Safari Binoculars: Leupold Wind River Binoculars

Going on a safari holiday, especially during the northern hemisphere's winter makes perfect sense and if you are planning on a safari holiday, you need to be well prepared.

Binoculars
According to the Safari Guide Website, a good pair of binoculars is as important, if not even more important than your camera. But with so many choices, which should you get? Here is an excellent guide to choosing the best safari binoculars.

Leupold Wind River Binoculars

Steiner binoculars seem to be a good choice for safari optics, and these are easily found in both the UK and the US. For a different option, you may wish to take a look at the excellent range of Leupold Wind River Binoculars.

Of particular interest are the Leupold Katmai Binoculars, that are more compact than full size binoculars, making them easier to carry in your luggage, yet still have all th quality features of the full size versions, including:

• Fully Waterproof and Fog-Proof
• Fully Multi Coated Lenses
• Phase and L-Coated Prisms

Eco-Friendly Travel Binoculars

With global warming and the state of the environment becoming more and more important, people are looking for more and more ways they can do their bit to help. We have already seen many environmentally aware holidays and greener ways of travelling become more and more popular. But what about some of the equipment that you take with you on holiday?

If you are looking for a great compact pair of binoculars that make it easy for you to carry in your luggage and are ideal for wildlife observation and more than hold their own as bird watching binoculars and great for all types of sporting events, why not also get a pair that have been manufactured with the environment in mind.

The 10x25 Nikon Ecobins Binoculars

Compact and lightweight, with some excellent quality optics, these binoculars also have been manufactured using lead and arsenic-free Eco-Glass, a non-chloride rubber body uses no harmful inks or dyes.

They also come in environmentally friendly packaging that is produced from sustainable Eucalyptus forests and manufactured with minimal waste and have a travel binocular case that is 100% all-natural Lenzing TENCEL® fiber.

Interested?
Take a look at this full in-depth review of the Nikon 10x25 Ecobins Binoculars as well as some more information on Nikon Optics: Nikon Scopes & Binoculars

Free Beach Holidays in Mexico...

... if you get Swine Flu!

There is always a catch isn't there!

Talum Mayan Ruins
Originally uploaded by FerencSeitz

The Beach in Talum in the Yucatan Peninsula Mexico has been named as one of the world’s most beautiful beaches but even this is not helping as the outbreak of the H1N1 virus is driving tourists away from Mexico's top beach holiday locations.

There have been reports that occupancy in some hotels dropped more than 50 percent at the end of April and beginning of May and since the outbreak of swine flu 25 hotels in the Cancun area have closed down and that the tourism drop may cost Mexico around $2.3 billion in lost income.

In response to this, some of the hotels in the resort areas along Mexico's Caribbean coast have announced free vacations for three years to any tourist who catches swine flu while on holiday in the region. According to Mexico's Health Minister, Jose Angel Cordova: Mexican beach resorts, including Cozumel and Puerto Vallarta have not had any reported cases of the virus.

So far there are over five thousand hotel rooms that are involved in the promotion which is hoped to bring a little life back to Mexico's beach resorts.

For more check out this post on the Beach Holiday Guide: Free Holidays in Mexico if you get Swine Flue

Ferry to Spain, for a Family Holiday in France?

Yes the heading is right, I think that catching one of the Ferries to Spain could make for a fantastic family holiday in the South of France.

The Spanish ferry leaves from Portsmouth and takes 2 nights to get to Bilbao on Spain's northwestern coast. From here it is a very scenic two hour drive along the pretty Spanish coast and then up and over the Pyrenees mountains.

Sure it does cost more than the many cheap ferry crossings to France (Dover to Calais or Dunkirk), but in this way you get two nights to relax on the ferry, with all it's restaurants, live entertainment, casinos, saunas, beauty salon and gym, instead of the ten hour drive down the length of France. You must also remember that you are also saving on the fuel and toll road costs this way.
Why not fly to France?
I am not going to knock flying to hard as I use it often, but that is just the point, we travel so much by air these days, it is no longer exciting and more of a chore, something to get out of the way. I feel that doing something a little different, like catich the ferry can make it part of your holiday. If you do fly, you will also then have to hire a car in France, where as by using the ferry, your holiday starts from the moment you lock your front door.

To read more about our proposed trip to the South of France read the Beach Holiday Blog post on the
Ferry crossing to Spain

Prague City Breaks

I have recently returned from a fantastic long weekend city break in Prague, where the spring weather was simply glorious and I would highly recommend a visit before it gets too hot and the city gets too crowded with tourists.

