Hotel reviews

The time spent anticipating a holiday often seems immeasurable next to the seemingly short time it takes to actually experience the holiday. Before you know it, your getaway is over, you’re on your way back to your day-to-day routines, and you’re not quite sure when you’ll be able to take your next getaway. No one wants a holiday to end; but seeing as how they can’t last forever, there is a way to ensure that you make the absolute most of your current - and future - travels.

If each of your trips worked towards earning you another holiday, you’d undoubtedly travel - and relax - a bit more. That’s precisely why travel reward schemes have gained such immense popularity over the years. People love to travel; and when their travels further their chances of getting away, they simply can’t lose. And aside from heightening holiday opportunities, reward schemes offer members a host of exclusive services, amenities, privileges and tailored benefits which only work to make their holiday experiences more remarkable.

The two most widespread travel reward schemes involve flight and hotel programmes; and while such programmes were initially based on partnerships between credit card companies and either hotels or airlines, you’ll nowadays find that many hotels and airlines operate their very own reward schemes. When you book your stay with a participating hotel on a recurring basis, you’ll earn ‘points’ for another visit with them at the destination of your choice. Similarly, if you fly on a regular basis with a reward-scheme airline, you’ll earn miles towards a flight to any destination.

There are even a number of multi-reward programmes which combine various aspects of travel, such as flights, hotels and car rentals under a single reward scheme. What’s more, membership is often free - so all you have to do to earn points is to travel - and enjoy your trip - as you normally would. You’ll earn a wealth of rewards in no time, which means another terrific holiday is on the horizon; and rest assured that the process of claiming points or rewards is always simple.

It’s often suggested that people who don’t travel in abundance choose and stick to a single reward programme. With all of their travel ‘points’ and credits going towards a single scheme, they’ll be able to claim their reward much sooner than if their points are scattered among various programmes.

But that being said, there are a number of great reward schemes to choose from - and if there’s one way to make the most of your travels, it’s to ensure that each trip works towards earning you another fantastic holiday.

Michael is a keen writer living in Edinburgh. Michael’s Website: Taxis Belfast

Share This

Birmingham is beautiful English city, one of the main centers of technical education. It’s the second biggest city in Britain, located in the very heart of the country, in Warwickshire County. It’s not one of the most popular tourist destinations in England, but it’s a big city with a long history and has a lot to offer.

The first settlement on the place of the present Birmingham dates back to XI century. Since XIII century Birmingham is known for its trade fairs.

Modern Birmingham presents a unique combination of the contemporary architecture, restored buildings of the city center hardly damaged during World War II and old industrial and residential buildings where jewelers and craftsmen once lived. Among the historical buildings survived till now are - gothic-style Saint Martin church (XIII century), Cathedral (1710-1715), classic-style City Hall (built in 1832-1852), Aston Hall (XVII century) and Soho House (XVIII century).

As for culture, Birmingham is known for its famous orchestra and Royal Birmingham Ballet. The city also has fabulous City’s Alexandra Theatre and modern Birmingham Repertory Theatre.
Birmingham has always been a progressive city and became one of the main meeting centers in Europe. It boasts three Europe-best conference venues. National Exhibition Centre (NEC) is Britain’s biggest collection of exhibition halls and hosts many of the largest shows in Europe.
The National Sea Life Centre in the heart of the city was built in the last ten years and provides an amazing display of over 3000 aquatic creatures as well as the world’s first 360 degree transparent tunnel.

One of the newest Birmingham attractions is Millennium Point, made up of ten themed galleries of interactive, informative exhibits. It was opened in September 2001 and since that has attracted about 280,000 visitors.

Birmingham has over 8,000 acres of parks, and public open spaces - it’s more than in any other European city. Sutton Park is Birmingham’s largest park, covering 971 hectares (2,400 acres) consisting of woodlands, heathlands and wetlands. Another park worth mentioning is Cannon Hill Park, few miles from Birmingham city centre. It’s the most varied and attractive of all Birmingham’s parks.

Another symbol of Birmingham is Cadbury chocolate factory offering excursions and tours to the history of chocolate. Day trips to this chocolate paradise can become an unforgettable experience for the whole family.

Nearby Bromsgrove (museum of the historic buildings under the sky), Wolverhampton (housing art masterpiece Wightwick estate), Stourbridge (well-known glass center) and Coventry (with beautiful old and new cathedrals) are located.

For booking a hotel in Birmingham, please, go to Birmingham hotels page

For booking a hotel in any other city, please, go to Hotel reservation site

Share This

Dublin, the capital of Ireland, is an ancient city, founded in 841 AD by Vikings. Its rise began much later, in XVIII century under the influence of the English Crown. It’s no surprise that Irish Dublin looks a lot like many English cities - with its division to business and commercial centers, with its fashionable districts with wide streets and houses of unmistakable Georgian style.

Dublin has always been the heart of Ireland, its cultural and political centre and it’s the most British city on the island. The most impressive attractions of Dublin were built by the English - Trinity College, Dublin Castle and Ireland National Gallery.

Ireland has survived hard times when a lot of Irish let the country escaping from the hanger and poverty. Now Dublin is a modern busy city where hotels, restaurants and pubs are always overcrowded. Dublin is considered to be the city of youth - the average age of its citizens is 27.
The symbol of Dublin, like of the whole Ireland is its beer - Guinness. You can taste it in every Irish bar and even visit Guinness brewery. Dublin boast its intense night life and its bars are open till morning.

There 2 key dates in Dublin calendar - 17th March when Dublin, Ireland and the whole world celebrates Saint Patrick’s Day. The Day of the saint patron of Ireland has become the day of the Irish culture in the world. This day everyone should be dressed in green, sing Irish songs, drink Irish beer and so on.

The other great Dublin holiday is Bloomsday - 16th June. This day is devoted to celebration in honor of James Joyce and his novel “Ulysses”. The holiday is called after Leopold Bloom, the main character of the novel. Festive processions come through the whole city according to the route described by Joyce.

Other days of the year Dublin also has a lot to offer. In the centre of the city stands Trinity College, the first and the main Irish University. It’s the major sightseeing of Dublin. All Dublin roads lead to Trinity College. The University was built in 1592, but the original building was destroyed and the most ancient parts of the structure date back to XVIII century.
Dublin Castle for a long time has been the residence of the British administration. The original castle was destroyed by the fire and the present building was established in XVIII century.

If you turn a little bit away from the usual tourist routes you will see not so glamour Dublin with trash on the streets and gloomy houses. These places remind of the hard period in Dublin history.

When you leave Dublin and see countryside mellows, hills and small cozy houses you understand why Ireland was called an Emerald Island.

For booking a hotel, please, go to Dublin hotels page.

Share This