Guerrilla Traveler: Adventure Travel on a Budget

Budget Travel - Try Thailand Trains For Cheap Asia Travel

2008-07-18T12:14:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

I love Thailand trains and they give you a retro experience and they are more interactive than a plane as you can walk around do things like take a shower or go to the restaurant car. I know of only one plane where it is possible to take a shower and that is going to cost you a few bucks for the privilege on the Airbus A380 in first class.

You can take trains to the north almost to Myanmar or you can go into Malaysia if you are heading south, or you can get off and head to the holiday resorts near Phuket or the Gulf of Thailand beach resorts on the Thai Gulf coast.

When buying your tickets you want to have a bottom bunk and you want a car that is further back in the train, the further the better as you will be listing to the horn all night if you are at the front of the train. If you can afford first class and there are two of traveling then it is worth paying a little extra as you sleep better knowing that the door is locked and you trust everyone in the compartment. In 2nd class I always sleep with half an eye open even though I have never has a problem.

I figured out with sleeping on a boat that it is more comfortable sleeping in the direction of travel beam to stern as opposed to across the travel direction. It works out the same on a train as the Rocking side to side is reduced when you are sleeping with the direction of the train. There is more force stopping and starting then side to side so the first class is not better in that regard as far as sleeping is concerned. If there is a lot of rocking you are tense all night trying to keep your balance.

Things to bring to help stretch the budget with would your own coffee or tea which ever that you prefer. I buy Nescafe in the single serve packets, they last for ever and they take no space and it could not be easier to prepare. They are also a great deal at a touch over 3 baht a cup that works out to $0.20.

As they have hot water available on most trains in Asia I also purchase a cup of soup, I always get that in a plastic rather than a paper container so I can reuse it for the couple of packages of ramen noodles that I buy as well. It is 14 baht for the cup of soup and 6 baht for the ramen about $0.20.

I always make a point of stopping for some munchies before I get to the train station to save money there as well. I am partial to orange slices maybe for you it is gummy bears. You will want something to snack on the long ride. They normally have a food steward that comes around as soon as you leave Bangkok offering a set dinner and breakfast, 150 for the dinner, and 90 for the breakfast. I always try to take a pass on that although asking others they find it to be a nice meal. I do however go to the dinning car and grab a plate of whatever and feed my computer electricity. The dinning car is usually very entertaining at night as the locals all sit around and drink cheap beer and cheaper whiskey which they will ask you to join in as well which I am sure will result in a few laughs on your way on the train in Thailand.
Fred's new project http://www.CheapCharliesHotels.com/ where he reviews cheap hotels , budget guesthouses, discount accommodations and cheap international flights, but is really an excuse to go scuba diving on vacation more, Fred is in Phnom Penh Cambodia planning his next adventure travel tour. Keep up to date with Fred and to view some great pictures go to Cheap Charlies Hotels & Asia Cheapest Flights

Fred Tittle has lived and worked in holiday vacation resorts his entire life, from Lake Geneva's Playboy Club, as a rock jock for KSPN FM in Aspen Colorado, he became a PADI Pro Scuba Diver in Hawaii, diving on Maui, Kauai, Kona on the big island, and Waikiki on Oahu. He founded Eco Adventures South East Asia in Sihanoukville Cambodia. he still teaches SSI and PADI scuba diving courses and runs liveaboards in the gulf of Thailand and Asia adventure tours, http://www.ecosea.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Fred_Tittle

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

The Police Reunion Tour

2007-08-04T12:41:00.001-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

The Police are back!

Few bands have produced as many great songs as the Police. Their seamless merging of punk rock, reggae, and new wave, made them one of the 80s biggest and best bands; hits like "So Lonely," "Every Breath You Take" and "Roxanne" are now classics. And after two decades apart, Sting, Andy and Stewart are back together and will be touring in 2007. Don't miss this once-in-a-lifetime reunion!

Check out The Police Tickets
for a list of dates and concert locations. You don't want to miss this reunion tour of one of the best bands of all time.

And remember, when you buy through StubHub, you can buy tickets to sold out concerts and events, while everyone else is out of luck.

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Dirt Cheap, seven day Barbados Vacation

2007-07-28T17:16:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Start packing your bags now, folks! If you want an outrageously affordable, seven day luxury vacation package to the Barbados, the time to act is now.

Check out Caribbean Hot Deals for seven wonderful nights in Barbados, starting at $359 per person at CheapCaribbean.com.

But hurry! The sale ends July 31, 2007.

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Golf Vacations: More Golfing Than You Can Handle

2007-07-07T09:42:00.002-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

For the golfers among us, there is nothing better than spending an entire week on the links. So what better way to spend your vacation that to book a Golf Vacation package?

Check out the hundreds of golf vacations you can enjoy, and order as many free brochures on the various packages, at Golf Resorts and Golf Vacations - Order FREE Travel Brochure!.

These golf resorts are all over the world and come in just every price range. The free brochures will provide you with all the information you need.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Save on Travel Commissions

2007-07-07T09:42:00.001-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

One of the biggest complaints people have about booking their travel plans, is the high cost of travel agents' commissions, and even so-called "discount" travel web sites. By the time you book your airfare, hotel accommodations, rental car and various entertainment costs, your expenses can be jacked up by 50% or more.

But I was just looking at Directions Travel, which offers an annual flat-rate membership of $39.99 for all your travel bookings.

For most travelers, this should represent a substantial savings for even one family vacation a year. It's a great deal for anyone who is looking for a great deal on their next trip.

Check it out at Directions Travel.

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Video of Mondovi, Italy

2007-07-06T13:53:00.002-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

I found a wonderful "Video Postcard" of Mondovi, Italy that captures the simple, elegant beauty of this wonderful Italian town. If you are considering a trip to Italy, this is a glimpse of what you can expect in the country's unpretentious little villiages.

The video clip is on YouTube.com at this link.

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Over 30,000 Trails and Topo Maps - FREE

2007-07-06T13:53:00.001-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Have you been bitten by the hiking, climbing, backpacking or mountain biking bug yet? Then you've probably already learned about the need for good topo maps and trail guides.

The quality of these maps and guides can mean the difference between a fantastic trail experience and disaster. Not only could your vacation depend on this equipment, your life could as well.

If you are planning such an excursion, you should check out Trails.com and consider signing up for their 14 Day Free Trial. They have the most complete collection of trail maps and descriptions on the internet. Each trail comes with a detailed route description, driving directions, guidebook-quality trail maps, photos, and trail ratings and reviews from their members.

If you sign up for the Free Trial Membership, you can also find comprehensive information about National Parks, popular outdoor adventure travel activities, as well as packaged outdoor tours and tour companies for sports like kayaking, mountain climbing, scenic drives, cross country skiing, snowshoeing trails, and much more.

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Best of Barbados

2007-07-06T13:53:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

If you are looking for a VERY inexpensive vacation to Barbados, look no further. Imagine a relaxing week on a glorious white sand beach, watching the crystal blue waves of the Caribbean was ashore, while you "work" on your perfect tan.

Check out all nineteen BEST OF BARBADOS, 7 day, all-inclusive packages to beautiful resorts,that start at $359 per person. These are definitely not the type of travel packages that come around very often, so don't waste a minutes' time.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Win 3 Million Reward Points or Miles Sweepstakes

2007-06-30T16:01:00.001-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

What are you waiting for? If you haven't enrolled in Marriott's Dream Destinations Sweepstakes, do so now.

Until September 30, 2007, you can enroll to win either 3 million Marriott Reward Points or 3 million airline frequent flyer miles. The contest is open to U.S. residents 18 years old or over. Just go to Special offers @ Marriott
and then click to link to "Enter Our Dream Destination Sweepstakes."

You can't win if you don't enter!

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Get Hot Tickets To Concerts, Sports and Great Shows When You Travel

2007-06-30T16:01:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

One of the most popular things travelers can do on a vacation is go to see shows, concerts, sporting events and premier events while you are in a new city. Go to New York and see a Broadway Play, go to Las Vegas and people want to see a spectacular show or concert. And of course for the sports fan, there are always big games that only happen once in a lifetime.

But how do you get these hard-to-get tickets? The number one site is StubHub.com. StubHub offers every type of ticket to every kind of event imaginable, even tickets that are already sold out!

So make your next trip even more memorable, check out See Sold-Out Shows! Tickets Available on StubHub.com

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Take the "Da Vinci Code" Vacation

2007-06-29T08:15:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Are you one of those (us) who likes to combine your vacation with exploring history and culture? The "Da Vinci Code" Vacation is only one of dozens of exciting tour packages that will slake your thirst for seeing history come alive.

You will tour Paris, London and Rosslyn, the three cities featured in Dan Brown's book, The Da Vinci Code, along with daily breakfasts, private guides through museums, fascinating discussions of books and theology, along with several gourmet dinners.

You can order a free brochure on this and dozens of other historical and cultural travel package that promises, "This is a travel adventure like no other, full of suspense, art history, spirituality, mathematical puzzles and the glories of three elegant and exciting European cities."

This is only one of many wonderful historical and cultural vacation packages you can read about that all offer free brochures for your enjoyment and travel plans. Check these out and you will want to pack your bags today.

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Super Bargain on Caribbean and Mexico Vacations

2007-06-28T13:07:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Guerrilla Traveler is all about finding you the best travel deals to the most exciting vacations destinations around the world. Here's proof: I have just found a great set of all-inclusive Caribbean and Mexico travel bargains starting at $564.

When these packages say "all-inclusive" they really mean "ALL."

They include your round-trip airfare, luxurious hotel accommodations, meals and non-alcoholic beverages, entertainment, gratuities and taxes, and airport transfers.

The destinations include: St. Thomas, Jamaica, Puerto Vallarta, Aruba, Cozumel and more.

Check it out at "All-Inclusive Vacation Packages"

COPYRIGHT (C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.
budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Hurry! $50 Off Hotel Stay Ends June 30

2007-06-27T08:43:00.002-05:00

Want to save $50 off the price of your next hotel stay? Travelocity's Put the Vacation Back Into Summer: $50 off hotels anywhere!! sale ends June 30, 2007. You must book your stay by that date but your stay can be anytime.

Here are the rules: You must book your stay with a MasterCard and your stay must be for three nights or longer. There are over 1000 eligible destinations world wide.

Don't miss this offer! Just go to and sign up before June 30. And as always with Travelocity, if you book your airfare and hotel together, you can save even more.

Stay In A Castle Hotel

2007-06-27T08:43:00.001-05:00

When I was a boy, I loved to read stories about knights and castles and medieval history. I read and re-read Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Black Arrow," Mark Twain's "Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" and Howard Pyle's stories about Robin Hood.

If you share my love for castles and the middle ages, I have a whole realm of exciting vacation ideas for you. Check out Castle Hotels and Castle Tours - Order FREE Travel Brochure!" and learn about the dozens of castle-hotels that you can stay in when you vacation in Europe. These living museums will make you feel like you have stepped back in time, but still offer all the modern amenities and comforts for an unforgettable vacation.

Even if you simply like to collect pictures of these beautiful old castles, these free brochures will be a feast to your eyes and imagination.

Enjoy Mountain and Rock Climbing Vacations

2007-06-27T08:43:00.000-05:00

Few adventure vacations can match mountain and rock climbing, both as a way to get that adrenaline fix you've been craving, and for simply viewing the beauties of nature from the top of the world.

If this is the kind of adventure travel you are into, there are dozens of breathtaking free brochures you can order at Climbing and Mountaineering Vacation Packages - Order FREE Travel Brochure!". You can find out about mountain and rock climbing vacations eighteen of the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia and of course, Asia. You can climb the Himalayans and have memories to last a lifetime.

Check this site out and order as many free climbing brochures as you like.

Get 25 Great Travel Deals Every Week

2007-06-18T19:41:00.001-05:00

Want to keep up on the very best new travel deals each week? Sherman's Travel offers a great way for you to find out about the kinds of fantastic deals that will have you bragging to your friends about (warning: if they already hate you for some reason, finding out that you just went on a cruise for half of the usual price might tip them over the edge).

All you have to do is subscribe to their free weekly newsletter at This Week's Top 25 Travel Deals!">, and you will get one email per week on the most ridiculous travel bargains out there.

Great Savings On European Travel

2007-06-18T19:41:00.000-05:00

If you are traveling to several destinations within Europe, you MUST get a rail pass. Traveling by rail is the easiest, safest and most comfortable way to travel around the Continent.

And now you can save up to 50% off the price of a rail pass through "Rail Europe". Just click this link and find every affordable plan to suit your needs.

Have a great time.

Budget Adventure Travel Tips: Travel Europe With Low Airfares

2006-04-09T13:01:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

Europe has always been a desirable vacation destination. No matter what your interests are, Europe has something to offer. If museums are your thing, France leads that pack, although the Guggenheim in Bilbao, Spain is a must-see for art aficionados. Italy offers the culinary delights of Tuscany and the unparalleled atmosphere of the Grand Canal in Venice. Switzerland, Italy, and France provide winter sports enthusiasts with the best in Alpine skiing. To travel Europe is to travel in time, from ancient Roman ruins to the hottest nightclubs in Paris.

For many people, to travel Africa means exploring the great savannahs. Going on safari is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, filled with unimaginable beauty and the opportunity to see exotic animals in their natural habitats. Similarly, Westerners can travel Asia to immerse themselves in cultures vastly different from their own. The contrasts that Asian destinations provide - from the bustling metropolis that is Hong Kong and the high-tech Tokyo to the rural areas of Thailand and Vietnam - challenge and delight the senses.

Even as recently as twenty years ago, if you wished to travel Europe, travel Asia, or travel Africa, it would have been a pipe dream or one that required you to spend a lifetime's worth of savings. Today's global economy, however, translates into multi-city cheap tickets that can turn virtually anyone into a continent-hopping frequent flyer.

The Internet, of course, is the key to booking cheap tickets. Although individual airlines sometimes offer specials in international travel, third party companies are often the place to turn for cheap tickets. Their proprietary search technology allows them to link to dozens and dozens of airlines, and scour airfares at the lowest possible cost.

Once you've made the decision to undertake the adventure of a multi-city trip and travel Europe, travel Asia, or travel Africa, it's time to book your airfare. The best approach to securing cheap tickets is flexibility. The more flexibility you have in your travel dates and in your destinations, the more likely you are to find the cheap tickets you desire.

With enough flexibility, you can even take a trip around the world for the cost of a single round trip airfare with a traditional carrier. Why not start at a major airline hub close to home, and see where your adventure takes you? Instead of having your heart set on flying from New York City to Paris, why not go from New York to Zurich, and then book a short flight on a smaller airline from Zurich to Paris? Small airlines often offer cheap tickets without a penalty for a one-way ticket.

If you want to see the world, you should make sure to pack a sense of adventure. That, combined with excellent Internet sleuthing skills, can make your travel dreams a reality.

Chris Robertson is an author of Majon International, one of the worlds MOST popular internet marketing companies on the web. Visit this Travel Website and Majon's Travel directory.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Robertson

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

US Airways’ “Evil” Contract for Carriage

2006-04-07T12:49:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

I don’t have permission to reprint a very important article that just appeared on Travel Plan Idea Blog at http://www.travel-plan-idea.com/archives/003123.html, so I am attaching a link to it instead.

An airline’s contract for carriage is basically its contract with its flying customers. You may never see it, you may not know how to find it, but by buy a ticket you have agreed to its terms.

US Airways has recently updated its contract of carriage to allow it to get away with some pretty despicable practices in the name of “customer service.”

Stay informed and be warned. Read this article before you buy another ticket on US Airways: http://www.travel-plan-idea.com/archives/003123.html.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation, discount adventure travel

How To Get Airlines to Treat You Like a VIP

2006-04-07T10:48:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, discount adventure travel, family adventure vacation

In recent weeks I have read at least three articles about how poorly the flying public perceives the customer service provided by the airline industry. As a frequent traveler myself, I know how frustrating (and that is an extremely mild word to use here) it is when you are stuck in an airport because a pilot has not arrived on time, or a flight was overbooked or for any other reason.

But before I go any further, I should first put things in perspective. Since September 11, the airline industry has been on the ropes, financially. In the U.S. four of the five major carriers have filed bankruptcy, and not one of them has shown a profit for a single fiscal year. The industry has also reduced its workforce by 200,000 fewer people.

So, as this industry’s customers, we cannot realistically expect to receive the same level of service as we received before 9-11.

But, and this is a very important “but,” there is still no excuse for rude or indifferent behavior. On this level I am happy to report that of the two airlines I have personal experience with, American Airlines and British Airlines, their employees seem to be trying harder to be courteous, helpful and empowered to go the extra mile.

Of course this all boils down to my own personal perception, but I have generally heard more positive feedback from other travelers on these airlines.

Given all the financial problems facing this industry, how can one still get VIP treatment from airlines? Before I answer that question, I first want to say that what I am about to write in this article is not to offer pity for the airline industry or to excuse unexcusable behavior on the part of indifferent employees, but it is to offer advice in the context of the reality of the industry’s financial woes.

Let’s think about the old expression, “the customer is always right.” Clearly this is not always the case. Customers often expect and demand much more than they are entitled to. In the real world, no business can really act as if the customer is always right when customers want something for nothing. Can a restaurant give free meals? Can a store give away free merchandise? Of course not, and neither can an airline give free airfare.

But airlines are in the unique position to know which customers to give VIP treatment to: their frequent travelers. If you are a member of an airline’s loyalty program AND you truly are a frequent flyer AND if you usually travel on first or business class tickets, your VIP status with that airline will swiftly rise.

Airlines can track the profitability of each and every one of their loyalty program members. Now, what if a customer shows up and asks for special treatment, or expects something extra from the airline? If that person is not a loyalty program member, or is a member but hasn’t flown with that airline in over a year, or if that person only flies on deep discount tickets bought through an online consolidator web site, he probably will not get an extra level of VIP treatment. (He should, however, be treated with courtesy, respect and receive the proper value for his travel dollar, but he probably won’t get the VIP treatment).

Now suppose a different customer comes up to the ticket counter and travels every month or so on tickets in the mid price range. That person should expect to receive the extra request if the request is reasonable.

What is the lesson to all this? Simple: the airline industry will not be financially able to offer a lot of extra perks to all its customers for a long time to come. But you can upgrade your status with any airline by making it your sole carrier whenever possible. There are many people who are members of five or six loyalty programs and spread their travel among those airlines, usually based on the ticket price available at the time they travel. But if those same people were to concentrate on one airline, they would probably find themselves receiving VIP treatment more often.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, discount adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Traveling In Massachusetts

2006-04-06T22:28:00.000-05:00

Budget Adventure Travel, Bargain Adventure Travel, Family Adventure Vacation

When visiting Boston, it’s fun to see the colleges in Massachusetts. The state of Massachusetts is an excellent state, offering you plenty to do and plenty to see in your spare time. Home to the well known and well respected Harvard University, Massachusetts proves that it’s no stranger to a great education. Whether you live in the state or you’re just looking for a great education, this is one state that you shouldn’t overlook.

Among the many traditional colleges in Massachusetts, you have Becker College, Assumption College, Bay Path College, Hampshire College, and of course Harvard University. These colleges offer two and four year degree programs, giving you everything from your associates to your bachelor’s degree. You can study many different fields here as well, including law and engineering. There are a lot of other career fields as well, everything you could possibly want to learn.

The colleges in Massachusetts also include technical, career, and even vocational colleges. These colleges offer degree and certificate programs that directly relate to specific careers, such as art, business, computers, and even massage therapy. With most of these colleges, you can complete your training in less than 2 years. Some examples of these schools include Gibbs College, Career Education Institute, and the Boston College Center. Boston is the highlight of Massachusetts, offering you the most colleges and curriculum to choose from.

Even though Boston has the most colleges in Massachusetts, Cambridge is home to Harvard University. Whether you live in Massachusetts or not you can still travel here to receive a great education. Harvard University is the biggest attraction for students to the area, as it offers you only the best. The school has the highest tuition rates around, yet it has the biggest reputation. Even though many call it the best of all colleges in Massachusetts, the other colleges are just as well. There’s several to choose from, including everything from public to private colleges. When the time comes to go to college, remember that Massachusetts has everything you need – including the infamous Harvard University.

Any or all of this article on Boston and Massachusetts may be used if you have the url http://www.boston-taxi.com Thanks from Boston Taxi.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tomkin_Coleman

Budget Adventure Travel, Bargain Adventure Travel, Family Adventure Vacation

Europe Vacation - A Trip For Everyone

2006-04-06T22:24:00.000-05:00

Budget Adventure Travel, Bargain Adventure Travel, Family Adventure Vacation

Geographically, Europe can certainly seem a long way from home, particularly if you live in the Oceanic region as I do. Americans have a somewhat better opportunity to visit Europe than we do because of the relative proximity of continental Europe, but, we hear the expression "the world is getting smaller" and it is certainly true as far as more varied opportunities with air travel become available.

The days have long gone where you had to depend upon one airline to take you from one place to another. Global partnerships seem to have alleviated all those problems and with the press of a computer key, into the fascinating world of the internet, we are able to book the dream trip without having to move away from the hot coffee our travel agents provide while compiling our best and most convenient itinerary.

I suppose it is true to say that being originally from the United Kingdom, Europe vacations perhaps do not hold the mystery for me that they do for some of my neighbors and friends. As far as I was concerned then, a Europe vacation entailed a fortnight in Spain, Italy, France, Portugal etc, etc.

This does not alter the fact though that a fortnight in the sun was still a very attractive proposition after a year of saving and the length and inclement weather of the English winter. It was indeed something to look forward to.

My outlook has changed somewhat I must admit. My last trip to Europe entailed a stop off in Germany, with a wonderful five day trip through Bavaria and back to Northern Germany and Frankfurt for a Saturday morning flight to England. This was followed by a couple of weeks touring round the "Old Country" catching up with relatives and spending a week in Ireland, the birthplace of my mother.

Other people would have much more exotic designs on European vacations. Rome and Paris I guess would have to be two of the most popular destinations on the European mainland. Not surprisingly, since both these beautiful cities have so much to offer. It may be said that you could spend two weeks in either of them and not see everything in the tourist brochures.

My next European vacation is taking the form of 26 capitals in the same amount of days. Hectic it may sound, but if there's one thing to be said of a European bus tour, it's that your only requirements are to be able to get a good night's sleep, be not too deaf to listen to the tour guide's information and make sure you make the most of the wonderful scenery that Europe has to offer - oh, and have a good pair of walking shoes!

The magic of a European vacation will never wane, no matter where you live now. But attraction to it, if the truth be known, is not just linked to Europe. We all know that many places in the world have equal beauty - if only we could see them all!

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Europe Vacation
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Russell

Budget Adventure Travel, Bargain Adventure Travel, Family Adventure Vacation

Weekly Travel Deals Newsletter

2006-04-02T15:46:00.000-05:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

One of the best ways to find great adventure travel deals is to have the deals come to you. I personally subscribe to several email alerts that keep me on top of the latest bargains out there.

By far the best of these alerts is the weekly email newsletter I receive from Shermans Travel called, Shermans Top 25. They do a lot of the work for me by screening some of the best airfare, hotel, cruise and travel package bargains every week.

It is free to subscribe, and I strongly recommend it to anyone interested in saving money on travel. Just click This Week's Top 25 Travel Deals!.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Adventure Travel Job Opportunities

2006-03-31T14:27:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Are you a confirmed adventure travel addict who finds that making a living seems to get in the way of your travel plans?

Well, I have good news for you. Adventure Travel Discount has a list of places you can earn a living as a whitewater tour guide (also known as a “river rat.”), kayaker, scuba instructor, and even working as a children’s tour guide.

Check out his site at http://amazing.adventure-travel-discount.info/adventure-travel-employment-positions-at-white-water-rafting-companies-tour/ for a listing of these fun adventure travel employment opportunities.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Hot Off The Web: Great Adventure Travel Deals (Maybe Even Steals)

2006-03-31T09:38:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

I just got an email alert from American Airline’s AA Vacations that has some really great deals. So I thought I’d pass them along to you. (Please note, I do not receive any compensation for recommending these vacation packages.)

Right now, AA Vacations is offering 11,000 bonus AAdvantage miles if you stay at selected hotels if you book your vacation package between March 15 and April 15, 2006. You must travel between April 17 and June 15 or between September 1 and October 31, 2006. See there site at: http://aav5.aavacations.com/specials/mp_haw060309Haw10K.asp for details.

Here are some of the deals they are promoting now that qualify for these 11,000 bonus miles

Hawaii – 6 days and 5 nights starting at $700 per person at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort.
Mexico -- 4 days/ 3 nights at selected Barcelo Resorts, starting at $360 per person.
Ireland -- 4 days/ 3 nights at selected inns and hotels starting at $220.

If you are an American Airlines AAdvantage member and would like to receive these email updates about the specials they offer from time to time, log onto their website at www.aa.com, submit your email address and opt in to their "NetSaver" alerts.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Get Wet: Take An Adventure Vacation to Niagara Falls

2006-03-29T07:48:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

This was one occasion that I was a reluctant traveler. I had seen this place in movies, History Channel specials and pictures in books, so I assumed there was nothing more for me to see.

But the rest of my family wanted to go, so I drove them all to western New York State to see Niagara Falls. I was certain I would be bored into a comatose stupor within thirty minutes…after all, it was just water running over a cliff.

As we got within a few miles of the falls, I began to hear a low sound that at first crept up on me like the white noise of a machine you aren’t aware is on until it suddenly shuts off. But as we got closer, I became more aware of the sound.

It was a deep roar that was set at a constant bass note and I finally realized what I was hearing. It was the same sound that caused Jesuit missionary, Louis Hennepin heard in 1678, to investigate its source and become the first westerner to see the Niagara Falls.

