Travel Reading – Little Gulliver

May Competition – Lonely Planet Best in Travel 2013

To win a copy of this book is simple.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter (or if you’re already a subscriber you’re eligible)
Think about your dream holiday destination and answer the question “where would your family love to go in 2013 and why?” (nb; it doesn’t have to be in the book).
Send an email to members@littlegulliver.com.au (or click here) with the header “May Competition”
Entries must be received by midnight Sunday 2nd June 2013 – so enter now!

Entries are open to all newsletter subscribers – even new ones – so share with your friends!

More about the prize

Read about the best places to go and things to do all around the world right now. Highlights include Lonely Planet ranking of the top 10 countries, regions and cities to visit in 2013. Also, the best travel experiences for the year ahead are outlined, with over 35 events mapped out month by month in the 2013 travel planner. Its a great addition to any family book shelf or a lovely gift.

Small Print

Winner will be chosen by the Little Gulliver team and no correspondence will be entered into
Winner will be notified by email Monday 3rd June 2013
Feel free to keep your entry brief, as long as you have answered the question you’re entered (sometimes we receive quite long entries and that’s fine too)!
One entry per household
We love hearing from our customers, so some entries may be used by Little Gulliver on our website or blog. Only your first name may be used. If required we may edit to shorten.
Little Gulliver NEVER shares your personal information with a 3rd party
Prize value is $24.95. Little Gulliver will post the prize to the winner within a week of the winner being notified.
Entries open to subscribers with Australian addresses only.

~ Thank you for visiting Little Gulliver and for entering our competition! ~

April Competition – I Went Walking

To win 1 of 5 copies of this classic book for young children is simple.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter (or if you’re already a subscriber you’re eligible)
Look at Little Gulliver’s range of walking harnesses and answer the question; “which of these walking harnesses would you or have you used and why?”
Send an email to members@littlegulliver.com.au (or click here) with the header “April Competition”
Entries must be received by midnight Sunday 5th May 2013 – so enter now!

Entries are open to all newsletter subscribers – even new ones – so share with your friends!

More about the prize

This is a classic book, loved by babies and toddlers world wide. It tells the story of a young boy identifying animals of different colours on the course of a walk – with beautiful illustrations to accompany it. At the end of the story he has a parade of animals following him! This version is a great sized board book, in a size ready for a walk in any nappy bag or back pack. It is 30 pages long and dimensions are 13.2 x 12.4 x 2.0 cm. Recommended for reading ages 2 – 5. It was a favourite at our place from babies + and is a great addition to any family book shelf or a lovely gift.

Small Print

Winners will be chosen by the Little Gulliver team and no correspondence will be entered into
Winner will be notified by email Monday 6th May 2013
Feel free to keep your entry brief, as long as you have answered the question you’re entered (sometimes we receive quite long entries and that’s fine too)!
Enter up to 5 times if you wish, but send a separate email for each entry please (nb; only 1 book can be won per household)
We love your feedback, so some entries will be used by Little Gulliver on their website or blog. Only your first name may be used. If required we may edit to shorten.
Little Gulliver NEVER shares your personal information with a 3rd party
Prize value is $14.99 per book and will be sent by mail to each winner by Little Gulliver the week after winners are notified.
Entries open to subscribers with Australian addresses only.

~ Thank you for visiting Little Gulliver and for entering our competition! ~

New Christmas books on the Little Gulliver book shelf

We love children’s books here at Little Gulliver and believe that books are an important part of a child’s daily routine. We extend this routine into our travel with kids and have therefore integrated some of our favourites into our on-line stores ‘Book Shelf’.

As parents we give our children a new Christmas book each year on Christmas Eve. That way we are able to open a present and read something new (in the midst of our excitement of waiting for Santa)! The kids Christmas books sit on a shelf in our bookcase the rest of the year and come out again December 1st when when we decorate our Christmas tree. Its become a lovely tradition and we are getting a lovely book collection!

