greattravelsecrets.com

Summer Traveller Checklist
by: News Canada
(NC)-If you’re going to hit the road this summer, it pays to plan ahead. Long trips by car can be exhausting if you don’t take precautions. St. John Ambulance, Canada’s leader in safety-oriented™ first aid training and high quality products, offers this Traveller’s Checklist to help ensure you get there safely.

Is your vehicle up to the journey?

Check:

Tires and air pressure;
Fluid levels;
Lights and turn signals;
Motor operation, cooling and exhaust systems.
Carry:

Inflated spare tire;
Extra oil, radiator fluid, windshield spray;
Roadside assistance kit (including flares, jack, tire wrench, etc.)
First aid kit
Are you (and your passengers) ready to roll?

Check:

Is there a functioning seatbelt for each passenger to use?
Are small children secured in safety seats?
Are mirrors adjusted for the driver?
Are there obstructions on the dash, deck or windows that could obscure the driver’s line of sight?
Carry:

Water or other non-alcoholic liquid refreshment.
Nutritious snacks.
Blankets and pillows (especially for long trips).
Facial tissues or sanitary wipes.
Maps with your route clearly marked (if you plan to travel unknown roads).
Cellular phone or other communication device.
Items to quietly occupy the interest of young passengers while not disturbing the driver’s concentration.
For more than 118 years, St. John Ambulance has been helping Canadians prevent injury and reduce suffering through state-of-the-art first aid training and products. By learning what to do in an emergency, you can take to the road with extra confidence. For more information on St. John Ambulance programs and high-quality products, call the branch nearest you or look us up on the Internet at www.sja.ca.

About The Author

News Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.

News Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print, radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial “fill” items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services. The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most often. Visit News Canada and learn more about the NC services.

How To Save Money When Traveling
by: Maria Estarellas

Do you know you can go on a 7-day cruise for half the price?

Or visit Europe for 15 days for only $2,000 per person including airfare, hotels, car rental and meals?

If you follow these steps, you can save more up to 50% in travel expenses.

1. Travel during low season.

Choosing to go on vacation during low season, will save you a great deal of money on airfare, hotels, cruises, car rental and more.

The best dates to travel are between:
February - May
September - the week before Thanksgiving
December 1 - 15

For example, a 7-day cruise in the Caribbean can cost around $1,000 during summer and winter but it can cost $495 in November.

A ticket to Europe can cost between $800-$1,200 during high season but you can buy it at $395 roundtrip during low season.

2. Hotels

The same applies to hotel rates.

When it comes to hotels, you should look for 3-star hotels that will offer most amenities you need at a lower price than 4 or more star hotels. You should keep in mind, that 3-star hotels are smaller, but you can find very good hotels for a great price.

Keep in mind that hotels that are very near local attractions will be more expensive than hotels located 2 or 3 blocks away.

3. Attractions and Places to Visit

Make a list of the places and attractions you want to visit and do some research. Find out about the schedules, locations, special events, etc. You’ll find out that there are certain dates during the year that they will have discounts and even free admission.

4. Restaurants

Don’t visit tourist-oriented restaurants.

Instead, ask locals to recommend family-owned or small restaurants. Not only will you pay less but the food, quality and service will be much better.

Two years ago, I visited Monaco, France and we went to a small restaurant on a side street and we only paid $100 (for 4 people) for appetizers, great pasta, drinks and dessert (including tip). Not a bad price considering that Monaco is very expensive.

5. Metro vs. Taxi

In most places, there is a metro or train system which will be a lot cheaper than traveling by taxi. All you need to do is get a map and trace the route you’re going to visit and find out the train or metro numbers you need to get on to.

By planning your vacation in advance, choosing the best dates to travel (low season), doing research about places and attractions to visit, going to local restaurants versus tourist-oriented ones, and using the metro or train system instead of taxis, will save you a great deal of money and allow you to go on vacation at least twice a year.

About The Author

Maria Estarellas is the webmaster for http://meg2.citymaker.com. The Complete Website For The Whole Family

meg2@bspr.com

Alaska Cruises offer breathtaking scenery for your vacations.
by: Mike Yeager

Alaska cruises can offer some of the most pristine, natural beauty you’ll ever see on your vacations. Beautiful crystal clear inlets of water found no where else in the world. Icebergs and sheer cliff walls rising thousands of feet into the air. Choosing from among the many Alaska cruises will be easy and fun; making your vacations an exciting and rewarding experience.

