Take a Ride Down the Side

Have you ever been skiing? If so, let it be known that ski holidays 2011 have begun, with the temperatures going down almost as fast as the skiers. And maybe you haven’t ever been skiing before. This is a tragic occurrence, and no one would blame you. This is rather like having never ridden a roller coaster or having never eaten a great deep dish pizza. Some experiences in life just need to be had if you are ever going to feel like you’ve lived fully. And going skiing is definitely one of those experiences. After you’ve gone skiing, a mountain will never look quite the same to you again.

Just picture it: You start out as the top, gazing down into the valley below. The cold air feels warm and moist against your face, inside your mask. If you aren’t wearing a mask, every breath you exhale looks like a huge plume of smoke, coming from the mouth of a dragon. You’re a dragon about to lunge. With a mighty push forward, you’re off! The air churns all around you like you’re falling, and the trees whiz by as you soar down the mountainside. When you turn, your skis kick up a massive spray of snow. And you may end up going half a mile or more before you coast to a stop.

If that sounds even slightly fun, you need to consider a ski holidays in 2011. If you want a thrill but aren’t into heights, this is the kind of vacation to get your heart racing and your blood pumping like never before. Not only can you launch yourself down a mountain. That’s great fun, of course. You can also take a long, cross country tour of the area. There is just nothing like taking in nature, and combining the silence of a hike with some speed. Take in nature, with peace and quiet.

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Filed Under: Backpacking, Ecotourism, Family Travel, General, Photography Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

How You Can Get Paid to Travel

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Image by NR Acampamentos via Flickr

Traveling is fun and invigorating, but when you think of going somewhere, it usually entails spending a lot of cash or running up the balance on credit cards. There are ways to actually get paid to travel, and several of them. Jobs in travel have become more numerous as people regularly travel to many destinations all over the world.

If you like to fly and never seem to get enough of it, you can look for a job as a flight attendant or work in the cabin of an airplane. There are a lot of airplanes and many people flying on them, so likewise there are many cabin crew jobs if you know where to look. If spending hours and hours on airplanes and helping people enjoy their travel, then this is an excellent way to get paid to travel.

Being proficient in writing has many benefits. If you like to write and travel, then you can go places to write reviews of cities, hotels and other destinations. You may even receive discounts and comps if you are good enough, and word spreads quickly if you are good enough. Blogs and travel websites online also provide many opportunities in this area.

Teaching abroad is also something you can consider if you wish to spend time overseas and earn some income while you are at it. There is a high demand for English teachers in foreign countries, and with this kind of work, you’ll learn about life in another country first hand as well. For those good at public speaking, you might find yourself staying at luxury hotels and eating at fine restaurants. You don’t even need a formal education to be a public speaker.

Leading tours is another way to get paid to travel. You can end up in a great city or regularly go on adventures such as hiking or whitewater rafting. If you land a gig like this it can be very lucrative. Working and traveling can be an adventure to its own, and is great if you want to make instead of spend your income while doing so.

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Filed Under: Ecotourism, Family Travel, Travel Tagged With: , , ,

Types of Cruise Ships to Sail the Seas

The Disney Magic Cruise Ship
Image by Scott Ableman via Flickr

You can take a vacation on many types of cruise ships which are built to foster your leisure and recreation. It is possible to go pretty much anywhere, since the majority of the world is covered in water, and many waterways lead to some of the most beautiful and desirable destinations. The choice becomes the types of cruise ships you want to experience the world on.

The typical ship can hold anywhere from several hundred to up to 3,000 passengers. The mainstream cruise ships run by major companies are big floating resorts and have their own restaurants and bars, nightclubs, shopping areas, and even theaters. Some have casinos and sports facilities.

A product of demand and technology, mega cruise ships can hold more than 5,000 passengers. They are massive versions of regular cruise vessels and are technological marvels unto their own.

You don’t have to go with a gargantuan ship if it is not your thing. Smaller cruise ships can be yacht-like vessels that hold only a few hundred people. They can also go where the massive ones can’t, like small inlets and nearby tiny islands around archipelagos. Ships built for ocean voyages, if you want to take a more world-scale trip, or vessels built around the desire for luxury are other choices you have when planning a cruise trip.

Adventure cruise ships are also smaller than the mass-marketed big toys. These also fall under the category of going to remote destinations that might be inaccessible to a large boat. Many times, they are sail powered and therefore more in tune with Mother Nature’s own forces.

There are also ships designed for expeditions, such as for research in areas like the Arctic or Antarctic and other coastal areas. You can see remote ecological reserves this way and even thought the boats are designed for research, they provide enough comfort for you to enjoy a vacation on-board. Another alternative is a river boat, which can range from a low-tech paddle boat design to a high-tech modern ship.

