Important Tips for Touring in Canada

Canada is the second largest country by total area in the world. Its location and size are premises for really huge diversity of flora, fauna and natural landmarks to be seen. Bordering with 3 oceans and the USA on the south, the possibilities are really endless. You have the option to have a beach vacation on the Pacific or the Atlantic ocean, an expedition to the Arctic Ocean, a walk expedition in the wild Canadian tundra, canoe expeditions that cross entire Canadian regions, crossing national parks and exploring the marvelous nature.

But enough advertising, let us talk about the tips when you decide to visit Canada, what is there to know, how can the visit or vacation be more pleasant and how can we save money.

Visiting big cities
If you decide to visit some of the big cities, like Toronto, there are some things that will save you money.

For example, it is good to check the fare rates to Toronto and the close-by airports. Due to the high traffic volume the price of your flight to city-bound airports can be higher than the price to some airport, which is outside of town. An hour drive to Toronto can save you a good amount of money from the ticket price. This brings even more benefits.

Prices of car-rentals and other accommodations you might need/clothes, shoes, sleeping bags, tents, sun lotion, etc. / will surely be cheaper in a smaller town, compared to the prices in Toronto. You can really find a better car-rent deal, better car and/or health insurance, so consider your destination of arrival.

Look-out in the Internet for places-to-go and things-to-see for free or very low price. Visit museums, parks, exhibits, extraordinary establishments like the rotating restaurant in the CN Tower in Toronto. You can even find cheap hotels around the Toronto area by doing your research.

Find and download Smartphone applications that will help you enjoy the city like a local, by seeing on the map cafes, restaurants, cinemas and other interesting sites on the go.

Exploring nature
And if you feel the voice of the nature calling you, Canada is one of the best places to follow. With its 43 National Parks, all vary in nature and offering different experience. You can establish a deep connection with nature, during your stay. You can rent a villa or a guest house, or you can just stretch your tent in the wild. Let’s give some tips for visits in the nature.

There is a Fee Freeze on all the natural park fees, which consist in park entry fee, renting a place in the park, fire permits, water and electricity and other accommodations and permits. This Fee Freeze is a great benefit, but anyway you should check the prices in different parks. This is a lot cheaper option, compared to a hotel stay and for nature lovers it is really splendid.

Prices
The average entry fee for the National Parks is $4 for the youth to $20 for groups. The campsite day permit is $8.80 per day, and most of the other permits are around $10. A tent will cost you from $100 for one-person or $550 for a 10x10feet tent. A sleeping bag will cost you from $30 to hundreds, depending what your preferences are. You should consider this option, compared to the $60 per day in a 2 star hotel or a $250-$300 in a 4 star/these are average prices for a double room in Toronto/.
Good advice is to check-out when to go on your your vacation, which season, whether it is a winter vacation or a summer one. Check out temperatures, rain conditions, snow etc. and be sure on what terms will you conduct your vacation. Also inform yourself for park closures due to bear attacks, floods, landslides or others.

General tips
Before you visit, check out the Canadian Customs Regulations, Health Regulations, any interesting Canadian Law, which you should follow, or any other regulations that concern you. This way you shall not be troubled with any inconveniences, during your stay.
After taking all this things in consideration, all you have to do is pack and have a nice vacation. Good luck!

The wonders of Krushuna village

The beautiful Krushuna village is located in northern Bulgaria, at Letnitsa municipality, Lovech district. It is a small village with great natural riches. Krushuna is a lovely tourist destination, due to the diversity of waterfalls, caves and the famous Maarata grounds.

Krushuna village is a place of marvelous nature – a few major caves, Maarata river, that flows into Osum River, a network of karst waterfalls. The road to Maarata grounds and especially to the waterfalls of Krushuna (“Krushunski vodopadi”) is pretty easy. Reaching the center of village Krushuna, just turn right and you will reach a parking place, after that there is a short tourist path, reaching to these marvelous waterfalls. Also there is a path that leads to the cave, from which the Maarata River rises.

