How to Have an Unforgettable Summer

July 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Summer lasts just three months. In those three months, you have limited time to actually get outdoors, spread your wings and create memories that are going to last the rest of the year. For those who spend the rest of the year planning or dreaming about summer, make sure every day offers a new opportunity.  So go ahead and book your summer vacation with the money you have from your payday advance and enjoy the memories that will last you a lifetime.

Take a Road Trip

What used to be the all-American family vacation is now a must for young adults looking for total fun. Movies like “Due Date” take it to the extreme, but could there be anything more amusing than the road trip?

From the time you spend talking in the car to seeing the country’s best roadside attractions (think super-sized food statues or brooms that stand on their own,) something makes these trips amazing. Everyone should take a cross-country road trip at least one time in their lives, kids in tow or not.

Notoriously inexpensive (if you do not count the gas) these trips make the perfect choice for families on a budget or those college students looking for a cheap way to get to the beach. To pay for a road trip, rely on discount fuel, coupons, free meals or stays at motels and make sure everyone in the group is pitching in.

Book that European Vacation

Travel Europe. You can plan a cruise around the Mediterranean or plan to backpack your way through the Alps. Tour century-old castles, explore the most delicious French cuisine, and kick back in a vineyard in Italy, all within a few days. Europe’s passenger trains make touring the heart of the continent easier than you thought. See the great cities of London, Barcelona, Rome and Berlin.

Spend at Least a Week at a Beach

While the beaches along the Great Lakes are okay, it is best to head to the ocean beaches along the United States’ coastlines. With more than 12,000 miles of beaches along the coastline, there are definitely options to choose from, ranging from secluded romantic beaches in Hawaii to the most family friendly of locations, like Myrtle Beach or Hilton Head.

From the tip of Florida to the Maine coast, the Eastern Coastline is known for its affordability. Spending a day at the beach does not have to coast you anything. From Washington to the base of California, the western coast offers a peaceful ocean view and deep, blue waters.

Take Life into Your Hands with Roller Coasters

Summer is not complete without a day at an amusement park–or a week if you spend it in Florida’s numerous family attractions. Roller coasters are pushing the line. If you want the fastest in the United States, head to Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey, which travels more than 128 miles per hour. For one of the fastest, head to Sandusky, Ohio, for the Top Thrill Dragster, at a height of 430 feet.

Amusement parks entertain in other ways too. The food is as bad for you as it can get, which means it’s fantastic tasting. The shows are a bit corny, but they will make you laugh. You will be sunburned and love every minute of it.

Paying for the Trip

No matter where you head for summer fun, you will need to pay for your trip. Do so in every way possible since this summer you will want not to worry about money. Get donations from family and friends (tell them how hard you have worked towards it). Get donations from work, too, such as banking that vacation time and cashing out anything extra you can. Donations are a good route to take.

Slash Those Expenses

Another great way to save money for you unforgettable summer is simply to cut your expenses. Sign up the kids for free school day care programs and breakfast and lunch. Pocket that extra money for your vacation fund. Turn the air conditioning off and the heat down. Walk to the store for other necessities rather than using the in the car. Go with public television and get rid of the cable for a few months.

Be Creative with Sales Power

Look around your home. There are likely plenty of options for selling things. Start with your old valuables. To have an unforgettable summer, you need to get rid of those things sitting and collecting dust. Recycle that dead car for cash. Some companies will give you money if you just get the car onto the lot. Sell plasma or blood. Pawn other valuables so you can have more spending money.

Get a Second Job

To create the most memorable of summer vacations, you will want to eat well, play hard and pay for gas. A second job may be in the works. Get up early and deliver newspapers. Take on a part-time job doing delivery work. Find out if the local schools need someone to help with painting or janitorial work. Just take on extra hours or new projects at work. Get up the courage to ask your boss for a raise. Summer will be well worth it.

