Real Travel. Real Stories. A Little More Life.
Hey, I’m Zo.
Brummie born and raised. Wife, mum of two, social worker, writer-at-heart and a woman who probably spends far too much time thinking about her next holiday.
Welcome to Suitcases & Stories.
I’m not a full-time traveller. I’m not hopping from country to country with a laptop and a passport, and I certainly don’t have an unlimited travel budget.
I’ve got a job, a family, bills to pay and a limited amount of annual leave.
Sound familiar?
But somewhere along the way, I realised that having an ordinary life didn’t mean I couldn’t have extraordinary experiences.
And that’s really where Suitcases & Stories began.
Maximise Your Trip. Not Your Budget.
I love a good holiday. But what I love just as much is figuring out how to make that holiday feel like so much more.
How can we turn one trip into three different experiences? Where’s worth spending a little extra? Where can we save without sacrificing the things that matter? And how do we fit it all around work, family life and the money we’ve actually got?
That’s the stuff I genuinely enjoy figuring out.
Over the years, I’ve planned everything from family adventures in Bali and Brazil to road trips through Italy and holidays across Europe.
Not because we’ve got endless money or time.
Because I’ve learnt to be thoughtful about how we use both.
And that’s what I want to share here.
Real Trips. Real Costs. Real Life.
You’ll find our travel stories, the places we’ve loved, the things that haven’t quite gone to plan and the moments that have stayed with us long after we’ve unpacked.
I’ll share what our holidays actually cost, how I put them together and the little decisions that make a big difference.
But this isn’t about telling you there’s a right way to travel.
Some people love an all-inclusive resort. Others want to disappear into the mountains. Some want to see everything. Others want to do absolutely nothing.
I’m not here to tell you which is better.
I’m here to help you think about what makes a holiday worth it to you.
Because the best trip isn’t necessarily the cheapest, the most expensive or the most adventurous.
It’s the one that fits.
And Then There’s the Stories…
For me, travel has always been about more than ticking places off a list.
After years working in social work, it’s become one of the ways I reconnect with myself, my family and the things that make life feel a little bigger.
Sometimes that means watching the sunrise somewhere beautiful. Sometimes it’s getting lost down a little street, finding somewhere unexpected to eat or having a conversation that stays with me.
And sometimes it’s simply sitting somewhere thinking, bloody hell, I’m actually here.
I also write from my perspective as a Black British woman travelling with her family. That shapes our experiences, and I don’t believe in pretending otherwise.
The beautiful bits, the uncomfortable bits and everything in between all deserve a place in the story.
So, Who’s This Blog For?
Anyone who’s ever sat at work dreaming about somewhere else.
Anyone who’s wondered whether they could make their holiday budget stretch a little further.
Anyone who wants to explore the world but doesn’t have the luxury of unlimited time or money.
And anyone who simply enjoys a good travel story.
You don’t need to travel like me.
You don’t even need to like the same places I do.
But if you believe there’s more to life than working, paying bills and waiting for the next weekend, I reckon we’ll get along just fine.
I’m glad you’re here.
Zo x