By: Robb Stark

New York - the city that never sleeps: the Big Apple. The city with many names is a popular travel destination for many people from all around the world. With its over eight million people spread over a relatively small area – New York City is the most densely populated metropolitan area of the United States - there are many things to see and do here. In this article I will try to cover the parts of Manhattan that I visited when I was here the last time.

New York City is located on the south eastern part of the state of New York and stretches out in a peninsula into the East River. It consists of five boroughs which are Manhattan, Queens, The Bronx, Brooklyn and Staten Island. There are three major airports around the city; JFK, LaGuardia and Newark airport. I would recommend people who travel here to flag down a cab from all airports into town except for Newark which is located about forty five minutes away. For those more economically inclined there are of course trains and subways from JFK and LaGuardia as well.

On the southern tip of Manhattan the financial district is located and close by are the remnants of the Twin Towers. The city has arranged a form of memorial here, with pictures from nine eleven showing firemen, police officers and civilians in the moment of the attacks. In other words: a place for thought and prayer. Travel south and you will reach the financial district with some of the city’s most famous landmarks like Wall Street, the New York Stock Exchange among others. This place is great in the evening with the architectural buildings beautifully lit up.

Follow the central street of Broadway north and after fifteen minutes or so you will end up outside City Hall. Here the city government along with the governor reside and is definitely worth a look. Most who travel here do not know that New York actually was the capital between seventeen eighty nine and seventeen ninety.

Continue north about ten minutes until you come to the intersection with Canal Street. You are now in street vendor Mecca. I can not recommend buying anything here, but it is fun to just browse around. If you choose travel east here you will end up in Chinatown, a place I will cover in future articles.

On your travel northwards, follow Canal Street west and the north again on Sixth Avenue and you will stumble upon my favourite area of New York City, namely Greenwich Village. Here the lower buildings, cosy restaurants and bars and diversity of stores and hotels make for a grand experience. Take Bleecker Street east and treat yourself to some food. May I recommend Italian and some whine as usual?

Bleecker ends up on Broadway once more so follow it there and make north once again until you arrive in Union Square. This place is noted for its impressive statue of George Washington. If you are lucky you will catch some street performers here playing music or doing rollerblades and the like. A nice travel pit stop for café latte.

This was the first part of the New York article series for people who want to travel here. In the next article I will continue northwards and give you some more tips on bars and shopping.

Article Source: http://articles-galore.com

Robb, blogging about various vacations, is normally writing about travel tips from Europe, using travel affiliate programs as part of the research.

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By: M. Matchev

Paradise on earth is what vacationers have called Hawaii. A congregation of islands in the Pacific, 3200 miles from San Francisco, Hawaii is a land of spectacular beaches and a haven for water sports. There are seven islands that can be visited - Maui, Oahu, Kauai, Molokai, Lanai, Niihau and Hawaii or “The Big Island”.

The Hawaii islands are said to have formed as a result of a Pacific tectonic plate moving over a volcanic hotspot situated on the ocean floor. Kauai is said to be formed first, and is considered the oldest. The difference is evident in the topography with Kauai being weather-worn with foliage-covered cliffs in stark difference to the harsh, bare mountains of the Big Island.

Hawaii, the big island is considered the youngest and is still being built. The Big Island presently sits over the volcanic hotspot and feeding the Kilauea Volcano with new land is being formed every day.

Hawaiian Facts

State Nickname = The Aloha State
State Flag = part British, part American in design
State Language = English
Time Zone = Hawaiian standard - 3 hours ahead of California Daylight Saving Time.
State Flower = Hibiscus
State Fish = Humuhumunukunukuapua’a
State Bird = Nene
State Motto = “Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono” (”The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness”)

Hawaii Weather

Hawaii has only two seasons a year - summer and winter. May to October is known to be summer and November to April comprises the Hawaiian winter. Hurricanes are known to sweep the islands in summer. Winter comprises the whale season when the Humpback whales are enroute migrating from Alaska to Hawaiian.

Normal temperature all year round is around 80d F. Winter evenings tend to be a bit cooler at 60d F. The beauty of Hawaiian weather is that it never gets to hot or too cold apart form certain areas like the Volcano Village or Haleakala. Snow is evident in winters in certain areas like Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea on the Big Island.

