About This Blog

Showing posts with label Europe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Europe. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Swapping Your Home? Here Are Some Tips

Are you planning to take a vacation but worried about the hotel rates and the restaurant bills. This vacation why dont you swap your home. Started somewhere in Europe, home swapping is a very popular trend which allows vacation makers to enjoy the comfort of home while away from home. In case if you have never heard about this term, well home swapping is a way through which vacationers swap their home with other vacationers. For example: You are staying in New York City and you are planning to visit London, with home swapping, you find another vacation maker from London who wants to visit New York City. Since both of you wants to visit each other cities, instead of staying in a hotel you swap your home with that person. Simple. The best part is, there are countless of home swapping websites such as the homeexchange, homeforexchange and homeswapper, which help travelers in finding the right partner.

Home swapping is an amazing way to save money on your hotel rates plus to experience the culture and lifestyle of that particular city at its best, but unfortunately, home swapping also has its share of disadvantage. Here are some simple and common how swapping tips that will help you avoid unwanted trouble while swapping your home.

1. The most important of all is finding the right partner with common interest such as if you are travelling with toddlers, find a partner who also has a toddler. That way you dont have to spend more money on basic stuffs such as toys, story books and so on.

2. If you are using a website to find a swap partner, please stick with a reputed website. You may have to pay a little extra bucks but its worth it.

3. Before finalizing anything, spend some time corresponding with your swap partner. After all you are about to hand over your beloved home to a stranger.
4. Request your partner to leave instructions and details for operating home appliances, including television, washing machine and so on. You too do the same for your partner.

5. Dont forget to ask your partner to leave details of the nearest super market, restaurants, local parks and gardens. Plus the emergency contact numbers such as police, ambulance. You must also leave all the emergency number of your city.

6. Do clean your home before you head out and dont forget to clean up his/ hers home before you move out. Do let them know where you are keeping your house keys, where they will be keeping their keys.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Enjoy a Hassle-Free Vacation in a Foreign Country

Do you love to travel? Then am sure going to places you have never been to, experiencing diverse culture, savoring different cuisine and meeting people from across the globe, must excites you.. Well traveling is very safe, compared to some years back. BE it Asia, Africa, Middle East or anywhere else it’s very safe. Unless the country you are visiting is in the middle of a war.

Though traveling is safe, one needs to be always on alert. We should always follow some tips and tricks to avoid those travel pitfalls. If you are planning to travel to a country you have never been to, here are some tips that will help you enjoy a hassle free vacation:

• The most important of all is; do a research of that destination you will be visiting, in advance. Spend some time surfing the net, check out the endless of online travel sites; visit the country official tourist site. Collect information about the current political situation, best time to visit, tips on accommodations, things and places to avoid, medical related tips, your embassy phone number, emergency numbers and so on.

• Knowing the local customs and traditions is very important, especially while traveling to Middle-East, Africa and some parts of Asia. This includes like how you should dress, especially for ladies, public display of affection (PDA), hand gesture and so on.

• No matter, where you are heading, always try your best to dress like the locals. Leave all your blings at home, try to avoid white sneakers, especially white, and fanny pack. Don’t show off that ultra-chic digital camera or any electronic gadgets like cell phones, iPods in the public.

• As any wise traveler would do, do not keep all your important documents like credit cards, cash, ID cards, and passport in the same place. Get at least three photocopy all your important documents. Never give your passport to the hotel clerks, but in some countries like Italy, you need to surrender your passport to the hotel clerk. In this case, while submitting demand the hotel to issue some sort of written proof that the passport is with the hotel.

• Always carry your bags, handbags or suitcase on the side of the body not facing the traffic. Always be on alert while using public transportations like bus or trains. Avoid places which are not well-lighted. Never exchange your currency with illegal agents.

You need not worry about a thing, even if you are traveling to a complete foreign country. All you have to do is plan wisely and follow common pre-cautions. Head out to the streets of the world, explore and experience the world, life loves to be ridden to the fullest.

Source: Click Here