Category: Travel Tips

ETIAS will be connected to many databases which can verify your information within minutes. That is why it’s important for all applicants to give honest responses and not try giving false information. If you are caught giving fraudulent information to the ETIAS system, you will be denied the authorization. In addition, if your ETIAS is approved, but you are later found with incorrect or false information, your ETIAS will be revoked.

ETIAS, the European Travel and Information System set to roll out in January 2021, will help keep Europe’s Schengen Area a visa-free zone while tightening security, border control and filling information gaps. According to the European Commission, border authorities and law enforcement have little to no information on those who travel visa-free – a luxury tourists have enjoyed when visiting the Schengen countries. Beginning January 2021, eligible visitors can still travel visa-free, but only with an approved ETIAS waiver.

ETIAS, the European Travel Information System, provides qualifying visitors a visa waiver when traveling to the Schengen Area, a group of European countries that have agreed upon who can visit and how long they can stay. The Schengen Area was created by the European Union, or EU, in the spirit of harmonious and free travel between borders and has grown to 26 countries – most are in the EU but some are not. Given the influx of international travelers to the Schengen Area, more comprehensive security checks have had to be put in place. ETIAS, much like ESTA in the United States, will create centralized data on who is visiting and why, providing enhanced security for all.

ETIAS approval allows you to bypass time-consuming and potentially costly visits to embassies and consulates. ETIAS is not a visa. It is a visa waiver. If the purpose of your trip does not fall under the scope of ETIAS, you will need to apply for a traditional visa with each country on your itinerary.

Europe is an amazing travel destination, here are a few attractions you can visit. Melk Abbey is one of the most famous monasteries in the world. Situated high up on cliff, overlooking the calming waters of the Danube river, rests the peaceful Benedictine abbey. Previously the castle of Leopold II, the structure was given to the monks, who transformed it into a place of tranquility and learning in 1089. The impressive spiritual center has become one of the greatest examples of Baroque architecture and the flourishing musical and liberal arts of its time.

Within minutes of your submission of the application, you will get a response on the status of your ETIAS. If it is approved, congratulations! If not, though, you will get the denial message. In the denial message, you will also have a reason as to why the ETIAS was denied. You could appeal to this decision or based on the denial reason, you can adjust your application and try again. Read more details at etia.com.

Let’s discuss about the best travel blogs in 2019. World is flooded with travel blogs so bloggers are forced to become more and more professional, comprehensive, posts get bigger and bigger, filled with more and more information, pictures and other travel things. Here are a few travel blogs that i like reading.

My Life’s A Movie, Alyssa Ramos is a Cuban American (like me!) Florida native. She’s a GoPro selfie ninja master! Seriously tho, she even published ‘10 Tips For Getting Travel Photos With No People In Them’. She’s just that GOOD! Alyssa is also part of the GoPro family and writes for Huffington Post, Matador Network and other media publications. Catch her on Snapchat as she’s always sharing quick travel tips for packing.

Time Travel Turtle: Michael Turtle gave up his career in media in Australia to visit every UNESCO site in the world. Follow his quest and make a list of your own. Emily Luxton Travels: Emily champions solo female adventure travel, with a particular focus on slower, more meaningful travel, rather than a ‘ticking-off’ approach.

David Hoffman is a travel host who is passionate about meeting new people, going new places, and experiencing new cultures. His digital media company, David’s Been Here, delivers travel inspiration and advice to readers, features episodes documenting his travels across six continents, and shares information about travel and lifestyle brands. Emma Higgins’ travel blog, Gotta Keep Movin‘, is a different sort of blog because it dedicates a year to one region of the world at a time. As such, GKM features immersive travel stories and inspirational posts about the culture of travel in the hopes of inspiring you to travel and pursue your own passion every day.

RICE / POTATO is one stunning travel blog, so much so that the moment you see their travel blog, you know immediately how important design is to them. It’s all in the details they put on their travel blog, from the quirky color scheme of pastel blue and orange to the carefully laid-out image composition of each article. A great example of a how their unique take on design helps emphasize their content is on their “9 Thai handicrafts you’ll actually want to buy” article where, with their elaborately designed header image that grabs your attention immediately, each item in the list is also accompanied with minimal yet colorful images with enough amount of text to get you interested.

