Monthly Archives - August 2018

We might be best known for our one of a kind inflatable roof rack but we’re forever expanding our product range here at HandiWorld to introduce new, innovative items that perfectly fit with our brand and we’re going to be introducing you to some of the newest members of the HandiWorld family today.

From inflatable hot tubs to car seat organisers, we’ve entered new territory with some of our latest additions but we’re confident our customers will love them.

400 Litre HandiHoldall

Before we move on to some of our new products that are a little different to our regular items, let’s start with a product that is something we’re very well known for and that’s the HandiHoldall.

Our selection of soft roof boxes has had a bit revamp over the last few months; seeing the introduction of our most compact HandiHoldall yet, the 175-litre version as well as bidding goodbye to our original 320-litre HandiHoldall.

We’ve added the new 330-litre HandiHoldall to the range to replace our standard sized version but we’ve also supersized things to bring you the brand new 400-litre HandiHoldall. Designed with over-packers and big families in mind, this new soft roof box is the highest capacity version we’ve ever launched and we’re proud to say it’s got all the best-loved features of our original roof boxes on an even bigger scale!

A fully waterproof roof bag that can hold up to 50kg worth of cargo, the new 400-litre HandiHoldall takes just 10 minutes to fix to your car, meaning more space doesn’t cause you any inconvenience.

Shop the 400-Litre HandiHoldall – £155.00

INTEX Challenger Inflatable Kayaks

We’ve been providing the kayaking community with innovative, game-changing products for a while now such as the HandiRack and the HandiKart but we’ve decided to go back to basics and provide kayakers with their most important bit of kit and that’s their kayak.

We’ve started stocking two inflatable kayaks from INTEX, the Challenger K1 and the Challenger K2. These high-quality inflatable kayaks are available in one and two person sizes and are designed to see you through all your water sports adventures. Not just great looking kayaks but functional too, these inflatable kayaks are suitable for low profile lakes and mild rivers, so aimed towards the more leisurely kayaker.

Both the K1 and K2 have a weight capacity of 100kg and have a number of additional features such as supportive seats, vinyl floors and inflatable side chambers, making these the ultimate choice for kayaking novices.

Get your INTEX Inflatable Kayaks at HandiWorld – £100 – £135

PureSpa Inflatable Hot Tub                                                                   

Everyone dreams of having a hot tub but for most of us, we do a little research into the price of having one put in the garden and soon realise that it’s not going to work with our budget but thanks to the INTEX PureSpa inflatable hot tubs, you get all the benefits of having your very own home spa without breaking the bank.

Available in a 4 and 6 person size, the INTEX PureSpa Bubbles are made for socialising. The temperature range goes from 20-40 degrees Celsius and both have over 100 heated bubble jets for the ultimate hot tub experience.

These luxurious, high quality home hot tubs are the ultimate garden accessory.

Explore PureSpa here – £575 – £700

Car Travel Accessories by HandiWorld

As well as joining up with some great brands to bring you brand new, innovative products, we’ve also expanded our own brand range to include a selection of car travel and organisation accessories that offer ultimate convenience for affordable prices.

Meet the car seat organiser, car boot organiser and dog seat cover, all from the new HandiWorld Car Travel Accessories range. All made with durable, reliable materials and doing the optimum job possible, whether you want to keep your car clean and tidy or super organised, these products are here to help.

Made with families who travel in mind, all three of these products are road trip essentials, especially if you’ve got children and pets on board.

Shop the new Car Accessories range here – £7.50 – £20

Now you’re up to speed with everything on offer here at HandiWorld, we’d love to hear what your favourites are, so let us know on Twitter or Facebook.

As much as we don’t like to think about it, if you’re heading out on a long road trip, you need to be prepared for every eventuality, including emergencies on the road and as much as we all like to think we’d know what to do if we were faced with a problem, when it comes to it, you might not.

We’ve put together a go-to guide to dealing with any emergency on the road, so no matter what problem occurs on your journey, you know how to handle it!

1. Always Turn Your Hazard Lights On

The number one thing to know when it comes to dealing with emergencies on the road is to switch on your hazard lights if your vehicle has come to a stop.