If you are looking for a Christmas book for your children or for a Christmas gift, here’s our selection of Christmas books for 2012. All are in stock and available now (double click on any of the books to be taken to it in store).

For young children

Some more in the classic Usborne “That’s not my…” series. ‘That’s not my reindeer’ and ‘That’s not my Santa’ are two festive board books with lots of pictures for kids to touch and feel. A lovely series of books from 0+

A delightful touchy-feely book with simple, repetitive text.
Bright, colourful illustrations with textures to touch and feel on every page.
Helps very young children develop language and sensory skills.
Series awarded “Best Buy” by readers of Prima magazine.
A perfect gift for young children.

I’d recommend either of these as the ideal babys 1st Christmas book and for any fans of the ‘That’s not my…” series from Usborne Beautiful quality and robust enough even for the most active toddlers! ‘That’s not my reindeer’ and ‘That’s not my Santa’ both in stock.

The Christmas Star

This gift book uses changing pictures to tell the story of the first Christmas “from the point of view of a special star who has an important role to play”.

The book has pictures (as can be seen on the cover if you look closely) that turn as you lift the page and others that move as you lift a flap. Its lovely and interactive, while telling the story of the first Christmas. The illustrations are traditional and beautifully drawn.

It is a good quality, hard cover, Christmas keepsake and would make a lovely gift for children of all ages.

A Classic Christmas Treasury – Carols and Stories

This is a classic family Christmas book.

It is full of a lovely assortment of Christmas pictures and stories, while introducing the traditions of Christmas to the young (and reminding mum and dad of some too)! It begins with the very first Christmas, tells us how the Christmas tree came about and why is mistletoe a Christmas tradition? Lovely Christmas carols are listed throughout, such as ‘O’Come all ye faithful’. The book finishes with everyone’s favourite, ”twas the night before Christmas’ and (spoiler alert) finishes with a pop up Christmas tree and the words “Happy Christmas to all and to all a goodnight.”

~ Just a reminder that we post twice daily ~ Orders made before 3.30pm leave same day ~ Express/overnight options are available to metropolitan areas within Australia ~ Last day for posting prior to Christmas is Friday 21st December ~ And why not take advantage of our flat postage rate ~ pick up all your kids travel items for the one low postage rate ($6.95 regular delivery) ~ Any questions? Give us a call 03 98246770 business hours or email sales@littlegulliver.com.au any time ~

Take care and have a marvellous Christmas!

Donna, Ben & the team at Little Gulliver

Make your own Travel Journal

I’ve always loved a good travel journal.

It may be genetic as my Grandma travelled with a journal everywhere she went and recorded every detail. As a child, she also gave me my very own travel journal for our first big family trip. I was quite little and the family went on a wonderful camping trip to Uluru. Its lovely to read back on, apparently I was quite impressed with a box of Smarties given to me in Alice Springs (the little things)!

If you like to be a bit crafty, there are some great printable and free options online to make your own kids travel journal. Its a lovely activity to get the little ones excited about the trip and help them understand there will be times when you’re away for “quiet play time.” And that this quiet time may be during a long plane or car trip when they really don’t feel like sitting still! Voilà – time for the travel journal.

One thing about making your own journal is that you can tailor them to individual personalities and locations; post questions for them to answer or pictures for them to colour throughout. Its a great way to encourage a little creative writing or drawing practice, which can be tailor made for your trip.

Here’s some favourites;

Blue’s Travel Book

Diego’s Field Journal

Dino Dan Field Guide Scrapbook

Disney Kids Travel Journal

Dora’s Family Vacation Travel Book

Dora’s Travel Journal

Journals for Kids / Travel Journal

If all this looks like too much work (on top of the packing and organising you have to do for your trip) don’t despair, Little Gulliver has a great range of travel journals for all travellers.

Click for Little Gulliver Travel Diaries & Journals range.

Featured: Tray Kit Travel Journal

The gorgeous TrayKits can now be complimented with a matching Travel Journal. Great even on its own, the Travel Journal comes with a fold out wallet, activity Book, 40 stickers, 6 coloured pencils, a rubber, pencil sharpener and ink stamp. And don’t forget to trace your footsteps on the fold-out world map!

