About

Hi, I’m Karen, a beach-obsessed mum of three. I’m a travel writer and blogger and I also run a site to help families move to Australia called SmartStepstoAustralia.com.

In 2006, my husband and I embarked on a five-week Caribbean cruise (it was epic – we went to Cuba, the BVIs, Honduras, Mexico and so many islands!) It gave us a taste for white sandy beaches and tropical palm trees! We saved up again and, in 2008, we went backpacking around the world in search of the world’s best beaches. Yes, seriously, we plotted our way around the world looking for the most idyllic locations. We visited the islands of Tahiti, the Cook Islands, Fiji, New Zealand, Australia (east and west coasts plus the centre), Thailand and we finished in the Maldives.

We fell in love with the beach lifestyle in Australia but the timing wasn’t quite right for us so we ended up going back to our home in the UK. We went on to have three babies in less than three years, and then when our family was complete we finally applied to move to Australia permanently.

We feel very lucky to live in beautiful Queensland. It has given us the most perfect beach lifestyle! We have a year-round summer lifestyle and we’re well placed to enjoy the beaches of the South Pacific as well as across the rest of Australia.

I love writing lifestyle and travel content and reviewing products, so it felt like the natural next step to set up a blog all about my favourite subject – living the best beach life!

On this site, you’ll find beach gear reviews, beach product buying guides, beach holiday inspiration, beach hacks, tips and so much more.