Deciding which of many Alaska cruises is right for your vacations.

One thing to decide is when you want to go. Many people favor the month of August because the weather and temperature are favorable to being outdoors. Another consideration to keep in mind for Alaska cruises and vacations is which direction on the ship you’d like your cabin to face. Inside cabins are less expensive while outside facing cabins offer the convenience of stepping onto your balcony and seeing the many splendid sights. Dressing warmly and comfortably is another consideration, especially if you’re susceptible to being cold at night. Also, be sure and bring along a good pair of binoculars to see the sights. Many times your cruise ship will pass by a stunningly close to an immense block of ice; you’ll want to see every detail that up close.

About The Author

Mike Yeager
Publisher
http://www.a1-travel-4u.com/productpage/cheapcruises.html

5 Romantic Travel Resolutions
by: Paris Permenter & John Bigley
A new year always means a chance for a new start. You and yours can begin this new year by making some travel resolutions together, regardless of your time and budget restraints. Put aside those old travel habits and make some new ones! Let this be the year that your travel plans focus on fun, fantasy, and festivities!

(1) We’re going to plan a real vacation. No, it doesn’t have to be an around the world cruise or first class getaway (but if you can afford it, what are you waiting for?) It does have to be an honest-to-goodness vacation, though. No cell phones, no laptops. Mark the dates on the calendar and keep it just like you’d keep any business appointment. The business of romantic travel, though, is a fun one and an activity that the two of you can plan for months.

(2) We’re going to involve each other in the trip planning. All too often, one partner gets the job for planning a trip…and that task quickly becomes a bore. Plan your trips together! Anticipation is half the fun. Visit a travel agent. Collect brochures. Buy a guidebook. Rent a video about your destination. Search the internet for information.

(3) We’re going to do something we’ve never done. Here you can be as mild – or as wild – as you dare. Go whitewater rafting. Rent a houseboat. Take a hot air balloon ride. Spend the night in a local bed and breakfast. Learn to scuba dive. Dance the whole night away under the stars. The choice is yours.

(4) We’re going to take one mini-vacation every month. Whether it’s for the night or just for the night out, plan one tiny slice of a vacation every single month. The only rule: you must pretend you’re on vacation. Book a night at a local bed and breakfast. Call your local hotel and find out their non-peak nights (in business-oriented cities, it’s usually Friday and Saturday) then plan a short romantic getaway.

(5) We’re going to go to at least one festival. Special events take place at just about every community around the world. Whatever your interests – from square dancing to sandcastle building – you’ll find a festival celebrating with a day or two of fun and food. If you don’t have the time or budget to go far, contact area chamber of commerce or tourism offices within a day’s drive of your home for their calendar of events. If you can, extend your trip into a long weekend. If you’ve got the time and resources, check out some of the major fun festivals: Carnival, Mardi Gras, Rio’s Carnivale. Don’t forget your costume!

About The Author

Husband and wife team Paris Permenter and John Bigley edit the award-winning Lovetripper.com (www.lovetripper.com), a romantic travel magazine and resource featuring honeymoons, destination weddings, and romantic getaways worldwide.
editors@lovetripper.com

What Is A Home Based Travel Agent?
by: Jennifer Dugan
Many people are unclear about the travel industry. Travel agents are often thought to be the same as real estate agents. Becoming a travel agent or more specifically a home based travel agent is an exciting career change or retirement option. Some people do it full time while many do it as a part time business.

A travel agent books travel for customers and is paid by suppliers a commission on the booking. For bookings that suppliers do not pay a commission on, a travel agent also can charge the client a service fee for his/her time. An example is if you were to book a hotel for a client, the hotel would then send a check to the agency after the client checked out. Most hotels pay 10% of the price of the hotel before taxes and fees. A $100 per night hotel reservation would mean $10 a night for the travel agent who made the booking. This hotel would cost the same whether the customer uses a travel agent or books through the hotel directly. In many cases the travel agent can get a better price. It costs the customer nothing to use the travel agent unless the travel agent charges service fees.