There are four caves in Maarata grounds. The first is “Boninskata” – 4530 m long is pronounced as the longest river for floating in Bulgaria. It is not arranged for the common tourist, if you decide to explore its full potential you will need some experience and good gear. The second is “Urushkata” cave with length 1600 m, 25 m denivelation and home of the biggest waterfall in the area – 20m drop. The cave is located on the eco-path between Krushuna village and Karpachevo village. The third is “The Waterfall” cave with 1995 m, but only 150m of its beginning are accessible and only for experienced speleologists, tourists can only access its antechamber.

The gallery is covered by white formations, which people call “moon milk” and that combined with the brown top creates a astonishing view. The last cave is “Gornik”, 1080 m long.

Krushuna village is also a home of the famous “Krushunski” waterfalls. The main of them, Krushuna waterfall is made of many karst terraces which make very amazing and relaxing environment. There are also several smaller waterfalls in the area. And if you are a fan of rafting you can have that experience on the Osum river, which flows close to the village.

Overall Kushuna village is a great place to go for a deep touch with nature.

Vacation in Bulgaria

Bulgaria is an EU country, and is considered a big crossroad on the Balkans between Europe, The Russian block, Africa and Asia. This is a good perspective for a variety of stock and services. Also there is the fact that Bulgaria has tourism oriented economy. Apart from the economic facts, Bulgaria is really a natural paradise, there is an outlet on the Black Sea with a lot of small and large beach vacation resorts.

There are also the mountains, most of them with historical and cultural significance, like the Shipka peak, one of the most important milestones in Bulgarian history and culture. Waterfalls, caves, forests, beaches, tourist paths, hovels, modern cities and exclusive hotels with all the accommodations needed, Bulgaria just has it all!
Bulgaria is considerably small country and it takes 7-8 hours to go from the one end to the other, which makes possible to see as much as your time affords. If you go prepared with the places, cities, and sites to see, you can have really amazing and diverse vacation. But let us brake things down, for the matter of better orientation.

Places to go

If it is a sea city you decide to visit, the biggest sea cities in Bulgaria are Burgas and Varna, which are both well developed and modern and offer many options for your visit.

Whether it would be a cheap hotel in the suburbs, or an expensive one with SPA, clubs, restaurants, etc. you will surely have a nice visit.

There are also vacation cities like Sunny Beach, Golden Sands and many others – small and big ones, which are entirely tourism oriented.
But maybe you prefer the mountains. Well, consider some of the ski resorts around the country. And if you are not a ski type you can enjoy the marvellous mountains of Bulgaria, hike, kayak or just rent a hovel and enjoy the silence and purity of nature.

Tips and information
Communication. Interesting fact, which you should take under consideration, is the difference between head gestures between Bulgaria and other EU countries. In Bulgarian, nodding means “no”, headshaking (left-right) means “yes”.

Remember this when you converse with locals. Also the double conformation – “Da, da!” (Yes, yes!) is considered as “No” most of the times. It is more an ironic expression.
Taxi. Watch out with the taxi service. Anything above 1 lev(around 0.5 euro) is a fraud. Before you get in, check out the price sticker on the side of the door. Also there is a good advice to use some kind of GPS or at least check the map, so you will know your way and avoid being cheated. Most of the Bulgarians are nice and friendly, but there are a lot of people that try to deceive tourists and charge them double or triple, so watch out.

The main airports in Bulgaria are in Sofia, Varna and Burgas. Consider freight fees to these destinations and what will be the best and cheapest way to get to the place of travel.

Before you go, check airport customs requirements and regulations, interesting local laws and other facts that might concern you.

Overall, Bulgaria is a very good place for vacation. It is cheap, people are nice and the service is on a very high level. There is also the diversity of magnificent nature.

Rafting down glacier alley. Alsek, Yukon

Canada. A place of marvellous nature, beautiful country views, great rivers and waterfalls, home the Hudson Bay – the largest bay in the world. Canada is the second largest country by total size in the world, and with all that taken under consideration; the possibilities to have a good vacation are more than enough. From the freezing beauty of the north to the wild and blooming nature of the south, from the Pacific to the Atlantic, Canada is diverse in nature and landscape. There are many tourist opportunities but this article is about one is specific, one of the most dazzling experiences you can have in Canada.

