Argentina travel guide - Argentina travel tips & safety advice

Some of the world’s most dramatic scenery can be found here in the Patagonian Stepp, the Andes, and the lush Lake District. Take your time exploring this wonderful country – the vast landscape takes time to get around and is worth all the distractions you’ll find along the way. I loved the food, hospitality, and positive energy the locals here. (The beautiful natural backdrop doesn’t hurt either!) This travel guide to Argentina will help you plan your trip to the land of steak, wine, and mountains!

Argentina is one of the most popular places to visit in South America – whether you are backpacking the continent or just on a short, budget holiday. From the café culture of Buenos Aires to the natural beauty of the Iguazu Waterfalls and the Perito Moreno glacier to the vineyards of Mendoza, Argentina has something to offer all visiters.

Typical Costs

Accommodation

Hostels are widespread throughout the country, and start at about 80-100 ARS (6-7 USD) for a dormitory room in Buenos Aires. Private rooms in a hostel with a shared bath are generally double the price of dorm rooms.  Hotels in more expensive places like Mendoza and Patagonia cost upwards of 410 ARS (27 USD) per night. You will find that a vast number of hotels in the country that fall under 840 ARS (55 USD).

Homestays are a popular option in the country and can be found via Craigslist or Home Stay Web. Airbnb averages for the country are 150 ARS (10 USD) for a shared room, 760 ARS (50 USD) for an entire apartment. Camping is widespread in all the natural parks. If you have a tent, campgrounds are available all around the country (including the notable Patagonia region) for around 60-120 ARS (4-8 USD).

Food

Food is fairly expensive in Argentina. Meals at cheap cafe begin at around 90 ARS (6 USD). If you add a drink, expect to pay 100-130 ARS (6-9 USD). If you are looking for a really nice sit down meal with good steak and wine, expect to pay 320 ARS (20 USD).

Empanada, choripán (sausage on bread) stands, and local hole-in-the-wall burger and pizza shops are economical and tasty! Empanadas go for around 8-15 ARS (less than $1 USD), choripán for 25 ARS (2 USD), and pizza and burgers lunch specials for around 40 ARS (3 USD). If you’re going to grocery shop, expect to spend about 370 ARS (25 USD) per week for groceries.

Transportation

Argentina boasts an outstanding short and long-distance bus network. It is common to have food served on board as well as wifi and alcohol on long distance buses. As an example, the bus ride from Buenos Aires to Mendoza takes about 14.5 hours and tickets begin at 660 ARS (44 USD). Trains are experiencing something of a revival and there is rail service between the country’s three largest cities: Buenos Aires, Cordoba, and Rosario.

A train ride between Buenos Aires and Cordoba costs around 300 ARS (20 USD) The Train to the Clouds, a scenic tourist train that begins in Salta, and passes through the Andes, is one of the highest railways in the world, costs 2,600 ARS (175 USD). Inner-city travel is pretty affordable. In Buenos Aires, a one-way trip on local transit is about 5 ARS (0.35 USD). A bus between Buenos Aires and Mendoza costs about 800-1400 ARS (50-95 USD). A bus from Buenos Aires to El Calafate (Patagonia) is 2,400-4,250 ARS (160-280 USD).

Sights

Activities here are generally more expensive than in other South American countries. You can find a Patagonia 3-4 day tour that starts at 3,900 ARS (260 USD), but most will be around 9,100 ARS (600 USD) and up.  , and a Mendoza day wine tour will be around 1,560 ARS (105 USD). Museum entry ranges between 15-60 ARS (1-4 USD). National Park entrance fees range from 50-260 ARS (3.50-$18 USD) per person.

Suggested daily budget

760-910 ARS / 50-60 USD (Note: This is a suggested budget assuming you’re staying in a hostel, eating out a little, cooking most of your meals, and using local transportation. Using the budget tips below, you can always lower this number. However, if you stay in fancier accommodation or eat out more often, expect this to be higher)

https://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-guides/argentina-travel-tips/

Bahamas travel guide - Bahamas travel tips & safety advice

There are a huge range of historical, cultural, and natural attractions in this country, but like most islands in the Caribbean, the Bahamas are an expensive destination. Smart planning can help you get more bang for your buck as you indulge in everything the Bahamas has to offer and, while this travel guide can help, be prepared to spend money on your trip here.Picture perfect beaches make the Bahamas a popular destination for millions of tourists every year, especially Americans and cruise ship visitors.