Pink star and blue stripe available…

Magic Pen Books, Yes or No?

Magic Pen Books, Yes or No? Yes. Definitely yes!

What could be better than a handheld activity, which is mess free, can be personalised to your child’s interests and keeps them busy for hours? Welcome to our Play category and sub-categories of Draw and Colour or Stickers and Magnets. Here you will find a number of different ‘magic pen’ style books, you’re sure to find one to suit your holiday.

We’re very proud of our extensive range of mess free activities, here’s a closer look;

Colour Wonder

Mess free colouring on the special colour wonder paper. The markers only work on the color wonder paper provided; it cannot mark other paper, walls or clothes! Colour in the pictures and don’t forget to make your own masterpieces on the back too.

They kind of remind me of how highlighter pens work on normal paper, it has a bright florescent feel. My tip for younger kids or if travelling with a few kids would be to buy a pack of the individual sheets (some are in a bound book), that way you can take a few on board. Put the rest in your luggage for the return trip or hotel room. I generally only take a selection of the pens also, and leave some in the pack in case they get lost. A pencil case is great here, to keep kiddy things together and maybe a zip lock bag.

Colour Wonder is more unique, as it comes with a selection of different coloured markers, each revealing their own colour (kind of like normal textas). Whereas all of the other varieties of “magic pen” books (described below) come with one marker only which reveals a surprise colour or activity.

Magic Pen Painting

Use the Magic Pen to produce a rainbow of colours. Just choose a theme the child likes, and they’ll be able to colour in the beautiful scenes outlined on the pages. The booklets have tear out pages, which can be coloured separately or in the book.

When travelling, I generally let them choose a scene or two at a time and save the rest for later. Depending on the child or the age, I generally also hold onto the lid of the pen (though they do last well uncovered if they do go astray)! They are a great little travel size too.

Check individual descriptions, but they are generally 3+

Water Wow

Reveal bright colours, patterns, and hidden surprises with just WATER! Just fill the enclosed water pen dispenser with water, and “paint” with the water…It is the ultimate in clean colouring and both the pen and paper is re-usable. It is a book of 4 doodle boards to colour and 4 play and learn game pages, with seek and find activities. The papers special coating dries in 90 seconds, so you can colour it again and again.

There is a wide variety of characters available to suit boys and girls of different ages…Dora the Explorer, Disney Princess, Spiderman…hours of fun to keep kids occupied on planes, trains and rainy days. They also make a great gift! It is a great alternative to the popular Aquadoodle Travel n Doodle, which, sadly is no longer being manufactured.

These sell out quickly (we try and keep a variety in stock), so check back regularly for your favourites. Also, check individual descriptions for details and age ranges. The Spiderman pictured is recommended for 3+

Invisible Ink and Sticker Book

The Invisible Ink with stickers is fun, as you can match up pictures with stickers as part of a puzzle. For instance in ‘Bugs’, we can colour in the picnic basket and then colour the ants, while filling in the “I am an ….” (ant is the answer)!

The Lets look at Bugs pictured is 5+. We also stock a range of Disney-themed Invisible Ink Sticker books which are generally for ages 3+.

Surprise Ink

If you love Super Hero’s, then you’ll be happy with the Spiderman Suprize Ink currently in stock. This 5+ book comes with magic marker and a variety of games, pictures and activities. Watch images magically appear as you colour and keep busy with activities such as “help Spiderman get through the maze” and games such as “Venom Vengeance.” Great for older kids (or younger may suit if an adult is happy to assist in explaining the object of the game).

Color Blast

The color blast comes with its own mess free rainbow marker and 24 page picture games book.

