Which Discount Travel Sites You Should Use

By Samuel Carter

With a few clicks, you can confirm your reservations and print out your itinerary, airline tickets and receipt for your hotel reservations. But the best about discount travel sites is the price.

Before you surf between Travelocity, Expedia, Priceline, Orbitz and a host of other discount sites, you may want to read the following piece in which I will be comparing the different discount travel sites available and some of their particulars.

Remember that brick and mortar travel agencies have the best track record for dealing with any problems in regard to reservations, refunds, etc. Consider them even if it means a slightly higher price.

Because it constantly searches for the cheapest in hotel accommodations, airline tickets and car rentals on as many sites as possible, Kayak.com is able to find deals that the larger discount travel sites don't.

Other meta-search sites, such as CheapTickets.com, are around, but no one gets the respect that Kayak.com does. Both Kayak.com and SideStep.com, which is owned by Kayak, often don't charge a fee because they are paid by the hotel or airlines, other online agencies or through advertisements.

Those who like overseas travel may already know Vayama.com. It's not huge by any measure, but they have neat features like the Getting Around section that gives you transportation tips and info.

Travelocity does assist in trip planning and provides a converter for currency. Their FareWatcher feature notifies you via e-mail when fares are discounted to selected destinations.

Expedia's awards program has no blackout dates. Although Expedia can charge a booking fee, it has a 24-hour guarantee on prices. Expedia also has a credit card associated with it, with generous rewards.

Orbitz.com is known to cater to eco tourism and offers updates from all United States airports. It also guarantees hotel rates, refunding the difference if you find a similar reservation at a lower price at another site within a 24-hour period.

Although Hotels.com doesn't charge for cancelations, they recommend that you contact the hotel directly regarding confirmation of reservations or specifics in regard to room preference, etc. - 31498

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When You Imagine Caribbean Beaches In Costa Rica, Do You Think Christopher Columbus?

By Victor Carl Krumm

Already nearly everyone has tired of winter and imagining some place where shorts, not overcoats, can be worn. Costa Rica has become the destination of choice, in part, because of its reputation for being one of the most beautiful countries in the world. This small Central America country is only a couple of hours south of Florida and has spectacular tropical mountains and volcanoes, and some of the best beaches anywhere. Visitors come for its terrific surfing beaches, beach communities with daytime fun and adult nightlife, and deserted beaches where verdant mountains meet the shore.

Few visitors to Costa Rica appreciate its rich history or how it got its name. About a decade after he discovered the New World along the American coast, Christopher Columbus returned and sailed south. He became so enthralled with the Caribbean beaches he found here that he named his discovery Costa Rica! The name means the rich coast and has stuck for over five centuries.

Do not be misinformed. Columbus was the first, but not the last, explorer. There are still new places for visitors to discover for themselves. Costa Rica has nearly 400 miles of Caribbean beaches. The eastern coast is still largely undeveloped compared to the western side of the country and has a unique Caribbean flavor. This is Bob Marley country.

For an increasing number of ecotourists, their Costa Rica vacation includes a tour of Tortuguero National Park. This is a remote park along the northern Caribbean Coast, initially created to protect the green sea turtles which come ashore to nest. Today it has become the largest green marine turtle nesting beach on the planet. Tortuguero provides critical nesting areas over a 30 kilometer stretch of beaches for four of the seven sea turtle species and thousands of people go there annually to witness a real spectacle of nature.

The city of Limon is south of Tortuguero and most tourists go through it to reach remote Tortuguero and Barra Honda beaches north or to travel south to a number of small beach communities and kilometer after kilometer of beautiful beaches. Limon should be considered as merely a jumping off point to head north or south because it is not a recommended destination. However, for the wonderful beaches seen by Columbus, Puerto Viejo awaits. It has the world famous La Salsa Brava wave, a difficult large wave that tests the best surfers on the planet, particularly when at its largest between November and April. Less experienced surfers go a bit farther south to Playa Cocles.

About 25 miles south of Limon and a short distance north of Puerto Viejo is Cahuita, a very small, laid-back community with kilometer after kilometer of pristine beaches, some nearly black and others snow white. September and October are the driest months of the year and visitors who come around October 12 take in Carnaval at Limon, a week-long fiesta celebrating Columbus Day. Cahuita is known for its wonderful reef snorkeling around its two shipwrecks. Not a lot of nightlife here so head a few miles south to Puerto Viejo.

