The program is hosted by Lisa Tully, who is originally from Ireland, and Buga Tire, a Buddhist lama. The itinerary includes an opportunity to explore the Tibetan quarter of New Delhi before moving to Mcleod Ganj, where the Dalai Lama has his residence. The tour also includes a private Green Tara puja performed by the tantric lamas at the Gyumed Monastery; a visit to the Norbulingka Tibetan cultural center; a trip to the Tibetan Childrens’ Village that was established by the sister of the Dalai Lama; a visit to the Men-Tsee-Khang Tibetan astrology institute, and the Bhagsu waterfall where monks are often seen doing their laundry.

The heart of this spiritual journey will be a ten-day silent Buddhist meditation retreat held at the Tushita Meditation Centre in Mcleod Ganj. The retreat, taught by both Tibetan and Western Buddhist leaders, gives a modern twist to traditional Buddhist philosophy and meditation, including teachings about karma, rebirth, compassion, the mind and the nature of reality.

For full details about this program that includes a rare opportunity to attend a public teaching by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, please visit the web page at http://bodymindspiritjourneys.com/dalai-lama-india-meditation-2012.html

Padma is the India yoga retreat tour leader

We recently heard about a South India yoga retreat that includes many of the fascinating places we visited on our first trip to India. The leader of this group tour is the well known television yoga instructor, Padma, and she will do private, one-on-one meditation and y0ga consultations with each of the participants.

One of the highlights of the program will be a three-day yoga and meditation retreat in a seaside resort overlooking a white, sandy beach on the Arabian Sea.  There is a visit to the bustling port of Kochi, a former British hill station resort surrounded by tea, coffee and cardamom plantations, a luxurious houseboat cruise through picturesque canals and lagoons, and an excursion to Madurai, South India’s oldest continuously inhabited city. The tour is 15-days long, running February 26 to March 11, 2012.

We found Madurai to be an utterly magical place, especially the Meenakshi Temple, which is stunningly ancient, enormous and spiritually powerful. It is where the author was blessed by a sacred elephant.

Other tour highlights will be a visit to India’s oldest Jewish Synagogue, built in 1568 and a spectacular Kathakali Dance performance with a behind-the-scenes look at the dancers having their faces painted before the show.

On the Bay of Bengal, the group will explore the many ancient granite carvings in Mahabalipuram, one of the seven most holy places for Hindus in India, as well as nearby Kanchipuram, the “Golden City of a Thousand Temples,” some of which date back to the 7th century.

Most days include scheduled yoga and meditation times. Because yoga was born in India, this tour is a perfect opportunity for anyone with a strong interest in yoga and meditation to not only improve their skills but also gain a deeper appreciation for the culture from which they were originally created. Please click for more information about this India yoga retreat and meditation tour available from Body Mind Spirit Journeys.

The Atlantic archipelago is a part of Spain, and its seven major islands are La Gomera, El Hierro, La Palma,Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote. Its major industry, once winemaking, is now tourism, and it is especially popular with holiday makers from the U.K. who enjoy its sunshine as well as activities such as fishing, hiking, surfing and partying.

Lanzarote, the most easterly, is particularly well known for water sports, including swimming, scuba diving, snorkelling, jet-skiing, windsurfing, parasailing and yachting. Getting to Lanzarote by ferry often requires patience, as the sailing times tend to be a bit flexible. The island also has an airport, located near to Arrecife, and there are dependably scheduled flights to it from London Gatwick, Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow, Birmingham and several other U.K. cities. Once arrived, visitors to Lanzarote are usually impressed by its natural beauty. Much of its charm can be attributed to its government’s efforts to strike a balance between commercial development and ecology.

A must-visit attraction on the island is Timanfaya National Park, which is located among the Montanas del Fuego, mountains that were created only a few hundred years ago during a six-year period of dramatic volcanic activity. Several very rare variety of plants can now be found there. Other popular places are the spectacular Cueva de los Verdes and Los Hervideros caves, the latter of which has numerous water-spouting blow holes. Famara Beach is noted for its wrecked ship.

Taking into account its dramatic volcanic scenery, white sand beaches, reliably pleasant weather and friendly locals, it is no wonder tiny Lanzarote island is such a popular holiday destination.

In reality, increased expenses in the transportation industry have forced airlines to tighten up their operations. The possibility of not sitting next to another passenger aboard a flight is becoming less and less frequent. The companies can’t afford not to fill up their planes, so they are scheduling fewer flights. As a result, airfares often cost more the closer you get to the departure date.

This does not mean you cannot find a discounted vacation at the last minute. Hotels and resorts are still trying to find ways to fill up their empty rooms, and last minute discounts and other incentive packages may still be found. That is why I recommend that anyone who is looking to get away at the spur of the moment should look for deals on rooms relatively close to home, and then go there by car rather than by air.

For me, living in Vancouver, there is a good variety of destinations that are not too far away. Whistler, Seattle, and even the Oregon beaches are all accessible in less than a day’s drive, and to my mind, all of these places qualify as excellent locations to enjoy last minute holidays.

If I owned a hotel, bed and breakfast, holiday resort or any other such accommodation, I would rather have half of my rooms filled every night for a lower price than most of my rooms empty at their full price. That is why now may be the best time for travelers to find cheap holidays. It’s easy to do the research using internet search engines. Just enter a phrase such as “Belize resort discount packages” or “special deals all inclusive Cancun 2011” or whatever kind of an experience you’re looking for.

Not sure what you want? Discount airlines such as Allegiant Air has at least half a dozen special deals that they are now advertising on their website. Some of the best are package trips to Las Vegas that include airfare and a hotel, and they are discounted at 20% off plus you get free vouchers for meals or other valuable perks.

