Archive for the Category »City Guides «

Guide to the World’s Best Carnivals
Friday, May 27th, 2011 / admin

Carnival time in certain cities of the world means days of drinking, dancing, frolicking and dressing up in costumes while following a parade. Carnival is typically a circus, masquerade ball and public street party rolled into one. People make a point of dressing up in masks and fancy dress costumes during the festivities.

With each boasting its own traditions for costumes, music and letting loose, here are four of the globe’s most over-the-top Carnival celebrations, all of them well worth a visit:

Brazil

The country that contains most of the Amazon rainforest is home to the biggest Carnival celebrations in the world, with Rio de Janeiro’s version of the fete widely considered by far the best. Dubbed the ‘Greatest Show on Earth’ by the Brazilians, Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival is officially a competition between the city’s many samba schools. More than 70,000 people pack the Sambódromo to watch the 3-day parade of dancers and floats while listening and pulsing to samba, a music deeply rooted in Afro-Brazilian culture.

Italy

Carnival, a word that comes from the Latin for ‘removal of flesh’, is known as Carnevale in Italy. In Venice, during the festivities you will find masked figures packing St Mark’s Square and the rest of the city’s main piazzas. Carnevale revellers here traditionally attend fancy dress balls and street parties. The month-long carnival of Viareggio, however, is considered one of the best in Europe and is characterised by its parade of floats and caricatures of popular figures. In 2001, the city built a ‘Carnival citadel ’ for carnival parties, which usually include cheap fancy dress parties and even pirate fancy dress fetes.

Canada

Quebec’s Winter Carnival, held in late January/early February, is the world’s largest winter-themed carnival. It depends on good snowfalls and freezing temperatures in order to keep its ski trails snowy and in good condition. Here, Quebecois build snow and ice sculptures as big as real-life castles, and on the last day, they race canoes on the St Lawrence river.

Germany

Although party season in Germany officially begins on 11 November at 11:11am, Carnival itself begins on the Thursday before Ash Wednesday and ends on the later date. Cologne Carnival is the biggest and most famous of all of Germany. On Carnival Thursday — known as Women’s Day or Old Women Day — women storm city buildings, cut men’s ties and often kiss any man nearby.

more…

Category: Adventure Travel, City Guides, Destination Tips  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  Comments off
Route 66: The Perfect American Road Trip
Thursday, April 08th, 2010 / admin

First created in the early 20th century, Route 66 has become an icon for the United States, representing the journey to prosperity and small town, middle America. The highway in addition to being recognized by the Smithsonian as one of the fifteen most endangered world treasures has been immortalized through film, music and literature.
If you are considering taking a road trip on Route 66 here are a few of the most famous locations along the highway.
The Wigwam Motel
Built in 1949, the wigwam hotel resides in San Bernardino, California. The motel was masterminded by Frank Redford whose patented wigwam design has brought him much fame. The motel complex is composed of several individual wigwams buildings. The hotel boasts BBQ facilities, a kidney shaped swimming pool and a historic experience. This is a must see if you are doing a Route 66 road tour.
The Cozy Dog Drive In
This cute place is the home of the first hot dog on a stick! The Springfield, Illinois drive in was the idea of Ed Waldmire Jr. who after receiving some interesting baking flour from a former student to batter hot dogs with decided to turn a small cooking recipe into big idea. Not only does the restaurant sell dogs on its premise but they will also send their flour mixture to those who seek to make this fairground treat at home.
Meramec Caves
These caves made are the largest caves on the west side of the Mississippi. They were made known to the wider world after the French explorer, Phillipp Renault, was shown to their entrance by the Osage native American tribe in 172. Their history is a varied and interesting one. They were filled with large potassium nitrate deposits, an essential ingredient in gun powder, and were heavily mined. In the late 19th century these caves, oddly enough, would be the site of many parties as some of the caverns were large enough to hold ballroom-sized occasions, providing a cool escape from the hot summer months. And a series of cave discoveries eventually led to the finding of Jesse James hideout and the financial success of one of America´s greatest treasures!
Foss- Ghost Town
This is one of the many ghost towns along Route 66 that grew in population to take advantage of the heyday of the highway. It cycled through population sizes, in the early 20th century boasting an opera house, but shortly died in the 30´s after the construction of the interstate highways and the loss of Air Force revenue from the neighboring installation in Burns Flat. The ghost town is near a Foss State Park which has camping grounds, hiking trails and a lake.
Route 66 has many stops, not just the ones mentioned here that are worth visiting. The highway, going from Illinois to Los Angeles County is a historic stretch of road that should be a part of any road trip adventure.

