Top 10 Free Things for Travelers

Considering the fact that free activities are a welcome bonus for travelers of all ages and incomes, Travel Web site Travelandleisure.com has come up with a list of the world’s best free stuff for travelers.

1. Free sightseeing: Get the inside track on a city from someone who knows it best — a local. These volunteers want to show off their town, and won’t demand a tip. Greeters can be scheduled via e-mail or telephone and should be arranged several weeks to a month ahead.

Free Bicycles

2. Free bicycles: Zip around town on two wheels. In Copenhagen, Zurich, Bern and Helsinki, you can borrow a bicycle from stands stationed around the city. Each program requires a nominal deposit which is returned after your ride when you lock the bike up. Many cities, including Paris, Vienna, Rome, and Lyon, offer free bikes for the first half hour (after that you’ll have to fork over some cash).

3. Free podcasts: Download podcasts to your MP3 player and get a step-by-step narration of some of the world’s hottest spots. In Europe, Rick Steves will guide you through the Louvre, Versailles, the Coliseum, the Sistine Chapel, the Uffizi Gallery and other sites. Zevisit has free downloadable audio guides to scores of European cities. Author Peter Caine has a free podcast based on his book, “Walking the Da Vinci Code” in Paris. Open House New York also offers a number of free podcasts of notable buildings.

4. Free Public Transport: In Europe, 27 InterCity Hotels throughout Germany and one in Vienna offer free local public transportation to guests while visitors to New York can’t beat the spectacular view of the skyline during the 25-minute ride on the Staten Island Ferry.

5. Free accommodation: A hotel can be the most expensive part of a vacation so try living in someone else’s home while they live in yours. List your house or apartment on a vacation-exchange site like Only in America. To go global, the International Home Exchange Network features listings all over the world.

Skiing

6. Free skiing: Try the Utah package where an early morning flight to Salt Lake City provides a boarding pass on which you can ski all day at Deer Valley Resort, Park City Mountain Resort, and The Canyons Resort. In Colorado, several resorts offer some type of free-skiing program to reward volunteer work and Quebec give a one day pass to anyone who dresses like Santa on Santa Claus Day.

7. Free sports events: Each year, dozens of Olympic teams train at the Utah Olympic Park, site of 14 events during the 2002 Olympic Winter games while at Lake Placid, New York, you can watch Olympic and professional figure skaters and hockey teams training for free.

8. Free museums and zoos: Some of the world’s top museums don’t charge a cent. The national museums and galleries in England, Scotland, and Wales are free and you can’t miss the National Gallery, the British Museum, the Tate Modern and the Victoria and Albert. In Washington, DC, admission to all 19 Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo is free and includes the National Portrait Gallery, the Air and Space Museum, and Natural History museums.

9. Free concerts: Top-notch music from world-class performers can be a pricey affair but in rare spots around the globe. In South Africa, the precursor to the annual Cape Town Jazz Festival is the free concert on Greenmarket Square, which kicks off the main festival. At Antibes, France, take in the finale free concert at the celebrated Jazz a Juan International Annual Jazz Festival and in Montreal each year, the Montreal International Jazz Festival has a dozen stages of free open-air concerts.

10. Free movies: In Paris every summer, the ultramodern Parc de la Villette outside the city draws movie lovers with its giant outdoor screen and free Open Air Cinema festival. In Baltimore, The American Visionary Art Museum sponsors Flicks on the Hill, an outdoor film series featuring free outdoor movies while Pismo Beach, California presents cinema under the stars every other Wednesday.

Planning the Perfect Summer Vacation and Avoiding Pitfalls

Summer breaks are supposed to let you escape from the daily humdrum, release your work stress, and spend quality time with your loved ones. The tale of vacations purported to be fun, yet turned disastrous is an old story and there are a myriad of reasons why. But, we can avoid these pitfalls by planning wisely.

Here are some tips on how to have a great summer vacation:

• Choose where you want to take your vacation well in advance. Research the destination. Book your airline tickets, hotel rooms and rental cars in advance to get the best deal. Planning in advance always pays off.
• If you’ve got to really tighten the purse strings, consider a local vacation, like a national park or city with lots of free or low cost sightseeing opportunities.
• If you’re traveling with a companion, pack half of your clothes in each others suitcases. If one of your bags is lost, you still have some clothes and essentials to get you through until your bag is found.

· Always allow extra time for check-in, as so many flights are delayed due to recent airline cutbacks. If you are sending a minor child alone on a flight, book a direct flight. Check the schedule with the airline
the night before and get the name of the airline personnel who will escort your child to the gate.

· Check the latest travel information for your destination. Take out the right travel insurance that will cover you from unforeseen emergencies while traveling.

Anyone can enjoy a hassle-free vacation; all we need to do is plan wisely. This summer, plan ahead; pay special attention to the smallest details and enjoy a stress-free summer vacation!

From Extreme Sports to Extreme Culture – CheapOair Now Offers Extreme Access to Trip Activities around the Globe

It happens a lot. In a new city for the first time and wondering where to begin – what tours are right for you, how do you get tickets to the most sought after show in town or where to turn for excursion information? Often, unless you are at a deluxe hotel with an experienced concierge, you are on your own to navigate through all that your destination has to offer. CheapOair has just made this seemingly daunting task as easy as a click of the button. Now offering everything from shark diving to theater tickets to sightseeing tours, we’ve got it all under one roof at deep discounts.

Never waste valuable vacation time standing in line for tickets again. With our “Skip the Line” feature, you simply print a voucher from your email address and worry only about showing up for your activity. Ever wanted to experience your destination like a local but wound up hitting all the wrong spots? With everything from Vegas VIP nightclub passes to art tours in Europe to Pub Crawls in Dublin, we’ve done the research for you. Whether you prefer to experience local culinary flair or walk on the wild side with safari tours and cliff diving, it’s all right here. With over 5,500 activities in 400 cities in 75 countries, we can offer something for everyone whether you prefer to relax or crave an adrenaline rush, take a tour of our tours, save up to 25% and unlock the key to your destination.