Banff Day Trips from Calgary
Calgary has a lot to offer to visitors. From the annual Calgary Stampede to the site of the 1988 Winter Olympics, from zoos and museums to a multitude of beautiful parks, the city is a diverse and exciting vacation destination. Those that want to see more of Canada may decide to use Calgary as a base for exploring the rest of the region, which includes some of the best attractions in Alberta. Many visitors avail themselves of this opportunity by taking a day trip to Banff.
The distance from Calgary to Banff is a mere 80 miles (128 kilometers). It is an easy distance in a rental car or visitors can take shuttles from the airport or downtown Calgary up to Banff, both the town and the National Park.
Banff is a great place to experience the Canadian Rockies. Banff National Park features its own ski resort, a scenic Gondola Ride, and opportunities for hiking and getting up close and personal with bighorn sheep and other native wildlife. The town itself has a variety of shops and restaurants and there are several historical sites and museums in the area. The Columbia Icefield , Lake Louise, the Vermillon Lakes, and Jasper National Parks are all easily accessible from Banff.
11.9.10Theme Park Accidents Rising
Planning a trip to Florida is usually about which theme parks to visit and how much to spend on a hotel. What many people fail to plan for is those Disney world accidents that can turn a family vacation into a nightmare.
Most accidents fall into the minor category and don’t even get reported. These include sunburns, heat exhaustion and mild cases of food poisoning. Likewise, someone who trips and scrapes a knee or bruises an arm on a ride isn’t likely to seek medical attention. However, even these small accidents can bring down the mood of an excursion and parents should take care to avoid these types of incidents.
More serious accidents do occur at theme parks all the time, and those numbers have been rising. Over the past five years, emergency room visits caused by theme park ride injuries have jumped nearly 87 percent. This is according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. This is especially alarming given that there is no single agency or organization responsible for collecting data on theme park accidents. Some parks voluntarily report accidents through industry groups or under state regulations. However, there is no single law requiring reports and no place to compile all the data. The best thing parents can do is abide by all posted safety notices at a park and follow the instructions of ride attendants — and teach their children to do the same.
10.16.10Travel Insurance is a Necessity not a Luxury
For anyone who travels internationally on a regular basis, the need for travel insurance should not be overlooked. Relying on personal medical and property insurance to cover you when you’re moving from country to country is unrealistic. It’s better to obtain adequate coverage from a TATA AIG travel insurance policy or other reputable policy.
The best travel insurance policies cover a variety of areas. Remember that even though you don’t plan to run into trouble overseas, you’re actually putting yourself at risk whenever you travel. Lost baggage and trip delays can leave you stranded for days. Losing a passport is also a major headache. And you can never predict when an accident or illness may require medical attention. It’s much better to have insurance that covers all these incidents, even if they never happen.
Some travel policies include emergency cash services and document replacement so that you can feel truly secure, no matter what befalls you during your trip. As with any insurance, you’ll want to make sure you understand all the terms and conditions of the policy and riders. Most importantly, make sure that the policy includes all countries you’ll be visiting and a cushion of dates around your actual trip, in case you are waylaid at some point.
10.3.10Vancouver’s MacMillan Space Centre
Space lovers who find themselves in Vancouver, British Columbia will want to check out the H. R. MacMillan Space Centre in Vanier Park. The Centre’s mission is to provide innovative activities, programming, and exhibits that inspire, educate, and evoke a sense of wonder about planet earth, space exploration, and the entire universe. Adjacent to the Space Centre is the Gordon MacMillan Southam Observatory which offers star gazers the chance to view the night sky through a 1/5 meter Cassegrain telescope .
If you’re staying in one of the top Vancouver hotels with your family, consider taking them to this all-ages attraction. The Space Centre features domes shows in the Planetarium Star Theatre, live demonstrations in Groundstation Canada, exhibits and games in the Cosmic Courtyard and holds Laser & Light shows on Friday and Saturday nights.
In October 2010, the Center will be hosting a series of presentations and discussions titled Life Beyond Earth? which will include talks on Astrobiology , UFOs and Other Unexplained Sky Sightings, and Exo-Planets: the Search for Earth-like Worlds.
Visitors can purchase an Explorepass which grants them access to the MacMillan Space Centre, the Vancouver Museum, and the Vancouver Maritime Museum, all located in Vanier Park.
09.24.10Traipsing the Ping Shan in Hong Kong
If you’re in Hong Kong and looking for something to get you out of your Hong Kong Hotel that isn’t the usual tourist trap, consider following the Ping Shan Heritage Trail. This walk was inaugurated in 1993 and offers visitors a walk through the Ping Shan district, encompassing several monuments and several of the city’s traditional Chinese structures.
Ping Shan is located in the New Territories and the Heritage Trail takes walkers through several districts: Hang Tau Tsuen, Sheung Cheung Wai, and Hang Mei Tsuen. Approximately 1 kilometer in length, the trail has numerous signposts to keep you on track as well as information boards at the monuments and buildings that explain their historical significance. One of the highlights of the Ping Shan is Tsui Sing Lau Pagoda which is the only ancient pagoda still standing in the region. Other unique sites include the walled village of Sheung Cheung Wai, the Tang Ancestral Hall, the Yeung Hau Temple and the Hung Shing Temple. You can even catch students at the Kun Ting Study Hall preparing for the Imperial Civil Service Exam.
All in all, the Ping Shan Heritage Trail is the perfect activity for anyone wanting to get a sense of the city’s history and traditions while enjoying the outdoors and getting some physical exercise at the same time.
