By Susan Bodack

It's easy to go a bit stir-crazy after being cooped up inside due to freezing cold temperatures and nasty winter weather. After a long bleak winter of gloomy weather and bundling up, the promise of sunnier spring days can seem like a salvation. Planning that spring getaway definitely gives you something to look forward to whether you're looking to stay domestic or travel outside of the country, the travel possibilities are endless!

Consider these five spots and get to planning:

1. 

Turning the mundane,  frustrating  experience of booking a hotel online into a fun moment, is an act of legerdemain that only Booking.com is probably able to pull off.

Take a look at their YouTube commercial to see what I mean. It’s wry, funny and self-deprecating.

It’s a spoof on hotel TV commercials that in and of itself, is a smart TV commercial for Booking.com’s new U.S ad campaign: “Booking Epic.”

But we have come to expect these sorts of creative approaches from the company that’s the

The Brazilian city of Salvador da Bahia reflects the essence of this country’s rich history and culture. There’s much more to this city than tropical beaches: Salvador da Bahia has managed to conserve a unique cultural and architectural legacy, centred in the area known as Pelourinho, the colourful historic quarter declared a World Heritage Site.  

With its steep cobbled streets, low rise buildings with colonial-style façades and picturesque churches – including the cathedral – the entire distric

En cuanto a la forma correcta de escribir hoy, el nombre de la capital incaica, existen dos corrientes: Unos dicen que debe escribirse CUZCO, sencillamente porque el Acta de la Fundación Española de la ciudad (23 de marzo de \534) consigna esa forma, y que tal documento es algo así como la Partida de Nacimiento de una persona, cuyo contenido es váli­do e inalterable, producto de la opinión autorizada de los pa­dres; y en el caso de la fundación, opinión definitiva del o de los fundadores.

Otros d

A flash of brilliant red, blue and yellow, and a loud raucous squawk, and you know you are in the jungle. There is nothing quite like the sight of wild Scarlet Macaws flying overhead or contentedly gathered in bunches in a treetop to give you the full feeling of being in the tropics.

Their distinctive noisy cry carries for miles, so you usually hear them before you see them. When you do sight a Scarlet Macaw (Ara macao), they are a breathtaking rainbow of colors – fire engine red bodies with suns

Why is it that small towns seem to possess a sense of place and taste all their own that a big city just can’t compete with?  Don’t you love it when you stroll a city’s downtown area poking your head into one place, sampling cuisine from another place …and you immediately get the feeling that you’ve arrived at a very special destination? And don’t you get a big kick out of the unique attractions that only a small town can offer?  You know what I think? Hurray for small town America… and giant Di

A short while ago, I had the pleasure of visiting Peru's "Ciudad Blanca!" My weekend in Arequipa was just lovely, and so I'd like to share my experience with you in the hope that you'll be able to visit vicariously now and in reality soon!

The second largest city in Peru, Arequipa feels peaceful and genteel. The architecture is beautiful - low buildings of bare white stone or coated in colorful paint, primarily Spanish baroque in style, with local touches - the air is soft and the people are f

With approximately 150 ski areas, suitable for all levels of the winter sports lovers, Switzerland has some of the best skiing, snowboarding, tobogganing and sledging, not only in Europe – the country is undoubtedly at the center of the winter sports universe. The scenic beauty of the Swiss Alps, its perfect slopes and wide range of accommodation make this country a favorite among ski enthusiasts. For beginners, all Swiss resorts have high quality ski schools where you can just turn up and pay f

Será una ciudad imperial, que se mira y se gusta, pero para nada está encerrada en ella misma.Viena, a pesar de estar erigida sobre piedra y mármol históricos, mira de frente al futuro igual que lo hacen otras capitales trendy como Berlín y Londres. Si quiere palpar el ritmo juvenil más vibrante, dirija sus pasos hacia el distrito 2, también llamado Leopoldstadt. Este trozo de tierra rodeado por el Danubio y un canal fue en el pasado un barrio judío. Hoy Leopoldstad es un distrito cosmopolita, l

The Golden Rules on how to avoid getting completely ripped off and buying more rugs than you can poke a stick at when in an Arab souq (market)…