This sound was what made me begin to grasp the enormity of the falls and started me thinking this just might be a little more than some water running over a cliff.

When we finally got to the railings at the edge of the falls, I was completely hypnotized, and I remained hypnotized for hours. At one moment my eyes would gaze at the entire vast panorama of falling water from the American side to the Canadian side, about a mile across. Then my eyes would just focus on the edge itself as 42 million gallons of water passed over every minute. Then they would gaze down at the swirling cloud of mist that rose up from the base. And then I would look up river at the rushing water moving inexorably toward the crest.

But it was the edge that held my gaze the most. I kept thinking, every single drop of water in the four western Great Lakes will eventually pass over this crest, flowing into the eastern Lake Ontario.

On the American side, the town of Niagara, New York is a seedy little burg that reminded me of an old carnival, long past its prime. Its heyday was in the 1950s when Niagara Falls was the number one honeymoon location for every couple in western world.

On the Canadian side, however, everything is clean, modern and reminded me of a park land. The Canadians are friendly, and offer a much better experience in every way. They host a thriving nightlife, restaurants, upscale hotels and the Casino Niagara.

If you don’t mind getting wet, you can take a ride on the famous Maid of the Mist, a very sturdy boat that holds 600 passengers and will take you into the mist below the falls. And let me point out, those plastic raincoats they hand out are essential.

Another way to see the falls is from behind. Take the Journey Behind the Falls tour down a 150 elevator into a series of man-made tunnels that allow you a view of the falls passing over your head.

As we drove back home that evening, every other family member fell asleep and I was left alone with my thoughts. Calling Niagara Falls just a water fall is like calling the Grand Canyon a hole in the ground or the Rocky Mountains just some hills.

If you ever find yourself within two or three hundred miles of Niagara, you owe it to yourself to make a daytrip to see these magnificent falls. It’s spell is nothing short of hypnotic and you will come home having just as much difficulty trying to capture the experience in words as I am having here. But it will still be worth the drive.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Pan for Gold on Your Next Family Adventure Vacation

2006-03-26T22:44:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

In the movies, the old Gold Rush prospector was a colorful character, who lived alone out in the hills (with maybe a single mule for company) in his Quixote-like search for riches. Unfortunately, he usually got shot just as soon as he finally struck gold.

History has always fascinated me and the sagas of the various gold rushes that spurred Westward expansion in the United States is more than mere footnotes in the history books. California and Alaska both became magnets for settlers as a result of the discovery of gold.

But if you think the days of prospectors are long gone, you are in for a surprise. Even today, you and your family can experience the thrills and excitement of finding gold in the very places where claim jumpers, back shooters, Indians and assorted villains made life tough for the old prospector (and his mule).

In North America, you can pan for gold in California, Alaska, the Yukon Territory and even Vermont, and relive the actual experiences of the old prospectors (minus, I hope, the claim jumpers, back shooters and Indians).

First, let’s talk about how to pan for gold. Below is a set of instructions I found on http://www.explorenorth.com/library/howto/ht-pan.htm .

How To Pan For Gold:

1. Find a pan - anything with sloping sides will work, or see a list of gold pan dealers below.

2. Choose a likely location - see tips and links below for ideas.

3. Fill your pan with sand and/or gravel.

4. Dip your pan into the creek, or pour water into the pan.

5. Shake the pan in a sideways, back-and-forth manner. The gold will now start to settle to the bottom of the pan.

6. After a couple of minutes of shaking, pick out the bigger rocks that are getting separated (make sure than you don't throw away any nuggets!)

7. Tilt your pan away from you a bit and start letting gravel fall out. Remember, the gold is rapidly settling to the bottom of the pan now.

8. Add water as necessary to keep a good "soupy" gravel mixture - it helps the gold settle.

9. Keep tilting the pan more and more, and letting the gravel on top fall over the side. The bottom of the pan should always be lower than the lip of the pan, though, or the gold will fall out.

10. As you get to the last bit of sand in your pan, adding a circular motion to your shaking will make the gold separation more obvious - not more effective, but more fun to watch.

11. The last bit of sand takes care, and is the slowest part - as long as you don't tip your pan too far, though, the gold will stay in the pan. The traditional declaration of success is "Bonanza!"

12. Get a small glass container.

13. Put your gold into the container - it will stick to your finger in the pan, then wash it off into the container.

14. Display the container on your mantel to impress the neighbors!
15. Repeat as needed.

Tips:

1. Don't use a teflon-coated pan - the gravel will wreck it, and you will lose a lot of your gold.

2. You can try panning anywhere. The best places are along creeks, particularly behind boulders where eddies form.

3. Although "black sand" (magnetite) is difficult to separate from the gold, it's a great indication that you're in the right spot.
Courtesy of: Explorenorth.com

There are several places listed on the web that offer wilderness tours involving panning for gold. All of them (that I found) will teach you how to pan and will let you keep the gold you find. The general impression I gathered was that finding gold is a sure thing, albeit in small quantities.

Here are places you can find information and locations to get started in your new life as a prospector (and you don’t even need a mule):

Pan for gold in the Klondike with Eureka Gold Panning Adventures near Dawson City, Yukon. www.eurekagoldpanning.com/ http://www.eurekagoldpanning.com/ , offers an adventure vacation in the old Yukon gold rush country. They promise that most people find gold in their first one or two pans, and you can keep all the gold you pan.
Nevada County, CA also offers a number of excursions involving panning for gold. Visit www.ncgold.com/Recreation/GoldPanning for information.
Gold Miners Headquarters is sort of a directory of gold prospecting information. Check this site out at www.goldminershq.com.
Another site where you can find gold panning vacation listings is, http://store.goldfeverprospecting.com/gopava.html.
I also found site, http://gometaldetecting.com/gold-in-vermont.htm, by a couple who spent a weekend in Vermont panning with a group. Did you know that before the California Gold Rush, Vermont was considered the place for prospectors to search for gold? I didn’t either, but apparently they all left when the bigger, richer gold fields of California were discovered, leaving a substantial amount of gold left in the Vermont ground.

Well all these sources should be enough to get you started and plan a really fun vacation for you and your family.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

The Secret to Getting Great Last Minute Budget Adventure Travel Deals

2006-03-26T21:09:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Have you heard the one about how you can get great deals on airfare, hotel rooms or cruise vacations at the last minute?

Well not so fast.

It is true that many last minute travel bargains can be found on the web, but it is not as easy as waiting until the day before an important trip to try to make your reservations.

First the bad news: if you want to travel on or around an exact date, trying to book your travel a week or two before that date will almost certainly result in exorbitant fares rather than reduced costs. If you have a specific time you need to travel, due to a vacation, holiday, family gathering or a special event; you are far better off booking months in advance.

The key to getting great last-minute deals is flexibility. Flexibility in when you can travel and how long you can stay.

Let me give you an example. My parents are retired and, because my mother is disabled, they prefer to take their vacations on cruises.

Last year, they got an email alert from a cruise agency, announcing a seven day cruise of the Hawaiian Islands for about 20% of its usual rate. But – and if you call this a catch, here it is – they got the email on Saturday and the cruise was scheduled to depart on Tuesday.

Fortunately, they were flexible with their schedule and were able to be on that ship when it set sail four days later.

There are several points to be made about last minute travel deals from my parents’ story:

First, cruiselines, airlines and hotels offer last minute deals when it is in their interests to do so. The cruiseline knew it had a number of empty cabins scheduled for the cruise that was about to depart. At this point in time, any cabin sold, no matter what the price, was additional revenue they were not going to have otherwise.

The same thing applies for hotels or airlines. An empty hotel room is a complete loss, and so is an empty airplane seat. So rather than accept a total loss, these companies will often offer travel values well below the going rate, just to bring in additional money.

But can you imagine what would have happened if my parents had called up the cruiseline asking for a reservation for that very same cruise just days before its scheduled departure date? Do you want to be they would not have received the same 20% price?

I think not. In all likelihood they would have paid morethan the normal rate just for booking so close to departure.
The second point is that my parents had subscribed to travel alerts from the cruise agency. This way, the cruise agency, rather than my parents, initiated the contact.

There are several third party sites on the web where you can opt in to such last minute email alerts. Here are a few:

After you have checked out these third party sites, you should also check out the websites belonging to specific airlines. Many times the best travel deals are not communicated to the third party sites above, but can only be found from the airline itself. Here are a few examples:

Once you log onto any of these sites, look for the place to subscribe to email alerts of bargain fares. Sure your email inbox will receive a lot of messages you have no interest in, but occasionally you will get the exceptional bargain rate on a last minute vacation you will remember for the rest of your life.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Make Money From Your Adventure Travel (Part One)

2006-03-25T19:51:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

What if you could not only cut the cost of your next adventure vacation, but turn a profit from your travel as well? Even better, what if you could turn your adventure travel into a high-income business?

If this sounds too good to be true, let me just say that many people do this every day. Yes it takes work, and planning and persistence (the very things required to succeed in any endeavor in life) and don’t expect to get rich. But you can expect to become a high earner and get paid to travel the world – not a bad way to live if you ask me.

There are many ways to make money when you travel, but for now I am going to focus on the big three: 1) Travel photography, 2) Travel writing, and 3) Importing items abroad to be sold on online auction sites.

In this first article, I am going to concentrate on travel photography.

Digital cameras have revolutionized the world of photography and have opened the doors of profit to average people.

With digital cameras, you do not have the expense of film to buy. Aside from the obvious benefit of lowering your costs to enter this field, no films also means you can practice your skills over and over again. Take a look at the photos shot by teenagers on their camera phones that they post on their blogs. You will see some very advanced skill levels on these blogs. In years past, these skills would have taken years to acquire, but with digital cameras the learning curve is much steeper.
Another advance in digital photography is the fact that they can now be displayed, sold and transmitted online. An amateur can set up a small website to display his or her photographs and be in business over night.

But what kinds of photos are most saleable to the adventure traveler? Here is a brief list of ideas I came up with, but you should not limit yourself to my ideas. Study magazines like National Geographic or other travel publications and look at what subject they buy and publish.

What to photograph when you travel abroad, in order to sell your pictures later:

Children. Take lots of pictures of local children. Show their activities, play and what they have to deal with in their lives. If you are taking pictures in an impoverished third world country it may be OK do take photos of sad, starving children for a news organization, but don’t expect to sell many of these pictures.

Instead, try to find, smiling, and happy children. If you can capture these children at play or engaging in activities unique to their local customs, all the better. Happy children sell photographs.
Beaches. I am assuming of course that many of your buyers may be in the travel industry, so you can well understand how saleable beach photographs are.
Scenic wonders. The more natural beauty you can shoot the better. If you can take a picture of the wondrous, multi-colored sunset, or the sharp spires of rock formations just off the coast, you will have some very profitable photographs.
Dangerous local activities. For the same reason we rubberneck at a traffic accident I the opposite lane, people are fascinated by pictures of someone kissing a cobra, wrestling a crocodile, running through streets full of angry bulls or balancing on a tightrope. If you see such dangerous activities, take a picture.
Local customs and local costumes. Readers of travel magazines are interested in what makes the people in other lands different from our own neighborhoods.
Historic places. Photographs of the peaceful fields where the battle of Waterloo was fought, the ruin of an old medieval castle, or even the grave of Jim Morrison all hold fascination from a historical perspective.
Tourist activities. Just the opposite of local customs, these activities are meant to entice tourists to come to enjoy sports like parasailing, or shooting through jungle trees on a zip line. If someone might be influenced by your picture to make travel plans to this place, you should be able to sell the picture to some publisher.
Nightlife. Tourists don’t want to go to bed at eight when they are on vacation. Take pictures of the places they can go to and things they can do when they visit this destination.
Places to shop. Another category of pictures that can entice visitors. After all, everyone wants to bring home a souvenir when they travel. Let your photograph show them where.
Unusual signs. These are more common than you think, especially when someone with limited English is trying to communicate to travelers. Signs also give local flavor and add humor.
Local foods. Can you take pictures of some of the exotic foods that are prepared in this destination? If your photograph looks scrumptious, it is saleable.
Animals. Nothing sets the scene of a local place better than indigenous animals. If you can capture the animal’s beauty, your photo will be valuable.

In part two we will discuss how to make travel writing a profitable business you’re your next adventure vacation. And in part three, we will discuss importing products from overseas to be sold online through auction sites like eBay.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Fairy Tale Adventure Travel to Neuschwanstein Castle

2006-03-24T21:25:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

No visit to the Bavarian region of Germany is complete without spending time at the famous Neuschwanstein castle, which is said to be the inspiration for Walt Disney’s Cinderella’s Castle.

Sitting high above the Alpsee Lake, surrounded by the towering Alps, the Neuschwanstein castle looks like a vision out of a fairy tale. It is said to be the most photographed building in the world and is characterized by its rising spires and towers and sits atop the Pöllat River gorge.

Construction began in 1869, under the orders of King Ludwig II of Bavaria, it was never fully completed by the time of his death in 1886.

For a castle, it was equipped with some very surprisingly “modern” conveniences. Each floor has running water courtesy of a mountain spring that is 200 meters higher than the castle. Additionally the castle has flushing toilets, which were extremely modern for the time.

Ludwig was a patron of the German composer, Richard Wagner, and many of the rooms are decorated with depictions of the Germanic legends he immortalized in his operas. Particularly, the Singers Hall, which occupies the entire fourth floor of the castle, is dedicated to the life of Parsifal, hero of one of Wagner’s most famous opera.

The castle rises some 300 feet above the village of Fussen, which is itself the highest town in Bavaria. To get to the castle, one must take a narrow switchback road up to the castle gate. Some 1.3 million people make this trip each year, making the Neuschwanstein castle the most popular tourist destination in Germany.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Make Finding A Great Restaurant Part of Your Vacation Adventure

2006-03-24T04:51:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Part of the adventure of travel is finding new and memorable restaurants at your destination.

One of my favorite travel adventures was eating at Asti’s in New York City’s Greenwich Village the first time I went to New York (many, many years ago). I was thoroughly impressed by the opera-singing waiters, the delicious Italian food and the wall of photos and autographs of famous people who have eaten at Asti’s (it was said to have been President Franklin Roosevelt’s favorite restaurant).

Whether it is a sidewalk café in Paris, quaint little pub in a small English village or family-owned place in Little Italy; finding a great place to eat and observe the local scene may be the part of your vacation you treasure the most long after you return.

But how do you find such unique places when you travel? Clearly it helps to have a friend who lives there or a knowledgeable concierge at your hotel, but what is the adventure in that kind of travel? The true adventure is in finding the great places yourself.

Fortunately the web is full of sites to help you find your way to gastronomical delights in a strange city.

For example, check out the Zagat Survey on www.zagat.com. When Tim and Nina Zagat started their survey, they didn’t take the ordinary path of using professional critics. Instead they enlisted ordinary restaurant patrons to provide their own opinions and ratings.

Zagat.com is a very versatile site. You can search for a restaurant by city, neighborhood, cuisine, what age group it appeals to, etc. Another interesting feature on Zagat.com is its, “show me more like this” button. One click on this and you will find similar restaurants in other cities and countries.

Another way to find restaurants is by searching the various online city guides. For example, AOL offers www.digitalcity.com, which includes a professional review followed by comments by ordinary patrons.

One of the most ingenious ways to find a good restaurant is offered by Michael Shapiro in his excellent book, Internet Travel Planner. Shapiro suggests using online forums to post a question about dining ideas in, say, Phoenix, Arizona. Based on his experience, you should very shortly receive many informed suggestions about restaurants in Phoenix in response. He mentions rec.food.restaurants as one group to log onto, but you can also find other groups by searching Google.groups.com

And while I am making a well-deserved plug for Michael Shapiro’s book, I should also mention another creative idea he suggests.

Once he has found a promising restaurant, he searches for reviews on a search engine. For example, he wanted more information on the Thirsty Bear in San Francisco, so he searched under “thirsty bear san Francisco” and found many online reviews.

Well that's it. You are now fully qualified to eat in a strange city. So go forth and make travel an adventure.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

New Hampshire: A Quirky Little State With A Lot To Offer

2006-03-22T22:01:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

I have been wanting to post some articles about New Hampshire for a while. Fortunately, Aldene Fredenburg has written these two excellent articles geared for thekind of readers who visit Guerrilla Traveler.

It was about ten years ago, while driving through the State of New Hampshire with a collegue, that I first got the notion of quitting law practice and becoming a travel writer.

The experience completely moved me as I gawked at the natural beauties of this breathtaking little state.

Unfortunately, while the effects of that roadtrip still linger on within me, I have not had the opportunity to go back since then. But hopefully Aldene's two articles will take us all back to New Hampshire.

Charles Brown--The Guerrilla Traveler

No one from outside the state knows quite what to make of New Hampshire; tucked up in the northeast region of the country between the more famously bucolic states of Vermont and Maine, it doesn’t really have an easily defined identity.

The state shows up once every four years on the national radar screen because of its first-in-the-nation presidential primary, though the Iowa caucuses have managed to steal a little of the Yankee state’s thunder in that regard. Everybody outside the state thought us native-born New Hampshirites were nuts when the Old Man in the Mountains, that wonderfully distinctive Great Stone Face in Franconia Notch, succumbed to centuries of erosion and the cold, and we mourned his passing as if he were a beloved family member – which he was, a sort of spiritual guardian watching over us protectively, now gone forever.

We show up on the news once in a while when some crackpot goes on a crime spree and then heads for Canada, generally right up the middle of the state on I93, and ends up getting caught somewhere around Colebrook. Other than those odd happenings, the state doesn’t really figure largely in the national consciousness.

Too bad. The little state has a lot to offer. An odd mixture of industrial and rural landscape, the mostly landlocked state boasts a ten-mile stretch of coastline featuring the carnival atmosphere, in the summer anyway, of Hampton Beach, and other more quiet beaches like Rye. Further inland, Manchester features a mixture of old brick factory buildings and more modern architecture, with spectacular mall shopping opportunities as well as more cultural offerings ranging from galleries to nightclubs and including the Verizon Wireless Arena, site of sports competition and other events, including bands on tour nationally. The city also boasts its own international airport, a sensible alternative to congested Logan in Boston. Nearby Nashua, the birthplace of the PC (personal computer), has Massachusetts-style residential and commercial sprawl, also with lots of places to shop, and an ever-growing housing market.

To the west, the Monadnock Region operates at a slower pace than the industrial center, but has its own thriving tourist trade, with plenty of bed-and-breakfasts, lakes for swimming and boating, covered bridges, and cultural events, from summer theatre to concerts on town commons. This area of New Hampshire has traditionally been a favorite for people with the means to “summer” in the region – the “summer people”, the vernacular calls them, or more recently, “flatlanders”.

Heading north, the traveler heads through Concord, the state capital, and within an hour comes to the Lakes region, with the largest lake, Winnepesaukee, a magnet for tourists. It and the surrounding smaller lakes, formed eons ago by glacial activity, offer a lively summer culture, with boating, fishing, swimming, and plenty of summer events. Further north still are the astonishing White Mountains, tall, jagged mountains reminiscent of the European Alps which stretch almost across the entire middle of the state from west to east. Popular in summer, they’re packed in the winter with skiers looking for challenging ski conditions. Some areas, like Waterville Valley, host ski events with Olympic caliber competitors; every so often, the state manages to produce an Olympic champion. From the mountains, past the presidential range and north of the town of Berlin, the land flattens out on its way to the Canadian border and Montreal.

And, of course, there’s Loudon, north of Concord, with its yearly motorcycle race, the oldest in the U.S.; for five days seemingly every highway and back road in the state teems with lines of motorheads, some on rice burners or Beamers, but mostly on Harleys, heading for the rally and then back home again, transforming the entire state into two kinds of people: the guys and gals on motorcycles and the rest of us who watch them ride by. The race takes place at what is now New Hampshire International Speedway, which in recent years has offered official NASCAR races throughout the racing season – a big story in itself.

Something for everyone, indeed. Maybe the reason New Hampshire doesn’t have a clear identity in the national psyche is that we have a lot of individual identities, distinct regions with their own flavor and a lively mix of people who manage to express their interests in an amazing variety of ways – all of which makes for an interesting visit to this little state.

Aldene Fredenburg is a freelance writer living in southwestern New Hampshire and frequently contributes to Tips and Topics. She has published numerous articles in local and regional publications on a wide range of topics, including business, education, the arts, and local events. Her feature articles include an interview with independent documentary filmmaker Ken Burns and a feature on prisoners at the New Hampshire State Prison in Concord. She may be reached at amfredenburg@yahoo.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Aldene_Fredenburg

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

This New Hampshire Resort is Geared Toward Family Vacations

2006-03-22T21:44:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

By Guest Author:Aldene Fredenburg

Taking kids on vacation can be a challenge. The trip to and from your destination can be a trial in itself, and once you get to where you’re going, how are you going to keep your kids occupied at the motel?

Indian Head Resort in Lincoln, New Hampshire, goes way beyond pool access. They’ve got an entire program designed for kids, with special programmed activities and kids’ shows; in addition, kids can enjoy using the facilities with their parents which include heated pools indoors and out, a game room, seasonal nature trails, and time on the tennis courts.

The resort also has a private lake where skating, fishing, and paddleboating are available to entertain participants.

Want to explore the area with your kids? Santa’s Village, Six Gun City (a park with a western theme), Clark’s Trading Post, and Whale’s Tale Waterpark are just a few attractions within an easy drive of Indian Head Resort. In the winter, the entire family can take part in all sorts of sports and other activities, including alpine and cross-country skiing, snowboarding, ice skating, and snowmobiling.

In the summer, horseback riding and mountain bike trails are popular attraction at nearby Cannon and Loon mountains.

Menus Designed for Kids
Kids can be picky eaters, and can be very insistent on having access to their own favorite foods. Aware of the importance kids put on food, the resort has developed a special kids’ menu, with child-sized portions and standard kids’ fare like cheeseburgers, hot dogs, pizza, and, of course, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. (The resort does manage to slip in some salads and other veggies!) That way the grown-ups can enjoy selections from their own, more sophisticated menu, while the kids can chow down on their own more simple fare.

The resort also offers a simplified breakfast menu for kids.

In Business Since 1917
Indian Head Resort began operation as a campground back in 1917; over a period of time the owners added some cottages, and then expanded to where now they offer a hundred spacious rooms (some with whirlpool baths), TV with HBO access, saunas, an exercise room, and spectacular views from every window. Located in the White Mountains, one of the most dramatically beautiful regions of New Hampshire, it can provide a relaxing retreat or a base camp for active exploration of the surrounding area. The Kids Deal program is seasonal, running from late June through August each year, and offers special family rates.

Aldene Fredenburg is a freelance writer living in southwestern New Hampshire. She has written numerous articles for local and regional newspapers and for a number of Internet websites, including Tips and Topics. She expresses her opinions periodically on her blog, http://beyondagendas.blogspot.com. She may be reached at amfredenburg@yahoo.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Aldene_Fredenburg

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

The Musical Heritage of Tennessee

2006-03-21T22:43:00.001-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

The State of Tennessee boasts two very distinct styles of musical heritages. The Blues were born in Memphis and Nashville is the epicenter of Country Music.

The Blues burst forth from Memphis when many black Blues musicians (and a few white ones) came from all over the Mississippi River region and brought their songs, styles and spirit of improvisation to the West Tennessee town.

Reflecting the times in the 1950s, the Memphis music scene can be best summed in the words legendary (and notorious) producer, Sam Phillips was said to have spoken. “If I could find a white man who could sing like a black man, I would make a billion dollars.” Eventually, he would find two, Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis.

As was often the case back then, many of the great black songwriters were paid paltry amounts to sell away all their rights to some legendary songs. But surprisingly one studio stood out for its very forward thinking. The Stax Studio was ahead of its time in that its list of artists were integrated, along with its management staff.

Possibly as a result, Stax turned out some very well-known recordings. For example, Otis Redding recorded Sittin on the Dock of the Bay at the Stax. Likewise Isaac Hayes recorded his Theme from Shaft, the Staples Singers recorded Respect Yourself and Sam and Dave recorded Soul Man.

Today Memphis still resonates with a unique style of music that is one half of Tennessee’s remarkable musical heritage. Visitors will find a wide selection of Blues clubs to indulge in, as well as festivals, such as the Beale Street Music Festival each year in May (for artists and dates, check out the Official Memphis Annual Events Listing) or you can enjoy a mini-blues festival with a spectacular view of Mississippi River at the WEFL Blues on the Bluff in July.

Also be sure to check out all the events going taking place on Beale Street at World Famous Beale Street, Home of the Blues.

A MERE 210 MILES TO THE EAST along Interstate 40, Nashville represents a different musical world. Nashville is a place where the old style Country, with its steel guitars and twangy vocals, and the newer, hipper and edgier Country of today thrive in an uneasy form of coexistence.

Long called “Folk” music, it was Nashville that pulled in the songs from the mountains and countrysides and broadcast them to the world. Eventually this Nashville sound would be become big business and it would come to be called, “Country.”

During World War II, the Grand Old Opry began broadcasting from the Ryman Auditorium, a former tabernacle built in 1881. Remodeled and refurbished many times over the years, the Ryman is still one of the major musical venues in the South, despite the Opry’s move to its own facilities in 1974.

Another great place to hear the newest artists and the newest songs is the famous, Bluebird Café where very new (and very good) unknown singers and songwriters perform before diners enjoying excellent food You never know at the Bluebird, if you are listening to next year's newest superstar. Check out the Bluebird Café at www.bluebirdcafe.com.

