Just to give you a quick intro here is some information about Portugal.

The country of Portugal covers an area of 92,391 sq. km.; includes continental Portugal, the Azores (2,333 sq. km.) and Madeira Islands (828 sq. km.). Portugal is slightly smaller than the US State of Indiana. Portugal is located in Europe’s southwest corner bordered by Spain (North and East, 1,214 km.) and the Atlantic Ocean (West and South, 1,793 km.).

The Major cities in Portugal are Lisbon (capital, metropolitan area pop. 2.1 million); Porto (metropolitan area pop. 1.9 million).

Terrain of Portugal: Mountainous in the north; rolling plains in the central and southern regions.

Climate: Maritime temperate (Atlantic-Mediterranean); average annual temperature is 61°F. Temperatures may drop into the low 30s (°F) at night during the coldest months, with daytime highs in the 50s and 60s. The remainder of the year is normally sunny with minimal rainfall. Days are pleasant, with temperatures seldom exceeding 95°F, except in the southern interior of the country; afternoons and evenings are breezy, with nighttime temperatures in the 60s and low 70s; May-October (dry and warm), November-April (cool with rain and wind in the north, mild in the south).

Below is a video which is a travel guide for Lisbon, Portugal.

The video is presented by watchmojo.com. It is a helpful travel guide for anyone planning on visiting the beautiful city of Lisbon, Portugal. Lisbon is a stunning city with a variety of architectural styles and is surely a city you should visit.

Ready to visit? You can start your booking by clicking on the icons at the top of this post.

The recent political unrest in Thailand highlights the need to register yourself with the appropriate government department when going to an overseas country. In my case as an Australian I would go to the Smart Traveller website and register myself.

The reason you would want to do this is if a normal calm situation suddenly changes as has happened in Thailand and you need to be made aware of the situation or you may need assistance to return home. If you are registered the embassy in that country would be better able to serve you in your time of need.

Even when all is okay in the country you are visiting it is worthwhile registering as sometimes something may happen to loved ones at home and you may need to be contacted urgently.

Another highly reccommended thing to do when travelling overseas is to get travel insurance. A lot of people have the attitude that nothing will happen to them where they require travel insurance however you just never know what can go wrong. A recent example is where Australian journalist Matthew Hill fell critically ill in Beijing while covering the 2008 Olympics. He required a medical evacuation from Beijing. Without insurance this can be a costly exercise.

I recently returned from Beijing and was lucky enough to not need to call upon my travel insurance however I never considered going on vacation without first taking out a travel insurance policy.

I also recall another instance where I was working in Beijing. One of my colleagues fell ill and was in a serious condition that required hospitalisation. He was fit and strong and would have never expected this to happen. He had travel insurance and was well looked after in a western standard hospital. This was all thanks to travel insurance.

For people interested in travel registration you can learn more at the page I have on this website.

People have learnt that air travel security is no place for jokes. There have been occasions when air travelers have thought it was funny to mention a bomb when going through security check points. The result was not what the traveler expected. Next time you travel by air remember these air travel tips.

When it comes to air travel, a lot of focus is placed on airport security. While the majority of air travel rules are enforced in airports, there are other rules that are enforced in the air. To make the most out of your next business meeting or vacation, you are advised to familiarize yourself with those rules. Doing so will not only allow you to have a pleasant experience, but it will also prevent you from being involved in an unnecessary, but serious incident.

As you may have gathered from news reports, one of the biggest problems on airplanes today is uncooperative passengers. An uncooperative passenger can simply be one who needs to go to the bathroom and refuses to wait until it is safe to leave their seat. However, that passenger, along with many others, is largely unaware of the dangers of violating these important, but simple air travel rules. The first rule that you must follow is to follow all rules imposed by the airline you are flying with. This means leaving your seatbelt on until it is safe to remove it or staying in your seat until it is safe to move around.

It is also important that you cooperate with all airline employees, namely flight attendants. If they ask you to do something, such as remain in your seat, you are advised to listen to them. Often times, if you do not the situation will get out of hand. A few insulting comments and you could be met at your next boarding gate by airport security or local authorities. Even if you do not consider yourself a threat to other passengers or flight attendants, confrontation in the air is taken seriously; very seriously.

It is also advised that you refrain from making any jokes, especially those that involve the use of a bomb or any other weapons. Although you may only be kidding, in today’s society, these jokes are taken seriously. In fact, it is advised that you refrain from using the words bomb, gun, or hijacking aboard an airplane. In the event that those words were overheard, whether they were taken out of context or not, they could cause you and other passengers a large hassle. This hassle often involves the de-boarding of the airplane and additional security checks.

As mentioned earlier, there are serious consequences for breaking these air travel rules. Even if it is proven that you are not a threat to yourself, the flight crew, or other passengers, you may still face prosecution. This prosecution may include disrupting the peace or inciting panic aboard an aircraft. Just because you know that you are not a threat, does not necessarily mean that everyone else knows the same thing. That is why it advised that you choose your words and your confrontations carefully, especially when in the air.

