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Archive for August, 2010

How To Plan A Great Family Cruise

Romantic ocean breezes a midnight walk on deck dazzling dinners at the Captain’s table and days full of planned activities which the kids will love. These days cruises are not just for singles honeymoon couples or senior citizens. Most major cruise lines have discovered that families are a great market for spectacular and fun cruises and developed special tour and cruise offerings that cater to family fun. If you are considering a cruise vacation for your family here are some tips and suggestions that can make your travel experience a wonderful family memory.

1. Include the family in the planning.
A great way to ensure that your children will love the activities that you plan for them is to include their ideas in the planning process. By the time kids are old enough to have opinions; they will enjoy any trip more if they have a hand in the choosing. Gather information about various cruises and destinations that fit into your budget and encourage the children to offer some suggestions. It’s a great way to find out that your eight year old is a budding archaeologist with an affinity for the Nile or your fourteen year old dreams of seeing the Northern Lights. Even if their only input is to suggest the cruise ship with the full theme park on Deck Three you’ll know what’s important to them when booking your cruise.

2. Choose a kidcentered cruise.
Most cruise lines allow children. Some cruise lines even specialize in catering to families with children. When you’re cruising with a family in tow it’s important to choose a cruise line that designs activities for children. While long lazy days at sea with nothing to do may be your idea of heaven your children probably need more stimulation. Besides the activities planned by the cruise line your children will also have the benefit of the other kids onboard to share the experience with. Any experienced cruise traveler can tell you half the fun is in the people that you meet on board the ship.

3. Consider how much togetherness you want.
The most attractive family cruise programs feature a wellrounded selection of activities geared to all members of the family. The activities offered are likely to include “family activities” for parents and kids together as well as a variety of things for kids to do without parents in tow. In addition there will be activities geared to all age groups from toddlers to teens with and without parents. That provides “couple time” for mom and dad as well as time for each person in the family to pursue their own interests. Look for a family centered cruise that offers the degree of togetherness that’s right for your family and a wide range of activities that everyone can enjoy.

4. Put safety up front.
When choosing a family cruise ask hard questions about how the cruise line provides for the safety of your children. Are their activity counselors trained to work with children in the age group with which they are working? Is each activity staffed with trained counselors/guides who are certified in first aid and safety? Does the company do thorough background checks on any person who is hired to work with your children? Don’t make assumptions get assurances. The following are some questions that the cruise line should be able to answer:

How are counselors working with children trained?
What background checks do you perform for the employees who work with children?
Do your cruise counselors have first aid and safety training?
If babysitting is available what background checks are done for babysitters?
What safety measures are in use to keep track of children while they are in the care of ship staff?
Do you require parents to check children in and out of activity areas and activities?

5. Kids’ menus cabins and other practicalities.
Before you make your final decision on a family cruise look into the availability of any special needs your children may have. If you’re booking with a line that caters to children you can expect them to have a children’s menu but that might not be all you need. If your child needs a special diet because of allergies religion health or just overall pickiness it’s important to know that those foods will be available for your child. Likewise it’s important to know the cruise line’s policy on adults and children in rooms some for instance require an adult in each room where children are staying which may mean the entire family sharing a room.

Family cruises are growing in popularity year by year and why not? They offer an allinclusive vacation experience that the whole family can enjoy. Shop around for the cruise that offers the best deal for your family and have a great time.

About the writer:  Megan Hazel is a freelance writer who writes about topics pertaining to vacations and the travel industry such as Carnival Cruise Caribbean Cruise

China Vacations Info – Hongkong Disney Travel Guide

This article is about the China vacations and you can find some useful information in it if you are planning your China vacations now.

The Hongkong Disney Park is not a big park and one day should be enough for your Hongkong Disney travel.

1. How to get in?
The Hongkong government put a lot of effort in the building of this Disney Park. Now you can have 2 convenient ways to get to this park:

1. By Jiutiekuaixian Disney Line: Taking this Disney Line you can get to the Hongkong Disney Park from Guangzhou and get back to Guangzhou in the same day. The train will enter Hongkong through Luohu custom. If you choose this way to get to Hongkong Disney you can take the Jiutiekuaixian train from Luohu to Shangshui first then transfer a bus to Disney. The trip will take 1 hour and the cost is HK 70 for the kid at 311 years old and seniors above 65 the cost is HK 50 no need for an ID to get this discount . Here is some info about the bus service Shangshui to Hongkong Disney Park: Office hours of Shangshui Bus Service is 9:00 13:00 available every 30 minutes. To get back from Hongkong Disney to Shangshui the bus service is available at 13:00 17:00 18:00. After 18:00 the bus is available at: 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30 etc. The last bus back to Shangshui is available at one hour after the Disney firework show.

2. By subway of Hongkong. The Hongkong subway system is very mature and convenient. The cost is low and tickets discount is available for the kids and seniors. To get to the Hongkong Disney Park you can take the subway to the station named “Xin ao” in the Dongyong Line first then transfer to the Subway Disney Line. The trains in this Line is decorated in the Disney style pretty cool :

Some tips:
1. If you choose the Jiutiekuaixian Disney Line you’d better sit in the 10th 11th or 12th carriage of the train. They are closer to the waiting room of the bus service than other carriages and you can save some time.

2. If you sit in the right side of the bus from Shangshui to Disney you will see the TSING Ma Bridge of Hong Kong. It is the world’s longest roadrail bridge. You will need to sit in the left side to see this bridge in the way back to Shangshui of course.

