Kenya Beach Vacation – fun things to do on the eastern Africa coast

The beaches of Kenya are some of the world’s most alluring playgrounds. Besides the beauty and tranquility, they offer plenty of opportunities for water sports and other beach vacation activities. Or simply sun-bathing. One is not surprised then, that more than 50% of Kenya’s international standard hotels are based along the coast.

Some of the fun things to do while on your beach vacation on the Kenya coast are:

Dolphin-Watching
Since dolphins are frequent visitors off the Kenyan coastline, dolphin-spotting dhow trips are organized to the Kisite Marine Park. This is a full day trip with traditional lunch served either onboard or on Wasini Island. Snorkeling equipment is provided so that you can build up an appetite while exploring the coral gardens. Read more »

Marbella Spain – a way of life

Marbella in Southern Spain on the Costa del Sol has that very famous and so apt motto “A Way of Life” and, undoubtedly that does convey in many ways the effervescent spirit of this outstanding luxurious coastal resort.

Like wise having a Marbella Hot Tub for entertaining and relaxing is also a way of life.

Here in Marbella you can find entertainment and the arts for varied tastes.

There are many outstanding art and fashion shows held in Marbella often for leading and exclusive brands. Read more »

Holidays in Greece – In and Out of the Mainstream

There are many quieter, traditional areas of Greece which repay investigation and can provide an idyllic holiday, away from the more bustling tourist centres. The power of Greece is very much contained in its diversity – many different kinds of holiday are on offer in this ancient country with a traditional heart.

Without doubt, those looking for hedonistic holiday pleasures will never be disappointed – the sun, sea and sand; the warm, lazy days and nights; the waterside wining and dining – it is all here in abundance.

Greece has the second highest number of Blue Flag beaches of any country in the world – an award which confirms and demonstrates the quality and cleanliness of its beaches and sea. Read more »

Sunshine Coast accommodation or Gold Coast accommodation?

If you’ve got some time to spend in South East Queensland, your two choices are the Sunshine Coast or the Gold Coast. With both destinations being equidistant from Brisbane airport, it can be a tough decision to make.

Depending on the type of holiday you want though, one region may be suitable than the other. Do you want an action-packed holiday with fun and excitement, or do you want to “get back to nature” and relax? Of course, it’s possible to find both in either location, but each has its own specialty.

For example, with a Sunshine Coast holiday, you can visit one of its many individual national parks. In fact, this region boasts more individual national parks than any other Queensland region. In addition, the region is naturally biodiverse, and has been protected by separate parks (five in all) in the hinterland in coastal regions. These include The Great Sandy National Park (including Fraser Island and Cooloola sections near Rainbow Beach), Kondalilla National Park, The Glasshouse Mountains National Park, Mapleton Falls National Park, and Noosa National Park. Read more »

Family Vacations in Hawaii

Hawaii is a great resort for any family vacation. When you have worked hard throughout the year it really is a big move to finally make the decision to go on that perfect beach holiday. Beach vacations are always a perfect option for family holidays and Hawaii is one of the most popular beach resorts around the world. If you are planning a vacation anytime soon you may want to consider all of the options available. You may choose to stay in a hotel or even participate in group tours, but for some of us the best option will simply be finding a rental that is able to accommodate you and your family. Read more »

We arrived in Cirali after a hot, dry trek from Maden beach in temperatures of 35 degrees.  We were incredibly thirsty and the first pansyion we reached was Ioanna’s, a Danish-run small hotel catering to Danish visitors who want a home from home in the Mediterranean.  Ioanna’s is run by the Elsborgs, a Danish husband and wide team who spend their summers in Turkey sharing the idyllic lifestyle of Cirali beach.  They served us two long cold beers immeddiately, to restore us to full health.  You don’t have to be a Dane to stay there, although the website is not translated – www.ioanna.eu.  They prepare a mean barbecue every evening, so a fat burner review would be useful unless you are going trekking every day of your holiday.

Luxury Adventure Travel to Machu Picchu and the Galapagos Islands

Nothing sounds more exotic or exciting than luxury adventure travel to Machu Picchu and the Galapagos Islands. Let’s take these one at a time and see what you would be getting if you indulged yourself with luxury adventure travel of this kind.

