Showing posts with label How to stretch out your summer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label How to stretch out your summer. Show all posts
Favourite Summer Holidays for 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Summer holidays are about taking time out from the busy working year to recharge the batteries and spend time with the important people in our lives.
We all have memories of childhood summer holidays at the seaside and for many a beach holiday is an essential part of the summer break.
This year the strong Euro and environmental concerns are making summer holidays at home more attractive. Holidaymakers looking for a bargain are also considering the US and lesser-known destinations in Europe.
For more visit....
source:http://www.travelbite.co.uk/feature/favourite-summer-holidays-2008-$1219933.htm
We all have memories of childhood summer holidays at the seaside and for many a beach holiday is an essential part of the summer break.
This year the strong Euro and environmental concerns are making summer holidays at home more attractive. Holidaymakers looking for a bargain are also considering the US and lesser-known destinations in Europe.
For more visit....
source:http://www.travelbite.co.uk/feature/favourite-summer-holidays-2008-$1219933.htm
Going on a summer holiday
Thursday, April 24, 2008
It’s that time of the year when the majority of people will start scouting for options to take advantage of their children’s school holidays and exhaust their pending leave from the previous year as well.
Though the planning for these trips is done well in advance, if you are one of those who is still working out the nitty-gritties, take a look at some of these planning tips.
WHAT IS POPULAR?
Kashmir has been a popular destination historically. But over the years, it had lost its sheen because of apprehensions about terrorism. However, this summer, Kashmir has made a comeback.
“The problems of targeting tourists have come down as tourism is a source of income in many parts of the state,” says Sandeep Srivastava, head, domestic travel, Thomas Cook.
The other preferred destinations include Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttaranchal, Leh and Ladakh, Ooty and Munnar.
Travel companies have come up with aggressively-priced packages for this season. For instance, Thomas Cook is offering a 5-day package at Rs 8,000 per person for Kashmir.
This includes accommodation, meals and sightseeing, but does not include train or flight costs. In Uttaranchal, one can visit the four pilgrimage sites or take a multiple tour of Corbett National Park, Mussoorie and Nainital. The basic package per person for this multiple location tours starts at Rs 13,000 per person, excluding the airfare.
Other areas where aggressively priced packages are available include multiple destination packages for Himachal Pradesh that includes the hill stations, Manali, Shimla, Dharamshala and Dalhousie.
Besides hill stations, another destination that is witnessing rising interest is the Sundarbans in West Bengal that is only accessible through waterways. Only a private cruise operator and government ships take visitors to the forests. “One of lures in this delta is that there is a weather change every three hours,” says a tour operator.
If you looking for adventure, there are difficult Himalayan treks that can be pursued. These treks last for about 11 days and there are a large number of travel packages that are offered by tour operators. These packages start at Rs 14,000 per person.
For the super rich, there are options of travelling to resorts such as Ananda in the Himalayas, where a range of spas and meditation packages are available. These tours are typically for three days and start from Rs 15,000 per person per day.
Other similar luxury areas include Udayvilas, Ram Bagh and Shiv Vilas in Rajasthan and Amanbagh and Brunton Boatyard in Kerala. The packages to these places could go up to Rs 50,000 a night per person.
PLANNING THE VACATION
Okay, enough of luring you to luxurious places, but the business end of it requires you to have the funds and take a call on the different packages on offer. Here’s a “how to do it” guide for the newbies
Budget: For starters, you need to create a budget for travelling. This would imply savings for that cause. “Typically, a tourist should be able to manage his stay within a budget of Rs 2,000 – 3,000 per person per night in a three-star category package. This expense would include meals, local transport and sight seeing,” says an industry expert. As a result, most of the week-long packages start from Rs 13,000 – 15,000.
For you, the important part is to figure out the money you will be able to spend. This would help in choosing the destinations, transportation, and accommodation. Try to control the urge to over spend on your vacation.
Cost optimisation: Now that the budgeting and the destination have been decided, you need to carefully gauge other costs. For instance, though the travel person might want to sell you a hotel room with a view for that little extra, if you are planning to do a lot of sight seeing, there is no need to go for it.
Shop around: Vacation packages are often good because they offer attractive discounts. Also, booking everything separately could lead to a lot of headaches. If you belong to a frequent-flyer programme, vacations are the perfect time to cash-in. Look into how many frequent-flyer miles you've earned and when they expire.