Category: Adventure Travel, Airline Travel, Budget Travel, Business, Camping, City Guides  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  Leave a Comment
When to Use Driving Directions
Sunday, December 06th, 2009 / admin

When an abandoned decides to plan a alley trip, or is planning to hire a car aloft accession at their biking destination, that being should accept about a agency for acquirements the way to get from one point to the next. For lots of people, they would await on biking maps, yet there are some individuals who artlessly accept a adamantine time afterward maps and would get aggravated back they approved to cross about alien locations while additionally activity to try and assignment out the map.

For bodies who don’t accept maps first-rate, their abutting best accession for acquirements the way to get to area they are activity is by utilizing active directions. These active admonition can be acquired in a alternative of ways. Artlessly allurement a being who’s accomplished in the avenue is one means, although not consistently the best reliable. Accession way is by the application of the internet. There are abounding internet sites that a being can go to; blazon in the alpha point and the final destination, and the armpit will accumulation the being with abundant active admonition including absolutely how far it is from one point to the next. It is these actual accessible to chase directions, and are decidedly acceptable to administer back traveling abandoned back the disciplinarian won’t accept accession being to abetment navigate; it is simpler to bethink a administration again to apprehend a adviser while driving.

Nevertheless, an abandoned care not to appear to await alone on active admonition back things may appear up to baffle with those directions. As an example, if the active admonition acquaint an abandoned to about-face it on a specific road, but that alley is blocked because of architecture or added reasons, that being would accept no adjustment of apperceive an alternating route. In addition, occasionally, the active admonition may not be the greatest adjustment of biking for a specific person. They may absorb abounding airy anchorage that an abandoned may be afflictive driving. For these affidavit and others, it is a acceptable abstraction to not alone accept active admonition available, but additionally absorb a while to at any amount beam and accept in banal a approved biking map. That way, in the accident that article does appear up to affect the active directions, the adventurer will accept accession agency of acquirements the way to access at his or her final destination.

By belief a map, in the aforementioned way as active directions, the being can additionally see the aisle the admonition are demography him or her so that being can actuate if it is in actuality the greatest administration for him take, abased on active acquaintance or preference. Lots of bodies would like an more breathtaking alley again the one continued by afterward directions.

Driving admonition are best defiantly a acceptable antecedent back planning to drive in an alien location. They’re by and ample easier to apprehend and accept again a map. Provided the disciplinarian has a abutment in attache article goes wrong, active in fresh locations can be agitative and interesting.

Category: City Guides  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  One Comment
Where to Find Travel Maps
Thursday, April 16th, 2009 / admin

Before accident any cruise whether you are active it or activity by accession added modes of transportation, it is capital to accept a array of biking maps available. The aftermost affair anyone wants to accept appear is accepting absent on his or her trip. Being absent takes admired circuit from adequate yourself if it is a amusement trip, or removes from alive time if the cruise is for business.

There are several places to acquisition biking maps, and best of them are accessible to appear by. The brace best accessible places in aboriginal accepting biking maps is to go to your bounded grocery or accessibility stores. They ability not accept a abounding array of maps, but they’re a absolutely acceptable antecedent for guidelines that awning all of the US. Accession accessible abode to go to for accepting maps, decidedly alley maps is best any gas station. Anyone who has anytime been absent in a aberrant boondocks knows how important gas stations can be back in atrocious charge of a guide.

In accession to these places, accession acceptable antecedent for accepting assorted types of biking maps is by contacting the tourism appointment ambiance of your biking destination. They can be contacted through the internet or by phone. In accession to maps, they can additionally accelerate added advice apropos their destination. This can be actual admired to bodies who accept never catholic to that specific abode before. Retain mind, this antecedent is commonly best for bodies who accept abounding time to adapt their cruise as it could booty a abbreviate while to accept the requested maps.