The only time this doesn’t apply is if you’re injured but if you’ve broken down on the hard shoulder, you’ve broken down and are blocking traffic, you’ve had an accident but aren’t injured or you’ve stopped to assist with someone else’s emergency, you need to turn your hazard lights on to let other drivers know that your vehicle is stopped and that something has happened they need to be aware of.

2. Always Carry Your Car Warning Triangle

It’s not illegal to travel without a warning triangle in the UK but as we mentioned in our Car Safety Tips blog post, it’s advisable to have a warning triangle in your boot at all times, whether you’re heading on a long or short drive.

Your warning triangle should be placed at least 45 metres to the rear of your car but never use a warning triangle on a motorway, even on the hard shoulder as this could obstruct emergency vehicles from approaching you safely. Warning triangles can be used on all other roads, including dual carriageways.

3. Dealing with Losing Control and Skidding

Losing control of your vehicle most commonly happens in snow but can happen in perfectly dry weather if there is oil or other slippery substances on the road, so you need to know how to deal with this situation.

If you feel your car beginning to skid out of your control, Churchill recommend that for a front wheel skid, you steer into the spin but for a rear wheel skid, you need to carefully steer into it but either way, you need to take your feet off all pedals to allow engine braking to take over and most importantly, stay calm and don’t panic.

Once your car has stopped skidding, don’t try and drive off immediately as you’re likely to be shaken up and this could lead to further problems on the roads, so if you and your car are unharmed, move your car to a safe place out of the way of traffic, turn the engine off and take a moment to calm down before trying to drive on.

4. A Basic Breakdown

There’s a multitude of reasons why cars break down while you’re driving and your priority when this happens is not to try and figure out what’s happening but to get to a safe place and call the professionals.

If you get a warning light come up on your car that signals a problem, pull over immediately; being reactive to warning lights can help avoid breaking down and allows you to get to a safe place and get help before the problem becomes a bigger issue. Once you’re out of the way of traffic, if you have roadside assistance for your car, call your provider and follow their advice from there. If you don’t, you’ll need to ring a local mechanic and ask if they can come and look at the problem and recommend a solution.

If your car breaks down when you’re driving and you can’t move to the hard shoulder or out of the way of traffic, you’ll have to put your hazard lights on and call a recovery company to come and assist you. You’ll also need to call the police to let them know your vehicle is obstructing traffic.

If you break down on a motorway and aren’t on the hard shoulder, stay in the car with your seatbelt on and switch hazard lights on. Do not try and get out and stand on the road as it isn’t safe to do so.

5. What to Do if You Have an Accident

No one likes to think about the possibility of having a car accident but you have to know what do if the worst happens.

The AA has a great guide to follow which outlines step by step what to do if you have an accident, be it big or small and it highlights the following points:

• Stop the car and turn off the engine as soon as possible
• Switch your hazard lights on immediately
• Check yourself and passengers in your vehicle for injuries, if you’re all ok and everyone in the other vehicle is too, get out, swap details and claim through insurance.
• If anyone is injured or the road is blocked, call the emergency services you require
• Always stay calm and never apologise or get into an argument with the other driver

If you don’t need to call the police at the time of the accident, The AA suggest that you call the police and report an accident within 24 hours if the other driver leaves the scene without stopping, you believe the other driver was under the influence of drink or drugs or has no insurance or if you believe the accident was caused deliberately.

6. How to Deal with a Car Fire

Car fires aren’t the most common kind of road emergency but they happen, so if you’re driving and your car sets alight from the bonnet, the first step is to turn the engine off and get yourself and everyone else out the vehicle immediately.

Do not open the bonnet or go near the area of the fire; if you have a dry powder or foam extinguisher in your car and can get it safely, aim that through the radiator grille to try and put the fire out but if you don’t or it isn’t safe to do so, get as far away as possible and call the fire service immediately.

Once the fire is put out, you’ll need to ring your roadside recovery as your car won’t be fit for driving without further assessment and may not be safe to drive at all, so do not attempt to continue driving once the fire has been put out.

Emergencies do occur on the roads but the best way to deal with them is to stay calm and think logically, panicking and reacting wrong can worsen the situation, causing a bigger problem.

Have you got any top tips for dealing with emergencies on the roads? Share your tips with us on Twitter or Facebook!

