Low Cost Vacations

 Budget Travel  No Responses »
Dec 012011
 

When you decide to go on a vacation, there are so many things to plan and manage. Right from deciding the destination, to the flight tickets and the hotel reservations, to the places to visit there. There are various arrangements that you have to take care of, and among all these things, you have to make sure the entire vacation fits in your budget! However, no matter how much you plan, you end up raising your expenditure limit in the trip. Therefore, you could choose to keep a slightly low-budget for the entire vacation, so that even though you spend some extra money, it doesn’t cost you your savings. Whether you are with family, friends or on your honeymoon, there are some low cost vacation ideas you can choose from to make your trip an affordable and enjoyable one. In the coming up paragraphs you will find a few such low cost vacations put together for your information. Take a look and make your choice.

Low Cost Vacation Destinations

The first thing you think about while planning a vacation is the destination. There are many places where you could plan to go at specific durations of the year. If you want to take a winter vacation, low cost skiing destinations are the best, and if you wish to go in summer, a city as well as a tropical destination could be enjoyable. But wherever you choose to go, make sure you plan out the cost of the overall trip as monitoring your finances is most important. Here are some places which you can use for your low cost vacations, so take your pick.

Prague, Czech Republic
Even though not many think about this as a popular vacation destination, Prague is definitely a choice in the great low cost vacations. The city of Prague is known as one of the most beautiful cities in the world, with brilliant architecture, unbelievable sunsets, and enjoyable night life. It was once known as the capital of the “Holy Roman Empire”, which is why the Czech Republic got global recognition. With the famous inexpensive Czech beer, dumplings and goulash, the creamy strawberry ice cream, and many famous local dishes, this is surely a place to take a low cost trip to.

Margarita Island, Venezuela
Talk about a beach vacation with friends, and you have to short list the Margarita Island! This stunning tropical paradise covered with mountains is situated at the northern shore of Venezuela. With the living expenses as cheap as $13.50 a night, and the weather being bright and sunny throughout the year, you wouldn’t want to miss a chance to see this amazing island. Like all the other beach destinations, which are more expensive, the Margarita Island supplies adventure sports such as scuba diving, beach bumming, snorkeling and fishing. Other enjoyable activities on a vacation such as shopping, drinking, partying, sightseeing, and of course eating area also cheap here.

Vancouver, Canada
If you want to enjoy a short city vacation, Vancouver could be just the ticket! The reason this city is included in this list of low cost vacations is because the cost of living here is as cheap as $9 US per night. There are museums, ancient architectures, the Whistler Mountain for skiing, innumerable lakes, etc., which can be enjoyed during the day, making it a destination for low cost family vacations. Live stand up comedy shows, dance, karaoke, and theater can be some of the entertainments you could have in the evenings. The night life at Vancouver is also very popular, thus you could take a trip with your friends as well!

Some more destinations for low cost vacations can be;

  •     Costa Rica
  •     Dubrovnik, Croatia
  •     Tegucigalpa, Honduras
  •     Goa, India
  •     Kos, Greece
  •     Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

With these great ideas for some of the best low cost vacations across the world, I am sure deciding one place wouldn’t be difficult! So, pick the best place and make the most out of it.

 Posted by at 8:28 pm  Tagged with: , , , ,

How to Survive a Red Eye Flight

 Air Travel Tips  No Responses »
Nov 142011
 

Red eye flight popularly refers to airplane journeys of short duration usually towards eastern direction. The term ‘red eye’ became popular on account of fatigue felt by travelers on such journeys. Red eye flights are scheduled at nighttime or midnight, which can leave the passengers stressed due to lack of sleep. The flight usually reaches the destination early in the morning when the passengers feel drowsy and many of them end up having red eyes due to stress. However, red eye flights need not always be that bad, provided you follow some easy precautions and catch up on some good sleep even when you are in transit. Read below to get some useful tips.