3. When you get off the Jiutiekuaixian Disney Line you will see a box office. A lot of people wait in a line there. Do not waste your time here because it is the box office of the subway. The box office of the Disney Park is several hundred meters away from here.

2. About the tickets of the Hongkong Disney Park:
The ticket price for the adult is: HK 295 regular days 350 specific days 350 specail days.
For the kids 311 years old: HK 210 regular days 250 specific days 250 specail days.
For the seniors above 65: HK 170 regular days 200 specific days 200 specail days.
To get more information about the China vacations Beijing flights and Lhasa travel you can visit our web site: Travel2ChinaInfo Dot COM

Some tips:
1. You will see a very long line in front of the box office of the Hongkong Disney Park. If you don’t want waste too much time waiting here you should book your tickets online in advance.

2. You can not bring food or drinks into the Disney Park candies and cookies are ok. The Disney employees will check your bags at the entrance of this Disney Park.

3. About the fastpass:
You can get a free fastpass at the entrance of the Disney Park. There is info in this fastpass telling you when and where to use it.

4. About the firework show:
Although you can see the firework show in lots of places of the Disney Park the best location is the square in front of the castle. You can have a better view of the Disney cartoon show here.

5. Food and drinks in Disney Park:
There are many restaurants in this Disney Park but they are a little bit expensive. HK 10 for a bottle of water HK 45 for a dish of fried rice. The tourist souvenirs are expensive too. A pen will cost you HK 30. The Disney sunhat is about HK 100. Disney Clown fish bag: HK 280.

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NOTE: Permission is granted by the copyright owner to disseminate this article in whole or in part provided credit is given to the author with a link to the article’s source URL Travel2ChinaInfo Dot COM and this NOTE is not removed.

About the writer:  About the author: Shane Lee. Copyright belongs to China vacations infoShanghai flightsBeijingChina airfare . More China vacations info at: Beijing travel info for your China vacations.ShanghaiChina vacations info at: China vacations infoMotels in Shanghai.

A Maasai Wedding Soon: The Most Spectacular Event Of African Culture

The Masai are among the fortytwo tribes of Kenya. Unique about the Masai community is that while the majority of the other tribes of Kenya have embraced the western culture in terms of religion clothing and their way of living the Masai have stuck to there culture. Another unique factor about the Masai is that they live among the wildlife national reserves and game parks in Kenya. Due to their unique way of dressing they have become an attraction in themselves. The wildlife of Kenya is the biggest tourist attraction in Kenya. The second are the Masai.
The Masai have form time been exploited by a various tour operators for example Tourists always want to photograph the Masai when they come across them and as it is always polite to request someone before taking their photo. As many of the requests are communicated in English a language that most Masais do not understand then the tour driver becomes the translator and in the process grabs and opportunity to make a quick buck by tripling the quote to taking a photo of a Masai. While the Masai would communicate to the tour driver as to how much in Kenya shillings he would wish paid to have his photo taken the tour driver would communicate to the tourist in form of dollars. Since there are no exchange bureaus in the bush the driver once more offers to convert the foreign currency to shillings hence making as much as three times what he would pay the Masai.
The Masai people are the only ones allowed to carry weapons such as machetes and their famous rungu a short wooden stick carved in ball like finish at one end and can be very lethal when one is hit with especially on the forehead. Being one of the warrior tribes of Kenya it is part of their culture. Other tribes of Kenya are afraid of the Masai but that does not stop then taking advantage of their illiteracy and more so when it comes to the tourism industry.
During the late 80s and early 90s the tour drivers started noticing the interest that tourists were showing in the Masai community by the kind of question they were asking. Despite tourist being warned that the Masai are a fierce tribe and that their young man are known to kill lions as a passage to manhood this did not scare some tourist and they wanted to visit this community and learn more. This was therefore arranged privately between the tour driver and the tourist but at the tourists own risk. Visit to the Masai village therefore become a commercial venture but in a disorganized way. Tourist are mobbed up by the villagers as every one wants a cut of the pie and this really scares some tourists that upon going back to the safety of their country they narrate this nasty experience to the travel agent who had organized their tour. The driver at the other end losses his job but this has not stopped the practice.
Woni
Safaris an indigenous tour operator in Kenya decided to take the initiative of putting some order in one Masai village in Ambsoli national park and included a visit to the Masai village in all their programmes. To avoid a sudden crowding around tourists all members of the community are given a role to play in ensuring tourists feels welcomed in their village without exploitation or extortion. The young warriors perform their dances to welcome the tourist in their village. After the welcome dance all kneel down and pray in the Masai language which is an experience in itself and then the tourist is allowed to get in the enclosure where the mayattas huts are. Inside the enclosures elderly Masai women would display their wares of beaded work and tourist may make their selection in a very orderly manner. They are then given a tour of the village and the tourist is then allowed back and negotiates the prices of the wares they have picked. The children stand in corners of the huts and are not allowed to mob the tourist. Photos are taken at no extra charges as a visit to the Masai village is inclusive in the tour package apart from the gifts the tourists buy.
This kind of arrangement has become very popular and was duplicated to other Masai villages in Kenya. Due this initiatives Woni
Safaris is very popular with this particular village and this year an invitation for the company to attend a traditional Masai wedding has been extended to them and their clients who will be taking a safari during this time. The wedding will take place at Amboseli National Park on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro the largest and highest mountain in Africa.

About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;Magdalene Ngina is the MD of Woni Safaris and has over 15 years experience in the travel industry. She has also traveled extensively in Kenya and has been involved in the development of EcoTourism in Kenya.
Woni
Safaris