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Archive for February, 2010

A Mauritius Luxury Holiday, be it a Family Holiday in Mauritius that you want, or a Honeymoon in Mauritius that you are planning, needs careful research. Recently voted as the Number one Resort and Spa of choice in Mauritius is The Sands Resort and Spa a Flic En Flac Hotel on the west coast. As there are some amazing hotels in Mauritius including the legendary St Geran, it is worth investigating what has made The Sands so popular amongst visitors.

Firstly the situation lends itself to being a luxury romantic vacation getaway, a real hideaway situated on the west coast of Mauritius, at the southern end of the beautiful Wolmar Beach with spectacular views across the Bay of Tamarin. The beach itself is about two hundred and fifty metres long of white sand, with a reef protected lagoon making it absolutely ideal for a whole range of water sports, including waterskiing, sailing, pedal boats, kayaking, windsurfing, and snorkeling. The beach is very clean, and never busy which is great if this is the place you have chosen for your honeymoon in Mauritius. Walking on the beach is fun, and when you take a look at the other hotels, then you will appreciate how private and peaceful The Sands Resort and Spa is by comparison.

This is the ideal place for couples, honeymoon couples seeking peace and quiet, some tranquility and a high level of comfort and personalized service. Having said that there are interconnecting rooms, baby sitting, and the ability to squeeze a third bed into a twin bedded room, so The Sands Resort and Spa is not only a honeymoon hotel, but suitable for a family holiday in Mauritius as well, although family type reservations are only on a strictly request basis.

The Sands has just 92 rooms, all sea facing, with either a balcony or a terrace. King size beds are a feature, as is the spacious bathroom. One guest’s comment was that the bathrooms are the biggest they had ever seen. Each room is equipped with air conditioning, walk in wardrobes, TV, video, telephone, mini bar, safe, tea and coffee maker.

A Mauritius luxury holiday mustn’t only have great accommodation and facilities, fantastic views, all of which The Sands has, it should also have delightful food to complement everything else. There is The Tamarind Terrace restaurant which is open every day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner featuring International and Mauritian specialties. You will also find that the menu changes every day

The other restaurant is Spices which is an a la carte restaurant opens every day for dinner serving the spices and menus of the Indian Ocean. For drinks there is the Dolphin Bar facing the bay, which opens until after midnight.

To summarize, The Sands Resort and Spa in Mauritius has a great location, well kept grounds, friendly staff, and good sized rooms and bathrooms, with good food. If you choose it for either a holiday in Mauritius or your honeymoon, you will not be disappointed.

It’s an old world European city with the new world cosmopolitan culture which attracts tourists from across the world. It’s Amsterdam for you, the hottest tourist attraction and a popular honeymoon destination. The big question what draws people to Amsterdam? The answer lies in its rich cultural heritage, diverse & creative culture and high quality of life. That makes Amsterdam a truly world class tourist destination which attracts hundreds of thousand people from all over the world every year. Referred as one of the most colorful cities in the world Amsterdam truly appeals to the visitors with its places of interest, museums, pubs and fun shops, and the most colorful flower markets.