A blog that i like, one of my favourite travel blogs, is TforTraveller , a travel blog with very good travel articles. The content i like the most are the 72 hours guides, they are perfect for maximizing your fun in a short weekend break. With articles published on a variety of topics, from budget travel to an adventure re pieces, you ’ll be transported to destinations that will make you want to drop everything and pack your bags. We understand that everyone is different You might want to get away for a long weekend, take an extended vacation, or even set off with no return date. Come join us on our journey as we set off to find the most exciting places and activities that the world has to offer, tailored to you. See extra travel stories on TforTraveller.

You Were Told Three Times

 

I WAS WORKING a flight from Los Angeles to New York and we had a full load of passengers. It was customary before the flight for the flight attendants to go up to the cockpit and introduce themselves to the captain and tell him where you were working on the plane. On this particular day, I was working the first-class cabin position, and the captain told me that he wanted to know if there were any problems on the plane concerning commissary items or inflight, after we were airborne.

 

I was thinking to myself, “Where have you been on a number of my flights,” but didn’t say that, thanked him and said I would definitely tell him if we had any problems. I have to admit here I had a name for the really senior captains. I called them, “ballbusters.” They just didn’t let the public get away with too much and they were great to fly with. You knew they had your back. Note: The inelegant expression of ballbusters here is meant as a total compliment.

 

Everything was going along very nicely in flight, no problems in the front or the back of the plane. We’re happy the passengers are happy. And then … a passenger in the last row of first class lights up a cigar. I know you are all staring at this page now. A CIGAR! Yes, we let people smoke pipes and cigars on the plane along with cigarettes then, but there was a caveat to the pipes and cigars. If anyone complained about the odor the smoker would have to put it out. This was even specified in the TWA Ambassador Magazine that was in every seat pocket on the plane.

 

I had the page number memorized.

 

Within minutes a call light comes on in first class. I went back to answer it and it was a female passenger, who asked that the cigar be put out. I acknowledged her request and went back to the cigar smoker.

 

“Sir, I’m sorry but someone has complained about the smell of your cigar and I’m going to have to ask you to put it out.” I immediately turned around and left because I knew that our male passengers were much more agreeable to complying with a request if you didn’t stand over them like their mother or the school principal.

 

How is my request going? Not well. I go back to the cigar smoker about five minutes later and say, “Sir, I know you must be enjoying your cigar, but I’m going to have to ask you again to please put it out because someone has complained about the odor. Thank you.”

 

And again, I leave.

 

Another five minutes goes by and the cigar smoke is still wafting through the cabin. I have to admit here that I was getting ticked now. I walked back and said, “Sir, you have to put out the cigar now.”

 

I take out the TWA Ambassador Magazine from his seat pocket, flip to page twenty-nine, hand him the magazine and run my finger under the rules where it says, “You have to put out your cigar or pipe if someone complains.” I then said, “Please put out the cigar now.”

 

He looks at me and says, “No.”

 

At which point I said to him, “Do I understand you correctly that after you have been asked three times to put out your cigar you are not going to put it out?”

 

He says, “Yes, I’m not putting it out.”

 

Without skipping a beat I’m off to the cockpit. I explained to the captain what I just told you and he said, “I’ll be out in a minute.” Finally, I have my back up!

 

A few minutes later the captain appears in the cabin with his jacket and hat on which always means they mean business. It was very easy to find the offending passenger because you could just follow the smell and the smoke.

 

The captain stops at the passenger’s seat and introduces himself and then he says, “My lead flight attendant told me that she has asked you three times to put out your cigar. Is that right?”

 

The passenger is just staring at him now and then says, “Yes.” The captain says, “I’m the captain and I’m only going to ask you once. Now put out the cigar.”

 

To which the man replies, “No.” The captain then says, “You were asked three times nicely by the flight attendant to put out your cigar and now I have asked you once and you still don’t want to put out your cigar. Is that right?”

 

This idiot obviously doesn’t realize that he is now dealing with one of our ballbusters! He looks at the captain and says, “I’m not putting it out.”

 

The captain turns around, goes back into the cockpit, and gets the CO2 fire extinguisher that is located there. He comes back out, walks down the aisle to the arrogant idiot who won’t put out his cigar. Breaks the seal on the canister, pulls up the nozzle, presses the release button and fires off a stream of CO2 at the cigar in the man’s hand. The cigar is now covered in white residue from the CO2 and it is out!

 

The captain takes the cigar out of his hand and says, “We won’t be smoking any more cigars, will we.” Turns around and leaves. As he walks by the galley, he hands me the cigar and says, “Would you please throw this away.”

I admit it, I had a really big grin on my face and was trying not to laugh out loud! That was the best thing I had ever seen happen to a jerk on the plane. Trust me I didn’t go back out into the cabin for at least ten minutes. That passenger never said another word to me. He knew he was dealing with a ballbuster who would probably have him arrested in New York if he created any more problems. Thank you, Captain!

