Free Day At National Parks 8/14-15

Each summer America’s National Parks are open free to the public on three weekends.  The final weekend of 2010 is coming up on August 14-15, when hundreds of national parks will offer free admission.  Our National Parks are a true treasure and a visit should be on every family’s list for a fun day’s outing.  Here’s where to find a national park near you:  Find-A-Park.

Enterprise Introduces Electric Rental Cars

Have you been wondering what it would be like to drive an electric car? The next time you need to rent a car, give Enterprise a try – they will be adding electric vehicles to their fleet in more than 5,000 locations in January 2011.  The electronic vehicles require no gasoline and do not produce greenhouse gas emissions.  The cars can be charged using a standard 110-volt plug outlet or at commercial charging stations.  Most of these vehicles can travel about 100 miles on a charge making them ideal for city driving.  Look for electronic vehicles to be introduced first in Phoenix, Tucson, Knoxville, Nashville, San Diego, Los Angeles, Portland Ore, and Seattle.

America’s Most Polluted Beaches – Is Yours On The List?

Today the NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) released it’s annual report of the dirtiest beaches in the United States. In the 60′s we “Loved That Dirty Water”, but today we expect to swim at safe clean waterfronts.  The NRDC keeps careful records of all water testings and beach closures throughout the United States to monitor who is complying with regulations and what progress is being made to assure the public won’t be swimming in polluted water.  Their Testing The Waters report reveals some startling beach conditions.

You may be surprised to learn that the Great Lakes have the dirtiest beach water conditions in the country.  Apparently antiquated sewage treatment systems and urban storm-drain run off pumps pollutants into the Great Lakes on a regular basis.  There have been 18,000 closing and advisory days for 5 consecutive years!  Some coastal states aren’t faring much better.  Florida, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina, New York, Rhode Island and South Carolina have their own major trouble spots.  While the shores of Southwestern Florida are considered the least polluted in the country.  Read more

New Sale Lets You Indulge Like A Celebrity At An Understudy’s Price

The exclusive One & Only Resorts have been favorite hideouts for celebrities for years.  A-listers such as Jennifer Aniston, Scarlett Johanssen, Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher have sought the seductive indulgence of these resorts, and now perhaps it’s your turn!

We’ve just received notice that the OneOnly Ocean Club in the Bahamas and One &Only Palmilla in Los Cabos Mexico, are offering a super Summer Journey’s Sale running right though to the end of October!  Here’s their tantalizing offer:

• Stay three nights and receive a 4th night absolutely free (that’s a savings of  at least $600)
• Guests receive daily continental breakfast
• $200 in resort credits
• Two $50 spa certificates
• Two rounds of golf for the price of one
• Courtesy airport transfers
• and Welcome amenities

While this discounted offer is wonderful, it’s the exceptional settings of the One&Only Resorts that are the true gift.  The One & Only Ocean Club in the Bahamas occupies the former Huntington Hartford Estate on Paradise Island where dramatic terraced gardens evoke visions of a seaside Versailles. Fountains and statuary invite you to explore and the 12th century Augustain cloisters present perhaps the most dramatic setting in the Caribbean.

Perched at the southernmost tip of  Baja California, the One&Only Palmilla Resort hearkens back to the days when Hemingway and Harlow sought tranquility along the Los Cabos corridor.  The dramatic artistry of Mexico is evident at every turn, as is the majesty of the sea.  No matter what diversion you seek on vacation; golf, tennis, spa, sunbathing, fine dining, you find it all in spades at One&Only Resorts.  Don’t miss this chance to experience these incomparable resorts while they are being offered a terrific promotional price.  They will be vacations you will cherish for years to come.

Dunn’s River Falls Jamaica – The Most Fun You Can Have On Two Feet

As I stood staring upward toward the mountainside of powerful tumbling waters (mouth dry, heart thumping, knees quivering), Winston our guide at Dunn’s River Falls sidled up to me and said, “You – you’re coming with me!” Oh no, does this mean I can’t chicken out?!  My fate is sealed – trust in Winston, tamp down your fears and climb for all you’re worth, Susan.   Such was the beginning of one of the most exhilarating adventures of my traveling life at Dunn’s River Falls in Ocho Rios Jamaica.   Dunn’s River Falls is a challenging 600 foot climb up a hillside of cascading boulders through a swift moving waterfall that races from clifftop to sea.

Our enthusiastic group of two dozen Travel Bloggers joined hands and slipped and dipped  our way upward.  Read more

Fly Business Class To Paris This Summer For 1/2 Price!

Our buddies at Open Skies Airways are offering a RED HOT Summer Sale for flights to Paris from New York or Washington DC starting at just $650 one way in business class – sale ends 7/24, so jump right on it.  This means you can fly business class to one of the most exciting cities in the world for less than half the price of legacy airlines like British Air, Delta and American!  (ps – Open Skies an all business class airline that is a subsidiary of British Air.)

