The Travel Trainer

No Time And No Where To Train? The Travel Trainer Gives You 10 Minute Workouts, Meals On The Go, And Members Status, All For $7. It's An Almost Guaranteed Sale At This Price.

Check it out!

Travel Blog Success - Ecourse & Community

A Membership Site Teaching Travelers How To Build, Optimize, And Monetize Travel Blogs. 2 Membership Levels (basic/premium), Include 27 Lessons, 12 Audio Interviews, Forum, Monthly Coaching Calls And More. Created By A Popular Travel Blogger.

Check it out!

Muay Thai Travel Guide

Here Is A Step By Step Guide Showing You How To Maximize Your Time, Save Money And Travel To The Best Training Camp Of Your Life. Guaranteed.

Check it out!

Travel Website Design

We Build High Quality Travel Websites. Your Web Assets Are Worth At Least 10x Their Monthly Income. The Travel Industry Is The Biggest Service Based Industry On The Planet! We Have Found The Exact Formula That Works When Building Travel Websites.

Check it out!

RV Or Motorhome Comprehensive Travel Diary Software

Travel Diary Specifically For The Rver, Motorhomer, Caravanner, Travel Trailer Or Camper. Includes A Trip Diary, Daily Journal, Photo Album, Campsite Journal, Fuel Consumption Records, And Much More. Can Be Used In Metric, Imperial, Or A Mixture Of Both.

Check it out!

PowerGen Dual Port USB 2.1A 10W AC Travel Wall Charger - Black

The PowerGen Dual Port USB AC / Travel charger charges TWO of electronic devices simultaneously, eg. iPad, iPhone, iPod, MP3 Players, Digital Cameras, PDAs, Mobile Phones and USB for power. It is compact with high quality finish and comes with full 1 year limited warranty.

Compatible Models:
MP3 players, ipods, iPhone 5, iphone 4s, iphone 4s, iphone 3G, Apple iPad, Mobile phones, PDA, GPS, MP4, Portable wifi, Amazon Kindle fire / DX and other kindles.
USB Port 1 (Designed for Apple products) Compatibility
iPad @ 2 Ampere Max.
iPhone / iPod Touch @ 1 Ampere Max.
Others phones / GPS / Tablet etc. @ 0.5 to 1 Ampere Max. (May not support charging of some devices)
USB Port 2 (port close to LED, designed for non apple products) Compatibility
iPad @ NOT Compatible
iPhone / iPod Touch @ 0.5 Ampere Max.
Others phones / GPS / Tablet etc. @ 1 to 2 Ampere Max.
NOTE 1: Currently known support tablets: Amazon Kindle Fire & all other Kindles, Samsung Galaxy Tab Series, Nobal Nook Color, Nook Tablets, HTC Flyer.
NOTE 2: NOT compatible with HP TouchPad, Asus transformer or Motorola Xoom.
NOTE 3: May NOT support some Blackberry phones.

Package Includes:
1 pc PowerGen Dual Port USB AC / Travel charger
User Guide
1 year limited waranty included

Price: $19.99

Click here to buy from Amazon

Travel Guide To Florence - Placestovisitinflorenceitaly.com

Earn 60% Commission On This Digital Travel Guide To Florence, Italy. Includes E-guide With Info On Sightseeing, Where To Stay And Where To Eat A Travel Photo Book Of Florence And Tuscany.

Check it out!

Real Astral Travel In 7 Days

50% Commission. Achieve Real Astral Travel In 7 Days. Covers All Aspects Including Preparation, Meditation, Vibration, Security And Real Astral Travel.

Check it out!

Giving it up to travel the world

Is throwing it all in to chase a dream worth it? Probably.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Anecdotally it seems people are increasingly taking Mark Twain’s advice, giving everything up to travel the world. They’re quitting their job or abandoning their business, and packing their bags instead. Seeking what, exactly, they’re not sure. Happiness maybe. Freedom probably. But is the sacrifice worth it?

Some say it’s not. The blogosphere is packed with travellers exposing the ‘myths’ associated with spending a year or more abroad. 

They write about the difficulties of finding temporary work overseas and of struggling to be rehired upon their return back home. They say too much of a good thing isn’t always a good thing, and that boredom soon takes hold. And others confess how annoying it is to live out of a backpack, and how they miss their routine, their possessions, their friends.

Of course, the positive tales outnumber the negative ones. An Aussie guy who extols the benefits of pursuing your goals is Sebastian Terry.