First the Galapagos Islands. Luxury adventure travel to the Galapagos Islands is following the footsteps of Charles Darwin and the Beagle, as he formulated his theory of evolution by studying the life forms on these islands, untainted by human hand for thousands of years. You can try to spot the blue-footed boobies waddling among the hundred year old 600 pound tortoises, or seek out the Amblyrhynchus, a three-foot long, iguana resembling a dinosaur that lives only on these islands.

You could make your initial stop to tour Quito, and have a look around one of the Indian markets nearby, such as the Saquisili Indian market, and buy a hand-made Panama hat – these are made in Ecuador, not Panama! Quito itself offers a great deal to the adventurer, and you will be able to straddle the equator – one foot in the northern and another in the southern hemisphere. Quito was destroyed by the Indians to prevent it being taken by Pissarro, and rebuilt by the Spanish colonialists.

Then take a business class flight on your first stage to tour the Galapagos Islands, and transfer to a luxury cruiser to visit Espanol Island, the first of the Galapagos Islands you will visit. Don’t forget that this is luxury adventure travel to the Galapagos Islands, and that you should want for nothing: the best accommodations and personal attention.

After admiring the iguanas, which swim only at this island, cruise over to Santa Cruz, and visit the Charles Darwin Research Station at Academy Bay, where you will check out the captive tortoise and iguana breeding centers. After crossing the equator, Genovesa Island can be very deceiving. The quietness of this volcanic area lulls you into a false sense of security, because you will shortly enter Darwin Bay and be assaulted by the sound of thousands of birds of many different types: boobies (both blue and red footed), Audubon’s shearwaters, noddies and red billed tropicbirds among many others. This is an ornithologist’s heaven.

Wreck Bay (I wonder how it got that name) on San Cristobal is the administrative capital of the Galapagos and you can fly from there back to Ecuador, connecting in Guayaquil for your flight to Lima. This is the start on the second part of your vacation: Luxury Adventure Travel to Machu Picchu. However, why rush it? Why not first have a look around some of the other places that Peru has to offer?

Take a trip to Cuzco: at three miles high, one of the highest cities in the world. Imagine your 100 meters time here! When you get this high, you have to take it easy or you could become ill, so let yourself acclimatize after your sea-level trip to the Galapagos Islands. Give it a day and then head off for a tour to Chincero in the Urubamba Sacred Valley, to learn something about the old ways of the Incas. Keep in mind that is a luxury vacation, and in keeping with that you should also visit La Cicciolina, which one of the best restaurants in this part of the world. Now you are ready for your luxury adventure travel to Machu Picchu!

What better than a luxury train ride on the Hiram Bingham train to the lost city, enjoying champagne and a top class brunch on the way. It was Yale historian, Hiram Bingham, who brought Machu Picchu to the attention of the civilized world in 1911, and wrote his first book on his finding under the title “The Lost City of the Incas”. In fact the city had been constructed around 1460, when the Inca Empire was at its peak, and it is believed that it was abandoned less than 100 years later due to an outbreak of smallpox killing most of the inhabitants. Read more »

Pattaya – meaning South West Monsoon Wind

The city of Pattaya is located along the Gulf of Thailand, on its East Coast. This tourist city plays host to more than 5.4 million visitors, with many high rise skyscrapers and a reputation as a city that never sleeps. It was during the 1960s that Pattaya began to focus on tourism as opposed to fishing for its inhabitants’ livelihood. There is also a large expat community in Pattaya, many from the UK and from Russia. Thai people from Bangkok escaped the worst of the heat and pollution in their capital city by recognising the benefits of the sea air and began holidaying here. Pattaya became a recognised beach resort for many of the servicemen stationed at U-Tapao, the US base in Rayong province, during the Vietnam War with the result that Pattaya acquired a rather suspect reputation. As the Vietnam War came to a conclusion and the servicemen were shipped home, Pattaya lost its identity, resurrected later when it came to be put on the tourist map during the era of mass tourism.

Pattaya remained a haunt for single men seeking out local girls, a reputation that has remained until quite recently when the Thai Government began to legislate against the lucrative sex tourism industry, attempting to make Pattaya a respectable place for families to bring their children on holiday. Petty crime and pollution remained rife, despite the Pattaya City Act which appointed a local Council-Manager to oversee the self-administrating municipality – an act which did not particularly find favour with the local residents of Pattaya. In 2008 the Thai Government imposed a restriction on alcohol sales designed to stop the 24-hour image portrayed abroad, with the intention of greatly limiting the continuing sex industry that continued to grow. Read more »