There are some mouth-watering deals on offer but this holiday in Kuramathi Village, Maldives, particularly caught my eye. Seven nights, Room and Breakfast, depart 6 September 2009, London Gatwick Airport, from just £784. Kuramathi is described as a peaceful, relaxed and intimate resort island,well placed for 45 fabulous dive sites... and for pure, undisturbed escapism. A description confirmed in this video clip from Zwirn00.
These fabulous deals quickly change so make sure you get the full details from Kuoni by clicking the link at the top of this post. At my last look, Kuoni seemed to have about 90 holidays on their Web Excusive Offer, including another Maldive special, Kuredu Island Resort.
On the edge of the fascinating Dordogne region of France, where the Dordogne river makes its escape from deep gorges and flows through an enchanting valley bordered by wooded hills, there lies the medieval town of Argentat. Nearby is Chateau de Cautine, set in 34 acres of fields and woods, complete with its own stream and a 15-metre salt-water pool. But this is not just any Chateau, it is a Chateau with a reputation for adventure.
Chateau de Cautine offer a whole range of Activity Holidays and currently they are running some great discount deals. The Chateau is a good base for walking, enjoying the area's natural world or of course fishing in one of the best fishing regions in France.
Those looking for an adrenaline buzz are spoilt for choice with activities like horse riding, cycling, kayaking, canoeing, hiking, rock climbing, abseiling, hang gliding; time for a deep breath, archery, tree climbing, orienteering, hiking, mountain-bike riding, bungy-trampolining and orienteering. Oh and did I mention the proximity to the nearby Massif Central mountains, for skiing and snowboarding?
The region is well known for aero-sports and an old aerodrome has been restored as a center entirely devoted to sporting activities in the air. Qualified flight instructors are on-hand for activities such as hang gliding, paragliding, microlite flying and towed flights.
Jim Hilgendorf who leads small customised group tours to this fabulous corner of France has also posted a short video which does a good job of conveying the beauty and fascination of the enchanting Dordogne valley.
Residents of Canada and the 50 United States (plus the District of Columbia), have the chance to win a great adventure vacation to Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada.
The lucky sweepstakes winner, together with three guests will receive an all-inclusive vacation which includes: Round-trip airfare for four to Thunder Bay, Ontario, from anywhere in North America Sailboat and float plane tours of the city and area A Nikon digital camera package Meals at Thunder Bay’s finest restaurants Accommodations, including three nights at Sleeping Giant Provincial Park Camping and outdoors gear Car rental Visits to Thunder Bay cultural attractions, including Fort William Historical Park and Eagle Canyon.
There are also some great secondary prizes in the competition, known as "7 Days With the Giant". It runs until May 31, 2009 and the usual restrictions apply, entrants must be 21 but no purchase is necessary to enter the draw on the 'Tourism Thunder Bay' website, nor does a purchase increase the chances of winning.
Following the China tourism video that we put on the blog the other day, I came across this article by Ennapadam S. Krishnamoorthy entitled Himalayan wonders, describing a short break at Bhallard, in the Kumaon foothills.
Bhallard is a remote village at 7,000 feet, a two-hour car ride from Khatdogam, with a perfect view of the entire Himalayan range. Notable for fresh air, quiet walks through deodar forests and according to Ennapadam Krishnamoorthy, a companionable silence. In short, it offers the ultimate vacation for those in search of tranquility.
The best way to get there is by the Ranikhet Express, which runs between Old Delhi Railway Station and Khatgodam, followed by pre-arranged taxi. Read the article for details.
Had the press release been a few weeks earlier, many might have thought that a newly announced British Standard was an April Fool joke. The standard in question BS 8848:2007 Specification for the provision of visits, fieldwork, expeditions and adventurous activities outside the United Kingdom, is a 45 page document developed for adventurous activities abroad with the laudable aim of reducing the risk of injury or illness. It was conceived because of (British) consumer concerns about the risks associated with adventure holidays, fieldwork, expeditions and other visits, and the variable levels of competence, training and fitness of participants.
However, the standard's strategy is to specify requirements that should be met by an organiser of adventurous trips, in order to conform to good practice. Of course, the definition of 'good practice' was decided by the committee that produced the standard, but that aside, the key words are: 'specify requirements' and 'good practice'; what is being offered is a checklist of items that can be used by British nationals, or anyone else, planning adventurous travel outside the UK, and is particularly aimed at expedition organisers; universities, further education colleges and other organisers of field work and field research; gap year travel companies; providers of adventure holidays or vacations; and voluntary groups organising adventurous travel. Helping them to identify and manage risks when planning their ventures and therefore reducing the likelihood of serious harm or injury to participants.
I guess that the value of the standard will depend on the definition of 'good practice' and the way in which it is applied. The provision of such activities within Britain is governed by UK Health and Safety guidelines, and various consumer protection laws, but presumably the same 'good practice' is relevant, whatever and wherever the adventure. Participants can use the new standard, BS 8848:2007, to gauge levels of risk applicable to them and get answers to the 'what if' questions. Hopefully, the advice is universal.
By the way, the reference number for the new standard '8848' corresponds to the height of Mt. Everest in metres, the International Standards Organization unit of distance.
If your taking a vacation or short break in the USA, make the most of your vacation with the very popular Go Card visitor passes which offer great savings. A single pass gets you unlimited general admission to top attractions for one low price and they are available at the following destinations:
Powder Passport is a special pass for snow junkies and allows you to Ski 18 Mountains with 1 Pass for 1 Low Price! Ski in Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine and New York. Use any day of the 2006-2007 Season!!
Understandably, these are proving popular with the locals.
Susan Reimer in the Baltimore Sun writes that "This is the time of year when people vow to do less of something in the new year: less eating, less smoking, less television watching, less gossiping." and declares that this year she is going to try a new approach; she resolves to do more of something!
In her case, it is to develop her interest in gardening and she has produced an interesting list of horticultural resolutions that will surely be of interest to other gardeners. However, it struck me that the concept can be applied to any special interest or hobby, be it resolving to do more walking, spend more time painting, or more time in the waves getting wet. Everyone has an activity that they wish they had done more of the year before; simply resolve to give it more time this year. Psychologist's say that we must do something every day for almost a month before it becomes a habit and that after six month's it becomes part of our life, so make life a vacation and as the surfer's say, "live the dream."