Tips to Prevent Red Eye Flight Effects

Eating Healthy
One of the most important things to do before you board the flight is to eat your fill of food. Ideally eat light dry food that suffices your daily dinner requirements. Eating beforehand helps you sleep without any interruptions throughout the journey. Usually people who look forward to food served on the airplane, tend to stay awake till the food is served and finished. You can save some precious sleeping time by eating in advance. Similarly, eating light and dry food exempts the possibility of air sickness. Keep a water bottle with you throughout the journey instead of waiting for the airline crew to provide you with a glass of water each time you are thirsty.

Seat Selection
It is essential to choose a seat with ample leg space and a good leg rest. At the same time, the seat should be recliner so as to get into a proper sleeping position during the flight. Ideally, select a seat which is not too close to the two end exits. This is because, washrooms are located at these exits, which makes this area full of activity throughout the flight. Seats at the rear or near the emergency exits are usually non-recliner. So even these seats are not recommended. Choose a window seat towards the frontal part of the plane as it has ample leg space. A window seat offers you a chance of peaceful sleep as your neighbors will not disturb you for accessing the plane aisle. Similarly, window seats offer you a chance to recline your head on the plane’s window for additional comfort.

Sleeping Well
Most of the passengers find it difficult to sleep peacefully on planes. At such times, the best option is to induce sleep by creating a good sleeping environment. One of the most important things to do is to recline your seat at its full limit. This is because one can get best sleep in horizontal position only. Ask for a blanket to keep you warm throughout the airplane journey. Similarly, a cushion to support your head would help you sleep better. One ideal way to induce good sleep is to use an eye mask and a pair of cotton ear muffs. You can even carry some lavender scented gel to sniff on as lavender is known to induce sleep as part of aroma therapy. Avoid listening to music or watching movies while on red eye flights as they eat away your precious relaxation time.

Tips to Recover from Red Eye Flight Effect

These were suggestions to help you avoid the red eye flight effects. But what to do in case you happen to be a victim of this problem and want to recover from it at the earliest? Here is what you can do:

* Drink a lot of water or fresh fruit juices. The basic idea here is to stay hydrated so that you will feel less exhausted.
* Your body will go on signaling throughout the day that it is tired but keep your mind alert. Steer clear of any temptation to hit the bed and go off to sleep. Instead, start the work that you had planned to do before you embarked on the flight.
* If there is no work schedule, then use the time to work out or go and explore the new city. Maybe, you can engage in activities like shopping or sight seeing that are bound to keep you alert and awake.

I personally advise all my readers to fight the desire to sleep at whatever cost and go to sleep at their daily schedule only. This will help your body adjust faster to the time difference.

 Posted by at 3:44 pm  Tagged with:

Activities for Kids Traveling on a Plane

 Air Travel Tips  No Responses »
Nov 102011
 

Traveling with kids can turn out to be a nightmare if the journey is long and you haven’t taken care to pack some things to entertain your kids throughout the journey. Kids have much more energy than we do, and so it becomes difficult for them to sit still for more than half an hour at a stretch. No point blaming them or yelling at them to shut up and sit still. If they do manage that, there will invariably be the continuous and vigorous shaking of legs, or shifting in their seats, or playing with their boogers (oh, the horror!), or then the continuous prodding with their cute, tiny fingers to ask you all sorts of questions! Not only can it get really tiring for the parents, it may disturb others on the plane too, if your little child throws a tantrum because he is bored and restless. Here are a few ideas that you can try out to keep your child happy and engaged on the long journey.

