trips

WHEN it comes to date nights, one mum doesn’t just stick to dinner instead, she travels around the world.

Oliviyah Stevens and her partner Kyle have been to Italy, Morocco and Majorca after swapping dinner dates for holidays.

Oliviyah is a mum-of-five, with her oldest child being 14 and her youngest being one.

But she doesn’t let childcare come in the way of travelling, or love life, after discovering extreme day trips.

Oliviyah and her partner Kyle also go abroad every few months for what they call ‘date day’.

Oliviyah, who hails from Walthamstow, explained why she’s been swapping dates and family days out for travel.

IT’S A WASHOUT

UK indoor waterparks with VIP spas, mega slides and 30C tropical climates

CHEAP THRILL

UK’s best-value theme parks MAPPED, plus hotels nearby for £29 & cheap parking

She said: “Everything in London is so expensive – the price of flying to Majorca is the same as an evening meal.”

In April 2026, the couple sorted childcare for their kids and took an extreme day trip to Majorca where flights cost them just £62 each.

In comparison, the average price of a meal at a mid-range London restaurant can be £60.

If you factor in alcohol and train or tube fares, it racks up the price.

Or if you take the whole family out for dinner, you’d be looking at over £100.

During their trip to Majorca, the pair managed to explore the island and even had time to take a boat ride.

On another occasion, the couple had their three-day break to Crete cut short due to a cancelled flight.

But rather than end the trip early, the pair took advantage of their childcare and flew to Morocco instead.

The pair got to enjoy the Moroccan sunshine and were back home within 30 hours.

On another occasion, the pair travelled to Luxembourg to see the Christmas markets.

Oliviyah travels on her own too when her partner can’t go with her – but she does it in one day so she’s back in time for dinner.

Her very first extreme day trip was to Alicante which takes just over two hours on a plane.

Oliviyah said: “The trip was amazing, I had well-needed downtime, and I managed to get through at least 30 pages of my book.  

“I got the bus from the airport straight to the beach and sat on the beach for an hour.  

“Then I got hungry so I went to a café on the beach.”

In total, Oliviyah has visited 20 countries and has just added Pescara in Italy to her list where she paid £30 for a return flight. 

Her kids don’t miss out though as Oliviyah does also take them on extreme getaways – they’ve been to Italy, Morocco and Bucharest.

Oliviyah said: “My first ever extreme day trip was one with our two younger kids and my partner to Italy for the day. 

“The flight out was at 7am and we came back to London at 11pm.  

“It was for Kaius and Kenyah’s birthday who are born a year and two days apart in Bergamo.  

“We went to a theme park called Leolandia – it was a lot cheaper than going to Chessington.” 

As for how she keeps costs low Oliviyah revealed: “I scroll through Skyscanner, look at whatever is available and just book it.  

“I don’t care about anything as long as it’s affordable and the flight times are OK.”

LOOKING back on all of her recent holidays, Helen Dalling recalled all the amazing adventures she had in such a short amount of time.

Over the course of one year, she managed to do more travelling that many could wish to do in a lifetime – and she did it without breaking the bank.

Seven countries, £2,000 spent, and more memories made than anyone could dream of.

It all started when Helen decided to see how many new places she could visit for as cheap as possible – and managed to keep costs low while making the most of each new adventure.

She did this by making each trip as short as possible, with some being ‘extreme day trips’ – where you fly in and out of a country within the same 24 hours – and others being just an overnight stay.

And despite packing in a full holiday experience each time, the total cost came in at around £1,600 including flights, airport parking, any hotels, sightseeing, food and drink, and spending money.

DEAL ME IN

Incredible Las Vegas GP travel package with five nights hotel for under £1,800

SKY-HIGH

Travel expert reveals how to avoid classic rip-off trap when flying… and save cash

“I’ve always loved travelling but as I’m getting older and I’ve got kids and I work full-time, I thought ‘I’m not going to see enough countries in the world,” Helen, who is from Milton Keynes, said.

“‘If I don’t start going to see a few of them, I need to do them quick and cheap’.

“That’s really why I started doing it.”

While Helen started her extreme day tripping in 2024, it was in 2025 that she really went all out – visiting seven new countries throughout the year.
She headed to Paris, Budapest, Geneva, Split in Croatia, Prague, Amsterdam and several places in Spain in 2025.

The 55-year-old stayed just hours in some places, and spent the night in others, and visited most with friends, while others she headed to alone.

She added: “I went to seven brand new countries.

“That’s what I really wanted to do, I thought ‘I’ve never been to Hungary so let’s go to Budapest’.”

Helen says she tries to keep costs as low as possible, by regularly searching for bargains on the websites of different airlines she knows fly from her nearest airport, Luton.

She added: “When I went to Paris, I was basically just browsing on New Year’s Day, not doing much else and I spotted that you could get a flight to Paris for £13, one way and £12 the other.

“I just booked it – and then when I told a friend, she booked it too and came with me.

“The Budapest flights were about £8.99 each way, you can’t even get them that cheap anymore.

“I’ve done others that were £15-£20 return; I just book them – when I see the price, I just go for it.”

While Helen does some of her trips solo, she often has friends tag along for the day.

She says she treats her trips as “an opportunity to catch up with a friend.”

She added: “Instead of going to London for lunch, let’s go somewhere for the day.

“I did Geneva twice last year, but the second one I did at Christmas was with a real old friend of mine who is really into her food.

“So we went and did a foodie trip to the Christmas markets in Geneva and just went for the day, she’d never done one.

“Everybody that I’ve done one with has said ‘oh my God, that was amazing’.

“I’ve got a bit of a queue of people wanting to go as well, but only so much money.”

