Nestled in the foot hills of the majestic Mont Blanc and home to the first ever Winter Olympics in 1924, the French town of Chamonix is a big white magnet for snow and extreme sports enthusiasts the world over.  For a comprehensive guide on all things Chamonix, I’ve found this site to be good for information http://chamonix.mydestinationinfo.com/

The town, with its old buildings, colourful markets and quirky street art, makes a visit worthwhile all by itself, but there’s no question that the vast majority of tourists come to play in the snow. The only question is: how hard do you play?

Many opt to climb Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps, and known affectionately to locals by the slightly sinister name: La Dame Blanche – ‘The White Lady’. People who take her on do not do so lightly: she rivals Mr Everest in the ‘deadly stakes’, claiming dozens of lives each year.

Those hoping for a more certain outcome to their holiday – e.g. one that doesn’t involve stretchers dangling from helicopters – tend to avoid the jagged peaks of Mont Blanc, taking to the decidedly less dangerous ski slopes instead.

There are many different areas to ski and snowboard in the Chamonix Valley, so all abilities are catered for. Domaine de Balme, at the top of the valley, is an excellent place for mixed abilities, with a great beginner’s area on the Le Tour side (La Vormaine) and a variety of blue and red runs* in the main ski area.

The Aiguille du Midi run is worth doing if only for the ride up, which takes the form of one of the highest cable cars in Europe. After being plucked from the centre of Chamonix and dropped off at a staggering altitude of 3,800 metres, you can begin the world famous Vallée Blanche course – 24 kilometres of ‘off-piste’ skiing through mind-boggling scenery. Take care here, as the route is essentially a giant glacier, meaning there’s a very real risk of crevasses and avalanches. Many complete the run in a group with a guide – a sensible option for anyone who’s not an expert and who doesn’t know the area intimately.

Whatever your skiing or snowboard experience, you’ll need a bed for the night. Accommodation in Chamonix ranges extensively, so whatever your budget – big or small – you won’t have any trouble finding a suitable place.

*Ski runs are classified in colour – Green, Blue, Red and Black – according to difficulty, with Green being the easiest, Black the hardest.
Read more information about the weather in Chamonix here

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There are some things that experienced cruisers will have learnt over their years sailing the seas, but if you are new to cruising then you may be unsure about various aspects of these types of holidays. There is an abundance of advice on the internet for Cruise Holidays but we have tried to condense it down to a Top 5 list of tips for cruising.

5. Cruises don’t tend to be the things that you plan at the last minute, so you will probably need to be thinking about your cruise holiday well in advance. Like most types of travel, booking early will get you the best rates. This might make your budget stretch further allowing you to have a cabin that would usually be out of your price range. Upgrading your cabin can make your holiday, especially for cruises of around 100 days and over.

4. You will no doubt be seeing a lot of the staff on your cruise ship on a daily basis, so looking after them with tips and being polite will mean that they in turn will look after you.

3. There are no hard and set rules, but generally the longer the duration of the cruise, the older the age of the passengers. If you are a young couple or a young family, you might be better suited to one of the shorter voyages. But to be fair, how many families can find the time to go cruising for 150 days of the year?

2. Don’t worry about being bored; there will be plenty of daily excursions at the locations you will be stopping at and also onboard activities. If you plan on being adventurous and going off to explore a destination, make sure you do some research and only visit safe areas and make sure you are back at the ship at the required time. There is a slim chance you will be left behind but you will probably return to a frosty reception from both staff and passengers waiting to set sail.

1. World Cruises will take you to multiple destinations around the globe so make sure you take a good camera. No doubt you will take hundreds of photos along the way so it is worth making sure you have multiple memory cards, spare batteries and maybe even a laptop if you have one to backup your photos as you go. The last thing you would want is to lose you camera in the last couple of days and lose all of those precious memories.

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A summer weekend trip to London doesn’t need to break the bank. Yes if you want a 5 star hotel with constant room service, you are going to have a hefty bill but this need not be the case. There is a huge choice of London hotels to stay in for a weekend break.

Often if you are going to London for just a weekend you have at least one event in mind often with the rest of the time intended for sight seeing or similar. Going to the theatre is a popular weekend trip for people as getting away from the normal working routine to see a West End show can be a great way to spend the weekend. It is worth shopping around if this is your main plan as some London hotels offer theatre breaks that can have a good saving on the separate costs.  Other main events drawing you to the capital city for the weekend might be a concert or a huge football match at Wembley stadium or similar.

Once you have your main even sorted the choice falls to what you are going to do with the rest of your time. This time need not break the bank either. If you are into art and culture The Tate gallery, The National Gallery and the British Museum are all free. Seeing the sites is a popular past time for visitors and often the prime locations can be costly to the unwary.  While the London Eye offers great views it can be an expense you don’t want to accrue, an alternative if you don’t mind waling up stairs is Monument to the Great Fire of London. For just a few pounds you can ascend the 202 foot tower and enjoy amazing views of the capital.

There is plenty of public transport available in London so getting around should be no problem. If you want to do it cheaply you could hire a bicycle but after seeing what the London traffic is like I’d prefer to use the heritage bus routes that are a great value way to see the local sites!

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Backpacking is a popular way of travelling for hundreds of thousands of people around the world each year. It is the best way to carry your belongings when travelling to a number of places where you only intend to stay for a short period of time. Although the concept of backpacking may seem reasonably simple, there are some goods tips which you can follow to make the process a lot easier for yourself. Below are some of these tips:

Don’t budget on the bag itself
Your backpack is going to be with you for your entire journey, so be sure that you purchase a bag that is of good quality. The bag needs to be strong enough to withstand different weather conditions, being thrown around by luggage handlers, being slept on and generally going anywhere that you go. It may seem alluring to save money in the short term by buying a cheap bag, but the chances are that if you do you will end up paying the price in the long run.

The order in which you pack your belongings
When packing your backpack do not just throw your belongings into it in a random unorganised manner. The way in which you pack your bag will determine the amount of things you can fit into your bag, how easy the bag is to carry, the longevity of the items in the bag and the life span of the bag itself. The best way to pack is to put the lighter, softer items at the bottom of the pack and the heavier items towards the top. This will reduce strain on your back and also maximise comfort.

What to take
Think through what you actually need to take and leave out items which you are unlikely to need. This will reduce weight. There are certain items which everybody should include. This list will change depending on the nature of the trip, but there are certain generic items which everybody should include. Below is a basic list of these generic items:

Torch, copies of important documentation, plastic bags for dirty/wet clothes, sleeping sheet, medical kit, Swiss army knife, pen, pad, mirror, water and cans of dehydrated food.

Guest post by James who works in the Travel industry and offers Rome apartments Italy and Accommodation in Rome for European travellers.

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