“We are so happy to finally be in Las Vegas!!!”

Heeey heeey….what happens in vegas stays in vegas ok….come on now. EXCEPT FOR BED JUMPING THAT IS!!

You’ve scoured the internet to find ways to save money while traveling and you always find the same tips. Book your hotels online, make sure your bags are packed in a TSA friendly manner, and more. But what else can you do to make your trips just a bit easier, less expensive and more memorable? Here are 7 travel secrets you might not have heard yet.

7. Book an Illegal Flight

Ok, we don’t mean illegal as in breaking some type of international law. What we mean is that if you can’t fly from point A to point B in one flight you should book flights that are very close together. Say you are going from Philly to Los Angeles with a layover in Chicago? Any flight to LA from Chicago departing within 45 minutes of your first flight landing won’t show in your travel agent’s computer but in many cases you can find cheaper deals. Purchase two tickets – one from Philadelphia to Chicago and a second one from Chicago to LA. This tactic will allow you to take advantage of other airline specials.

6. Traveling in Comfort

We all know that seats in the front or near emergency exits have great legroom but won’t recline. So do you know where the best seats in the plane really are? If you want a smooth ride, try to get a seat near the wings as they are the furthest point from any engine. If you want a quiet ride, try to sit towards the front of the plane (but not too close to the bathrooms).

5. Keep a Travel Journal

If you want to keep a great log of your journey start your travel journal at least a few weeks before you leave on your trip. Use the journal to write your packing list and your notes about the things you need to do before you leave. Jot notes about the places you want to see and keep the information you find in advance about local hot spots or even dangers. Take the journal with you and write a few notes about what you see or do in between adventures. You’ll end up with a much more detailed and memorable depiction of your trip than you would have if you relied on photographs alone.

4. Extra Research

Before you book your hotel, go online and find out if there is a local college or university in the area. If you visit the school website you’ll often find a list of hotels that the college recommends for visitors – a list that cuts out hotels that aren’t tourist friendly. You can then use that information when searching the RatesToGo website for an appropriate hotel in the area you plan to visit!

3. Travel Smart

You and your cell phone are inseparable, right? Why not use the features in your address book to document the names, ages, birth dates, and emergency contact information for your friends and travel companions. If something happens to someone while you’re away you’ll know exactly what information to give emergency personnel.

2. Using the Hotel Safe

Using the hotel safe is one thing but knowing how to use it properly is another. The truth is that hotel staff members who really want to steal from you have strong plans and know what they’re doing. After you set the code for your safe go back and press every single number on the keypad. Doing so will put your fingerprints on every number and anyone who has put a special oil or powder on the keys will not be able to determine what keys you pressed to make up your code once you leave for the day.

1. Talk to Your Bank or Credit Card Company

One thing most people don’t think to do before traveling is to call their banks or credit card companies. If you never travel internationally, your bank may see purchases made in another country and put a hold on your account, suspecting some type of fraud. If you let the bank know you’ll be traveling (and where) in advance they can note your account and prevent any misunderstandings. They’ll also make sure the PIN numbers you currently have will work with international bank machines.

Preparing for a trip is almost as enjoyable as the trip itself but it can be stressful if you jump from idea to idea. Write down the things you need to do before you leave home, document your journey in its entirety, and prepare to make a lifetime’s worth of memories!

Kerala, the small state located on India’s south-western coast, is most famous for its picturesque wetlands – a network of interconnected rivers, canals and lakes known as the Kerala Backwaters. Fresh waters of the rivers mix with the salt water of the Arabian Sea, creating a unique,…

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You can tell a lot about a particular place and culture by the local bar scene. How and what do locals drink after a hard day’s work and what, pray tell, do they eat with their intoxicant of choice?

Every good pint, glass and shot after all, deserves a worthy snack and choice morsel of grub. Otherwise, how on Earth to refuel the incessant alcohol intake, soak up the liquid goodness and curb the onset of pre-dinner carnal hunger? I thought this was a topic worthy of investigation. After all, despite a preponderance of bar food variety from one city to the next, certain regions and specific places in the world rely on an effective set of comestible staples. These bar foods are not random in origin however. Nay, they deliberately and purposefully marry with the inherent, ancestral tipples of say, Japan, Ireland, or Spain. Do not shun these foreign foods! Take part in communal rituals whenever you travel I say, with no better place to witness the vibe of a particular city than the local tavern.

Check out a sample plate of my favorite international bar snacks.

Padrón Peppers

Head to a bar or tapas restaurant anywhere in Galicia, Spain and most likely, a plate of Padrón pimientos will be thrust under your nose. The flagship product of the town of Padrón in the Province of A Coruña, these fairly innocuous miniature green peppers complement a glass of beer or Albariño wine quite nicely.

Pickled Herring

Chunks of salty, fatty fish meld gorgeously with copious quaffs of cold brew. This is especially apropos in many parts of Germany, where pickled herring, in massive jars no less, is a staple on the bars of many a beer hall. Throughout Scandinavia of course, pickled herring and dark rye bread is a necessary akvavit accompaniment.

Pickled Eggs

While the notion of pickled eggs may seem abhorrent to some, the process is a rather lovely way to preserve a nice hard boiled beauty. The salty, meaty goodness of a pickled egg, hoisted straight out of the bar jar, is familiar to many a British pub-goer. The love affair with pickled eggs extends way beyond the borders of England however. In my hometown of Montreal for example, this extraordinary bar food is a dive and tavern staple.

Yakitori

With deference to the rest of the world, Japan may have the best bar culture on the planet. The whole concept behind the izakaya for one, is beautiful. A convivial atmosphere where people gather to drink and munch on otsumami (snacks) or sakana (sake snacks). Japan has a phenomenal array of bar foods, with myriad regional variations from city to city. I could however, eat yakitori – skewers of chicken meat or chicken offal cooked over charcoal – until the cows come home.

Dubu Kimchi

South Korea has a ridiculous bar culture and a vast panoply of alcohol-specific foods, known collectively as anju. Many bar snacks throughout the country are served expressly with soju, the staple distilled beverage native to Korea. One anju that clearly stands out is dubu kimchi. Kimchi of course, is ubiquitous all over Korea, but this form of the fermented pickle has a protein kick courtesy of tofu and sometimes, pork or fish.

Crawfish

This sweet little crustacean makes for one mighty bar snack. From crawfish boils in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast of the United States, to various “crayfish” preparations throughout mainland China, there is general world concensus that this mini-lobster plus beer equals good times.

Check out superb hotel rates in destinations all over the People’s Republic of China.

Photo credits: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

“We are so happy to finally be in Las Vegas!!!”

Heeey heeey….what happens in vegas stays in vegas ok….come on now. EXCEPT FOR BED JUMPING THAT IS!!

“We are so happy to finally be in Las Vegas!!!”

Heeey heeey….what happens in vegas stays in vegas ok….come on now. EXCEPT FOR BED JUMPING THAT IS!!

There are many things that made San Francisco famous: its unique landmarks, its friendly inhabitants, the songs about the city and the picturesque cable cars. But there is one aspect that tourists seem to ignore: its exclusive streets. Here are five of the most famous streets in this amazing city….

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