Category: Travelling

A Little Story About Lombok

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The most famous place in Indonesia which is always crowded by foreign tourists is Bali. Almost everyone in the world know Bali and (believe it or not), many people think that Bali is the only tourist destination in Indonesia.

This is certainly not true. From year to year, Indonesia has developed more and more tourist attractions. One of the destination that has also been known since so many years ago is the Borobudur temple and Yogyakarta, the nearby city. And, another destination that have started popularized by the government of Indonesia is the island of Lombok. The last few years the island has also begun to frequently visited by foreign tourists.

Lombok Island is an island that is located right next to Bali Island (on the east side). So do not be surprised if Lombok has a culture and natural beauty that is similar to the island of Bali. The difference maybe only one, Lombok has not been touched by so many people. Many of the land and natural environment in Lombok is pristine. This is the advantage of Lombok.

One of the beaches which became the favorite of tourists who visited the island of Lombok is Tanjung Aan Bay Beach. This place has a very spectacular beaches. The color of the sand on the beaches are very white. This is very contrast with the gradient blue sea water. The beach here is surrounded by mountains and its location is very remote. The atmosphere here is very calm.

From a high place in Tanjung Aan Bay Beach you can take a look at the white sand, crashing waves, rows of palm trees and beautiful hills down there. What is also unique, there is a hill that resembled a turtle when viewed from a height.

Tanjung Aan Beach Bay visited by many people who want to do water sports, like swimming and snorkeling. There are also many tourists who come to fish and quite a lot of family coming too, just to sit relax by the sea.

Another fascinating place in Lombok is the 3 Gili Islands. Why is it called so? Because these group of island of Lombok has a 3 pieces of island that contain the word “Gili”. They are Gili Air, Gili Trawangan and Gili Meno.

The three islands are situated adjacent to each other in the northwest island of Lombok. The closest one to Lombok is Gili Air. After that Gili Meno, which is famous for having a large collection of rare birds from Indonesia and foreign countries.

Gili Trawangan Island is the most popular island among the three island. Facilities for tourists, such as small inns and restaurants is the most widely built here. The view in this small island is very beautiful, spectacular beaches with sparkling white sands. Most of the visitors are foreign tourists.

In addition to marine tourism, other tourist attractions on the island of Lombok is a mountain. If you or your family love mountain tours, you can have a visit to Mount Rinjani Tourism Park. The mountain is about 3,740 meters height and has a national park covering approximately 40,000 hectares.

Mount Rinjani is also famous for its giant volcanic crater measuring about 10 km wide. In the middle of the crater there is the lake that is named Segara Anak. The water that flows from this lake forms a very beautiful waterfall, flowing through a very steep cliff. In this lake there are a lot of carp and tilapia. No wonder if theres quite a lot of people who come here for fishing.

In addition to these objects, of course, Lombok still has many more advantages in tourism. Crafts, unique traditional houses, not to mention Cidomo, the traditional vehicles. For those of you who want to visit Lombok, theres no need to worry about accommodation. Many major international hotel chains are now opened in Lombok.

Why Should I Engage in Outdoor Recreation Activities

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More and more people engage in outdoors activities these days, as outdoor sports are becoming very popular. The top recreational activities include kayaking, jogging, walking, hiking, and camping.

How can outdoor recreational activities be beneficial to you?

The foremost advantage of spending time outdoors is gaining a good mental spirit and healthy balance of your body. Not only will it help in giving you the liveliness that everyone should have, but it will also pump your life force and the love of living.

Activities such as walking, bird watching, kayaking and camping all make you feel happier while appreciating the beauty that we often forget during our busy hours at the office. Nowadays the stress level has increased so much in everyone’s life that everyone, without exception, deserves a small break to get rid of this stress. Sometimes a small walk in the park will do the trick and can lighten up your tensions and make you feel happy.

In today’s hectic life styles, we hardly find time to spend with our families and friends. Engaging regularly in various outdoor activities can help you create much stronger bonds with your family and friends. You can interact and talk more with your friends and family while sharing the astonishing experiences of a different outdoor activity each time you go out.

How can outdoor recreation help you in saving money?

Our lives are never smooth and secured; everyone comes across various difficult times in their lifetime. Taking the time to engage in simple outdoor recreations will not only help you mentally, but you will also find that it costs close to nothing. For example hiking does not cost anything when compared with cycling. All you need is a pair of good shoes and a mountaintop to hike to. Another example is simply playing outdoors with your kids. Nothing will beat playing soccer or tags with your kids, especially when you take time off from a stressful job.

While there is other activities like hunting that are somewhat costlier however they will provide you with a lot of thrills and great sense of accomplishment. If you can’t afford spending money on such activities then you still have many options that will definitely suit your pocket.

You should try to spend as much time as possible in these types of activities. You should also encourage your friends, family and kids to spend such a wonderful time together building good memories. Nothing can be more enjoyable and beneficial than gaining a good and healthy lifestyle by being in the outdoors.

