By Cristina Amigoni

Slow travel is the new way to travel the world. It gives you the opportunity to become part of the local life, connect to a place, its people and its culture.

Movie sensations like Under the Tuscan Sun and books like Eat, Pray, Love have sparked the new desire to experience the culture of a place and really get the sense of what life is about, whether you are visiting the Tuscan country side, or the small village on Spanish coast.

There are three key elements that set apart Slow Travel Tours from regular Tours:

Small groups: It is essential on these tours to limit the number of guests. Having only 10-12 guests really gives the tour guides and operator the chance to provide the much needed personal attention. Catering to larger groups only means herding people around for hours without really ensuring that each person is having the experience of a lifetime.

Local experience: Tours must focus on the local life. The ideal vacation now includes shopping at the village markets and learning how to cook the local dishes. Tours should be focused on quality not quantity, keeping the traveling from place to place to a minimum and really taking in the local life.

Lodging in one location:Gone are the hectic holiday tours where you run from one must see to another, only to arrive home feeling like you need a holiday. Slow Travel tours are about slowing down and joining in local happenings. Slow travelers stay in one place for at least a week. The room in the family-run B&B becomes your new home away from home.

Try Slow Travel, next time you plan to Tour Italy, and bring a little bit of culture and local life back with you, to complement your digital pictures.

By Ken C. Morris

What according to you is the best way to travel, would it be by guided travel or individual travel? We recently took a trip to Washington. Taking a bus tour that would take us around the capital showing us the highlights, this turned out to be a good decision. We were allowed to travel by foot the next day to see those sights we wanted to from up close. Giving us an opportunity to plan our three days in the city and select what we wanted to see.

The San Francisco Bay Area which happens to be a favorite holiday spot for me and my family holds many pleasant and cherished memories of our holidays in those places. There are few places, which are so much haunted by tourists that you could visit them on your own. As a result you can decide on your own time and pace to visit. Good examples of the same are Fisherman's Wharf and Pier39. By walking a couple of blocks you can see the Aquarium of the Bay, or cruise around San Francisco Bay, take some time at the Riptide Arcade on Pier 39 and go around the famous Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum.

Those traveling without a guide might like to buy a San Francisco City Pass. Buying this would give you tickets to five hot spots, apart from free rides on the Cable Cars and an optional ticket which could be used at select optional places like the Steinhart Aquarium or Legion of Honor & Academy of Science.

There are some attractions again where you would enjoy more with a tour guide. While on Alcatraz Island, you could go solo, but having a lively tour guide or listening to earphones could make you aware of the interesting points when you go through them.

The Walking Tours of Chinatown are a must see. This adds to the behind the scenes colorful picture of the place. This tour takes you through the history and traditions of the local people and familiarizes you with the culture you would never understand on your own.

San Francisco has almost 30 fun and free walking tours of the city. For information on these free tours, visit http://www.sfcityguides.org.

It is the same for Napa valley tours. You could drive up to the place yourself while looking around, but a guided tour to some of the vineyards and wine tasting rooms would make it more interesting.

A 17-mile drive to the coast is also a favorite driving tour. The winding roads give you fantastic views of beautiful mansions and the country side. You would be traveling through Carmel and Pebble Beach Golf Club.

Whether you chose to visit alone or take a guided tour, should depend on your place of visit and what you want to see. Mixing a bit of both could make your travel tour worthwhile.

By Luis JJ Teixeira

One of the best ways to travel anywhere in the world afford-ably, is by bus. This also gives you access to a lot of the stuff that you would not be able to experience if you traveled by yourself. Tour buses really do make the world of difference, not only in the sightseeing experience, but you also get to meet like-minded individuals on the trip.

The greatest benefit of making use of the service is that you will be given access to any travel destination you can think of, and more. It does not matter if you want to travel in the US, Europe, Asia or Australia, there are different packages available for you to make use of, and one that will surely match your budget.

Why would you make use of this service that allows you to book any travel tour bus worldwide? Firstly, you will have access to the largest availability of tours and sightseeing packages. You will be able to access them online and determine beforehand exactly where you're planning to spend your vacation. Plus, you'll be able to ask any question you want to know about your travel package on the tour bus and a dedicated customer service team will get back to you quickly.