Currently, we have the ever popular ‘Littlest Pet Shop, Magic Picture Search’ in stock. Fun activities such as “colour the squares in this order” and look for a hidden picture on every page. The Littlest Pet Shop pictured is recommended for ages 4+

** I have done my best to describe all the items we currently have in stock. We are selling out and adding more items regularly – so check individual items on our website for general descriptions and recommended ages, as they may vary to the above. And, as always – please do not hesitate to contact us donna@littlegulliver.com.au with any questions. We are always happy to help!**

We hope you’ve enjoyed discovering just why our ‘Magic Pen’ style books are a holiday favourite. Don’t forget to check our Play / Draw and colour and Play / Stickers and magnets range for these and lots more ideas!

Travel Brochures Online

Plan your holiday with free travel information and free brochures.

I’m often asked for family travel ideas. A great way is to start with browsing some brochures and see what appeals. While there are a few brochure sites around, I like this one Travel Brochures Online. It includes great information from operators like Trafalgar, Intrepid, Peregrine, Club Med and Creative Holidays. You can download your brochure immediately or have up to 7 posted out to you. So if you’re planning a trip, or looking for ideas it is a good place to start! There are plenty of famiy travel ideas – go to ‘Special interest – Family’.

Note; and the good news is – this is a brochure service only – they will not contact you. For any travel reservations you should contact the tour operators direct.

Happy reading!

As seen in ‘Woman’s Day’ Magazine

Great to see our Bugzz Poncho’s listed on page 81’s “Top of the Class – Study essentials get funky’. We think they’re great for travel too! See Little Gulliver’s Clothing – Bugzz Poncho’s category for more information.

Woman’s Day magazine January 17, 2011

As seen in ‘Disney Family Fun’ magazine

If you’re flicking through the Summer 2010/11 issue of ‘Disney Family Fun’ magazine you might notice some of our popular products…

* A + Accessories – page 88 Disney Pencil cases. See our ‘Draw and Colour’ category here.

* Eat Street – page 88 Cheeki stainless steel drink bottles. See our ‘Mealtime’ category here.

Both practical and the great prices make them popular with parents and kids alike!

As seen in Mother & Baby magazine

If you’re flicking through the *Dec/Jan2011 ‘Mother & Baby’ you might notice our great travel bed…

“Travelling with your bub is challenging enough without the added worry of transporting baby paraphernalia from one location to another! Lightweight and easy to asssemble, a travel cot is a sanity-saving essential, especially for parents constantly on the go.”

Goldbug Pea Pod Travel Bed, 4kg, $74.95

The brightly coloured Pea Pod fits into a suitcase or the back of a car. Lightweight and compact, the collapsed Pod pops into a bed in seconds, Suitable from birth until bub can sit up unassisted.

*See page 145 for a ‘5 Minute Guide to Travel Cots’

Available now at Little Gulliver.

Book review – Travel with Kids

Like a lot of people we used to travel a lot before having kids. Now with children aged one and three we’ve been trying to work out the best way to holiday as a family i.e. how the kids can be happy, we can get a well deserved relaxing break, and we can have fun as a family. Not an easy thing to do. I’ve picked up a few of these books and they’ve never really got the balance right, they’re either not practical enough, or they’re so practical they take the fun out of the idea travelling with young a family.
This book gets it just right. It’s beautifully produced, which makes it a pleasure to read. The advice and guidance is full of practical stuff, but delivered in a way that’s meant to give you the inspiration and confidence to get on and book that trip.

Travel with Kids by William Gray

WILLIAM GRAY is an award-winning travel writer and photographer, specialising in family travel, wildlife and adventure. His first book Travel with Kids won the British Guild of Travel Writers Awards Best Guidebook in 2008. He lives in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds with his wife, Sally, and ten-year-old twins, Joe and Ellie.

Travel with Kids is beautifully written and photographed, but what do the readers think? Here’s some reviews from Amazon…

This definitive guide to worldwide travel with kids, from babies to teens, is available on the Little Gulliver Bookshelf. (Since becoming a mum, this has become one of my favourite books)!

The answer to my prayers?

beautiful and informative

This weighty reference is an inspirational guide, and I can see it empowering parents to travel further and more intrepidly with the little’uns. It is brim-full of ideas for the whole family and I love the suggested reads for the kids, as well as projects for the brood. The photos are gorgeous and it is a pleasure to simply leaf through and imagine….sunshine, kids contentedly gathering shells or frolicking. ‘Your Child Abroad: a travel health guide’ would be its perfect partner.