No matter your taste in music, you will find excellent performances in Nashville or Memphis.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Great Adventure Travel Ideas, Deals and Tips on the Web

2006-03-20T11:09:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

I keep running across great adventure travel ideas on the web, so I thought I’d pass them along to you as sort of a roundup of the best of the web:

Top Ten Travel Myths. Mark Kahler over at www.about.com exposes some really common myths a lot of travelers have. In this great article he gives you the real scoop about things like: when you should or should not use frequent flyer miles for vacation travel, whether being the low price bidder on an online reservation site will result in being treated like a second-class guest at a hotel and whether “duty free” merchandise are really bargains.
Summer Camp For Kids and Adults. While I was at about.com, I also found this article by Carla Land about some great summer camps for kids AND adults in North America. These camps offer everything from wilderness survival schools to mountaineering, kayaking, rock climbing, rafting, marine science and conservation.
Do you have a taste for a “spooky” adventure vacation? Then check out another post by Carla Land about several tours of some very haunted houses and other haunted tours. After all, what could add more “adventure” to your adventure travel than a few ghosts? Check out Haunted Historical Spots.
Safety is always an issue when you travel, especially if you are traveling solo. Be sure to check out this really important article by Cassandra Ingraham on Articlecity.com on How To Be Safe While Traveling Single.

Travel to Toronto for a Real Adventure: the Lord of the Rings Play

2006-03-19T20:29:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

You’ve seen the movies, now go to Toronto, Ontario to see the play.

I am, of course, talking about the upcoming production at Toronto’s Prince of Wales Theatre production of the Lord of the Rings. If you are wondering how the giant fantasy epic that author J.R.R. Tolkein filled 1000 pages and Peter Jackson filled three long movies, can possibly be presented on stage, you are not alone.

Reviewers, while acknowledging that the stage brings with it some inherent limitations when attempting to perform such a huge tale, have compared it to some of Shakespeare’s great battle productions, with action simultaneously occurring from one end of the giant stage to another.

In fact, director and adapter, Matthew Warchus agrees with the Shakespeare analogy. He likens the production to “a Shakespearean play and a Cirque de Soleil show sort of woven together,”

Then there is the problem of what to call such a vast production like this. Producer, Kevin Wallace is adamant that The Lord of the Rings is not a musical. “It is a hybrid production, because this is not any of those things singularly—it is all of those things.”

The Lord of the Rings already holds the distinction of being the most expensive theater production ever, running up a cost of more than $24 million. It makes full use of the Prince of Wales Theatre’s revolving stage, has a cast of 55, an orchestra of 18 and 17 elevators. NPR News reported that, “tree roots from the proscenium arch envelop the auditorium, actors fly and appear on stilts 10 feet high. There’s even a massive spider puppet.

Initially the producers wanted to open in London, but couldn’t find a large enough theater, but the Prince of Wales Theatre in Toronto was ideal. Lord of the Rings is scheduled to cross over the Atlantic in the Fall to open in London, and will not appear on Broadway for years.

COPYRIGHT© 2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

5 Great Resources For Traveling With Kids

2006-03-18T12:28:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Travel with the family is always an "adventure" for parents, but can you inject a little fun and adventure for the kids too? Especially when they are cooped up on long car or airplane trips? It just so happens the answer is yes, as these great online resources point out. Check them out to add sanity and fun to your next family adventure vacation.

The first great site is at travelsense.org, which gives advice like items the smart parent should stock for a roadtrip with kids. It also suggests involving the kids in saving items along the way for a scrapbook they can assemble later. You can visit this site at: http://www.travelsense.org/tips/children.asp
Sally at sallys-place.com has been through it all, and has some great ideas to share with other traveling parents. Her mantra is new toys and books. She says that newness counts for a lot and she always packs a bag of small new toys so she can pull them out whenever the long car or airplane ride seems to be getting to the kids. Read Sally’s top ten list of advice for traveling with children at: Top Ten List
Then there is momsminivan.com. This gal is really organized! She has included over 101 ideas for fun things for kids to do in the car. At her site you will find printable car games and activities as well as a plethora (I just love using the word, “plethora”) of ideas organized by age group.
At keepkidshealthy.com, the advice is generally related to air travel with kids. One thing I learned here that I hadn’t ever considered before was the benefits of having layovers or flying into small regional airports when traveling with kids. The layovers, she says, give kids a chance to get the “wigglies” out, while the smaller airports have smaller crowds and friendlier employees. Check out this site at: www.keepkidshealthy.com.
Finally, I was surprised at how good a resource Southwest Airlines has on their website. The section called “Taking The Kids” is full of informative articles on things like traveling as a single parent, getting a sitter away from home, making a museum excursion fun and even tips for grandparents flying alone with the kids. Surprisingly, these articles are not all about air travel but also include some good advice for when you travel by car. See
Taking The Kids

Adventure Travel in West Virginia's New River Gorge

2006-03-18T12:13:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

You are hanging onto a sheer rock face, hundreds of feet above the ground. You grope for your next handhold or foothold as you slowly make your way to the top. Suddenly, a little voice speaks to you: “are you absolutely out of that little bitty thing you call a mind?”

The answer of course is yes in a way. You have bitten by the adventure travel bug and there is no cure. All you can hope to do is keep feeding the bug until you are too old and gray (hey wait a minute, I am getting old and gray myself) to keep it up.

But at least you will have plenty of stories to tell your kids – unless you let go of this rock face.

I am thinking these thoughts because I just read an article called Adrenaline Nation in the April 2006 Outside magazine about the little town of Fayettville, West Virginia. It seems to me that this little town has more opportunities for adventure vacations than any other area of the U.S. (I welcome any disagreement to this point as your feedback will probably give me other places to check out).

For example:

Whitewater. There are several Class III and IV rapids open all Spring and Summer in the area. And in September and October, the Summerville Dam opens to create Class V+ rapids for those of you with stomachs of steel.
You can also take Kayaking classes offered by North American River Runners on the New River. Beginners can learn on tamer sections of the river, while advanced kayakers canget wet (really wet) in currents and the Class III rapids. Check out their website at www.narr.com if you dare.
Mountain Biking for those of you who prefer to stay dry (but don’t mind getting muddy, cut and scraped) The Fayettville Trail stretches 2.8 miles from town, while another trail called the Cunard-Kaymoor Trail is 7 miles and takes you around the Summerville Lake.
Rockclimbing. For the seriously brain damaged among you, the locals call it simply, “the Discombobulated.” I can’t help but think that is what happens to you if you fall off this 511 foot sheer sandstone wall that rises above the New River Gorge. I hear the view is awesome if you ever make it to the top. You can check it out at www.newriverclimbing.com.
But when the day is done, you will want to eat. Outside magazine recommends Smokey’s On the Gorge, a place known for its gormet buffet with wild boar ribs and a spectacular view of the New River Gorge.

If I still haven’t convinced you to steer clear of Fayettville, you might want to check out these other websites. Perhaps sanity will prevail:

www.usatourism.com
www.passagestoadventure.com
www.westvirginia.com
www.rivermen.com
http://www.visitfayettevillewv.com
www.discoverourtown.com/WV/Fayetteville

Avoid These 9 Costly Mistakes With Your Frequent Flyer Program

2006-03-17T23:21:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

All travel is an adventure, but one of the best ways to stay within your budget is to make the most of your frequent flyer program. Here are some of the most common mistakes people make with airline affinity programs, and how you can avoid them:

Don’t spread your miles among a lot of different airline programs. As a general rule, they do not allow you to transfer miles from one competitor to another, and you will never (OK, it will take a looooooong time) build up a lot of miles or status unless you concentrate on one airline.
Know when your miles expire. If you aren’t sure if your program ha a mileage expiration policy, trust me on this: ALL FREQUENT FLYER MILES CAN EXPIRE. Most programs will keep you and your miles on their books for 3 years without activity, but some have even tougher rules. See my recent article on How To Keep Your Frequent Flyer Miles From Expiring. The link for this article is http://guerrillatraveler.blogspot.com/2006/03/how-to-prevent-your-frequent-flyer.html#links.
Get and use an affinity credit card linked to your mileage program. Earn miles when you buy groceries, gasoline, dinner out, medicines, school tuition, etc. Whatever you spend money on in the course of your non-travel life can earn you miles.
Don’t neglect other non-flight mileage earning opportunities. For example, American Airlines allows you to earn miles by shopping online at places like Home Depot, Target Stores, Circuit City, and even Starbucks. They also have a Dining Program that allows you to earn miles for eating out at participating restaurants.
”Double dip” by using your affinity credit card when taking advantage of any of the non-flight opportunities above. Not only will your credit card pay you miles, so will the other partner.
Keep yourself informed about special bonus offers. Airlines will occasionally offer extra miles if you travel to certain destinations or take certain routes during special promotion periods. Generally you have to register for these bonus offers before you buy your ticket, so don’t hit your delete button too quickly when you receive email from your airline.
Which leads me to the next mistake to avoid. Don’t “opt out” from special email offers too quickly. There is often gold in them emails (or even traditional mail) in the form of the aforementioned special bonus offers, but also in the form of reduced mileage awards. ( Let me clarify: the special bonus offers give you ways to earn extra miles, but reduced mileage awards gives you reduced priced airfare when you pay for your flight with miles instead of money). But you must opt in to receive these email alerts because airlines don’t want to be accused of spam.
Know how many miles it takes to fly to certain destinations. The airline’s website will most likely have a chart or other explanation for you to refer to. Also find out how many miles it takes to upgrade to first or business class.
Find out about the elite status levels your airline offers. You should also find out what the benefits and qualification requirements are for each level. For example, if it is December 26 and you only need a few hundred miles by the end of the year to move up an elite level, you might want to consider taking a really cheap flight to get you over that last hump. It may just be worth it to you for the entire next year to enjoy that higher status.

Hot Air Ballooning - An Adventure Vacation For Every Budget

2006-03-17T18:31:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

I have recently been bitten by the hot air ballooning bug. I can’t think of a more exciting form of adventure travel than to either fly in a balloon or go to one of the many races and festivals held all over the world.

Below I have listed three different ballooning events for every adventure travel budget.

The annual Kentucky Derby Festival in Louisville, Kentucky is made up of over 70 events in the two weeks leading up to the famous horserace. One of these exciting events a piece of adventure travel you will never forget called, the Great Hot Air Balloon Race.

The competition format is a “hare and hounds” style, which consists of the event’s sponsor taking off first in the “Hare Balloon,” which in fact is shaped like a giant pink rabbit.

The winds determine the direction of the race as the other balloons take off in pursuit of the hare. The Hare balloon flies on until it finds an open field to land. The passengers then get out and place a large fabric target in the field.

The chase balloons then try to throw a small bag of Kentucky Bluegrass seed as close to the target’s “X” without landing. The pilot of the most accurate toss can collect a prize of $3000.

The Great Hot Air Balloon Race has become so popular that Louisville has become home to many hot air balloonists, as reflected by the fact that now one can frequently see hot air balloons in the Kentucky sky at all times of the year.

The night before the race is the U.S. Bank Derby Festival glow, which draws crowds as large as the race itself. While remaining on the ground, the balloons inflate in their launch positions.

Against the night sky, these hundreds of balloons light up and glow, displaying an assortment of colors as diverse as summer fireworks.

The Winter Alpine Balloon Festival: Imagine the balloon you are in rises steadily into the cold January air, surrounded by the majestic peaks of the Swiss Alps. As you drift over the resort town of Chateau d’ Pex, you and more than 80 other balloons and their passengers are treated to the awesome splendor of the valley below. This is surely the adventure vacation you have always dreamed of.

The Festival is hosted by Buddy Bombard and is one of the few such balloon festivals you can enjoy from the air. Not only can you be one of the passengers as your balloon gently drifts over the silent scenery below, you are also served an in-flight luncheon, which Bombards describes as “casual, but lavish, served with the finest French wine.”

You can find out more by visiting Bombard’s website at www.bombardsociety.com.

No article on balloon festivals would be complete without mention of the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta held each October. For 9 days, the New Mexico sky is filled with a collage of colors and balloons of every shape and size.

The Fiesta has been called “the most photographed event in the world,” and for good reason. The photos shot here appear on magazine covers the world over for months to come.

The Fiesta begins at 7am, when all 750 or so balloons lift off gently into the sky. And who knows, perhaps you to can be on board one of these majestically quite airships. The price to hop a ride during the Fiesta is $225. For more information, check out www.rainbowryders.com.

Links to Ballooning events all over the world:
http://www.balloonzone.com/balloonlinks.html

http://www.euronet.nl/users/jdewilde/

9 Ways To Cut Your Travel Costs - Without Cutting Your Fun

2006-03-16T08:57:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Here is a list of random ideas and tips I have gathered over the years on how to save money when you travel:

When possible, travel during off peak seasons. Across the board, you will find airfares and hotel rates are lowere at some times of the year and higher at others. The catch is that off-peak seasons vary from destination to destination, but generally they follow common sense. For example, Europe and North America's off-peak seasons are most often during their winter months. But watch out for special events that can throw a wrench into that rule of thumb.
Travel midweek. Again, you will get better hotel and airfare rates midweek than you will during the weekends.
Never place a phone call from your hotel room. Do not break this rule or the spendthrift fairy will come and slap you. As true as this rule is in the U.S., it is even more so when traveling out of the country.
Know the exchange rates wherever you travel out of your own country. Ignorance on this subject can make you a target for rip off artists or you may wind up overtipping. Yes, you might unkowingly make some hard working waitress' day, but the spendthrift fairy has plenty of slaps left over for you too.
If you want to eat at the better restaurants when you travel, eat there for lunch rather than dinner. You can enjoy the same food and same ambience for less.
Rediscover the simple picnic. You can eat your meal as you enjoy scenic parks or even from a bench in the city. Not only will you save money, you will experience more of the "feel" of the place you are visiting.
Take advantage of free or reduced-priced attractions. Research your destination before you leave home to find the bargains. Also, any hotel concierge with his or her salt will have lots of good advice for you.
Public transportation passes. Almost every city and country offers one-week or one-month passes for public transportation. If your travels take you to Europe, a Eurail Pass can enable you to travel all over Europe for one flat rate. Check out their link at Rail Europe.
Walk. Subject to your fitness level and the distances involved, you may have more fun and save money in the process by taking a walking tour around the city you are visiting.

Adventure Travel Without Nausea

2006-03-15T07:39:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

If you look like your passport photo, you’re too ill to travel.
Will Kommen

I’ve had diarrhea in forty nations.
Eugene Robert Black

I’m following up on an earlier article I wrote on how to stay healthy when you travel. It is all well and good to talk about adventure travel on a budget, but no one wants the “adventure” part of adventure travel to be losing your last meal far from home.

As an added resource, I have found several sites with helpful tips on how to stay healthy when you travel.

Familydoctor.org has a list of vaccines you might get before you travel, precautions against food that could make you sick and what to put in a first aid kit.
govexec.com has a number of tips for business travelers, including how to keep up with your exercise schedule while on the road, how to deal with jet lag, and the importance of getting up to stretch your legs while on a long flight.
There is a good article for cruise travelers on how to avoid getting sick when you go ashore in www.findarticles.com . The article, Stay healthy ashore: a little common sense helps insure a happy cruise offers some very good advice on how to keep your long-dreamed-of cruise vacation a happy and healthy experience.
Gorp.away.com has a whole section of great articles on this subject on Gorp Health Stay Healthy When You Travel. Since Gorp is particularly focused on outdoor adventure travel and tours, their site emphasizes staying healthy outdoors. Among the topics they cover are, avoiding acute mountain sickness, avoiding poison ivy and other pesky plants, preventing heat exhaustion and how to protect yourself from tick-borne diseases.

I certainly hope these references will go a long way toward keeping you safe and healthy when you travel. By all means, make sure your “adventure” travel is the right kind of adventure and stay healthy.

Top Tips for Round the World Adventure Travellers

2006-03-15T07:27:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Top Tips for Round the World Adventure Travellers
By Guest Author: Haydn Wrath

Here are 10 of the best tips for round the world travellers, courtesy of round the world specialists Travel Nation

From A to B to C Arrange the places you want to go in a rough geographic order. You don’t have to be going the same direction all the time, but you can save stacks of money by thinking logically about your route.
Work out your budget You can’t travel without money. Better to find this out at home rather than on a distant island in the Far East.
Prioritise your destinations Where do you want to go the most? List them in order to make sure you don’t miss out on any of the vital sights.
The world in front of you Have a world map to hand. It’s easier to plan when you can put a place to the names.
Getting the best deals To get the best deals, a rough rule is to avoid July, early August, Easter and Christmas. Your departure date from the UK will normally have a large bearing on costs. If you do have to leave in the busy season, book as early as possible. Probably the hardest flights to find are those returning to the UK in early January.
Travelling solo If you want to visit a part of the world but don’t want to do it by yourself, you might be able to join a tour. This doesn’t mean you have to follow the Brits abroad, rather it should mean you travel with an experienced guide and 10 to 20 other like-minded people. It’s often easier to budget this way too.
Being safe The Foreign Office website is a great place for accurate, up-to-date information on travelling safely.
Being covered There are no two ways about it…you need travel insurance. Travel insurance is not just about baggage and valuables. It can cover urgent medical assistance for which you or your family could otherwise be liable.
"Taking the kitchen sink Excess baggage fines" can cost as much as your airfare, so be aware of how much you’re packing. There are two types of baggage allowance: the piece system (two pieces of luggage both under specified weights) and the weight system (a combined weight of your luggage). Allowances will always be shown on your tickets. But remember, these might vary across airlines.
Have fun Travelling the world is about meeting like-minded people, seeing new things and widening your experiences. Above all, have fun!

Haydn Wrath is the owner at Travel Nation specialising in round the world flight tickets. Travel Nation has a wealth of experience in putting together round the world itineries.
For more information visit Travel Nation.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Haydn_Wrath

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Are We There Yet?'

2006-03-14T21:42:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

For anyone who has ever travled with children, help has finally arrived in the form of America's Best Value Inn's link called, 'Are We There Yet?'

The site includes advice for parents on everything from packing a suitcase and pre-vacation car safety, to creative ways to reward good behavior and prevent car sickness. The site also features activities, card game rules, sing-along songs, trivia, memory games, and educational activities that parents can print in advance to keep their children entertained while on the road.

"The printable games and activities on this site promote family interaction," said Peter Frantz, Marketing Director. "Being stuck in a car for an extended period is the perfect time to ask kids to put down the electronic devices and interact with the rest of the family. The time spent traveling together is what they'll remember when they are adults."

More Roadtrip Info On Big Sur / Monteray Bay

2006-03-14T21:26:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

I just recently wrote an article on the most scenic road trips in the US in which I mentioned the trip along Hwy 1 in the Monteray Bay / Big Sur area of California, and along comes this site called www.MonterayBayPlays.com.

For some reason I am always finding these cool sites after I write about a topic, never before.

Anyway, if you want more information about this beautiful spot along the Northern California coast, check out this great site.

How To Protect Your Luggage When You Travel

2006-03-12T07:15:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

OK, I will admit that a list of tips on how to protect your luggage from being lost or stolen is not the most exciting topic to discuss on a blog devoted to budget adventure travel. But if even one of these ideas saves your adventure vacation, it will be worth it.

The fact is that only a very, very small percent of travelers' bags are lost by airlines or other common carriers. They try very hard to get you and your bags to the right place on time, every time.

But that said, mistakes happen. And glowing percentages are small comfort to you if you have no clean underwear for the first three days of your trip. So here are some ideas that may help:

Lock every bag and add some sort of conspicuous identification. This can include brightly colored tags, stickers or colored strap.
Remove all old tags that directed attendants to send your luggage to previously-visited destinations. Why create confusion for people who are very busy sorting a lot of bags? Keep only the tag indicating the city you want your bags to go to now.
Strap any bag you have overstuffed to prevent your flashy boxers from spilling all over the airport. Unless you're just into that sort of thing.
Put any liquids or medicines in your carry on. If you have a prescription you must take each day, keep it close to you at all times.
Make a list of all you belongings for each bag and keep this list in your carry on. This way you will be able to provide the airline with a list of your missing belongings.
Make it easier for your bags to be returned to you by putting your itinerary in each bag. On each list, include each stop, along with the name, address and phone number for each hotel.
Don't throw away your claim check. Some airports require you to present them in order to take baggage out of the airport. Moreover, if you later discover something missing from inside your bag, you will need this tag to file a claim.
Lastly, inventory your bags immediately. If you report lost belongings more than 24 hours after your flight, your claim may be denied.

Hot Air Ballooning, Champaign and the French Countryside

2006-03-07T12:44:00.001-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Just suppose you are the type who would like a budget adventure vacation that would give you lifelong bragging rights over all your friends.

Let us further suppose you have a taste for fine champaign and the gentle sway of a hot air balloon taking you above some of the most breathtakingly beautiful sites in Europe.
If all that is true, check out Go Barging Ltd's barging-ballooning tours through the French countryside.

You can order a free brochure from the link above.

10 Ideas to Make Traveling Partnerships Work (For Everyone).

2006-03-07T11:57:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Make Your Budget Adventure Travel More Fun With A Group or Companion

There is safety in numbers. Not only that, traveling with a group or a companion can make your adventure travel experience more memorable and exciting (hopefully in good ways). Some groups form from pre-existing friendships while others form as a result of convenience.

Here are some tips to make traveling with companions a smoother and more enjoyable experience:

1. Involve all partners in the planning of your adventure vacation. Let each person have his or her say in what interests them, what places they want to see, etc. This is a good way to find out ahead of time if each person’s agenda is compatible. Better to find out now than when you are all in another country. But beware of the partner who avoids the planning process. Often this is the very person who later decides that he or she (along with everyone else in the party) must or must not do something later on. Don’t let this type of personality take charge over the whole group and ruin everyone else’s vacation.

2. Delegate individual pieces of your plan. For example, if your group is traveling to Paris, one member may be assigned the job of researching the Louvre or Notre Dame Cathedral. When you arrive, that member will then be your group’s tour guide for that segment of your trip.

3. If your partner is a spouse or lover, go the extra mile to include things that interest your companion. A vacation is often a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and your partner will hardly be in a position to go back to see the things he or she wanted to see later on if you start calling all the shots. Conversely, if your partner has a take charge personality, speak your mind and insist on certain things you really want. Choose your battles carefully, but making your travel experience a two-way street will strengthen your relationship and make the entire trip enjoyable for both of you.

4. Decide on all the financial aspects ahead of time. Determine what expenses are up to each individual and what costs will be shared by the group. Nothing can suck the "budget" out of a budget adventure vacation faster than inequitable financial planning. There may be some things one or two of you want to do that are out of the price range of some of the others. Do not feel guilty if this means some of you go separate ways on these days. For example, if you have been wanting to see a certain Broadway play, don’t let the others stop you just because they don’t want to pay that much money. Let them find an activity they want to do while you see your play.

5. Build in opportunities for each person to go their separate ways from time to time. Establish a rendezvous place and time, as well as each person’s itinerary.

6. Consider buying those inexpensive walkie talkies (you can get a set for around $49 at Wal Mart) to keep in touch. Even a set in this price range should have a talk range of five miles or more.

7. Assert yourself. Don’t let anyone else in your group take control to such a point that you return from your vacation with an empty feeling of having missed out on some of the things you really wanted to do. Speak up during the planning, and don’t let someone change these plans later unless you freely consent. If you are not by nature an assertive person, remind yourself that you may not ever get a chance to return to Rome or Paris or where ever you are traveling to.

8. Don’t let a committee mentality take over. When groups make decisions together, they tend toward mediocrity. This means you and your companions may find yourselves omitting the unusual or off beat experiences that often add so much extra zest to a vacation experience.

9. Pool your resources, talents and experiences. One person might be an excellent photographer or have the best photography equipment. Another may speak the local language, and another may have previously visited this destination before. Be sure to draw on what each of you have to offer to create a better experience for the whole group. (But be sure to compensate the photographer of the group for expenses like film if you all wish to have copies of the photos after you return home).

10. Allow time to get away from the others. In the end, this is your adventure vacation. We all need our breathing room and privacy, so feel free to tell the others you when you want to stay at the hotel or sit in a local café and just read your book. Sometimes even an adventure vacation needs time to relax before dashing off to the next adventure.

Include Swimming with Dolphins as Part of your Adventure Vacation

2006-03-06T21:44:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

If you are looking for an adventure vacation for the entire family, you just can't go wrong if you include swimming with dolphins as part of your trip. Dolphins are among the most loveable of this earth's creatures (kind of like the golden retrievers of the sea) and they interact with people in a way that is nothing short of blissful.

Your children will find this experience as exhilarating as you will, and I guarantee you won't hear a wailing, "I'm bored" from your kids when your adventure vacation includes an up close and personal encounter with these fun-loving mammals of the sea.

But in recent yours a number of environmentalists have voiced concerns about whether these encounters are good for the dolphins. In some cases, frankly, the answer is no.

There have been some companies who use captive dolphins, that may or may not be well fed or protected from human negligence.

One site called http://swimwithdolphins.information.in.th/ offers these excellent tips for protecting yourself and the dolphins:

Trim all your nails short: a dolphin's skin is easily scratched.
Shower to clean all types of (sun) cream or other lotions from your skin.
Make certain your pockets are empty.
Remove eye glasses, watches and (body-) jewelry.
Wear only a swim- or bathing-suit or shorts without zippers, and a T-shirt.
Let an instructor assist you when putting on the life jacket before you enter the water.
Do not dive nor jump into the water. Instead: sit down and slide in.
Do not attempt to swim under water
Do not attempt to walk instead of swimming in the pound.
Do not touch the dolphins unless the trainer indicates that you can.
Never touch the dolphin's head, especially the area around their eyes.
Do not feed the dolphins unless the dolphin trainer instructs you to do so.
Do not feed the dolphins more than the dolphin trainer instructs.

There are many places in the world that offer in the wild swimming with dolphins excursions, and these companies are easy to find on the internet. Moreover, depending on where your destination is, your internet search should enable you to find many low-cost adventure travel options involving swimming with dolphins.