The summer holidays are often filled with long car journeys for both children and adults; from travelling to your UK holiday destination of choice to heading to a day trip location miles away, at some point in the summer holidays, you’re likely to be sitting in the car for a good few hours and that’s when some entertainment is highly appreciated.

We’ve all heard of the classics such as ‘I spy’ and ‘who can stay quiet the longest’ but if you’re looking for some new ways to keep yourself and the kids entertained in the car on those long journeys, here are some ways to do so:

Games on Your Smart Phone or Tablet

Not a popular choice with all parents but a reliable one nevertheless, if you want to keep your kids entertained for hours or even keep yourself busy for a while, playing games on your smartphone or tablet is an affordable and easy way to do that.

There are so many games you can download on your smartphone or tablet that are suitable for both adults and children to play and as they’re normally so addictive, you know you’ll be entertained for hours.

Some of the most popular games available on the Apple App Store that are suitable for adults and children to have a go at include Best Fiends which is a virtual puzzle game with hundreds of levels, suitable for ages 4+, Bloxy Puzzles which has over 30 mini puzzles to work through, creating rows and lines in the right order to move up levels, also suitable for 4+ and Looper! which is all about tapping the right beat at the right time.

If your children have got their own tablet and you want to keep it safe in the car when not in use, the HandiWorld back seat organiser has a space fit for a standard sized tablet to keep it secure when not being used!

Road Trip Checklist

This free game can be quickly organised in advance of your journey and is guaranteed to stop the dreaded question ‘are we there yet?’.

Provide your child or children with a sheet with a long list of things on they will probably see on your journey; you can add generic things you see on every drive and things that are more specific to where you’re travelling to and the places you’ll pass on the way. All your kids have to do is keep an eye out on the journey for the things on their list and whoever has a fully completed list once you reach your destination gets a prize!

It’ll keep them occupied for the whole journey if you plan it right and gets them interested in the world around them too!

Turn ‘I Spy’ On Its Head

A well made point from Telegraph journalist, Ben Hatch who wrote an extensive article on how to keep kids entertained on the road, Ben highlighted that ‘I Spy’ is actually not the best game as in reality, there’s not a lot to see out of a speeding car window, so flip the game on its head and play ‘I don’t spy’.

It’s simple, instead of saying ‘I Spy’ and the answer being something you can actually see, mix it up and say, ‘I don’t spy…’ and allow the answer to be pretty much anything you want. By changing things up and doing the game this way, it’ll last much longer and be much more entertaining for everyone involved compared to the original version.

Guess Who

Guess Who may usually be considered a board game but this version involves nothing physical, just the ability to ask lots of questions to figure out who someone is. This can get everyone involved, no matter how old and as much as you may have a teen who isn’t too keen, we promise that eventually, they’ll get into it.

One person needs to think of a person; it can be someone in the family or a celebrity that everyone is familiar with and one by one, everyone else will ask questions to try and figure out who it is and to make things even more appealing, offering a small prize to the winner is bound to keep everyone interested.

The Music Quiz

If you’re a driver that gets easily distracted by the radio, this may not be one to try but if you’re at a standstill on the motorway, a music quiz is a great idea.

Whoever is in control of the AUX line is responsible for playing a song for 10 seconds and everyone in the back has to write down the song and artist and after however many songs you choose to do, reveal the answers and find out who’s won.

It gets everyone involved and passes time when the traffic isn’t moving.

Staying entertained on a long car journey doesn’t have to feel daunting when you’ve got activities and games like these ready to use at any time!

Have you got any go-to games for long road trips that always keep everyone entertained? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter!

We love a road trip here at HandiWorld. The perfect chance to pack up the roof box, jump in the car and head off to explore somewhere new and with the summer holidays well and truly upon us, now is the perfect time of year to take on these adventures as a family.

We’re going to be sharing with you the best UK road trips out there that we think everyone needs to experience, so whether you’re from England, Scotland or Wales, we’ve got a road trip for you!

Scotland’s North Coast 500

A recommendation from Rough Guides, Scotland’s North Coast 500 trip is a 4-7 day journey made up of around 800km of single track roads, so maybe not one for the nervous driver.

The route passes Inverness, the Black Isle, Caithness, Sutherland and Wester Ross, so you certainly won’t be lacking on scenery to enjoy.

