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Archive for June, 2008

Cheap Flights To Larnaca Cyprus Are Excellent Value

June 10th, 2008

Tushar Mathur

Whilst looking on the internet for prices of a cheap flight only to Larnaca in Cyprus and perhaps cheap studio apartments in Cyprus, did you also search on property investment here? If you did you would have been amazed at what flashed up on screen, prices at this moment in time are unbelievable. Cyprus developers are offering many incentives to entice you to purchase their property; they might as well be giving them away for virtually nothing. Now that the Republic has joined the Euro, it is expected that prices will start to rise, so if you are looking for property investment, we recommend that now is the best time to invest. Hurry, check out cheap flights to Larnaca Cyprus and grab a bargain.

Cheap studio apartments in Cyprus right through to large villas are now selling so fast that they have sold almost before the advertising ink has dried. There is so much incentive for property investment on the island, and also the prices of cheap flights have a bearing on it, if you chose to keep your investment as a holiday property then obviously the prices of cheap flights to Larnaca in Cyprus will determine the number of times you can visit. We all know that you would want to visit more than just a few times a year.

If you are concerned that the weather may be a little too hot for you, then why not try property in the mountains, it is always a few degrees cooler in the summer and the views are spectacular, they change almost daily, it is quieter than the towns and costal areas, but still with the advantage of only being a short drive back to the sea shore.

Where you purchase your property will obviously be determined by a number of factors. Distance from airport, well Larnaca and Paphos speak for themselves, Limassol is virtually equidistant from either airport being around 75-80 kms, so as you see your cheap flights to Larnaca Cyprus could just as well have been to Paphos.

Cheap flights to Larnaca in Cyprus are on the up as more airlines are flying to the island and even some budget airlines have now started offering a service. Flights to Larnaca are cheap and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future, so this makes your investment even more of an investment as rental of your property becomes more attractive to other holiday makers. So many people do not like the impersonal nature of hotels; they would rather rent cheap studio apartments or villas privately.

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London Apartments: Top 10 Tourist Sites In London

June 10th, 2008

Tushar Mathur

You have booked a hard-earned week’s holiday in London and are now wondering how to plan the itinerary. But the problem is what to see? And how to cram in as much as possible? The answer is not really quantity, but quality because in London you can never have enough time or money to see absolutely everything. To be frank, some of the attractions are not worth the journey anyway, so you need to prioritize your time and resources. So with this in mind we have drawn up a list of the best of tourist sites in London.

Buckingham Palace

Home to Queen Elizabeth II when she is resident in the city. Hundreds of years of Royal heritage all under one roof.

London Eye

Surprisingly new to London, but the London Eye has rapidly become a major London icon. It is a great way to see and rejoice at the beautiful city.

Tower of London

One of the oldest relics from London’s history. Harking back to William the Conqueror’s invasion in 1066, this very famous tower has seen many executions, including Anne Boleyn (second wife of King Henry VIII).

Covent Garden

A really vibrant square with a great collection of shops offering tea, clothes, jewelery. There has been a market here for the last 500+ years, and sometimes it is as though the past echoes of traders past are still around! If you are lucky, you can catch a live performance of opera, music or jugglers.

Trafalgar Square

Since the pigeons have been banned from the square, it has lost some of its grubby character. But the gleaming, pigeon-free square has Nelson’s column, and of course the water fountains. The National Gallery, Chinatown and St James’ Park are all a short walk away.

Hyde Park

One of the biggest in London with a lake for a leisurely boating experience. Go for a jog, relaxing stroll or bird watching (of the winged kind!)

Oxford Street

Even though some parts of this famous street need a lick of paint, it is still a huge attraction for the sheer variety of shops. A favourite is Selfridges, on the marble arch side.

St Paul’s cathedral

Designed by Sir Christopher Wren but had to be partly rebuilt after World War II, it is a stunning piece of architectural genius.

Houses of Parliament

If you wan to see the epicenter of British politics, the Houses of Parliament is the ideal place to see the policy-making centre.

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Should I use Traveler’s Checks for my travel abroad ?

June 9th, 2008

Tushar Mathur

travelers checks

A foreign trip can be an exhilarating experience. But it can also create many problems. One of them is carrying money along with you on your trip abroad. The traditional method involved carrying traveler’s checks on the trip, but this has its advantages and disadvantages. Read on to know more.

When you are traveling abroad, you need to carry money in the currency of that particular country. But carrying cash is fraught with risks. It can be easily stolen or misplaced. In this situation, a better option is to carry traveler’s checks.

A traveler’s check is the check issued by the bank in the currency of the country to which you are traveling. It functions as cash, but is more secure as it is protected against loss and theft. They are useful when traveling to countries where credit and debit cards are not accepted. These checks can be handed over to the cashier in the hotel, travel agency, or departmental store while for making payments, in lieu of cash. You can also get them exchanged for cash once you reach foreign shores.

The main advantages of traveler’s checks are:

Highly secure: If you lose or misplace these checks, they cannot be encashed. Only you have the authority to cash them. Moreover, you can also claim a refund for the check if it is lost or stolen.
Fast replacement: In case they are lost or stolen, you can get an immediate replacement. Most of the times, you can get a replacement within 24 hours.
Easier to track spending: As you know where and how much you are spending, you can easily keep a record of your expenses.

