Traveller's Journal: Snowdonia National Park - Day 5

If there was one thing I had noticed from my travels around Wales it was the extensive use of the Welsh language. The people of Wales are extremely proud of their country and rightly so. The language helps Wales keep its identity. Many are resentful of English domination and prefer the idea of more independence.

But one thing was for sure. No one could deny the natural beauty of their country and the warmth of its people. The A4086 to Betws-y-Coed may have been slow progress through the narrow twists and turns of the valley roads, but the sheer beauty of the region made the time irrelevant.

Another great aspect of the valley roads was the low volume of traffic. This was the Easter Bank Holiday weekend and any journey made in England would require a very early start. But with a population of little more than a million people, there's enough room for everyone.

Betws-y-Coed is a quaint little village just within the boundaries of Snowdonia National Park amongst the deep Welsh valleys. Commercial activity has led to the village outgrowing itself and it now bursts at the seams. Retail outlets fight for every square inch of space.

I decided to take advantage of this retail war and buy some new walking boots. After parking on this ridiculously steep hill I made my way to the action. My vulnerability to ingrowing toenails means having to buy at least a size bigger than I actually am to ensure enough space for comfort.

The big sale signs outside one store looked promising so I ventured in and soon found myself amongst the maps. There's something therapeutic about looking at maps. Maybe it's the natural human tendency to travel and explore.

The therapy however, only lasts for as long as you are left alone and out of the corner of my eye I spotted a shop assistant approaching in stealth-like fashion. I thought of making a dash to the other side of the bookshelf, but I had already fallen victim and had to admit defeat.

"The Ordinance Survey provides great detail in a 1:50000 scale as well as being weatherproof in its laminated cover," the man droned monotonously.

"Great," I replied, struggling to find any enthusiasm. "Where are the boots?"

Web Based - Travel Reservation Software

Attention Travel Agents and Operators

Do you or your company sell or deal with any of the following: Flights (airline tickets), hotel rooms, car rentals, travel packages, tours, restaurant reservations, attraction or special event tickets, ferries, travel insurance, cruises, public transportation, train tickets, or currency exchange? If you work in the travel industry then that was a pretty redundant question, but why am I asking it? I am not trying to waste your time, in fact I am trying to save you time. I will ask you one more question, and this time it is important. How many different pieces of software do you use to offer your services to you clients? Making multiple searches to find the best deals for your customers is now a thing of the past. There is a new piece of travel reservation software which provides an end to end solution for all types of travel companies: travel agencies, tour operators, inbound, outbound, charter operators, congress organizers and more.

Currently the hottest selling online travel reservation software is called Gilboa by Galor. Galor is one of the older travel agent management system producers. They have been around since 1989 and their travel reservation software is used by 700 clients and over 6000 users in over 22 countries. What makes Galor’s software so special is that it can interface with all of the Global Distribution Systems like Sabre, Amadeus, WorldSpan, and Galileo. It also integrates website and online bookings, comes with financial tools specific to the travel industry, and can handle wholesale, in-house and tailor made bookings.

This article is about informing you that there are other options out there for travel reservation software. There is no longer the need to rely on several systems, which waste valuable time with multiple searches. There is now travel reservation software that works with the GDS’s, and with the private charters and specials that you have worked out directly with other travel companies. You can throw away all your binders because the records you need can be found indexed and researched on your computer. These programs are scalable so that they can work with both small and large travel companies. If you are a small company looking to expand, this is the perfect answer because the software can help in expansion and you won’t have to find new software once your client base grows. If you are a large travel network or company, reducing your travel reservation software to one program is a great way to save time and money.

One piece of travel reservation software means less training and more uniformity no matter what size your business is. A little research today can help your travel business for years to come.

Lavish Riad in the Fes Medina (Morocco): La Maison Bleue

La Maison Bleue

The main house of La Maison Bleue, considered one of the most luxurious places to stay in Fes, offers peace and beauty amidst the hustle and bustle of one of the oldest walled-in cities in the world.

Features
The heart of La Maison Bleue is a courtyard surrounded by three Moroccan salons. It also has a roof top terrace, and a library with historical books, letters written in calligraphy, and beautiful oil paintings.

Rooms
La Maison Bleue has five deluxe rooms and one single room. Each room is equipped with a bathroom, telephone, television, internet, air-conditioning, mini-bar and safe.

Dining
Enjoy delicious Moroccan breakfasts in the courtyard, and mouth-watering Moroccan cuisine in a candlelit salon for dinner. Each dish will be served by waiters in traditional Moroccan attire with all the traditional Moroccan trimmings such as Moroccan salad, pastries and mint tea.