Making it Memorable at Home

While summer means going and doing, you do not have to be exploring the world to enjoy an amazing summer. Plan your summer around things at home too, in between those big vacations or those amusement park days. Why not visit the zoo.

Grab a few great books and plan to sit in the sun reading them. Take the kids to the water park or to the local swimming pool at least every week. Make Sundays the days you do nothing but sit around watching old movies with friends. Host at least one BBQ this year.

Summer Means Magic

For everyone who is looking for a way to relax and unwind, look inside. What is it that is going to make this summer unforgettable for you, specifically? In order to get through those cold, wet winters and the never-ending rain of spring, you need, and deserve, a plan for summer.

It starts with knowing what you want to do. Summer is not all about the home improvement projects or spending your days at work. Make it about those times when you can break away and simply enjoy your family and friends.

Filed Under: Adventure Travel, Destinations, Travel Tips

Hot Pots in Canada: The 411 on Location & Class

July 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment
When it comes to relaxing and enjoying nature, few pastimes are as pleasurable as soaking in the Earth’s naturally created hot tubs. To add a bit of enjoyment to this luxurious activity and turn it into a full length morning or afternoon activity, do a small hike before ending up at the hot pot. Depending on the location and style you prefer, it’s possible to bring along a snack or even a full gourmet meal with cheese, crackers, and wine to accompany the main course.
Whatever approach you prefer – the bare bones ‘hop out of the car and into the hot pot’ style, or a slower technique in which you ‘earn’ the soaking through physical exertion beforehand, canada 411 has got you covered. Let’s take a look at some of the finest offerings and what makes them stand above the competition.

Ainsworth Hot Pots

Not far from Banff, home of the famous, outdoor-oriented Banff Film Festival, lies the Kootenay wilderness. You’ll have outdoor pursuits galore to get after in this region, and when you’re done, the Ainsworth hot springs will rival the best of what you’ve found in the wild. For starters, they’re located in the side of a mountain where the views will compare favorably to any hike.

Add in several pools and a stream-fed cold plunge, and the heart can keep pumping all day long, even while you’re (mostly) still! The ultimate gem is the 150-foot-long cave, artificially lit to keep it from turning spooky. Fear will be the furthest thing from your mind as you make your way to your favorite bend in this extended horseshoe shaped pleasure dome.

It’s like few other experiences you’ll find anywhere while offering the soothing experience of hot, natural, spring-fed waters. You can even visit in winter – there’s plenty of skiing nearby for daytime – and enjoy the change in atmosphere from windy and snowy to foggy and humid.

Fairmont Hot Springs

Internationally known and attended, these springs are the largest Canada has to offer. Not only are they huge, they’re odorless as well, which allows your senses to focus on other things. Perhaps you can tune in on just how swiftly the concerns of the office have melted away.

Or just gaze deeply and at length at the nearby Purcell mountains. No matter your previous concerns, they’ll fade, regardless of whether you choose the larger, public pools with their panoramic vistas, or a more intimate, solitary experience in the available private hot spring.

Located in the Columbia Valley, the resort that has been built around the Fairmont hot pots will cater to most every desire you can dream up, even as your body is soothed by the naturally heated waters.

Hot Springs Cove

 Located on Vancouver Island, the surroundings switch it up from the previously mentioned mountains to a more placid ocean setting. But don’t start thinking there’s anything tame about Hot Springs Cove. For starters, this chunk of paradise can only be reached by air or by boat, which creates its own hard-won ambiance.

Once you’ve arrived, you’ll still have to ‘get there’ by taking a 2 kilometer stroll out on the boardwalk that leads right to this natural paradise. With multiple levels of pools feeding into one another, you can find one that suits your ideal temperature preference. Each higher pool has hotter water than the lower one as the Earth’s heating flows downward and cools by the time it reaches each pool.

Perhaps unique among the average hot pots, ocean waves enter the lowest two pools twice daily at high tide. This not only filters the pools, but also creates an invigorating sensation with the entry of each successive wave! Who needs an artificial splash pool when nature so artfully supplies her own?