But regardless of where you go to swim with these wonderful creatures you should remember that dolphins love to play. That's the whole basis of human swim with dolphin interactions.

The experience will by much more enjoyable, as well as safe for the dolphins, if the activity is centered around play and curiosity. Dolphins have come to trust humans and they enjoy playing with us.

This incredible dolphin experience will give you memories that last a lifetime. And your children will remember their intimate eye-to-eye contact with dolphins as one of the best adventure vacation of their lives.

How to Prevent Your Frequent Flyer Miles from Expiring

2006-03-06T13:19:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Many years ago, a car dealer I knew told me the story about a young woman who wanted her money back on a car she bought that had blown an engine about six months after she drove off the dealer's lot.

It turned out she had never added oil to her car in all the time she had owned it, but still considered the matter to be the dealership's fault. Her reason? No one had told her she needed to put oil in her car.

There are some things in this we are all expected to know (like the fact that a car needs oil), and the world has very little sympathy for us if we do not.

An example of this is: Frequent Flyer Miles expire after a certain length of time if you do not keep your account active.

I have recently talked to a surprising number of people who are shocked and appalled that their miles have expired and the airline will not give them back. Some of these people had been "banking" these miles like an airfare nest egg for that future day when they might want to go someplace.

Yet every airline has a mileage expiration policy. They provide these programs free of charge, even though there has to be a large cost to administer them. They do so to dangle out an incintive for people to travel on paid tickets with the promise that they will in the end receive a free ticket.

So please, if you are enrolled in a frequent flyer program, find out what the airline's expiration policy is and when your miles are due to expire if you don't have any more activity in your account.

While I was doing some online research for this article, I ran across another article by Erica Silverstein in smartertravel.com called, How to prevent your miles from expiring.

She provides a lot of excellent information you should know about, so be sure to read what she has to say. But let me also add one point. Since Erica wrote this article in September 2005, American Airlines has extended their buy back program for expired miles until June 2006. To my knowledge, this is still the only program offered by any airline to get your miles back once they have expired.

Cheap Travel – How To Save Substantially On Travel, Vacation And Entertainment Packages

2006-03-04T14:02:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

This article by Ross Belgrave just goes to show that there are adventure travel bargains everywhere. Here he shows how unclaimed travel, hotel or entertainment tickets can create great deals for you.
Charles Brown

Cheap Travel – How To Save Substantially On Travel, Vacation And Entertainment Packages
By Guest Author: Ross Belgrave

An increasing number of individuals utilize the internet to make travel reservations. Potential travelers often make their arrangements through the company or website offering the lowest prices. Popular sites such as Hotwire offer highly discounted rates on various types of travel packages. However, these types of sites do not disclose certain information such as name of hotel or airline until after the customer has made the non-refundable purchase.

Alternative travel agents generally offer similar rates to one another. However, it is possible to save significantly on your travel, vacation packages and entertainment.

Every day, thousands of tickets and fares become automatically discounted by companies due to unclaimed or unsold status. Tickets are discounted by travel companies and direct providers for a variety of reasons such as unclaimed status, unsold status, discontinued status, midnight fare recalibration status and more. These tickets are then sold to travel customers for up to 90% off the original price.

Previously, these types of direct discount purchases were generally only available to authorized travel agents. However, there are currently internet databases which provide these tickets for purchase to members.

Anyone is eligible to join these sites. Members are provided with a searchable database of discounted flight tickets, vacations, cruises and entertainment packages. Flights and cruises are available to hundreds of destinations worldwide on every major airline and cruise line. A variety of travel options are accessible, including trips to exotic destinations, family holidays, romantic getaways, weekend deals and more. Entertainment packages include tickets to sports events, concerts, theater plays and many more. Upon sign up, users are given access to the database which usually contains listings of thousands of available packages. Members book directly with special discounts through wholesalers, travel discounters, last minute specials and air couriers.

Unlike more popular discount sites, users are provided with full details before purchase. Buying through unclaimed ticket databases provides consumers with huge travel savings. Now individuals previously considering a vacation but were unable to afford it may now have the opportunity. Regular travelers can also benefit from the significant cost savings.

For more information on purchasing discounted tickets visit http://www.unclaimed-tickets.com.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Packing For Adventure Travel

2006-03-04T11:40:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Packing tips may sound like a mundane topic to cover on a blog devoted to budget adventure travel, but it is a skill that will pay off when you actually get to your destination. Believe me ( and I speak from experience here) there is nothing "adventurous" about lugging around too much baggage.
Charles Brown

Packing For Adventure Travel - By Guest Author: Rob Wood

There’s a funny scene in Romancing the Stone when Michael Douglas’ character meets Kathleen Turner’s character and agrees to take her to a phone booth hundreds of miles away. He simply refuses to help her carry her completely impractical luggage and a few scenes later goes even further by chopping the heels off her shoes so she can actually walk in them. This little fiasco encompasses the essence of packing for adventure travel. Less is most definitely more!

When in a foreign country it is usually pretty easy to spot the experienced traveler from the novice. The novice is usually dragging a giant suitcase or trying to lug a brightly coloured backpack that is even bigger than they are. They are dressed in the latest “must have” adventure gear from the most expensive adventure stores and have “trekking” shoes worth hundreds of dollars.
This is not the way to do it for several reasons. The first is comfort. You will usually be doing a lot of walking whenever you go on a vacation and walking with 50 kg of luggage is both tiring and difficult. You will also, most likely, be getting extremely dirty and ruining whatever clothing you take (even if it’s expensive “adventure clothing”) and don’t forget that some of your gear may even be stolen (sometimes by other travelers).
If you show up with all the best and most expensive gear you are also a walking target for hustlers and thieves. With all of this in mind here are a few tips:

Luggage – If you are going to be doing anything even remotely physical and walking any further than a few hundred meters, then a backpack is definitely the way to go. But not all packs are created equal! Think small and inconspicuous. Dark colours like brown and black will attract less attention than a bright purple or red pack.
Make sure it is the type of pack that has a flap on the top that closes over the pack’s opening to keep out water (the types that zip up WILL get your stuff wet). You will also want to put your clothing in waterproof stuff bags – I use standard plastic shopping bags, but there are tougher ones that you can buy from disposals and camping stores. You also want your pack to be as small as possible. Especially if you are only touring (mountaineers may need something bigger).
I use a 30 liter pack but would say 45 liters is an absolute maximum for general purpose use. You will be carrying it around a lot and if you cannot fit something in then you probably don’t really need it.

Clothing – Think light and breathable! Cotton is always good. Three shirts is usually enough because you can wear one, wash one and have a spare. Take ones with collars to keep the sun off your neck if you are going anywhere remotely sunny. For pants, I like cargoes that can zip off the legs and turn into shorts (which can also double as swimming trunks).
Dark colours are always going to hide the dirt and grime so that’s also a good idea. Usually, other than underwear and socks, I don’t take much more than this. Remember that if you need something you can always buy it there and usually for a fraction of the price than at home! Don’t forget to take some type of hat as being sunburnt is a real drag when you are traveling.

Shoes – Unless you are doing some serious mountaineering then you probably won’t need those $300 Scarpa trekking boots. In many poorer countries you can buy those $300 Scarpas at the local markets for $10 anyway, because some idiot tourist left them outside his door to dry and an enterprising local stole them to sell at the markets!
Think comfort – I usually go for Converse All Stars, but any type of cheap canvas shoe will probably be ok. On a trek across England my Converse shoes allowed my feet to get wet about 10 minutes before my buddy’s feet got wet – he was wearing the $300 Scarpas! Once again, if you need something better, you can probably buy it at your destination for a cheaper price.

Other stuff – There are a few things I will never travel without. Sunscreen is the main one because I REALLY hate getting sunburnt. A small multi-tool is often pretty handy too – don’t get a leatherman because you will lose it or get it stolen. You can often buy multi-tools for $5 anyway that work perfectly well. I also always take a lighter ($1 plastic kind) for anything from lighting people’s cigarettes to sealing the ends of ropes.

The trick to packing for adventure travel is to pack light, inconspicuous and cheap. This avoids you becoming a human pack-mule or a target for thieves and hustlers. You will also find that you will enjoy your traveling more because you won’t be so tired nor worrying about your gear so much.

There’s a funny scene in Romancing the Stone when Michael Douglas’ character meets Kathleen Turner’s character and agrees to take her to a phone booth hundreds of miles away. He simply refuses to help her carry her completely impractical luggage and a few scenes later goes even further by chopping the heels off her shoes so she can actually walk in them. This little fiasco encompasses the essence of packing for adventure travel. Less is most definitely more!
Rob Wood is a regular traveler to third world countries and helps run a site over at Polo's Bastards about extreme adventure travel. http://polosbastards.com

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Getting The Most Out Of Your Travel Deals

2006-03-04T11:18:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Getting The Most Out Of Your Travel Deals - By Guest Author: Stanley Emerson

The lowest and the cheapest travel deals are not always the best deal. Today, travelers could be overwhelmed by the numerous travel deals being offered. Therefore you should weigh all options before choosing the right one in order to get the most out of it.

The greatest secret to getting an affordable airfare or best travel discounts is to know your budget and what do you really want. Additionally, you should shop and compare deals until you run out of options and choose the best among them.

And importantly, always plan ahead. Nothing is too early when it comes to vacation planning. This will give you ample time to search and choose.

Whether you're a business traveler or planning a family vacation, here are some travel tips to save you money and choose the best deal:

Buy your ticket directly. Travel agents usually charge between $15 and $35 per ticket.
Buy your ticket all at the same time instead of buying one at a time. Booking fee may be discounted.
Booking for a package tour could be a wise choice for some destinations.
When planning a more complex trip, a travel agent can save you more time and money.
Compare prices online for the best deal. There are websites that help travelers to shop and compare. Some also provide travel tips and guidelines.
Play the seasons. Some travel destinations are cheapest at certain times or season of the year. Booking for an off-peak season also would give you the best deal.
Be flexible with travel dates and times. Some airlines and hotels offer substantial discounts if you book one or two days earlier.
Smaller airlines often have lesser fees. Additionally, small airlines don't necessarily mean smaller airplanes.
Alternative airport also could provide you with substantial discounts. Ask your travel agent about it.
Plan ahead. The earlier you book, the better deal you will have.
Buy trip insurance. Insurance will not only save your life but also could save you money. If you end up being sick in foreign country, your insurance back home might not cover it. Thus you might end up using your vacation budget on hospitalization.
Sign up for hotel and airline awards programs. Chain hotels usually have award programs; take advantage of it especially if you are a frequent business traveler.

Finally, never stop bargaining, always explore the possibility of lower airfare, lower hotel rates. However, it is important to weigh and compare all options since not all cheap travel deals will give you the travel value you deserved. Travel will be more enjoyable if you get the most of your hard earn vacation budget.

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budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

More Ways to find Discount Airfare

2006-03-02T11:02:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

By far, the best way to add the "budget" to "budget adventure travel" is to cut your airfare costs. In the article below, Neal Brown (no relation but I'm sure he's a fine person nevertheless) gives you more great ideas on how to fly cheap.
Charles Brown

How to Find Really Cheap Flights - By Guest Author: Neal Brown

Airline competition has always been intense, but there are more and more resources available today that allow travelers to quickly compare fares without relying on travel agents. Here are a few of the strategies savvy travelers use.

First, start with the major airfare search engines to get a base idea of the lowest rates for your trip. www.qixo.com , www.orbitz.com, and quickfares.bestfares.com will do the job. Next, you’ll need to cover the individual airlines that aren’t covered by these engines. Southwest is one of these, so check www.southwest.com .

Your next step should be to check the airlines website for the lowest fare that you’ve found from the search engines. Before you do, make sure the fare that you’ve gotten includes all taxes and other fees. Often you can save a little by going direct to the airlines website.

Your ability to find the cheapest fares will depend greatly on your degree of flexibility in departure and return dates, and amount of time ahead of the trip that you start looking. With the number of routes being reduced by the airlines in order to fly at high as capacity as possible, it’s even more important to plan in advance these days.

If you do have some flexibility, Orbitz will allow you to select a flexible date option which will enable you to scan for the best prices up to 3 days before or after a specified date.

If you have maximum flexibility then simply wait for a good deal. Orbitz, Southwest, and others will notify you when sales run on destinations you are interested in. Check a few of the websites for the airlines that you’ve found deals on up to this point to see if they offer any type of notification service on sales. www.bestfares.com is a good resource to check for sales also.

The next strategy is to see if any special deals are available for a group that you can be associated with. Seniors, students, single women, etc. often have websites that offer discounted fares.

One last approach that’s worth a try is to bid on priceline.com. Use the lowest fare that your search has found, then place your bid 30% below it. There are more hints and resources at www.really-cheap-flight.info

Finding the best deals on airline travel is fairly easy if you use a systematic approach and know the best resources. Here is one way to accomplish this.

Article Source http://articles411.com

Neal is a world traveler and offers more traveler resources at cheap flight .

View their website at: http://www.really-cheap-flight.info

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Boomers bypass ho-hum travel and seek adventure

2006-03-02T09:05:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Thanks to www.cheap-travel-ideas.com for reprinting this article, which originally appeared in Purdue News May 16, 1997, (see the link at http://www.cheap-travel-ideas.com/adventure-travel/1244/boomers-bypass-ho-hum-travel-and-seek-adventure/).
Although the article is a few years old, the information is every bit as true now than it was then. I know, because I am a baby boomer and I will throw things at you if you try to make me go on a boring vacation.
As the article points out, "adventure vacations" do not necessarily mean bungee jumping or skydiving, but are just as likely to include educational activites like hiking to ruins of ancient civilizations or visiting a rain forest.
This is a great article for baby boomers who want to give budget adventure travel a try.
Charles Brown

Boomers bypass ho-hum travel and seek adventure

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- The most recent explosion in the travel industry may have been ignited by aging baby boomers who still want to kick up their heels.
Adventure vacations for persons over 50 years old are one of the fastest-growing areas of the travel industry, according to Purdue University travel expert Alastair Morrison.

"We are seeing a large number of 'younger-older people' in the travel market who are choosing to go on adventure vacations," says Morrison, professor of restaurant, hotel, institutional and tourism management. "When they go on vacation they don't want to be passive; they want to do something."

He says these aging boomers also want a high-quality experience and have the discretionary income to support their demands.

A 1994 survey showed that 73 million American adults had participated in some form of outdoor or adventure travel vacation. The Canadian Tourism Commission reports that the typical foreigner visiting that country for adventure travel is a male over the age of 45, who travels with a companion.

Don't think that you must scale the Alps or bungee jump in order to take on an adventure vacation. Morrison says active vacations come in all shapes and sizes from the "soft" to the "hard." "What people are looking for is a special environment with a range of activities," he says.

Take, for example, the traditional vacation destination of the Grand Canyon. "There are many ways to see it -- hiking, biking, horseback riding, flying over -- you choose," he says.

Many adventure vacations include elements of another trend in travel, eco-tourism. Adventurers may choose to visit a rain forest, go birding or hike to Incan ruins. These vacations are seen as environmentally friendly, because they emphasize activities rather than facilities. "Adventure travelers feel more helpful and less intrusive on locals. They tend to need only smaller-scale facilities such as lodges or tents," Morrison says.

Because of the growth in active vacations, companies are packaging adventures to make them easier. "Hey, you may want to be active, but you don't want to work," Morrison says. Companies organize adventures for every interest and itinerary. You choose the package and they make all the arrangements -- they'll even cook your food and carry your equipment.

Travel magazines are packed with ads for everything from downhill skiing in Nevada to "tramping" about New Zealand. And because most people don't want to do the same thing every day, these adventure vacations combine several activities.

"People want to be on the move -- see something new every day and learn something. That's another key to an adventure vacation," Morrison says.

"Learning is an important part of active travel, because people don't want to passively take in what they see. They want the experience to be informative in a way that's educational."

If the thought of taking off on an adventure with a group of older people still doesn't sound exciting enough, why not take the grandchildren? "Grandparent and kid vacations are very popular as well," he says. "Today's grandparents enjoy travel and want to do something special with their grandkids. Adventure vacations appeal to both generations."

Source: Alastair Morrison, (765) 494-7905; e-mail, alastair@vm.cc.purdue.edu;
Web, http://omni.cc.purdue.edu/~alltson/Alastair.html
Writer: Beth Forbes, (765) 494-9723; e-mail; beth_forbes@uns.purdue.eduPurdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@uns.purdue.edu

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Holland Travel – Amsterdam, Van Gogh, Anne Frank

2006-03-01T11:45:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

By Guest Author: Nomad Rick

Holland certainly has a reputation with travelers. Known for having a very liberal attitude on social issues such as prostitution and drugs, the reputation is not always deserved. Yes, marijuana and prostitution is legal, but there is so much more to the country. Many look at Amsterdam as Holland, but visitors know there is much more. If you desire to travel to Holland, also known as the Netherlands, don’t miss these attractions.

Amsterdam

Simply put, Amsterdam has something for everyone. The city is an incredibly beautiful collection of old world European architecture elegantly partitioned by canals. In truth, the city is built on roughly 90 small islands, although you can hardly tell. Transportation is best undertaken on foot or by bicycle. With a cool climate, you’ll barely break a sweat.

Contrary to popular opinion, Amsterdam is not just a city of liberal policies. Yes, coffee bars sell things other then just coffee. Yes, there are women in windows that are awfully friendly. Still, there is so much more to experience in the city.

Van Gogh Museum

The Rijksmuseum Vincent van Gogh houses the world's largest collection of the work of Vincent van Gogh. From his early work, the museum contains 700 artistic works and 850 letters. After moving to Paris in 1886, van Gogh entered an impressionist period, of which the museum contains a large collection. Perhaps the most interesting thing about the collection is the organization. The entire collection is arranged chronologically from the first to last work. As you walk, you can clearly see the evolution of this master’s skill.

Anne Frank House

Who hasn’t read the intense diary of Anne Frank? Hiding from the Nazis, she and her family lived in an annexed section of an apartment in Amsterdam for two years. In 1957, the house was donated to the Anne Frank Foundation and turned into a museum. A visit will send chills through your spine. The museum contains films, the annexed area and the original notes of Anne Frank. A must see for anyone traveling to Amsterdam.

Beyond Amsterdam

For those needing a break from Amsterdam, there is much to be seen in Holland. If you are looking for a color explosion, consider taking the bulb cycling tour out of Noordwijk. Windmills your thing? Head to the De Zaan district to see them in action. Prefer to spend a night in a castle? Try the Castle Hotel Engelenburg, which even lets you ruin a good walk by playing golf.

Travel to Holland and you won’t regret it. Whether you want to “investigate” the countries liberal policies or simply bike through fields of tulips, Holland will satisfy.

Holland certainly has a reputation with travelers. If you desire to travel to Holland, also known as the Netherlands, don’t miss these attractions.

Rick Chapo is with Nomad Journals - makers of travel journals. Visit NomadJournalTrips.com for more articles on travel in Holland and Adventure Travel.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Choosing Your Best Travel Destination

2006-03-01T11:13:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

What a shame for people to spend hard-earned money to take a vacation and come back with anything less than wonderful memories. I have two rules I "preach" on repeatedly: 1) Have fun, and 2) Save money. Hence my theme of "budget adventure travel."
In the article below, Stanley Emerson gives you some tips on how to plan your vacation so you don't return with that feeling your trip was too ordinary.
Charles Brown

Choosing Your Best Travel Destination - By Guest Author: Stanley Emerson

If you are planning to take a vacation, be sure to know what you really like to do, this will make your trip more meaningful. Mostly, travelers go for a trip that their friends recommend, but is it what they really want? It's never too early to plan and know what your heart desires.

It's nice to ask yourself these questions before starting to plan your vacation; do I want to relax? Do I want adventure or a learning experience? Do I want to get away from my job? Once you know the answers to these questions, then you are ready to plan your trip.

Vacations are needed for our emotional, physical and mental balance. Vacations give a person a chance to relax, renew his energy, and free him from his daily routine. Vacations could be far away or close to home. Wherever the vacation may be, it does the same thing. It is the satisfaction that is more important than the destination.

Generally, there are some different types of travel according to activities involved. Here are some of them:

1. Responsible Travel. Traveling doesn't always have to be self-serving. With responsible travel, one could have enjoyment as much as respecting the local environment and the people.

2. Rediscovering nature. Rediscovering travel is all about nature and everything in it. It revitalizes the soul while smelling and feeling nature.

3. Tribal cultures. In today's world of high technology, it is wise to experience the simpler life of the tribal people who live close to nature in the same way for the past thousands of years.

4. Responsible Diving. Diving not only lets travelers appreciate what is down the sea but also making the traveler more aware of the conservation effort.

The country one is planning to travel to also leaves a great mark on the traveler's diary. Here are some of the most popular destinations today:

1. Thailand. Thailand is also known as Siam. It is an Asian country bounded by Burma, Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia. Behind the back draft of Thailand's jungles of bamboo, rubber trees and vines are the Five-star hotels of modern conveniences. In some parts of the country, elephants are still being use to lift timbers and buffalos are still being use in farming.

2. China. China is now the second largest country and fastest growing economy in the world. Most parts of China are still unexplored by tourist; however, the eastern portion is now popular to western tourist. First class hotels now offer highest class of amenities and dozens are still being built/

3. Italy. Italy is a boot-like shape country bounded by Switzerland, Austria, France, and Slovenia. The main attraction of Italy is St. Peter's Square where the Pope resides.

4. Caribbean. Caribbean is an archipelago of islands, 2000 square miles across. Most of the islands are plateaus and eruptions of underlying mountain systems. It has nice beaches of crushed coral and white or pink sand and the water at the shore is a deep blue.

The success of any vacation will not depend by how much the traveler spent or its destination. It is how the traveler enjoyed it and how he was able to achieve his primary goal of "getting away from it all."

If you are planning to take a vacation, be sure to know what you really like to do, this will make your trip more meaningful. Mostly, travelers go for a trip that their friends recommend, but is it what they really want? It's never too early to plan and know what your heart desires.

It's nice to ask yourself these questions before starting to plan your vacation; do I want to relax? Do I want adventure or a learning experience? Do I want to get away from my job? Once you k...

Article Source http://articles411.com

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budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Adventures in skydiving

2006-02-28T16:42:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

One of the unexpected things I have discovered about blogging on the topic of budget adventure travel is that a lot of people out there define "adventure travel" a lot differently than I do.
For example, I personally define skydiving as "crazy," "insane," or if I am really being charitable, "looney."
But, as a serious blogger, i still have a duty to bring you all kinds of information on a variety of budget adventure travel options. Including jumping out of a perfectly good airplane.
Charles Brown

Great Skydiving Tips for Beginners
By Guest Author: Ispas Marin

Anyone that wants to skydive for the first time trying to became an experienced skydiver have to first understand the basic rules and all the risks that exist in skydiving. Doing it, the level of risks in this sport will be greatly reduced.

Like all extreme sports, this one has an age restriction too, set at 18 years. Not even a parent can't sign documents in order for a minor to jump. 18 years or older, no exceptions here. In order to be 100% sure that your landing will not bring up any problems, you must weight not more than 250 pounds.

You need to be in good health even if skydiving is not very demanding from this point of view. If you can pull your chute line, you can skydive at it's best, and this was never a problem for people.

Some teachers could let you do your first jump all alone if you want. Usually you can make your first jump after 5 to 6 hours of ground training. You can do your ground training and your first jump in the same day. You should never wear clothes that will limit your moves, sandals or open toed shoes.

You should always wear clothes you best feel in and running shoes. You can also bring with you glasses or contacts, the goggles you will be provided with, will fit over with no problem. Your skydiving jump will consist of 30 seconds of free fall and 30 second to land.

Most people feel the free falling like a great flying experience.

Even if skydiving as a sport, involves risks, if you are good trained you can call skydiving a very safe sport because bad injures and death are unlikely.
You will just have to learn learn and learn all you can about this great extreme sport and you will do great. Discuss every aspect of this sport with your friends, family or any other experienced skydiver and you will grow in knowledge, you will develop your skills and in the same time you will be more secure of yourself.

Article Source: http://www.mydolittle.com/articles
For all the tips you need for your skydiving experience just visit our learn skydiving/ site. Also, you can check out our skydiving equipment page.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Does rock climbing fit into your adventure travel plans?

2006-02-28T15:41:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

What could fit the definition of "budget adventure travel" more than rock climbing? The cost is extremely low. Once you buy the basic equipment, you can use them over and over. After all that all you need is a wall.

And talk about adventure. It is you, the wall and gravity. But let's not think about gravity. There are better things to think about when you are 90 feet in the air.

Anyway, check out his great article by Jack Smith if you want to get started in this really fun sport.

Charles Brown

Introduction To Rock Climbing
By Guest Author: Jack Smith

If you have ever been rock climbing before then you will know that it is not a very easy sport, in fact you probably felt quite defeated when you first tried to do any serious climbing. Indoor and outdoor rock climbing are both extremely demanding and require practice, like anything else, to get good at.

Depending on what type of climbing you have tried you most likely noticed that you got an incredible workout in a very short period of time. What most people don’t know is that the sport of rock climbing is one of the most physically and mentally demanding sports there is.

There are 3 basic types of rock climbing. Top roping is probably one of the most common types and is basically climbing with a partner. The partner belays you on the ground and a rope runs from his harness up to the top of the wall then around a pulley and back down and attaches to the climbers harness.

The second type, which is very similar to top roping is called lead climbing. The buddy system works the same way, one man on the ground belaying and the other climbing, but this time instead of the rope being at the top of the wall it has to be hooked into clasps as the climber ascends up the wall.