Amsterdam is the titular capital city of the Netherlands. It lies on the banks of two bodies of water, the IJ bay and the Amstel River. Founded in the late 12th century as a small fishing village on the banks of the Amstel, it is now the largest city in the country and is a financial and cultural centre. Amsterdam is a combination of old world and the new genre. If you are a first time visitor to Amsterdam you can visit its many outstanding museums, including the Rijksmuseum, the Stedelijk Museum, the Rembrandt House Museum, and its world-class symphony orchestra, the Concertgebouworkest, the home base of which is the Concertgebouw. The Van Gogh Museum houses the largest collection of Van Gogh’s paintings and drawings in the world. Anne Frank House is also one of the popular tourist attractions. Amsterdam is also famous for its red-light district, de Wallen. Window prostitution is legal in the Netherlands at specific places. The red-light district is located in the center of the city along major canals and is clearly marked on maps.
This great romantic city attracts lots of tourists and honeymooners and gives them a heartwarming welcome. This reflects in the fact that this small city has many hotels, vacation resorts, and restaurants etc where you will find quality service within your budget. Whatever budget you have, you can always find the right place in Amsterdam provided you have made prior reservations in this busy city. Amsterdam in fact is a cozy city with big parks and public areas. You will find the stairs squeezing and the hotel rooms smaller than usual, especially if you have traveled a thousand miles from the United States. So leave your big luggage back home and enjoy the coziness of the city. In most of the hotels here you will find almost everything you look for including Air-conditioned rooms and suits, swimming pool, spas and health clubs, airport pick-up and drop facility, room service, and other such services. The restaurants here will feed you really tempting delicacies that you will remember for a lifetime. The best part of it is that you can still have the best of everything in your tight budget. The mantra is to make prior reservations before you start for this romantic journey to Amsterdam.

Rio de Janeiro is busy, noisy and full of adventures to be had. To experience South America in full party mode, visit Rio de Janeiro at Carnaval time, but stay in a boutique hotel so that you have an oasis of calm to return to.

Rio de Janeiro is on the Brazilian coast, looking out to the South Atlantic Ocean, with Salvador to the north and San Paulo to the south. The climate is hot all year round, with occasional rains in the summer, but the party temperature is always high.

Although Rio de Janeiro attracts high-living, high-rolling visitors, it caters for a wide range of tourists, from those in palatial hotels to backpackers making their way through Brazil. For a real treat, however, book into a boutique hotel, which offers a cool, calm retreat away from the hustle and bustle of this 24-hour city. Rio de Janeiro is one of the most densely populated cities in the world and both its residents and visitors like to live life to the full while they are there. If you need to recharge your batteries, a boutique hotel is the perfect place to stay. Try the 5-roomed La Maison, which is just a stone’s throw from the beach, but once you’re inside is a haven of peace and tranquillity, with a swimming pool and sundeck for guests to use when the beach has become too busy to handle. To really get away from it all, try La Suite, a boutique hotel with just seven rooms and 180° views of the ocean, the beach and the Cagarras Islands as well as the point of Arpuador, the rock that separates Copacabana from Ipanema. Here, the beach and great shopping are only a few minutes away by car, which means that you get the best of both worlds.
People-watching is an occupation in itself in Rio de Janeiro. Once you’ve had your fill of beach beauties and surf dudes, take yourself off to some of the many museums that show the works of a range of Brazilian artists; or take a walk in some of the beautiful tropical gardens. If you want to spend your time walking rather than dancing, then take a trip into the mountains for some unforgettable views.

Travelling in Rio de Janeiro can be an adventure. Buses are cheap, but not necessarily reliable or safe, so you’re advised not to take valuables with you if you decide to take a bus across town. Taxis are a more comfortable option, and usually a safer one, although you still need to be careful. A good hotel will be able to arrange affordable, safe taxi services for you. For an altogether different experience, try the subway which, although it doesn’t cover the whole city, is clean, cheap and fast.

With a history of mythological proportions to live up to, the modern cosmopolitan city of Glasgow has a thriving nightlife. Then again, was it ever any different? Perhaps unsurprisingly, Glasgow city council makes more information available to its citizens on alcohol and drugs related issues than any other in the UK.

Like many cities, at some of the bars you’ll literally see people falling out of them and, it is rumoured, you can also occasionally still see people come flying out them. The city centre is to say the least, vibrant at night-time and a good night out is often judged by the noise being generated, more noise equalling a better night out! Many city centre bars have been refurbished to move away from the image of ‘spit and sawdust’ that stereotypes them.

Whilst the style of the bars might have changed the atmosphere of unpretentiousness and ‘let the good times roll’ hasn’t. The trendiest and smoothest bars are in the ‘Merchant’ area, on the east side of the city centre, near the Cathedral.