Most tourist areas in Hawaii are on the leeward and south sides of the islands. Although winter rains are known, tourist areas never get any rain. The biggest wet vacation area is the Princeville on Kauai. Rainy nights are quite frequent here and days also see a little rain. Each of the Hawaiian island have something to offer:

Oahu (Gathering place): Famed for Honolulu, Pearl Harbor, Waikiki beach, North Shore, and Polynesian Cultural Center. High on population (about 1 million) with good development and cultural maturity, Oahu offers sights, attractions, and cultural shows. Oahu was the first island developed to be a tourism island in Hawaii. Oahu has about 5 million visitors and offers a wide choice of attractions like water sports, nature, exhibits and restaurants.

Kauai (Garden Isle): Kauai boasts of Lihue, Waimea canyon, Na Pali coast and the Hanalei Bay. Kauai is very beautiful with green valleys and rugged, unspoiled Na Pali coastline. About 70,000 people live on Kauai and about 1 million visit each year. Kauai’s beaches and water-sports are supported with good conveniences and friendliness.

Maui (Valley Isle): Maui attracts tourists because of its Kahalui, Lahaina, Haleakala (a volcanic crater), the road to Hana and Hana itself. Maui is well known for whale watching and beaches. Inhabited by about 100,000 people and visitors topping 2 million, Maui is second only to Oahu in tourist attraction. It is very popular with college students - partying is not ruled out - other attractions are its great beaches and spectacular views. Beauty and conveniences of the cities blend beautifully at Maui.

Hawaii (Big Island): Famed for Kona, Hilo, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Kilauea Volcano (active), Mauna Kea (winter snow) and South Point, the island of Hawaii is also known for its black sand beaches. With over 140,000 inhabitants and over a million visitors annually, Hawaii has 11 different climates and three (black, green and white) different colored sandy beaches.

Molokai (Friendly Isle): With Halawa beach park, Kauanakakai and Molokai ranch, Molokai is best known for Kalaupapa and Father Damien’s contribution to it. With about 7000 inhabitants and 80,000 annual visitors, Molokai is small, quiet and peaceful island. With empty, long and sandy beaches, Molokai is a good choice to get away from the world.

Lanai (Private Isle): Shipwreck beach, Manele Bay and Garden of the Gods comprise Lanai’s tourist attractions. With 3000 inhabitants and 100,000 visitors Lanai has only two Luxury Hotels to stay in. One of them is on the ocean-front and the other on a mountain top. Bill Gates of Microsoft had rented the whole island for his wedding in 1994.

Niihau (Forbidden Isle): Privately owned with a population of 300. Entry is by invitation only.

Hawaii is always alive with the spirit of Aloha and deeply engrossed in the Polynesian culture. Recommended in “an island a week” for a full and complete relaxing holiday.

Article Source: http://www.articledestination.com

Hawaii Vacation Apartments - Hawaii Holiday Homes and Vacation Rentals is a leader in luxury vacation rentals on Hawaii, Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Big Island, Molokai or Lanai, with an extensive portfolio of luxury villas and homes. For Free hawaii vacation rental advertising - visit hawaii-beach-vacationrentals.com

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By: lar

For domestic flights, ensure that you check in 2 hours before your flight time. For international flights you should check in 3 hours early. For either type of flights, make sure that you have all your documentation readily available. You will need your ticket, proper identification, and for international flights, your passport and, if required, your visa.

Don’t check in at the last minute. Even if you make the flight, your bag may not. If you miss the airline’s check-in deadline, the carrier might not assume liability for your bag if it is delayed or lost. If you have a choice, select flights that minimize the potential for baggage disruption. The likelihood of a bag going astray increases from #1 to #4 below (i.e., #1 is safest): 1) nonstop flight 2) direct or ‘through’ flight (one or more stops, but no change of aircraft) 3) online connection (change of aircraft but not airlines) 4) interline connection (change of aircraft and airlines)

Check with the airline on luggage weight restrictions. Different airlines and different classes of travel have different rules. Be prepared to pay for excess weight. When you check in, remove straps and hooks from garment bags that you are sending as checked baggage. These can get caught in baggage processing machinery, causing damage to the bag. The airline will put baggage destination tags on your luggage and give you the stubs to use as claim checks.