In both of these types of rock climbing the climber has the luxury to sit off the wall and rest on the rope, however, lead climbing requires the climber to hang from the wall from one hand, grab the rope, and pull it up to clip it into the clasps, this can be very hard depending on many different things.

The third type of rock climbing is called bouldering. Bouldering is a type of free climbing without any ropes or harnesses. The climber tends to stay much closer to the ground and climbs around the wall more so then up the wall. This is the most demanding of all climbing. The climber must be able to complete the route without taking a rest on the rope. Often, during a bouldering route the climber is required to do a maneuver called a dyno. Dynos are basically launching yourself off the wall, and then grabbing onto a hold further away from you. This type of maneuver is where mental training plays a major role in climbing.

Believe it or not, climbing is said to be about 75% legs and only 25% arms. To climb efficiently and successfully one must use wonderful technique. One of the major rules of rock climbing is to always have 3 points touching the wall.... whether it is both feet and one hand, or one foot and both hands, it is much easier to have your weight distributed on 3 points than it is 2.

Another important concept to grasp is that your arms in most cases will not do the climbing; they only hold you into the wall so that your legs are actually pushing you upward. The closer you are to the wall, the easier it is to climb.

Rock climbing may sound like a bit too extreme for the every day person but it really is an amazing work out. Once you get into the sport, and start to learn how to position your body and distribute your weight you can begin to tackle some difficult problems. The great thing about rock climb is that it is mentally challenging as well, those who like games like chess or like to problem solve would love rock climbing. You are constantly analyzing the way your body moves and how to do certain moves on the wall.

For anyone who wants to get into shape, rock climbing is a fun and effective way to tone muscles and to work on your cardiovascular system. Anyone who is physically active, enjoys a challenge, and loves the outdoors should consider looking into rock climbing as a new past time.

Article Source: http://www.mydolittle.com/articles
Jack Smith writes about various bouldering, top roping, lead climbing and rock climbing topics.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Roadtripping Through America

2006-02-26T10:34:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Right now I am reading a truly wonderful book that I highly recommend. It is Reader’s Digest Most Scenic Drives in America (from now on I’ll be calling it RDMSDIA because I’m way too lazy to type that long a title every time).

As you might have already imagined, RDMSDIA portrays over 120 extremely beautiful road trips, and after reading this book, I want to take every single one of them.

So let’s see, where would I start? Maybe I could begin on the west coast where I could take the North Cascades Loop, a 400 miles circular trek that takes Hwy 20 through te North Cascade Mountains National Park, the Wanatchee National Forest and back up along the Puget Sound.

Much of this road trip was not even possible until 1972, when a highway was finally built through the rugged Northern Cascades.

Next, I might take the Big Sur road trip along the northern coast of California. This road trip has long been on my to-do list, and after reading this book I have to wonder why I have been putting it off for so long.

This trip, which runs from Monteray to San Luis Obispo along Hwy 101 has long been considered one of America’s most breathtakingly beautiful scenic highways.

Another California road trip that cannot be missed is the Redwood Highway, which runs from the California-Oregon border down through the giant Redwood National Park. From there it continues on through some of California’s historic gold rush towns like Eureka, where I may stop to see some of the historic old mansions the tycoons of that era built and lived in. The Redwood Highway ends in the town of Leggett, home of the famous Drive Thru Tree Park.

Another road trip I now feel my life would be incomplete without is the Upper Peninsula Drive through Michigan’s (you guessed it) Upper Peninsula. Of course once you get to Mackinac Island, you really can’t drive anymore because the island’s jurisdiction forbids the operation of a motor vehicle.

So you will have to park your car and take a ferry across to the island. But it is well worth it because once on the island you step back in time to the 19th century. When the ferry docks, you can then take a horse-and-buggy taxi, visit any number of the quaint shops and even witness reenactments of the island’s historic past.

I am running out of space here, but I just have to include a short mention of the Hudson Valley road trip. This trek begins in New York City and follows the Hudson River north. Along the way you will pass through Rip Van Winkle country, see innumerable Revolutionary War sites, pass the United States Military Academy at West Point and circle back once you get to the bridges at Newburgh and Beacon.

But make sure you get back before dark or you just might see the headless horseman of Sleepy Hollow.

The Reader’s Digest Most Scenic Drives in America is a great, beautiful book. But be warned that if your travel lust is easily aroused (like mine) it might also turn out to be the most expensive book you ever buy.

In the meantime, I have to go put gasoline in my car. I feel like driving.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Add some white water to your next adventure vacation

2006-02-26T10:31:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Sometimes I will meet someone who appears to lead a happy and fulfilling life. but then I discover this person has never been white water rafting and I realize it’s all a mirage. No one who has never taken an adventure vacation that includes riding the white water can truly be happy.

”Oh sure,” you may be thinking, “isn’t white water rafting … dangerous?”

Well my timid, rubber-spined, cowardly friend; danger is a relative thing. Your drive to and from the river will be far more dangerous, and a much more death defying feat, than your actual time on the river. I actually have no statistics to support this other than the fact that everyone knows that everything is more dangerous than driving. So consider yourself appeased.

But it is clear that white water rafting has the appearance and feel of danger. It is a sport designed to make the adrenaline pump through your bloodstream like jet fuel and make you feel like Indiana Jones and James Bond rolled up into a single being.

But the appearance of danger is mitigated by the life jacket you will be wearing and the size of the inflatable raft you will be riding on, as well as the supervision of trained “river rats,” the tour guides who work for the adventure travel company conducting your tour.

The experience of white water rafting is like nothing else in the world of adventure travel. Riding the rapids feels a lot like riding a roller coaster that has the added benefit of making you a contestant in a wet T contest (despite the fact that I personally would strongly prefer that some of you never get within a mile of such a contest). To all this you add the fact that your adventure will take you through some of the most scenic gorges and canyons the world has to offer, and you are all set for an experience you will remember (fondly) for the rest of your life. What could be more fun than that?

If I have convinced you to go white water rafting, please do your homework ahead of time. Check into the various adventure tour companies that conduct white water rafting tours in the locale you choose . I suggest that you check out the following directories, www.riversearch.com/ and www.whitewater.com/, because they have prescreened the adventure tour companies based on safety and reliability.

You should also order one or more of the free brochures for various rafting tours from this site: www.infohub.com.

And lastly, consider going with a group of friends. There is something wonderful about hearing your best friend scream like a girl, or getting drenched in cold water with the gang from your church group, that makes for a unique bonding experience.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Stay healthy when you travel

2006-02-26T03:38:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

The concept of budget adventure travel includes a lot of wonderful experiences, but one adventure you definitely do not want to have when you travel is getting sick. Not only are you far from your family doctor or your mother’s trusty chicken soup recipe; the very fact that you are in a foreign locale exposes you to allergies, germs, food and water you have no immunity to.

Here are a few health tips to either help you avoid sickness or help you cope with it once it befalls you:
--Wash your hands repeatedly throughout the day. This is the same advice you get at home during the winter flu season for good reason. Most germs are spread by contact; so the more often you wash your hands the less contact you will have.

--Get your immunization shots before you leave. Find out from the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta what shots are recommended for traveling in what country.

--Get in shape before your trip. Start walking several weeks before your vacation. If your trip will involve just average sightseeing, your objective should be to be able to walk 3 to 5 miles without undue exhaustion. Face it; vacationing involves more walking than you ordinarily do at home, so build your fitness level so you can tolerate the increased activity.

--Treat cuts and sores immediately. Remember you are exposed to germs and conditions unlike what your body is used to at home.

--Don’t drink the local water unless you are absolutely sure it is safe to drink. Even in advanced societies, the water is just different from what your body is used to. Fortunately, bottled water is much more common around the world than it was just a few years ago. Stock up.

--Maintain high levels of cleanliness. Taking frequent showers and changing into clean clothing not only feels good, it is good for you. This is especially true in hotter climates.

--Bring along vitamins, bottled water and peanut butter. The first two are self explanatory, the latter is a tip passed onto me by a well-traveled missionary who spent a lot of time in really (I mean REALLY) out of the way places. He found that every place had some sort of bread he could eat along with peanut butter if he just couldn’t eat most of the local food. He also recommended bringing a good supply of toilet paper, but I am presuming you aren’t going into places so remote that will be a necessity.

--Carry medical identification if you have allergies or reoccurring ailments.

--Protect yourself from biting insects. This is especially true in tropical climates. Not only should you bring insect repellent, be sure to take practical precautions like avoiding stagnant water, wear long sleeve shirts and tuck pants legs into socks if you are going into a place where biting insects are a particularly bad problem.

--Keep well rested. This is often very hard to do on a vacation you are paying good money for, but it will save you all kinds of problems later. Rest up from initial jet lag and take naps if you are staying out late at night. Your body can endure a lot if it has enough rest.

--Bring along a basic first aid kit and common over the counter medicines. There is always a good chance of getting a headache, indigestion, athlete’s foot etc. So be prepared.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Hiking Vacation Tips

2006-02-25T15:30:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Many uninformed people automatically assume that just uttering the phrases, "adventure vacation" and "budget" do not belong in the same sentence. They think that an adventure vacation means a vacuum cleaner will be hooked up to their bank account and will not stop until their life savings has been all sucked up. Not even close. That legendary vacuum belongs to those posh hotels, which are miles away from any adventure known to man.
An example of a wonderful budget adventure vacation is good old fashioned hiking. Yes, you can go out and buy all the latest high dollar equipment if you like. But essentially all you need is comfortable clothing, comfortable footwear, food, water and a map.
Check out the article below by Alan LeStourgeon for some great tips on hiking through two of the USA's most beautiful national parks, the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and the Rocky Mountain National Park. Then you will be ready to get started on the adventure vacation of your life.
Charles Brown

By Guest Author: Alan LeStourgeon

If you are in the mood for a hiking vacation then you will probably want to consider the many trails in either the Great Smoky Mountain National Park in Tennessee or Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado.

Of course there are many other parks and trails throughout the United States but these two destinations offer some of the most scenic and majestic mountain vistas available.

Both the Smoky Mountain National Park and Rocky Mountain National park offer different levels of trails for your hiking vacation.

Whether you are taking the family for a casual vacation or are looking for more adventure and exercise in a very strenuous hike, either location can accommodate your plans.

There are more than 850 miles of trails in the Great Smoky Mountains, more than enough to keep you busy for your hiking vacation.

With the miles of trails available, my favorite in the Smoky Mountains is the hike to Chimney Tops. The Chimney Tops trail is a mildly strenuous hike with some incredible views. The last 50 yards is very steep, with a spectacular view at the very top. It is a 4 mile round trip that is well worth the effort.

While the Smoky Mountains are exceptionally beautiful, the grandeur of the Colorado Rockies is unmatched in the continental United States. Majestic snow covered peaks rise out of the plains to reach heights above 14,000 feet in the case of Long's Peak and more than 60 other peaks rise above 12,000 feet.

Within the 416 square miles of the park there are 355 miles of hiking trails. My favorite hike by far is the hike to Chasm Lake at the base of Long's Peak.
The hike is a 9.5 mile round trip that changes in altitude from 9,000 feet to almost 12,000 feet. This is a fun, scenic hike, but it is moderately strenuous, so be well prepared with food and water.

Preparing For Your Hiking Vacation

Tens of thousands of people hike the trails of our national parks every year without incident and a hiking vacation can be an enjoyable and invigorating experience.

However, it is essential that you are prepared for your hiking experience.
This is a no-brainer, but one of the biggest mistakes hikers make is not realizing the total length of the hikes they are on. If the sign at the trail head says that the hike is 4 miles, remember you have to hike back also, making that an 8 mile round trip.

Don't forget food and water. While food is needed on hikes of 3 to 4 miles and longer water is an essential on every hike. Even short hikes at higher altitudes can cause you to get thirsty faster than you would think.

You will also need the proper gear for hiking. I can't stress this enough, hiking boots are an essential part of a hiker's equipment just as a water bottle and back pack are.

Do not try to hike a rocky trail in your tennis shoes. At the least you will have very sore feet and you could twist your ankle, making the rest of your hiking vacation an unpleasant experience, not to mention getting back to the car an adventure. Please get yourself some decent hiking boots. Your feet will thank you!

A hiking vacation can be an exhilarating experience for the serious hiker or for the whole family. You will get to see some beautiful scenery that you just can't experience by passing by in your car or RV.

Plan your vacation, decide on a destination, get your equipment ready and off you go to the great outdoors.

Alan LeStourgeon operates a vacation rental web site where you can find comfortable vacation cabin rentals, recreational and hiking vacation information and information on log cabin decor.
Article Source: http://www.SubmitYourNewArticle.com

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Medieval German Castles

2006-02-25T15:28:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

German Castles -- 4 of The Most Incredible Ones (Part One)
By Guest Author: Marcus Hochstadt

We have a long history here in Germany and very medieval castles also. Tens of thousands of tourists come to Germany day in and day out just to see and feel the "charisma" of our German castles.

I will explain you 4 of my favourites and a little bit of their history. If you plan to travel to Germany, you might like to know them and to feel its charisma too. ;-) These 4 castles are located in South Germany, so you do not have to travel hundreds of kilometres/miles to see each of them. By the way, most of our German castles are located in South Germany.

1. Heidelberg
The first one I describe to you is the Heidelberg castle. It is really big and has a secret stairway to walk up to it. Very few people know that way, most of the people go up by the "hill train". I mean, you can do that too, but imagine how incredible it is, when you walk up the more than 300 stairs (each stair has its number on it!) and see all the old houses around you, WOW!

Heidelberg itself has a strong history too and you see that on all the houses and the extremely expensive residential areas. Very famous people live in Heidelberg, such as Steffi Graf and famous Scientists. You should also walk through the, and now I'll give you a insider secret, "Philosophenweg" (Way of Philosophs). You may ask the people out there where exactly this way is, but however when you walk up that way, you have an really awesome, and I mean really awesome view to the Heidelberg castle and Heidelberg itself and its river (Neckar).

2. Schwetzingen

Not far away from Heidelberg (approx. 10km) is a small town called Schwetzingen (yes, I live in this town and I love it!). The special thing here is, that this town has just 22,500 residents, but also a huge castle! When you visit German castles you will realize, that some of them not so big, but beautiful too. The castle of Schwetzingen is not just beautiful, it's awesome and huge! The city itself spends all of the entrance fees (only 2,50 EUR per day) into this incredible castle, and you see that at each corner stone, plant and bloom.

The Schwetzingen castle is almost as big as the city itself! :-)
Its history goes back to Baroque, Rococo and Classicism. It's still apparent today that the irregular complex of the Schwetzingen castle in essence dates back to a medieval castle altered in the Renaissance period.

At the end of your castle visit you absolutely must go to one of the irresistible cafés and restaurants in front of the castle - at the "Schlossplatz" (castle place). There are seven (and much deeper in and around the city) of them and you will find people of all ages there, and you easily come in contact with them. They are really communicative. Most of the young people are able to speak English. More about this amazing town you'll find on my site: www.smart-travel-germany.com/schwetzingen.html.

My site isn't perfect yet, but it grows day after day and I work really hard on it to give you the highest valuable free insider tips for your travel to Germany.
I hope you enjoyed the first part of my special report of 2 awesome German castles. Watch out for the second part with the other 2. I will post it shortly.
Also for further insider tips go to my website. I finished the creation of my monthly free special report. In this report I will describe the rest of our TOP 40 German castles and its histories. You can subscribe to it at www.smart-travel-germany.com/smart-travelogy-germ.html.
I appreciate you!
Marcus Hochstadt
Marcus Hochstadt travels extensively to countries, continents and Germany itself as a sales manager and entrepreneur since more than 14 years. He knows in almost each German city the points of REAL interest and gives you insider tips on his daily growing website http://www.smart-travel-germany.com Watch out for his free monthly special report with more valuable insider tips.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marcus_Hochstadt

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

How to plan a great vacation

2006-02-25T15:13:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

A great vacation begins at home

Great budget adventure travel begins at home. If you prepare for your trip before you walk out your front door, your vacation will be better organized, more full of all the exciting extra experiences to make it more memorable and you will almost certainly save significant money.

Not only that, you will be better able to put together a budget adventure travel experience to give you an insurmountable bragging edge over your friends and neighbors.

Start with research. No I am not talking about the dry, dusty book stacks that haunt your memories of college when you had put off an important paper until the last minute and your friends were out on the town while you were playing catch up with the librarian.

I am talking about going online, to the bookstore, and maybe to the library (but rest assured, the travel section probably does not contain dusty stacks).

Where do you want to go?

Make a list of the must-see and must-do things about your desired destination. Let’s face it, if you go to Paris and do not go up onto the Eiffle Tower, or you go to Rio without taking the cable car to ; your friends will laugh at you without mercy when you return.

How much can you afford?

Budget adventure travel requires planning ahead of time so you can avoid the heartache of having to cut the trip short or missing out on an excursion you had been counting on. The beauty of doing your research ahead of time is that you can find all kinds of discounts and travel deals if you do a lot of comparison shopping.

When do you want to go there?

The timing of your trip will impact both what you can do and see, but how much it will cost. Whenever possible, travel during the off-peak season. Obviously peak and off peak times vary with location, so you should check this out. But you will find much better bargains on your airfare and hotel costs if you can avoid the rush of other travelers. Also, every destination has seasonal events like festivals, carnivals or sporting events that you may want to take in (but be aware that these special events usually take place during peak seasons, so you will negate the above mentioned cost savings if these festivals are high on your list).

How do you plan to get around once you arrive?

By this I am not asking how you will travel to Europe, but how will you travel from place to place once you get to Europe? Look for special fares on car rentals or train passes online. Not only will this help you avoid a significant expense, but this intra destination travel might just be one of the highlights of your trip. This is especially true for train travel within Europe.
One site you might want to check out is Eurail Saver Pass which offers a variety of rail passes for all of Europe.

Finally, be sure to find ideas for things to do and see that will appeal to all members of your family or party. Plan ahead and you will save a lot of wasted time and you will have a budget adventure travel experience you can remember forever.

travel tips

2006-02-24T16:57:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Travel Tips
By Guest Author: Steven Gillman

There are common sense travel tips, like "Check at least three web sites to get the best deal on plane tickets." Then there are the tips that are more along the line of "secrets." These are the little-known tricks learned by experience. Here are some of the best of those.
<4>Cheap Travel Tips

Find out where local visitors from within the country stay. The cheapest "tourist hotel" I could find when in a resort town in Mexico was $135. I asked a local businessman where to find a cheap room, and got one for $10. There wasn't a swimming pool, but the room was spotless. I was there to travel, not to lounge, so this suited me fine.

Negotiating room charges is common in many countries. In Banos, Ecuador, we negotiated our room rate down from $12 to $6 per night, by paying for several nights in advance. The trick here is to be sure that there are other options, then make your final offer and walk away. Most owners will call you back and lower the price.

Consider hostels, if you don't mind sharing a room. They're much more common overseas. This saves you a lot if you are single, because you pay for the bed. I once spent four days in a hostel for $4 per day, breakfast included. I shared a room with several others, and a TV room with travelers from 16 countries.

Hotels in the U.S. are less likely to negotiate, but we have done it. Most small chain motels are not company-owned, but franchises, so it is usually the owner behind the counter. Paying for several nights in advance, or just starting to walk away, has resulted in discounts for us many times.

Travel is often only as cheap as your plane tickets. For international travel, search the fares to several countries that you would like to visit. Go to the cheapest one now - the others will be cheap another time, and a savings of $500 can buy a few extra days, or an extra mini-vacation some other time.

Anywhere you go, there are things you can do to keep it cheaper. Eat where locals eat, for example, instead of at tourist restaurants. See the free and cheap attractions first. You might have so much fun that you'll never get around to doing the expensive things. Higher prices mean better quality with travel bags, but not necessarily with travel experiences.

Other Travel Tips

E-mail important documents to yourself. These should include a copy of your passport, other IDs, phone numbers of the U.S. Consulate offices where you'll be, and your itinerary or e-tickets for any flights. In this way, even if you are robbed and lose everything, you'll have access to all the important documents from any internet cafe in the world.

On a streetcar, I once had a pocket unzipped and the wallet removed without feeling a thing. Many pickpockets are experts. Fortunately, it was a "decoy" wallet, with nothing but a few pieces of paper, and a fake credit card. Other ways to protect money, cards and documents include putting a bill or two under the inner sole of running shoes, safety-pinning a hidden pocket inside your pants, and hiding cash in several different places.

I see young travelers in other countries walking anywhere they feel like it at night, and then being shocked that they are robbed. Aren't there places in New York or Chicago where you wouldn't walk at night? Ask the locals where it is safe and where it isn't, and trust your intuition when it warns you. Leave expensive clothing and jewelry at the hotel when you are just out for a walk. Safety tricks are the most important travel tips.

Steve Gillman has been hunting down obscure knowledge and useful secrets for years. Learn more travel secrets and get a free gift at: The Secret Information Site (http://www.TheSecretInformationSite.com)
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steven_Gillman

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Budget Adventure Travel to Belfast

2006-02-23T17:41:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

16 Things To Do In Belfast, Ireland
By Guest Author: Niall Cinneide

If you are looking for a nice get-a-way weekend, with all the charm of a country town and yet all the opportunities of a thriving city, then Belfast is a wonderful place to relax and enjoy life! Belfast is the second largest city in Ireland, Dublin being the largest, and with a population of over 200,000 it is filled with the charm of an old town shipping port alongside a thriving metropolis.

Belfast originated centuries ago as a shipping passage through the Irish Sea, protected on one side by Ireland and the other by England. Today it is quickly gaining the reputation as being the place to go for “a break”, even more than Glasgow or London! Once you get here, either by boat or plane, you have a choice either to stay inside your bed and breakfast, or get out and see what Belfast has to offer.
Below is a list of some of the things to do while in the area:

Shine – nightclub plays extreme techno for dancing and disco.
Crown Liquor Saloon – Is decorated in ornate, Victorian-era pub and is full of friendly faces.
Ulster Museum – displays many artifacts of early Ireland and treasures from the Spanish Armada
W5 – children’s Museum
Ormeau Baths Gallery – well-known contemporary art gallery. Specialty shop inside.
Linen Hall Library – Library founded in 1788, beautiful architecture.
Customs House – Historic site.
Belfast Castle – tour a majestic castle dating back to 1870’s.
St. Anne’s Cathedral – outstanding architecture; religious site.
Grand Opera House – opera
Cathedral Quarter – in upscale neighborhood, buildings of glass and chrome, cafes and wine bars. Scenic/historic walking area.
Botanical Gardens and Palm House – walkthrough gardens.
Belfast City Centre and Laganside Walk – historic walking tour around downtown area.
Harland and Wolff Shipyard – shipyard down at the docks – where Titanic was built
Mountains surround city and make a beautiful place to spend a day hiking, picnicking, horseback riding.
Have a fresh seafood dinner out on the Pier.

Belfast is the kind of get-a-way everybody needs every so often. Its quaint restaurants and pubs, old town background, and the dated architecture can’t help but lend a friendly atmosphere to all who enter. Whether you take a weekend, a week or three weeks, there is plenty for you and your family to do. If you need a rest, you can always slip down to the beach for a relaxing afternoon walking the shoreline and soaking up the sun. But once you come to Belfast, you’ll see why it is becoming the get-a-way-to city of Ireland.

Niall Cinneide loves to celebrate St Patrick's Day. He publishes views, information and St Patricks Day News at St Patricks Information.
This article may be reprinted in full so long as the resource box and the live links are included intact. All rights reserved. Copyright http://www.St-Patricks.info
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Niall_Cinneide

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Cure for the boring family vacation

2006-02-23T13:19:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

The words every parent dreads at home, are even worse when they are heard on a family vacation: “I’m bored.”

It’s no wonder so many parents give up on the idea of an educational, off the beaten path vacation, full of exciting memories and experiences, and opt instead to head toward Disney World.

But fear not. You can still plan a family vacation that can include things like checking out the Grand Canyon, climbing to the top of the Statue of Liberty or getting goose bumps in the Tower of London without turning your kids into catatonic vegetables.

The secret is easy: involve your offspring in the travel plans before you go.

Like all shameless psychological ploys, the trick here is to make them think the educational elements of the trip were their ideas. So gather all the information on your travel destination ahead of time. Print web pages, collect brochures, clip out newspaper articles etc. Make all of these choices look as exciting and colorful as possible - hopefully with photographs of families laughing and having great time - and then lay them all out in front of your planning committee, I mean family.

Ask your kids to help plan what to do in Germany or London or West Virginia. Let them select a few of the choices while you select some of the others. The beauty is that they just might select some of the options you had in mind in the first place. Moreover, they will also begin to look forward to the very things you had previously feared would bore them into a stupor.

If some of your kids are older teens, you might even assign them part of the original research. Just say, “Jeff, I want you to come up with some ideas to do in Tuscany and Jennifer, I want you to find some things we should do in Sicily.”

Another important tactic is to keep you kids busy once your vacation begins. Even if you need an afternoon nap, find things they can do in a safe, supervised environment while you catch up on your rest.

And let them handle some of the money. Convert some of their allowance into the local currency (choose an amount appropriate to their ages). Let them learn to calculate the exchange rates on their own so they can purchase their own gifts and souvenirs.
Dealing with kids is simply a matter of outwitting them. Yes they have youth, energy and street savy going for them, but you have life experience and ruthless cunning on your side. Use them to your advantage.