Speaking of saving money on vacations, with the U.S. dollar down a bit compared to the Euro, you’ll be money ahead of you visit a country such as Belize where the currency is pegged to the greenback. One U.S. dollar will buy you two Belizean dollars no matter what the exchange rate is for Euros or other foreign currencies.

If, for example, you are planning a vacation in the Mayan Riviera, you can go online, visit the websites of half a dozen travel package providers, and compare holiday prices between them. Other websites let you select various airlines and compare their prices for airline tickets. Companies such as Travelocity, Cheapoair and Expedia have improved to such an extent since they first went online that travel agencies and their agents have suffered.

Prospective travelers who are not looking for an all inclusive or package holiday will, of course, have to do more research than a family who wants to stay in one resort for their entire vacation. But, to my mind, what could be more fun than searching online to find, for example, the best mid-price-range hotels in Prague and the various restaurants that are within walking distance. In the days before the Internet, you had to read about overseas accommodations in guide books and communicate with them by snail mail. Now, in some cases, you can use Google Street View to put yourself in front of them and do a virtual walking tour with a few mouse clicks.

So, for anyone who thought that this writer was slamming the Internet for ruining the business of travel writing, that is not the case. There have been some negative changes, but I don’t think most people would disagree that the positive changes outweigh them.

Torontonians have long known that air fares from Buffalo, NY are often much better than to fly out of Toronto. Folks who live in Southern Alberta may be better off taking off from Montana than from Calgary. Those who live in Manitoba are more and more using airports in Fargo or Grand Forks, ND rather than paying more by using Winnipeg International Airport.

Recent newspaper reports have revealed that the losses to Canadian businesses are mounting to the extent that calls for the government to reduce airport taxes and other fees are becoming louder. We feel it would be good for airports that fly the Maple Leaf to become more competitive with those south of the 49th parallel. Especially now that Vancouver’s new rapid transit Skytrain service makes it so easy to connect with YVR.

In the first place, no public relations firm, advertising agency, visitors bureau or travel marketing board gives anything away for free. If they are going to invest a few thousand dollars to fly someone halfway around the world, they are going to expect a return on their investment that at a very minimum involves them getting editorial coverage in newspapers, magazines or in new media that is worth at least a few thousand dollars, and more likely much more. If you can provide evidence that this is something you can deliver, then you may get your foot in the door.

Having been a professional travel writer for more than a dozen years, I am amazed at how dramatically the game has changed, for two huge reasons: 9/11 and the Internet. Back before the terrible events of September 11, 2oo1 air travel was fun. Afterwards it became almost too much trouble. As a result, fewer people bought airline tickets, fewer airlines and other travel-related companies bought advertising space in newspapers and magazines. As a result, editors at publications had less money to buy travel articles. As a result, there was less money available to be paid to travel writers.

I once joked that some of the articles of mine that are published earn me so little money that they will pay to have my film processed, provided I am using a digital and not a film camera.

As a member of the board of directors of a professional travel writers association, I am finding it increasingly difficult to encourage young people to get started. For those who would like to give it a try, my best suggestion is to write travel articles about places near enough to where you are located that you can go there for free or cheap. Then write excellent articles and post them on the internet. If you have a nice enough online portfolio, you can probably convince the owners of some local attractions to let you in at no charge in return for online publicity. You may even be able to get your article published in a local newspaper.

For someone who was wondering how to become a travel writer, I hope this article was not too discouraging. Happy travels!

Some of the most popular destinations for all-inclusive vacations are the Disneylands of Florida and California, ski resorts in the Rockies, Mexico, Hawaii and the Caribbean.  For families living in North America, Europe and Asia are much less popular due to the lengthy amount of time you must spend with the children in an airplane.

Of course there are also different varieties of all inclusive holidays for couples who will not be taking any kids with them. A romantic retreat in Belize might include nature trail hikes, river tubing, cave exploring and exotic shopping in village markets.

A bit of research when you are getting started can save you significant amounts of cash. What I mean is because some destinations have much higher rates depending on the season of the year. For example, if you are thinking about going to Fort Lauderdale or other popular Florida beach areas during Spring break or other school vacation times, you are going to find that the prices have soared up through the roof. The major holidays of Christmas, Thanksgiving, Labor Day and Easter are nearly as costly. When are the rates best? Generally speaking between April and May and between September and November.

If you want to know in advance how much your transportation, accommodation, meals and leisure activities are going to cost, then all inclusive holidays truly do take the worry out of vacation planning.

When I visited Florida a year or so ago, I had assignments in both Tampa Bay and Orlando, and driving a rental car turned out to be the most efficient way to get around. However, on my two press trips to India, where cars literally share the road with cows, camels and horse-drawn vehicles, this reporter would have been very uncomfortable behind the wheel of a hired car.

For business travelers who are not travel writers, the situation can be even more complex. Obviously if money is not much of an object, an executive can be more productive and efficient by hiring a driver while he or she uses a laptop computer in the back seat.  When budget travel is necessary in the case of an entrepreneur, the traveler may be have to resort to the internet or a travel agent for assistance to book cheap car hire in Canada, for example.

To drive or not to drive a rental car ultimately depends upon the confidence of the potential driver. I recall being so frightened when I first started driving a hired car in the U.K. that I literally had to pull over to the (wrong) side of the road until my nerves were more steady. However, after finally escaping from the heavy London airport traffic and getting into the British countryside, things were much more relaxed. Even the process of driving a standard transmission car and shifting gears with the left hand soon felt natural.

With today’s technological aids giving drivers the extra benefits of Google maps and GPS tracking systems, driving a hired car in a foreign land is at least slightly less of a challenge than it was in times past.