Ever thought about rafting on some white water? Well, here is your chance. The two-week journey that starts from Yukon and goes all the way to Alaska is really a mind-blowing experience. The pioneer of this journey-course was Walt Blackadar in 1971, “That was a day!” – He writes in his journal of the trip. This “ride” on the Alsek river floats through three national parks and presents dynamic landscapes during this spectacular transit. In this journey, apart from the canyons and the breathtaking environment you can see the famous and abundant grizzly bear, mountain goat or Dall sheep.

The journey takes from 10-14 days, so besides the experience of rafting and hiking, there will be sleeping in the nature. You can listen the tour guides’ stories about this great river, talk to other participants and their experience and bottom line and enjoy your stay in the wild nature. Also there is the gourmet, refined meals and fine wine, cocktails, chilled with ice from the glacier, enjoyed by the splashing waters of the river.
How to get to starting point? The easiest way is to fly to Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon and after that there is a 90 minutes drive to the starting point.
When? This journey is to be made during June, July or August when the glacier starts melting and forms a river.

Now let us finish with covering some rafting tips:

• Never go alone! As experienced as you are, white-water rafting is a treacherous and may bring many surprises, so a helping hand is always welcome. If you are a beginner, listen to your guide and never disobey his words.

• Do NOT underestimate the water. Before you start your journey, research or ask how rough the water is. Know where you’re going and be prepared.

• Choose your accessories and clothing carefully. Comfortable clothes, helmet and a life vest are absolutely necessary, consider some hefty old sneakers as well. During rafting, when you are in the river, you will be wet all the time, that’s why disregard the air temperature, and consider the water temperature. Get synthetic, capilene, polypro or wool clothes, don’t use cotton because it retains a lot of water and you might bet hypothermia.

• When you pick a rafting expedition, consider your strength and overall fitness. Don’t overestimate yourself, because it is not child’s play. The white waters are dangerous.

• Stay hydrated, the fact is that you are surrounded by water doesn’t keep you from this danger. As you are sweating a lot you might lose a lot of water, so watch out.

Rafting in Canada, especially on river Alsek is amazing experience and as The Globe and Mail states: “Bet you can’t emerge unchanged”!

Being a tourist

The world tourist is defined by “a person that leaves his natural habitat and establishes himself in another location for more than 24 hours and up to 6 months, then returns to his original location”. But let us leave that for now, let us talk about the fun part of being a tourist.

What is like being a tourist? What are the benefits? Well, there are many substantial reasons to tour somewhere on vacation, but the general one is to take a rest from our daily routine, to live for a while in a whole different place, which apart from the new experience will charge us with new, positive energy, that is essential for every human being. When you go on a vacation you have the amazing possibility to discover new cultures and learn their way of living, to taste different cuisines, to see interesting buildings, museums, works of art and last, but not the least to learn new languages.
When it first originated, tourism was only for the wealthy, but with the development of technology, the transportation industry and the economic competition, travelling on vacation is easier to afford and experience.
And if you decide to travel somewhere, there are numerous ways to do it. You can catch a plane, a train, go by car or even take a passenger boat, which is amazing experience itself. There are also cruise ships, which offer journeys, some even circling the globe.

Okay, where can you go then? There are many locations available, some are seasonal – winter and summer locations, others are full-year. Whether you enjoy sunbathing, swimming, boat riding, surfing, etc. or just lounge with a cold cocktail in your hand, most certainly you will enjoy a vacation at some of the beach resorts or tourist villages around the globe. Just image one week on Bali’s, clear waters, no industrial pollution, virgin nature, it’s simply paradise!

And if you prefer the mountains you can decide to stay in a hotel or simply hire a villa. You can go skiing, snowboarding, cliff-climbing, or just take a walk in the nature, if you decide to visit the mountains when there is no snow. Lakes, caves, flora and fauna species… the possibilities are endless!