Can anyone do this? In order to work with suppliers, you must have an account set up with the supplier. Most require an agency to hold an IATAN, CLIA or ARC number. IATAN stands for International Airlines Travel Agent Network. CLIA stands for Cruise Lines International Association. ARC stands for Airline Reporting Corporation. Each of these memberships requires different things including sales, money in the bank, experience or training in the industry, and membership fees. Many will require Errors and Omissions insurance of $1,000,000 or more.

For the average travel agent, membership is not a possibility with some organizations so the agent will team up with an agency and work as an independent agent or outside agent. There are also advantages of working with an agency because most travel agents cannot make enough in sales with a particular supplier to obtain higher commission levels and bonuses. Working with an agency with many agents can increase the commission percentages the agent gets because of the joint sales of all the agents at the agency. Support is also a very important aspect of being a successful agent. Agents who do not work with others tend to feel more isolated and have to learn to do it all solo. Since no agent can have the experience of being everywhere in the world or staying at every hotel or resort, having others that you can get advice from is really helpful.

The future of travel agencies is always questioned. The truth is the industry has changed in many ways. Some changes were for the better, some for the worse. Many airlines have cut commissions for travel agents. However, there are many other suppliers who are paying travel agents more than they were ten years ago. Cruises used to be booked by only the rich and now people in every income book cruises. Each year more and more people go on cruises. Most people say they want to go on a cruise at least once and many who go on their first come home to want to book another.

You can earn commission on many travel reservations.

Hotels
Rental Cars
Tour Packages
Cruises
Some airline tickets
International airline tickets
Travel insurance
Ground transportation including limos
Attraction tickets
Train tickets
People all need travel arrangements at some point in time. Those who take road trips need hotel reservations. Those who need to travel for business need airline tickets, rental cars, and hotel reservations. Families want to experience vacations with their loved ones. People visit family and relatives. Most people who win money say they are going to spend it to take a nice vacation. Newly married couples go on honeymoons. You are not selling something that is hard to sell. People contact you for help, you are not calling them or approaching them trying to sell them something they don’t want.

Educating the public is the main thing any travel agent must do. Most people put travel agents into the same category as real estate agents. They believe it costs additional to use a travel agent. This is untrue. In many cases a travel agent can get a better price than the general public through the suppliers who work only with travel agents. Many people do not know all the options for booking a vacation. A good travel agent does. Once people are educated on how a travel agent gets paid, they are more willing to work with travel agents. If a person knows that if he or she let you book a hotel and it will cost the same price regardless, she or he will work with you. It is important to let people know how you can help them save time and money on their travel arrangements.

So how do you get into the industry? Many people think they must go to school or become certified. This is not true. You can get into the industry and begin training. I don’t recommend anyone spend thousands on a travel school until he or she knows this is a career that he or she will really want to pursue. The truth is you do not have to spend thousands to get trained. There are many courses free to travel agents from suppliers. There are also organizations such as ICTA (Institute of Certified Travel Agents) who offer courses as you get more years experience in the industry. CLIA also offers courses. There are some agencies that will offer training. Even if you decide this is a career you would like to pursue, you do not need to spend thousands to become an educated and competent travel agent. There are many courses you can take with suppliers and organizations to get a better education in travel. I truly believe a hands’ on approach is the best way to become a better travel agent. Learning to work with suppliers and how to find the information your clients need is an important part of becoming a good travel agent.

How can you find an agency to work with? There are a few organizations dedicated to independent travel agents. NACTA and OSSN are the top organizations. NACTA stands for National Association of Commissioned Travel Agents. OSSN stands for Outside Sales Support Network. You can also search online for home-based travel agent programs. I would never recommend anyone spending a lot of money to start this business. It is key to first try and see if it is something you would really want to do and get training before you invest too much money into it. Get involved in the industry first and see if it is really a career that is best for you.

Jennifer Dugan CTA
Owner of Dugan’s Travels
Travel agent since 1993
http://www.duganstravels.com

Copyright 2004 Jennifer Dugan

About The Author

Mother of two who started a homebased travel agency in 1997. She has over 200 outside agents working with her agency and is active in the travel industry. She has been an agent since 1993. She is the author of three ebooks.

