REVIEW: Silver Cross Zest stroller

Ever since Isaac was born I've used the iCandy Peach as our travel system of choice and have been pretty happy with its ease of use and manoeuvrability, despite its chunky size and weight to lift in and out of the car. However, we recently went on holiday so we decided it was time to invest in something a little lighter, smaller and less cumbersome.

I'm not a big fan of buggies with crazy patterns or pictures on them, I just wanted something that was stylish, simple and affordable, which is why I was attracted to the Silver Cross range of strollers. As well as being a trusted brand, all the strollers were chic, inexpensive and practical. They had a lot of features that instantly attracted me to them such as the fact that the seat went completely flat and the hood came right down over the seat, acting as the perfect sunshade. I also really liked the way the buggy looked and how easy it was to collapse, manoeuvre and generally handle.

I also considered purchasing one of the McLaren strollers because of their reputation and trustworthiness, however after having a play with the two strollers, apart from the hood on the McLaren being a little less clunky to pull down and back than the Silver Cross, I didn't really see or feel a great deal of difference between the two strollers. 

After purchasing the Silver Cross Zest I didn't actually use it until we got to the airport but as soon as we did, I instantly noticed how light and easy to manoeuvre it was, although it was a little less sturdy than my iCandy, especially going across the pebbles in the overflow car park at Cardiff Airport. 

If I'm being picky, I would say that the hood on the Silver Cross stroller is a little clunky. It doesn't pull down and back overly smoothly and can be a little noisy if you are trying to adjust it with a child sleeping in the buggy. Saying that the hood was still a real godsend when we were on holiday as we had it down all the time, even when we had Isaac in the upright position as it was great for keeping him sheltered from the sun. Isaac also seemed to find it really comfortable and had no problem sleeping in it during the day and night.
 

Overall I'd say we were really pleased with the buggy, although unfortunately our particularly buggy seemed to have a manufacturing fault which meant that one day the seat got stuck in the upright position and when we managed to free it, one side of the mechanism broke. This mean't that although it went flat, when we tried to put it back in the upright position one side of the mechanism that was supposed to hold the seat in place had broken meaning Isaac sat at a tilt. This broke after just one week of having the buggy, which wasn't ideal but we managed to cope with it and Isaac didn't seem too bothered that he sat at a bit of an angle. If it had got stuck permanently in the upright position we would have had real problems getting Isaac to sleep in it both during the day and evening but thank goodness we had managed to free it and lived with the broken mechanism for the last week of the holiday. When we returned home I took it straight to Mothercase and they happily swapped it for a brand new buggy. Despite having a few problems with the buggy mechanism on holiday I was still pleased with the way it operated and decided I was willing to give it a second chance. We have been using it with no problems since then. 

Summary:

Good points

• Seat goes completely flat
• Hood comes right down over seat to act as a very good sunshade
• Lightweight
• Collapses easily
• Stylish
• Easy to manoeuvre
• Small when it is folded up
• Foot rest goes up and down 

Bad points

• Hood is a little clunky
• Less sturdy than the travel systems like the iCandy

Generally its a great little stroller. Its stylish and chic. It collapses very easily and quickly and maneuverers brilliantly. I'd definitely recommend it and for £100 its worth the investment.

Holiday in Cala n' Bosch Minorca

A few weeks ago we returned from our first family holiday abroad as a three and I would definitely recommend both the resort we went to and the hotel to anyone with children under three. 

We may have spent hours online trawling the Thomson website and TripAdvisor for reviews on every available hotel and its location but the investment was rewarded when we came across the Macarella Hotel in Cala n' Bosch in Menorca.  We've never been to the Balearic Islands before, as we normally venture a little further afield to locations like Croatia or Greece for our summer holiday, however with a little one in tow we decided that somewhere a little closer to home would probably be more advisable. 

I must admit that both my husband and I were pleasantly surprised with Menorca. I think we both had visions of Brits abroad and a wholly British influence everywhere we went, however that couldn't be further from the truth. Apart from one, slightly cringeworthy bar called Chaplins on the edge of the marina, which we avoided like the plague, there were no other British shops, restaurants or bars.  

The resort of Cala n' Bosch, where we stayed was a really pretty, quaint and chilled out little resort which was centred around a horseshoe shaped marina fringed with restaurants and bars. All the restaurants had a great choice of food with an abundance of fresh seafood as well as meats, and traditional Spanish dishes like paella. We never had a bad meal to speak of but the best thing about the restaurants was that the waiters were really child friendly and went out of their way to help entertain Isaac. In one or two restaurants we were provided with crayons and paper, which Isaac proceeded on eating, and in another restaurant they brought out glove puppets and soft toys for him. One of the bars we regularly visited even gave us a ball and soft toy for him to keep!

We decided to abandon our usual bedtime routine knowing full well that Isaac would probably stay awake the evenings, however we did have a few child-free evenings where he slept for the duration of the meal. More evenings that not though, we found ourselves finding ways of entertaining him while we tried to enjoy a glass of wine and a meal. A couple of evenings we were luckily (strategically placed) near a bandstand with live music so he enjoyed having a little boogie with me while we waited for food to arrive. One of the restaurants in the marina did actually have a fantastic play room at the back with a camera and TV screens so you could enjoy a glass of wine in peace while they played.  On the other side of the marina there was also an arcade with several ride on machines for the children which were really cheap and definitely kept Isaac entertained on several occasions.

The hotel we chose was called the Macarella, which is part of the Grupotel chain and it was perfect for families with small children. All the rooms in the hotel are like mini apartments with a kitchenette and lounge area complete with fridge, hob and all the utensils you could ask for. You could also hire high-chairs for your room for just £10 for the entire stay which was really handy. 

The pool itself was also brilliant. It was huge and had a shore/beach entry one end so it was very shallow but slowly got deeper and the far end (where most of the couples and families without small children sat) it was over 2m deep. 

We tended to lounge around the very shallow end along with the other families with small children, while Isaac splashed around and played in the water. Much to my delight Isaac was a real little water baby on holiday and was at his happiest when he was crawling around in the water. The hotel had a huge chest with loads of communal toys that people had bought in the shop next to the hotel and left behind so there were lots of buckets, spades, balls and all sorts of water toys for the children to play with. Although as per usual sharing was the only slight problem!

We were very lucky with the weather as we had glorious sunshine pretty much every day so we could bask in the sun while Isaac played, or go for a leisurely walk around the marina or to the lighthouse. It really was a lovely holiday and I would recommend both the hotel and resort to anyone looking to book a holiday with young children. The only downside is that the resort is small and after two weeks we were a little bored of the same restaurants, walks and views. However, if you hired a car I know the rep said there are an abundance of beautiful beaches and coves to explore only a short distance away.

To check it out click this link

http://www.thomson.co.uk/destinations/europe/spain/menorca/calan-bosch/apartments/grupotel-macarella-suites-and-spa.html?im_id=PPC&s_kwcid=AL!3093!3!69635300575!p!!s!!grupotel%20macarella%20suites&device=c&gclid=COO-l-jprM4CFYQcGwodc4AC-g