When he was 27, the death of a mate made him realise the truth inherent in the mantra that ‘life is short’. So, he created a list of 100 things he wanted to do before he died and has been travelling the world ever since, ticking them off.

So far, among dozens of accomplishments, he has married a stranger in Las Vegas, visited an inmate on death row, and broken the world record for the most eggs crushed within 30 seconds using only his big toes.

"I'm certainly not here to say that you need to quit your job," he tells me, "but don't ever let fear hold you back from chasing a dream. Whether it's travelling to the other side of the planet, jumping out of a plane with a parachute loosely strapped to your back, or indeed starting your own business, I'm yet to meet someone who's regretted following their heart."

That's what Jennifer Baggett, Holly Corbett and Amanda Pressner did when they were in their late 20s. They were nearing the stage when getting promoted, married, pregnant, and mortgaged were the expected next phases of life. And they weren't too happy about it.

On a whim they left their boyfriends, quit their jobs, and walked away from their New York apartments, opting instead for a life of travel that took them to a dozen countries throughout Africa, the Middle East, India, south-east Asia and Australia. Their adventures over the space of a year are chronicled in The Lost Girls, their book and soon-to-be television series.

I asked Amanda Presser for any advice she has for others thinking of doing the same thing. "Never let your fears that the worst will happen — that you'll be committing career suicide, that bosses and co-workers will judge you or that your clients abandon you or leave you — rule your decision to stay home, rather than pursuing your dream of long-term travel," she says.

"No one we know (and we've literally spoken with hundreds of adventurers who've quit jobs in the legal, business, media and artistic professions) has ever been unable to return to the career they left behind ... and in many cases, they've returned home with the skills and confidence they need to get an even better job in the same or a new industry."

Robert Schrader is another intrepid adventurer. He’s the creator of Leave Your Daily Hell, a website that, as the name suggests, helps those desperately wanting to flee the nine-to-five grind for the wonders of globetrotting. 

A few years ago, he was living in Texas – broke, unemployed, and with a growing credit card debt. Despite those circumstances, he left the United States and arrived in China to teach English. Since then, he's continued travelling the world, visiting 50 countries across six continents.

He cautions people to be wary of prematurely leaving their job or business. “Unless you've just gotten an inheritance or plan to permanently roam the globe in poverty, you're eventually going to need to get back into something that sustains you,” he tells me.

That is, unless you develop a “location-independent income” - usually done by setting up a website from which you can sell e-books, advertising, training, or other freelance services - that enables you to earn money irrespective of where you’re based. 

Easier said than done, sure, but at least it’d make for a bold New Year’s resolution.

Have you quit your job or business to go travelling? Was it worth it? Leave a comment.

- Sydney Morning Herald

What sort of traveller are you?

In search of a new Christmas ritual

Skinny lattes and almond croissants

All good things come to an end

Lessons and farewells

View the original article here

What to add to your travel wishlist

Dubai's diverse appeal can make it an ideal stop-over option on your way to or from Europe.

Online travel specialist Expedia give their picks for the hottest travel destinations to put on your wishlist for 2013.

The classic Kiwi vacation spots will continue to grow, however Kiwis will start looking at exploring further afield, at places like Byron Bay, the New South Wales South Coast, Victoria's Great Ocean Road, Tropical North Queensland, Mt Tamborine and Mt Barney.

Kiwi travellers have already started staying outside the usual CBD hotspots, in places like Sydney's Manly and Surry Hills, Queensland's Broadbeach and Burleigh, and Melbourne's St Kilda. They're beginning to know Oz as well as the Aussies!

The US will continue to grow as a holiday destination for Kiwis. Hawaii especially is experiencing huge demand. It is a really diverse destination that offers travellers the opportunity to drop and flop, then shop their hearts out at the huge malls. Discount shopping can have you coming home with a new wardrobe for you and the family at a fraction of the cost.

Bali is the wild card! Air New Zealand started flying to Bali earlier this year and while the initial growth has been modest we expect it to grow in 2013. This typically Aussie destination has a lot to offer a traveller looking for beaches, culture and great food.

There are some great hotels opening that appeal very much to the cosmopolitan traveller: W, Double Six and Anantara to name a few. If you are after culture rather than cocktails, head up to Ubud and experience stunning mountain vistas and more lo-fi accommodation.

Thailand is a Kiwi fave which is set to grow again in 2013.