Currently, it makes a lot of sense to travel on a tour bus from a financial perspective. Simply put, it is far cheaper to make use of a tour bus. If you had to calculate what it would cost you to travel in a rental car plus all the fuel costs, toll fees and parking, you would not think twice about taking a tour bus vacation. If you would like to work out how much it would cost you to travel by car or rental car I recommend you go to the following website (http://www.travelmath.com/fuel-cost)

Another reason to make use of a tour bus is the possibility that you are thinking "green" and you're thinking for a head of anyone else. You'd like to preserve the earth and all of its natural resources while touring, that is why it makes perfect sense for you to travel and share a tour bus with 40 to 60 people. You will not only travel cheaper, but you will also cut down on pollution and energy wastage.

Now that you know the main reasons why you should be making use of a tour bus to travel to your next travel destination or vacation, you're probably going to ask me then, how safe is it to book your bus ticket with this online service? I have done a lot of research and tested a lot of services out there. All of them had their positives and negatives, but what made this online booking service unique is the fact that it has a wide variety of tour bus packages. To book, all you have to do is follow a simple 3 step process to book your bus ticket.

This is definitely the way that you should be traveling, all the time because it just makes perfect sense. Not only will you save yourself some money, but you'll also be saving our planet at the same time.

By Jasons Born

Many people see their travel to Europe as their dream tour but financial restraints stops them to visit their dream location. Europe is the most beautiful continent in the world. The fact about Europe came out in the year 2004 when world tourist organization declared Europe as the most visited continent. In this year 59% of the total travelers of the world went on the tour to Europe only. Cheap Europe tour is the smart way to fulfill your dream.

Europe is the hub of tourist destinations. Many countries here have lots of world heritage spots. With cheap Europe travel, traveling to this continent is no more an expensive deal. Cheap Europe tour is an option for traveler which is now a days available with all most every travel agency. These packages are the best option for traveling to the most demanded places with in your pocket.

Cheap travel tours are comprises of travel tickets, accommodation, sight seeing and even travel guides with transportation facility. Various deal options are provided to you to choose from. You can choose out of the options available that best suits you. These options gives you chance to visit various major spots under the professional guidance. These cheap tour offers encompasses of everything that will fulfill your all traveling needs. This option is cheap and gives you a tension free journey. You can enjoy the most of your trip with your loved ones to the fullest. One can travel any place in Europe with a cheap Europe tour. Also one can compare packages to find one that fits into their requirements.

Cheap Europe tours are even customized at some travel agencies allowing you to select the tour of your favorite countries in Europe. These tours are better since they take up all your worries about your trip and let you enjoy the scenic natural and blissful trip to the beautiful continent Europe.

By Michael Braganza

India is a diverse country which can be seen in its all sphere. One can see its diversity in its culture, tradition, geography, dialects, dress, people, lifestyle, etc. And it is its diversity which makes it one of the most popular destinations for travel and tourism. Every year a large gathering of tourists from all around the world visit India and get enchanted with its various tourism options.

There are a lot of tourism options in the country which are very popular among travelers from all over the world. Rich culture, rich history, rich flora & fauna, picturesque landscapes, rich cultural heritage, blazing desert, superb natural beauty, magnificent monuments, art & architecture, rich tradition and above all hospitable Indian people are enough to deserve the attention of tourists from each corner of the world to visit India.

India is an exotic tourist destination offering a range of incentive tours to the country such as golden triangle travel, Goa beach tours, religious and spiritual tours, Kerala backwater tours, cultural tours, historical tours, business and corporate tours, beach resort tours, birding tours, temple tours, Ayurveda tours, desert tours, Himalayan trekking, nature tours, wildlife tours, honeymoon tours, adventure and sporting tours, train tours, city tours, Taj Mahal tours, educational tours, hill station tours, eco tours, luxurious holiday tours, Rajasthan tours, etc. Surely these special tours to the country will add a special charm on your India visit.

There are several popular places of tourist interest in the country. Each tourist place of the country is known for its own charm and specialties. It doesn't matter, whatever destination or region you travel in. Everywhere you will get unique and pleasant travel experience on your India tours. There are several tour operators and travel agents in the country who cater its amazing tourism and offer exciting tours and travel packages. India travel tours package makes you enable to travel all the major tourist destination of India in more and more convenient ways.