Healthy and Happy Feet While Travelling - A Travel Expert’s Advice
by: News Canada
(NC)-Whether hiking in Canada’s Rocky Mountains or admiring art at the Musée du Louvre in Paris, travelling takes its toll on the feet, and sore feet can ruin the pleasure of a vacation.

Toby Saltzman is a freelance travel writer and editor and publisher of the travel website, www.travelterrific.com. Her globe-trotting job takes her to destinations around the world and requires her to spend countless hours on her feet, visiting various tourist and cultural attractions.

After years of experience caring for and treating her feet, Saltzman has some basic tips on how to keep feet healthy and happy, no matter where travellers adventure to this summer.

1. Wear comfortable walking or athletic shoes

It may sound simple, but wearing comfortable shoes is essential when spending hours of vacation time on your feet. Comfortable shoes can help to alleviate the discomfort caused by corns and calluses and help to prevent blisters.

For those travellers with corns and calluses, plan to see your podiatrist before embarking on your trip. You may wish to ease the discomfort by packing over-the-counter cushion treatments to protect feet while on vacation. Blisters are one of the most common travelling foot injuries. Avoid missing out on enjoyable vacation excursions by using over-the-counter treatments such as Dr. Scholl’s® Cushlin® UltraSlim Blister Treatment to help heal and prevent blisters.

In addition, comfortable shoes with proper arch support delay the occurrence of tired, achy feet, a common culprit that hampers the enjoyment of much anticipated travel activities, such as hiking. Many over-the-counter insoles and devices can improve the arch support of a shoe, allowing for more “on your feet” time during a vacation.

2. Do not pack shoes that need to be “broken in”

Always avoid shoes that require a break-in period and instead, purchase shoes that feel comfortable right away. This also applies to packing for a vacation. If the shoes hurt your feet at home, they’ll hurt them on the road as well. Always be conscious of how vigorous the vacation activity is and how comfortable your shoes are.

3. If shoes do not have sufficient padding or support, improve the performance of your shoes by adding inserts/devices

Quite often the shoes that “best match” a vacation outfit - whether for an afternoon shopping in New York City or an evening of entertainment on a cruise ship - are not beneficial to our foot health. Wear shoes that support feet, allowing for ease of movement wherever your vacation adventure may take you. For additional support, there are a variety of over-the-counter inserts that provide additional cushioning and support, such as Dr. Scholl’s® Advantage™ PowerWalk Insoles.

4. Soak feet nightly

Treating feet each night with a specially designed soak such as Dr. Scholl’s® Smooth Touch® Instant Foot Bath will help to ease the discomfort of tired, achy feet. It also moisturizes and softens corns, calluses and rough, hard skin; a luxurious comfort that can be enjoyed in the privacy of a hotel room that will prepare your feet for a comfortable travel adventure the following day.

5. Moisturize and exfoliate feet

Moisturizing and exfoliating feet can help to reduce the build up of dead skin that results in corns and calluses. It is also a nice, relaxing treat at the end of a long day of sight-seeing. Dr. Scholl’s® Smooth Touch® Peppermint Foot & Leg Lotion softens skin, as well as provides a soothing peppermint fragrance.

For more information on footcare visit www.drscholls.ca.

About The Author

News Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.

News Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print, radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial “fill” items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services. The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most often. Visit News Canada and learn more about the NC services.

Did I Pack My Toothbrush? Getting Organized for Travel
by: Stacey Agin Murray

For many of us summertime = vacation time. Some people will spend their days off at the local pool. Some may choose to sightsee in their own town. Many will leave behind the comforts of home for the open road. Regardless of the destination or mode of transportation, it is important to be organized for travel.

A few benefits of being organized for travel:
1. Being organized will save you time.

Having a copy of your packing list on the computer will cut down on the time used for re-creating it every time you travel.

2. Being organized will save you money.

Doing pre-travel shopping at home will save you big bucks (especially on film and batteries…) that might be otherwise be spent at a tourist trap.

3. Being organized will save you stress.

No need to stress while scrounging for your tickets and ID at the airport if all of your paperwork is organized in one place.