Discount Cruise Vacations

2006-02-21T16:39:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

A well-planned cruise vacation can be one of the most exciting ways to travel on a budget. All of your meals and accomodation costs, and most of your entertainment costs, are included under a single expence. Add this to the fact that many sites on the internet offer ways to find great cruise travel bargains and you might just have the most affordable adventure vacation available.
Check out the article below by Keith Hoyng on a number of ways to plan a budget cruise vacation. You should also check out these links for more great cruise deals:

Free Cruise Brochures
Find Last Minute Cruises and Vacations at discounts of up to 90%
Last Minute Vacation Deals! - Save up to 50%
Save up to 69% Off Cruises! OnlineCruiseAgency.com

Charles Brown

Saving Money on a Cruise
by Guest Author: Keith V. Hoyng

For many people, a cruise ship can be the ultimate budget travel destination. A cruise provides a great, one price, vacation, and one of the main attractions to booking a cruise is that just about everything is included in the price. As a matter of fact, in some cases the daily cost of a cruise can be less than the daily cost of a decent hotel room. When you consider that the price of the cruise includes not only the room, but all the food and entertainment as well, it is easy to see why cruises are so popular with budget minded travelers.

Of course, there are some things that are typically not included in a cruise package, and it is important to find out what is included and what will need to be paid for as an extra. For instance, most cruises do not include alcohol, and require passengers to pay their bar tab upon departure. In addition, most shore excursions and local sightseeing is not included, so it is important to get a detailed list of such excursions, including the price.

In addition, since advertised cruise prices are based on double occupancy, cruises are often less of a deal for solo travelers, since the single supplements can add quite a bit to the price of the cruise. It is always a good idea to inquire about special single rates if you are traveling alone.

The location of the cabin is another important consideration when booking a cruise. The interior cabins on the lower parts of the ship are generally the least costly, while the higher, larger cabins with ocean views are the most expensive. If you have never taken a cruise before, it is a good idea to get advice from those who have experienced cruising. These people can provide valuable insight on the best balance of cost and comfort for your first cruise experience.

As with other kinds of travel, getting the best deal on a cruise will take some time, some planning, some perseverance and plenty of shopping around. It is a good idea to shop as early as possible, particularly for popular destinations like the Caribbean or Mexico in the high season.

Of course, it is possible to save money by traveling in the off season, and this can often be a great strategy. For instance, even though it is the middle of the winter and most people are not thinking about vacations where you are, it may be warm and inviting in many tropical cruise destinations. It is important, however to check out the local weather, and to avoid the rainy season in the destinations you are considering. Steering clear of hurricanes, tropical downpours and other weather problems can help you get the most out of your cruise.

It is not always necessary to shop early, of course. Cruise lines have been know to offer some spectacular discounts at the last minute in order to move unsold cabins or avoid leaving with a less than full passenger load. There are many last minute travel newsletters that provide details on these types of cruise deals, and these last minute travel deals are a big hit with retirees and others with the time to see the world.

About The Author
Keith Hoyng is the web master and operator of http://www.quickcash2u.com which is a good source of cruise deal information, vacation budget information and much more! Visit this site at http://www.quickcash2u.com/Cruise.html.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Visit The SmokeyMountains National Park

2006-02-19T20:54:00.000-06:00

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

If you are planning a budget adventure vacation in the south east United States, few places offer as much variety and sheer beauty as the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. You can literally do almost anything here, from white water rafting to hiking through the most unspoiled wilderness you can possibly imagine.
No matter what your taste in budget adventure travel may be, you owe it to yourself to check this wonderful park out...soon.
Charles Brown

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park - Our Most Visited National Park
By Guest Author: Alan LeStourgeon

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is located in southeastern Tennessee and borders North Carolina on its western side. The parked was so named because of the perpetual haze that lingers over the valleys and peaks that make up this part of the Appalachian Mountains.

Smoky Mountain National Park covers more than half a million acres and is home to a large diversity of wildlife and more than four thousand species of plants. Black bears can be seen on many of the trails in the park and quite frequently in Cades Cove and some campgrounds. Despite their rather cute appearance, they are not to be messed with.

Once a part of the Cherokee Indian homeland, the Smokies today are a hiker's paradise with over 800 miles of trails within the borders of the park. There are all classes of hiking trails for those that are just out for a nature walk to those that are serious hikers and climbers. You can even get backcountry permits to hike some of the more obscure trails not open to the general public.

The park is the most visited National Park in the entire United States with more than nine million visitors each year. You will want to plan out your adventure through the park as traffic can get quite congested in some of the more popular areas of the park, especially during the more popular summer months.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is serviced by the towns of Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Townsend on the Tennessee side and by Maggie Valley and Cherokee on the North Carolina side. Each town offers a diverse mixture of activities, shopping, dining, lodging and of course, great southern hospitality.

Smoky Mountain National Park is also home to Cades Cove, one of the most serene and picturesque locations in the eastern United States. Cades Cove is a must see if you are anywhere near the Smoky Mountains on your vacation. The highlight of Cades Cove is the 11 mile loop that encircles the valley. To catch a glimpse of some of the Smokies wildlife, plan your trip around the loop road early in the morning or at dusk.

You will be able step back in history and enjoy the pioneer spirit for a few hours or a full day when you visit Cades Cove. Don't miss it.

There are an endless amount of activities to enjoy while visiting the Smoky Mountain National Park such as hiking as I mentioned earlier, biking, camping, wildlife watching, tubing and white water rafting and much more.

Come to the Smokies and experience the reason more than 9 million people vacation in this serene mountain paradise each and every year.

Article Source: http://www.SubmitYourNewArticle.com
Alan LeStourgeon operates a vacation rental web site where you can find comfortable cabin rentals, recreational and hiking vacation information and information on Cades Cove TN. Check out his site on vacation cabin rentals at http://www.vacation-cabin-rental.com/ and his site on hiking vacation at http://www.vacation-cabin-rental.com/hiking-vacation.html.

budget adventure travel, family adventure vacation

Rail Travel Tips

2006-02-19T20:50:00.000-06:00

Rail Travel Tips
By Guest Author: Matt Garrett

Traveling by train, in itself, is fun. The continuous jostling of the compartments, screeching of train brakes and the loud horns make train traveling a real fun. However you need to take care of certain things while traveling, so that the journey remains hassle-free and fine.

Rail travel is a lengthy journey, so you should try to relax as much as possible. Relaxation does not mean that you simply sleep as board the train or remain quite throughout your journey. It means that you should spend your time comfortably. For this purpose you can bring along a disk man or walk man to listen to your favorite music and enjoy the views via window pane.

If you are traveling alone, you can seek advice from the rail crew. If you are not able to get something or you are not able to understand something, you can definitely ask the well-trained and friendly crew members.

To prevent yourself from getting bored throughout the journey, try interacting with the people around. Try to strike a conversation with them. This way, you can explore them and share your opinion and rail experiences with them. You can even make the other travelers as your friends. Interaction is always good to explore the dimensions of rail travel.

Always carry light luggage, while traveling via railways. You should only carry useful stuff along with you. You can carry a good book, a light blanket, a pillow, bathing items, grooming items, clothes, sunglasses, mineral water, some fruits and snacks.

You should pack comfortable and light clothes, avoid carrying heavy jewelry, but you should carry enough cash to meet all the needs of the trip. Carrying a first aid kit is a must. You should include all the important medicines which you might need during the trip.

You should never leave your luggage on the train or station unguarded. Always keep an eye on your luggage and keep it close to you. If the rail journey is lengthy, you should keep your baggage to the rack securely and put on a small bicycle lock to prevent any possibility of theft or stealing. As far as possible, try to keep your money concealed, don’t flaunt it on the train.

Do your packing in advance. Ideally you should pack your bags one day before your travel. This would give you ample time to think about all the necessary items you need to carry along. So packing should be done ideally a day before you leave. If you plan to pack your bags at the last moment, you would probably end up missing things.

Before you leave your home, always confirm that you have all the necessary things required. You should check the railway ticket, your wallet and other things. You should always check that all your bags and attaché are locked. Double check them and place their keys with you. Always have duplicate keys. The duplicate keys are great relief, incase you lose your original keys.

Following these tips can surely make your rail travel hassle free and comfortable.

Article Source: http://www.SubmitYourNewArticle.com

Matt Garrett, www.AllArticles.org www.Pop5.net

The London Eye

2006-02-19T17:36:00.000-06:00

No vacation to London would be complete with a spin on the London Eye. As the world's largest observation wheel, the London Eye is not only a major landmark itself, it offers the best possible view of London's other landmarks.
When you travel to London, the wheel dominating the city's skyline. But it really shows it's awesome beauty after dark when it is lit up against the night sky.
I realize you may be thinking: "it's just a wheel, for crying out loud," but that just shows what you know. Check out the article below by S. Wander, and you will learn that you can book everything from a romantic evening on the London Eye to a scenic "tour" of London conducted by an honest-to-goodness tour guide in your capsule to point out all the sites of this beautiful and historic city.
There are so many ways to see London when you travel, but only from the London Eye can you see it all at once.
Charles Brown

The London Eye: Getting The Best View of London
By S Wander

The London Eye, also known as the millennium wheel is the world’s tallest observation wheel, and the fourth tallest structure in London. At one hundred and thirty five meters high, a person on the London eye can see a view on London extending for over twenty-five miles.

The London Eye has been awarded a variety of different awards and achievements from London’s first Millennium ward in the year 2000, for its outstanding contribution to the capitals architecture, to the best attraction for group travel in 2003.

One of the largest of its kind, the London Eye can carry eight hundred passengers at a time, within its thirty-two different passenger pods, on a thirty-minute sight seeing journey from above. Over the course of a day, the London Eye can carry over 15,000 separate visitors, as many people as it would take to fill the Concorde one hundred and fifty times.

The London Eye is a wonderful trip for children, and adults alike, offering every passenger a fantastic view of London and a fantastic time. There are a variety of different “flight” options you can make for your trip on the London Eye depending on what you would like to gain out of your travel experience on the eye.

For instance, the London Eye offers “Discovery Flights”. A Discovery flight will be a flight just the same as any other, but a tour guide will be present to point out special landmarks to those who are on the flight. If this is your first trip to London, you may appreciate taking one of these flights and having a local point out special landmarks that you might have otherwise missed.

If you are trying to plan the perfect evening, then you might start with a private capsule on the London Eye. The London Eye will allow you to book an entire capsule for you and up to twenty-five guests on the London Eye. Those who pre-book their excursion will also enjoy priority boarding, and guest can also choose from a list of food and drink that can be served during the flight. A private capsule on the London Eye can be the perfect way to spend a special occasion, or celebrate an event with those close to you while soaring above the London skyline.

Going on a trip with your sweetie? What would an attraction with so many breathtaking views, and wonderful sights be without a romance package? The London eye offers a “Cupids Capsule” package, which is designed for two lovebirds to soar through the London skyline all by them. The package includes a bottle of Perrier, and a box or chocolates, as well as the couple’s very own pod for their trip through the London skyline. Nothing could be more romantic than floating through the stars with a loved one enjoying champagne and luxury chocolates.

If your Cupids capsule was successful, then why not try getting married on the London Eye as well. The London Eye offers reasonable priced weddings that allow the bridge, groom and guests to board a private capsule where the wedding ceremony takes place. You and your significant other are pronounced married, as the capsule reaches its highest point, and as the capsule begins its decent the party can begin complete with Perrier champagne.

The London Eye is one of the most fantastic attractions in the world. It is designed so that anyone, at any age can have a wonderful time paying the London Eye a visit, and spending a few minutes of their lives soaring above the clouds and looking out on the magnificent London skyline.

Copyright 2006 S Wander
Smooth Hound http://www.smoothhound.co.uk/london-central.html offers affordable hotel, guest house and bed & breakfast accommodation throughout the London and the rest of the world.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=S_Wander

Italy: Always the highlight of travel to Europe

2006-02-18T23:31:00.000-06:00

Can a traveler ever get tired of Italy? The answer is no. As far as I am concerned no vacation to Europe is complete without a significant sojourn in Italy. Along with the sun, the food and the wine; you ineveitably soak up the culture of this remarkable country. And you are always much richer for the experience.
I hope you will enjoy this very educational article by Les Sheppard, who makes a living out of telling others about experiencing the City of Rome. What a lucky guy! Anyway, take notes, because he has a lot of helpful information for your next vacation to Italy.
Charles Brown

Five New Rome Guided Tours that bring this Amazing City to Life

by Guest Author: Les Sheppard

Maybe until now you wouldn't know that I make part of my living by writing about the city of Rome, its people, passions, food, sport, history and culture. In fact, I own a web site called Lets-Travel-Rome.com, which kinda happened by happy accident after I visited this great city with my Wife - one anniversary, some time ago.

This is a city where some of the best times can be found by just getting out there, and exploring for yourself. It can be great fun to just wander the streets of the Eternal City, but I also recommend that visitors try some Rome guided tours to add something special and memorable to any visit.

For starters, now it's possible to take in the Art, History and Religion of Rome in one day! A trip to Rome is incomplete without visiting the Vatican Museum and learning about Christian Rome. Marvel at the magnificent beauty of the Sistine Chapel before venturing out to explore the ancient catacombs. You have the option to end your tour with a step back in time to become a part of Roman history in the amazing Time Line Tour.

Can you imagine a beautiful evening tour that takes you from the floodlit ruins of ancient and imperial Rome (The Pantheon and the Colosseum) to the magnificent piazzas and fountains designed by the artists Bernini and Michelangelo, to the home of the Catholic Church, St Peters. At the Trevi Fountain, throw your coin into the water to ensure your return.

Or how about this.. Experience the wonder of the Vatican on this fascinating walking tour and explore its history and beauty. Your native English-speaking guide will share with you the best of the Vatican, including the lesser known spots and you will gain a broad understanding of this unique place.

If you want something more contemporary, ride the time machine and discover the amazing 2750 year history of Rome. Take a trip back in time into ancient Roman history up to present day. This tour includes a one hour show with high-tech virtual projections of the most famous Roman monuments. Rome will never look the same !

Maybe you would prefer to discover Rome and its famous landmarks aboard a deluxe two hour dinner cruise, which includes outstanding Italian cuisine. Witness the breathtaking Eternal City by sailing down the River Tiber… a spectacular way to see Rome or celebrate a special occasion. The romantic strains of music begin the moment the boats casts off.

Or how about meeting a local dignitary during your Rome guided tour. During one unusual visit you can be in the presence of Beatrice Cenci, Donna Olimpia, Count Cagliostro's wife and the beautiful Costanza De Cupis. A fascinating walk in Ponte quarter where it is possible to learn strange and mysterious histories of ancient Rome with an evocative atmosphere. This walking tour will take you through Navona Square, Via del Governo Vecchio, Ponte Sant' Angelo and Piazza Farnese.

Why book ahead for our Rome guided tours?.. Well, here are my thoughts:

These popular tours sell out well in advance! Don't be disappointed!
Reduce stress! Don't waste time haggling with the hotel concierge.
Lock in your price! Currency dips & price hikes won't effect you.
Save vacation time! Plan & book now, not when you're there.
Balance your vacation budget! Charge tours on this month's credit card bill.

You can even save time and money and book your airport transfer services before you go! You can use a shuttle service that will take you from Rome's Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport to your Rome Hotel, without the hassle of picking up a rental car, negotiating unfamiliar traffic and maps. Take the easy way - and book this efficient service online now and save time at your destination. And while you're there, check out the other Rome guided tours mentioned above.

As an extra resource for readers, I have posted this article onto my website, and provided quick links to these, and many other, great tours.
Lets-Travel-Rome.com/GuidedCityTours

I hope you'll agree that these special Rome guided tours offer real value, and I know that you'll return home with some special memories of your stay in the Eternal City.

Best wishes for a great trip,
Les Sheppard

About The Author
Les Sheppard's website gives essential information about planning your trip to Rome, including flight deals, Rome accommodation tips, Apartment and Villa rentals,tour planning and tips on all the top Rome attractions: Lets-Travel-Rome.com
You can also grab our free hotel guide and newsletter from the homepage, and keep up to date at our Travel Rome Blog: Lets-Travel-Rome.Blogspot.com

Adventure travel above the clouds

2006-02-18T10:46:00.000-06:00

An adventure tour through the Blue Ridge Parkway

If you are looking for a budget adventure vacation in one of the most beautiful places on our planet, look no further. This world has very few places as beautiful as the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina and Virginia.

OK I said it. I would put the Blue Ridge right up there with any other beautiful place you could care to mention. The parkway stretches from the Smokey Mountains to the Shenandoah and includes the tallest mountains east of the Rockies. Which makes it the ideal place for an adventure vacation.

So it came as no surprise to discover that the folks at www.Gorptravel.com are hosting a an adventure tour called, Blue Ridge Parkway Bicycle Tour on their site.

Check out http://gorptravel.away.com/xnet/one-product.tcl?product_id=118851 for info on a 469 mile adventure tour that will take you WELL off the beaten path to a place where you will see breathtaking waterfalls, black bears, Civil War battlefields and some of the most awesome mountain vistas the United States has to offer.

And by the way, you might want to prepare by getting in shape before you go, because you will cycle as high as 48000 feet. On the other hand, you will spend your nights in comfortable inns and enjoy the kind of home cooking only found in those mountain regions.

So who said budget adventure travel has to be a hardship?

Rivers & Rapids and Bears, Oh My!

2006-02-01T23:39:00.001-06:00

Rivers & Rapids and Bears, Oh My!

By Guest Author: Debbie Jacobs

She was easy to spot. On her medical form she had noted that she would not be useful for carrying any canoes, the stick drawing she included showed three people carrying a canoe overhead. Standing in between two of the figures, Maxine could not reach high enough to help.

Even if she were not ‘petite’ Maxine would stand out in a crowd. At 71 years old she walks with determined strides and dressed in her outdoor gear, purchased in the boy’s department, she doesn’t fit the mold of ‘older lady’. Spunky is a word that comes to mind, but only if it makes you think of a Jack Russell terrier, small, with attitude. “How’d you know it was me?” she winked when I approached her as she exited the gate at the airport.

“I used to be 4’10” until I shrunk two @#$% inches,” Maxine explained to me at dinner our first night together as a group. We were preparing for a 5 day adventure down Oregon’s Rogue River. The group, all women over 40, were being accompanied by three women raft guides, three to four decades their junior. If the guides thought they were heading out with ‘little old ladies’ they had a big surprise coming.

Besides our three rafts, we also had 2 inflatable kayaks. Every day we were given the option to hop in a guided raft, or captain our own craft. It was late May, and though we had near perfect weather, the kayakers wore wetsuits and had they flipped, a swim would have been invigorating, to say the least. Maxine was among the first to volunteer for the experience. Never having been in a kayak did not deter her. I held my breath watching her descend the rapids, but she handled the boat like a pro. “I love being an active learner,” Maxine explained, “I believe in ‘process’, which includes: acquiring skills that challenge me with physical, mental, and ethical prowess...that’s why these trips are a perfect fit for me.” That’s quite a statement coming from a woman willing to wear a purple helmet and neoprene.

As we traveled down the river, our guides had built up our one night camping in bear territory to the point that we were nervous, but couldn’t wait. A single electric wire enclosure had been constructed at the campsite where our food was to be stored. I doubted the effectiveness of the system, suspecting that a marauding bear would not be deterred by the shock, but I kept my thoughts to myself. When I was a couple of decades younger, I had spent wonderful months backpacking in Yosemite National Park. Black bears were a common visitor at camp and I never ceased to be thrilled by their presence. A black bear in camp would be the icing on the cake.

At dinner that evening, Wendy, our young snow-boarding raft guide, was in charge of the ‘bear talk’. We were warned to put our toiletry bags into the electric enclosure. Bears show no reluctance to slicing a hole in your tent with their four inch claws, gobbling your toothpaste and rooting for the Snicker bar under your pillow. When the talk progressed to include the concerns for menstruating women in bear country, a cry rose from the group, “Not a problem in this crowd!” they laughed. Poor Wendy, now a lovely shade of crimson, admitted that she’d never rafted with a group of just ‘older’ women. “Don’t worry about it honey,” one woman reassured her, “Estrogen is overrated.”

We woke the next morning to discover that the bears had found better pickings somewhere else and left us unmolested. The one we’d seen, wandering the bank of the river earlier the day before, must have found a group of smellier campers to harass. Sitting in our camp chairs, sipping our morning teas and coffees at breakfast, our kitchen area was suddenly overrun by a small herd of deer. Six young deer came scampering out of the trees and raced each other past our tents, kicking up sand and circling twice before returning back into the woods. Who needs midnight bears when the breakfast show includes Bambi!

The women in the group continued to be impressed by Maxine’s exploits, her willingness to brave the rapids on her own, her lively sense of humor, her openness to new ideas and situations. The only complaint I ever heard from her was regarding chair height construction. Another woman on our trip, admirable in her own right, after listening to the accolades go round and round, whispered to me, “I don’t know what the big deal is, she’s ONLY 2 years older than I am!”

She was right, Maxine was the senior in the group by a mere two years, so she was not that unusual, BUT, she was the only one in the group whose feet didn’t touch the floor when sitting in a chair, and surely that has to count for something. But then again, I’ve learned that it’s not what we’re packaged in that makes a difference, as much as what’s inside. Henry Ford once said, “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.” Maxine knows she can.

I’ll keep Henry Ford and Maxine in mind when I shrink ‘two #$% inches’, myself.

Debbie Jacobs, founder and president of Explorations in Travel,
http://www.exploretravel.com, organizes outdoor and
cultural adventures for women over 40 and arranges individual volunteer placements in
Latin America , the South Pacific and Nepal. She lives in southern Vermont with too many
dogs. She can be contacted at women@exploretravel.com

Copyright 2000-by Debbie Jacobs

The Historic And Natural Wonder Of Cades Cove Tennessee

2006-02-01T23:39:00.000-06:00

The Historic And Natural Wonder Of Cades Cove Tennessee

By Guest author: Alan LeStourgeon

If you miss Cades Cove Tennessee while traveling in the southeastern part of the United States, you've missed one of the most picturesque locations in North America.

Cades Cove is a 6,800 acre scenic paradise located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Townsend and Gatlinburg, Tennessee. With nearly two million visitors a year, Cades Cove TN is one of the most visited areas of any National Park located in the United States.

Cades Cove Tennessee belonged to the Cherokee Nation prior to 1818 and was settled by John and Lucretia Oliver in the fall of 1818. The Cherokee were not a threat to the small numbers of whites in the cove for a few short years until a larger population suddenly turned them hostile. It is sadly ironic that the Cherokee, who befriended and helped the Olivers survive their first few years in the cove, were eventually chased out principally by John Oliver himself.

Cades Cove fell on hard times during the Civil War as most of the population supported the Union and were harassed by Confederates from North Carolina.
The Cove returned to it's rural lifestyle after the Civil War as industry began to spring up in the surrounding the areas. This led to a slow migration from the Cove through the early 1920's when the Great Smoky Mountain National Park was established in 1926.

The last resident, Kermit Caughron, lived in the Cove until he passed away in 1999. Despite Kermit's home being of important historic significance, the National Park Service decide to tear it down in 2001 because it did not fit in with the historic setting of the Cove.

Even though life was harsh for the early settlers of Cades Cove TN, they must have had a wonderful appreciation for the breathtaking beauty of the land they called home for many years. Despite the unfortunate outcome of the Cades Cove community, the land is now preserved for all to enjoy.

There are many recreational activities to participate in while visiting Cades Cove, but by far the most popular is to drive the 11 mile loop around the cove. Many choose to ride a bicycle around the loop to get a more intimate view of the scenery and some even hike.

You can spend anywhere from a couple of hours to the entire day enjoying the Cades Cove loop. If spotting wildlife is your aim, you need to arrive early in the morning or stay till dusk.

Besides the loop road, Cades Cove TN also offers camping, picnicking, hiking, fishing, biking, hayrides, guided programs and shopping. The shopping is not the crass commercialization you find in Gatlinburg. Mostly you will find freshly milled grains, historical items , books and photography relating specifically to Cades Cove or the surrounding area.

Camping in Cades Cove is truly an enjoyable experience. It is the most popular campground in the National Park. If you would like to camp in Cades Cove you can make reservations via the National Park Reservation Center. You can only make reservations up to 3 weeks in advance online or 5 months in advance by calling 1-800-365-2267.

The rich history and the stark beauty make Cades Cove Tennessee a must see on your next trip through the Southeastern United States...don't miss it!

About the Author:
Alan LeStourgeon operates a vacation rental web site where you can find comfortable cabin rentals, http://www.vacation-cabin-rental.com)recreational and hiking vacation information and information on Lake Tahoe.

Romantic break to Shakespeare Country

2006-02-01T08:13:00.000-06:00

Europe Travel News is one of the most interesting sites for articles on European destinations. So much so, that I have placed a permanent link to their site on my links section. Having said that, be sure to read this great article below on romantic getaways to Shakespeare country in and around Stratford, England.
Charles Brown

Shakespeare Country is the perfect short break destination for those wanting to whisk their loved one away on a romantic break. With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, what better excuse do you need to inject some romance than by booking into a luxury country house hotel or an historic town centre hotel, enjoying a romantic candle lit dinner, discovering a host of first class attractions, restaurants, theatre performances and spas or simply relaxing by an open fire in one of the many beautiful and historic buildings the area has to offer.

To provide inspiration, South Warwickshire Tourism has included, in the Accommodation section of their website www.shakespeare-country.co.uk, details on the range of luxury town and rural breaks on offer at some of the area’s finest hotels, as well as details on Valentine’s packages. With so many great deals, a selection of which can be found below, you’ll be able to treat your loved one to more than one luxury romantic break in Shakespeare Country this year.

Enjoy a luxury stay at The Lygon Arms Hotel in Broadway; soak up the renowned atmosphere in the cosy lounges with roaring log fires, or stroll around the beautiful historic village before returning to pamper yourself in the hotel Spa. The hotel is offering a special package which includes one night in a superior room with full English breakfast, a three course dinner in The Great Hall and full use of the Spa including gym, pool, Jacuzzi, steam room, saunas and plunge pools with packages starting from £199.