If you continue heading south, the Gandoco-Manzanillo Wildlife Reserve awaits nearly at the Panama border. This is where Columbus came ashore and named Costa Rica. Here he found, and you will, too, crystal clear tropical waters perfect for swimming. But, unlike that explorer you will be able to go scuba diving at Costa Rica's largest coral reef. The rare and recently discovered freshwater Tucuxi Porpoise lives only here. Vacationers can see sea turtles nesting and fishermen often find tarpon and snook. Lots of them. In the nearby Caribbean, in the many lagoons and rivers. Very little fishing pressure. But when they are here, lots of fish! - 31498

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Catching Some Waves On a Surfboard

By Daniel Thomas

A good thing about surfing, especially if you are in a tropical area with a lot of sun, is that you will be exposed to the opposite sex all of the time. If you are surfing everyday you should have a good tan and be in pretty good shape, have no problem finding dates, and most of all have great skill in riding waves, we hope.

If you are a beginner and not sure where to start when getting a surfboard, try and get one that is the same height as you are. Make sure you can afford it, and just use it for practice, as you start surfing more you will make more surfer friends more experienced then you, ask questions to learn more about board types and such.

It does not take long for a beginning surfer become very comfortable with using surfing terms around friends. Such as the type of surfboard they plan to purchase after the art of surfing has been entrained in their memory.

For the beginner a short board will be the best option, but some more experienced surfers prefer long boards, which are a bit more difficult to learn on and much harder to ride. Style is also another choice of what surfers choose from. It could be the design on their surfboard, their surf fin, or just what they are wearing before they get in the water.

Some surfers do not mind if they are thoroughly prepared for the sport because they are solely interested in making their way to the water to surf. They will often try to find the cheapest surfboard and realize after they are in the water that the board is not suitable for surfing anymore.

Maybe they had got a surfboard that was a good brand name, but they had bought it used and it had a crack in the board. There are caution signs that you must take when purchasing a surfboard, especially if it is used.

Another factor that comes into play is if the previous owner kept up the maintenance of the surfboard. Waxing a surfboard before every use if very critical, if you do not wax before every use your feet will not stay on the board right, you will be falling off looking stupid.

As the surfer is getting ready to get in the water for the first time with their surfboard, they will be very conscious of what other surfers do. New surfers will spend many hours in the water learning to sit and stand on the board. After they have perfected these techniques, they will be ready to try out some waves and they will be less worried about the stares that they are getting from the crowd that has formed on the beach. - 31498

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Why Anonymous Web Surfing Is Something You Should Want To Try

By Garrick Maxwell

Beware! Web surfing will no longer ensure your safety. Your system being free from any viruses is not anymore a guarantee that the information about your computer's IP address, location, browsing history and all other details will leak out. If your computer is supportive of certain programs such as finger or identity, it is very easy for hackers to find your computer name or worse, your name itself!

If you are really worried about this problem then there is a reason to rejoice. This is the kind of net surfing known as the anonymous web surfing. Generally when you input any information it goes to the host server of the sites and the hackers are experts in intercepting this before it reaches the servers.

There are hackers who can intercept the data packets of these websites and use them to reach at your personal details. But you need not worry. Anonymous web surfing can lessen the risk of your details being leaked. The provision of an anonymous internet proxy server will substitute your IP address with their own thereby hiding your address. Anonymous web surfing will not guard your computer completely against the hackers. But the advantage is that the job of infiltrating into your private territory becomes an arduous task.

Though running a free anonymous proxy might seem to be a brilliant idea. But there are some points to be noted. The proxy service can cost you a fortune. It occupies a lot of bandwidth which might lead to additional expenses. On the top of it, if the proxy service is not properly configured, the whole attempt for privacy might get arrested.

