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Snowboarding in France: Why Chamonix still shines

Saying we are spoilt for choice when it comes to European snowboarding destinations is an understatement. There are so many opportunities for people who want to get their gear together, get a budget flight and get out there. So why book snowboarding holidays in France, and why choose Chamonix?

It's certainly not the only option in the French Alps: Les Arcs, for example, is a gigantic snowboard theme park, with just about every ride you could imagine, and Tignes has in the region of 80 beginner slopes.

Still, Chamonix has an undeniable appeal. Perhaps it’s the four villages in one valley, each with its own charm? Or is it the tree runs and off-piste offerings? And in terms of backdrop, Chamonix is second to none - looming ever large is Mont Blanc, Western Europe's tallest mountain.

There's three airports within easy transfer time: Geneva International, Haute-Savoie and Lyon International at 88 km, 90 km and 220 km respectively. Trains also serve the Chamonix Valley well, as do road routes via the Mont Blanc Tunnel. 

If Chamonix has one drawback it's that it's too good - by that we mean too good for some riders. It's clearly not the best choice for a beginner, but for advanced and expert riders into all-mountain action and wild mountainsides, it's perfect.

The stats tell the whole story: Of the 69 pistes, 10 are black, 20 are red, 28 are blue and just 8 are green. So, there are still options if you're new to snowboarding - just keep on the right routes.

Current weather reports show that the resort has yet to get its first dump of snow - but really it's only a matter of time before the Les Grands Montets opens its doors and delivers the kicks that snowboarders have waited all year for.

Mark Pawlak is the editor at Travel-copywriting.com

 

How Loch Ness, Scotland, Got Lucky

Haven’t we all seen press stories that suddenly grow and take on a life of their own? Consider that story from May 1933, when a local newspaper in Scotland was having a quiet week. They decided to go with a piece from a local correspondent, who also looked after fishing on the big lake nearby. Apparently, a local couple, who ran a hotel by the lake, had seen a hump and some disturbance on the water and didn’t know what it was.

The town was Inverness, and the headline ran ‘Strange Spectacle on Loch Ness – what is it?’ The story took off in a big way. A year later, the town authorities slashed their tourism budget as so many visitors were in town because of the huge world-wide publicity that had followed on from that innocent little headline. No doubt the couple running the hotel were delighted also. It was said at the time that an Automobile Association patrolman on the lake-side road had only to raise his arm and point to create an instant traffic jam. The hump had become the Loch Ness Monster. The hoaxers, mystics, gullible and plain misguided were all soon playing their part. An industry was born.

Today, nearly 80 years on, putting a value on that industry is hard – figures vary from £5 million to $40 million per annum, supporting hotels, shops, visitor centres and displays, loch cruises and much more.

 Nevertheless a little newspaper story that first appeared almost 80 years ago still sustains a multi-million industry with a direct link to a mythical creature.

But if you’re planning a first-time Scottish visit, just remember, to the west, Glen Affric with its woods and mountains offers sublime scenery. To the east, the valley of the River Spey in the Cairngorms National Park also offers a great Scottish experience.  In landscape terms, both these areas are scenically as good as or better than Loch Ness, attractive though this is.

In Celtic folklore, the kelpie or water-horse is a tricksy beast. It offers to carry the traveller across water but then plunges with them into the depths. So beware - you’ll find it hard to resist the call of Loch Ness’s kelpie in Scotland’s Great Glen.  But there’s so much more to see.....

Gilbert Summers has written about Scotland for a variety of publishers and tourism authorities for many years but his website scotlandinaweek.com aims to be an honest account of Scotland from the visitor.  His page on the Loch Ness Monster for example reveals a deep scepticism!

Exploring the Archaeology of Southern France

France has long been a popular tourist destination. Travellers from all over the World come to experience for themselves the country's rich cultural and historical heritage, as well as its gastronomic traditions. Within France, Paris may attract the most visitors, but the south-west of France with its striking natural beauty and its archaeological heritage, from spectacular Stone Age cave paintings to the more recent monumental architecture built by the Romans, is the nation's archaeological pride and joy.

