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Useful
Links for Travelers
Here are some
useful links and information we thought would be very helpful when traveling to
Domestic and International Destinations.
If you need more
information or if you have a link you'd like to add, please contact the Travel Advisor
found on the upper left side of each country
page. |
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Be sure to check our "Tips" section
which provides great tips for Air Travel, Money Exchange,
Packing, our favorite ideas to help you Plan Ahead and more. |
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TRAVELING OUTSIDE THE
UNITED STATES |
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Before you go anywhere I recommend visiting
The US State Department's
http://travel.state.gov informs American travelers about travel
documents and safety. Their website includes information on passports
and tourist visas. It also has "Consular Information Sheets" for every
country in the world with basic information on geography, health care,
safety issues, embassy locations, and more. In regions where there is
political or economic instability, the website also includes "Travel
Warnings" explaining the conditions. |
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Keep in mind that State Department travel warnings are
very conservative and are sometimes overstated. If a warning is issued
in an area where you're going, stay up-to-date on the news so you can
make an informed decision about your plans. Some travelers in search of
a second opinion prefer the warnings put out by the U.K. Foreign and
Commonwealth Office http://www.fco.gov.uk. |
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With the bird flu flying around, it is best to check the
Centers for Disease Control
http://www.cdc.gov/travel
for updated information on every country. Or
in the USA call for 24-hour recorded voice 1-888-232-3228. |
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Check Exchange
rates and get an “FX Cheat Sheet” that allows you to create and
print a currency converter table before you take your next trip! Visit
http://www.oanda.com. The “FX Cheat Sheet” can be found on the
left side of the home page under “Travelers.” |
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http://www.worldclimate.com
has useful monthly temperature and rainfall averages for thousands of
destinations worldwide. You can plan your vacations avoiding rainy
seasons or droughts. It can also assist you in deciding what to pack. |
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Traveling
through Europe by Car, Bus, Tube or Ferry?
►Traveling by subway? Subways (metro,
underground, tube, whatever...) are a more inexpensive way to travel and
are often faster that taxis and busses. This website provides maps and
diagrams for subways all over the world - New York, Moscow, Paris,
London, Boston and many more. It even lets you check stops, plan your
trip and provides estimated time.
►This website can answer all your questions
about local driving laws, road signs, even
rideshare bulletin board!
http://www.ideamerge.com/motoeuropa/index.html
►For accurate
driving routes
and tube routes visit Mappy Route Planner at
http://www.iti.fr/
►Another source
for driving routes and
directions throughout Europe, visit
http://www.viamichelin.com
►For train, bus and ferry schedules for Italy visit
http://www.trenitalia.com
►Connections and schedules for Greek ferries visit
http://www.ferries.gr
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TRAVELING INSIDE THE
UNITED STATES |
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| Here are links to the
official Tourism Offices of all 50 states.
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DRIVING LINKS |
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Driving in the USA? Find out which gas station is offering the cheapest
gas prices. Updated daily, these sites can save you money on your drive to Las Vegas!
http://www.gaspricewatch.com |
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Check out the roads before you go. Links to the Departments of
Transportation for all 50 States. |
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TRAVEL & HEALTH ADVISORIES |
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Travelhealth Online provides information that will help
you have a safe, healthy adventure. Vaccines, inoculations, infectious
diseases, health, safety, individual country health issues and travel
advisories.
http://www.tripprep.com/ |
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PACKING LINKS |
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Need help with packing? These two
website can give you hundreds of tips to help you break the habit of
overpacking and can get you down to one carry on bag regardless of the
length of your trip.
The expert, Lani Teshima at Travelite lets you in on some more great
packing tips as well as general travel tips. This site is a must
read for novice travelers.
http://www.travelite.org
Onebag offers some of the best packing tips
ever! Based on the author’s premise that “the lighter the burden, the
more pleasant the journey,” this very attractive website is certain
to change your ways. They even include a downloadable checklist.
http://www.onebag.com |
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MISCELLANEOUS |
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Just knowing how
to say “Thank You” in your destination country language will bring
smiles and open doors. Learn a new language - take a few minutes
and visit Rosetta Stone. They offer an excellent Free Demo for
tons of languages - even Arabic, Swahili and Welsh. I used it for
Turkish and it was a great help -
http://www.rosettastone.com (Click
on "Individuals" then "Free Demo.") |
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Want to read the Cairo news
before your visit to Eqypt? Visit World Newspapers.com at
http://www.world-newspapers.com
Just click on the country of your destination and you will be linked to
the local English newspaper. |
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Frequent flyer programs offer much of value, though
they're not what they used to be, and now require that you pay them a
lot more attention in order to get the best return. Tim Winship's
http://www.frequentflier.com
addresses this topic, and presents much of interest, including links to
hundreds of airports worldwide. |
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How much does it cost to mail a
postcard in Paris? Some would say it depends on who you talk to - but
you can find the facts at this very user friendly website at
http://www.postalrates.info |
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►Get country codes for any country
at http://www.countrycallingcodes.com
►Links to hiking trails around the world at
http://www.traildatabase.org
►Elder Hostel offers educational travel for 55 and
older
http://www.elderhostel.org/welcome/home.asp
►What time is it in Moscow?
Check here...http://www.timeanddate.com |
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