Bars and Pubs:
It would seem fitting for Glasgow to have a pub claiming to have the longest bar in the UK. The Horseshoe on Drury Lane is that pub, although there is a pub in Birmingham that would dispute this. A legendary pub in Glasgow renowned for its cheap and good value lunches, it also serves a good selection of lagers and real ales.

Winner of what, to non-Scots, must seem the silliest pub name in Glasgow is the Babbity Bowster on Blackfriars Street. This is the pub to go to in the city centre for a relaxing drink – a rare opportunity in Glasgow. Outdoors there’s a garden, barbecue and boules area; whilst in the winter you can sit inside by the peat fire and enjoy a meal with a drink or two. This pub has quite a refined ambience and is mainly frequented by Glasgow’s professionals and tourists. Interestingly a Babbity Bowster is a Scottish dance.

There is, of course, the inevitable Wetherspoon’s drinking cathedral in the city. The Crystal Palace, on Jamaica Street near the Central Station, is actually the second largest pub in the city; which occupies a building that was formerly a furniture store and still retains the original ‘cage’ lift. This pub attracts an interesting night-time mixture of clubbers, theatre-goers and locals.

Blackfriars, on Bell Street in the ‘Merchant City’ quarter of Glasgow , is by all accounts probably the best bar in Glasgow. Variously described as being “a soothing spot for a drink” and having “a cosy atmosphere” this is a metropolitan bar that is unselfconscious about providing what its clientele wants. Low lighting supplemented with candles set the scene and ambience on your entry to this bar. This is one of the few bars in Glasgow where you can sit and chat without shouting, also some excellent jazz bands play there at week-ends.

Restaurants:
Nothing to do with battered and deep fried ‘Mars bars’ etc; is a restaurant of fine repute in Glasgow – the Ubiquitous Chip. Located on Ashton Lane, to the west of the city centre and above the main University of Glasgow campus, it is noted for its use of local Scottish produce such as Ayrshire lamb, Dumfries rabbit or Perth woodpigeon. There’s a pricey restaurant downstairs and a less expensive bistro upstairs; a three course dinner in the restaurant will cost £40 per head or in the bistro around £25 per head – prices exclude drinks of course. Ubiquitous Chip has one of the best wine lists in the UK, let alone Glasgow. With plenty of decent wines in the £20 to £30 range, you could also indulge yourself with say a 1989 Chateau Beychevelle Claret at £140 a bottle. After the meal the list of malt whiskies is as comprehensive as the wine list, the apex of which is a 25 year old Mcallan at over £25 a measure.

At completely the other end of the spectrum, with outlets on Buccleuch Street and Ashton Lane, is the Wee Curry Shop. You can get a three course dinner here for around £10 in this Indian restaurant, that is acknowledged as serving some of the best curries north of the border.

Entertainment:
The undoubted capital of Scotland’s live music scene – Glasgow has such famous venues as; King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on St Vincent Street and Barrowlands on the Gallowgate. Both of these venues have hosted appearances by most of the top modern music acts in Britain over the recent decades. The top line touring acts use the Scottish Exhibition & Conference Centre, in the west of the city. Other major venues in Glasgow include; the Royal Concert Hall, the City Halls and the Old Fruit Market.

For clubbers ‘Arches’ on Argyle Street is probably the place to head for, it regularly books the best DJs/MCs in Europe. The Theatre Royal in Glasgow is on Hope Street. As well as staging dramas and musicals it is the home of Scottish Opera and Scottish Ballet.

The diverse paradise landscape of Croatia alone is enough to attract worldwide visitors year round. Even the most discerning traveler is enticed by all this country has to offer.

Croatia allures prospective visitors with its many islands, a variety of coastlines styles, stylish countrysides, and hilltop communities. One of its peninsulas has been labeled “the new Tuscany,” while its Dalmatian coastline has been termed “the new Riviera.”