The shopping websites have servers to track down your shopping habits by entering into each and every activity you perform in the internet. You are equally prone to danger when you download various software tools from internet. Only anonymous web surfing can protect you from the all-powerful hackers. - 31498

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Learning How To Stand Up Paddle

By Adam Champagne

I'll never forget my first time on a Stand Up Paddle Board. My step father is Clay Feeter publisher of "Standup Journal". He is a huge advocate of the sport as well as having the best magazine in the business! He is a super positive guy, fun to be around and will not let you have a bad time under any circumstance.

I remember going to visit my mom and him a few years ago and upon my arrival Clay was already primed up and ready to get me out on the lake for a stroll with the Stand Up Paddle Board. I always have to say yes to Clay because his positivity simply makes it impossible to give another answer.

We put the boards down in the water and Clay hopped on and started paddling with such ease and precision that I decided I could do the same thing. He made it look so easy, I guess it's because he has been surfing the majority of his life.

I proceeded to get on my board and quickly learned that I needed some serious help in the balance department. I think I ended up off my board quicker than I got on it. I was craving a swim in the lake so it was O.K.

After a couple of quick tips from Clay I able to gain my balance on the board and quickly gained confidence. Clay gave a "Woo Hoot! You got it man!" In his usual fashion which always makes you feel like a kid who just got his first trophy. The feeling I got from Stand Up Paddling was absolutely amazing and one I will never forget. It is like you are walking on water. You paddle as fast or as slow as you want, the water is yours!

The great thing about it is you can Stand Up Paddle in any water. You can go down rivers, surf in the ocean, take a cruise on the lake or wherever else you want. It's truly a fun and diverse sport which is gaining extreme popularity worldwide.

The people you meet while out on your stand up paddle board are amazing. Most of the time people are both curious about what you are doing and eager to try it for themselves. It's a great sport to get hooked on because it is both adrenaline pumping, relaxing, and healthy all at the same time. I hope to see you out the soon! - 31498

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Power Kites Are What You Require If You Are A Adrenaline-Junky In Search Of A New Hobby

By Chris Robinson

Power kites are the latest and greatest method to delight an age-old recreational action. Since kites first appeared in China about 2,800 years ago, the technology has come a long way. Power kites are not simply woody frames, absorbed in silk or firm plastic and involved to the end of a string that comes up and down in the wind. As the name "power kites" points, these kites are energetic and effective, offering practitioners a wide array of choices and much more fun. For this cause, chiefly adults apply power kites because of the perils involved in running them.

Power kites are not just meant to be flown like traditional kites, but are rather improved to pull an individual, and often, a conveyance or panel. Those who use power kites ought to always require the essential safety precautions, based on the sort of action in which they are engaged in. Listed below are a few ways in which one can keep safe while using these kites:

One should engage in the exercise of wearing a helmet, elbow and kneepads. One ought to always use a power kite while on a soft surface, preferably grass, sand, or water. Lastly, for apparent causes, one ought to never use a power kite next to electric pylons, power cables or overhead lines of any kind, or next to a flying field or train tracks.

Power kites generally come in three main forms or styles. These forms are called foils, leading edge inflatables and suffered leading edge. One would choose a form or trend due to their demands, which is to say, how they intend to use the kite. These kites are all used with multiple line systems. One can choose from a 2, 3, 4 or 5 line system, again, depending on what you need.

A foil kite is made up of numerous cells, and when the kite is in the air, these batteries are designed to open to allow for the passage of air into the kite, enabling it to blow up. It works without saying, but these kites can establish a great amount of power. Foils are often preferred for kite surfing-a water surface sport, kite boarding-the alike of kite surfing but done on land, kite buggying-always done on land with the assistance of a little three-wheel buggy, and snow kiting-practiced on the snow on skies or a snowboard.

A leading edge inflatable kite gets its shape and lift from inflatable bladders that account for its structure. These kites are popular with those who use them for water sports, because the kites are designed to blow once they make contact with the water. These kites vary in size from 5-18 square meters. Based on their design, this kind of power kite can fall into one of four sorts: C- kite, Hybrid kite, Delta kite, and Bow kite.

Supported leading edge kites are power kites that are also generally used in kite surfing. These kites are different from a leading edge inflatable kite because of the system of lines that it employs. This mode of power kites uses a pulley block system, which raises the angle of attack, letting the user to manually depower the system when required and so increases the range of motion, movements and tricks that can be executed. - 31498

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