Stone Age cave art at Niaux

Human occupation of the area stretches back to about 450,000 years, in the Arago Cave which has yielded the earliest hominin remains in France - the so-called Tauteval man, a likely ancestor to the Neanderthals. For the Stone Age period, the south-west of France is well-known for the Ice Age cave art. Painted and engraved on the walls of limestone caves from about 30,000 years ago are some of the finest examples of prehistoric art - perhaps the most well-known being those of Lascaux. Lascaux is no longer open to the public but there are many more caves with cave art in them that are as worthy of a visit, such as Pech Merle, Cougnac and Niaux to name but a few.

A bit more recent in time are substantial settlements constructed by the various Iron Age tribes, more commonly known as the Celts. Some of these are built on prominent hills, Entremont near the town of Aix being a particularly well preserved example of an Iron Age hill fort, whereas others were significant ports, such as Lattara in the town of Lattes. The various Celtic tribes of the south established strong trade links with other Mediterranean groups, including the ancient Greeks and the Etruscans. Not surprisingly then archaeologists have recovered beautiful Greek and Etruscan artefacts in some of these settlements.

Roman Bridge in Provence

Anyone visiting the south of France, even for the briefest of visits, cannot escape the monumental structures that the Romans built, some of which are still the finest surviving examples from the Roman Empire. The Celtic tribes were a constant source of irritation to the Romans and so in 125 BC Roman armies were sent to conquer the tribes of Gaul, and the Roman Empire started to expand. Today we are left with some of the most spectacular structures from Pont du Gard, the largest of all the bridges built in the Roman Empire, to the many theatres and amphitheatres, such as those in the cities of Nîmes and Arles that are still used for entertainment today. If it is the past you are looking for while on vacation, it really is difficult to escape it in the south of France.

Archaeology Travel provides a guide to the best archaeological sites and museums in France and the United Kingdom. Ireland and Italy will be added shortly. Whether you have a passing interest in one or two well-known sites or you would like to see as much as you can; whether you are a group of adults or a family with young children - our comprehensive archaeology travel guide is an invaluable place to start.

TV and Film Tourism on the up

According to Film London, the agency responsible for overseeing filming in the capital, films depicting the UK are responsible for attracting about 1 in 10 overseas tourists, spending around £1.8 billion a year. With London being the third biggest film production centre in the world and the UK offering a diverse range of historical and modern sites linked with both film and TV the time for TV and Film Tourism seems to have finally come of age.



New attractions such as the Warner Bros Studio Tour and the Doctor Who Experience as well as a wide range of tours offered by premier TV and Film Location Tour provider, Brit Movie Tours reinforce this fact. Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Gavin and Stacey, Inspector Morse, and James Bond are just some of the many tours Brit Movie Tours offer allowing fans from the UK and all over the world to get closer to places featured in the shows and films they know and love.

Lewis Swan founded Brit Movie Tours in 2009. See their website for more details about their diverse range of tours including the new tour launching in 2012 Beatrix Potter Tour of the Lake District.

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Five ‘must sees’ for Scotland

Writing about my Scottish homeland, I get asked frequently for my list of ‘must sees’ in Scotland.  These will vary as the seasons go round – but here’s what I thought of today!

First of all, Edinburgh Castle would be permanently on any list. It’s iconic, lies at the heart of the capital, and even manages fine views all the way to the hills of the Trossachs. (Actually, the city of Edinburgh itself is a ‘must see’.)

Strathy Beach

If you like your beaches remote, cool and often deserted, then there are several on a Scottish ‘must see’ list. This one is at Strathy, on Scotland’s north coast.

Now, the Highlands are an essential experience of Scotland – so I’d take you to Glen Affric in the Fall, when the birchwoods turn to gold. It’s an easy excursion by road from Inverness. (It’s quite close to Loch Ness – but the setting is finer. And the monster is only a legend anyway.)