Typical Costs

Accommodation

Lodging is expensive. There are very few hostels, but there are reasonably priced guest houses and budget hotels. Expect to pay at least 95 BSD a night for a room in a 2-star budget hotel that sleeps two. This price includes basic hotel amenities like free Wifi, television, and private bathrooms.

For the best value, check out Airbnb where you can rent either a spare room or an entire place from a local. Often times these are located in central neighborhoods or right on the coast at a much better cost per night than a hotel. You can find entire apartments starting around 50 BSD but you’ll find much more inventory if you look at 90 BSD and up.

Food

You’ll pay around 8 BSD for fish, a side dish, and dessert, which is fairly reasonable for local fare. However, most restaurants also specialize in American and British meals that can cost between 17-25 BSD a plate. There is often also a compulsory service charge of 15% on your bill, so keep in mind as you settle a check. Expect to pay 60 BSD per week for groceries that will include pasta, vegetables, chicken, and other basic foods if you plan on cooking.

Transportation

If you’re staying in Freeport or Nassau, a minibus trip for 1.25 BSD is the cheapest way to get around, but they stop running at 6pm. Another option is the wildly popular water-taxi that runs every hour for 6 BSD from Nassau to Paradise Island. In terms of inter-island travel, there are frequent and affordable mail boats going from.

Nassau to the outer islands that cost about 45 BSD each way, but plan accordingly because these can take anywhere from 12-48 hours and offer little in the way of modern conveniences. Inter-island flights (via Bahamas Air or other local carriers) are a much more efficient option, and if you buy ahead of time, the fare usually won’t break the bank. Uber, the taxi alternative, is available in Broward and Palm Beach in the Bahamas.

Activities

Snorkeling, diving, swimming with dolphins, and fishing trips can all easily creep up to around 150 BSD each, but are an incredible way to experience the islands if you have the budget. Other inland activities, such as the Pirates of Nassau Museum and the Garden of the Groves on Grand Bahama, are much more reasonable, about 13-15 BSD.

Suggested daily budget

$120-200 USD (Note: This is a suggested budget assuming you’re staying in a hostel, eating out a little, cooking most of your meals, and using local transportation. Using the budget tips below, you can always lower this number. However, if you stay in fancier accommodation or eat out more often, expect this to be higher)

https://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-guides/caribbean-travel-tips/the-bahamas/

Caribbean travel guide - Caribbean travel tips & safety advice

The Caribbean is made up of over 5000 islands, reefs, and cays, each with its own unique attractions and price ranges. In recent years, even very secluded islands have been transformed into some of the world’s most exclusive vacationing destinations.

There is a misconception that a trip to the islands will be extremely expensive and not a viable destination for budget travelers. While accommodation can be expensive, costs of food and activities can vary greatly island to island. With so many places to choose from in this guide, you’ll find a corner of the Caribbean suitable to your budget.

Typical Costs

Accommodation

There aren’t many hostels or campgrounds to be found in the Caribbean, but the ones that do exist will cost around $20 USD per night. A basic room in a 2-star budget hotel in a room that sleeps two starts around an $80 USD per night average.

Airbnb is also available throughout the Caribbean and you can find entire homes (usually studio apartments) starting around a $50 USD per night average. You will find more inventory if you look around $95 USD or above, though. While there are a lot of islands in the Caribbean and prices vary widely, remember that overall, this is an expensive part of the world.

Food

Food typical of the Caribbean includes dishes with lots of beans, plantains, rice, sweet potatoes, coconut, pork beef, chicken, and fish. Prices vary considerably depending on which island you are on (Is it big? Small? Does it have a large local population? Or does it cater to tourists?) but you’re looking at between $10-20 USD for a meal at a restaurant.

Prices go up from there. If you can find food at the local markets, those will cost around $5. My advice for the region: avoid restaurants near cruise ports and resorts, find the local markets, and cook your food as often as you can. Rarely are the fancy meals worth their exorbitant price!

Transportation 

Bus services on the islands are inexpensive, rarely more than $3 USD. You can hitchhike safely around most of the islands too (save Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Haiti). On islands without a bus system, a taxi may be the only form of transport with fares getting up to $15 USD for even a short journey.

To get between islands, you’ll need your own boat or to fly. In the Lower Antilles, there are ferries that connect the island together since they aren’t too far apart but, generally speaking, flights are the most realistic option.

Activities

In general, tours, historical, and architectural attractions are relatively inexpensive ($5-20 USD), while diving trips usually costing a minimum of $125 USD. Snorkeling can be found as low as $20 USD for the day. Jet skiing will cost you about $65 USD for half an hour, and parasailing will be about $60 for 15 minutes. Admission to the Bob Marley Museum in Jamaica is $23 USD.