Rajasthan, Delhi, Varanasi, Agra, Kashmir, etc are some popular destinations of north India. During your north India visit you will have wonderful opportunity to visit some wonderful tourist attractions such as Taj Mahal in Agra, magnificent monuments in Rajasthan, extra-ordinary natural beauty in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir, etc. South part of the country is also very popular among tourist from all over the world. You will have wonderful opportunity to visit some wonderful tourist attractions like verdant hill stations, exotic beaches, architecturally beautiful monuments, picturesque landscapes, etc during your visit of south part of the country.

Now-a-days east India tours are also very popular among tourists. Assam, West Bengal, Sikkim, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, etc are some popular tourist destinations of east part of the country. East India is very famous for green tourism or eco tourism. West India is also famous among travelers from all around the world. It is one of the most travel friendly destinations in India. Goa, Gujarat, Maharashtra, etc are famous tourist destinations of west part of the country. Beaches of Goa and lifestyle of Mumbai draw the attention of tourists to explore the beautiful landscapes of western India.

Central India is also famous among tourists. When you will visit central India you will have wonderful opportunity to see and enjoy some of famous attractions like Khajuraho temples, Bandhangarh National Park, Kanha National Park, Gwalior Fort, Dense Jungles, etc. In fact, India has a lot of tourism options and never fails to enchant its visitors. It has some thing for everyone. If you too are interested in , you have rightly chosen a destination full of unlimited tourism options. Surly destination India tours will grab you heart.

By Mark Minding

If you haven’t been to Australia or are planning to visit it a second time, then you must have all the information about the places to visit so that you can fully experience the wonderful land that is Australia.

Australia is the sixth-largest country in the world and is divided into 6 states and several territories. The 6 states are New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. The two major territories are the Northern Territory (NT) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).

The largest part of Australia is desert or semi-arid, but the south-east and south-west corners have temperate climate and moderately fertile soil. The northern part has tropical climate, which is part tropical rainforest, part grassland and part desert.

When you go to Australia, you just cannot miss seeing The Great Barrier Reef. It is the world’s largest coral reef and extends for over 1,200 kms! It lies a short distance from the north-east coast.

Another spectacular place to visit is Uluru. It is the second largest monolith in the world and is located in central Australia. You can also visit the Great Artesian Basin, which is the world’s largest and deepest fresh water basin. Along with its beauty, it also serves as an important source of water in the parched outback.

You sure can’t miss going to Sydney if you visit Australia. Sydney is located in a coastal basin situated between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Blue Mountains to the west. You can enjoy all the activities associated with beaches because there are more than 70 beaches in Sydney! If you have limited time, then you can only go to the famous Bondi Beach of Australia.

Sydney has more amazing landmarks for you like Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House. Both are located in Sydney Harbour. If you are interested in rowing, boating, recreational fishing, racing small yachts and Dragon Boat racing, then you can get all that in Sydney Harbour.

The city also boasts of musical, theatrical and artistic activities which come under one roof in the Sydney Festival which happens every January. More information can be found here - [http://www.australias.co.uk/sydneyaustralia/]

Melbourne is another major city of Australia which is situated in the south-east corner of the mainland Australia. It has a large and vibrant cultural life along with a chain of pubs, bars and nightclubs. Fashionable nightclubs, ubiquitous faux-Irish pubs, serious jazz venues on Bennetts Lane, massive pickup joints like The Metro on Bourke Street are all part of the city’s magic.

If shopping is what tempts you the most, then there are many reasonably priced shopping places where you can go and shop till you drop. Melbourne has innumerable clothing shops for every budget and various outlet stores in Bridge Road, Richmond for bargain hunters too!

Perth is a city known for the pristine quality of its beaches. Unbroken stretches of golden sands run through the entire length of the city’s coastal suburbs. If you are a nature lover, then you got to see this place.

Adelaide or the ‘City of Churches’, as it is often referred as, is a coastal city situated on the Fleurieu Peninsula. The name City of Churches is a reflection of Adelaide’s past rather than its present. The city has many wine growing districts such as the Baroosa valley.

Food lovers can taste traditional Australian cuisine which consists of grilled chops, Sunday roasts etc. Some English trends are still evident in domestic cuisine like hot roast turkey, chicken or ham with all the trimmings followed by Christmas pudding. Australia’s two most traditional takeaway dishes are the meat pie and sausage roll.