What’s So Great About Travelling Alone

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The hardest decision that faces most gap year and career break travellers is not choosing between Africa, Asia, Europe or South America. Nor is it, packing the complete world travel guide (just in case) or a lifetime supply of insect repellent. Choosing whether to travel with friends or to go it alone is actually the most important decision youll ever make, and its one that will affect every aspect of your trip.

Whether youre 17 or going on 70, if you havent ever been away by yourself before, it can seem like the most terrifying thing in the world. Though it seems incredibly daunting, boldly going where youve never gone before can be a fantastically liberating experience. Travelling alone gives you the freedom to go wherever you want and do whatever you want; all you need to do is make sure that you make the most of every opportunity and experience along the way!

A little soul searching

Spending time away from everything and everyone youre used to will give you the perfect opportunity to not only do new and exciting things, but to learn a lot of things you never knew about yourself. Relying on your own abilities may seem a little too Bear Grylls but youll be surprised by your newfound sense of capability and independence.

Travelling is a great way to learn about new cultures and challenge yourself, and that doesnt necessarily mean eating unidentified bugs. From climbing Everest to teaching a class of 200 in northern Africa, going it alone will open up a whole world of new experiences that you never thought you could cope with, and give you a whole new set of skills to bring home with you.

A social extravaganza

Travelling with friends can be an amazing experience, but it can also be a limiting one. Setting off with your buddies or your partner might feel comforting, but its all too easy to end up relying on each other so much that you miss out on opportunities to meet new people. Without your trusty friends at your side, youll be far more likely to make an effort to seize each chance to make new friends and youll get to know a lot more people.

Whether youre travelling independently or with a company you will come across people from all walks of life; staying in hostels, interacting with the locals and even as you travel from place to place, its guaranteed that youll meet some like minded people along the way, and almost certain that youll find a few lifelong friends. Dont forget that there are hundreds of travellers out there who have decided to go it alone and they will be just as keen as you are to make new friends.

If you want, a cast-iron guarantee that youll see a few friendly faces when you get out there, the best solution is to go through a company. Travelling as part of a group or volunteer project, you can be certain that there will be other people there and quite a few of them will be solo travellers too. Companies like Real Gap send out a buddy list a few weeks before you go, which gives contact details of all of the travellers going on the same trip as you so you can get in touch before you leave, swap packing tips and maybe even arrange a group flight.

A chance to be selfish

Travelling on your own gives you the chance to be utterly and completely selfish. You can plan to do exactly what you want, where you want, and for however, long you feel like doing it. There will be no need to compromise on which famous sites you want to see and how long or how short your trip up the mountain is; your itinerary will be completely up to you. You might miss your friends for a little while but youll soon appreciate the freedom of choice you have without them.

Youll also be able to make the most of any opportunities that come your way; if you make some new friends and decide that you want to tag along with them for a few weeks or fall in love with a place and want to stay there a little longer, you can. If youre travelling with a company and decide that you want to change your trip or project, there will be no other feelings to consider than your own, so you can always do whats right for you. After all, if you cant make your trip of a lifetime all about you, when can you?

Top solo travel tips

If youre travelling alone, there are a few essential things you need to do to get the most you possibly can out of your gap year or career break trip, here are the top 3.

Be outgoing

Life as a traveller is nothing like life at home, while you wouldnt strike up a conversation with the person next to you in Tesco, thats exactly the kind of thing that will win you friends overseas. Now is the time to get yourself down to the hostel bar, take part in the optional activities and try out your phrase book on the locals! Travelling alone is the best possible cure for shyness, and you will definitely get back what you put in!

Be aware of your personal safety

Through travelling is probably the only situation where its good to talk to strangers, you still need to be aware of where you are and what youre doing. Personal safety may not be the most exciting of things but it is important when youre in an unfamiliar country with not altogether familiar people. Making new friends is great but make sure you dont get too intoxicated, and keep any eye on your valuables when youre out and about. Its a good idea to keep your loved ones updated on how youre doing by sending emails or writing an online blog, that way theyll be able to track of where you are and whats going on.

If youre keen on safety issues, companies like Real Gap offer specialised safety courses that will help you to prepare for any eventuality and give you a lot more confidence about setting off on your own.

Manage your expectations

When youre travelling to a new country youre likely to experience a little of whats known as culture shock. The best way to make sure you get the most out of your trip is to be prepared; do some research into your destinations cultures, traditions and history. Its important to respect the culture of the country youre visiting; different countries have different social rules and different standards of life, its your job to fit in and knowing what to expect will make it a lot easier.

If youre travelling with a company youll get a pre-departure pack full of country and trip information, it might seem tedious but its a good idea to read every single page. Youll definitely be wishing youd read up a bit more if youre the only one who turns up in shorts and a t-shirt in monsoon season!

Avoiding Wasting Funds When Traveling

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Traveling, particularly overseas, might be a great experience. For several folks, it may also be an costly 1, which signifies you should know how you can save on expenses.

