Are you looking for some great vacation ideas? Consider a trip to the Lone Star State for your next family vacation. Texas covers a huge area and includes many different types of terrain. From major cities to mountains, magnificent beaches, hills, deserts and forests, Texas has much to offer. There are so many things to see and do that it is hard to choose, but here are some great vacation ideas that are definitely worth considering for your next trip.

Big Bend National Park
Big Bend National Park covers a vast area in Southwestern Texas. It includes mountains, desert, and rivers. In just a short distance one can travel from the banks of the Rio Grande River to Emory Peak with an elevation of 7825 feet. Camping and hiking are very popular at Big Bend. Single or multi-day float trips are available on the Rio Grande, and the scenery through some of the canyons is absolutely stunning.

Palo Duro Canyon State Park
Sometimes called the “Grand Canyon of Texas,” Palo Duro Canyon is a “must see” for any visitor to Texas. The canyon is 120 miles long, and in some areas 20 miles wide, and reaches depths of 800 feet. The park offers on-site horse rentals, cabin rentals, tent and RV sites, and plenty of trails for hiking and mountain bikes. The Texas Musical Drama plays inside the canyon. Enjoy a spectacular meal and show with the beautiful scenery of the canyon as the backdrop to the stage.

Padre Island
Padre Island is a long barrier island off the Texas coast. It stretches about 130 miles from Corpus Christi, in the north, down to the resort community of South Padre Island. The Padre Island National Seashore occupies the middle to northern part of the island. It is undeveloped, and offers many opportunities for wildlife viewing. Activities include beachcombing, boating, camping, fishing, hiking and off-road adventures. South Padre Island is a popular resort community located on the southern tip of the island. It offers a wide range of accommodations, beautiful white sandy beaches, and fun for the whole family.

San Antonio
The Alamo normally comes to mind when San Antonio is mentioned, but it is just one of many attractions that you will find here. San Antonio is a great city to visit and it has so many fun things to see and do. While you are here, explore the Natural Bridge Caverns, and pan for precious gems. Take a stroll down the River Walk, and enjoy a fine meal or dessert at one of the sidewalk cafes. If you get tired of walking just jump on a boat for a quick ride to your next destination. Other San Antonio attractions include Sea World, Six Flags Fiesta Texas, and the Splashtown Water Park.

Dallas
No trip to Texas is complete without visiting the “Big D.” Dallas offers a huge selection of lodging and restaurants to accommodate most any travel budget. Visit the Dallas Zoo, Six Flags or one of the many water parks. If you are interested in sports, Dallas offers much to choose from. While in the downtown area be sure and visit the Reunion Tower, the 6th Floor Museum, and grab a bite to eat at the West End.

Whether you visit Big Bend, Padre Island, San Antonio, or one of these other destinations, it will truly be a great trip. Be sure to make time for these special outings with your precious family. Start planning that special family trip today – you deserve it. Have a safe and wonderful trip!

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Bed and Breakfast accommodation can be a wonderful alternative to staying in a hotel while on your vacation or traveling in general. Almost any destination town you select within the UK will have some sort of B & B accommodation option that you can choose to spend your stay.

A definite advantage and draw to a Bed and Breakfast, is that your stay will feel more like that of visiting friends in their home rather than staying in a hotel. Hotels tend to be extremely formal, and often extremely uniform. A Bed and Breakfast has more of a home like atmosphere, often because the B & B is someone’s home. In many cases the proprietors of the Bed and Breakfast will also live in it. They will simply own a larger house than meets their personal needs, and will rent out rooms to travelers who are in need of a place to stay while they are in town. Bed and Breakfasts are generally decorated like they are someone’s home, and have much more character to them than your traditional travel accommodations.

A guest house can offer you all of the comforts and luxuries of staying in some of the finest hotels, while keeping your stay small and intimate in a home like atmosphere of a Bed and Breakfast. Guest houses are often preferred by vacationers for their home like appearance. Especially, if you plan on staying in a particular location for several weeks, a Bed and Breakfast can often be a much more comfortable stay than a stay in a hotel for which you would pay a comparable rate.

At a guest house you also have the opportunity to dine on a home cooked meal. B & B’s are sometimes famous for the great cooking which is prepared usually by a visitor’s request by the proprietor of the Bed and Breakfast or in some cases the guest house’s cook. Unlike other establishments that are cooking for a great number of people, a Bed and Breakfast is only preparing food in some cases for you and your travel companions. Depending on the Bed and Breakfast you choose mealtime can often be a time where you can get to know other people who are traveling and staying in the B & B as well, and can be a good time for you to sit down and get to know the people behind the house that you are currently staying in.

Many guest house’s will also allow you to bring you pets along with you. If you’re traveling with a pet companion then this can often be invaluable. Bed and Breakfast’s since they are located in a home, will often have a decent amount of yard space in addition to their home that would allow you to allow you pet some access to the outdoors and exercise rather than spending their days cooped up in a small hotel room.

A Bed and Breakfast can make where you stay during your travel a personal affair. At a B & B you are going to have direct contact with the people who operate where you are staying. Since the guest list at a Bed and Breakfast is almost always small you will be able to get more specialized attention for your needs, and have less people to worry about dealing with within your accommodations. Often times you will become friends with the owners and proprietors of your favorite guest house, contact them on the off season while your at home, and look forward to coming back to visit them during your other travels to the area.