Follow these organizing tips to keep your vacation a stress-free, time and money saving event:

Plan ahead. Create a general itinerary before you travel. Grab pen and paper and jot down your travel times, hotel check-in/check-out times, and a list of activities/places you’d like to visit. This will help you make sure you have allowed enough time to get to your destination, and whether or not you’ve scheduled too many activities for one day.

* Stop by your local ‘AAA’ office for a Triptik and other travel-related services to help map out your route if driving.

Create a checklist to help you pack. Keep it on the computer so you don’t have to write it over every time you leave home. Use it as a template and update it before each trip to include anything new such as medications, toiletries, accessories, etc.

Keep all information related to your trip in one place. Create a folder for papers such as reservations, confirmations, and tickets. When you look for the information you need before or during your trip, you’ll have it all at your fingertips.

Keep a toiletry bag packed with small sized travel sized-containers all year round. By doing so, you’re always ready for a long trip or an overnight stay. Take a quick inventory of its contents before you leave home—you might have run out of toothpaste on your last trip.

*If your favorite products don’t come in sample sizes, purchase small, travel sized containers and fill them with your favorite shampoo and creams. Label them clearly so you don’t accidentally condition your hair with a facial moisturizer…

Place items you’ll need immediately at the top of your suitcase. Items such as comfortable shoes, pajamas, and toiletries are more easily accessible if they’re closer to top. When you’re tired from a long journey, the last thing you want to be doing is rummaging through your suitcase.

Use suitcase organizers to separate outfits or types of clothing. Products such as Pack-It Cubes or Ziploc bags do the job well. Hefty makes One-Zip 2.5 gallon bags (found in many supermarkets) that are large enough to organize clothes and later can be used to keep laundry or wet bathing suits away from the rest of your belongings.

*Wearing your bulkiest pair of shoes while traveling will give you more space in your suitcase.

Organize your wardrobe around one basic color such as black, navy, or brown to prevent overpacking. You’ll be able to mix and match easily and you won’t need to bring a ton of different shoes. Also, when packing–think about your vacation activities. Will they include hiking? Days at the beach? Having dinner with relatives? Think ahead and pack items you may need for those activities such as band-aids for hiking, aloe vera for sunburns, and the scarf Aunt Shirley gave you for your birthday if you’ll be seeing her.

Travel safely and have an organized trip!

About The Author

Stacey Agin Murray, professional organizer and owner of Organized Artistry, LLC, transforms ‘mess’ into ‘masterpiece’ with patience, organizing know-how, and a sense of humor. For more articles and to get your FREE e-list of ‘Top Ten Tips for Organized Living’ visit http://www.organizedartistry.com.
stacey@organizedartistry.com

Four Ways to Free/Low Cost Travel
by: Liana Metal
1. Free lodging!

Find a pen friend. Maybe you haven’t thought of this. It’s the best solution to your budget problems, but you can’t have it overnight! Greek people are hospitable and so are other countries’ people if you become friends with. It’s the simplest thing to do if you like writing letters or just exchanging cards and souvenirs. I’ve done it and a lot of other people have, why not you? Your friend will probably be happy to put you up for a couple of nights and show you around as well. The other alternative is to exchange your house/flat with somebody else’s abroad. There is a site online that will help you find a place . Try www.welcometraveller.org, they advertise ‘exchange homes free of charge’. Try also www.bigworld.com for offers and discounts.

2. Low cost travel

Stay at campsites. The cheapest alternative to free lodging, at least in Greece. You save money and have fun . Find a campsite at www.greecetravel.com/campsites

3. Invest on a bike.

If you like cycling, then you can do it. In Greece you can cycle to most places and see areas that are worth visiting. You can easily rent a bike , and if you are in Corfu you can try www.mountainbikecorfu.com

4. Rent a room in a village or at the port

There are families who rent rooms in their own house ; cheaper than hotel rooms but you have to follow the rules. Where can you find them?

Watch the port area if you come by ship. There are people who approach you and tell you about their own rooms around the area, at low prices. Sometimes you can even bargain to get a better price.

Well, if all these don’t suit you and you may own a caravan , you don’t have to worry about lodgings. You can stay at campsites at low cost, at the side of the road or even in a field for free. You can also hire a caravan and share the expenses, if you travel with friends.