Suggested daily budget

$60-100 USD (Note: This is a suggested budget assuming you’re staying in a hostel, eating out a little, cooking most of your meals, and using local transportation. Using the budget tips below, you can always lower this number. However, if you stay in fancier accommodation or eat out more often, expect this to be higher)

https://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-guides/caribbean-travel-tips/

Greece travel guide - Greece travel tips & safety advice

Is it the history that draws us to Greece? The land that has given us the Acropolis and Delphi and Olympia has been attracting tourists for 200 years since the days of Lord Elgin. Could it be the Greek islands? Mykonos, Santorini, Crete, Paros, Naxos and Rhodes with their beautiful beaches, restaurants, nightlife and archaeological sites have been popular for decades.

Or lesser known islands like Sifnos, Lesvos, Kea that have always been attractive to those looking for a more quiet escape. Maybe it is the allure of the Peloponessos with its high mountains and beautiful coast, its rich history and the seaports of Gythion and Napflion which have sent sailors all over the world for centuries. Could it be the Greek food? Maybe the weather in Greece where they say there are 300 days of sunshine, most of it between May and November. Maybe it is the spiritual quality of places like Meteora where centuries old monasteries crown giant rocks.

I think the reason Greece is popular is because it is somehow familiar while at the same time exotic. Whether this familiarity comes from studying the ancient Greeks in school or something deeper or more spiritual I don't know. I can't begin to count all the e-mails from people who have written that they have always had an attraction to Greece and once they had visited felt they somehow belonged there.

Places were as familiar as if they had once been home. It is not chance that the slogan for the Athens 2004 Olympics was 'Welcome Home'. It was not just a homecoming for the Olympics themselves but for all those visiting the place that has much to do with who we are today. And maybe some of us once walked the streets of ancient Athens with Socrates and Plato.

For me writing about Greece is not a job. It is like a higher calling. If one's duty on earth is to awaken those around him and so awaken himself what better tool is there than Greece? For those of us who spend long hours a day working or involved in the routine of modern life Greece is an awakening. It reminds us that we are alive. I hope that my Greece Travel Guides awaken something in you that brings you back to Greece.

Dubai travel guide - Dubai travel tips & safety advice

Giorgio Armani's first hotel opened in 2010 in the world's tallest tower, Dubai's 828-metre Burj Khalifa, amid much fanfare. Built on the first 39 floors of the dart-shaped skyscraper, the resort is part-residences, part-hotel - although the same brooding style underpins everything.

Sharp lines, neutral tones, stone and mahogany predominate: you can almost smell the masculinity. The best rooms have vast balconies overlooking the Dubai Fountain, another record-breaker with water that  shoots as high as 150 metres into the air.

Burj Al Arab is famous for so many reasons, the most notorious among them its disputed rating of seven stars. Given the exclusivity of the hotel, it is no wonder that I could get no closer than the turnoff for the road connecting it to the mainland in order to take my pictures.

It is the fourth tallest building in the world, and functions exclusively as a private hotel. It was built on an artificial island created out of welded oil tankers, and sits off of Jumeirah Beach. If you can afford to stay here, you don't need to be using free travel advice; if you can't, you might as well stop gawking and head back to somewhere air conditioned.

In the finance district, the Fairmont Dubai has 34 floors, 394 rooms and leisure amenities including the Willow Stream Spa, with Turkish hammam-inspired steam rooms and eight private treatment rooms; a state-of-the-art gym; and two rooftop swimming pools overlooking the city. Restaurants include Cavalli Club, serving Italian cuisine; Café Sushi; and award-winning steakhouse The Exchange Grill, where the steak is dubbed the best in Dubai - which is quite a claim in this city.

Dubai is all about entertaining: camel riding and racing, scuba diving, skiing, shopping, cruising, fishing - to name but a few - can be arranged by the hotel. Directly connected to the Dubai International Convention Centre, the hotel also has its own boardroom and conference room, and is well set up for business travellers.

Forty five minutes from Dubai, the exclusive Al Maha resort is a desert haven set within a conservation reserve. Each of the Bedouin-style suites, grouped into Emirates, Royal and Bedouin Suites, has its own private swimming pool and activities include falconry, wildlife tours and horse-riding.

Guests can dine in the relaxed Al Diwaan restaurant, or on the private decks of the guest suites. With three staff assigned to every guest, the highly personalised service is as fantastic as the facilities. The Al Maha resort was voted best overseas leisure hotel in Africa and the Middle East in The Readers' Travel Awards 2002 and was on the Gold List 2009.