But traveler’s checks have their own disadvantages. Their drawbacks are:

Purchase fees: You have to pay fees to the bank in order to buy the traveler’s checks. These fees can vary from bank to bank.
Exchange rate fluctuations: There can be a great difference in the exchange rate between your local currency and the foreign currency when you actually buy the check and spend it for purchases. At times, the places that accept these checks can give you abysmally low exchange rates. As a result, you may end up losing money.
Difficult to convert: Sometimes, you may have to travel to far away places in order to get cash in lieu of the check.

Image Source: Courtesy of http://www.krcg.com

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Presenting: Niagara Falls Tourism – One Wonder After Another

June 5th, 2008

Tushar Mathur

In early December of 2007 I decided to embark on a three day winter getaway to Niagara Falls, Ontario. In order to explore the city in the best possible way I contacted the experts at Niagara Falls tourism to help me work out a comprehensive itinerary to explore the many facets of Niagara Fall. Their travel specialists helped me put together a packed schedule that exposed me to many interesting sights and activities in this unique city.

My three-day adventure included a thrilling helicopter sightseeing tour, an encounter with nature at the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory and at Bird Kingdom, the world’s largest aviary. I sampled culture and entertainment in a magic show at the Greg Frewin Theatre and a musical production at the Oh Canada Eh? Dinner Theatre.

I also got up close to the majestic Niagara Falls, viewed them from the Skylon Tower and saw an Imax movie called “Niagara: Miracles, Myths and Magic” which presented an interesting dramatization of Niagara Falls’ colourful history. I also checked out some of the actual vessels used by real-life daredevils who went over the Falls and explored the tunnels that take you behind the big cascade of the Canadian Horseshoe Falls in the Journey Behind The Falls experience.

Naturally I sampled some of Niagara Falls hospitality offerings: from my convienent accommodation at the Best Western Cairn Croft to the cozy luxury of the Kilpatrick Manor Bed and Breakfast to a variety of culinary experiences, I got a good idea of Niagara Falls’ broad tourist offering. And of course I explored Clifton Hill – Niagara Fall’s most popular tourist promenade with its gift shops, wax museums, haunted houses, restaurants, hotels and themed attractions.

I even partook of the gambling experience at the Fallsview Casino Resort, a giant top-modern mind-boggling gaming, shopping and entertainment complex. There were so many more things on the list that I could have done, but three days were simply not enough to sample it all.

To help you with your own plans for a visit to Niagara Falls, Ontario, here is an interview with Anna Pierce, the Executive Director of Niagara Falls Tourism who has graciously agreed to provide a general overview of Niagara Falls and everything it has to offer:

1. Please provide us with some general information about Niagara Falls, Ontario. Where is it located and how can I get there? How big is the population of Niagara Falls, Ontario? How do I get around the city?

Niagara Falls is located between Lakes Erie and Ontario sharing a border with New York State.

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A Bahamas Vacation Travel Guide

June 5th, 2008

Tushar Mathur

A Bahamas Vacation has always sounded like paradise on earth, but did you know that when you travel to the Bahamas you aren’t just going to one island, but many.

Travelling from one end of the Bahamas to the other, not only are there the well known islands like Grand Bahama, The Abacos, Eleuthera, and Exuma, but the Bahamas is in fact a country of 700 islands, of which 23 are inhabited but there are many many unpopulated islets and cays.

The differences to be found between different islands is also extreme, when you take cosmopolitan Nassau and compare it to the desert like Inagua. As you can imagine being only fifty miles off the Florida Coast, the Bahamas are very much an American playground, indeed on a lot of the islands the tiny villages could almost be the same as ones found on the coast of Massachusetts, only the palms, and sands are different.

A Bahamas Vacation has long been popular with sailors because the sea is calm, there are cooling tradewinds and this is the home of the Gulf Stream which makes the climate so pleasant. The Gulf Stream also is the reason that there are so many large fish, and a general abundance of marine life, so a lot of people travel to the Bahamas for a vacation just for the sport fishing.

No vacation in the Bahamas would be complete without spending time either snorkelling or scuba diving. The Gulf Stream is again responsible for the sheer underwater delights, the spectacular shoals of fish which congregate around the reefs, which are over 5% of the total number of coral reefs in the world. You will never tire of this underwater technicolour fantasy world in the Bahamas.

Probably more people take a Bahamas Vacation because of the beauty of the beaches than anything else and no Bahamas trip would be complete without a visit to the pink sands of Harbour Island and Eleuthera.

Having said that there are more beaches in the Bahamas than you could ever visit in your entire life, but you should take the time to go to the Exumas and San Salvador where you will almost be alone on their beautiful beaches.

After you are sated by the beautiful beaches and everything the sea has to offer you on your Bahamas Vacation, why not go ashore and just enjoy the sheer spellbinding beauty of the Bahamas Islands.

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Carnival of Food and Travel : #1

June 4th, 2008

Tushar Mathur

Welcome to the June 2, 2008 edition of Carnival of Food and Travel. This is the very First Edition of the Carnival of Food and Travel. I received over over 65 submissions. WOW!
Please submit your articles for the upcoming editions of this carnival. There were some excellent articles submitted and I had a tough time deciding which to publish. I hope you enjoy this carnival edition as much as I did.