Travel Tips

The beginning of a Hawaiian kingdom started in 1809 after the fall of king Kamehameha. The new king moved to Honolulu to take control of the trade that was going on. Honolulu was the perfect place because it was centrally located. In the 1830’s sugar plantations were established and Honolulu became a booming city, bars and brothels alike were opened. In 1845 Honolulu officially replaced Maui as the capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Because of increasing western influence, Hawaii, and most importantly Pearl Harbor, officially became a US territory in 1898. There were several arguments, failed bills and lots of political red tape that kept Hawaii from becoming a U.S. state.

The gateway to allowing Hawaii to become an official state was tourism. Pan American Airlines flew the first passenger flights from the mainland to Hawaii in 1936. This led to mass tourism. After the Korean War and the attacks on Pearl Harbor, it became imminent to make Hawaii an official state. Hawaii was declared the 50th state on August 21, 1959.

In the 1970’s the Hawaiian culture had a resurgence of pride and heritage awareness. The ancient Hawaiian language had all but disappeared and a huge westernization had spread across the state. In the seventies the original Hawaiian language was reintroduced back into preschools and became an important part of the heritage again Thanks to the Disney movie Lilo and Stitch we all know that ohana means family. Today the language is taught at the University of Hawaii as well.

The luau is also another important part of Hawaiian culture. Luaus have been with the culture for hundreds of years. The word luau really just means a party or a celebration. This is the way that friends and family honor each other on special occasions. Today there are two types of Luaus. The first is like the original way, just a gathering of family and friends, and is the only authentic type. They are private, and unless you have local connections, it is unlikely that tourists would be invited to such an event. The second type of Luau is commercial. It’s the type that we tourists would frequent. They are heavily choreographed and can be quite entertaining. The luau usually has a buffet of some sort of roasted pig as the entre accompanied by rice and of course pineapple. These luaus are also complete with hula dancers for the guys and Polynesian dancers for the ladies viewing pleasure. There is plenty of entertainment to go around, especially when you add an open bar to the mix.

The merry monarch festival was founded in 1971. It is a hula festival; in fact it is the largest hula festival in the world. It features thousands of dancers and honors the long time Hawaiian tradition of hula dancing. The festival takes place in March or April and draws huge crowds. It is located in Hilo on the big island of Hawaii and is a weeklong cultural event.

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It seems you cannot watch television for more than an hour without seeing an advertisement with William Shatner talking about Travelocity or that silly gnome talking about Orbitz. These travel web sites have been very successful at facilitating travelers to book their own airline and hotel reservations online. So with this huge push from the internet to take over the travel industry, one has to ask, Are travel agents obsolete?

If you have browsed some of these travel sites, you have observed that they are amazing in the diversity of travel options that they make available. And it is impossible to deny that many thousands of people have taken advantage of these services. As a business traveler, however, your needs are somewhat different than the typical airline passenger.

There are some very specific services that a living and breathing travel agent can provide that simply cannot be replicated by an automated web site like Travelocity or Orbitz. Some of those services that a seasoned business traveler would be hard pressed to live without include

Focus. You as a business traveler are not arranging this trip for entertainment. You have specific business objectives in mind. So if you must take time away from preparation for your business task to worry about travel itineraries, hotel and rental car reservations and the like, that is time that you are not being productive for your business. If you can call a talented travel agent who knows your travel profile well and delegate those arrangements to that agent, they do their job in finding just the right accommodations for you and you are freed to do what you do best, focus on your business and the upcoming business trip.

Economy. It is difficult to find that balance between finding the accommodations that fit the demanding schedule of a businessperson on the road and is respectful of the companies travel budget as well. If you use an automated online travel service, you may have to sacrifice convenience, schedule or location for economy. A good travel agent will work hard to get you the right itinerary while getting as close the corporate travel cost restrictions as possible. And they will do it without taking up a lot of your time.

Back up. You dont need help if your trip goes completely as planned. But if you encounter problems on the road, you can find yourself in need or rescheduling flights and finding new accommodations to work around canceled flights, weather issues or other unexpected interruptions to your plans. These travel disasters are not mindful of your tight deadlines to meet your business goals. But if you have a travel agent who is dedicated to providing you service, he or she can find those alternative routes and resources to do all they can to get you to your destination so you can conduct your business on time.

That personal touch. You may have travel preferences that you want to achieve with each trip you take. A travel agent has your profile and your travel history so they can do what they can to accommodate your preferences. But moreover, if you have specific special needs such as a diet limitation or a need for accommodation due to a disability, it will be a travel agent that sees to it that your needs are provided for and you are well taken care of on the road.

Complications. If your travel itinerary involves making connections with other business partners who are traveling from diverse offices, complex travel schedules and itinerary challenges that just cannot be described to the generic screens of an online travel service, you can explain these complications to your travel agent and they can work with other travel agents working to organize the meeting and see to it that your itinerary meets your requirements.

While the online travel services do provide a valuable and affordable alternative to the general traveling public, it is easy to notice their limitations if you are trying to book a trip that is tricky or if you have specific needs that the screens do not anticipate. That is why working with a human travel agent guarantees that this travel professional will dedicate themselves to the task of making sure your trip works to your specifications and that you get to your destination ready to conduct business and be successful in your achieving your goals.

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Christmas is one of the happiest times of the year for a child. Spending the happiest time of the year, at the happiest place on earth, could be a dream that comes true for many children and adults. Christmas at Disneyland is an experience that will never be forgotten, and can never be matched.

Disneyland works to make Christmas very special. Santas Reindeer Roundup is especially fun, allowing children to decorate Christmas cookies with Mrs. Clause, play Reindeer Games, and make holiday souvenirs. Between seeing all of the characters dressed up in their holiday costumes and enjoying the snow after the Fireworks, Christmas at Disneyland cannot be topped!

Make sure that you visit the Christmas Shoppe and buy a special holiday ornament. Also, take part in all of the special holiday rides. Visiting Disneyland at Christmas time is unlike any other Disneyland vacation you will ever take. Make sure you get a picture of the Christmas tree!

Even though Christmas is considered to be off-season you should be prepared for crowds. Christmas is a very popular time to visit Disneyland. Make reservations well in advance.