Archive for January, 2008

Vacation Ideas – Stone Mountain Park in Atlanta, Georgia, USA

January 6th, 2008 William

Stone Mountain Park features a huge variety of fun family activities. It is situated on 3,200 acres of natural beauty. Stone Mountain Park’s physical address is U.S. Highway 78 East, Exit 8, Stone Mountain, Georgia 30087

Stone Mountain Park requires a vehicle entry fee of $8 in cash for one day parking. The parking pass fee gives you access to the Park’s numerous outdoor adventures including public picnic areas, hiking trails, children’s playground, walk-up trail and the Lasershow Spectacular. There may be other expenses once inside park. Inquire at the Stone Mountain Park information desk for more information or call them at 770-498-5690 and within the metro Atlanta, Georgia area, call 1-800-401-2407. Stone Mountain Park is 16 miles east of downtown Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A.

Park attractions have their own unique schedules and may not be open on a particular day for a number of reasons that include, weather, maintenance or crowd conditions. Park attractions with a one-day all attractions pass include:

• Summit Skyride
• Scenic Railroad
• Antebellum Plantation & Farm yard
• Paddlewheel
• Riverboat
• The Great Barn
• Tree house Challenge
• All new 18-Hole Adventure Mini-Golf Course
• Georgia’s First 4D Theater

Stone Mountain Park is Georgia’s most visited attraction. The park draws in nearly 4 million guests each year. One of the most popular attractions is to take the Ride The Ducks™ Sightseeing Tour that travels on land and water. The operating dates and hours vary by season.

Stone Mountain Park has a staff of actors, singers and musicians that perform live shows and acts in the 1870s town of Crossroads. The town of Crossroads also features a variety of shops that hold live craft demonstrations. The park is home to world-class festivals and events.

The Yellow Daisy Festival is the Nation’s #1 Arts and Crafts Show that takes place weekend after Labor Day. The Pumpkin Festival takes place on weekends in October. Stone Mountain Christmas is in November and December. Coca-Cola® Snow Mountainsm operates November through January.

Local visitors use the Park to jog, walk and hike on over 15 miles of nature trails.

Stone Mountain Park contains Georgia’s largest campground with 441 sites that houses everything from full size RVs to tents. The summer of 2008 will open a new attraction – Big Rock Water Parkâ„¢.

Where to eat and drink

• Miss Katie’s Sideboard Restaurant is home to the hand-tossed roll and the best in southern dishes. It is open daily for lunch and dinner inside a two-story, boarding house theme building, or you can eat in the cool shade on their patio. After your meal, relax in a rocking chair on their porch. Miss Katie’s Sideboard Restaurant is located in Crossroads having entrees that range in price form $7 to $12; kid’s meals are available, salads and vegetables. They accept all major credit cards and it is wheelchair accessible.
• HoneyBaked Café & Mill Creations located in Crossroads features indoor dining for lunch and dinner. They seRVe a variety of premium sandwiches, fresh salads and delicious soups that all feature the signature HoneyBaked Ham and Turkey. They also serve a kids menu, sweet treats and desserts. They accept all major credit cards and are wheelchair accessible.
• P.J.’s Watering Hole features an assortment of newly created specialty drinks that include Southern Nights, Rock Mountain Breeze, Peach Keen, Bug Juice, Fireworks and more.
• Colonel Adair’s Famous Southern Fried Children located at the Railroad Depot in Crossroads features indoor dining having individual dinners that range from $6 to $9. They offer a kid’s meal and it is wheelchair accessible. They accept all major credit cards.

Where to stay

In addition to campgrounds for RV’s and tents there are two Marriot hotels inside the park which are:

• The Evergreen Marriott Conference Resort: Their Marriott Hotel Conference Center and Spa Resort is complete with amenities. They offer special packages of luxurious guest rooms with breathtaking views, an elegant spa, two championship golf courses, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, conference facilities, two restaurants and more.
• The Marriott Stone Mountain Inn is a 92-room historic inn centrally located within walking distance of most Stone Mountain Park attractions. It is a classic Southern inn with oversized guest rooms, a veranda, and a courtyard swimming pool. The Mountain View Restaurant within the inn serves buffet style southern cooking. The convenient location within the park helps to make your family vacation more enjoyable with easy access to park activities and attractions.

Source: Stone Mountain Park Vacation Guide

Important Disclaimer: The URL address in the resource box of this article is not associated with any of the restaurants, hotels or attraction sites mentioned in this article. We do not promote any of them. This article and the web site are offered as a resource for formulating vacation ideas.

