Posted on

New River Gorge, West Virginia Travel Guide

What is the ultimate group destination that isn’t far away but is a world apart? The most stunning vistas, winding trails, vibrant natural beauty, colorful small towns, hospitable lodging, and irresistible dining West Virginia offers await your group in the New River Gorge area. Known for some of America’s best whitewater rafting, the New River Gorge never disappointed with Rapids ranging from gently flowing natural flows for those simply seeking relaxation to wild class 5 Rapids that will quench the greatest thirst for adrenaline.

Despite the name, the New River is one of the oldest rivers in the world with a rich history as a natural corridor for wildlife. There’s so much to see, so stay a while, grab some binoculars, follow a trail, cast a line, or saddle up.

The New River Gorge area is a four-season destination and with winter come exciting downhill skiing, snowboarding, and snow tubing. When it’s time to recharge, take in the scenery from the comfort of a mountain resort or unwind in a cozy cabin, delve deep into the region’s fascinating history through group-friendly museums and exhibits that tell the stories of its involvement in the civil war and coal industry.

West Virginia doesn’t just take pride in its history but in its artists as well. Discover the work of local craftspeople at Tamarack, the best of West Virginia in Beckley. It’s the perfect place for your group to take a break, soak in some culture, find the perfect gift, and savor Appalachian cuisine. You’ll find some of the best small towns anywhere here. In fact, Fayetteville was named one of America’s coolest small towns by Frommer’s budget travel and for good reason. Shop after shop, mouth-watering dining options, and lots of friendly folks make it a perennial favorite.

Adventure awaits the bold and daring in the New River Gorge, chosen by the Boy Scouts of America as the permanent home of the National Jamboree. It’s not hard to see why people are coming from all over to explore and challenge themselves in these mountains. If you like to cut loose and play hard, there’s no end to the heights you can climb to or die from in the New River Gorge. Walk the treetops, fly down a mountain, or glide through the canopy.

Walk across the catwalk of the New River Gorge Bridge, one of the highest bridges in the world. Bridge day, one of the largest extreme sports events in the world is held on the third Saturday each October at the bridge. Hundreds of base jumpers and thousands of spectators attend. Whether your group is passing through and looking for a place to play or rest of you are looking for an exciting destination, the New River Gorge area has everything you could dream of for a getaway truly like no other.

Posted on

5 Useful Tips before Your Scheduled Flight

Traveling by air seems to be the easiest and fastest mode of transportation, by far, if your destination is halfway around the world. Everyday millions of airline tickets are sold in every part of the globe because people would generally choose a plane to save time and effort. But no matter how time-efficient the air travel is, there are still things that you need to prepare before your departure. Here are the 5 useful tips before your scheduled flight.

Tickets and Travel Documents
A decade ago, a printed copy of your airline ticket is a must, a few years back you can already present the copy of your ticket directly from the email, but just recently you can already check-in on your flight days before your scheduled departure. Most airlines, nowadays, make use of their online portal to do web check-ins and make traveling by plane a breeze, especially if you don’t have a lot of baggage to check-in. Aside from the tickets, though, you also need to be mindful of the travel documents you would need, especially, if this is an out of the country trip. Reading online blogs or even checking official websites of your country of destination would give you the list of the needed travel documents like visas, passports, and government issued photo IDs. And it is very important for you to process these documents well ahead of time for you to avoid last-minute delays.

Arrival at the Airport
For international flights, airlines recommend you to come at least 4 hours before your schedule; as for domestic flights, 2 hours before would be enough. You also have to consider the time it takes for you to travel from your home to the airport, if you’re living an hour away then you should, at least, leave home 5 hours before your schedule flight so you can have some time cushion just in case there is traffic on your way or you left a few things at home.

Check-In
Once you enter the airport, there are big screens showing the statuses of all the flights for that day. You may want to immediately check your own flight status to know whether it’s on time, delayed, or worse, cancelled. Once the status is okay, you may want to go nearer your check-in counter, even if the check-in time is a few hours away. There are also self-check-in kiosks where you can do online check-in but it, usually, has to be at least 4 hours before your schedule. If you have lots of baggage, you may want to line up right away so you can free yourself from the burden of looking over your stuff while waiting.

Boarding Pass
Boarding pass is the final clearance you need before your flight, and you have to secure this, because if you lose it, you’re in a big trouble. But since technology has made everything easier, you can now present a paperless boarding pass, just secure the electronic pass on your phone or tablet and you’re good to go.

Waiting Game
So this is the fun, or for others, the boring part of your travel, because depending on the time you finished your pre-boarding tasks, you’ll either have a long or short time of waiting until your flight departure. If you’re in a huge international airport, then you’re in for a treat; you can spend your waiting time roaming around the airport because there will be gift shops, restaurants and other entertainment areas for travelers. However, if it is a domestic flight and you’re stuck in a small airport, bringing a pocket book to read or surfing the internet would cover up the waiting time.

Posted on

Day Trip Packing Tips That You Need To Know

Why would anyone want to go on a day trip? Because it is a great way to explore an unfamiliar area without having to move from one hotel to another every few days. We can all agree that being able to leave the big bags behind and traveling lighter is one of the greatest things in the world for any traveler out there. Having a smaller pack just for this kind of day is really worth it. Regardless of what you may want to pack for your first-ever day trip, there are some certain things that you definitely need to pack. That being said, here are some tips that you need to know before going on your first-ever day trip!

Don’t Forget Your Camera
Taking photos is one of the most interesting things that you can do when traveling. With that said, make sure to bring your camera with you every single time you travel. This could range from your smartphone’s camera to a more expensive, professional one. Whatever the case may be, your camera should be the one of the first things that you pack before hitting the road.