Don’t know where to find one? In Greece you can try www.greecetravel.com/carrentals

Greece is ideal for traveling at low cost. But you must be inventive and explore all the sources available. Visit www.google.gr

This is a search engine that will help you find all the info you want. Just type the word Greece and click on Search.

GOOD LUCK!

About The Author

Liana Metal has been writing fiction ,non fiction, ebooks and reviews for many years. Visit her at http://lianametal.tripod.com to read more about writing, books and markets.
lianamet20@yahoo.co.uk

Exciting Vacations in Your Own Backyard - You Don’t Need To Travel Far To Experience A Memorable Getaway
by: News Canada
(NC)—The summer is in full swing and so is the travel season as Canadians take advantage of the long awaited warm breezes and sunny skies. For those of us without a family cottage or a plane ticket out of the province, the options may seem limited for creative, fun destination ideas for a day trip or even a summer-long getaway.

Options do exist – and it’s often surprising just how close and convenient the fun can be. Below you’ll find some great ideas in regions across Canada that are sure to create memorable and fun vacations for even the most discerning traveler. All of these options and more can be found in Michelin’s Green Guide to Canada – a fountain of information, and an indispensable travel companion.

Spas

Spas are sprouting up almost everywhere in Canada. Michelin’s travel guide highlights several of these pampering palaces, particularly those in Ontario. Day spas like Kingston’s serene Spa at the Mill, spacious in a restored woollen mill overlooking the Cataraqui River. Or Toronto’s newly relocated Victoria Spa, a haven of Asian-accented calm within the Crowne Plaza Toronto Centre. As for resort spas, High Fields Country Inn & Spa, an hour north of Toronto in Zephyr, combines wraps, facials and hydrotherapy with swimming, tennis and nature walks on the expansive hilltop property. In charming Port Hope, guests at The Hillcrest of Haldimand Hills Spa Village spend the night in finely appointed bedrooms within a grand porticoed mansion—after a day of exercise, mud facials and massage. In The Michelin Green Guide Canada, you’ll find plenty of places throughout Canada for luxuriating.

Cool Places to Stay

Guest Ranches are increasingly popular, especially in British Columbia’s Cariboo, where week-long stays in rustic log cabins (at Elkin Creek Ranch, for example) close a day of trail riding, roping lessons, fishing and—you guessed it—spa indulgence (try the Moor Mud Wrap at Echo Valley Ranch or rosehip oil treatments at Hills Health Ranch). For a selection of BC ranches, find the page number for The Cariboo on The Green Guide’s detailed Contents page.

For travel beyond the summer months, visit the Ice Hotel in Quebec City, where you slumber in a sleeping bag nestled on deer pelts.

Or sink into a whirlpool tub, complete with heated towel rack, at Murray Premises, a converted trading house in St. John’s. In Vancouver, you’ll overnight in your own “gallery” of Northwest Coast art on Listel Vancouver’s museum floor. And in Jasper, warm your toes by the wood-burning fireplace in a Tekarra Lodge cabin that recalls the Rocky Mountain bungalow camps of the early 1900s.

Good Eats

Try a blend of Indian, African and French cuisine in Montreal at Le Piton de la Fournaise (relocated to Rue Duluth Est). Or French-Québécois cookery (foie gras de canard du Québec) in Québec City’s Le Saint-Amour (Rue Sainte-Ursule). Out West in Calgary, you’ll find Brazilian entrées at Latin Corner Cantina (8th Ave.) and Thai cuisine at Thai Sa-On (10th Ave.) that compete with the traditional Canadian fare and western specialties of other city restaurants. Vancouver’s Blue Water Cafe in trendy Yaletown serves up seafood delights from sushi to Dungeness crab cakes. Authentic Mexican food can be found in Fredericton (of all places) at El Burrito Loco (King St.) and on Queen Street, German dishes draw repeat customers at Schade’s Restaurant.

No matter your budget, finding a new and interesting travel destination close to home is easier than you think. This summer, make it fun to find out more about Canada!

For more information, pick up the latest edition of The Michelin Green Guide Canada, available from major booksellers across the country or visit www.viamichelin.com.

- News Canada

About The Author

News Canada provides a wide selection of current, ready-to-use copyright free news stories and ideas for Television, Print, Radio, and the Web.