Prague Weather
Because Prague sits in the middle of Europe, it has an almost Mediterranean climate, with cold winters. Prague tends to get really hot winters and short very cold winters. This means that probably the best time for a city break to Prague is in the spring or autumn.

Flights To Prague
The flying time for us from London Gatwick airport was only 1 hour 40 minutes, with our outward flight leaving very early on Saturday morning and returning on Monday Afternoon, meant that we had plenty of time to explore the city.

Prague Holidays
Our hotel (actually a floating hotel – Botel Racek) was located just outside of the city centre on the river, it was a very simple tram journey into the main tourist part of Prague, but we decided to walk in most of the time as the walk along the river was fantastic.

I am not usually a city break type of person, but I must say that Prague, like a few other smaller European cities (Amsterdam & Edinburgh) are fantastic to visit, you can walk them without feeling too overwhelmed and the river, whilst not only beautiful with it's bridges, makes for a fantastic point of reference making the city really simple to navigate.

So to sum up, I highly recommend a visit to Prague, it makes the ideal long weekend city break location as it is a fantastically beautiful city with something pretty much for everyone: River boat cruises, castles, cathedrals, beautiful parks, restaurants, cafes pubs, museums and more.

For more information check out this page on Prague City Breaks

Beaches in Malta: Ghajn Tuffieha Bay and Golden Bay

Two of my favourite beaches in Malta are Golden Bay and Ghajn Tuffieha Bay, they both sit next to each other and are only walking distance apart. They are situated on the Western part of Malta, with Golden bay having most of the facilities, like places to eat and toilets and the large 5 star Radisson Golden Sands Hotel and thus this beach gets much more populated especially in mid summer. You can hire all sorts of equipment for watersports from this beach and there is a diving school also located on site.

If you are looking for an un-crowded beach, somewhere to get a little peace and quiet Ghajn Tuffieha Bay may be just what you are looking for, this beach is also great for snorkeling. Because Ghajn Tuffieha Bay does not have any facilities, it tends to be much quieter and though it cannot be described as a nude beach, I have seen nudists at the far end of the beach before. If that is not your thing, you can easily stay away from that area and you would probably not even notice them.

You have to climb over 100 steps or you can choose to climb down hillside paths to get to Ghajn Tuffieha bay and so would not be suitable for anyone who has dificulty in climbing. To get to Golden Bay and Ghajn Tuffieha Bay you can take the bus Route 47 from Valletta or alternatively route 652 from Sliema.

Jumeriah Beach in Dubai

Dubai (2008) 10
Originally uploaded by Martin O'Connell

Dubai is a fantastic winter holiday location, with tons of shopping, loads of world class golf courses and stunning beaches.

This post is however all about what is acceptable for you to wear on the beaches in Dubai

I often get asked if it is ok to wear a bikini on the beaches in Dubi. I think wearing a bikini on the private hotel beaches like the Jumeirah Beach Hotel located near Jumeriah Beach is fine and you will not offend anyone. The photo of this post is actually of a couple on Jumeirah Beach and as you can see she is definitely wearing a bikini. I would say though it would probably be inadvisable to go topless in Dubai, save that for your beach holidays to Spain and Portugal!

Topless Beaches in Malta

P'tit cul maltais
Originally uploaded by jdlechere

I have had a number of people asking me if the beaches in Malta are topless, or indeed if there are any nude beaches in Malta.

From the research that I have done, I think officially public nudity is illegal in Malta, but having said that I have seen some people go nude on some remote beaches like Gnejna Bay.

As for topless sunbathing, most people turn a blind eye to topless bathing, but again it tends to be done at the more remote beaches of Malta and Gozo.

So to answer your question, I would say that it is ok, as long as you don't wander the streets or go into the bars topless! For me though this is definitely not a reason not to visit Malta and it's wonderful beaches.

Active Winter Sun Holidays in Dubi (Dubai)

Dubai or Dubi as many people seem (including me) seem to spell it by mistake, is an excellent location for a winter sun holiday location where it is possible to view a completely different way of life as well as go to the beach, perhaps play a bit of golf as well as experience some of the finer things in life. In this post I am going to focus on some of the more physical activities you can enjoy on holiday in Dubai.


Dubi as a active holiday location?
Desert safaris, camel racing, sand skiing, golf and exploring the wadis in a 4x4 vehicle are all very popular in Dubi.