Choose payment method carefully: If you can afford to pay for the entire trip at once, exercise that option. For travellers on a budget, paying in instalments helps to ease the financial burden. Travel companies do offer various financing options to their customers.
For instance, Kuoni India has a finance scheme. Kesari, another tour operator, arranges personal loan with Bank of India. Thomas cook, who were offering financing options, have withdrawn it from this year. Instead, it has a co-branded credit card with ICICI Bank.
The payments made through the cards can be converted into equated monthly instalments (EMIs). Using a credit card is another option, but make sure you can pay it off promptly. Of course, financial planners would always advise that when you do not have the money, there is no need to spend.
When to book: Ideally in order to go through least amount of hassles, you should do all the work well in advance. However, travel operators say that in metros, since most of the family members are unsure of their schedules, they process requests even 10 days in advance.
Source:http://www.business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?leftnm=lmnu6&subLeft=2&autono=319899&tab=r
Though the planning for these trips is done well in advance, if you are one of those who is still working out the nitty-gritties, take a look at some of these planning tips.
WHAT IS POPULAR?
Kashmir has been a popular destination historically. But over the years, it had lost its sheen because of apprehensions about terrorism. However, this summer, Kashmir has made a comeback.
“The problems of targeting tourists have come down as tourism is a source of income in many parts of the state,” says Sandeep Srivastava, head, domestic travel, Thomas Cook.
The other preferred destinations include Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttaranchal, Leh and Ladakh, Ooty and Munnar.
Travel companies have come up with aggressively-priced packages for this season. For instance, Thomas Cook is offering a 5-day package at Rs 8,000 per person for Kashmir.
This includes accommodation, meals and sightseeing, but does not include train or flight costs. In Uttaranchal, one can visit the four pilgrimage sites or take a multiple tour of Corbett National Park, Mussoorie and Nainital. The basic package per person for this multiple location tours starts at Rs 13,000 per person, excluding the airfare.
Other areas where aggressively priced packages are available include multiple destination packages for Himachal Pradesh that includes the hill stations, Manali, Shimla, Dharamshala and Dalhousie.
Besides hill stations, another destination that is witnessing rising interest is the Sundarbans in West Bengal that is only accessible through waterways. Only a private cruise operator and government ships take visitors to the forests. “One of lures in this delta is that there is a weather change every three hours,” says a tour operator.
If you looking for adventure, there are difficult Himalayan treks that can be pursued. These treks last for about 11 days and there are a large number of travel packages that are offered by tour operators. These packages start at Rs 14,000 per person.
For the super rich, there are options of travelling to resorts such as Ananda in the Himalayas, where a range of spas and meditation packages are available. These tours are typically for three days and start from Rs 15,000 per person per day.
Other similar luxury areas include Udayvilas, Ram Bagh and Shiv Vilas in Rajasthan and Amanbagh and Brunton Boatyard in Kerala. The packages to these places could go up to Rs 50,000 a night per person.
PLANNING THE VACATION
Okay, enough of luring you to luxurious places, but the business end of it requires you to have the funds and take a call on the different packages on offer. Here’s a “how to do it” guide for the newbies
Budget: For starters, you need to create a budget for travelling. This would imply savings for that cause. “Typically, a tourist should be able to manage his stay within a budget of Rs 2,000 – 3,000 per person per night in a three-star category package. This expense would include meals, local transport and sight seeing,” says an industry expert. As a result, most of the week-long packages start from Rs 13,000 – 15,000.
For you, the important part is to figure out the money you will be able to spend. This would help in choosing the destinations, transportation, and accommodation. Try to control the urge to over spend on your vacation.
Cost optimisation: Now that the budgeting and the destination have been decided, you need to carefully gauge other costs. For instance, though the travel person might want to sell you a hotel room with a view for that little extra, if you are planning to do a lot of sight seeing, there is no need to go for it.
Shop around: Vacation packages are often good because they offer attractive discounts. Also, booking everything separately could lead to a lot of headaches. If you belong to a frequent-flyer programme, vacations are the perfect time to cash-in. Look into how many frequent-flyer miles you've earned and when they expire.
Choose payment method carefully: If you can afford to pay for the entire trip at once, exercise that option. For travellers on a budget, paying in instalments helps to ease the financial burden. Travel companies do offer various financing options to their customers.
For instance, Kuoni India has a finance scheme. Kesari, another tour operator, arranges personal loan with Bank of India. Thomas cook, who were offering financing options, have withdrawn it from this year. Instead, it has a co-branded credit card with ICICI Bank.