© 2007 Connie Limon All Rights Reserved

Written by: Connie Limon. For more vacation ideas visit http://smalldogs2.com/VacationIdeas

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St. Lucia’s an Attractive Luxury Vacation Getaway

January 6th, 2008 William

According to American Express travel, the island of St. Lucia is ideal for travelers who are seeking pleasure and adventure in a tropical paradise. St. Lucia is not only and adult paradise but also attractive to vacationers of all ages. Family travelers can appreciate the relaxation of the freshness of the unspoiled exotic on the St. Lucia Island. There are so many ways to experience St. Lucia. Whether you and the family wish to tour St. Lucia with a hotel and air package, or see this amazing island as part of a luxury world cruise, you are guaranteed to be amazed by the activities and sights that will appeal to travelers of all ages. Travelers will experience the wonder on the faces of their children can themselves; experience a whole new meaning of family fun when the entire family visits St. Lucia.

The Appeal

St. Lucia’s a this small, lush tropical gem that is still relatively unknown, making your luxury travel package seem like exciting adventure of discovery that may be similar to a recent stress releasing daydream.

St. Lucia has some of the most magnificent rain forests, where wild orchids, giant ferns, and birds of paradise flourish. Enjoy your luxury travel vacation package while experiencing brilliantly-plumed tropical birds, including endangered species like the indigenous St. Lucia parrot. Only verdant fields and orchards of banana, coconut, mango, and papaya trees break the rainforest. When you decide on St. Lucia for your family vacation, present it to your children as a deserted island, a place like Neverland. You’ll discover that both you and your children will be excited to get away from it all and enjoy the magical appeal of the exotic surroundings.

Family Activities

St. Lucia is also popular with families traveling together because of the various activities that people of all ages can enjoy together. The island’s lovely reefs offer excellent snorkeling. Imagine introducing your kids into the world of exotic fish and wild beauty through their first snorkeling experience. The rainforest preseRVes of St. Lucia’s mountainous interior are one of the Caribbean’s finest locales for hiking. Teach your children the importance of conseRVation and introduce them to the beauteous sights of the endangered rain forests that they had only experienced in school.

A luxury vacation to St. Lucia is truly an excellent option for travelers who wish to introduce their children to a new worldview. Imagine the crystal clear, warm waters. Picture the fine white sand beaches, lined with gently swaying palms. See your family playing in the surf, laughing and enjoying themselves. With so much to offer travelers of all ages, let a St. Lucia luxury vacation package bring you and your family closer together.

Virginia Morgan wrote this article for AMT American Express Travel. Virginia’s been a travel writer for over five years and enjoys the outdoors. AMT American Express Travel is a popular Internet source for American Express Vacations.

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A Warm Winter Outdoor Vacation

January 6th, 2008 William

For many who live in areas that see a lot of snow in the wintertime, it is a time of year that they try to stay inside as much as possible and avoid the elements. However, what if the elements were not so cold? Just because it is winter in one region does not mean it is winter everywhere else! While your home may be frozen, there are plenty of places that are warm enough for a relaxing outdoor vacation.

One of the best vacations to take to escape the cold north is a cruising tour further south. Imagine – instead of shivering in your home, you could be seeing the wonders of Egypt in beautiful weather.

You could take advantage of a cruise that takes you all through this history-rich land, seeing Luxor and other cities along the Nile River. Some of the nearly weeklong cruises to this region offer tours to wonders such as the Temple of Luxor.

One of the more fun ways to see a region such as this would be on a smaller cruise vessel. Ships such as the Oberoi Shehrazad offer a quaint and personal experience. This ship only sleeps 80 travelers on vacation. Even though it is smaller than the mega cruise ships it does have some great features including a pool, a sun deck and a library.

Another nice outdoor vacation destination to escape the cold is in the Virgin Islands. With a dozen islands to experience along this cruising tour, you will never be at a loss for new things to see and new beaches to experience. While some cruises to this area are a little more expensive, many of them also offer some extras such as snorkeling or scuba dives at the reefs.

Again, if you want a special experience that is much more personal, you should consider a smaller ship. Those like the 66-passenger SV Flying Cloud can take you closer and into more secluded places than a larger cruise ship, and imagine sitting on the deck of that smaller, private ship while sipping a cocktail and watching the sun set on the water.

Had enough of the tropics? How about trying one of many vacations to the Orient? Available are week or longer trips through Ko Khai Nok, Phi Phi, and other islands of Thailand and Malaysia.

One of the smaller ships that travels this itinerary is the 170 passenger Star Flyer. It’s fancier than you would expect with two swimming pools, an Edwardian library, and decks made of teak

When it comes to being warm, it doesn’t get much warmer than the equator. If this is your cup of tea, you may want to take a trip to Ecuador. Here you can cruise the Amazon River, experiencing the kind of wildlife you see in a National Geographic magazine and getting up close and personal to the rainforest.

The important thing to remember is there is no reason to spend the winter shivering. Your escape from the ice, snow and cold is as easy as booking a cruise somewhere in warmer waters or traveling to the more moderate climate of Murcia and Javea in Spain.

The columnist Vince Paxton is very interested in information corresponding to Gandia. Recording his experience in writings on murcia tourist attractions and Javea the reviewer confirmed his expertise on the subject.

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