Travel Guides

If it’s your first time in Amsterdam, it’s always safe to take the classic tours: a stroll around the outdoor flower market, the canal rides, and a visit to all of the city’s popular museums. However, if this is your fourth or fifth time in Amsterdam, you might want to try something new—and there are a lot of other attractions you should see. They’re just not as widely commercialized.

Below are the best offbeat Amsterdam destinations you shouldn’t miss out on.

Accommodations

You might want to steer clear of popular hotels especially if you’re visiting Amsterdam during the peak season. Alternative accommodations include houseboats, hotels, hostels, and renovated houses located along the canals. One hotel in the city, though, offers an offbeat enough experience. The Ambassade Hotel comprises 10 seventeenth century houses built along the canal. This means that you’ll be living at the city’s historical center.

When you live in a city with topnotch hotels and malls where luxury shopping is the main event, it’s easy to drain out your bank account. For example, Mojitos in Miami can cost as much as $15, and if you’re a Mojito-lover, you’ll know how fast you can blow off your salary. There are ways for you to dodge the spender’s traps, though. For example, if you must have a Mojito after work, you can stick to places with Happy Hour specials.

Even if you’re just traveling to these cities, you should take the time to do the math. It might take some of the fun out of traveling, but it’ll keep your budget (and sanity) intact. Below are the most expensive cities in America to watch out for and what you should expect from them before you purchase your plane ticket.

New York

When you talk of geothermal resources, Bulgaria can be considered among the richest in Europe. No wonder Bulgaria holidays are one of Europe’s most popular when it comes to spa resorts and mineral springs that can satisfy anyone’s desire to relax. The country has spa resorts and mineral springs that can satisfy anyone’s desire to relax.

The country by the Black Sea is trying to enliven its balneotherapy traditions which were a bit lost during the reign of communism. Two decades after, travelers from Germany, Scandinavia, Israel, the Balkans and beyond are flocking in to see what Bulgaria’s got to offer.

We list down some of the popular spa resorts in Bulgaria below.

Velingrad

Velingrad is far from the hustle and bustle of the big cities and tucked in the Rhodope mountains. This place is known as the Spa Capital of the Balkan region. And why not? It has around eighty mineral springs with the hottest of it flowing some 93 degree Celsius of water.

Times could be tough with the economy crawling back to recovery but it doesn’t mean you and your family cannot have fun. Myrtle Beach with its 60 miles of sand from South Carolina to North Carolina can be the perfect answer for families looking to enjoy some sun.

Myrtle Beach offers a bit of things for everyone. There are old bungalows you can rent on Pawleys Island and there are also pricier condos along Myrtle Beach. Pick from amusement parks, mini-golfs and of course the great beach and waters.

It will be best to browse through pages of information over the internet about Myrtle Beach before bringing your family anywhere. If you don’t have time to go online make sure you visit the visitor centers. They have one a few blocks from the beach, one at the airport, and another one in Murrells Inlet on the southern portion. Their staff extends help for making reservations and planning a great time in Myrtle Beach.

We get a lot of questions from sun worshippers about the most budget friendly hotels in the Caribbean. Luckily searching for them is not that hard, and you actually have a ton of choices. You can go for brand-name resort or independent small hotels which can make your dream Caribbean holiday a reality.

Here’s a list of our top budget Caribbean hotels:

Harmony Hall (Antigua)

The Harmony Hall is one among the know Harmony collection. The Harmony Hall is along the Nonsuch Bay in Antigua. Expats, yachters, and day trippers flock the Brown’s Bay for the bar and restaurant serving Italian dishes in the aged sugar mill. Diners can also avail of a snorkeling getaway to Green Island just nearby, and you can also use the hotel’s pool.

Small villages give you a good big picture of the soul of a country. You can appreciate the cobblestoned streets, olive groves, old churches, and the fresh air.

Below we feature some of the most beautiful, small villages you can find when you travel around Europe.

Bolgheri (Italy)

Bolgheri is a small town of 1,000 residents, just 40 miles south of Pisa. A road lined by about 2,500 cypress trees will lead you to the town set around vineyards of the southern portion of Maremma. Make sure you make a stop at the Caffe della Posta and try the redwines of Bolgheri which is said to be competing well with the French Bordeaux.

Check out the Relais Sant ‘Elena where you can have a good night sleep at one of their 15 rooms with canopy beds, relax by the fireplace, and have a blast during a pasta-making crash course.

When you are in one of these islands on our list, you just have to forget about everything and let go. Each is a paradise with pristine waters, lush green flora and fauna, and the breeze blowing against your face.

These are secret islands which only a few people go to. They are never crowded. They are specks of lands amid vast waters which do no boasts of luxury hotels but pure beauty you can only experience when you take the road less traveled. Every island on our list is a dream destination.

South Water Caye (Belize)

This island is just 14 miles off Dangriga and far from the busy scene of Ambergris. You will be fascinated with the barrier reefs which are considered to be among the longest in the western hemisphere. You will be able to spot dolphins, moray eels, eagle rays, and parrot fish.

When you get to a very high place, you see things from a different perspective. We are not talking about the high you have in mind but we searched for the most stratospheric spots across the globe. All destinations require some nerve of steel. Some may require a credit card, some special equipment, and some places a dose of whatever so you will not have vertigo.

Burj Khalifa (Dubai)

We have to start our journey from the tallest building in the world. From the Burj Khalifa, you can see the sunset twice. Watch the sun go down while you are on the ground then take one of the super fast elevators to zoom you up 2,625 feet and you will be able to watch the sun as it is swallowed by the horizon.