The payments made through the cards can be converted into equated monthly instalments (EMIs). Using a credit card is another option, but make sure you can pay it off promptly. Of course, financial planners would always advise that when you do not have the money, there is no need to spend.
When to book: Ideally in order to go through least amount of hassles, you should do all the work well in advance. However, travel operators say that in metros, since most of the family members are unsure of their schedules, they process requests even 10 days in advance.
Source:http://www.business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?leftnm=lmnu6&subLeft=2&autono=319899&tab=r
How to stretch out your summer
Saturday, January 5, 2008
West isn't necessarily best for sunseekers this month. MetService forecaster Bob Lake saying holidaymakers should hit the east coast - but be prepared for the odd day of rain.
"It looks like some of the best places to be will be around the middle of the country, the east of the South Island and the east of the North Island," he said.
"Much of the North Island will get a dose of rain around Tuesday and Wednesday, but it should improve on Thursday and Friday."
After that a high should move in, meaning next weekend looks settled, particularly for the North Island.
Lake expects a series of highs in late January to keep most of the country warm and dry, apart from occasional rain on one or two days.
That's great news for holiday- makers in Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and the Coromandel Peninsula, which should all get sunshine and little rain.
"The only place where it might be a bit dodgy is in the Far North, where there will be quite a lot of easterly winds, which could bring showers through that region, " Lake said.
The rest of the month would probably be "reasonably warm", with most places falling in the mid-20s.
Canterbury and Marlborough have been experiencing the highest temperatures this summer, up to 32C, and they would continue to be hot throughout January.
But whatever the weather, there could be problems finding somewhere to enjoy it. Campsites and holiday parks around the country are full, so workers planning weekend getaways are advised to book ahead.
Some space may come free over the coming weeks, but many holiday parks are booked until the end of January as families make the most of school holidays.
Baches are scarce until the end of January, while Top 10 Holiday Parks Group operations manager Keri Gibson said most of its sites were full for at least the next fortnight.
While camping spots traditionally became free from mid-January, Gibson said units and caravan sites tended to stay booked until school begins at the start of February.
Even then space can be tight, as international tourists start arriving.
But Gibson said there might be the occasional opening, and advised holiday-seekers to ring their preferred park to check for gaps.
"If someone is wanting to stay at a certain place, there may be a couple of dates available."
Things aren't much different in Auckland, said manager of the city's i-site centre Chanthara Sinclair. "Hotels, motels [and] campsites are all nearly fully booked. People should book before they arrive.
source:http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10485407
"It looks like some of the best places to be will be around the middle of the country, the east of the South Island and the east of the North Island," he said.
"Much of the North Island will get a dose of rain around Tuesday and Wednesday, but it should improve on Thursday and Friday."
After that a high should move in, meaning next weekend looks settled, particularly for the North Island.
Lake expects a series of highs in late January to keep most of the country warm and dry, apart from occasional rain on one or two days.
That's great news for holiday- makers in Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and the Coromandel Peninsula, which should all get sunshine and little rain.
"The only place where it might be a bit dodgy is in the Far North, where there will be quite a lot of easterly winds, which could bring showers through that region, " Lake said.
The rest of the month would probably be "reasonably warm", with most places falling in the mid-20s.
Canterbury and Marlborough have been experiencing the highest temperatures this summer, up to 32C, and they would continue to be hot throughout January.
But whatever the weather, there could be problems finding somewhere to enjoy it. Campsites and holiday parks around the country are full, so workers planning weekend getaways are advised to book ahead.
Some space may come free over the coming weeks, but many holiday parks are booked until the end of January as families make the most of school holidays.
Baches are scarce until the end of January, while Top 10 Holiday Parks Group operations manager Keri Gibson said most of its sites were full for at least the next fortnight.
While camping spots traditionally became free from mid-January, Gibson said units and caravan sites tended to stay booked until school begins at the start of February.
Even then space can be tight, as international tourists start arriving.
But Gibson said there might be the occasional opening, and advised holiday-seekers to ring their preferred park to check for gaps.
"If someone is wanting to stay at a certain place, there may be a couple of dates available."
Things aren't much different in Auckland, said manager of the city's i-site centre Chanthara Sinclair. "Hotels, motels [and] campsites are all nearly fully booked. People should book before they arrive.
source:http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10485407
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