Teatro San Carlo travel guide - Teatro San Carlo travel tips & safety advice

Lonely Planet review for Teatro San Carlo Adjoining the square, Piazza Trieste e Trento, fronted on the northeastern side by Italy’s largest opera house, the sumptuous Teatro San Carlo.It is famed for its perfect acoustics. Locals will proudly boast that it was built in 1737, predating its northern rival, Milan’s La Scala, by 41 years. Inaugurated on 4 December 1737 by Charles VII, it was severely damaged by a fire in 1816 and rebuilt by Antonio Niccolini, the same architect who a few years before had added the facade.

At the time of research, the future of the 40-minute tours of the theatre was unclear. Contact the theatre or tourist office for updates. Carlo III Bourbon dynasty king of Naples, Naples, Teatro San Bartolomeo instead of the TA 1621 and inflexible made larger to make the new theater and the opera house has commissioned the architects Giovanni Antonio Medrano and Angelo's Carasale.

This is the name given to the new building in San Carlo Theatre, the theater building 4 November 1737 (the day of the king's name) libretto "Pietro Metastasio" 's compositions "Domenico Sarro"' s report "Achille in Sciro", a new opera opened.

Classical architecture of the new building in San Carlo Theatre, golden and blue velvet interior dekarasyonu beğenilmişti with sitting chairs and a series of theater building renovation and rastorasyondan geçirilmekle maintained with the outline of the architecture. 1787 and 1778 made repairs, renovation, interior decoration, 1797, and 1809 amended plans were prepared to change the main front façade of the neo-classical style. 12 February 1617 Teatro San Carlo was destroyed by a fire great.

Toskanyalı by the architect Antonio Niccolini and rebuilt within 10 months of a 6-storey lodges, a very large kingdom box, one yellow-blue color 1444-seat horseshoe-shaped main hall, 33.3 meters wide, 20 meters deep and 30 meters high, with a scene very likely. The next renovation, modernization and 1845, 1854, 1972 and 1890 were made. American artillery and air bombardment during

World War II in 1943, but within 10 months of the damaged repaired and re-opened on December 16, 1943. The front of the building architecture, building renovation in 1969 which had been prepared by Niccolini "Partenope" group sculptures are ruined due to the rain and bad weather reduced the front, and in 2007 "Partenope Three" re-made statues located in front of the building.

Teatro San Carlo opera productions of works on various genres of opera buffa and opera seria with a very recognized. Feo among them, Porpora, Traetta, Piccinni, Vinci, anfossi, Durante, Jommelli, Cimarosa, Paisiello, Zingarelli and Gazzaniga opera composers in the school of Naples has been the main operaevi. Hasse, Haydn, Johann Christian Bach and Gluck opera composers as well as works of non-Italian summit in San Carlo arts productions were counted.

The period of 1815-1822 was the director of music and composer Gioacchino Rossini San Carlo opera eserinon 10 premiere was staged in this theater. That followed him as music director Gaetano Donizetti opera 16, and their work prepared for the premiere of the opera house was the San Carlo Theatre.

Sicilian-born Vincenzo Bellini, Giuseppe Verdi's early works and the famous sahnelenmişlerdir it for the first time at the opera house. XIX. the late XX century. century Italy, "Verismo" style that works opera Giacomo Puccini, Pietro Mascagni, Leoncavallo, Giordano, and Cilea made this theater premieres.

Bourbon Street travel guide - Bourbon Street travel tips & safety advice

The French claimed Louisiana as a colony in the 1690s. Jean Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville was appointed as Director General in charge of developing a colony in the territory. He founded New Orleans in 1718. In 1721, the royal engineer, Adrien de Pauger designed the city's street layout.

He named the streets after French royal houses and Catholic saints. Bourbon Street paid homage to France's ruling family, the House of Bourbon.Lonely Planet review for Bourbon Street A red-brick slice of New Orleans in Napoli.

Smooth American and Italian jazz musicians perform virtually every night to a mixed-age crowd of head-swaying jazz aficionados. There was a move in the 1960s under District Attorney Jim Garrison to clean up Bourbon Street.

In August 1962, two months after he was elected district attorney, Garrison began raids on adult establishments on Bourbon Street. His efforts mirrored his predecessors’, which had been largely unsuccessful.

He was much more successful than those who came before him, however. He forced closure on a dozen nightclubs guilty of prostitution and selling overpriced alcohol. Following his efforts, Bourbon Street was populated by peep shows and sidewalk beer stands.