Making life a holiday with interesting vacation and adventure ideas.

Abu Dhabi's 'Desert Islands' is due to open for tourists this October. It consists of eight islands and an onshore gate just off the coast of Jebel Dhanna, a 250 kilometre drive from Abu Dhabi city.

Guests will be able to enjoy a number of adventure activities including 4x4 guided tours of the Arabian Wildlife Park, hiking trails, mountain biking and snorkelling; the waters and coral reefs around the resort are notably rich in marine life.

Read more.

Labels: 2008, Abu Dhabi, adventure, Desert Islands, vacations

October 24, 2007, is Take Back Your Time Day; although it is essentially a U.S./Canadian initiative to challenge the epidemic of overwork, over-scheduling and time famine that now threatens the health of their people, communities and environment, we believe that it is relevant to all societies influenced by American business culture.

Joe Robinson, one of the founders of the 'Take Back Your Time' organisation, says, "This is not about slacking, not about being lazy, vacations are as important to your health as checking your cholesterol or getting exercise. They're the antidote to runaway stress. Research shows that an annual vacation can cut the risk of death from heart disease in women by half and in men by about a third. Vacations can also cure burnout, the last stage of chronic stress, but it takes two weeks for the process of re-gathering crashed emotional resources to occur."

The motto of this blog is 'Making life a holiday with interesting vacation and adventure ideas'. The concept being to enjoy a lifestyle whereby, like the surfers, you live the dream. If surfing is not your scene but you love to paint, carry a sketchbook with you, and use it. If you love to run and you have to work for a living, run to work. But most of all, make sure that you get quality relaxation time. It is said that an hour a day can keep the doctor away.

Business also gets a big dividend from vacations. "Three week vacations have proven to be a boost to productivity and profits at enlightened American firms with that policy. Performance goes up when people come back from a vacation," said Robinson. "In the knowledge economy, the source of true productivity is a refreshed and energized mind."

Labels: 2007, health, Take Back Your Time, vacations

It appears that Recycle Now, the UK's recycling champions, are urging everyone to cut down on their use of travel brochures. They point out that nowadays it is easy to use sites such as the Activity Holidays Guide to source a holiday and it is easier than ever to book on line.

With 180 million travel brochures being distributed in the UK each year and most of them ending up in landfill, they urge holidaymakers to recycle those old brochures. Problem is that I suspect many of the brochures are not all that eco-friendly. As you might expect, we only really use the Internet in my household, but in the past we have fed old brochures to the worms (we have a garden wormery) but they didn't show a lot of interest in the hard, glossy, finish that makes most travel brochures so attractive.

Labels: holidays, Tourism, travel, vacations

Latest consumer research from Mintel looking at changing trends in the leisure marketplace, indicates that Britain is becoming a nation of cycling enthusiasts. During 2006, biking-mad Brits went on an exhausting 450,000 two wheeled holidays, with some operators experiencing as much as a third increase in bookings on 2005 figures.

"The growth of independent travel is creating a new breed of holidaymaker, who is resourceful, adventurous and hungry for a taste of authenticity away from the crowds. Cycling is a great way to explore the hidden secrets of a region, enjoy intimate contact with local culture and an opportunity for travellers to feel good about benefiting local economies," comments Richard Cope, Senior Travel Consultant at Mintel.

Mintel believes that the greatest future scope for the cycling holidays market lies in combining biking with mainstream holidays. Operators could re-brand more holidays as "cycling-plus" trips, offering cycling interspersed with other experiences such as R&R, spa, walking, boating and other hobbies. "Whilst Britons cycle less than many other Europeans, we take more frequent holidays and cycling breaks have enormous potential. These do not have to be the preserve of cycling clubs and the Tour de France-emulating hardcore. Cycling holidays will also appeal to families, sightseers, and those simply seeking relaxation and escape from the crowds," explains Richard Cope.

Mintel has provided key insight into leading global trends for over 35 years. More information is available on their web site

Browse cycling holidays in our listings from around the world.

Labels: 2007, cycling, holidays, Mintel, survey, vacations

It seems that California and New York remain the destination of choice for U.S. tourists seeking food and wine related travel themes.

Culinary activities participated in while traveling include cooking classes, dining out for a unique and memorable experience, visiting farmers markets, gourmet food shopping and attending food festivals. Wine activities included participating in winery tours, driving a wine trail, tasting locally made wines and attending wine festivals. Within the past three years, 17% of American leisure travelers (27 million travelers), engaged in culinary or wine-related activities while traveling; based on a new report from the Travel Industry Association (TIA), in partnership with Gourmet and the International Culinary Tourism Association.

The top 3 destinations for food-related travel were California (14%), Florida (10%) and New York (7%). While Florida barely makes a showing in the poll for wine-related travel, the top 2 destinations are again California out in front with 31% followed by New York with 10%. However, I bet Florida would fair better in a comparison of wine consumption!

Labels: California, culinary, Florida, food, New York, tours, travel, USA, vacations, wine

Biosphere Expeditions are planning another expedition to the mountains of Oman, where they will monitor the Arabian leopard and its prey.

Oman is the land of the Queen of Sheba and Sinbad the sailor, it is a land of varied landscape and remarkable wildlife; we have several tour operators offering vacations in Oman.

Labels: Arabian leopard, expeditiions, holidays, Oman, vacations

For the fourth year in a row Italy placed first in 2006, as the single most popular destination for package tours booked through members of the United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA),with Rome ranked as the top city. California and the National Parks were cited as the hottest destinations for those seeking domestic package vacations.
In another survey aimed specifically at those with a special interest in photography, conducted jointly by USTOA and Popular Photography & Imaging magazine (Pop Photo), most photo buffs wanted to go to Hawaii, followed closely by Alaska, and Australia. Members have recommended the best places to shoot at these destinations as:

Haleakala National Park on Hawaii?s Maui Island,
Denali National Park in Alaska,
and the Australian Outback or Tasmania.

Labels: 2006, Alaska, Australia, Hawaii, Italy, package, photography, survey, USTOA, vacations