OK, so have found yourself in a fabulous Arab bazaar in some hot, sandy and exotic country. It is a maze of twisting alleyways crammed with people and intriguing shoplets selling bright and alluring handicrafts: colourfully decorated carpets, lamps, clothes, leather and metalware. Trapped in shopping heaven, you almost pass out with excitement. Sweet, mu

For its sheer beauty and phenomenal whitewater rapids, the Pacuare River of Costa Rica is one of the world’s top whitewater river rafting adventures. The Pacuare thunders down a long gorge and canyon through primary and secondary rainforest of the Talamanca Mountains on Costa Rica’s Caribbean slope. You have the feeling of being completely isolated in a lost world when rafting down the river. Waterfalls pour in from high rock walls, brightly colored toucans and electric blue Morpho butterflies f

by Nicole Clausing

What to eat for dinner tonight? Tapas to make Penelope Cruz weep? Fusion tacos? Pizza fired in a wood-burning oven imported from Italy? Or maybe just the best turkey sandwich you ever had? The wealth of choice gets overwhelming when you’re in a foodie town like … Orlando.

That’s right; the town best known for a four-fingered mouse who doesn’t eat much of anything has spawned quite a food scene. There is offbeat funkiness to please the toughest San Francisco Mission District hips

When you join up with YL Tours, you're not just visiting Puglia as a tourist, you are participating as a local immersed in some of the many day-to-day pleasures of living in this region. YL stands for Ylenia, the wonderful Puglian lady who graciously hosts your choice of experiences.

One fine example is her fully hands-on Cucina Povera, small group cooking lessons that fully immerse you in every stage of meal preparation. This is “peasant cooking” at its finest using local ingredients whenever po

Due at least in part, no doubt, to the modest size of most Caribbean islands, “mega” structures are fairly few and far between. But one of them is here on the eastern outskirts of the Dominican Republic's capital: the massive (if not downright bombastic) Faro a Colón (Columbus Lighthouse), finished in 1992 for the 500th anniversary of the voyage that, by stumbling onto this island, launched the exploration and colonization of the Western Hemisphere.

Six-hundred eighty feet long and ten stories

“By Tre, Pol and Pen shall ye know all Cornishmen” the rhyme used to describe people or places in Cornwall, many surnames and place names still retain these words as prefixes. I have visited Cornwall throughout my life from a small child to adult with my own family and it still remains one of my very favourite places to go on holiday.

Although the weather can be quite changeable, with sea mists in the morning, the climate is mild and sunny as a result of it’s southerly latitude and influence of t

Some people like to bring a little comfort from home on vacation – like a pillow.  Others want to know their TV shows will be available for them to watch while on vacation. Still others want to leave home behind altogether to learn all new things and broaden their horizons.  This Wine Diva wants to bring her favorite wines with her on vacation AND  learn about new exciting  food and beverage combinations.  Where did I do that?  On a Holland America cruise to Alaska.  Buckle up babe, this ain’t y

Many families hesitate at the thought of extended travel with middle-school and teen-aged children.  In our overscheduled and often frenetic culture, it may be the most powerful gift you can give them.  Emotional and spiritual growth of emerging teens are equally as important as academics and sports. Travel offers the gift of unstructured time away from, the sometimes overwhelming, social pressures of their young lives.

Sure, the initial disconnect from home may be bumpy, but that phase ends whe

por Cristóbal Ramírez

El Océano Pacífico ruge, plateado, azul bravo, mientras una pareja se manosea. Es el deporte preferido (manosearse frente al mar) de muchísimos limeños los fines de semana. Es entonces cuando los boulevares, plazas y bares de Barranco, el barrio bohemio y de moda, registra más agitación. Cuando uno lo visita por primera vez cree no estar en Lima: la mayor parte de sus edificios proceden del tiempo en que la alta sociedad de la ciudad construía mansiones de veraneo al más p

If budget is a concern, and let’s be honest, when you’re traveling with friends rather than family, then consider one of the less expensive destinations for your ski holiday this year. Well, you probably won’t bump into the Beckhams, but the snow is the same color and the skiing is just as good as in the A-level resorts! Here is our selection of 5 winter sports destination that won’t break the bank!

1. Albertville, France

Albertville, the largest region in the Savoy area. The lovely French valley