Make sure you get a stub for every bag. Don’t throw them away until after you get your bags back and you check the contents. Not only will you need them if a claim is necessary, but you may need to show them to security upon leaving the baggage-claim area. Each tag has a three-letter code and flight number that show the baggage sorters on which plane and to which airport your luggage is supposed to go. Double-check the tag before your bags go down the conveyor belt. (The airline will be glad to tell you the code for your destination when you make reservations or buy your tickets.)

Your bags may only be checked to one of your intermediate stops rather than your destination city if you must clear Customs short of your final destination, or if you are taking a connection involving two airlines that don’t have an interline agreement. Be sure all of the tags from previous trips are removed from your bag, since they may confuse busy baggage handlers.

When you get off of the plane, check and see what conveyor belt your luggage will be circling on. Ensure you pay attention and get your own bags. Many bags look alike. You may want to put some sort of identifying ribbon, tape, or band on your bags to make it easy to spot upon arrival.

If you have to go through immigration/customs, ensure that you do not open your suitcases until directed. The immigration officer usually asks a few preliminary questions and determines if you get the “green line” or if you need further checking. Cooperate with the security officer and it should only take a few minutes unless you have something illegal. Be honest on the customs declaration form. Telling lies can get you in some very big trouble.

Once you locate you bags and clear customs, it is time to start enjoying your vacation.

Larry Westfall is a frequent traveler to Bangkok - Pattaya - and Phuket and is also the owner of Thailand Accommodations

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By: Lee Addison

The best frequent flyer program is a very good idea for someone who uses airline services on regular basis. Are you traveling by plane for business or personal purposes regularly? If so, then you are a perfect candidate for the best frequent flyer program. But wait a second: choosing just the right one might be a tricky task - and this is why you need all the tips you can get!

If you want to benefit from the best frequent flyer program, then you must choose the right frequent flyer miles credit card. In order to do so, you need to get information about the extra bonus miles that are offered by different companies. Obviously, you should stick with the one that provides the most appealing offer.

If you need some estimation in order to clarify things, then you should know that the best frequent flyer program should offer at least one point for each mile. In other cases, you can get a reward point for each dollar spent - which is also good.

Here is a problem that might occur when wanting to select the best frequent flyer program. Many people use numerous airlines during a period of 5 years, let’s say. The question is: can these people still get an US air frequent flyer program? The answer is “yes”. How so? Well, in case you are one of these individuals, then what you need is a frequent flyer miles card that is provided by an association of multiple airline companies. When selecting the best frequent flyer program, one must also consider the Annual Percentage Rate. What does this represent? APR can be very low at the beginning of the frequent flyer miles program, but higher later. The ideal solution is a program that has a substantial rate to begin with.

If you think that the more you travel, the better, since you will be accumulating lots of points, then you should know that things are not as positive as they seem. The reality is that you can see certain limits attached to these frequent flyer programs. Basically, you can obtain a maximum number of points and if you exceed the limit, you can not possibly get more rewards. This aspect matters, since these limits differ from one airline company to another.

Many people do not know that there are certain limits when talking about the reward bonuses. How so? These airline flyer programs have some restrictions, after all. No one said that you can travel unlimitedly and gain points over and over again. If you want to make sure that you get the best frequent flyer program, you must check what different companies provide.

You learned quite a lot about how to have the best frequent flyer program. Now all you have to do is to start browsing online, searching and researching for the best frequent flyer program. Remember the above tips while you search and fully benefit from the selected program!

This pretty much sums it up - now you know all you need to know about obtaining the best frequent flyer program, so start acting ahead! It is not as hard, actually, as long as you take all the tips and advices with you. Now you are ready to go “haunting” the best frequent flyer program”. Choose the best of the best and enjoy!

The best frequent flyer program can be recognized if you know what benefits should be considered. Website Frequent-Flyer-Assist.com by Lee Addison provides you up to date advice and insiders’ tips.

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