We did a quick comparative pricing for flights to Paris from New York in August.  Open Skies came in at $1886 rt including all taxes and fees, while BA, DL & AA priced flights between $4,500 and $6000 for business class.  In fact pricing for coach on the ‘big boys’ was in the $1,200 range – so for just a few hundred dollars more, you enjoy a luxury business class airline.  Open Skies is less than 1/3 of the price of American and half the price of British Airways in business class – astounding!

Here’s our trip report of a recent journey on Open Skies from Washington DC to Paris in June.  We think you’ll love flying Open Skies!  If you can’t squeak out a vacation this summer, you’ll might be interested in their Early Fall Sale with prices staring at $700 each way.  The Fall sale must be booked by July 26th.  I can’t think of a better reason to jet off to Paris for a few days!

You Are So Annoying – Get Out Of Here and Find A Life!

Here’s a fabulous new travel contest that turns the usual “why I deserve to go” scenario on it’s head.  The folks at OnTheGoTours.com have launched an ‘unpopularity contest’ where entrants tell the world why they deserve to be kicked out and sent packing across four continents, 18 countries, on an all-expenses paid 6 month holiday.

Do you know someone who has no job, no direction, no umph, is truly annoying with no redeeming qualities?  (May sound like your recent college grad who’s returned home….) Here’s a chance to nominate them for eviction and send them packing for a full 6 months with the hope they return a better person.  To be chosen your entry will have to be witty and employ a variety of media tools  (video, song, sound effects, prose) – anything you can think of to garner the votes of friends, family and voters to just “Get Rid Of Me“!  The prize will include two tickets, so maybe you can find a friend who is just as annoying as you and tag team the competition.

Each candidate will need lots of votes, so be sure to enlist all your friends, relatives and even strangers in the voting.  One of the top contestants even performs annoying songs in public parks in order to gather voters to get rid of them. So you’ll have to be crafty  and imaginative in your approach.  Get all the details of the fabulous trip and the contest rules at GetRidOfMe.com.  Entries must be submitted by September 30th and the winner will be picked in October.  Be truly obnoxious and good luck!

Hotel du Louvre – An Iconic & Affordable Paris Opera Hotel

When you dream of a trip to Paris, does your hotel have a iconic Haussmann facade, a bustling lobby with sweeping views down broad boulevards, comfortable rooms with plush linens and cream colored marbled baths?  If this sounds like your Parisian fantasy, look no further than the Hotel du Louvre to fulfill your heart’s desire. Even the name conjures a refined elegance; just imagine past generations ‘on the grand tour’ sweeping into the Napoleonic lobby, billowing silk skirts rustling – “shall we have an aperitif at Cafe Marlow across the street at the Louvre Palace, or stroll through the Tuileries Gardens?”  Ahhh, Paris I’ve missed you!

Linda and I had a brief but wonderful stay at the Hotel du Louvre at the end of our journey and it left us wistful to return again soon.  Read more

Famous Sinners and Saints Come Alive In Paris

There are tours.. and then there are experiences that introduce you to the soul of a city so that it lives with you always. We experienced such a tour experience with Paris Walks during a walking tour of the Marais.

Personally, I usually hate tours; I always feel like cattle be herded along, never quite hearing everything. Therefore, when Susan said we were taking a Paris Walks tour, I humored her and consented. After all, aren’t we the experts? Well, grab your camera and head out to meet Peter Caine, the co-founder of Paris Walks for a memorable 2 hour exploration. Unlike most tours that require advance reservations, anyone is welcome to join a Paris Walks tour by arriving at the designated Metro stop at the predetermined time.  We scanned the online calendar of tours and chose to learn more about the “Sinners and Saints” of the Marais, and what a fabulous time we had. Read more

Paris On Our Mind – Tried and True Paris Tips

Here are some Paris travel tips that will make  your journey safe, comfortable and fabulous. I’m always spouting, “When you see a super great deal – make yourself drop everything and go!”  That’s exactly what happened to us last month when Linda and I had the opportunity to fly off to Paris at a fabulous promotional rate.  We had a little over 2 weeks to pull our trip together, so we focused in right away.   Here’s what we did:

#1  A Quick Brush Up On Our High School French
Linda found a terrific language learning program – EarWormsLearning.com.  Despite the crawly name, the concept is amazing.  They believe that you learn better, faster and with more recall when you learn with music.  So their language lessons come with music playing in the background.  We loved it and listened on our iPods all the way to Paris.

And for extra reassurance, we picked up a quick translation guide – 30 Words ($9.95).  These are terrific passport sized accordion folded translations of tourist phrases that are waterproof and tear-proof – perfect for toting around. Read more

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