Sri Lanka is one destination that will put you ahead of the game. It's where we Expedians are heading in 2013 to see what all the fuss is about. Everyone is talking about this destination and its rich history, wild animals, tea trails, stunning beaches and food that has gourmet travellers raving.

The Middle East holds much appeal for the Kiwi traveller. Dubai's diverse culture and more shopping than you can handle make it a great stop-over option on your way to or from Europe.

Expedia's top destinations in 2012:

1 Fiji
2 Sydney
3 New York
4 Melbourne
5 Oahu
6 San Francisco
7 Cook Islands
8 Las Vegas
9 Gold Coast
10 French Polynesia 

expedia.co.nz

- © Fairfax NZ News

What sort of traveller are you?

In search of a new Christmas ritual

Skinny lattes and almond croissants

All good things come to an end

Lessons and farewells

View the original article here

Giving it up to travel the world

Is throwing it all in to chase a dream worth it? Probably.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

Anecdotally it seems people are increasingly taking Mark Twain’s advice, giving everything up to travel the world. They’re quitting their job or abandoning their business, and packing their bags instead. Seeking what, exactly, they’re not sure. Happiness maybe. Freedom probably. But is the sacrifice worth it?

Some say it’s not. The blogosphere is packed with travellers exposing the ‘myths’ associated with spending a year or more abroad. 

They write about the difficulties of finding temporary work overseas and of struggling to be rehired upon their return back home. They say too much of a good thing isn’t always a good thing, and that boredom soon takes hold. And others confess how annoying it is to live out of a backpack, and how they miss their routine, their possessions, their friends.

Of course, the positive tales outnumber the negative ones. An Aussie guy who extols the benefits of pursuing your goals is Sebastian Terry.

When he was 27, the death of a mate made him realise the truth inherent in the mantra that ‘life is short’. So, he created a list of 100 things he wanted to do before he died and has been travelling the world ever since, ticking them off.

So far, among dozens of accomplishments, he has married a stranger in Las Vegas, visited an inmate on death row, and broken the world record for the most eggs crushed within 30 seconds using only his big toes.

"I'm certainly not here to say that you need to quit your job," he tells me, "but don't ever let fear hold you back from chasing a dream. Whether it's travelling to the other side of the planet, jumping out of a plane with a parachute loosely strapped to your back, or indeed starting your own business, I'm yet to meet someone who's regretted following their heart."

That's what Jennifer Baggett, Holly Corbett and Amanda Pressner did when they were in their late 20s. They were nearing the stage when getting promoted, married, pregnant, and mortgaged were the expected next phases of life. And they weren't too happy about it.

On a whim they left their boyfriends, quit their jobs, and walked away from their New York apartments, opting instead for a life of travel that took them to a dozen countries throughout Africa, the Middle East, India, south-east Asia and Australia. Their adventures over the space of a year are chronicled in The Lost Girls, their book and soon-to-be television series.

I asked Amanda Presser for any advice she has for others thinking of doing the same thing. "Never let your fears that the worst will happen — that you'll be committing career suicide, that bosses and co-workers will judge you or that your clients abandon you or leave you — rule your decision to stay home, rather than pursuing your dream of long-term travel," she says.

"No one we know (and we've literally spoken with hundreds of adventurers who've quit jobs in the legal, business, media and artistic professions) has ever been unable to return to the career they left behind ... and in many cases, they've returned home with the skills and confidence they need to get an even better job in the same or a new industry."

Robert Schrader is another intrepid adventurer. He’s the creator of Leave Your Daily Hell, a website that, as the name suggests, helps those desperately wanting to flee the nine-to-five grind for the wonders of globetrotting. 

A few years ago, he was living in Texas – broke, unemployed, and with a growing credit card debt. Despite those circumstances, he left the United States and arrived in China to teach English. Since then, he's continued travelling the world, visiting 50 countries across six continents.

He cautions people to be wary of prematurely leaving their job or business. “Unless you've just gotten an inheritance or plan to permanently roam the globe in poverty, you're eventually going to need to get back into something that sustains you,” he tells me.

That is, unless you develop a “location-independent income” - usually done by setting up a website from which you can sell e-books, advertising, training, or other freelance services - that enables you to earn money irrespective of where you’re based. 

Easier said than done, sure, but at least it’d make for a bold New Year’s resolution.

Have you quit your job or business to go travelling? Was it worth it? Leave a comment.

- Sydney Morning Herald

What sort of traveller are you?