Riad Maison Bleue

This 19th century house, located in one of the most historic neighborhoods the old medina, is a celebration of Arabo-Andalusion architecture. Historically the home of an important judge and professor of theology, Moulay Bel Arbi El Alaoui, it was also the birthplace of the famous Moroccan philosopher, Aziz Lahbabi.

Features
The Riad Maison Bleue consists of three interconnecting courtyards. The main courtyard, which has a swimming pool and a garden, is surrounded by three deluxe rooms and a Moorish salon. The riad also has three terraces, each with stunning views.

Rooms
Accommodation includes 11 deluxe rooms and 2 standard rooms. Each room is equipped with its own bathroom, air-conditioning, telephone, television, internet, mini bar, and safe.

Dining
Enjoy traditional home-cooked meals served on the lovely terraces when it is warm, or in the covered courtyard during the colder months.

Private Accommodation
The Riad Maison Bleue offers private accommodation, Pavillion de l’Astrolabe, which consists of 4 deluxe rooms and 1 standard room. These rooms, along with 2 Moorish salons, are centered around a private courtyard with a fountain.



Spa
The spa of La Maison Bleue offers traditional body treatments, hammam, massages, and aromatherapy. You can enjoy a range of massages and treatments for different health and relaxation benefits. Massages and treatments offered include toning massages, oriental foot massages, traditional soap scrub, body masks, clay and henna wraps, and much more.

The spa of La Maison Bleue includes a treatment room, a fitness room, and a relaxation room (with wonderful views over Fes).

How to Start Your Own Small Business

Opening your own business can be a real big gamble. If you do not do your research well, you will wind up like most small businesses, and that is out of business in less then 6 months.

The most important thing to remember when opening up new business is the location. When doing your research for your new business you want to make sure you are the only business of your time in the area. If you are opening a video store you do not want to open near another video store. Remember if you are exclusive to the area, you will automatically get the business of those living in that area.

The next most important thing about opening a small business is you supplier. Do not have just one place to get supplies from, you should have several. By having more then one you can assure yourself that you are getting the lowest prices from them. And if they know about each other they will try to outdo each other to get your business.

Make sure that the products or services that you will be offering are desired, do not just decide to open up a store with out doing any market research is like playing craps, dangerous unless you really know what you are doing.

Advertising is important. Remember just like a casino you are trying to make money and not lose it. By spending some money on advertising you will increase your sales from your opening day. It is best to have a professional help you with your advertising rather then dong it yourself, there is no point in spending money on advertising if no one in your target demographic is going to see it. An example of this would be like using facial expressions to bluff in a poker game against blind players.


When picking your stock it is sometime better to have a better selection of items and maybe not so many of each item, this way you can see which items sell best and order more of those more popular items, and less of the less desired ones.


In business you should not try to open a business unless you already have experience running a related business. You may think you know how to, but to do it correctly you really need experience, after all if you were in a casino and looking to play poker you would not want a roulette dealer who is trying to figure out the rules as he goes would you? Chances are you would want an experienced poker dealer.

Depending on the type of business you are opening try keep your staff as small as possible, and if it is possible try to get friends and family to help you out. This will allow you to keep your costs low until you can really get a good idea of if you are making money or not. Once you are making money you can go out and hire people.

How To Find The Perfect Hotel Using The Internet

So you know you're going on vacation. You know you need to find a good hotel that isn't going to break the bank. You figure that you can use the internet to find that perfect hotel choice, but what's the best way to go about finding it online? Read on for some tips for making your online research most profitable.

In the first place, I am assuming you've chosen a destination for your vacation. Unless the price of the hotel will be one of the factors that will help you choose between two vacation alternatives, you'll most likely know where you are going. With this information, you'll want to start your search at one of the main search engines online. Your choices will be either Google, Yahoo or MSN.

The most basic hotel search you could do would be to enter your destination along with either the keyword hotel or motel. So if you are going to Orlando, Florida, you'd enter a search like 'Orlando Florida Hotel'. This kind of search will give you a list of websites that either are hotels or are listing hotels worth checking out.

When making a search, it is important to be creative with your keyword selections. Instead of simply typing in something like 'Orlando Florida Hotel', you will want to try other combinations. One good way to get a quality list of hotels is to type in the name of some of the attractions you plan on visiting in the city you've chosen. To continue with our example of Orlando, you could use 'Universal Studios Orlando Hotel'. This will help you to find listings that are near Universal Studios.