Dubai Golf Holidays
Dubi also has some of the best Golf courses that you could ever wish for and is an excellent location for a golfing holiday. one of the best and probably most well known golf courses in Dubi is the Dubai Emirates Club and actually has two 18 hole par 72 courses: The Majlis, which is where the famous Dubai Dessert Classic [Dubai Desert Classic] is played and the Wadi which was redesigned by Nick Faldo in 2006. Like most golf courses in this region it is a magnificent oasis of green grass and water features reclaimed from the desert sand and well worth a visit to anyone who loves their golf. If you want more info try this guide to all Dubai Golf Courses including the emirates golf club Dubai.

Scuba Diving in Dubai
Scuba diving is often forgotten by people looking for some adventure in Dubai, which is a shame as there is some pretty good dive sites and centers in Dubi.

Hotels in Dubai that have a dive center include the Jumeirah Beach Hotel (00 971 4348 0000) and you can expect to pay around £15/US$30 per trip if you have your own equipment, or if you ar new to diving in Dubai around £280/US$500 for a full PADI open water qualification. Children are also welcome and they have dive courses suided for them as well.

Another location is the The Scuba International Headquarters is a fully licensed PADI 5 star Instructor Development diving centre in Dubai located on the Al Wasl Road and has a purpose built on-site swimming pool for training.

Wadi Bashing - 4x4 Holidays in Dubai
Wadi Bashing involves bouncing a four wheel drive vehicle (4WD) through dried up creeks and river beds. There are many companies that run safaris to Wadi Hatta or the Hajar Mountains, so should not be very difficult to organise.

If you are more of an independent traveler you can try camping under desert stars or again organise the trip through a company.

Jebel Shams lays claim to the title "Grand Canyon of the Middle East", climbing up to nearly a mile-and-a-half above sea level. The eastern emirates have plenty to offer too. Ras Al Kaimah to Dibba is a classic route, climbing from sea level to over 6,000ft and back again. It's always advisable to take a second car and tow rope in case one gets stuck. Most major car-hire firms are represented at Dubai airport an important point is 4x4's will need to be booked in advance.


For more info on Holidays in Dubi check out Dubi Holidays & Beach Holiday Guide

Winter Sun Holiday in Cape Verde

Cape Verde makes an excellent spot as a beach holiday destination all year round, but because of it's location, it also makes the perfect winter sun beach holiday destination.

So where is Cape Verde?
For those of you who don't know, Cape Verde is a group of very small islands in the Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of Africa and so make a great tropical island paradise almost all year round. The temperature in winter average around 24 degrees Celsius and the summer has a low temperature of around 29 degrees Celsius. So thats the first check sorted in any good beach holiday - the weather.

The beaches in Cape Verde
Cape Verde has some of the best beaches I have ever seen, up till now pretty much unspoilt, the perfect place for a relaxing beach holiday. For the more energetic there are also beaches that offer water sports, like windsurfing, snorkeling and even scuba diving around the islands.

So apart from the beaches what else is there to do in cape Verde?
Cape Verde is known for it's their own style of folk music, which is sung all over the island and there are many laid back beach bars and clubs where you can join in.

Like most tropical beach locations, Cape Verde also makes a great spot for your honeymoon or a romantic holiday as it has a very laid back out of the way feel to it. You could easily rent a holiday villa or self catering holiday apartments giving you all the seclusion you could ask for for the ultimate romantic holiday!

The Cape Verde’s islands are however much more than just a beach holiday destination, if you venture inland you will find some stunning scenery perfect for those who love of hiking. It is also important to remember that each island is unique and special in it's own way and my advice would be to definitely do a bit of island hopping.

So there you go, I would recommend The Cape Verde Islands as a truely relaxing beach holiday destination both as a winter sun holiday location and as a summer destination. So if you are lloking for something a little different why not give these beautiful islands a try.

The Best Girls in Bikinis 02

Fun at the Beach 3
Originally uploaded by ellievanhoutte

Wow what a stunner!!

The whole idea of my Girls in Bikinis series was to find photos of babes at the beach in costumes, but I wanted them to be amateurs, not professional models. In my opinion she could easily be a model and what makes it more interesting is I think really great photo is of herself - many thanks for sharing and allowing us to share the photo as well!

The Best Girls in Bikinis 01

Giannella 061506
Originally uploaded by andicati

Ok, for me and I guess many other guys out there, one of the definite bonuses of beach holidays whether they are winter sun holidays or just plain old summer holidays are sexy beach babes in bikinis!

So I thought it would be fun to see if what were the best sexy beach bikinis I could find on Flickr that have a creative commons license of Attribution which basically means that they let others copy, distribute, display their copyrighted work but only if I give them credit.

