Travel

Tag Archives for Travel.

All about Embassies, Consulates and High Commissions

Thank you for the comments and feedback on last weeks’ post on how to prepare for a potential disaster when you are travelling (terror related or natural disaster). One of the things I encouraged you to do was to “Know the contact number(s) for the Embassy, High Commission or Consular office in the city you are visiting“. A few people indicated confusion over what an embassy is and what it can do. Like most people. I rarely encounter embassies, except for where I have friends working for one or I go to a Festival or…

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162nd Blog in Top 1000+ Travel Bloggers

The Top 1000+ Travel bloggers started in April 2014 with 1000 travel bloggers and 700 additional bloggers have since joined the community. The main objective of this success tracking program is to give each blogger a regular personal score that reflects as accurately as possible their success in their activity – in this case, blogging about travel.   The #travel1k score has been designed to measure digital & online influence. The scoring algorithm is not perfect but it is an interesting measure. For a numbers nerd like me, it is fascinating! My ranking is 162nd…

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We travellers must reduce trash

I was walking along this Thailand beach recently and was distressed at how much litter I gathered up in one short 20-minute walk. Beautiful sand was covered with the detritus of broken bottles, glass, plastic bags and more. I found a plastic bag and had soon filled it with crap. It made me reflect on how much trash we travellers create. In the Maldives, Bluepeace estimates that each traveller produces 3.5 kilograms (7.7 pounds) of rubbish a day.  Globally, eight million tonnes of plastic end up in our oceans. That is the same as five grocery…

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Three Airlines give points for AirBnB stays

I am a huge AirBNB fan both as guest and host (see below). I have stayed in AirBnBs in seven countries. Whilst there have been some very public battles between AirBNB and several cities, its expansion appears to continue unthwarted. In a study published this year, Skift suggested that ” hotels need not be too overly concerned about the threat of Airbnb on their bottom lines” I think it is significant that airlines are now giving points for AirBnbs booked through their sites. Delta has joined the club this week. Virgin America appears to have…

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East West -Home’s Best!

These are taken on the beach near my home outside Melbourne. Sitting here, one can reduce stress by 90%! This week, I flew on my 1150th flight of my life! I have flown 88 times this year so far, a distance of almost three times around the world.  I am very blessed in what I see, experience and achieve. Despite working interstate a lot, coming back to “my beach” is one of the highlights of life. What about you? Where is your favourite home spot? Related Posts Local Ferry in the Maldives Malaysia Airlines Airbus 330…

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100 Free Travel Tips

As a travel geek, I have gained a lot of learnings and experience from 60 countries, three war zones, 1064 flights, multiple long distance train, bus and boat journeys and 21 suitcases!  One of my motivations for blogging is sharing what I have learnt so that travel is easier and safer for others. Here are 100 of my travel tips arranged in ten key categories: Planning Booking Travel Tools Accommodation Money Luggage En Route Attitude Safety and Security At Your Destination Any suggestions or requests welcomed. 1.  Planning Stop Wishing and Do it- Life’s Bucket…

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Don’t be pound foolish

This old English saying comes from the early 17th Century. It describes a person who is thrifty (or miserly) with small amounts of their money, but wasteful with larger amounts. Travelling I see plenty of people guilty of this! I used to work with a very wise man called Tom. He taught me the value of valuing my time and money.  He noted that his predecessor used to drive across town two hours and back to save the $10 delivery fee on a particular supply. Tom noted it was costing the company $35 to save that $10. Tom noted…

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My Top Travel Tips of 2014

I love sharing things that I find make my travel faster, easier, more enjoyable, safer and cheaper. My ultimate aim is to let my travel serve me not the other way around! In 2014, readers liked the following Travel Tips posts the most: Travel insurance Rocks! The Man in Seat 61 – the best guide to riding trains across the globe -ever Seven Things not to pack – which generated some controversy with heaps of comments! What to do with left over foreign coins? Some very helpful comments here Don’t carry a Money Belt-my other controversial…

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Martial Law in Thailand- Staying Safe [Updated]

Update: Thursday 22nd May, 2014 16:30h  Local Time : The Situation in Thailand has changed and the army has taken full control dismissing the government. Its food is unparalleled, beaches beautiful, people lovely, shopping bargains superb and reputation for wild and fun times unsurpassed. Sadly Thailand also has a history and a culture for military interventions for nine decades. According to media sources, the Royal Thai Army declared martial law nationwide at 3am Tuesday 20 May local time (Monday, 19 May: 8pm GMT or 1pm US West Coast time).  Army chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha said the…

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Travelling with Others (without tears)

As a people watcher, I am sometimes morbidly fascinated by what can be very public fights by fellow travellers. You have probably spotted couples not talking for days or having screaming fights in the middle of airports, hotels and train stations. I know friends who have vowed never to travel with each other again. Here are some thoughts on avoiding frustrations with your travel mates: 1. Choose Your Travel Companion(s) Carefully Be aware that if you find someone’s behaviours irritating on a day to day basis, then on a trip any irritation will be magnified…

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