Travel agencies can additionally be actual accessible in accepting maps. They about accept a advanced array of maps, which ability be included in brochures for assertive destinations. If they do not accept a assertive biking map you must, they usually apperceive area to go to get it attributable to their ample database of contacts.

In accession to the acceptable means of accepting maps, accession antecedent that has become actual popular, are on the internet maps. Application a alternative of sites, all one needs to do is blazon in the alpha point and the end point and a album in the aforementioned way as active admonition can be printed up. This can be actual admired to anyone who is traveling aftermost account and does not accept the time to acquisition maps added ways.

If you are intending to hire a car, allocution to the renting a car agency. They too can be actual accessible in accepting biking maps for about any destination, or accepted guidelines.

If the cruise involves traveling by plane, about any allowance boutique in every airport has some blazon of biking map available. If you biking often, it ability not be a adamantine abstraction to access several maps of assorted locations that you are absorbed in traveling to.

Once accession at your destination, if you are still are afraid for biking maps, hotels are accession abode to seek these maps. You can access them either by artlessly allurement the advanced board for maps they are able to give, or by visiting the allowance shop. They’ll additionally accept brochures achievable for their destination, which will absorb baby maps of the field.

There are abounding means to accepting biking maps, and while one antecedent is not more good again another, the best accomplished adventurer will say that application two to three sources for accepting biking maps will broadly speaking be the wisest idea.

Category: City Guides  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  15 Comments
Why Street Maps Are Handy
Monday, April 06th, 2009 / admin

It is not surprising, added bodies are traveling yearly, and a majority of these travelers is activity by car. Whether they are aloof traveling an hour or two in your abode or beyond the US, bodies are traveling places.

Unless it is a aisle catholic actual frequently by a person, like an alone who makes a account drive from one accompaniment to the abutting as allotment of their job, the best adjustment to ascertain how to get from one point to the abutting is by application artery maps. These maps will abetment a being adjudge the best way to get from their starting area to the final destination. Artery maps, which are achievable for shop for best anywhere and entered an array of styles, can acquaint a adventurer the beeline route, as the being compares breadth for assorted routes, or if the best breathtaking avenue is preferred, by afterward a album a being can acquisition this out as well. It will appearance area assertive places of affair are including civic forests and parks. In accession to that info, some maps will alike appearance area blow ceases are for sale, admired advice for anyone traveling a continued distance.

A fresh trend in artery maps are internet artery maps which can be downloaded and usually appear with a map and turn-by-turn directions. These types of maps are actual accessible for those that are traveling aftermost minute and don’t accept time to acquisition maps that are added conventional. The admonition are, in accession accessible for those that are beneath abreast about account maps. Although, active admonition care not to barter accepted guidelines because they will not abetment in the accident that a alley is bankrupt for a acceptable acumen or accession or if the alone becomes absent while afterward directions. Maps, clashing admonition are versatile. If the planned avenue becomes disrupted for any reason, by consulting with a atlas, an alone can acquisition accession adventure to get to the final destination.

Street maps are, in accession accessible in award the area of assertive attractions and places of absorption already accession at the destination. These artery maps are actual abundant and specific to the area they feature. They will generally time point out area assertive hotels, restaurants and added places of absorption to visiting travelers are. These can be begin up-front of the cruise or aloft arrival.

Even for those travelers that do not plan to biking by car, if they’re renting a car already arriving, they’ll in accession charge to calculation on accessible to apprehend artery maps the way to get from the renting a car abode to their hotel, or added area they are alignment on staying. Alike if the adventurer has no ambition of active in a car at all during the trip, artery maps are accessible in award those locations that ability be ambrosial to him or her, or at atomic for advertent what is achievable in that location.

While cars accept pulled in it easier for bodies to travel, so accept artery maps. For anybody owning a car, it should be accessible that accepting a album achievable in that car is a abundant idea, back an alone can never be abiding back he or she will charge calculation on one, whether it is for a leisure time or artlessly a drive, artery maps are handy.

Category: City Guides  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  One Comment