The above mentioned on plane air travel rules are just a few of the many that you must abide by. You will find that most of these rules are not well-kept secrets, in fact, many are simply common sense. If you would like to learn more about the rules enforced onboard, you are advised to contact each airline directly or use the internet to search for the rules applicable to your airline.

With today’s modern airliners providing access to more for less the chances of getting a cheap flight have improved. If only the cost of oil would go down and then there would be some sensational prices.

Still it is affordable to travel the world to see exotic locations. It just takes some imagination and then you can see the places of your dreams.

What is the place you would love to see? Some travel experiences I know people are planning include a six week holiday in France. The friend of mine who is doing this would love to go to France in July this year and hire a car. From there he will travel to the places you don’t see if you go on a package tour. He is planning to find local guides that can show him the out of the way places in France. This will be a truly unique adventure.

Another friend is planning on a visit to Vietnam, once again the focus is seeing the places that not everyone will go to. It seems people are wanting more unique holiday experiences nowadays.

With this comes some risk so it pays to get travel insurance and also register with your countries local diplomatic mission in the country you plan to visit. See the travel registration article for more on this.

My family and I are also having a vacation this year. My wife is from Beijing, so we are going back for the month of August. We get to enjoy the great food available in China as well as take in some Olympic events. Just to be in Beijing at this time should be amazing. Hopefully the Tibet situation will not interfere too much with what should be a fantastic sporting event.

What are your plans for your next vacation? Do you want an overseas adventure or are happy to stay local? There is so much to see and do and with careful planning you can save yourself lots of cash and lots of hassles.

My family and I have just returned from a weekend in Sydney, Australia. This is one city that I always miss after ending a visit. The main reason I love Sydney is the harbour. It is one of the most beautiful sights in the world. I also love the beaches. Bondi and Manly are world class.

On the weekend we spent two nights in Sydney staying at the Capital Square Hotel located next door to the Capital Theatre. Unlike our last visit which was the worst ever stay in a hotel, we enjoyed our stay. The price was $107 per night which I found through a search on the hotels combined website. This price was a lot lower than other Sydney hotels I have stayed at in the past which were around the same price range previously. The hotel room was well maintained and comfortable. It was also roomy.

As we were located close to Chinatown we used that as our base to venture out for our night time meals. One night we tried an authentic Chinese Xinjiang restaurant, on Saturday a Korean BBQ restaurant located at 35-37 Goulburn St. Sydney. Both meals were very enjoyable. When returning to the hotel we passed a very popular Japanese restaurant on the corner of Pitt and Campbell Streets. We have been there in the past and enjoyed the food. This time around there was a huge crowd just waiting to get in.

On Saturday we decided to have a family outing at Luna Park. This entertainment park has been a Sydney landmark for over 70 years. Just the view makes it a worthwhile visit as it is located on the north side of the harbour adjacent to the Harbour Bridge. Admission to the park is free however you need to pay for the rides. We purchased the day pass which was $42 for adults and $32 for our child. There is a good variety of rides and most of them were suitable for our 5 year old. She could not go on one ride because of a height restriction, while another one she decided as too scary. I really enjoyed going around on the Ferris Wheel while enjoying the million dollar harbour views.

Getting to Luna Park was easy. We caught a train from Central Station over to Milson’s Point station. After getting off the train we headed down the hill and into Luna Park. It was a five to ten minute walk from the station. The cost for return tickets for 2 adults and one child was approx $9. In the park there were plenty of choices for satisfying our hunger.

Getting back to my worst ever hotel stay, it was last November staying at the Pensione Hotel on George Street, Sydney. The hotel itself was quite nice. It was a trendy boutique hotel that was nicely decorated. The problem was that they gave us a room on the second floor which looked out at George Street. In case you don’t know this street gets extremely busy at night time. The noise of cars, people and sirens made it near impossible to sleep. Some thick glass windows would be a welcome improvement.

For day 2 of our Sydney weekend getaway check back here in a few days.

This blog is here for you to learn about travel and hopefully contribute your own travel experiences. I look forward to hearing from people all around the world about their favourite travel locations, tips for saving money or tips for finding new and interesting things to do on vacation.

Some of my favourite travel spots include Beijing, China, Hayman Island on the great barrier reef, Paris, London, New York and Fiji. I would also love to hear from you about your favourite destinations.
My most recent travel experiences have just been local holidays in my home country, Australia. My last overseas holiday was to the Shangri La resort in Fiji. I highly recommend this resort. The locals are very friendly and the resort is top notch.

If you are looking around for flights or hotels visit the cheap flights and cruises marketplace. From here there are links to booking sites.

I hope you enjoy your time here.

Rob