I have recently returned from a holiday in the south eastern area of the Algarves, Portugal.  The town my friends and I decided to stay in was a peaceful place called Olhão.

Olhão is predominantly a fishing port, but also has beautiful walks along the promenade, markets to visit and cafes.  We also fully appreciated the peaceful gardens, especially when the heat got too much.

This town was perfect for when we wanted to take it easy, but we had agreed that a lively nightlife and beaches were needed too.

We planned our holiday well in advance, and although we decided to stay in the Algarve region of Portugal, a car in our opinion was needed, so that we could fit in as much as possible in to our holiday.

We flew to and from Faro Airport in the Algarve’s, the nearest airport to our holiday destination in Olhão. All four of us like to be organised, so we booked our car hire when originally booking our flights and accommodation.

We searched for car hire Faro Airport and were happy to find a car hire company that suited all our needs.

I become rather stressed when traveling via aeroplane and although my friends love flying I often find myself a little flustered on arrival at the Airport. It was eased greatly when we arrived at Faro airport, as the staff at the car hire company went out of their way to be helpful.

Our car was ready and waiting and the staff gave us detailed directions to our destination and tips on places to visit.

We returned a number of times to Faro, to sunbathe on the beaches, sample the night life, eat at a number of the restaurants and visit Ria Formosa nature reserve.

Many people pass through the city when they fly to Favo Airport, but we found it well worth the return visits. Arranging car hire at Faro Airport allowed us much more freedom to travel and experience more of Potugal.

Whilst high street travel agents such as Thomas Cook are catering to a vast range of sunshine filled coastal destinations this summer, the Spanish Islands and, in particular, Tenerife, remain a popular choice thanks to the way in which their cultures lend themselves so well to laid back living and a pleasure and comfort orientated lifestyle.

Hotter weather means a slower pace of living. Whilst on holiday in the Spanish Islands you are likely to find yourself relaxing over even the most mundane of day to day tasks, from eating breakfast through to getting yourself from A to B. The sunshine and the people help to encourage us to take our time over things and enjoy our experiences to the full.

What’s more, many Mediterranean cultures are far more focussed on small day-to-day pleasures and less concentrated on money matters and occupational concerns. Food and eating rituals are an excellent example of this. Across the Spanish Islands, mealtimes are almost treated as sacred times of day. Not only are breakfast, lunch and dinner considered to be important refuelling times, they are also a time to enjoy good company and conversation. Be sure to adopt this attitude throughout your trip. Take time over your food. Savour the local delicacies and wash them down with a healthy dose of local wine. Share your meals with loved ones and plenty of laughter and you’ll soon find yourself feeling refreshed and refuelled in more ways than one.

Still not quite relaxed? If you find yourself needing a helping hand letting go of everything that was getting you down back home, Tenerife and the other islands are well furnished with spa hotels and pampering facilities. Booking yourself in for a massage could be the perfect way to kick-start the relaxation process.

Many people are unsure of when is the best time to go to Menorca as the climate tends to be temperate all year round and aside from peak summer holiday periods prices are unlikely to fluctuate and there are usually a good range of deals and special offers available from high street travel agents such as Thomas Cook. But if you would like to experience the city during its liveliest, most vibrant period the Sant Joan de Ciutadella celebrations are a must-see.

The fiesta takes place once every year around the end of June (specific dates may vary) and gives visitors a chance to experience a religious festival that acts as a showcase of all things colourful, creative and fun within Menorcan culture. The streets are filled with electric colours as parades of traditional dancers, musicians and the magnificent and iconic Menorcan horses travel on by. The crowds of spectators are frequently drawn into the action, adorning brightly coloured costumes and joining in with various dance acts as they pass.

The Sant Joan festival is also the perfect time to try out Menorca’s most popular alcoholic beverage, a citrus and gin concoction. The Menorcan taste for gin is said to come from the island’s British influences but this drink will show its tourists how they’ve taken the base alcohol and refined it to make it their own.

The late June festivities also provide an excellent opportunity to try an array of Menorcan foods prepared especially for the occasion. With spirits running high, you are sure to receive a warm welcome to be encouraged to sample as many dishes as possible during your stay.

If you are interested in seeing the whole run of ceremonies and celebrations leading up to the day itself, which can last for over a week, you’ll need to find a comprehensive programme of events on the web. The site www.menorca-live.com tends to be a reliable source for up to date information on cultural happenings across the island.

Image by Matti Mattila via Flickr

Ferry travel is one to the more relaxing ways to arrive at your holiday destination.  If you take a ferry trip to France, although it is a stress free way to travel as you slowly cut through the channel, it is not long enough to feel it is a big part of your trip.  If, on the other hand, you take a ferry to Esbjerg then you would spend enough time on the ship, to feel your holiday also includes taking a mini cruise.

