Shereen Rayle's Blog, page 145

Super Useful Travel Links

Happy Friday! Can you believe it's almost Thanksgiving already? Where has this year gone? I'm guessing that a lot of you will be traveling next week, or planning your trips over Christmas. Perhaps you haven't purchased your airfare yet or you have no idea what you're buying for gifts or how you're going to survive the holidays. I have rounded up some links to help you make it through:
photo credit: allerleirau via photopin cc
Do you have a traveler on your holiday gift list? Or perhaps you're l...

How I Saved on My European Vacation...Accommodations

Traveling to Europe is not necessarily as expensive as most people think it is. When you plan carefully, it can be quite affordable. Our trip to London and Paris wasn't exactly cheap, but with a lot of research, I was able to save big all around. I'll be talking about them all in parts in the next few weeks. Right now, I'd like to talk about how I saved on my awesome accommodations in each place. 

I planned to stay in a timeshare in at least one of our destinations, but when that fell thr...

Creating a Mix and Match Travel Wardrobe for Men

Last week I posted about creating a minimal, but impactful travel wardrobe.  the guys were really interested in one for them, too. As easy as it is for guys to pack light, it's not always in a way that gives enough variation if you are planning to do different types of things on your trip. On our trip to London and Paris, we had to pack for general sightseeing, fancier occasions like tea and theater and also for running around a theme park. Now, normally, we would just throw some jeans a...

Infographic: Why Get Travel Insurance?

I bet when you plan your vacations and run through all the everything-that-could-go-wrong scenarios, you barely ever think about things like:




What if I fall and break my leg?

What if my luggage gets stolen?

What if a cab runs over my foot?

What if I have an allergic reaction to something I've never eaten before?

What if there's a freak snowstorm and I can't get home?

What if the airline goes out of business?

What if I get sand in my eye and it scratches my cornea?




Not that I'm...

How to Pack Light and Have a Large Travel Wardrobe

I know that packing light is a challenge for a lot of ladies. I used to want to take my whole closet, too, but then I went to Europe and had to carry all my crap around town with swollen, angry feet, up and down subway stairs. I could barely pick up my bag and some nice guy helped me drag it up the steps at one point. I had to wait at the baggage carousel for two bags when we arrived and I basically felt like a slave to my luggage. Over the years, I've steadily whittled down my travel w...

Infographic: Is it Britain or the UK?

Do you get confused when people refer to the United Kingdom, Britain and London? They aren't all the same thing, though London is part of both Britain and the UK. There are different flags and Ireland is two different countries, one of which isn't in the UK and one is? Huh? Well, if you wonder why I don't just say I'm headed to Europe when I'm going to London and Paris, it's because England is not part of Europe. In fact, I'll have to learn two exchange rates, because the first part of my t...

Staying In Shape On the Road

When you're out and about flitting from tourist attraction to subway station to lunch, it's hard to keep on track with your diet and exercise regimen. Even though you're out walking all day, and it may seem like you're getting a lot of exercise in, you're also probably eating a lot of high-calorie and fatty foods that pretty much negate all the good you're doing with the walking, hiking and stair-climbing. I hate to exercise, but I like to walk. Too bad I forget that most of the year and on...

Super Useful Travel Links

Are
you freaking out that it’s already November? Have you booked your travel yet
for the holidays? Whether you’re visiting family and friends or going on a real
vacation, the sooner the better. This is something that I wrote about in my
last newsletter – you can read it here and also sign up for future issues here –
and I know a lot of people struggle with. I’m not going to talk about where to
go and what to do on your trips, because that’s not what this series is about,
but we are going to...

Infographic: Which Hotels Have the Best Rewards?

You always want to get the most out your travel dollar, so when you can also use a travel reward program to help you earn more travel, that's a great thing. It seems like everyone and their mother has a rewards program of some sort. In fact, maybe your mother has one, too - do chores for 10 desserts, get one on the house. Might be a new fun way to get  your kids to do the dishes and clean their rooms. Of course, those sweets aren't going to get you closer to a free hotel room or a fanc...

5 (more) Affordable European Getaways

I'm back with another five destinations in Europe that will help you keep some money in your bank account. If you missed the first five, check them out here. I love Europe and hope to get to more countries in the near future. On our short list is Spain, Greece and Germany, some of which are on this list of affordable getaways. Of course, if you plan ahead and do your research, almost all trips can be more budget-friendly. So, check out these options to add to your own short list.








This...