Well here is the fist of the series her name is Giannella and was taken by Andicati and she is a real stunner I am sure you will agree!

Happy kids in Gambia

Happy kids in Gambia
Originally uploaded by chirundu

One of my favorite photos from my trip to The Gambia. Would love to hear your comments.

Gambia River Safari

The Best Beaches in Malta

Ghajn Tuffieha Bay - Malta
Originally uploaded by GeertVG

Whenever I go on holiday, like most people I like to do some research on where I am going. For my upcoming trip to Malta (in about 2 weeks time now! \o/) I have been trying to do some research on where are the best beaches in Malta.

Now I don't know about you, but I reckon that a good beach guide should at least contain:

A description about the beach
What facilities you can find at the beach
How to get to the beach
Photos of the beach - so you can get a good idea of what it looks like.

Now you won't believe how hard this is to find! There are plenty of guides to the best beaches out there, but to find a good one, especially for Malta was tough, but I did find one and not only did it have all that i wanted, but also contains videos from Youtube on the beach.. excellent!

Check out The Beach Holiday Guide to the best beaches in Malta

Pretty bay, Birzebuggia

Pretty bay, Birzebuggia
Originally uploaded by ngari.norway

Excellent photo of a beach called Pretty Bay, in the south of Malta near the town of Birzebuggia.

This beach was actually a stony beach, the sand has been artificially added when the port (freeport was constructed)

I think it is the only sandy beach on the southern part of Malta.

What to see and do on your holiday in Malta

So with my holiday in Malta fast approaching, I leave in the middle of March, I thought I would do a little research to find out what else there is to see and do in Malta, besides lazing on the beach and scuba diving!

Malta Attractions
Malta have a very rich history and culture, in fact the islands of Malta and Gozo are blessed with an abundance of fascinating historical and archaeological sites, some of which preceded the building of the Pyramids!

Museums in Malta
If you enjoy visiting museums, in Malta you are in for a treat, with such a rich heritage, much of it preserved in museums there are plenty of places to visit. Each museum contains exquisite artefacts from various fields and eras be it art, archaeology, natural history, war time. And if that is not enough even more treasures can be found in the 364 churches built on the island!

So which museums do you visit?

An excellent place to start is the National Museum of Archaeology in Malta which houses a collection of artifacts from the unique prehistoric periods in the history of the island which begins with the first people to arrive in 5200 BC.

The museum is located on Republic St, Auberge de Provcence Valletta

I will also be visiting St. John's Co-Cathedral which also adjoins the St John's Co-Cathedral Museum

The church which was built between 1573-1577 by the Knights of Malta is said to contain marble tombstones where great Knights were buried as well as two great masterpieces by the artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. The museum next to the church holds many more woks of art including Tapestries and many great paintings.

Winter Sun Holidays in Malta

Yay! I am off to Malta in the middle of March 2008 and I can hardly wait.

So why a winter sun holiday in Malta?
I have been asked a few times why I decided on Malta as a destination to visit in March, well a few reasons really.

Cheap Flights to Malta
Traveling out of Season you can often really get some great deals, not only did I get a cheap flight to Malta, but booking the flight and hotel through Lastminute.com I managed to get the flights and 8 nights accommodation at the four star Paradise Bay Hotel with a sea view for £350 which I think is a real bargain. Even though this is a cheap holiday to Malta, I still felt a little gutted because if I had made my mind up a few days earlier I could have had the same flights and hotels for £280!! (I was booking the holiday in February about a month in advance)

Scuba Diving Malta
I have a PADI open water diving license which I got on a trip to Mombasa in Kenya a few years back, and which I have not used since then, so I was also looking for a holiday destination with some warmish water not too far from the UK, Malta has a few diving schools and companies on the islands, the one I have chosen to go with is called Paradise Diving Malta which is located within the premises of the Paradise Bay Hotel which I was staying at, one of the reasons for choosing the hotel! For 7 dives and a refresher course, I have been quoted a very reasonable 220 Euros which includes the full diving kit. During the summer they make all of our dives by boat diving off Malta, Gozo, Comino and Cominetto. The dives include visiting four different ship wrecks, numerous caverns, chimneys and reefs. As they say on their website, Paradise Diving Malta has some excellent dive sites that are about 10 to 20 minutes away by speedboat and they cater for all levels of diver.

The Weather in Malta
Because the island archipelago is south of Italy and not far from Africa, it has a very Mediterranean feel to it's climate, similar to that of Southern Greece. Generally the weather is warm, sometimes hot in late summer Autumn.