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Filed Under: Ecotourism, Tips and Tricks, Transportation, Travel Tagged With: , , , ,

Not-to-Far Away Places to Escape the Cold

If you are unfortunate to live in the northern parts of the United States, you have to suffer through many months of cold weather before you can enjoy the summer again. Fall can be nice, but cold and snowy times are lurking. However, flights to areas in the south can be quick and relatively inexpensive. There, you can find places to escape the cold when it does strike.

Florida is great most of the year, and is the focus of many deals that airlines offer. You can go to Orlando for fun, but many beach areas near Miami, the keys, and Tampa are excellent escapes from the cold up north. In the winter months cold fronts can make it down here even, but most of the year it is summer-like. Even when cold air masses make it into the deep south, they don’t last as long and are relatively milder. Chances are, you can get a flight down and enjoy some sunshine for a few days.

There is always Southern California too. In places like LA and San Diego, it is warm almost all year and the temperatures are fairly constant most of the time. The chances of a rainy day are also much slimmer than most other places. You can find yourself on one of many beaches that line the coast, as there are many of them. Gulf Coast destinations also offer warmth for more months out of the year than up north, except that during the winter months, extreme cold fronts can sweep through the northern Gulf areas and make it pretty miserable at times.

If you want a sure bet, look into Caribbean island destinations where it never gets cold. There are places to escape the cold here that are warm, the palm trees grow, and the water is comfortable and clear year-round. The best part is, depending on where you live of course, is that the flights are not very long and are subject to nice deals.

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Filed Under: Ecotourism, Tips and Tricks, Travel Tagged With: , , ,

Travel to New Jersey Luxury Apartments

If you are planning an extended stay in the New York City area, you might consider staying at the New Jersey luxury apartments versus a hotel. While a hotel can be quite luxurious and nice, after a while you begin to miss the comforts of home. You desire surroundings that you can cook, and where hotel staff doesn’t come in to bother you at six in the morning.

Opting for an extended stay rental while traveling might be just the answer. Look for travel tips to make your trip more enjoyable and affordable too. You might be surprised what you find when you check out travel tips from friends and family who have visited the area you will be going. People love to share information and tell you about their own personal experiences. What they loved about a vacation or particular location and what they didn’t.

Look to other experienced travelers to give you great travel tips on places to stay, to see and where to dine with great entertainment. Those in the know, can recommend the best dining experiences for any kind of meal or budget. If you don’t know someone first hand who has recently traveled to an area you’ll be going, check out books or the Internet for some insider scoop.

There are plenty of travel forums online that readily offer all sorts of travel tips. Everything from how to pack to how to have a more local experience. You’ll get suggestions about all the haunts that locals enjoy frequenting. You can easily find travel tips any time of year to the most popular destination, you’ll have to dig if you’re going to a relatively unknown holiday spot. Some tips you may find invaluable, others you’ll ignore to make your own discoveries. Eventually, you’ll share your own travel tips once you return from your journey.

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Filed Under: Ecotourism, Travel Tagged With: , ,

How to Get from A to B

The famous Car Rapide, Senegal's most commonly...
Image via Wikipedia

With many travelers adhering to tight budgets, with present concerns about oil consumption, and with the inconvenience of airport security, transportation choices have become increasingly complex. While hopping on a plane might have seemed like the obvious choice for vacation a few years ago, travelers today want other options.

Air travel is still the choice of many travelers. For long distances, or when the need to travel comes up unexpectedly, flying is often the best way to go. However, some people cringe at the very thought of navigating security guidelines, from knowing how much shampoo can be carried on to what deciding which shoes are quickest to take off and put on. Others may be concerned with the high fuel consumption of commercial airliners.

Travel by train can be slower than air travel, or even car travel, and train stations are not necessarily found in every destination. However, this mode of transportation affords some advantages. According to the UK Guardian, CO2 production for train travel is one-eighth of that for air travel, and some environmentalists report that it has the lowest per-passenger impact of any form of transportation. Trains may afford amenities from basic to luxurious, and scenic views along the route.

Many people are opting to drive less, not only in their day-to-day lives, but also on vacation. Even so, car travel may be a good choice for short distances. Cars that utilize newer fuel-efficient technology offer more for the money. Road travel offers the flexibility to stop wherever or whenever the traveler wishes. It can be a fun choice for those who enjoy spontaneous site-seeing. A car isn’t the only vehicle by which to travel by road, either. Options include RVs and mobile homes, which cost more in fuel consumption, but include greater comfort.

Cruising is yet another way to travel, offering amenities galore often at very reasonable prices. Some cruise lines are pursuing greener technologies, making them a better option for the environmentally-conscious. However a person chooses to travel, many factors come into consideration. In the end, there is a practical and affordable option for everyone.

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Filed Under: Ecotourism, Transportation, Travel Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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