Dumbleton Hall, situated in the Cotswolds, is a 19th century Hall set in 19 acres of tranquil gardens and woodlands. The Hall is steeped in history and legend which lends itself to a day of investigation and adventure. Their Valentine’s break, which is priced at £65 per person for a one night stay, includes a bottle of champagne served in the bar prior to dinner, a five course themed menu, overnight accommodation in a well appointed ensuite bedroom and breakfast in the Cedar Tree Restaurant the following morning.

Walton Hall Hotel & Spa, located 6 miles outside of Stratford-upon-Avon, is offering a special Valentine’s break from 10 – 11 February which includes dinner, bed and breakfast for £74.50 per person. The hotel, which was redesigned in the 1860s by Sir Gilbert Scott, is set in 65 acres and includes a large carp lake, landscaped gardens and a tree lined drive. Walton Hall was once the ancestral home of the Mordaunt family and a fascinating family tree can be seen in the magnificent stained glass windows over the main house staircase.

The Mallory Court Hotel, located near Royal Leamington Spa, is set in 10 acres of beautiful gardens. Lovingly restored and lavishly decorated with impeccable attention to detail, every aspect of the hotel from the oak-panelled dining room to the individually appointed bedrooms exudes quality. The hotel has 3 AA Red stars, denoting its status as one of the UK’s top 200 hotels and the restaurant boasts a number of accolades including a coveted Michelin star. From 10 – 14 February, the hotel is offering a special Valentine’s Break which includes overnight accommodation based on a standard double room including full English breakfast, a bottle of house champagne and chocolates from £200 per couple.

The Menzies Welcombe Hotel, Spa and Golf Course, in Stratford-upon-Avon, is an imposing Jacobean style house set in 157 acres with an 18 hole championship golf course. The old coach house and stables have been converted into a stunning spa with indoor pool, vitality pool and treatment rooms. The hotel boasts original features including the magnificent oak-panelled lounge which leads into the à la carte restaurant with its breathtaking views over the landscaped Victorian gardens, golf course and beyond. Each bedroom is individually decorated and many are furnished with 19th century antiques and oil paintings. Prices start from £95 per room per night based on a standard double room.

Wroxall Abbey Estate, nestled in 27 acres of open parkland, occupies a unique setting amidst the peace and tranquillity of the Warwickshire countryside. Once the country seat of several prominent families, including that of Sir Christopher Wren, Wroxall comprises a magnificent collection of listed buildings and private grounds.

Accommodation ranges from executive rooms to bi-level loft suites each individually styled to the highest standard to maximise choice and comfort. From 10 – 18 February, guests can enjoy a special Valentine’s package which includes canapés on arrival, a 5 course dinner followed by music and dancing for £39.95 per person or complete the evening with a stay in one of the suites from £99.

Alternatively, if you would prefer to stay in one of the historic towns in Shakespeare Country, a number of hotels are offering special packages including the Thistle Hotel, Stratford Victoria and Stratford Manor in Stratford-upon-Avon, the Royal Leamington Spa Hotel and the Best Western Falstaff Hotel in Royal Leamington Spa and the Chesford Grange Hotel and the Macdonald De Montfort Hotel in Kenilworth.

Reprinted from: http://europetravelnews.com

Baby boomers aging but are still looking for adventure travel

2006-02-01T07:44:00.000-06:00

Baby boomers are not too old for adventure travel

Check out this great article by Denis Horgan of the Hartford Courant about popular adventure travel options are with baby boomers. It just goes to show that a little gray hair does not mean we cannot enjoy a life of adventure.
Charles Brown

WHO you calling an old geezer? Not that guy in the whitewater raft, I hope. Not that bold soul risking her noggin riding a motorcycle across rural France. Not me, I hope.

If it were true that mature travelers were content to take the slow and easy road, it's hardly the case anymore.
AARP has looked into the travel attitudes of baby boomers and registers the apparent:

Mature folks have the resources and will to travel, and adventure is a big part of the game.

The survey of 1,594 respondents ages 41 to 59 shows that about 55 percent of boomers consider themselves adventurous, and 77 percent feel they are more adventurous than their parents. Statistics and observation point to the huge numbers of "seniors" traveling. It is a huge element of the travel industry.

There are 81 million people in the United States 50 or older, 28 percent of the entire U.S. population. For all the courting of the free-spending youth, this 28 percent controls 67 percent of the nation's wealth, and has more than $750 million in discretionary income and more than $28 trillion dollars in assets.

With people living longer and more healthy lives than before, the mature market is here to stay. Some key survey findings of the 50-and-older crowd:

Important factors in leisure travel include a beautiful, scenic destination that promotes relaxation, has good weather and presents no pressure of schedules to meet.
Twenty years ago, 10 percent held passports but, today, 28 percent have passports.
Twenty years ago, less than 4 percent had visited Europe; a similar 4 percent went to Mexico, Central America, South America or the Caribbean. Now, the numbers are 14 percent to Mexico, Central America or South America; 10 percent to the Caribbean; and 7 percent to Europe.
The top U.S. states, cities or areas boomers like for their travel are Las Vegas, Florida, New York, Hawaii and Colorado.
The top dream spots they'd like to visit are in the United States, Europe, the Caribbean, Australia/New Zealand and Africa.

Confounding the cliche that boomers need teenagers handy to operate the Internet, the study shows that 38 percent of their bookings of flights, hotels, etc., was over the Web. Indeed, so big a business are they that AARP and Travelocity have put together a travel service site aimed at their market, http://www.aarp.org/passport.

The idea that travel is for the young is out of date. Young at heart, surely, but "young" isn't wasted on the youth anymore.

By Denis Horgan, HARTFPRD COURANT

Unique and exciting adventure travel magazine launched

2006-02-01T07:30:00.000-06:00

Posted by Chris Hall

31 January 2006 - Adventure Journey is an online travel magazine like none you’ve read before. Leave luxury Caribbean cruises and five-star Parisian hotels to the rest — you won’t find those cookie-cutter trips here. Instead, you’ll discover incredible adventure woven into well-written articles and set in the world’s most remarkable places ... followed by detailed instructions on how you can experience the journey for yourself!

If you’ve ever considered an around-the-world trip without air travel, chimpanzee tracking in the jungles of Uganda, live volcano climbing in Peru, extreme biking in Utah’s Canyonlands, or scuba diving Himalayas-style at 14,000 feet, then you’ve found the guide that can make it happen. If you are interested in the world, its myriad cultures, its thrilling history, its dynamic natural forces, its unbelievable diversity, you will find a source of intense interest in our magazine. Indeed, this Extreme Vacationer’s Handbook is the key to that elusive adventure you’ve been waiting for — and not just once in a lifetime, but again and again.

Adventure Journey is also the only non-trade magazine devoted specifically to covering the activities, tours, and special offers of adventure travel companies worldwide — including an annual “Top 100 Adventure Travel Companies” special issue. But it doesn’t end there — Adventure Journey offers its own adventure tours to locations as diverse as India, Ethiopia, China, Borneo, and South Africa.

Questions should be directed to W. K. Jackson, Editor, at editor@adventurejourney.net. Feel free to peruse the magazine online at AdventureJourney.net.

Reprinted from: www.pocket-lint.co.uk

Great Travel Deals

2006-01-24T17:20:00.000-06:00

Recently, I found three really great resources for travelers who want to find awesome travel deals on the web. Be sure to check these sites:

.Browse over 30,000 trails and unlimited topo maps for free. Sign up today!
If you are planning an adventure tour anywhere in North America, be sure to check out the free trail guides offered by Trails.com. This site offers over 1000 published guidebooks and unlimited USGS topo maps of the United States that you can access online. You can pull up information on over 30,000 hiking and bike trails in North America, find out real-time weather conditions and read trail ratings
Eurailpass: flexible travel throughout 17 countries The best way to travel around Europe is by train. Rail Europe has some fantastic deals on buying rail passes for any country or for all of Europe. Their passes include high speed trains like the English Channel tunnel train, country and regional passes, sleeper cars, scenic trains, the list goes on and on... Rail Europe offers flexible travel deals for over 17 countries. If you have a vacation planned for Europe soon, you can’t afford to miss the bargains offered by Rail Europe.
Buy One Vacation, Get One Free and Receive up to $1,800 in Airfare Credit! Available only at 11thHourVacations.com Everyone knows that some of the best travel bargains are picked up at the last minute. Unsold airline seats, unsold hotel rooms, and unsold tour spots, are just a few of the reasons procrastinators can get some of the best travel deals. So check out 11th Hour Vacations and save up to 90% on some great vacation packages.
This Week's Top 25 Travel Deals! Every week, Shermans Travel puts out a newsletter of the Top 25 travel bargains. Subscribe for free and you will have a weekly list of the best deals in airfare, hotel accommodations, cruises and travel packages. Shermans really does their homework so you don’t have to. This is a great newsletter for anyone who wants to keep on top of what the best deals are each week.

Things to do and see in San Diego

2006-01-24T17:08:00.000-06:00

San Diego Rich In History, Things To See And Do
By Guest Author: Rick Hendershot

Follow the Founders' Trail to relive the early history of San Diego

The Founders' Trail consists of seven historic sites in the San Diego area where you can learn about the early history of the area.

The earliest inhabitants of the San Diego area were Native Americans. Mission Trails Regional Park includes 3000 acres of countryside preserved much as it was when the Kumeyaay people hunted and harvested here hundreds of years ago.

The Cabrillo National Monument marks the place where Juan Rodriguez stepped ashore in 1542 and claimed the region for Spain.

It wasn't until 225 years later in 1769 that the first Franciscan missions were established in the area. Junipero Serra Museum, Mission San Diego de Alcala, and Mission San Luis Rey all display this era in the development of the San Diego area.

The Mexican era began in 1821 when Mexico won its independence from Spain. This was the beginning of the era of giant ranches displayed at Rancho de los Pinasquitos and Rancho de Guajome.

The Mexican era ended in 1848 after the two year war between Mexico and the United States and the California territory was transferred to the U.S. Revisit this era in local history at the visitor center at San Pasqual, the site of the only major battle of the war fought in the San Diego area.

San Diego to host World Baseball Classic Finals

The first ever World Baseball Classic is set to begin on March 3, 2006. Sixteen countries or territories are committed to the event. It begins March 3 in Japan's Tokyo Dome and will end with an inaugural champion crowned on March 20 in San Diego's PETCO Park.

Those teams so far confirmed have been divided into four pools for the first round. They include: Pool A -- China, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea; Pool B -- Canada, Mexico, South Africa, U.S.; Pool C -- Netherlands, Panama, Puerto Rico and possibly Cuba; Pool D -- Australia, Dominican Republic, Italy, Venezuela.

The two big "maybes" for the tournament are the team from Cuba and Alex Rogriguez. The Cuban team has been told by the U.S. Treasury Department that it cannot participate because of U.S. laws governing financial transactions with Cuba. Rodriguez has said he will likely not participate because of divided loyalties between his birthplace (Dominican Republic) and his adopted home (U.S.) Both issues are the subject of much speculation and are currently being negotiated.

San Diego's Balboa Park largest U.S. urban cultural park

Balboa Park in San Diego is home to 15 major museums, several performing arts venues, 12 gardens, and many other cultural and recreational attractions including the San Diego Zoo. Visitors can access 13 of the parks attractions buy purchasing a "Passport to Balboa Park" for just $ 30.

The Passport is good for for seven days and guests can visit the Museum of Photographic Arts, the Japanese Friendship Garden, Mingei International Museum, the Museum of San Diego History, Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, San Diego Aerospace Museum, San Diego Art Institute: Museum of the Living Artist, San Diego Automotive Museum, San Diego Hall of Champions Sports Museum, San Diego Model Railroad Museum, San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego Museum of Man, and San Diego Natural History Museum.

Visitors also can upgrade the Passport with a one-day deluxe admission to the San Diego Zoo for a savings of about 50%. Passports are available at the Balboa Park Visitors Center.

Things to see and do around San Diego

The California Center for the Arts 2005-2006 Performing Arts Season presents exciting performances by classic celebrities, jazz legends, opera performances and Broadway favorites. Attend performances at either the Center Theater or the Concert Hall of the California Center for the Arts, Escondido.

Whale watching season runs from mid-December to mid-March in San Diego County. More than 15,000 California gray whales head south from Alaska to the warm water breeding areas of Baja California. A glassed-in observatory at Cabrillo National Monument, on the panoramic Point Loma peninsula, is a great place to watch the whales. You can also examine whale exhibits, and listen to presentations featuring the whales and their habitat. Whale-watching tours are available from local boating companies throughout the season.

San Diego Beach Scene - Visit San Diego's beaches for a wide range of experiences. The Continental Shelf extends many miles offshore, protecting the area from localized North Pacific storms and swells from the Southern Ocean. The temperate climate makes San Diego's many beaches safe and pleasant all year-round. Three distinct beach areas offer variety of experience and scenery. The North County coast features sandstone bluffs and fine beaches from Torrey Pines to San Onofre. The Central Coast is marked by dramatic headlands at La Jolla and Point Loma with the impressive waterways of Mission Bay in between. In the South Bay, the beaches of Coronado and the Silver Strand make San Diego one of the world's great seaports.

The Museum of San Diego History is located in Balboa Park. The museum presents the diverse history of the region, with interpretation, of San Diego's growth since the

1840s. Attend public lectures, workshops and educational programs presented in the museum's 100-seat Thornton Theater.

The San Diego Zoo is one of the great zoos of the world. It is part of Balboa Park. Zoo features include:

Monkey Trails and Forest Tales, an elaborate habitat housing more than 30 species of exotic and endangered birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians from Afica and Asia.
The Giant Panda Research Station - the zoo houses four giant pandas in an area built especially for them. The pandas are in San Diego as the result of an agreement between the Zoo and the Chinese government.
Absolutely Apes houses the orangutans and siamangs who have been a major feature of the zoo for many years. The animals inhabit a naturalistic area where they can climb, swing, and live in the same terrain as they would in the wild. Visitors can get up close and personal with the curious and playful apes when they choose to sit on the mulch right at the viewing window.
Other features include Tiger River, Flamingo Lagoon, Polar Bear Plunge, Sun Bear Forest, and a children's Petting Zoo

Rick Hendershot publishes LinknetNews at www.linknet-news.com. For Travel news and info see Travel USA | For Real Estate promotion see Real Estate Webs.

A Taste of What You Can Expect When You Travel to Tuscany, Italy

2006-01-24T16:54:00.000-06:00

Discover The Beauty Of Tuscany Italy
By Guest Author: Ciara McNamara,

Every time I write about Tuscany Italy, my heart and my whole body for that matter experiences an intense feeling of calmness. I know exactly that this feeling comes from the relaxed atmosphere that this part of Italy near Florence gives off. I have found a perfect balance of enjoying the fascinating city of Florence and its cultural activities at the same time I refurbish energy by either doing a farm holiday or staying in a luxury villa in the countryside of Tuscany.

Wallow in Luxury in Tuscany Italy

The words ‘luxury’ and ‘farm’ might scare you away, firstly because everyone associates luxury with expensive and farm with very little comfort. Let me tell you of some fantastic places where I have been and you will see how this is much more gratifying than staying at a hotel in the city centre.

The Fattoria il Lago farmhouse is found about 40 kilometres north-east of Florence, just outside the small town of Dicomano, hidden away in the olive tree covered Tuscan hillsides. The extensive property houses three areas which are referred to as villages, each having apartment accommodations and an entirely different landscape to admire. The main lodging building is called La Villa and has a pleasurable view of the Dicomano Valley. Just a short walk away you find Lago village with its corresponding pool accompanied by a beautiful garden. The third area is the most quaint sleeping quarters called Macerato, embedded among all the hues of green possible.

This kind of vacation rental is as comfortable and reposeful as the luxury villas, only that you are sharing a common ground with other tourists. When you get your Tuscany car rental, you should ask for a good map and maybe even ask them if they can give more explicit directions towards Dicomano being as the farmhouse is found off other country roads. Usually any holiday home in Tuscany offers the option of giving full directions when booking and also being picked up at nearby train or bus stations. You just have to let them know beforehand.

The 11th c. medieval monastery of San Lorenzo a Linari in Sovicille, south of Siena is one of those vacation rental places in Tuscany where you can have it all and still have your own breathing space, having your freedom from stress. This magnificent lodging is individual apartments tempting you with Tuscany tours such as viewing the hillside and mountains seated in a four-wheel drive vehicle, horse-back riding or an aerial view from a hot-air balloon. And if you do not want to miss out on the lovely beaches, there are excursions to the Mediterranean seashore, too.

Staying in Tuscany in the Chiantii area in the luxury villa estate called Villa de Dievole near the old town of Vagliali. As all villas used to belong to the Italian noble class, the exclusiveness and privacy is incomparable. The decoration in many has been respected in the restoration process, therefore you are living among many centuries of history. This 16th century villa has rooms and suites with a private guesthouse, too.

Without overtaxing one’s strength, your Tuscany Italy holiday tours can be choked full of emotions and peacefulness.

Ciara McNamara writes very often for www.tuscany-italy-guide.com an internet site containing tuscany information. Ciara is working on topics such as holiday tours and tips on italian food.

The smarter way to experience the Great Pyramids

2006-01-22T21:35:00.000-06:00

The smarter way to experience the Great Pyramids

By Guest Author: Jacob Fiennes

Middle East Vacations

From their construction throughout the centuries the Pyramids of Giza have represented mystery, wonder and awe to all. They are perhaps the only great architecture of the ancients to have survived more or less completely intact.

The oldest pyramid at Giza is the Great Pyramid of Cheops, also known as Khufu, and is the largest known pyramid in existence. It was built around 2500 BC of over two million limestone blocks, each almost three tons in weight. An astonishing achievement and is believed to be the work of around twenty thousand slave workers.
Nearby are the smaller pyramids belonging to Cheops’s son and grandson as well as the Great Sphinx, known as Abu ‘l-Hol, a half-lion, half-man figure of majestic proportions.

Each evening at dusk an enormous sound and light show is played out and, despite its rather tacky touristy nature, is a real fast-track introduction to Egyptian history. Scout through the many persistent camel drivers around the site for a decent tour of the pyramids on humpback, with the best time of day being at daybreak or sundown as these times are quieter and offer the most breathtaking atmosphere to view the pyramids in.

As perhaps the best possible example of real estate location the forty acre Mena House offers rolling views of lush parkland and beautiful gardens right on the Saharan doorstep with the pyramids as a backdrop. Before 1870 the Mena House was King Khedive Ismail’s official hunting lodge, yet today it offers serene escape from the heady tourist areas that surround the Pyramids.

Featuring and eighteen hole golf course, a gorgeous swimming pool set right in the lush gardens, and a certain aire of colonial grandeur felt perhaps most on the breakfast terrace , which Evelyn Waugh described best as being “like having the Prince of Wales at the next table”. To enjoy the Mena best choose a room in the old yet beautifully restored suites for a grand view of the Pyramids. Middle East Vacations
Courtesy of: Articlefactory.com

Jacob Fiennes is an enthusiastic traveller and photographer with a passion for discovery. He is a founder and regular contributor to the hugely popular worldwide hotel reservations site http://www.travelbx.com/. Visit the site for your next hotel room reservation, flight ticket, tailored holiday package and much more. http://www.travelbx.com

Adventure tours to the Himalayas

2006-01-22T20:45:00.000-06:00

Adventure tours to the Himalayas
By Charles Brown

Although only a handful of us aspire to actually climb Mount Everest in our lifetimes, I count myself among those who want to at least see this colossal peak before I die. To me, the Himalayas still represents a far-off adventure few of us actually get to see in person, but many of us have on our lifetime to-do lists.

So imagine how exciting it was for me to run across http://www.mtsobek.com/, a travel company that specializes in putting together small group adventure travel tours to the most awesome mountains in the world. No, we are not actually talking about climbing such mountains as Everest (although Africa’s Kilimanjaro is a mountain they conduct hiking tours onto), but mtsobek.com can take you on hikes and treks to see these breathtaking mountain regions.

For example, the Himalayan tour not only takes you to see the highest mountains in the world, but you will also meet the diverse ethnic people of Nepal, Tibet or Bhutan. Mtsoke.com offers nine Himalayas treks, so you can choose the adventure tour package that suits your physical condition, time and aspirations.
Among the many things you can do and see are:

Explore Buddhist monasteries that seem to be from another time;

Visit the Everest base camp and view what is arguably the most breathtaking sight on this planet;

The remote Gokyo Valley, with its beautiful turquoise lakes and moonscape-like glaciers;

Follow an ancient caravan track to the spectacular Namtso Lake, which sits on the Tibetan Plateau and appears to all the world like a great sea made of sapphire;

Meet traditional Himalayan highlanders: farmers, yak herders, and monks

So, you can bet a Himalayan tour is on my list of things to do. If you are new to adventure travel, you may also want to check out Andy McDowell’s article, Adventure Travel – An Exciting Thrill, which I have reprinted on my website, http://www.guerrillatraveler.blogspot.com/.

Adventure Travel to Make a Difference

2006-01-22T17:10:00.000-06:00

Adventure travel comes in many forms, But I recently came across www.i-to-i.com, which puts a whole new spin on the definition of adventure vacations.

i-to-i helps people make a difference while they see the world, by creating opportunities for people to immerse themselves in foreign culture and volunteer abroad in over 20 countries.

They offer a wide variety of volunteer experiences throughout the world, along with quality TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) training, and help thousands of people to catch the travel bug.

But they offer more than just teaching opportunities. Can you see yourself working on conservation projects like monitoring lions in South Africa? Or rescuing sea turtles in Costa Rico? Or how would doing community work with orphans in Guatemala change your life?

In addition, you have the opportunity to become a certified TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) instructor via either i-to-i’s online or onsite courses, which can lead to employment opportunities later.

So if you are looking for a travel experience to change your life, check out www.i-to-i.com.
By: Charles Brown,

The Best Long Running Las Vegas Shows

2006-01-22T00:04:00.000-06:00

The Best Long Running Las Vegas Shows
By Guest Author: Simon Oliver

Las Vegas shows appeal to people as a display of wonderful images and a thrilling experience. Some of these images are comedic acts, roulette, acrobat, magic, and colorful lights. These are all in Las Vegas. There are many types of shows to be seen and some of them have been performing for years.

One of the most frequently visited places are the stages where Las Vegas shows are held. One of the longest running shows is the “Danny Gans” show. He was awarded “Entertainer of the Year” and “Show of the Year”. His award-winning show is the hottest ticket around. He is also known as the best singer-impressionist-comedian-actor in today’s entertainment industry. Few people know it, but he never dreamed of becoming an entertainer when he was young. When he was in college he played for the Dodgers baseball team but his career ended when was injured. His family and friends encouraged him to go into show business. As a result, Gans moved his focus from the world of baseball to the entertainment business. He has a wonderful singing voice and he has the ability to make people laugh.

The adult shows are also very popular. One must be 21 years of age or older to be admitted into these shows. Greg Thompson’s Erocktica Live! is one of the best selling shows in Las Vegas. Together with choreographer, Mistinguett, they produce sexy late-night productions for Playboy, and HBO. They also produce the current “Skintight” at Harrah’s Las Vegas. The show is a combination of MTV videos, Classic rock music, and the Pussycat dolls. The show also features singers and dancers like Gabriella Versace and musicians such as Ray-J Jones and the sexy and enticing Mistinguett dancers. The US/UK all-star classic rock band play classic rock n’ roll music from popular bands like Aerosmith, Kiss, Guns ‘N’ Roses, Led Zeppelin, U2, Velvet Revolver, Journey, Foreigner and many more.

Another ticket selling show is The Blue Man Group. This is a creative and artistic organization which is dedicated in forming thrilling and innovative work using a wide range of mediums. They are the award-winning theatrical productions which critics describe as astounding, magnificent, hilarious but musically influential. They feature three blue characters who capture the eyes of audiences by combining theatre, art, science and percussive performance into an entertainment venue that is unique and original.

KA is a martial arts and acrobatic show. It features magnificent pyrotechnics, multimedia and puppetry combined. It is hosted by MGM Grand, and Las Vegas is the only place where this show is performed and held. It has the theatrical energy that the audiences would like to have and experience. It is a story of twins on a death-defying journey to carry out their entwined destiny. They demonstrate the various martial arts known to the world and mix it with their incredible acrobatic skills. These are only some of the many Las Vegas shows that have been selling and running for years now. So what are you waiting for? Come and enjoy the fun!

Article Source:Reprinted Articles.com

Simon Oliver has an interest in Las Vegas Shows. To access more articles on Las Vegas Show’s or for additional information and resources visit this Las Vegas Shows related website.

Romantic Travel Ideas

2006-01-21T19:31:00.000-06:00

Are you romantically challenged? Do you want to show that special person your romantic side but just cannot come up with those great ideas that will sweep him or her into your arms? (Me too).

Anyway, I was doing a Google search for “romantic travel ideas” and came across the following list on Romantic Getaway Ideas in lovingyou.com.

Not only does this list already contain such great ideas as romantic strolls along San Antonio’s River Walk, Autumn road through New England, staying at quaint Bed and Breakfasts, and candlelight dinner at a Cancun resort followed by laying on the beach until sunrise; the list keeps growing as new readers ad their own suggestions for the perfect romantic getaway.

OK, some of you may not have a romantic bone in your bodies, but you are missing out if you don’t even try. I know my brain doesn’t naturally follow this line of thinking without some sort of inspiration (hence the Google search).

So if you want to take your Romantic Quotient (RQ) to the next level, check this list out.

Top Ten Travel Deals in U.S.

2006-01-21T09:28:00.000-06:00

Check out Hotwire.com’s Best U.S. Cities for Bargains article for some great ideas for U.S. travel destinations without spending a bundle.