In search of a new Christmas ritual

Skinny lattes and almond croissants

All good things come to an end

Lessons and farewells

View the original article here

Lonely Planet staffers’ travel resolutions for 2013

After the last beer has been sunk at Lonely Planet office Christmas parties around the globe, our minds inevitably turn to our travels in the coming year. Here are a few of our travel resolutions for 2013, from honeymoons in the jungle to hitting the open road.

I love trekking, and 2013 looks like my lucky year. My father-in-law has organised a group to tackle the 12-day, 167km hike around Mont Blanc known as the Tour du Mont Blanc. This is the Alps’ iconic walk, and a number of previous sojourns to the Alps have whet my appetite to take on this grand route around the Alps’ tallest peak. I’m a glutton for towering mountains, cutesy villages and the serene vistas of the Alps, and this walk – I’m told – will have it all.

Check out Glenn’s guidebook to the Victorian Alps here.

As a little girl I was never one to daydream about what my wedding dress might look like, or my dashing husband-to-be; I was more consumed by the thought of exotic, far-flung jungles and rambling temples. As an adult, not much has changed and now I’m getting hitched my attention has turned to honeymoons rather than cakes and flowers. My new year’s resolution is not to spend all our hard-earned savings on just one day, but rather on three weeks somewhere we’ve both always wanted to go: Nepal. Goodbye seating plans and hair trials, hello dizzy Himalayan mountain passes and yak bells tinkling through the thin air. It’ll soon be time to leave behind the heavy dress and strap on the hiking boots…

I have the same travel resolution every year: ‘go to a place you have never been before’. In 2012 I made good on this resolution by travelling to San Francisco for a wedding; escaping London for the Jubilee Weekend in Cardiff; spending a couple of weeks in Portugal taking in Lisbon, Coimbra, and Porto; and a mini-break to Budapest. I’m still looking forward to squeezing in Berlin this year for New Year’s Eve. For 2013 I’m dreaming about adventure on Iceland’s Ring Road, filling my belly in Lille, and a Caribbean beach break to Antigua.

For me, 2013 is all about road trips. Like many Londoners, I cruise around on public transport while my driving licence gathers dust but this year I will finally hit the road and drive somewhere adventurous. I see myself zooming past Scandinavian glaciers, snaking down the Amalfi Coast or cruising around the coast of Wales. There’ll be nothing but the open road and maybe a sat-nav chirruping for me to ‘turn around where possible’.

My travel resolution for 2013 is to finally go to Europe. A trip to the ‘old world’ is something of a rite of passage for young Australians, many of whom join boozy Contiki tours or slum around for months as working backpackers, but for a number of reasons I’ve never had the opportunity to go. I’m a little too old for the shenanigans of the 18-21 set, and I have commitments in Australia that prevent me from taking a long working holiday, but I am looking forward to spending some time strolling around Paris, eating pintxos and drinking txakoli in San Sebastián, and exploring the Laguna Veneta. I’ve already booked the flights, and to say I’m excited would be an understatement.

My resolution for 2013 is to explore South America. I’ve had the good fortune to spend time in all the other continents (minus Antarctica, but that’s also on the wanted list), but everything south of the Darien Gap represents a step into the unknown – and no, I’m not counting last year’s cripplingly jetlagged queue-fest in Bogotá airport.

If a stint in SA is the big prize, the small print is all about Europe. I want to take the lead set by my inspiring Aussie peers at Lonely Planet’s London HQ, who think nothing of a short hop to the continent every other weekend, and arrive back for work on a Monday with barely a matchstick-propped eyelid out of place. Respect.

New Zealand was the subject of one of the first books I laid out as a designer at Lonely Planet, and I had thought about visiting the country throughout three years I spent living in Germany. 2013 is the year I will finally make it there. I am booking the trip in the new year and plan to fly into Auckland for a few days, before heading down to Wellington, Christchurch, and driving across to the west coast of the South Island.

In summer 2013 I intend to take the long way home from the US to the UK by sneaking in a mini exploration of South America, a continent I’ve never been to.  I don’t want to miss Machu Picchu, but I’m also keen to see just how skinny Chile really is, and finish on a high in Buenos Aires.

So over to you: is 2013 the year you’ll scale a glacier, learn how to cook in Tuscany or finally visit Japan? Tell us your travel resolution in the comments!