Note: CO2 residue does not hurt the skin, clothing etc. It easily brushes off. But it sure puts out cigars!

 

From True Tales of TWA Flight Attendants: Memoirs and Memories from the Golden Age of Flying (Telemachus Press, Oct 2022) by Kathy Kompare and Stephanie Johnson. Ann Hood raved, “An hilarious, honest, heartfelt journey through the Golden Age of Flying with the people who know it best—flight attendants—on the best airline that ever flew—TWA. Fasten your seat belts and welcome aboard!”

Using your own vacation photos for invitation cards, greetings cards or super cute holiday cards is an idea that is very popular these days, especially since there are plenty of card services that offers you the chance to put basically anything on your cards. Did you took some nice pictures on the beach, with your whole family, and you want other family relatives to see you? You can put those pictures on the cards you send when it’s Christmas or someone close has a birthday party.

Very often your holiday will fall between events when you might send or receive gifts from family or friends. This is the best opportunity to create a unique invitation or thank you card using your own holiday photos. You may also consider creating funny invitations or postcards to send to all your family members or friends as a story of your latest trip. For aspiring or professional photographers, you can even use these invitation cards like a business card, giving them out to interested people or potential clients who want to find out where to discover more of your work.

Here are a some important things to keep in mind if you want to use your vacation pictures as holiday or Christmas cards:

1. Pick your selfies with the highest resolution. If you’ve edited your pictures with an app, be sure to only crop the pics when necessary and use “save as” or settings in the highest resolution to avoid losing too much quality.
2. Let your personalities shine, be yourself, be relaxed in your selfies. It’s important to have fun while doing your photos!
3. Use a tripod, or a stabilizing system, if you want to make photos that show a greater area than just your faces. This also is very important because you all want to be in those photos. The days of “Where is John? John was taking the picture” are long gone.

In the weeks leading up to your vacation, do some thorough research online. Everyone’s method is different, but you want to consider looking at other pictures captured at that same location, also check articles discussing important photography spots, or even Google Earth satellite images. Make a list with all the amazing locations you want to photograph. Think at the position of the sun because it will affect your photo quality. Determine whether each attraction is best visited at midday, sunset or sunrise. You can also prepare a list with basic ideas you want to implement once on location.

Now that you know how to make almost perfect pictures that captures you travel adventure, and all your family members are present on those pictures, you can choose a quality card maker (hint: always check what kind of paper they use as photo paper quality is also very important) and select the best pictures to print on the cards you send to friends and family on special occasions. For example, if you want to send a few customized photo Christmas cards you can use BasicInvite, a family owned company that has been designing and printing wedding stationery in Utah for over fifteen years.

Road Van (RV) life is incredible. Fun, travel, freedom combined in one lifestyle. But there are many aspects that can be optimized, to make your RV life even cheaper. RV parking tricks : Some folks drive their RVs solo, and although I can’t say much about hitching and unhitching a motorhome and car combo, our good friend Bob has found a great way to hitch and unhitch a fifth wheel trailer solo. He marked the front landing leg that’s near the extend/retract button at regular intervals all the way up and down the leg. Hash marks on a landing leg help get the rig back to the right height before hitching up. Then he numbered each hash mark. He keeps a pad and pen in the hatch near the landing legs button. When unhitching, once he’s raised the trailer to where he can drive the truck out from under it, he jots down the hash mark number that is visible on the leg. Then he drives out, parks, and returns to the trailer and raises or lowers the landing legs as necessary to get the trailer level.

Take a Picture of Your Donation Pile Before You Take It to the Thrift Store. This is another great way to remind yourself that you are making progress. Have a Giveaway Party. Make decluttering fun by hosting a giveaway party. Invite neighbors, friends, family, and colleagues over to take what they like. Mark giveaway items with a green sticker. Use red stickers to mark the items that you’ve decided to keep. Consider Renting a Storage Unit. Storage units are expensive, but they can help ease the pressure of the decluttering process, especially if you have a lot of family items you just can’t get rid of. Many full-timers start off renting a storage unit and, over months or years, return to it in the middle of their travels and slowly empty it out. Once you get on the road, you might find that your attachment to these things lessens over time.