09.20.10New Orleans Japan Fest Begins in October
The Japan Club of New Orleans is once again participating with the New Orleans Museum of Art , the Japan Garden Society and the Japan Society of New Orleans, for the annual Japan Fest 2010. Slated for this coming October 9, 2010 (Saturday), the front steps, the adjoining meadow and the galleries of the New Orleans Museum of Art will be featuring performances from local artists, merchandise and food. The event begins at 10am and will end at 4:30pm.
There are many five star New Orleans hotels nearby for visitors from out-of-town. Come enjoy an autumn afternoon with a touch of Japan in the air.
If you can’t make it to the Japan Fest, still make a visit to the museum. Currently, ‘Ancestors and Descendants: Ancient Southwestern America at the Dawn of the Twentieth Century’ is the newest exhibit featuring selections from the George Pepper Native American Archive. The exhibition consists of 73 antique photographs of Native American subjects, including photographs printed from antique glass lantern slides, as well as 84 Native American artifacts including Pueblo and Navajo textiles, jewelry and pottery. All items were collected by George Hubbard Pepper between 1895 and 1905. He was the first anthropologist and archeologist to excavate Pueblo Bonito in New Mexico. The images and objects is only a representative of Pepper’s large archive, which has mostly been unknown and rarely seen by the public. The exhibit runs until October 28, 2010.
09.2.10Wheaton Mahoney in Palm Beach
The spectacular living in Palm Beach is a draw for tourists from all over the world, and it has a very strong pull for anyone who’s had the chance to visit. Some come to enjoy a weekend at the luxury Palm Beach hotels , and some even decide this is where they’d like to live. It also pulls in a lot of artists and creative types, where the standard of living is pretty high, and there’s always inspiration to be found in the nightlife and the landscapes.
It pulled Wheaton Mahoney all the way from the Northeast, where she lives and works as a photographer. Based in Tequesta, her work draws upon common objects to pull out common themes that transcend the work while also locating it quite deftly in a singular place. Whether focusing on a simple image, or drawing out complex patterns of color, the work is affecting in its quiet gaze.
Her self-portrait, Memory , is a woman on the edge of the sea, taken from three angles so she is looking at the past, present, and future. This was from a time when she was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, and she was able to work her way through the trauma with her own exceptional capability to see.
08.31.10Beauty and Natural Wonders for California Sightseeing
There is so much to do and discover in the state of California that it is nearly impossible to explore the whole state during a single vacation. And honestly, why would anyone want to? That would mean that to cover the entire California map you would have to sacrifice spending any amount of time in one location and almost every major city and geographic region of this state has enough offerings to occupy an entire two week vacation, or longer. Los Angeles alone tends to consider itself the center of all earth globes and this is primarily because it is the center of major entertainment industries such as film .
There are numerous film and entertainment industry icons and landmarks located in this city, and Hollywood is right next door. However, some of the favorite tourist attractions are not actually related to the film industry. Disneyland is across the mountains, but it is near enough that numerous tourists stay in Los Angeles when they visit this popular theme park. The beach is another main attraction in the city, and it simply comes with the territory. The LaBrea Tar Pits is another natural attraction, and it is interesting that in a city dominated by materialism and consumer markets, some of the main attractions are provided directly from mother earth and have nothing to do with society, other than we tend to be fascinated by them.
08.17.10Package Hawaii
Hawaii vacations are extremely popular mainly because visitors are unaware Hawaii is a chain of islands, then after they arrive, then notice they’ve only booked a beach hotel Hawaii is known for on one island only. They begin to realize they’ll have to come back another time and visit the remaining islands. This is where a Hawaii vacation package would have made sure the vacationers see a much of all the Hawaii Islands as possible, and for a very reasonable rate.
The islands of Hawaii are a distinct from one another as beans in a mixed bean soup. Honolulu, which is on the island of Oahu, has great burger bars, a night life as good as Rio’s, and an American lifestyle . It has no resemblance to the beauty of Maui and the peaceful, serene solitude of Molokai. Each Hawaii Island has its own special interesting attractions of offer, even down to its own mini-climate.
A vacation package to the Hawaiian Islands can range from a stay in a single beach hotel on one of the islands to a cruise around all the islands allowing vacationers a chance to visit each one. Visitors will have more peace of mind knowing that their vacation was put together by experts who are well acquainted with Hawaii. Most vacation packages will include all the transportation, lodging and even some meals.
Many visitors, once they realize they need to see ‘all’ of Hawaii, will book a vacation package for 2 weeks. However there are shorter or lengthier packages available, just know the shorter the trip, the less time there is on each island.
08.12.10There is more to Albany than being the State Capital
Albany is not only New York’s state capital, but offers a great variety of visual interesting Dutch colonial architecture , superb performing art venues and wonderful recreational areas. With over 100,000 visitors monthly, all the five star Albany hotels are kept quite busy accommodating vacationers, business people, international traveling governmental figures and local government officials alike.
Albany’s architecture is strongly influenced by the Dutch, which is due to the Dutch were the first settlers. The Dutch style focused on utility and substance as opposed to elegance and flair. There still some examples of the New World Dutch architecture that still remain today, the Van Rensselaer house and the Schuyler home. Both were built around 1667. The Dutch Reformed Church is somewhat newer, built around 1715.
The Albany Palace Theater and the Capital Repertory Theater both produce Broadway quality productions throughout the year and thousands of New Yorkers will travel up to Albany just to see one of their productions.
When Albany’s weather is favorable, there are a variety of recreational areas such as Washington Park, which is known as the oldest city park in New York, established in 1809, but has been used as a recreational site for over 300 years. The Albany Riverfront Park is another great place to check out; it has an 800-seat amphitheater that holds events beginning in spring and last till the end fall, plus the Riverfront features bike trails and a boat launch.
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