News Canada is a niche service in public relations, offering access to print, radio, television, and now the Internet media, with ready-to-use, editorial “fill” items. Monitoring and analysis are two more of our primary services. The service supplies access to the national media for marketers in the private, the public, and the not-for-profit sectors. Your corporate and product news, consumer tips and information are packaged in a variety of ready-to-use formats and are made available to every Canadian media organization including weekly and daily newspapers, cable and commercial television stations, radio stations, as well as the Web sites Canadians visit most often. Visit News Canada and learn more about the NC services.

Costa Rica Travel Packages
by: AVEL ON LINE
Located in southern Central America, Costa Rica is surrounded by three different bodies of water including the Panama Canal on the southeast, the Pacific Ocean on the southwest and west and the Caribbean Ocean on the east. Because of Costa Rica’s close proximity to several bodies of water, the country is an ideal stopping point for various cruise ships carrying throngs of adventurous vacationers. Depending on the area of Costa Rica you are in, the climate can differ dramatically. There are cool wet mountain ranges, rain forests, dry tropical forests, cloud forests, the very dry Pacific coast and the damp Caribbean coast. Because of Costa Rica’s diverse climate, the country is home to 850 species of birds, 205 species of mammals, 9,000 species of flowering plants, 1,200 species of orchids and 376 species of reptiles and amphibians. For a country that only measures 51,060 square kilometers, this is a wide variety of natural wildlife. Costa Rica strives to maintain the land’s natural beauty and wildlife by designating one sixth of the country to national parks and wildlife refuges. Costa Rica is also home to several active volcanoes. Arenal erupts daily every fifteen minutes or so. The locals welcome foreigners with open arms making Costa Rica one of the most desirable vacation and retirement spots in the world. It is for these and other reasons that a Costa Rica vacation cruise should be booked today. The memories will last a lifetime.

An Abundance of Outdoor Recreation: Costa Rica is big on water related activities. Wave riders travel from all over the world to test out their expertise in Costa Rica’s waters. Both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts offer up some notorious surfing. On the Atlantic Coast, Puerto Viejo’s Salsa Brava gets some great breaks during the winter months although this area is often crowded. On the Pacific side, Playa Hermosa is the most consistent place to catch some waves. If these areas are flat, no need to worry, snorkeling and kayaking are always an option. Wind surfers have nothing but praise for Lake Arenal. It is considered one of the world’s best wind surfing spots and on good days you can cruise over 25 miles across the lake. There might not be anything more romantic when you’re on vacation with the one you love than enjoying a horseback ride. Whether its on the beach or through a National Park, the experience is sure to be memorable. Other popular outdoor activities to be enjoyed while in Costa Rica include hiking, mountain biking, deep sea fishing, bungee jumping, sailing, bird watching and ballooning. More adventurous activities include repelling down through the center of waterfalls, canopy tours through the tropical trees and white water rafting.

A Mecca for Nature Lovers: Nature lovers should take advantage of Costa Rica’s numerous National Parks and refuges. Crocovado is both a rain forest and black sand beach. The Tabacon Hot Springs is nature’s equivalent to the Jacuzzi. Unwind near cascading waterfalls in the various pools and hot springs. A trip to the Monteverde Cloud Forest will almost guarantee a sighting of Costa Rica’s most famous bird, the Quetzal. The Rain Forest Aerial Tram is located out of San Jose, the country’s capital, and offers a guided canopy tour of the rain forest. Manuel Antonio Park is teeming with monkeys and other wildlife. The Tortuguera is Costa Rica’s most famous protected nesting area. If you are not a fan of outdoor activities, don’t worry, there is plenty else to do and see. The National Museum traces Costa Rica’s colorful history and culture. The museum was founded in 1887 and is located in San Jose. Patrons of the arts should try and catch one of the numerous performance put on at the National Theater. The National Theater offers classical music and opera performances in addition to others. Sarchi is located outside of San Jose and is a great place to visit and admire the country’s handicraft.

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About The Author

Aventuras Elegantes, AVEL, S.A. We are an american and costa rican group. Aventuras Elegantes, AVEL, S.A., started operation in 1995 as a receptive tourism agency specialized in promoting Costa Rica as a tourist destination worldwide.
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