The sailing time to travel from Harwich to Esbjerg in Denmark is roughly 18 hours and there is a lot you can do in that time on one of the fantastic ships that carry up to 435 cars and over 600 passengers.

The ferries to Denmark have been built with passengers comfort in mind. You can enjoy live onboard entertainment and choose to eat in one of their restaurants, enjoy a drink in the bar and relax in the lounge. Whilst you are relaxing you could enjoy the rolling seas as you gracefully make your way across to Scandinavia.

As the crossing takes you through the night, booking cabins is compulsory. The cabins are brightly lit, clean and comfortable and you can enjoy a movie if you would rather not spend the time up on deck or with other passengers in the public areas and shops.

Once you reach Denmark, you don’t need to worry about how you are going to reach your destination; you simply hop in your own car and head off.

You could also enjoy a visit, firstly to Esbjerg itself, with its famous statues of men lined up on the harbour over looking the sea.  So before you head off to the rest of Copenhagen you could spend a bit if time visiting some of the interesting tourist attractions in Esbjerg itself, such as its Fisheries and Maritime Museum. You could then head out on a short journey to the Marbaek Nature Reserve with its acres of beautiful rugged landscape, over 50 acres of lakes and bird sanctuary.

A visit to Denmark on the ferry is a real adventure a different culture, different language and a different way of life and only a mini cruise away.

“Energy TaskForce” is a serious game that will be played out over a 3-week period this coming January. If you’re an engineer, a student or a young graduate, and you think you know the various disciplines in the energy sector, you can already register in teams of 4 at http://energytaskforce.edf.com and visit the game’s Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/edf.energytaskforce.

Discover the trailer for this interactive adventure game that gets right to the heart of the economic and industrial issues facing EDF and the energy sector. Devising and producing tomorrow’s energy, and consuming it more efficiently – these are the Group’s aims, and your objectives within the game! Teams will get the chance to compare their skills and explore and solve puzzles, and each week they will tackle challenges designed to reflect the industrial issues tackled by EDF and the studies of the players. The game will provide them with the opportunity to develop their analytical capabilities, to apply their theoretical knowledge and to get to know the EDF Group better.

The operation will be carried out on a grand scale across 6 European countries (France, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Italy and Belgium), the aim being to attract a wide range of skilled individuals with a game that is co-branded with the Group’s European subsidiaries: EDF Energy in the UK, Edison in Italy and EnBW in Germany.

The game will be played from 31 January to 19 February 2011. It’s well worth a shot: the winning team will enjoy a trip to Laos, including a visit to one of the largest dams in the world (Nam Theun).
So now’s the time to spread the word amongst your young engineer friends!

Is travel insurance a good idea?

To save up for months to go away on a dream holiday, to then have personal belongings and money stolen, would be an upsetting experience for anyone. With no means of replacing the belongings and money, it could then have an effect on the quality of the holiday.  The entertainment and adventures a holiday will have had to offer will have been greatly reduced, or even as the worst case scenario: the holiday could be brought to an end.

The occurrence of an accident whilst abroad could unfortunately be very serious.  Medical procedures and treatments in a number of countries abroad are charged directly to the holiday maker, leaving many with large medical bills. Added costs can also occur when patients are required to fly back home early, as some hospitals abroad are not as well-equipped as here in the UK. This can be a very stressful time for the patient, but can also be very stressful for friends and family, as they are often the ones left desperately trying to raise the necessary funds for treatment and transport, when travel insurance has not been purchased for their loved ones.

Finding cheap travel insurance

It is possible to find a really good travel insurance deal with the right research. Travel insurance companies can have a range of deals and choosing the right one for your circumstances is important. One of way of getting cheap travel insurance is to find single trip insurance. If you are only going on a short break you could save money. Travel insurance is an essential requirement of every holiday, which will give you great peace of mind, so is well worth every penny.

It is free for travel providers who can demonstrate a genuine on-going commitment to sustainability to be featured on the site. From local operators, guides, guest houses and camp grounds to conservation organisations and community groups, members will then be able to receive direct enquiries from customers, promote their region and provide local advice through collaborative blogs and newsletters.

Related link:

• MuchBetterAdventures.com

Read more

I certainly hadn’t planned to wake up – on the cusp of 39 – in a mixed-sex dorm with three guys with flatulence, and the prospect of having to cook porridge for 26 people by 6.30am.

Read more

The report says: “Effective demand measurement need not cost departments anything in terms of initial investment but can have a huge impact. The new Government needs to establish the best way to build demand management into procurement procedures and enforce it rigorously. IT and travel should be clear priorities for action.”