By Manish Caper

A typical Goan town is one that showcases the Portuguese influence all around. What else can beat a Margao city guide when it comes to Goa India tourism?! Located 33 km from Panaji, in the heart of the Salcett taluka in the southern part of Goa, the city of Margao is popular as an important commercial center.

Tourist Attractions
As far as tourist attractions are concerned, Margao offers very limited choices. Apart from relaxing beaches, the place has a few highly revered & artistic temples and churches. A few of them are listed as:

* Dotted with colonial style villas and ramshackle fishing huts, Colva is the oldest and the longest of all the beaches in south Goa. Another popular beach is the Benaulim, which lies at a distance of 7 km from Margao. Tourists in heavy numbers can be seen here spending quality time with family/friends or enjoying some of the best water sports.
* The Church of the Holy Spirit or the Largo de Igreja is a beautiful example of Portuguese architecture. This 1675 structure still retains its importance.
* The House of Seven Gables or Sat Burzam Ghor is a beautiful mansion that lies at a walking distance from the Church of the Holy Spirit. The mansion was commissioned in 1790.
* Those who wish to spend romantic evening with their partners, can visit the beautiful Jorge Barreto Park. This municipal garden is surrounded by many restaurants and office buildings.
* Monte Church and the Chandreshwar Bhuthnath Temple are a few other attractions of your Margao trip that are valuable, religiously as well as architecturally.

Earlier, the place was a home to the mathas of the Vaishnava sect. As the number of mathas grew gradually, the place was named 'Matha - gram'. Later the Portuguese renamed it as Margao or Madgao when they started facing problems in pronouncing the name.

By Archna Gupta

Malampuzha is in the state of Kerala in the Palakkad district. It is located on the foothills of the Western Ghats and has a tremendous amount of dense, green foliage to enjoy. In fact, everywhere that you look, beautiful green foliage is there. This foliage creates a serene and almost surreal experience for all that go there.

One of the biggest draws to this particular city is an irrigation dam that was built in 1955. This irrigation dam allows this city to take advantage of its beautiful setting. It helps to irrigate the landscape to make it remain green at all times. This reservoir also adds to the water activities that are possible in the area. Tourists are drawn to this area for its natural beauty and the relaxing atmosphere that exists there because of the impressive, green landscape.

If you are drawn to breathtaking views, this gem of a city has plenty such sights to offer thanks to the greenery as well as the Ghats themselves. If you want to experience some exotic animals, this area can provide you with that possibility. Water activities and relaxing gardens are also possible in the area.

Malampuzha is brimming with both natural and man-made gardens and reservoirs for everyone to enjoy.

Malampuzha Dam

Work on the Malampuzha Dam was begun in 1949. Six years later it was completed and dedicated in 1955. The dam's capacity is 115.06 meters. The dam created the largest irrigation system in Kerala with a network of canals. This reservoir is in a majestic setting. It is located in the Western Ghats with the Ghats towering over the reservoir. The landscape by the dam is green and incredibly beautiful. The Malampuzha Garden is located right by the dam. The reservoir created by the dam is used as a boating destination by many people including tourists.

Udan Khatola

The Udan Khatola is one of the most loved attraction at Malampuzha Gardens. It is the only Passenger Ropeway in South India and is a unique and impressive way to survey the scenery below. This ropeway allows you to travel above the garden, at a height of 60 feet. This height allows you to have a fantastic look at the green garden below, but also of the impressive Western Ghats. The ride is very safe and takes twenty minutes. The ride has two-seater chairs which are 64 in number. These have transparent hoods that provide both clear view of Malampuzha Gardens and safety as well. The cost for a ride ranges from Rs. 30 to Rs. 150, depending on your situation.

Yakshi Statue

The Yakshi Statue is yet another interesting feature in the Malampuzha area. It sits directly in the Malampuzha Gardens and is set off beautifully by the greenery that surrounds it. This statue is an enormous rock sculpture of Yakshi created by the renowned sculptor Kanai Kanhiraman. Yakshi is traditionally thought of as an enchantress, and this persona adds to the intrigue of this magnificent piece of art. To make this statue even more impressive, the entire huge piece was carved out of one single piece of granite. It definitely takes a master artist to manage creating such magnificence with only one huge piece of rock.

