safe and pasteurised. "A strange-tasting brew might not be bad beans – it could just be shelf-stable milk messing with your gut," Jessie added. "Know what you're drinking – especially in hot climates where milk storage works differently to the UK."
Times
5 hours ago
- Times
I'm sleeping in a caravan so I can put my cottage on Airbnb
I am writing this by candlelight at the wobbly knee-high desk of a caravan situated in my friend's backyard. There is no electricity, no water and no toilet, so I have to use an old outside one. I am running a wi-fi hotspot off my phone. As the light fades I'll be forced to bed by 9pm, in an old sleeping bag I'm sharing with my dog, where I'll fall asleep dreaming of my lovely cottage — where I have my own toilet, my own bed and my own office, with an ergonomic chair in it. I am spending the week in this absurd set-up not because I fancied a cheap off-grid escape (although using an outdoor loo is a novelty) but because I've rented my Somerset cottage out, like other mad middle-class people across the country this summer. In tourist hotspots families are fleeing to cash in on visitors, making themselves Airbnb-homeless and performing accommodation gymnastics as they look for somewhere to stay themselves. As Airbnb has become ubiquitous — not to mention the source of anger over overtourism and second homes — so it has spawned another trend among a squeezed middle class looking for extra cash to pay climbing mortgages. When I was hoping to move to Cornwall I viewed one farmhouse with a long stretch of garden where, the estate agent explained, the owner erected a tent every summer to make thousands a week from renting the house. He didn't say quite what the Americans who rented it made of looking out to see the homeowner sleeping under canvas. • 'First-time buyers want cheaper homes — not bigger mortgages' A friend with a house on the coast sleeps in her car over summer, parking down lanes and showering at the gym because she can make thousands a week from renting her pretty cottage to tourists. Others go to crash with their parents or sleep on friends' sofas. I will be rotating between friends across the country who are happy to put me up on their sofas or in their spare rooms in exchange for some extra childcare during the holidays. As well as coming back and forth to the off-grid caravan, I'll be borrowing a tent for week or travelling whenever I can. After all, if I can make a rental of my own cottage coincide with my holiday, I'll have covered the cost of it. A family I know in Gloucestershire with a large beautiful house that rents for more than £400 a night take themselves off to a single hotel room for a week when they rent it. Another very wealthy family I've heard about, with a gorgeous old manor house in Devon that they lease to tourists for thousands during peak summer season, stay with their rather less wealthy relatives, relocating their pedigree dogs and custom Land Rovers to a council house in the suburbs. • Stick or twist — should you sit tight or buy a home now? I have heard about a woman who moves to a cramped new-build around the corner from her Instagram-gorgeous north London cottage when she lets it out over the summer, and another with a stunning East End townhouse she vacates to sofa-surf with friends. Ophelia, a photographer, has spent summers renting out her flat in Hackney while she goes back to her mum's in Suffolk, often popping back to London for work on day trips or hauling her things across town. 'I remember I stayed with one of my friends around the corner once while I rented my flat out in Hackney, dragging my clothes and all my photography equipment down eight flights of stairs so I could crash on her sofa for a week,' she says. The playwright P Burton-Morgan is renting out the family home in rural Somerset for three weeks back-to-back over summer to fund a forthcoming theatre tour. The plan is sofa-surfing between different friends, family and even former parents-in-law to make it work. 'It's a precarious juggle of friends with kids doing sleepover swaps, generous family members and then people we vaguely know who seem sympathetic. I try to rotate between friends so no one gets too bored with us. And find ways to reciprocate, like doing some gardening. Parents in the creative industries have always scrabbled around in this kind of gift-economy way, it's just more of that dialled up a notch. We'll probably run out of willing hosts soon, but while it's still sunny there's always camping. • Why landlords are now in the market for holiday lets 'I am in the process of converting my shed so I can sleep in it and rent out the house. You just go, 'At what point is the tail wagging the dog?'' Others agree that the fallout of Airbnbing the family home isn't always worth it. 'It was a nightmare,' one person tells me, recounting how they rented out their beautiful home to a group who threw a huge party. 'The neighbours complained, they left empty bottles of booze everywhere and vomit in the children's bedrooms.' Once Ophelia rented her spare room to a man 'who thought I had gone out for the night, so I came back to find him in the sitting room sleeping with a girl'. And then there's the toll on those friends you beg, borrow and steal from. A friend tells me of the time a couple they knew offered to house-sit while they were on holiday. It was only later that it transpired they had invited their extended family along too — all while making a quick buck renting out their own home. When the candles run out in the caravan, I will have to stop writing and instead spend the evening pining for my home, reminding myself that, for all the inconvenience, I'm one of the lucky ones.
The Sun
10 hours ago
- The Sun
I'm a picky eater & eat barely any of the ‘awful' food at all-inclusive hotels – trolls slam me as ‘disrespectful'
A WOMAN has been slammed as "disrespectful" for turning her nose up at the "weird" dishes on offer at an all inclusive hotel. Simone Wilko, a self-confessed picky eater, recently went on holiday to Cyprus, and was not impressed by the food that was on offer. 2 2 Taking to TikTok, the influencer showed off the diverse array of food in the restaurant at her hotel, stating that there was "so much to choose from, but at the same time there wasn't." Showing viewers a plate of delicious looking stuffed courgettes with vegetables, she said: "I understand I'm in a different country, but what on earth are these foods? "They look absolutely awful." Showing the camera a dish of traditional black eye beans with Swiss chards, she then said: "I couldn't think of anything worse." Simone then spotted a pizza and got excited as she thought it was margherita, but after reading that the label said Quatro Formaggi (four cheese) she decided to give it a miss. The holidaymaker then decided to put some plain bread on her plate, along with a portion of chips. "If these had herbs on, I wouldn't have got them", she admitted. "I just don't like the taste of seasoning." She then placed some ribs on her plate, and a small bit of pork from a stir fry, making sure to avoid the veg as she "hates spring onions". However, she said that the pork was "horrible" anyway, as it had seasoning on it. 10 Expert Tips for Managing Picky Eaters Simone then moved on to dessert, but unfortunately said that she also found her chocolate mousse "disgusting". Her video, posted under the username (@s33immm) has quickly gone viral, racking up 772,000 views on the video sharing platform. TikTok users raced to the video's comments section to share their thoughts, with many unimpressed by Simone's attitude to the cuisine. One person said: "Picky is fine, but insulting other countries' foods is not OK." A second person said: "Fellow lowkey picky eater here but there's a difference between you and me. "I don't go around being disrespectful about food."