Looking back on the miles we drove in the first year, neither of us can imagine doing it by ourselves. Unless you don’t have plans to move very often or for long distances at a time, it’s good to share the drive. Whenever I pull up to a campground, the neighbors always stop by and say to Joe “I wish my wife drove.” If you’re not comfortable driving an RV, there are driving classes available. The more you drive, the more confidence you will have. Before you know it, you’ll be thinking to yourself “this is a piece of cake”. You might even start looking forward to taking your turn behind the wheel.

Short road van pick of the month : I’ve been looking at the Vistas for a while to upgrade my class C RV. I have seen all their different layouts and the model 27P is the shortest. What I don’t like about it that the interior design is still dated for my taste. Many RV manufacturer now are upgrading to a more modern look, but not the Vista. However, Vista is still cheaper than other Class A RVs in this category. Read extra details at full time RV living.

RV security system pick : Reolink Argus Wireless Motorhome Security Camera: While the first two products for RV security are alarm systems, this is a security camera. The good thing is that it is wireless and powered by standard lithium batteries. This means you will not have wires flying all around. Plus, it doesn’t matter if there is a power problem; your RV is still protected. Also, the batteries can last for about 180 days without replacement. That is 6 months of effective HD camera performance for your RV’s protection.

Many people who dream of having a full RV lifestyle often think that you have to be retired and have loads of money to be able to move from one place to another at ease. However, the real truth is that being rich and retired is not a requirement to live your full-time RV life. The main thing for you to fulfill your dream is to find ways to support yourself. Source: https://smallrvlifestyle.com

Travel is a effective self improvement tactic. To maximize the positive effects on creativity, however, an authentic, deep experience abroad is essential. “Foreign experiences increase both cognitive flexibility and the depth and integrative character of thinking, the ability to make deep connections between disparate forms. The key critical process is multicultural engagement, immersion and adaptation. Someone who lives abroad and is not involved in the local culture will have less stimulation of creativity compared to someone who travels abroad and is involved in the local environment ”, explained one of the authors of the study, Prof. Adam Galinksky, for The Atlantic.

Vey important travel trend , according to Round PlayGround, in 2019, situations that change the way people travel: The Pursuit of Wellness: The trend of traveling for wellness is not a new concept, but interest in travel as a form of self-care is at an all-time high and is projected to continue growing rapidly in the coming years. Travel brands can capitalize on this interest in expanding wellness concepts for all budget options, from a budget hotel rolling out healthy menu options and hiking maps to entirely new luxury hotel and cruise brands focused on wellness as a lifestyle.

Travel makes us happier in all areas of life. Apparently, a short trip is beneficial both for the peace of mind and for improving the quality of life. Blood pressure, heart rate and adrenaline levels drop rapidly after just one, two days off. But the benefits of travel do not stop here. See more info on Benefits of travelling.

Helps you find a purpose in life: The more you travel, the more you know more people, see more cultures and experience different lifestyles of your own. With all this news in your life, you will have other opportunities and open your horizons, which most often gives people a purpose in life. If you fail to figure out what you want to do in your life, what career path you choose and what you are headed for, then travel more and you will be surprised by what you discover.

“We’re hearing more and more from guests that some parts of the world are getting too crowded, like Venice, Santorini, and Rome,” says John Spence, president of tour operator Scott Dunn. Brad Horn, managing director of travel outfitter Epic Private Journeys, agrees. “We are seeing increasing interest in less traveled destinations like Ethiopia, Madagascar, Northern Kenya, Bhutan, and far-flung Indonesia,” he says. [Read why overtourism matters.] Therefore, expect vacationers in 2019 to take travel congestion seriously, either skipping well-trod spots altogether or being more strategic about when they venture out. To escape Iceland’s crowds, for example, Spence recommends exploring similar regions like Norway, Sweden, and Slovenia. Roar Africa’s Deborah Calmeyer says an alternative to the Caribbean is the Indian Ocean Islands, particularly North Island in the Seychelles or Miavana in Madagascar. And Geographic Expeditions Kate Doty points to journeying off-season: the crowds are thinner and winter activities are available (think heli-skiing in New Zealand and Chile). “Cold is the new hot,” she says.

Travelling with a conscience is going to be a big focus in 2019 – in fact, a third of travellers look for a company that is sustainable when researching their next trip. But with a growing demand for sustainable tour operators, it is essential that travellers research beforehand to find out what companies are actively doing in the area of sustainability. Sustainable tourism has become paramount in today’s modern world, 1 in 3 look for a company that is sustainable. But with a growing demand for sustainable tour operators, it is essential that travellers research beforehand to find out what companies are actively doing in the area of sustainability. Source: Round PlayGround https://theroundplayground.com/.