Fun Activities to Keep Your Child Occupied
Eatables
The main thing to remember while traveling with kids! Empty stomachs equal angry and agitated kids. Get light and interesting snacks to feed them at regular intervals throughout the journey. Try to avoid very sweet and sugary snacks since they tend to increase the energy levels and you will end up with a hyperactive and restless kid in a confined space. You can imagine the scenario!
Coloring
Never fails! Get the big, fat coloring books, get crayons, sketch pens, magic markers, and whatever else you can think of, to keep your kids occupied with the coloring. Choose the book properly, with lots of their favorite pictures, or you can get printouts of their favorite characters and ask them to color those. This should keep them busy for quite a while. Don’t forget to tell them not to paint the seat covers though.
Gadgets and Other Stuff
There are numerous gadgets that you get for keeping the lil’ ones happy. Try getting along a walk-man / iPod and books on tape for them to listen to. For small kids you can take along the CD or cassette of their favorite nursery rhymes and fair tales if they like that. PlayStation portable, action figures, handheld video games etc., are also good ideas.
Games and Activities
Another really fun way of keeping your kid engaged is by getting an interesting game for him to play or a puzzle to solve. Let’s see what sort of games will be best suited for a flight.
Printable Games
You have innumerable printable games for kids which are also great learning tools. Try to take these along since they are perfect for kids when they are stuck up in confined spaces and cannot move around much.
Rubik’s Cube
The ever reliable, Rubik’s cube. Kids above 6 will love to pass time doing something challenging, and below 6 years will be thrilled with the idea of having different colored squares moving around. Give them a combination that is possible and ask them to solve it. They will be delighted when they get these simple combinations and keep asking you to give them more.
Finger Puppets
Draw directly on your fingers with temporary markers or on paper wrapped around your fingers. Draw on your kid’s fingers too, and you can have a mini play with funny and witty dialogs.
Card and Map Games
Play uno hands, or take along a map, and when you leave from your destination, point out the place from where you are leaving, on the map. After every half hour or hour ask your kid to guess how much progress you’ve made and point out your approximate location on the map. If he gets it right, give him a chocolate or candy, and give him clues to help him.
Creative Games
Tell your child to pick out as many shapes as possible in the interior of the plane. Or tell your kid to start with the letter A and find something in the plane that starts with that letter and continue going till Z. Or, start a story and ask your kid to continue it after sometime. You can take turns and add your own twists and plots as you go along. You could also play I Spy, and virtual hide and seek games. Say “I Spy (something).”, and ask your kid to see whether he can spot that thing too, or pick a place you are familiar with, mostly your house and hide anywhere you want. Let your kid guess where you are hiding and then ask him to hide when he figures out your virtual hiding place! Your kid will surely enjoy these games.
Scavenger Hunts
One smart thing to do when traveling with kids is to take magazines along, flip through the pages, and find pictures, and then hand over the book to your kid and ask him / her to find that particular picture.
Art and Craft Activities
This list can be endless, what with ready-made art and craft kits available in the market today. Get the basic jewelry making kit for girls and you won’t even have to pay much attention to her, or the bike assembling kit for boys. They have jigsaw pieces and by changing their placements you can make different bikes with these pieces. Take care that none of the pieces roll away though. You can also have kids draw and color place-mats.
Movies / Videos / Songs
One of the best tips for traveling with children, is to carry along a few of their favorite CDs. A portable DVD player or a small laptop with you, and you can let your kids watch as many shows of Tom and Jerry as he likes, or as many movies as he likes till the journey is over. What a treat for your kids, specially if their TV time is strictly monitored at home. Not a peep out of them, I can bet you!
Books
For kids below 6 years get those books which have pop up scenes, and lots of bright colorful pictures which you can read out to them. For those above 6 years, some sports, adventure or mystery books, should be appropriate. If you give them permission to read one book that you weren’t permitting them to read because they were too young for it, it will make them feel special enough to sit quietly and finish the book! Take them along to choose a couple of books to read on the plane.
Surprises
I’ll admit this isn’t an original idea, and although I don’t remember where I read it, it works wonders! Whatever you want to give your kids on the plane, wrap it up and make a big show every time they ask for something. Let them unwrap their toys, books, crayon sets, chocolates, candies, and everything else! They can play with or eat whatever they unwrap, till they get bored and then move on to the next gift. This surely works to keep them happy.

With these tips and ideas, you will be better armed for your next long trip with your kids. Take along comfortable clothes for them in case they need a change of clothes and also make sure that they are dressed comfortably. No bawling, no tantrums, and no tearing of eardrums and glares from co-passengers! Let peace prevail!

 Posted by at 3:22 pm  Tagged with:
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