The best thing about this trip is that the likelihood of getting stuck in traffic is next to none, so if you’re an urban family looking to escape to the depths of the countryside and coast, this is the one for you.

Southwest of England’s Atlantic Highway

The southwest of England is known for being stunning, so why not take 4-5 days out of your busy summer holiday and explore the best the area has to offer by road.

This route covers around 275km of coastal roads, covering some of the best parts of Devon and Cornwall along the way and there’s also plenty of pit stops to be made to please all the family like National Parks, great fish and chip shops and even better beaches.

Another pro to this route is that although the track will weave you in and out of popular tourist destinations, sorting out accommodation on this road trip will be easy if you do it in advance or if you’ve got a campervan or touring caravan, find sites along the way to save yourself some money!

Black Mountain Pass

A perfect route for our Welsh readers or residents of other parts of the UK wanting to explore Wales this summer, Black Mountain Pass is one of the best-known road trips in Wales and takes you on a twisting and turning journey along the black mountains.

Around 23 miles long, Black Mountain Pass starts at Gwuan-Cae-Gurwen and passes through Brynamman, over the black mountains in the Brecon Beacons, returning to more civilised roads in Llangadog before finishing in Llandovery.

This truly rural route reaches heights of 493m and allows for some incredible photo opportunities if the weather is clear but be warned, this isn’t one to tackle in winter, you want fair weather for a safe and enjoyable trip.

The Wild Atlantic Way

Wild Atlantic Way is probably fairly described as one of the most well-known and established road trip routes in the UK, with its own website to help visitors plan their journey and make the most of every bend and turn the track has to offer.

The total route is 2,500km in length which is simply impossible to tackle in one trip, so the trip has been split into 6 possible mini-routes, including the Northern Headlands, the Surf Coast and the Bay Coast, so you can choose depending on what kind of scenery you want and what kind of drive you’re after.

There are 9 counties to be enjoyed along the way, so this is definitely one to put on your bucket list and chip away at over the years, taking on a different route year after year until you’ve got the full set under your belt.

Buttertubs Pass

A shorter route for those looking for something to do on a day trip to Yorkshire, Buttertubs Pass is a 5.5 mile trip from Thwaite to Hawes and is known for being a personal favourite of Jeremy Clarkson.

Although this C-road route is only short, it packs everything in you could possibly want on a road trip, including exhilarating descents, breath-taking flats and adrenaline-fuelled climbs, as well as some unmissable scenery along the way.

Although still challenging in parts with tight turns and bends, if you’re new to road tripping and are building up your driving stamina, this is a great place to start.

The Snake Pass

Another well known English road trip is The Snake Pass, an exhilarating drive along a stretch of the Peak District between Sheffield and Manchester, ideal for northern road trippers.

Thought to be around 14 miles in length and 512 metres high at points, many drivers pair Snake Pass with an infamously risky road, The Cat and Fiddle to test their driving skills and take themselves high into the Peak District scenery.

Not just popular with car drivers but bikers and motorcyclists too, this route has a lot of hairpin bends, high climbs and dramatic drops, making it an intense but breath-taking route. This is a fair weather route and not advised on wet or icy days.

Cheddar Gorge

A tourist attraction in its own right, the Cheddar Gorge road trip is made up of 14 miles of twisting and turning open roads through the West Country, ideal for the road trippers who are on the hunt for scenery.

Starting at Cheddar and working across to Ashwick, the Somerset roads in the middle of these two locations have plenty to offer in terms of great driving and even better views, offering something different for both the driver and the passengers.

An easy one day route, there’s plenty of time for stops on this route, ideal for embracing the culture along the way.

A686 from Penrith to Haydon Bridge

A popular route in the north of England, the A686 road trip will take you from Penrith in Cumbria to Haydon Bridge via 35 miles of great scenery, enjoyable driving and even some great pit stops along the way.

Often split into two sections to be a more manageable drive, Driving for Pleasure recommend driving from Penrith to Alston and then treating Alston to Haydon Bridge as a second leg. The two halves of the route offer something different but both to be experienced by any keen driver.

From dramatic descents to risky roads you certainly wouldn’t tackle in winter, any seasoned road tripper will feel right at home on this route.