The site ranks U.S. cities with an “affordability rating” which, although they do not go into great detail about how they crunch their numbers, appears to combine such factors as entertainment options, prices of those entertainment options, hotel prices and transportation prices to get to each city.

In other words, not only is it relatively inexpensive to travel to these places, but there are a good variety of reasonably priced fun things to do once you get there.

The article lists Denver, Co as its top pick, followed by Greenville-Spartanburg, SC; Raleigh-Durham, NC; and Knoxville, TN.

I noticed that under the entertainment options, Hotwire typically lists things like hiking and biking trails, museums, outdoor concerts, historic attractions and venues that accent the local flavor of each city.

For example, tours of the U.S. Mint in Denver are free; the Albuquerque International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta in October, is only $6; Grauman's Chinese Theatre with its footprints and autographs of Hollywood legends is free; Reno’s Truckee River Walk, a trail landscaped with waterfalls is also free; and Guided tours of the Daytona Speedway, home of the Daytona 500 are only $10.

So check out Hotwire’s Best U.S. Cities for Bargains, and get started planning your low-cost vacation today.

Travel Guide To San Francisco

2006-01-18T23:45:00.000-06:00

San Francisco A City Guide
Introduction

The City and County of San Francisco is the fourth-largest city in the state of California, in the United States. A consolidated city-county, mainland San Francisco is located on the tip of the San Francisco Peninsula. Insular San Francisco includes several islands in the San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Strait, notably Alcatraz, Treasure Island, and the Farallon Islands 27 miles offshore in the Pacific Ocean and also most of the privately owned Red Rock Island near the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

History

San Francisco has a long history of events marking its growth from a small town to a big city

• In 1776, the Spanish were the first Europeans to settle in San Francisco

• In 1848, with the advent of the California gold rush the city entered a period of rapid growth

• In 1822, serious development by non-Spanish speakers began, when William Richardson, an English whaler redeveloped a section of Yerba Buena in what is now Portsmouth Square in Chinatown.

• In 1846, the Mexican-American War broke out.

• On January 30, 1847, a naval force under Commodore John D. Sloat claimed it in the name of the United States and renamed it "San Francisco"

• On April 18, 1906, a devastating earthquake resulted from the rupture of over 270 miles of the San Andreas Fault, from San Juan Bautista to Eureka, centered immediately offshore of San Francisco.

• The city was quickly rebuilt after the earthquake.

• The phoenix on the city's flag represents San Francisco's "rebirth" from the ashes of the fire that resulted from the quake.

• In the 1950s San Francisco hired Harvard graduate Justin Herman to head the redevelopment agency for the city and county.

• Justin Herman began an aggressive campaign to renew blighted areas of the city.

• His planning led to the creation of Embarcadero Center, the Embarcadero Freeway, Japan town, the Geary Street super blocks, and Yerba Buena Gardens.

Place of Interest

San Francisco's parks, museums, tours, and landmarks are favorites for travelers the world over and offer an array of activities to suit every visitor. But no particular activity or place makes the city one of the most popular destinations in the world. It's San Francisco itself -- its charm, its atmosphere, its perfect blend of big metropolis with small-town hospitality. Some of its main attractions are:

• Alcatraz Island

• Cable Cars

• California Academy of Sciences

• Coit Tower

• Ferry Building Marketplace (and Farmers' Market)

• Fisherman's Wharf

• Ghiradelli Square

• Golden Gate Bridge

• Lombard Street

• Pier 39

• The Cannery

• Yerba Buena Center for the Arts / Yerba Buena Gardens

Museums & Art Galleries

Notable San Francisco Museums include

• The Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA),

• The Palace of the Legion of Honor,

• The M. H. de Young Memorial Museum,

• The Asian Art Museum.

Other museums include

• The International Museum of Women,

• The Museum of the African Diaspora,

• The Contemporary Jewish Museum,

• The Museum of Craft & Folk Art,

• The Mexican Museum.

In terms of performing arts, San Francisco boasts

• The San Francisco Symphony,

• The San Francisco Opera

• The San Francisco Ballet.

San Francisco's Ballet and Opera are some of the oldest continuing performing arts companies in the United States.

Shopping

Like its population, San Francisco's shopping is both worldly and intimate. Every persuasion, style, era, and fetish is represented, not in big, tacky shopping malls, but in hundreds of quaint, dramatically different boutiques scattered throughout the city. San Francisco has many shopping areas, but the following places are where one will find most of the actions:

• Union Square & Environs

• Chinatown

• Union Street

• Chestnut Street

• Fillmore Street

• Haight Street

• SoMa

• Hayes Valley

Food & Drink

San Francisco's restaurants are so renowned that many people visit the city just to eat -- and with good reason. The city's brilliant chefs, combined with California's abundance of organic produce, seafood, free-range meats, and Northern California wine, guarantee some of the world's finest dining. San Francisco also has varied nightlife ranging from bars to lounges to clubs. Major areas of nightlife in San Francisco are North Beach, the Mission District, the Marina, the Castro, and South of Market. San Francisco also boasts of legendary pop music venues such as The Fillmore and The Warfield.

Universities

San Francisco Unified School District and the Archdiocese of San Francisco’s dozens of Catholic elementary and high schools serve the city. Despite its limited geographical space, San Francisco is home to a multitude of Universities and Colleges. Public universities include:

• University of California, San Francisco, primarily a graduate level health-sciences school, located north of Forest Hill

• San Francisco State University located in the southwest corner of the city near Lake Merced

• University of California, Hastings College of the Law located downtown at its Civic Center

• City College of San Francisco, one of the largest community colleges in the country is located in the Ingleside, with several extension campuses.

• Private universities:

• The Jesuit-run University of San Francisco, one of the first universities established west of the Mississippi, located in the center of the city

• Golden Gate University, a business and law school located downtown

• California Culinary Academy Le Cordon Bleu program located in the Tenderloin

• Academy of Art University

• San Francisco School of Digital Filmmaking

• Alliant International University.

Sports

San Francisco is the home of many major league teams like

• The San Francisco 49ers National Football League team, who play at Monster Park

• The San Francisco Giants Major League Baseball team, who play at SBC Park

• MLB 's Oakland Athletics

• NFL's Oakland Raiders

• The National Basketball Association's Golden State Warriors play across the bay in Oakland

• The regional National Hockey League team, the San Jose Sharks play in San Jose

The Warriors and Sharks were once based just south of San Francisco, at the Cow Palace, located several yards south of San Francisco, in Daly City. The city is also home to some famous golf courses, including the Harding Park Golf Course and the courses of the Olympic Club.

Hotels & Accommodation

Luxury Hotels : San Francisco has elegant and grand hotels in its possession. Westin St. Francis, Westin Saint Francis, Palace Hotel, Argent Hotel, Mark Hopkins Intercontinental, Hilton, Fairmont, W San Francisco, Pan Pacific, Park Hyatt, Hyatt Regency, Renaissance Parc 55, Ritz Carlton - are some of these big names.

All famous luxury hotels like Hilton, Hyatt, Palace Hotel, etc. have their branch in Fisherman Wharf.

Budget Hotels : If the visit to San Francisco is in a particularly busy season and booking in prominent hotels are over, here's a list of moderate to very inexpensive alternatives - Alisa Hotel, Edward II Inn & Suites, Hotel Beresford Arms, King George Hotel, The Marina Inn, The San Remo Hotel.

Tours and Sightseeing

San Francisco has different type of organized tours they differ in the contents as well as the transport system. Tours are available by Bus, Boat, BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) or on foot. The San Francisco Visitor Information Center, at Powell and Market streets, distributes free route maps. Blue & Gold Fleet and Red & White Fleet are two boat tours available. And Gray Line Bus tour is the San Francisco’s largest bus tour operator. The self-guided Private SUV tour, 49-mile drive is one easy way to grasp the beauty of San Francisco and its extraordinary location. Beginning in the city, it follows a rough circle around the bay and passes virtually all the best-known sights, from Chinatown to the Golden Gate Bridge, Ocean Beach, Seal Rocks, Golden Gate Park, and Twin Peaks.

Transport

San Francisco has the most extensive public transit system on the West Coast and one of the most diverse in the country. Muni is the city-owned public transit system, which operates the Muni Metro light rail system. BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) is the regional transit system, which connects San Francisco with the East Bay, through an underwater tunnel, and Northern San Mateo County, California communities and San Francisco International Airport on the San Francisco Peninsula. In addition, a frequent commuter rail service, Caltrain, operates between San Francisco, San Jose, California and Gilroy, California.

San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is located 12.9 km (8 miles) south of the city in San Mateo County on a landfill extension into the San Francisco Bay. It is the only major international hub airport in California other than LAX in Los Angeles.

About the Author

Name: Mary Scott

Occupation: Traveler

Website: www.thereservationcenter.com

www.looktours.com

Biography: Mary Scott is with The Reservation Center - providers of discounted tours to make your vacations and sightseeing trips in various cities across the world as comfortable and enjoyable as possible.

Courtesy of: www.articledepot.co.uk

Cancun Travel Tips

2006-01-18T23:00:00.000-06:00

Travel Do’s And Don’ts When Traveling To Cancun
By Guest Author: Noel Gomez

For people who love to travel a lot, going to places that they have not been before will seem like a dream come true for most of them. This is because they get to places where everything will look new, the adventures are definitely fresh and the surrounding all too vague and strange that makes the travel more exciting.

However, not all places are created equal. This goes to show that not all rules and regulations are applicable to every place or location. That is why it is extremely important to know some information about the place itself and identify the governing laws.

For example take Cancun. It is, indeed, a great and enjoyable country to visit. Yet, visiting Cancun can do more harm than good if things are not done properly or when people bring with them unnecessary things.

So, for those who want some travel tips in the event that they plan to visit Cancun, here’s a list that will help them through.

1. Do some homework.
For people who are first timers in Cancun, it is best that they do their homework first. That is, research more about the country, its government, some special laws that needs to be kept in mind while there, or the kind of people present so as to have an idea about how to deal with them good-naturedly.

2. Valid passports.
It is best to travel, especially going to Cancun, with valid travel documents and passports. This is to avoid inconvenience and further problems. This is because there are countries that might not give some leeway on the travelers that is why it is important to get ready with authentic ones in case some questions arise.

3. Pets rule.
There are instances wherein people who have pets just don’t have anyone who will take care of their pets while they are away. That is why they opt to bring their pets while on travel.
However, it is more easily said than done because carrying pets along is more tedious that what travelers tend to believe.
First, the pet owner must first secure “custom certificates” that indicates the origin of the pet and certifies that the pet is in good condition and can easily conform to the norms and standards set by the country like Cancun. It should also indicate the kind and nature of vaccines taken by the pet, if any.
The bottom line: It’s still best to be prepared whenever somebody wants to travel to places like Cancun. This simply means that the more prepared a traveler is, the lesser he or she will encounter some problems.

Article Source: http://www.articlebliss.com/

Please visit my website at: http://www.cancunvacationoil.com/. For more tips visit cancun vacation today and relax in the sun!

Dancing With Whales

2006-01-18T22:42:00.000-06:00

I have been reading more and more about excursion companies that take divers or swimmers right in the midst of whale pods. This cautionary article by David Stanley points out why this is (at best) a questionable venture. You might want tot heed his advice before you spend your money, and possibly your life, on such and adventure.

The Guerrilla Traveler

By Guest Author: David Stanley

We've all heard about whalewatching from boats or shore, and a few companies are now offering the possibility of actually swimming and snorkeling with whales in the wild. Is this a good thing

Some whalewatching operators in the Kingdom of Tonga, South Pacific islands, advertise the possibility of swimming and snorkeling with humpback whales during the cetacean's annual migration from July to October. This activity sounds appealing, yet there are a number of things to consider.

To drop clients off within snorkeling distance of a whale, the swim boats must come closer than the 30 meters laid down in Tongan government guidelines in 1997. Engine noise from a maneuvering boat can startle a whale, and repeated disturbances can lead to the animals changing their behavior and even abandoning their traditional habitat. The nursing and resting routines of the pods can be disrupted, potentially threatening the health of the whales.

This high-risk activity is not covered by most travel insurance policies. The humpback whales of Tonga are wild animals with powerful fins, and swimming near one always involves some risk. The movements of these huge creatures can be fatal to a human swimmer, either accidentally or if the beast feels threatened, and a nursing mother with calf can be especially unpredictable. Swimming into the path of a whale greatly increases the danger.

In Tonga, sharks are known to frequent areas where there are whales, especially calves, and at least one shark attack on a Tongan guide swimming with whales has been recorded. A tragic accident involving tourists seems to be only a matter of time.

Most whale encounters occur in deep waters where unperceived currents and wave action can soon tire a snorkeler and possibly lead to panic. For these reasons, responsible whalewatching companies like Whale Discoveries do not offer snorkeling with whales.

Of course, the demand is there, and pressure has come to bear on the Tongan Government to revise its guidelines to allow boats to come within 10 meters of a whale. Several new whalewatching licenses have been issued recently, raising the number of commercial operators in this small area to about a dozen, and vessels often have to queue to drop off swimmers. Cases have been observed of boats approaching to within five meters of whale pods, and of mother humpbacks and calves being pursued out to sea.

Visitors should be aware that by purchasing such an excursion, they could be adversely affecting the noble creatures they came to see. It's a good idea to discuss these matters with the operator before booking your trip, and to avoid those who seem most interested in maximizing their own profits at the expense of the whales.

Even if you decide to book such a tour, be aware that only 10 percent of swim-with attempts are successful and there are no refunds. These concerns only apply to attempts to actually swim with whales, and whalewatching from a boat at a safe distance is no problem.

Courtesy of: http://www.articlebliss.com/

David Stanley is the author of Moon Handbooks South Pacific which has a chapter on Tonga. Stanley's maps, photos, and writings on Tonga may be perused on TonganHoliday.com.

Roadtrip Travel to the U.S. East Coast

2006-01-18T22:39:00.000-06:00

Choosing The East Coast To Go On Vacation

ByGuest Author: Harald Anderson

Are you planning to go on vacations? Have you ever considered taking a road trip to the east coast of the United States? If you haven’t, you should, because this part of America offers a great variety of activities that you and your family can join to have a very good time. You should decide what to do depending on how much time you have. You can choose to drive all the way along the entirecoast or, if you do not have much time, you should pick a particular area you are interest to visit and explore it in detail. Of course, always study what the different areas have to offer in food, entertainment and accommodation before starting to drive. If you plan your vacation properly, for sure you will spend a great time traveling along the Atlantic shoreline.

If you plan to begin your vacation in the south, bear in mind that Florida can and will maintain you occupied for more than a few days. This is because Florida has a long coastline and many interesting activities to do. You and your family can have a good time visiting the various amusement parks, and enjoying the beach climate that is one of the best. Then you have to keep going and for sure you will not skip Savannah, Georgia, the state’s oldest city, where you can go to the historical Savannah River and to several historical colonial sites. It is a city you should not avoid because its colorful old houses and its southern charm are unforgettable.

Then you should turn to Charleston, South Carolina, a city you cannot avoid. It s a city very similar to Savannah in its architecture but it also has its own interesting things, such as the Folly Beach and some of the region’s best seafood restaurants. After Charleston, the trip can continue to the city Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on the outer banks of the state. This city offers you a variety of activities, included museums recording the Wright Brothers’ first flight, where you can place yourself in the path where they made history.

Are you interested in politics? If this is your case, you should stop in Washington, D.C. Because there you can visit the famous White House, the Supreme Court and the U.S. Capitol building, apart from the great number of museums of which the most important are the Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian. Another place you cannot avoid visiting is the National Gallery, especially if you are interested in art. Here you will find famous paintings from not only American but also foreign artists.

All the way up to the city of New York you will be appreciating the beautiful American rural landscape. For example you will drive past the nice state of Delaware where you will be delighted by seeing the wonderful farmland and the old farmhouses in that great rural landscape. Remember to take the Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel when you drive along Chesapeake Bay. It is an unforgettable twenty-six mile toll highway stretching across the superb waterway. And if you are feeling tired, there is a picturesque restaurant and rest area with a dock halfway through the twenty-six miles where you can feel as if you are floating in the heart of the ocean surrounded by countless miles of water.

As soon as you enter New Jersey, you will soon start feeling the effects of the looming New York City destination. A lot of hotels and slightly shady establishments will start appearing in your way, as you get closer to New York. And if you go even further you will see one of the greatest sights in the globe: the Manhattan skyline. Getting nearer the city you will start appreciating the surrealism of the buildings as if they were planted in the ocean and were growing skywards like a tree would do. If you make your own vacation plan do not forget including New York City at night because of its glowing magnificence.

If you do not have enough time, plan your vacation carefully so as to include at least a few days to go around the city. Some may think that it is rather overwhelming, nut it is a city you have to visit if you are near it. It is a very big city where you can find anything you are looking for. You can find a great variety of food, clothing, activity or music, what makes it the ultimate educational, cultural, and shopping experience. What can be better then finishing your vacation in one of the more beautiful cities in the world: New York?

Courtesy of: http://www.articlebliss.com/

Vacation information on http://www.apnavacation.com/ with the all time expert Sintilia Miecevole is waiting for you. You'll have resources at your fingertips from accommodations, hotels, tickets and insurance to resorts, vacation deals, cruises and more. Vacation with http://www.apnavacation.com/ and start planning your vacation today.

Virginia Is For Lovers

2006-01-18T22:36:00.000-06:00

Virginia Is For Lovers With Plenty Of Bed And Breakfasts

By Guest Author: Shawn Everett

The state slogan for Virginia is "Virginia is for lovers" and there are plenty of bed and breakfast locations to help lovers spend some quality time together in a peaceful, relaxing and special atmosphere that simply cannot be found in a hotel. As a result, if you live in Virginia or are simply passing through, consider a Virginia bed and breakfast for your accommodations and you will certainly enjoy your stay even more.

Virginia is a very diversified state in the fact that there are mountains, city, the beach, and everything in between. And, no matter where you find yourself in Virginia there will be a bed and breakfast to meet your needs. Of course, there are more bed and breakfast locations in the cities especially closer to Washington D.C., but there are so many bed and breakfast locations that you can truly find just what you are looking for no matter where you find yourself.

It might be difficult to just happen across a bed and breakfast in Virginia however because they are generally houses with signs, but nothing to compete with the big lit signs of hotels. As a result, you should plan ahead and look for Virginia bed and breakfasts in one of the many bed and breakfast directories available. Doing this will allow you to find all the bed and breakfasts listed in Virginia and you can check out rates, amenities, and then contact the b and b to make a reservation. Having your stay planned in advance will make you rest easy.

A bed and breakfast in Virginia is really a great option because it is almost as if you are staying at home, but with someone preparing a full breakfast for you and willing to meet your every need and even whim. As a result, a bed and breakfast can be an enjoyable and very romantic place to stay. If you are planning a trip to Virginia, check out the bed and breakfast options and you will more than likely choose to stay in a bed and breakfast on your next trip to Virginia.

Courtesy of: http://www.articlebliss.com/

Shawn Everett is the owner of The Bed and Breakfast Connector http://www.bbconnector.com/, a directory of bed and breakfast inns across North America including Virginia.

A Sampler of China Travel Ideas

2006-01-17T08:31:00.000-06:00

The Lowdown on China Travel
By Guest Author: Mansi Aggarwal

The fragrance of fish, lobsters…, the sturdy Great Wall, the broken hush of winds by the Martial Arts, the grand museums and unpretentious down to earth people…welcome you to the third largest country on the globe-China. China is universally known not just for any single reason. The country has earned remarkable name not just in electronics and technology but it also surpasses many countries in its receiving tourists’ attention. The charisma of China is such that people from all over the world endeavor to bask at least once in the Chinese glory.

China is the land of rich history and has contributed a lot in sphere of philosophy. However, demographically China is the most populous country that we have today followed by India. The commonplace life and activity of the place can be enjoyed by taking on to the streets of the Chinese cities.

A Brush with the Chinese Cities

Like any other country, China too has its own network of cities. But unlike many other cities, the Chinese metropolises are swarming with people. This is because the place has an exclusive charm and unique assets that lure the people all over the world. The first city that hogs limelight besides Hong Kong is the capital city Beijing.

Beijing is one of the wonderful cities that can keep all its visitors glued to it. Once you decide to step in this city, scores of attractions await your encounter. The pleasant weather of Beijing is a good reason to go for a stroll and water and other games in the Beijing Amusement Park. As soon as you enter the place, get ready to discover the child in you for the rides like roller coaster, bumper cars, paddle boats etc. will not at any cost let you to ignore them.

Beijing also hosts a recreation center popularly known as The Beijing Recreation Center. This center invites people of all age groups for there are multitude of games like poker, bowling, electronic golf, squash, tennis and billiards. The discotheque, fitness room, sauna and mah-iong room are added pulls. The Summer Palace (Yiheyuan) at Beijing with its archaic temples, pavilions, huge mansions, lakes etc. make a superb picnic spot.

Your vacation can be an experience of fun with learning when you enter the eminent Beijing Museum of Natural History. Also to behold is the China Aviation Museum that lies nearly on the outskirts of Beijing. This museum has about 200 planes and the aircrafts etc. used during the World War II.

Finally shopping in Beijing can be enjoyed once you take on to the Wangfujing Business Street of Beijing. From here you can take home books, amazing handicraft items, medicines, electronic gadgets and almost everything you require in your routine life.

Are you trying to make your way through the bustling population? Walking down the street have you encountered the world’s third tallest TV tower i.e. The Oriental Pearl TV Tower? And do you think there is no end to the place you are in...You have entered the by far the largest metropolis of the world-Shanghai. Along with these magnets, The Tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang-Xian where this foremost emperor of China is believed to be yet lying in a single piece is a site that summons many visitors.

The Shanghai Museum is worth visiting to view some distinctive relics of China. The place can be a center for a thrilling nightlife. There are beautiful night clubs and bars, Caribe Bar being a frequently budding one. Some vibrant streets of Shanghai are a perfect place to shop. From sparkling glass items to exclusive china-ware, everything is at hand.

The glorious city oh Hong Kong needs no introduction. It has already established itself as the Asia’s world city. Many attractions of the place also include the Hong Kong Space Museum that is one amongst the largest planetariums in the world. It is an educational site for kids as well as adults that reveal some of the baffling facts of the universe.

When it comes to food, generally eight cuisines are found in China- Shandong, Sichuan, Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan and Anhui. Few restaurants in Hong Kong serve ‘vegetarian pork’ and ‘vegetarian chicken’. The dishes made of Soyabean are difficult to be distinguished from the real ones.

Hong Kong is an ideal place to shop. The Times Square is a recommendable venue that welcomes you with numerous shops. There is anything and everything from dazzling jewelry, garments and antiques to sports goods and toys.

The Sites Globally Known

The Great Wall of China speaks through itself. Besides the historical significance the site that makes through the wonders of the world, exerts a pull on each and every person that comes to China. The Grand Canal of China that has 60 bridges and 24 locks has always been a center of worldwide attention.

Not to be forgotten is the Mt. Huangshan that is known for its deformed pine trees and springs. You can trek up the Mt. Huangshan or take a tram to have an exotic and breathtaking view of the mountain as well as the entire China.

About the Author: Mansi aggarwal writes about china travel topics. Learn more at http://www.chinadestinations.com .
Courtesy of: www.isnare.com

Travel to China: The Ancient Empire

2006-01-17T08:20:00.000-06:00

China, The Most Ancient Empire On The Earth

By Guest Author: Elena Reboni

A country with the biggest population on the Earth, a country closed for a several decades; nowadays China is becoming one of the most interesting tourist destinations in Asia. China is one of the oldest states in the world and the only, surviving till today.

For visitors China offers a great variety of choices. Whether you are interested in Chinese history, Chinese culture or Chinese scenery, your trip will be very interesting.

Of course, those who like to know China should visit its Capital – Beijing. Beijing is a capital city for over 800 years now. Thirty-four emperors have lived and ruled the nation in Beijing and it has been an important trading city from its earliest days. Now Beijing is a modern metropolis, but you still can see the traces of the Chinese glorious story - Forbidden City - the largest and best-preserved imperial palace complex, a section of the Great Wall and the largest sacrificial complex in the world - the Temple of Heaven. In the old part of Beijing people still leave in small houses, that don’t differ from those their ancestors lived in. This part of the city looks like they missed at least 100 last years. However there is another Beijing – modern, with skyscrapers and prestigious hotels, with restaurants and bars. The world-biggest central square, ruefully famous Tian'anmen Square attracts a lot of tourists. In 2008 Beijing will host the Olympic Games, so the amount of modern buildings and tourist services will increase significantly.

Shanghai with its population of about 18 millions is the biggest city in China. Originally Shanghai was a seaside fishing village, but today it has become a multi-cultural metropolis with both modern and traditional Chinese features. Known as "the Oriental Paris", Shanghai is the top shopping destination in China. It also can be called the most Western Chinese city. As a port city Shanghai survived a considerable foreign influence.

A very special place in China is Hong Kong. It became a part of China only in 1999 and still had strong links with the West, particularly with the Great Britain. Today Hong Kong is a great international trading post, a powerful manufacturing base and one of the world's largest financial centres. Hong Kong is also famous for its cinema.

Another interesting experience in China could become a cruise along Yangtze, the greatest Chinese river. Usually they last from 5 to 22 days. You will visit Chongqing, Fengdu, Sandouping and some other Chinese places of interest.

Amazing world of the mysterious Tibetan civilization is without any doubt worth visiting but it’s a subject of a separate trip that will take about 2 weeks.

Anyway, China has a lot to offer and you can choose your own travel program to see what you want.

About the Author: For booking a hotel in any part of the world, please, go to http://www.bb72.com.

Courtesy of: isnare.com

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