Read this book before you plan your holiday

If you want some new ideas about where to go and what to do on a family holiday this is the book for you. It is a fantastic reference book to the world and you are guaranteed to find some new ideas no matter how much you’ve travelled and whether you’re planning to stay in the UK or Europe or to venture further.

The book looks great, is wonderfully designed and easy to dip in to. It is packed with practical information making it easy to organise a holiday yourself and gives loads of top tips about places to visit and things to do. There’s also some great ideas about books to read, games to play and things that you can do with your kids to get them in the mood for your chosen destination.

I have always enjoyed travelling but since having children have sometimes felt stuck for ideas. Having bought this book I feel the world has opened up again!

buy with confidence

Highly recommend this purchase.. we always take a travel guide where ever we go however this one is really useful for deciding where to go on holiday… it provides a brief summary of the things you need to know for destinations around the world. I’ve found this useful to decide where to take our next holiday. I also think this book is useful not just for families but for any avid traveller.

Brilliant

I bought this book as I have a 1yr old and a 2 yr old and wanted to find a holiday that was good for a baby and toddler and this book was fantastic as it gave me so many options – I have booked one of the places suggested and cant wait!

A lovely, useful book

Having bought most of the books about travelling with children, I like this one the most. It is colourful, useful and interesting, providing a good mix of locations from the more local to the far flung, whilst accepting that it can’t cover everything.I love the pages of kids stuff, and there’s a good balance of the useful and fun. It’s so colourful and exciting I get enthusiastic about the travel possibilities for my family every time I open it. It’s definitely destined to be one of the books on my shelf that is slightly grubby and falling apart through so much use!!

Exhaustive and entertaining

This is a fantastic book packed with information for parents and children. If you have been daunted by taking your kids overseas then this title will tell you everything you need to know. It includes preparation before you go, health, choosing a destination surviving on the road and what to do when you are there. There are also sections for your little ones, to get them excited about the destination.

I have followed Will’s writings on family travel in Wanderlust magazine, and I couldn’t think of anyone better qualified to write this book.

Would recommend for any travelling with children

I found this a great help for planning our holiday abroad. It recommends things and places to go right up until their teens and covers the world. I will definitely be using this book for inspiration for all future family holidays.

GUIDEBOOK OF THE YEAR 2008

Travel with Kids won the 2008 Guidebook of the Year Award from the British Guild of Travel Writers.

Here are some other reviews:

A well-packaged reference book that sets the benchmark.
BRITISH GUILD OF TRAVEL WRITERS’ AWARDS

The perfect book to have to hand when planning your family’s annual holiday.
JUNIOR MAGAZINE, AUTUMN 2008

One of those rare finds: a practical family guide as well as an entertaining read.
THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2007

A treasure chest of inspiration.
OPEN ROAD MAGAZINE (HERTZ), SPRING 2008

Packed with inspiration and advice for taking your children abroad.
WANDERLUST MAGAZINE 2007

Top resource for vacationing: Travel with Kids features exotic excursions, from hanging out under a pagoda in Kathmandu to puffin-watching in Wales.
NICK JR MAGAZINE (NICKLEODEON)

From tots to teens, this book helps parents get it right for different age groups, budgets and style of travel.
MTV MAGAZINE

Travel with Kids covers trips from bucket-and-spade holidays to epic journeys. `Take your kids travelling! Take them now!’ is William Gray’s message. `Children grown up fast and you’ll never find a better, more rewarding opportunity to enrich their lives, minds and souls – or yours – than a family holiday.’
DAVID WICKERS, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MAGAZINE, APRIL 2008

A genuine must-have for parents with itchy feet everywhere.
ANGELS & URCHINS MAGAZINE

This definitive guide to worldwide travel with kids – from babies to teens – is available on the

Little Gulliver Bookshelf.