Other landscape enticements include countless rivers, forests, waterfalls, and parks, all lending themselves to numerous recreational possibilities such as camping, kayaking, sailing, fishing, water sports, boating, and hiking.

No matter what type of getaway you seek, Croatia will exceed your expectations. You can enjoy private seclusion, romantic getaways, or city night life at clubs and casinos.

Croatia’s quaint fishing villages, coastline variety, and majestic mountainsides make it a highly sought after destination by tourists. The locals are tourist-friendly and very laid back.

There is something sure to please every palate in Croatia. You’ll find delicious grilled meats, fish and seafood, cheeses, pastas, olives, salads, and a wide choice of alcoholic beverages, including wine and beer.

If you are planning a visit to this enticing destination, accommodation in Croatia offers luxury hotels at very competitive prices. The star quality rating system is used ranging from 1 to 5 stars, 5 indicating the top of the scale. Low scale hotels are, fortunately, a very rare occurrence in the area.

Choices include private accommodation alternatives, which usually consist of lodging houses and small cozy inns. This is a very popular option for visitors along the Croatian coast. Home cooked meals are often an optional inclusion.

Private lodging and Croatia apartments are also rated using the star rating system, 4-star being the best. Rating criteria includes amenities offered, square footage, and service quality provided.

Whether you seek a seaside or country accommodation, Croatia villas are available with exceptional amenities to offer. Your visit will be made memorable by the breathtaking scenery and amiable local atmosphere.

Croatia villas allow visitors more privacy and flexibility. You can shop locally and prepare your own meals if you wish. Villas vary based on size, amenities, view, and so forth.

If you are seeking long term or permanent residency in the area, you might consider Croatia apartments. So many flexible features make finding accommodation in Croatia simply a matter of meeting the traveler’s guidelines. A world of variety awaits any journeyer to this desirable destination.

The tourism industry of Croatia regards its customers highly. The industry is constantly seeking to improve its standards and appeal to even the most discriminating travelers.

Be sure Croatia is at the top of your must-see destination list. You definitely want to vacation at the “new Riviera.”

Made up of over 700 small islands and cays, the Bahamas are a great Caribbean island destination spot for travelers. These islands are located east of Florida in the United States and North of the country of Cuba and make up their own English-speaking country. Tourists from around the world love to visit the Bahamas, and it is a popular travel spot for honeymoons and weddings.

The Bahamas are one of the most prosperous countries in the world because of their success with tourism and with financial institutions. Recently, urban renewal programs have been launched to keep the island safe and high-end for travelers. The country as the third highest per capita income in the West and is the most successful country in the Caribbean. The climate in the Bahamas is beautiful and comparable to the Florida climate enjoyed in cities like Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Although the islands are highly susceptible to hurricanes, they usually have a very tropical and pleasant weather, influences heavily by the waters of the Gulf Stream.

If you are traveling to the Bahamas from the United States, the closest island is Bimini, known as the gateway to Bahamas. Here, they cater to tourists. Andros Island, which is to the south of Bimini, is the largest island in this chain, and the largest city on the island is the capital, Nassau, which is located on the island of New Providence. Other larger islands in this chain include Eleuthera, Cat Island, San Salvador, Crooked Island, Exuma, Acklins, and Long Island.

A number of great festivals take place in the Bahamas, so you can enjoy things like the Crab Fest on the island of Andros and the Puneapple Fest on the island of Eleuthera. This is also the birthplace of the rhythmic musical genera junkanoo, which is played heavily at festivals. Rake and scrape, calypso, and hymnals are also important in these islands.

If you decide to travel to the Bahamas to visit one or more of the great islands, you will have a variety of activities from which to choose. There are water sports like sailing and jet skiing to help fill your days, or you can relax on the beautiful sandy beaches near the clear ocean water. A variety of tourist attractions and tours can also be a part of your Bahamas vacation. Be sure that you book your trip well in advance to get the best prices and to be sure you have the chance to do everything you want to do while traveling in this Caribbean paradise

When you think of Rome, Italy you think of a nice romantic getaway. But the truth is that Rome is a beautiful city as well as fun place for the entire family.  Rome is the capital of Italy and it is the most popular city in the country. Rome is a city that has excellent weather most of the year but the best time of the year is from May from October.