Copyright 2005 S Wander

Smooth Hound smoothhound.co.uk smoothhound.co.uk offers affordable hotel, guest house and bed & breakfast accommodation throughout the London and the rest of the world.

Thinking of Rio, the first image that comes to mind is of the sandy beaches, the sun and the ‘Girl from Ipanema’. Beach culture is prevalent in all of Brazil, and nowhere is it bigger or more impressive than in Rio de Janeiro. The beach culture in Brazil is a scene for fashion and trend setting. It’s not just about enjoying the sun, but also a social occasion. It is a chance to meet, socialize and for participating in sports like volley ball, soccer and surfing. Even during the winter and in poor weather, the Cariocas, as the locals are known, frequent the promenade.

Wedged on a strip of land at the foothills of Rio is one of the world’s greatest beaches, Copacabana. This highly populated region reverberates with a non-stop party atmosphere. Beach partying is a ritual here for the young and old alike. With an array of bars and nightclubs, there is always something happening on the beach, day or night. All along the 5 km beach, clusters of people sleep and sunbathe under umbrellas and in the white sand.

Lifeguard stations, called ‘postas’ are numbered and stretch along the length of the beach. The Copacabana beach stretches from Princesa Isabel Avenue to the lifeguard watchtower six, Posto Seis, near the Forte de Copacaban.

South of the city of Rio de Janeiro, lying adjacent to the Copacabana beach is the district of Ipanema. The beach at Ipanema is lined with world class restaurants cafes and shopping malls. Ipanema is one of the most expensive places in Rio and the symbol of Brazilian pleasure and wealth. It is frequented by affluent Brazillian youth as well as tourists.

Two hills known as the ‘Two Brothers’ are situated at the western end of the beach. The beach is also marked into segments with points known as postos. Ipanema beach has several favorite hotspots with each block attracting a different type of crowd. There are always people playing football, volleyball, and footvolley, a combination sport unique to Brazil. The beach at Ipanema was immortalized in the song, “Girl from Ipanema” by Carlos Jobim.

i-RioDeJaneiro.com Rio De Janeiro provides detailed information on Rio De Janeiro, Beaches In Rio De Janeiro, Rio De Janeiro Hotels, Rio De Janeiro Carnival and more. Rio De Janeiro is affiliated with z-Venezuela.com Caracas Venezuela.

I have recently booked our own Dominican Republic Holiday, for a family of 6, and as I explored the prices with the main UK travel agents online I was amazed at how their prices would vary – even when looking at the same hotel! We saved almost £2000 in total. Read on, and I hope I can help you do the same!

Start with the Printed Brochures

Whilst I always book my holidays online, you really can’t beat flicking through the pages of the tour operators’ brochures for shortlisting your preferred regions and hotels, and for checking out the early booking discounts available to all (although in practice you can expect to save even more than this by booking online).

We found the brochures invaluable in helping us decide on a Punta Cana hotel, and it was much easier checking the facilities of individual hotels this way rather than viewing each hotel’s details online.

For the Dominican Republic we went through brochures from Thomas Cook, First Direct, Cosmos, Airtours and Thomson.

Hint – At this stage, don’t dismiss any Tour Operator based on price alone!

Going Online to Check Availability and Price

I expected Thomas Cook or First Choice to give us the best prices. For First Choice in particular, the headline price in the brochures looked amazing. Therefore it was a real surprise to find that when I went all the way through the booking process, with all the supplements and extras added on, that other companies came out significantly cheaper.

Other Ways We Kept the Prices Low

Check child prices versus adult prices – We spotted this anomaly weeks before it featured on television. Some of the online discounts only relate to adult prices, and when occupancy supplements are applied (as children do not count towards occupancy levels) you can find children are charged at a higher rate than adults. For example we found when we priced a room for 2 adults and 1 child that it came out significantly cheaper than when priced for 1 adult and 2 children. It can be the case in this situation that the first child receives the bigger discount and the second child is more expensive than the adult.

I don’t believe this is a deliberate attempt by any tour operator to discriminate against families, but just an
accidental result of the complex pricing structure of many holiday. So we ‘promoted’ our 11-year old to an adult.

Split the booking into two – As we needed two rooms, we saved even more money by splitting the booking into two.

This was because there was a reduction per booking at the time we made our reservation. Of course, we had to sacrifice any chance of the rooms being adjacent, but we were happy to do so for the extra discount.

Who Worked Out Cheapest for Our Dominican Republic Holiday?

We are going to the Superclub Breezes hotel in Punta Cana in late July, and both Thomson and Airtours offered us a really good price, and we chose one of these and saved almost £2000.

It is also worth noting that Thomson have now announced they are not charging fuel supplements on any of their package holidays.

However, the cheapest tour operator for you will depend upon your destination and date of travel. We reckon you’ll do best with Thomson or Airtours for Punta Cana Hotels in the Dominican Republic, but do recommend you check the prices with all the main tour operators when you are making your booking to ensure you benefit from any current offers and discounts.

Mark Salkeld enjoys travelling to both traditional and exotic holiday destinations with his family, and set up thetravelpage.co.uk/index.html TheTravelPage.co.uk to provide “An Independent View of the Best Travel Deals”.

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