Photo credit: R/DV/RS via photopin cc

Due to the fact that schools break up a month earlier in Norway than in most of Europe the dreaded return to the daily grind has begun. At least that’s the way the schoolchildren see it; for parents – especially those of us working from home – it can be a cause to celebrate a return to normality and the chance to actually get a few things done. But don’t tell my daughter I said that!

Noted. So you’d rather be in the office than zooming round Florida, clearly?

I wouldn’t go that far. But it feels good to be able to focus on the further development of Grown-up Travel Guide as the site continues to grow. Readers who have followed us for some time – and thanks so much for doing so – will have noticed that we are now into the third design of the site. Yet ‘Version 3.0’ is still very much in a test phase so be prepared for changes to the structure and appearance as we keep fine-tuning and tweaking in the background.

Tweak away, dear boy – just don’t break it.

That’s another thing. We now have technical help in running the site from the really rather wonderful Craig at Indie Travel Media Ltd. As well as implementing the new logo and design, his company will be managing hosting, platform updates and a whole bunch of other stuff that I don’t have a clue about.

Good thinking. We wouldn’t want you accidentally deleting the internet, after all… 

Anyway, hopefully you like the new style – the logo was designed by my aforementioned daughter some time back and as I never tire of pointing out she was only 10 when she knocked it out – but fear not, top content will always be the priority.

Here’s a taster of what you an expect to see in the next few months:

• Trip diary – a new series in which we document an entire journey. Starting with an introduction detailing the background for the trip, budget considerations and other practical information we will add articles covering transportation, accommodation, first impressions, places to eat and things to do. Readers will be able to read the entire diary or just an individual post (for example if you want to find a hotel review fast)
• Much more information about frequent flyer programmes and hotel loyalty schemes – we get a ton of questions about how the hell I am flying First Class on Thai Airways and getting a free one-hour massage at Bangkok Airport (it’s a perk included with your ticket). We’ll show you how  you can live it large without selling a kidney

Caviar on Thai Airways? Oh go on then!

• Norway – I know, I live here and should write more about this amazing country. This sorry state of affairs will be rectified, I promise
• Asia – Grown-up Travel Guide will be expanding coverage of this part of the world and indeed more destinations outside of Europe as we venture further afield.
• Improved navigation- with so many articles on the site we are aiming to make it easier for each reader to quickly find what they are looking for. Some readers come for inspiration – to get ideas on where to travel. Some come for entertainment – to read about experiences and mishaps on the road. Some come for information – to find about about a specific hotel or things to do in a city. As we want to cater to as many different Grown-up Travellers as possible

The bottom line is that we want to write what you want to read – which is why we value your feedback, comments, emails and rants. So please get in touch as we implement changes and let us know what you think:

• What do YOU want to see?
• What are we doing wrong?
• Are we doing anything right?

You can add your comments right here, email us, use our Facebook page, Twitter or even accost me in person – it’s all good…

Thanks once again for your time and here’s to the future!