Abergwesyn Pass

Not one for the fainthearted, you need to have nerves of steel and an extremely responsive car to take on Wales’ most tricky road trip, Abergwesyn Pass.

A relentless series of hairpin bends along a 20-mile track is referred to as ‘The Devil’s Staircase’, and that is a perfectly suited name as this single track, often open-sided road is risky to say the least but if you’ve got the driving skill and calm temperament to tackle it, you’re in for a once in a lifetime experience.

The Wicklow Mountains

If you want to take on Ireland in a spectacular road trip, the Wicklow Mountains National Park route is the right choice for you.

A 117km trip that will last around 3 hours with no pitstops, you’ll be free to explore the open countryside and mountainous zones while still getting some exhilarating bends and twists along the way.

If you’re wanting to make more of a day out of this route, there’s plenty of places to hike along the way if you want to get out the car and embrace some fresh air for a bit.

So, there you have it, 10 equally as incredible road trips across the UK to keep you busy this summer.

If you give one of these a go, we’d love to know how you get on, so let us know on Twitter or Facebook!

All drivers are familiar with the basic laws of driving; give way to the right on a roundabout, wear your seatbelt, don’t drive with a bulb out and so on but there are some more unfamiliar and plain weird driving laws out there we bet you’ve never heard of.

We’re going to be sharing with you 10 pretty weird driving laws that surprised us and we’re sure they’ll come as a shock to you too…

1. No Splashing Passers-by

Here in the UK, it isn’t polite to splash a pedestrian by driving through a puddle and it isn’t illegal but if you get caught doing that in Japan, you’re in big trouble.

Because of what they believe to be common courtesy in Japan, it has been deemed illegal to splash a passer-by with water or mud from the road, even if it’s an accident.

2. To Drive Wearing a Dressing Gown

A lot of us Brits have probably driven in our dressing gown once or twice for whatever reason but if you’re a woman and you do that in California, you’re actually breaking the law.

We’re not too sure of the reasoning behind this but if you’re driving around California and you’re female, make sure you change out of your pyjamas first!

3. Your Car Has to Be Clean to Be Driven

According to car dealers Wilsons, you can actually be fined if you drive around Moscow in a dirty car.

In the UK, you can be pulled over the by police if your visibility from the front or rear window is hugely blocked but in Moscow, you’re in trouble if your car is dirty at all.

4. You Have to Slow Down or Stop for Herds of Livestock

If you live in the countryside then you’re probably familiar with having to slow down for horses or stop for cattle crossing the road but in South Africa, you can actually get fined if you don’t slow down or stop when required for passing herds of livestock.

5. Women Can Own a Car but Not Drive One

Thankfully only a law in one country around the world but in Saudi Arabia, women can own cars but not drive them.

This doesn’t make much sense to us but that’s what the Saudi Arabian law states.

6. You Can Never Run Out of Fuel

This isn’t the case in this country but in Germany, if you run out of fuel on the autobahn, that is actually illegal and you will be in trouble if you haven’t been organised and kept your car properly fuelled up.

7. You Must Always Be 50m from Pedestrians

In Singapore, you must be at least 50m from pedestrians at all time and if you get any closer, you’ll be breaking the law and will be punished if caught by the authorities.

8. You Have to Wear a Top when Driving

According to Confused.com, if you’re in the driver’s seat of a car in Thailand, you have to wear a top.

No matter how hot it gets and Thailand can be pretty warm, if you’re the driver, you have to wear a top.

9. No Driving Blindfolded

We imagine you’re probably thinking ‘what?’ as you’re reading this but yes, in Alabama there is a genuine law that states you can’t drive your car blindfolded.

We’re unsure why there is any need for this kind of law but the Alabama authorities are clearly taking no risks.

10. Check for Children Under Your Car

We’re not sure whether there is some kind of problem with children hiding under cars in Denmark but it is a well known driving law over there that before setting off, you need to check under your car for children.

Whether they are sleeping, hiding or playing, if you’re setting off in your car in Denmark, you need to check there are no children under there.

There are some pretty strange driving laws out there and after reading all those, we’re feeling grateful for our straightforward British driving laws!

Have you heard of any unusual driving laws from around the world? Let us know on Twitter or Facebook!