Search Results for: blog planning a european vacation

What Are Your Summer Vacation Plans?

Are you planning to take the kids to Disney World or are you opting to travel to Hawaii or the Bahamas with just your spouse? Has the slumping economy forced you to stay closer to home, or is this the summer you finally take your dream European vacation? According to a new American Express survey, the family vacation is alive and well, and the current economy is not putting the brakes on summer travel plans. So, where do you stack up against survey respondents? According to the study, more than half of 2,000 adults questioned will be traveling with their … Continue reading →

Do You Avoid Taking Vacations?

Have you ever avoided taking a vacation because you didn’t want to hassle with the planning? Do you regularly avoid taking a vacation because you figure it’s simply not worth the effort? If you answered yes, you are far from alone. According to a new study, more and more Americans are eschewing traditional vacations and working down time into their everyday lives. Frankly, the study results shocked me. I love taking vacations. In fact, when I worked outside the home I regularly counted the days until the start of my vacations. I couldn’t wait to take a break from the … Continue reading →

More European Walking Tours

In a previous blog I shared my desire to tour Europe and offered some suggestions regarding where to tour if you were planning a trip to France. I also told you that I have been collecting information on tours of Switzerland and Austria (the other European locations I have a desire to visit). The following are two walking/biking tours that caught my eye. Each is a 8-day/7-night tour that includes pick up and drop off at airport/train stations, breakfast and dinner each day, and fully researched walking and cycling route notes and maps. The other amenity I liked about these … Continue reading →

Planning A European Vacation

Long before I visited a movie theater to see “National Lampoon’s European Vacation” I dreamt of strolling along the streets of Paris and exploring all that Italy had to offer. In fact, I had even completed preliminary research for a European honeymoon, but alas, we ended up getting married in Hawaii and honeymooning there. As it stands now, my dreams of taking a European holiday are permanently on hold, especially since we now have a young daughter who would rather visit Elmo than the Eiffel Tower. While we are in Elmoland a new survey found more than 64% of all … Continue reading →

Apply to be a Disney Mom (or Disney Dad)

What’s the ultimate goal of many Disney fanatics? See all the films and television shows? Visit all the parks? Work for the company, at one of the parks or even in the movie division? I know for many, it’s the latter. A lucky few are qualified to really work in making magic: to be an animator, or an Imagineer. Many of us just don’t have the skill set to do much. What kind of job could knowing everything about the Disney parks get us? How about a seat on the Disney Moms Panel? You don’t actually get paid to be … Continue reading →

Budgeting for Tipping

When you are devising a vacation budget items like airfare, hotel rooms and rental cars are typically at the top of the list. However, what about the extra cash you need to tip cab drivers, concierges, skycaps, and hotel housekeepers? Often, travelers forget about padding their wallets to for gratuities. Tipping is an important factor to consider whether you are planning a monthly business trip or a 3-year-in-the-making European vacation. When saving up for a holiday getaway, don’t forget to consider the money you will need to tip appropriately. Tipping is generally not mandatory, unless duly noted on a bill; … Continue reading →

Spring Special Offers at Disney

Now that we’re firmly into spring, it’s time for the latest round of special offers at the Disney parks. Today I’ll focus on the two domestic parks. To change it up a little bit, I’ll lead with the Disneyland deals. Like usual, there are discounted rates for Disneyland resort hotels available if tickets are booked by a certain date. This time, if you make a reservation for a Disneyland stay by May 28, you’ll enjoy a cheaper stay at any one of the three Disneyland resort hotels: the Paradise Pier, Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, or the Disneyland Hotel. Prices … Continue reading →

Affordable Travel Options in New York and Massachusetts

Would you believe me if I told you that you could stay at a hotel in Manhattan for less than $100? No, it doesn’t require sharing space with rats or a dozen other strangers. In fact, you’d be lucky to fit more than yourself and a couple of duffel bags in the room. The Jane, New York’s newest budget hotel, has 200 rooms to offer cash-strapped visitors to the Big Apple, but spacious they’re not. The word tight might not even do them justice. Most of the rooms are as compact as old-time railroad compartments and the shared bathroom is … Continue reading →

Touring a Legendary Botanic Garden

What weighs 448 tons; climbs 60 feet in the air and stretches 220 yards above what is considered one of the most beautiful places on earth? Kew Gardens’ calls it their new XStrata Treetop Walkway. The newest addition to the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, in west London, is a soaring steel walkway that allows visitors to experience the magnificence of nature above the tree line. The massive circular structure stretches through the heart of the 18th century landscaped garden and for the first time ever it gives nature lovers the opportunity to see a side of the forest that … Continue reading →

Working Internationally—Expect More Holidays

No, I do not mean that you should expect more holidays for yourself if your home business takes on a more international twist, but that you will need to keep in mind that other countries and cultures have different holidays than we do and they tend to take much more time off on the whole. I have been working to get the initial planning stages of an international conference in Spain off the ground. The conference won’t be for a couple years, but it can take that long to pull off a successful event such as a conference. I was … Continue reading →