Rome has some of the most beautiful sites in the world. One of the most famous sites is St. Peter’s Square and the Basilica. St Peter’s has great history and it is also very beautiful to see. Another great site to see is the World Famous Sistine Chapel painted by the one and only Michael Angelo.

There are guided tours that you can take around the city or you can explore the city on your own.  Rome is full of culture and history; you just can’t help but want to take in its beauty. There are so many art galleries and museums that include the Capitone Museum, the National Gallery of Modern Art.

You will never have to worry about getting around Rome, you can travel by the Rome Metro, the Roman Tram or you can obtain a car for hire. Once you have spent the day sightseeing, Rome has some great shopping areas that you will love. If you are planning a vacation, choose Rome, they have the best restaurants and the best hotels in the world. The beaches are exquisite and the scenery is just breathtaking. Contact your travel agent and see how you can get the best deals.

Rome, for most people is a vacation of a lifetime. Not only is it a great honeymoon destination but it is also a great family vacation. Your kids will appreciate the history and the beauty of it all. If you have the chance, take a once in a lifetime trip to the beautiful city of Rome, Italy. It will be well worth it.

Sonoma county wine region is a part of the famous California vineyards, close to the San Francisco and Napa Valley. Sonoma Valley offers authentic California wine tasting experience, great weather and friendly staff.

Sonoma county is a perfect place for wine lovers, people searching for soothing relaxation and romantic ambiance. Its conveniently located 30 miles north of San Francisco and and now as airport located at Santa Rosa (Code: RSA). Sonoma County has a span of 1575 square miles containing about 1,00,000 acres of lush wine growing land. Having over 200 award winning wineries and about 60 miles of Pacific coastline, the Majestic Russian river, Golf courses, museums, shopping, botanical, gardens, galleries, camping locations, bike & hiking trails and diverse festivals all year around, Sonoma county is the place you should definitely visit.

Sonoma has 5 distinct wine-growing districts: Los Carneros District, Sonoma Valley, Russian River Valley, Dry Creek Valley, and Alexander Valley, with small towns in each. You will find the premium quality wines of both white and red wine, famous categories include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pino, Syrah, Zinfandel, Shiraz and very often vineyards have their own special. Winery hospitality staff are knowledgeable, friendly and eager to discuss the wines and how they were made. Winery tours take visitors behind the scenes to barrel rooms, crush pads, bottling lines, cellars and caves. You will find vineyards all around the county, just driving around the place is very pleasant and relaxing.
Latest Development: Horizon air now has daily flights from Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Seattle airports. Santa Rosa Airport (RSA) in Sonoma County.

ATTRACTIONS AND ACTIVITIES:

* Wine county Ballooning: On US Hwy 101, Airport Blvd exit from Kal’s Kaffe Mocha.
* Point Arena Lighthouse and Museum, 115 ft tall and Steel reinforced concrete lighthouse opened in 1908.
* Luther Burbank Home and Gardens: Life and work of the horticulturist who introduced 800 variety of flowers, fruits, nuts etc..
* Fort Ross State Historic Park: The site of trading post and fort established by Russians in 1812.
* Train Ride: On Santa Rosa 12, a 20 minute steam train ride through a forested railroad park past scaled down reproductions of buildings ad waterfalls.
* Being so close to San Francisco you may also consider visiting the GOLDEN GATE bridge, Pier 39,Alcatraz, China Town and the famous Crooked street of SF Downtown.
* Napa county which is again a very famous vineyard community is located just east of Sonoma county, activities there include wine tasting, Ballooning, visiting petrified forest and old faithful geyser.