Saving Money When Traveling

For several folks, traveling is the supreme method of rejuvenating their zest for all times. On one hand, you get faraway from the constant interruptions of every day life that happen at work and house. On the other, you have a chance to see a whole diverse way of living in one more location, even though it genuinely is inside your country. The only problem with traveling, naturally, is it can put a whammy on your bank account.

Saving cash when traveling is not as tough as you think. The number 1 thing to remember is that practically everything is negotiable. If it actually is not, including the cost of flights, there are frequently timing issues that will lead to savings. While you’ll find many ideas, here are a couple of you might be unaware of.

Traveling in a group is a great way to save funds. Companies inside the travel industry like groups simply since they represent a swimming pool of guaranteed cash. In case you can swing a grouping of 10 individuals for a trip, hotels, cruises, guides and such will supply you with their services for totally free. Just you, not the entire group. This may sound like a strange strategy, but it can work if you are mad about some location. You fundamentally give to offer a guided tour to the area and do some advertising. The cost of your vacation is with nothing and you may have the ability to write-off significantly of the remaining expense on your taxes. Naturally, ensure to run it by your accountant.

When it comes to hotel bookings, it is important to comprehend that the cost of each room is negotiable. A hotel assigns four, five and even ten different rates to each kind of room they have. Plainly, they want to get the most for it, but they offer all sorts of deals to attract bookings throughout slow times. The best method to take benefit of this is through on the world wide web hotel booking internet sites. As these websites move massive quantities of bookings, they generally get the lowest or near to lowest costs. You just need to compare prices, point and click.

If you’re traveling somewhere by plane, you’re inevitably going to need ground transportation. Car rentals at airports tend to be cost compared to in town options. In the occasion you should rent at the airport, the most capable technique to acquired a deal is through your frequent flyer miles. Rates might be half as significantly as those posted at the desks. If you do not have frequent flyer miles, attempt to book by means of the on the web websites for the an assortment of rental companies. Several them will probably be offering specials that may actually add up to substantial savings.

Taking little steps to save funds on trips can make all of the difference. Follow the above guidance and you ought to see much less of a drain on your bank account.

Things To Consider Before Traveling To Goa

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Goa is a perfect travel destination especially for the newlyweds. Many honeymooners would be willing to visit Goa. Its a wonderful tourist place to enjoy with your loved ones. This article help you with few mandatory things which you need to consider before you going to Goa. Even though Goa is a safer tourist destination, visitors should be careful about petty theft. You should take care of your belongings carefully especially when you are in the crowded places such as bus stop and bazaars. Lot of pickpockets will be trading in these areas. Other than thieves, you should be careful of beggars. They prey on tourists more than anyone else. They would make you feel annoyed by coming behind you. In such cases, just ignore them and keep walking.

Health Tips:

Before you travel, it is advisable to have your body checked with your health care professional and get up to date on your booster shots. Two precaution injections are must when you traveling to India. They are hepatitis and tetanus. Also you may find problem with mosquitoes as you can catch malaria from this. During the dusk, wear some long pants to protect yourself from the mosquito bite and you can use any repellent to keep them away. You should be conscious having food as it makes you to have a bad stomach. Always drink bottled water with proper seal and the label. If you are having meat, check them completely before you eat. Check that your meat is thoroughly cooked and clean. Do not worry even if you fall ill during your stay. There are lot of best hospitals run 24 hours a day. The urban areas like Panaji and Vasco da Gama have best hospital and pharmacies running for 24 hours. They can speak in English and help you with the proper medications.

Language of communication:

The widely spoken language in Goa is Hindi, yet you can find many people speaking smaller dialects and regional languages. As Goa is a popular travel destination most of the people will be able to understand English.

Exchange of Currency:

Indian rupee is the name of the currency that Indians are using. Also they use coins starting from 25 and 50 paise, 1 rupee, 2, 5 and 10 rupees and there are 100 paise in 1 rupee. You would need to have at least few Indian rupees. You can easily get the rupees by paying the dollars at the local bank. You can withdraw money from ATMs as well. Most of the ATMs accepts your visa, Master , Cirrus and PLUS cards. You can make card purchases in the star hotels and the restaurants but if you would like to buy something from the roadway shops, you need to have rupees.

Good manners:

One of the more peaceful cities in India is Goa. It is good to concentrate more on your clothing. It would be really wonderful, if you try wearing a dress which is adaptable in Goa. You can get an idea by looking around the people and decide on the dress you would like to wear. During your shopping, do bargaining and buy things. Usually they would tell a very high rate to the travelers. They will ask you ridiculous price, respond back to them only the 20% of the price they quoted. If they not willing to give, do not be more aggressive in bargaining, just leave it and walk away. They will come behind you and settle for your final price.

Travel Documents:

You need to meet your local Indian consulate and make the necessary application to get a tourist visa. You can stay up to six months with the tourist visa and there will not be any lengthy procedure to get your tourist visa to travel to India. You just need to submit two passport size photo and a little fee in order to get your visa.

Be ready with all these mandatory stuffs before you start your trip to Goa. Happy Journey to Goa!