I will post a few more articles once I get back from my holidays in Malta with my conclusions. For now check out the Beach Holiday Guides to Holidays in Malta

Winter Sun Holiday in The Gambia

As mentioned in my previous post, I went on a winter sun holiday to The Gambia in West Africa this year, and escaped a little the English winter over Christmas.

The flight is only meant to be six hours from Gatwick Airport, but unfortunately we were delayed by two hours in Gatwick because of poor weather! Luckily this would be the last sort of any bad weather we'd see again until returning back in England!

After landing at Banjul International Airport, we spent a night at the coast and stayed at the Safari Garden Hotel, we then traveled inland, partly on land by bush taxi and partly by boat on the Gambia River.

Along the way we spotted many birds, we also saw dolphins in the river, monkeys, baboons, hippos and chimpanzees!



Our destination up country was the Bird Safari Camp, located near Georgetown on MacCarthy Island, not far from the Gambia River national park and where the The Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Project is located. We stayed at the Bird Safari Camp for three nights, before returning back to the beaches of The Gambia.

On the whole I would say that The Gambia is a pretty good location if you are looking for some winter sun, the temperature never dropped below 30 degrees and we never saw a cloud whilst we were there. The prices are, for me a little high for what you get, especially when you compare it to a few other locations in Africa, this is probably because of just how popular The Gambia is becoming as a tourist location, especially as a beach holiday location. The trip that we did up river was excellent and I would recommend it to anyone looking for more than just a beach holiday in the sun.

I have written a full report about the trip on another of my websites if you would like to read it: Winter Sun Holiday in the Gambia

Birds of The Gambia

Not only is The Gambia is an excellent destination for winter sun holidays on the beach, but it has a huge population of birds. Below are a few photos I took on a recent safari to The Gambia.





Gambian Bird Safaris
Gambian Beach Holiday Guide

Four Top Winter Sun Holidays

No matter how dark and cold the winter gets, remember somewhere out there, the sun is shining, therefore winter is a great time to pack your bags and visit a far off land. How does Mauritius, Florida or Sri Lanka sound?

Winter Sun Holidays in Mauritius
Mauritius, the idyllic beach holiday destination is not only is renowned for it's beautiful clear waters and white sandy beaches, but also has a large selection of top quality five-star hotels. If you are looking for more space and some privacy, a great tip is to rent a villa in Mauritius. You could be sitting on your own veranda admiring the sea views, taking a dip in your very own outdoor spa bath.

You can expect to pay around £350 per person for a week in a villa that will typically sleep 6 to 8 people.

(0845 5002000, www.thevillabook.com). Flights from Heathrow cost from £476pp with British Airways (0870 8509850, www.ba.com).

Winter Sun Holidays in Florida
If you are looking for a children friendly winter sun holiday destination, then Florida ticks all the boxes. You could be visiting top theme parks like Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando and Sea-world. The hotel to stay at would be the 777-suite Holiday Inn hotel as it is a complete children's paradise complete with water playground, a huge games room, free nightly entertainment and themed bedrooms. Children under the age of 5 get to eat free and they offer free transport to Walt Disney World, Seaworld and Universal Orlando.

Expect to pay around £750 per person for 7 nights based on four people sharing and flights are often included in the price!

Kuoni (01306 747008, www.kuoni.co.uk)


Winter Sun Holidays in South Africa
A winter safari holiday is an incredible experience, but how does having your very own safari lodge with your own chef and safari guide (ranger) sound? The Djuma Galago Lodge on the Djuma Game Reserve which is part of the Sabi Sands Game reserve and borders on to the world famous Kruger National Park.

Expect to pay about 6,850 SA Rand for the whole lodge and also includes two game drives an 1 bush walk per day with you very own field guide. check out the Sabi Sands South Africa Safari Holiday Guide for more details.

Winter Sun Holidays in Sri Lanka
Bet you never thought of Sri Lanka as an active adventure holiday destination, but there is loads of activities you can do in Sri-Lanka for the adrenalin junkie. Take a white water rafting canoe trip on the Kaleni river and an elephant ride in the rain-forest.

You can organise this trip through Hays and Jarvis (0871 6640246, www.hayesandjarvis.co.uk) and will cost about £990 per person which includes flights from Heathrow airport in the UK, a car with an english speaking guide, half board accommodation at three locations you will be staying (Sigiriya, the high rock fortress, Kandy and a night at The Beach which is an oceanfront hotel near Negombo.)