Don't be afraid of using Hotel directories to help you scope out a good potential match. For our example city, using an Orlando hotel directory could yield just the right hotel for your needs. Many of these directories include either reviews and maps on their site or easy to find links to these kinds of resources.

Finally, when doing searches with a search engine, try to think of different ways you can say the same thing. Don't just search for Orlando hotel but search for Orlando motel, Orlando accommodation, Orlando vacation spot and so on. Substitute your intended city destination for Orlando in these example.

Using these techniques and a little time to explore the hotel websites, there is no reason that you can't find that perfect hotel at the price you expect.

Do You Know The Way Around Airport Parking Luton

Located about 30 miles outside of Central London, Luton airport serves scheduled and charter flights to destinations all over the U.K. and Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.

Airport parking Luton is not a problem for both the traveler on vacation or the businessperson on the road.

Three options are available when you need to park at Luton Airport.

The Short Term Parking lot is considered the premium product. The lot is situated adjacent to the Luton terminal and is suited to executive stays and meeting and greeting passengers.

You will pay by the hour up to the maximum of a six-hour stay to take advantage of the daily executive rate for in this lot for airport parking Luton.

Some people want the advantage of being parked very close to the terminal even if they are going be away for some time. You may park at the short term lot for almost as long as you want.

Convenience is the by word when airport parking Luton. The airport recommends that for speed and convenience you insert your credit card into car park entry barrier. This opens the gate.

You can then park and lock your car and make your way to the terminal. Otherwise, obtain your entrance ticket from the barrier. Park and secure your car and make your way to the terminal.

And if you paid with credit card, when you return, just drive out without having to deal with the cashier. Follow the gold signs to get to the short term lot.

For longer team and less expensive parking, you may use the Mid Term airport parking Luton airport. This lot is designed primarily for longer trips.

Free fully accessible shuttle buses service the car park with drivers that are fully competent to help disabled customers to board or disembark the buses.

There is even a Special Assistance intercom enabling disabled customers to call for free assistance to their check-in desk.

For five days or even more, the Mid Term lot is the best for airport parking Luton. Follow the green signs and here again, use your credit card to make it easier and quicker to get in and out of the lot.

If you are taking an extended trip and need airport parking Luton, follow the pink signs to the Long Term parking facility. Parking rates are very much less expensive and the shuttle bus ride is a breeze.

And by the way, parking for motorcycles is available free of charge in the Short Term Car Park for airport parking Luton.

Senior Citizen Travel Insurance UK

Seniors looking out travel abroad, relax, online travel options have specially designed travel packages for elderly citizens combined with insurance package to safeguard you from any unforeseen occurrence. This is useful for retired persons with holiday homes abroad for example spending the winter in Europe or Spain, covers all senior citizens up to the age of 99.

Online senior citizen travel insurance is tailored to your unique circumstances so you only pay for the travel insurance that you need. Such travel insurance for senior citizens will have the following features and benefits. Some of the travel agents will find you travel insurance which combines great value cover with high level.
• Sports and activities option if you require it
• £10 million medical protection as standard.
• £3,000 cancellation cover.
• £25,000 personal accident and legal expenses cover

How does Senior Citizen Travel Insurance help us?
You are protected against any cancellation fine, lost or delayed luggage, cash and passports plus emergency dental treatment and £10 million medical cover. This means you can enjoy your holiday safe in the knowledge that you are fully covered in case anything goes wrong. Not only that, you also have an option of choosing from a wide array of sports activities.

Choose the place you want to travel, and travel insurance agent can provide you sound advice with the most flexible packages for you. If you prefer to choose a multi-pack travel insurance you have the advantage of getting covered for several trips in a year or if it’s a single trip, then you can opt for single trip senior citizen travel insurance. The choice is yours and the travel insurance providers are at your disposal.

Your travel insurance policy can be split into three Areas Europe, Australia/New Zealand and Worldwide. It’s advisable to cross check with your provider as some of them do cover pre-existing medical conditions with an additional cost. However, there are some policies which may not provide cover in respect of any pre-existing medical condition that you are aware of at the time of arranging the insurance.

You're not sure who to speak to or where to go without paying a small fortune for cover. Find discount senior citizen packages for yourself. Uncover all the best deals and cheap travel insurance for senior citizens. But, just don’t settle down with the lowest insurance cover you bump into, as it need not be the right cover or best Senior citizen travel insurance cover for you. So, study online and find the most reliable one or reach out to experts.