Dewar Creek Hot Springs 

Unlike some of the other offerings here, the Dewar Creek is a nearly complete wilderness experience. Not only is it more than 22 kilometers of driving from the last turnoff, once the auto is parked, it’s another 9 kilometers of hiking before the bliss is reached.

But relaxation is best enjoyed when led into and followed by some exertion, and the reward is that you just might have these hot springs all to yourself. When you’re seeking activity and solace, Dewar Creek hot pots offer both in abundance.

Harrison Hot Springs

Perhaps your idea of remote involves the ability to change channels on the television and do other things without much effort. If so, the Harrison hot springs might be just for you. As the centerpiece of a luxury hotel, there are many individual pools to choose from: 2 indoor and 3 outdoor. Each offers relatively rigorous temperature control to keep things pleasant.

Only open to hotel guests, the Harrison offers an air of exclusivity to compliment 22-hour-a-day access to the pools. Waterfalls, rock formations, and landscaped plants round out the experience, while mountains provide a phenomenal view in the distance.

CONCLUSION

Canada’s hot pots run the gamut. One thing is for certain; each provides a charm all its own, whether near a rugged mountain range, or resting on the shores of the coastal ocean waters. For hot pots as individual as you are, look no further than these chart toppers when you’re looking to soak in Canada.

Filed Under: Adventure Travel, Destinations, Travel Tips

4 Locations for Beautiful Summer Weddings

May 7, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Congratulations! You’re engaged, and best of all, you’re planning a summer wedding.

Summer is a fabulously popular time of year for a wedding. The weather is gorgeous, flowers are in full bloom, and schedules are more accommodating for your big day.

Summertime is an inherently carefree and happy season that’s sexy and romantic too; the perfect weather for vows, a reception, and a honeymoon. As you plan, you want the ideal venue, and you want it to be all you’ve dreamed of too. Here are some extra fabulous locations to consider for your warm season nuptials.

Austin, Texas – Austin Convention Center

Imagine having a wedding in Austin, beneath the big, blue Texas sky. Austin is a city filled with culture, history, and fun that can be dressed up or down. It’s also the live music capital of the world, which means finding a good band for the reception could be in your favor.

Austin’s Convention Center is a gleaming modern building of glass, native granite, limestone; it’s a gorgeous foil to the rugged terrain of the west. The stylish building can accommodate your wedding party on any of its four floors, but the atriums are especially ideal for summer sunshine.

Deer Park, Washington – Belle Victorian Gardens

About thirty minutes from Spokane, Deer Park is the perfect venue for enjoying a summer wedding away from it all. The beauties of nature in full summer bloom, paired with the perfect weather, make dreams of a rustic, homey, or nature-inspired wedding come true.

The breathtaking Belle Victorian Gardens are the perfect place to host an outdoor wedding, and can be classic and stylish or homey and cozy. You can host your reception at the lovely Victorian house on the property and take photos in the gazebo.

Hertfordshire, England – The Grove

The setting of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Hertfordshire is a breathtaking English county where you can live like a queen on a historic country estate. The rolling green hills and close proximity to London make it ideal for a weekend wedding.

The utterly romantic, completely stylish, and classically English estate called The Grove is ideal for the wedding of your dreams. The five star resort houses a superb spa and championship golf course, so the ladies and the gentlemen will be adequately taken care of.

New York, New York – Brooklyn Botanic Garden

New York is a stunning cityscape — exciting, stylish, and fun during the daytime, and chic, romantic, and elegant in the evenings. This world class city has a huge range of venue options, and choosing something unique will make a New York reception truly special.

It’s possible to be surrounded by a breadth of spectacular floral abundance without leaving the city. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is awash with floral color throughout the summer. Its themed gardens allow you to choose a spot perfect for your own theme.

While you conjure pictures of your dream location, how about oohing and aahing over these four gorgeous locations; which one could host your wedding?

Filed Under: Destinations Tagged With: , , ,
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