Bring Something To Read
It is always nice to have something to read during the trip. This is especially true if you are going to take a few hours long train or bus ride. According to the owners at CDM Waste Management, a Kindle is a great way to carry loads of books without putting a lot of weight on your body. While the scenery is usually amazing, some people simply find reading more interesting. Also, if you are the type of person that loves to take notes when traveling, you should consider bringing a journal and a pen as well.

Food and Water
Make sure to pack at least one bottle of water. You should also bring some snacks, because people tend to get hungry while traveling, you know? Having your own food and water is always a good idea. It’s always good to be prepared, isn’t it? It certainly is! This is especially true if you are going to be doing a lot of walking on your day trip. You need to keep yourself hydrated at all times.

Posted on

5 Places in the Middle East That You Won’t Believe Existed

The Middle East is a feared territory due to negative issues connected to them; although only a few brave souls visit this transcontinental region, we can’t deny the fact that it also has a lot to offer. The population in the Middle East is mostly consist of Arabs, and little are known about them except that they are 90% Muslims. The countries here may not be popular tourist destinations but they have a list of amazing but unusual places that most people don’t know anything about, read through the top 5.

BAHRAIN’S TREE OF LIFE
This territory is well-known for their vast deserts, and Bahrain is not exempted, but somewhere in the middle of Bahrain’s sea of sand stands a 400-year old Prosopis cineraria tree. Even if there is no known source of water, the tree with many green leaves still continues to grow and even blossoms twice a year.

WADI EL HITAN, EGYPT
Wadi El Hitan is considered as the “Valley of Whales”, and is added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage. Who would expect to see fossils of giant sea animals in the desert? This paleontological site is home to over a hundred of whale fossils and other large marine animals like sharks, turtles, crocodiles and rays. The whale bones seen here have hind legs complete with feet and toes, giving rise to the theory that before they were ocean dwellers, they were once land inhabitants.

BIMMAH SINKHOLE, OMAN
Bimmah sinkhole is a famous tourist spot for people who like to experience a refreshing dip in a turquoise natural pool. It was created when the roofing of this limestone cavern collapsed leading to a sinkhole, and since the area is close to the sea, water crept in and made a beautiful lake.

SOCOTRA ISLAND, YEMEN
No one can believe if we say the most alien looking place in the world is located in the Middle East, and it is home to plant species that are not seen anywhere else in the world. For a very long time, this little island was isolated to the whole world due to its remoteness, thus explaining why there are alien-looking trees and unique faunas only seen here.

SHAH-E-CHERAGH, IRAN
Shah-e-Cheragh is Persian for “King of Light” and the name is justifiable because when you step inside this giant structure, you will be welcomed with sparkling interior made of glittery glasses. This mausoleum is home to the tomb of the brothers Amir Ahmad and Mir Muhammad, the outside design, although intricate, will not prepare you to the breathtaking and sparkling interior.

Posted on

5 Misconceptions About America

Living or traveling abroad is an experience I can’t recommend highly enough. However, there are many misconceptions and stereotypes about Americans that you may face while abroad. Sometimes these can be funny. Others can be frustrating. The most important thing is to try to handle each one with diplomacy and respect, and maybe try to understand where the misconception comes from. So, if you are planning a trip abroad be prepared to answer some unexpected questions. I’ve compiled some of the strangest I’ve face to help prepare you for this adventure.

Weather

It’s only natural for people want to make comparisons between their home and yours. Sometimes the easiest way to do this is through the weather. Many people do not understand, however, just how big The United States really is. This leads to some interesting questions. For example: Does it rain/snow in America? Is it hot in America? Do you wear boots in America? (Yes someone has actually asked me this) When confronted with a situation like this I generally just explain how large America is and that the weather varies from state to state and even within different regions of a state. And with this variation, we can experience all imaginable variations in weather. Sometimes it is even fun to pull up a map that shows regular types of weather across the U.S.

 

Do you know (insert name here)?

Another drawback to being the third largest country in the world, both by population and area, is that people assume that you will know their friend/cousin/sister/grandma in the United States. My favorite situation is when you tell someone what state you’re from and they know someone in a entirely different state that you might know. Again this can be a great teaching moment and generally great for me too because I can learn about a place in the U.S. I’ve probably never been by asking follow-up questions about the friend.  Also, if you’re from California, be expected to be asked about your personal connections to celebrities.

 

Americans are not bilingual

While this is true for the majority of Americans, according to the most recent census 21.6% of Americans speak more than one language. While this is still much lower than the worldwide average, it is pretty impressive. One thing I try to do when visiting a new country is learn at least “please” and “thank you” in the national language. This may not help you negotiate for the best price in a market, but people appreciate the effort!

 

Americans are rich

While we are on the topic of negotiating prices, be aware that Americans are often seen as wealthy when visiting other countries. Unfortunately this misconception can contribute to crime and people attempting to take advantage. It’s to be expected that if you are seen as a wealthy person it is only fair that you can pay a little more for an item than those who can’t afford it. My suggestion to combat this is to stand your ground and only pay a price you think is fair. Chances are the seller would rather make a fair deal than no deal at all.

 

Americans ruined the English language

English is crazy. That is all there is to it. For every rule there are a handful of exceptions to the rule. I am so happy to have learned English as my first language. This goes for all English, not just American. Also, according to linguistic studies, the way Americans pronounce words is closed to Old English than the rest of the world. That being said, American slang (words like “yeet” and “turnt”) tends to make less and less sense as it develops, even to Americans. Although, the same can be said for most English slang throughout the world.