View the original article here

Expect the unexpected: 5 tips to protect your travel plans when disaster strikes

Hurricane Sandy made a mess of my hometown in New York City. But I wasn’t there. I was researching in Ecuador, ones of the destinations featured on our Top 10 countries for 2013 list in Best in Travel 2013 when the storm hit. Like many travelers, I found myself stranded for several days, trying to find out when I could get back.

It’s been a few weeks and New York City and surrounding areas are picking up the pieces. Manhattan is already mostly clicking at pre-Sandy levels, but back at the time Sandy hit the East Coast there was a lot of uncertainty. I watched as other travellers spent hours on the phone or on their computers frantically trying to find the next available flight home only to later find that later flights had also been cancelled. With the holiday travel season kicking off, it’s understandable that many travellers are concerned about what happens when an act of nature disrupts their upcoming travel plans.

The unfortunate topic of ‘what to do when disaster strikes your vacation’ is something all too familiar. Being prepared, or better yet, knowledgeable of what to do if you ever find yourself in this situation is important. To help, we created a helpful checklist of what you should do to protect your travel plans, and what to do when disaster big or small hits.

I’m always asked if travel insurance is worth it. The short answer is yes. (The long answer is yesssssssss.) Especially for the winter holiday travel season, weather often dampens the best-laid plans, be it a hurricane, blizzard, or even just a small snow flurry. With a large-scale disaster, you shouldn’t have to explain to an airline why you might not feel comfortable travelling to a place even if the runways are clear, so skip all that and get travel insurance – it will prevent a lot of stress if it’s needed. If you’re new to travel insurance, we have answers to frequently asked questions about travel insurance that can help get you started.

When in doubt, ask questions and use all of the resources at your disposal. But before you ask, it’s important to know the key questions to help you decide the best course of action – for some guidance, see our article on the 5 questions to ask when disaster strikes your travel plans. Is it too soon? Does the host destination even want visitors? Can you change your itinerary? All of these and more can help you make the best choice when nature has thrown a wrench in your travel plans.

It’s hard to make a final call about whether or not to travel if you don’t have a true read of what’s going on on the ground. Make some calls to friends, local businesses, expats, the embassy, etc. Check online travel communities like the Thorn Tree travel forum that has an extremely engaged audience giving you real updates and how it affects travel as well. They have a true pulse on the current climate on the ground – better, often, than the local media can provide – and can help you decide if you should go.

Nothing helps a destination’s local economy like tourism. If you don’t do the research to understand the situation and cancel out of fear, you might be contributing unnecessarily to an economic slump and missing out on a fantastic travel experience at the same time. If it’s not safe to go when planned, change the booking for the future but don’t cancel entirely and cross it off your list. These places will rise again, and when they do, tourists can help keep them on their feet. For example, after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the absence of tourists from perfectly accessible and safe areas only added insult to injury. To encourage visitors to return to the region, we just released a brand-new chapter on northern Honshu (Tohoku) as a free PDF download that provides a critical update for travellers on the area that was most strongly affected by the earthquake and tsunami two years ago.  If you’re curious to find out more about the current state of Tohoku, Lonely Planet author Rebecca Milner’s recent article declares Tohoku ready and open for travel.

Beyond just doing your duty as a traveler, there are plenty of opportunities to help the destination even if they aren’t ready for tourists. You can donate to local on-the-ground organisations who are providing food, shelter and clean-up efforts and there are also ways you can donate time by volunteering. Make sure they are ready for volunteers and that you’re going about it properly. Often times funds and goods are what a place needs immediately following a disaster, with rebuilding to follow. Disorganised but well-meaning travellers hoping to help can easily get in the way, so it’s always best to offer your assistance through a reputable relief organisation. To get started see 10 things to know before you volunteer overseas and read Lonely Planet’s Volunteer:  A Traveller’s Guide to Making a Difference Around the World – the full book is available FREE for a limited time in the Apple iBookstore and as a free PDF download.

The most important thing to remember is that travel can be used as a force for good and you can truly help places that may be struggling to get back up from a disaster.

And if you’re wondering about Manhattan’s Christmas displays and all of the many things to do in New York at Christmas, the displays will be up and the skaters a-skatin’. I look forward to seeing you in my city soon, even if a snow storm delays your flight.

Safe travels!

Free download: Lonely Planet’s Volunteer:  A Traveller’s Guide to Making a Difference Around the World – available FREE for a limited time in the Apple iBookstore and as a free PDF download.

View the original article here