Of all her trips in 2025, Helen says her adventure to Budapest, which cost £191 for an overnight stay, was the best – particularly for its Thermal Baths.

She said: “We just fell in love with Budapest.

“Every time we did something else afterwards, I just said to my friend ‘it’s not Budapest though, is it? It’s not Budapest.’

“It was February when we did that but the sky was blue and we had the best time.

“It was super cheap and everything just worked.

“It was so lush.

“We were just sat in these massive pools of boiling hot water with the cold air on our skin, just going ‘this is amazing.’”

Helen shows no signs of slowing down with her bargain trips either, having already undertaken several in 2026.

She recently visited Palma, Mallorca with a friend, for under £120 each.

They spent the day exploring the city, visiting a sky bar restaurant for lunch, heading to the beach to swim and even stopping for iced coffee at a beach bar.

Most recently, Helen spent the night in Lithuania, and even visited Albania for the day.

She added: “ I’m always buzzing after a day trip.

“I would definitely do it again, it’s a great way to visit countries you’d never visit by going on one holiday a year.

“Last year I visited seven new countries and it’s liberating.”

The Electronic Travel Authorisation fee for British holidaymakers travelling to this holiday hotspot has been scrapped, saving Brits around £40 and making the tropical destination even more accessible this summer

Travelling to a tropical holiday destination has just become even more appealing, as Brits no longer need to fork out a tourist fee.

British holidaymakers planning to discover the stunning country of Sri Lanka won’t have to worry about shelling out an extra tourist fee, as it was abolished from Monday, 25 May. The Sri Lankan government confirmed it had made its Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) free for UK visitors, scrapping the $50 fee (around £37) in an effort to draw more tourists to the South Asian nation.

The change has come into force for the UK, along with 39 other countries. Brits planning a trip to Sri Lanka will need to apply for a free ETA, which is a type of visa, prior to departure, and will be valid for 30 days.

Those wishing to extend their time in Sri Lanka can apply online via the country’s official Immigration portal. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office confirmed: “You do not need a visa if you are transiting through Sri Lanka by air, if the connecting flight is within 24 hours of your arrival. Check with your airlines about transit times.”

However, the FCDO also cautioned: “If you overstay the period of your ETA (30 days), you risk being subject to immigration procedures that may include temporary detention, a fine, deportation at your own expense, a travel ban or refusal of entry to Sri Lanka in the future.”

To enter Sri Lanka, British travellers must also confirm their passport has an expiry date of at least six months beyond their arrival date. Should the passport fail to meet this requirement, holidaymakers risk being turned away at the border, reports the Liverpool Echo.

While travel to Sri Lanka faced restrictions earlier this year owing to the Middle East conflict, there is presently no Foreign Office guidance advising against travel to the nation for Brits. That said, they do caution that there have been “global travel impacts due to escalation in the Middle East.”

The FCDO outlined: “Escalation in the Middle East has caused widespread travel disruption, including airspace closures, delayed and cancelled flights. Your travel plans may be affected, even if your destination is not in the Middle East.

“Some flights from Colombo to the UK via Middle Eastern hubs may be delayed, postponed, or rerouted. British nationals in Sri Lanka should check the latest updates from their airlines and consider alternative carriers or routes where necessary.”

The FCDO advises that tourists should do the following things before they travel:

• Check travel advice for any countries or territories you are transiting through
• Check for the latest updates from your airline or tour operator
• Review your travel insurance policy for coverage
• Monitor local and international media for the latest information and sign up for travel advice email alerts

For further details, visit the Foreign Office travel advice page.

The ferry operator issued an important reminder for any passengers with bookings

DFDS has issued an important reminder to passengers travelling on its ferry services. Ahead of summer, many families are looking forward to their holidays and getting everything ready for their trips. For those making ferry crossings, the operator has issued a message about ‘travel documents’ to help ensure journeys are as smooth as possible.

Posting on social media, DFDS outlined advice for customers in a post on X. In the message, @DFDSLiveUpdates shared port information for passengers. It read: “Please have all travel documents and passports to hand and open at the photo page before arriving at booths.”

In the post, DFDS explained: “Keep your passports, booking confirmations, and any necessary ID easily accessible for check-in and border control.” As such, the guidance could be helpful to any customers with upcoming bookings.

As customers will know, they need to keep a record of their confirmation. They will also want to pack their luggage accordingly, ensuring they can easily access any documents they will need when travelling.

Passengers can find more information about the check-in and boarding process on the ferry operator’s website. The boarding advice states: “All passengers must present relevant documents upon arrival to the terminal for check-in.

“These may include a valid passport, booking confirmation, documents for vehicle or pet travel, and/or other required documents, depending on the rules and regulations of country you are travelling to. Routine security checks of passengers, luggage and vehicles are carried out in all ports before you board the ship.”

DFDS also shares border control updates, including guidance on the UK eVisa and ETA. The website explains: “Travel requirements to the UK are changing.

“The UK is transitioning from physical immigration documents, such as biometric residence permits (BRPs), passports containing visa vignette stickers and ink stamps, or biometric residence cards (BRCs), to eVisas.

“If you hold a UK visa and use a physical immigration document to prove your rights, take action now by creating a UK Visas and Immigration account to access your eVisa: www.gov.uk/eVisa.

“If you already have an eVisa, ensure your travel information is up to date by notifying the UK Government about the passport you intend to use if it is not already linked to your eVisa account: www.gov.uk/update-uk-visas-immigration-account-details.

“Those who are visa-exempt for short visits to the UK, i.e. visits of up to six months, will still need to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA), which is digital permission to travel.”