By Kuldeep Singh

Train travel in India has progressed through the years in many ways. Earlier on, there were a select few trains that took you across the country with one or two bogey types i.e. chair car or sleeper. You had little choice since train travel in India was very basic once upon a time.

However, today train travel has in some cases gone beyond the satisfaction of air travel. The cause of this was luxury trains in India that changed the entire scenario of how people viewed train travel in India. Train travel was once considered the mode of transport for the common man. Today, the rich are signing up to travel in luxury trains like Palace on Wheels that give you a wholesome train experience amidst the luxurious interiors of customized and hand crafted bogeys that include lavish and ornate upholstery and accessories. Add to this, services of a personalized butler, a dining car, bar, salon and other extras. It's no wonder that luxury trains have gained so much popularity in the world of train travel not only with Indians but also foreigners who come from across the world to experience a ride in one of the luxury trains. In fact, the Palace on Wheels is usually fully booked at least two seasons in advance and it is pretty difficult to get a booking.

So, how does one go about finding out more details of luxury trains in India? The online train ticket booking facility by IRCTC, offers the traveller the convenience getting all the information online, in one go without the hassle of standing in long queues. IRCTC stands for Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited and is the Government of India's train tickets' booking service. You can find information on all types of trains on their website including festival special trains, luxury trains, passenger trains and more. IRCTC is a great reference source for details.

The next time you're thinking about taking a train journey, do it in style. Take a ride on one of India's luxury trains where you will be treated like royalty, with every demand and request being met. You will get an experience of a lifetime.

By Priya Singh

Dubai, a world business hub, is one of the seven emirates that represent the United Arab Emirates on the Persian Gulf and is one of the country's main cities, occasionally called "Dubai City" to make a distinction it from the emirate. Dubai has the biggest population and is the second major emirate by area, after Abu Dhabi. Dubai and Abu Dhabi are the only two emirates to possess veto power over significant matters of national importance in the country's administration.

Dubai International Airport the hub for Emirates Airline, services the city of Dubai and extra emirates in the country. Football and cricket are the most popular sports in Dubai. Five teams - Al Wasl, Al-Shabab, Al-Ahli, Al Nasr and Hatta - represent Dubai in UAE League football. Dubai is notorious for its nightlife. Clubs and bars are found typically in hotels due to the liquor laws. The New York Times listed Dubai as its travel choice for celebrations in 2008. Dubai has a glowing conventional network of print, radio, television and electronic media which service the metropolitan. Several international channels are available through cable, while satellite, radio and local channels are provided via the Arabian Radio Network system. For the duration of Dubai Shopping Festival, shops offer bottomless discounts on their goods, on a daily basis car raffles are drawn, and fireworks light Dubai's night sky. Dubai - admired and called 'city of gold', the city of gold impression was coined during one of the Dubai Shopping Festival attentiveness campaigns, Dubai invited each person from all around the world to a international annual festival which came to be named as the landmark "Dubai Shopping Festival", they came up with the narrative idea of a comprehensive village, a shopping village was conceived with all nations participating with their merchandise and styles in their conventional or literary ways, the settler ex pat inhabitants and the fly in visitors rejoiced in the carnival that took place and the assure was specified that from then on every year Dubai will host a festival for people from all around the world.

The tallest structure in Dubai is the 74-story Almas Tower, which raises 360 meters in height. The Mall of the Emirates is a shopping mall in Dubai. It is currently owned by Majid Al Futtaim. It is currently the largest shopping mall in the Middle East. The mall will also host over 1,000 specialty shops located within the ten to fifteen distinct 'malls-within-a-mall'. The Dubai Metro is a driverless, fully mechanized metro network currently under manufacture in the United Arab Emirates city of Dubai. The World's biggest shopping mall, the South China Mall in Dongguan, China, Dubai Marina is a constituency in the heart of what has a moment ago become known as 'new Dubai', in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The network will have two third rail compilation system motorized lines that will mutually run antiestablishment in the city midpoint and on prominent viaducts elsewhere on double tracks. Dubai will be the boating world's largest attraction next week, as the gates open to the 15th edition of the Dubai International Boat Show (DIBS), the foremost trade fair in the Middle East for the leisure time marine industry.