The report – Becoming the Greenest Government Ever – says that last year’sReview of Government Travel, carried out by consultants JMP, highlighted the extent of government’s influence on the travel habits of both its employees and service users and this provides a useful starting point to access further efficiencies and savings.

It says: “The SDC is pleased to note the [Coalition Government’s] initial announcement relating to the 10% reduction in carbon emissions over the coming 12 months; there is now however a clear opportunity over the coming years to signal equal intent in relation to…carbon emissions from Government travel.”

“The SDC … believes that Government needs to understand both the sphere of influence of its operations and procurement and the potential for change, including the potential to link operations and procurement with policy goals.”

JMP chairman Gordon Baker said: “This report shows government’s policies are starting to make a difference, but it again calls on policy leads to clear the confusion that surrounds travel management and reporting. Progress with travel falls far short of that achieved in other areas – such as energy – a step change is urgently required. Government needs to move away from measuring impacts and focus on how travel is procured, managed and used to deliver the business of government.

“There is a clear message in this, the SDC’s, final report. Whilst some reductions are being achieved in the costs and emissions associated with ‘administrative’ vehicles, departments need to take a holistic approach and recognise that all travel, regardless of mode or type of journey, contributes to the sustainability of government operations.

“DfT’s new role as the lead on sustainable travel in government, and the development of a new reporting and monitoring framework, can make this happen. There needs to be a clear steer, better data collation, management and interpretation, and collective action to make a difference.

“The SDC has played a huge role supporting government embed sustainability in its operations. If Government is to honour its commitment and be the “greenest government ever” then it must continue to be transparent. The private sector is expected to have its CSR policies and performance independently scrutinised. To retain credibility, Government needs to do the same.”

Article copyright Public Sector Travel

After undergoing extensive review by Green Globe International and meeting the highest ecological standards of development, procedures, and operations, this 273-room, all inclusive luxury resort received the Green Hotel Certification. The Green Globe certification is an indication to travelers that a resort implements environmental safe practices.

“Not only did we receive recertification, but we did it with an incredible 95% compliance. I know of no other hotel in the world that has achieved such a high grade so soon after opening,” said Gabriel Santoyo, Chief Environmental Officer of Tres Ríos. Santoyo directed the practices that have enabled the resort to achieve this international recognition.

Romarico Arroyo Marroquin, Vicepresident of Development and financing of Tres Ríos received the Green Globe Certification from the Latinoamerican President of Green Globe Mexico, Romeo Dominguez, during a special ceremony in Hacienda Tres Ríos Resort Friday morning. Arroyo Marroquin emphasized the significant effort involved in ensuring that the group’s most luxurious resort meets strict environmental quality standards in Mexico and abroad.

“Tres Ríos started as an ecological park. From that point forward, we have continued to follow new and established standards of protecting the region’s extraordinary beauty and diversity in a manner that allows our guests to reconnect with nature while enjoying the Mexican hospitality and endless luxury that we offer. Hacienda Tres Ríos is the best example that sustainability and tourism are compatible and we are convinced that this is the right way to be responsible,” said the Mexican entrepreneur.

The President of Green Globe Latinoamerica, Romeo Dominguez, acknowledged “the intelligent and responsible use, and enduring respect of the ecosystems on Tres Ríos’ property.

“It is remarkable to see a luxury beach resort apply such high standards for the sound management of its natural resources — 120 plant species and 90 animal species — and for its training programs that benefit both employees and the community,” said Dominguez, who manages the sustainable tourism network and green business travel with a presence in 50 countries.

Since its opening in November 2008, Hacienda Tres Ríos has become a model for sustainable tourism in Mexico and the world when it was recognized by the Mexican government, through the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT), and when it was invited to share its sustainable tourism practices at world-renowned tourism fairs in London, Spain, and Berlin.

Hacienda Tres Ríos is recognized by major environmental organizations worldwide, such as Green Globe, the Rainforest Alliance, and Sustainable Travel International, and its success story has been presented at major exhibitions in Germany and London.

Nestled within 326 acres of rainforests, mangroves, and coastal dunes, Hacienda Tres Ríos is an eco-friendly resort built 9+ feet (2.8 meters) above sea level on stilts that allow for natural river flow. The resort was creatively designed to reduced electricity consumption from air-conditioning by 38% and from lighting by 70%. In addition to using 100% biodegradable products and recycling 100% of solid waste, the resort’s custom-designed operating systems reduce water consumption by 40%. At the forefront of sustainable tourism development, Hacienda Tres Ríos offers luxurious guest experiences while protecting the region’s natural beauty and cultural heritage. For more information, visit http://www.haciendatresrios.com/.