EXCLUSIVE: Gogglebox’s Steph and Dom on holidays: ‘It refreshes you’

Steph and Dom Parker have been a part of Gogglebox since the beginning and have appeared in all seven series of the show, so it’s no wonder that viewers feel like they’ve gotten to know the hilarious couple quite well.

Fans of the hit programme will know that the pair own their own B&B called The Salutation in a town called Sandwich in Kent – however, it may be surprising to some that Steph and Dom prefer another type of accommodation when enjoying time away together.

Teaming up with Green Flag, the couple are taking part in a campaign to inspire Brits to make trips to Europe this summer and enjoy everything it has to offer.

Before they set off on their trip to France, we found out all about their previous holidays – including the time Dom wore a mankini…

Steph was quick to let us know that Dom would be doing the driving to Burgundy, France, for their camping trip and they wanted everyone to know that: "a. it’s very easy, b. it’s perfectly safe and c. it’s right there and a fabulous place to visit, as is all of Europe".

When asked if they like to visit other parts of the world, Steph explained: “I’m old school and love a long distance flight.

“I’d be quite happy to sit on a plane, turn around and come right back again. But that’s probably because I’ve been travelling since a very young age as my father was in the army and we travelled a lot.

“I think it’s good to look at something else with your eyes, it refreshes you and you can see new things.”

The couple have stayed in a variety of accommodations throughout their travels, including restaurants, pubs, and hotels.

But since getting older, Steph revealed that she enjoys staying in apartments rather than hotels so she can have her own space.

Dom explained that they’ve not camped together in their twenty years as a couple, but admits, “it’s sort of like your own space – a bit like a snail, you can pick it up and go”.

For their trip to France, their adorable dog Gigi won’t be joining them as she “politely declined the invitation” – and they revealed she doesn’t speak French, so might “get lost”.

Steph and Dom explained that they like to travel as a couple because when going on holiday with others, you have to be aware of what makes them happy and do what they want to do.

Steph sweetly admitted: “When it’s just the two of you, you can just do what you want and actually hours can go by when we haven’t said a word to each other and sometimes I think that can be the most intimate of times.”

Aww!

When asked which other Goggleboxers they would like to holiday with, the couple replied “all of them”.

Suggesting it would be like a Carry On film, Dom said they could get a double decker bus and drive to Greece.

We don’t know about you, but we think that could make an excellent Gogglebox spin-off show, don’t you think?

The pair have shared many holiday memories together, and one memorable story came from their trip to the Maldives.

“We had a disaster in the Maldives where it rained for the whole time. We had 45 minutes of sunshine and Steph missed it,” Dom started to explain.

“I was so grumpy and so upset and was sitting outside on day 8 or 9,” Steph revealed.

“I was OK until day 5 but started to cry around day 6, and I was looking at the clouds when Dom opened the door and said ‘Darling, would you like a cup of tea?’ and I said ‘absolutely I’d love one’.”

“I then turned around and there he was standing there with a china teapot and cup in a mankini! It was brilliant, absolutely hilarious!”

Steph also revealed that she lived in Paris as a young child, and feels that France is very much a second home to her.

So since Britain voted to come out of the EU, we wondered if this would change the couple’s minds on holidaying to Europe.

But, it was a solid no from the pair and want to inspire others to travel to destinations close by.

“It’s literally on our doorstep,” Steph said.

“I think people probably fear that it’s a lot of hassle, but today with international travel being high risk and with getting through customs in airports is – for all the right reasons – increasingly tiresome and the hours spent before you even get on the plane, I think it’s probably a lot easier to jump in the car."

She continued: “You’re on your own timetable, you can do what you like, how you like, go as far or as near as you want, there’s flexibility there. It’s going to come back into fashion I suspect.”

And her husband Dom, certainly agreed: “If you’re prepared, you’ve got your breakdown insurance, got your breathalyser kit, etc., then if anything goes wrong you’ve got backup exactly as you have in the UK.”

Watch the hilarious video of Steph and Dom preparing for their camping trip here:

Steph and Dom are heading to France to set up camp with breakdown cover provider @GreenFlagUK. To see what they get up to on their adventures, visit Green Flag's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or head to www.greenflag.com in July.