Then off to the old lands of the Viking: visit Skara Brae on Orkney – a Neolithic village buried long ago. The circular, stone houses re-emerged when a sand-dune blew away in a storm in 1850. It was first occupied an incredible five millennia ago. Nowhere else in Scotland is the sense of past and so strong. (Oh, and eat at The Creel Restaurant, St Margaret’s Hope, when you are there – that would make my top five dining experiences!)

Next, as a reminder of a temperate climate without extremes, you should see the gardens at Crathes Castle, west of Aberdeen, in Royal Deeside.

Finally, I’d like you to stroll to the top of the Knock Hill above Crieff, Perthshire.  It’s only a few minutes, though high heels are not advised. You stand between Highland and Lowlands, with battle sites, cattle droving roads, signal stations from Roman occupation – in fact, all of Scotland’s story, written into the landscape spread before you. (Basically, it’s just a great view.)



The Jacobite Special Steam Services

The Jacobite steam train from Fort William to Mallaig, passing the famous White Sands of Morar. Rated as one of the world’s great railway journeys. Another Scottish ‘must see’.

Edinburgh – Highlands – Orkney – Royal Deeside – Perthshire. Hey, ask me this again tomorrow and I might choose another five…..

Gilbert Summers is a native Scot who has written about his homeland nearly all his life for publishers and tourism organisations. But his website www.scotlandinaweek.com avoids the hype of the tourism brochure. It’s an honest account for the Scottish visitor, with lots of tips for places to see, as well as tour suggestions and even a recipe for scones as made by his wife’s granny, who got it from her mother, who, in turn….etc

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Safety first everywhere – except for babies on airplanes!

I just don’t get it. Parents stress more about their babies annoying other airline passengers than whether they are safe on board.

They wouldn’t think of driving anywhere without securely strapping their baby in an appropriate safety seat and spend countless hours considering which safety seat to buy. But on airplanes, you are more likely to see infants and toddlers sitting in a parent’s lap than in a safety seat.

This despite the fact that everyone from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board recommends safety seats for young children, but many parents continue to ignore the advice. See what the FAA says at (www.faa.gov/passengers/fly_children/crs).

The NTSB has recommended that each passenger — including those under two — be restrained in a separate seat in an appropriate child restraint system during takeoff, landing and turbulence.

Everything on a plane — including coffee pots — has to be restrained during takeoff and landing and in times of turbulence–everything, that is, except young children sitting on a parent’s laps.

More than 7 million children under the age of two fly on parents’ laps on American carriers each year, according to government estimates. But you are not required to purchase a seat for your baby until they turn two and airlines don’t charge for families to check a car seat. That is the crux of the issue that has stymied safety experts and pediatricians for years and has perhaps lulled parents into a false sense of security.

“I don’t believe she’d be much safer in a seat. Having flown hundreds of flights, I’ve never experienced turbulence so strong it would cause me to lose grip of a child,” one dad emailed me.

“It’s cheaper and we are trying to take advantage of the savings before having to buy her a seat,” said another.

The NTSB has been arguing for more than 15 years that each passenger should have their own seat, but the NTSB can only make recommendations. www.ntsb.gov/children.

It is up to the FAA to take action and so far, all they have done is “strongly urge” parents to use a safety seat approved for air as well as auto travel.

 Meanwhile, it is up to you. Yes, that means you would have to buy a seat for your baby. Tell all your friends they should too. If you don’t want to lug your safety seat to the gate, check out www.kidsflysafe.com , which makes CARES, the Child Aviation Restraint System, an FAA-approved, harness-type safety device — designed by a grandmother — that fits into a six-inch stuff sac and adjusts to fit airplane seats. It is designed for kids weighing 26 to-44 pounds (typically one to four years old).

I know in this economy it is tough to justify buying an extra plane ticket when you don’t have to, but isn’t your child’s safety worth it?

Eileen Ogintz interviews families and experts around the world for her widely syndicated column "Taking the Kids™" and is the creator of www.takingthekids.com. She's written seven family travel books, most recently The Kid's Guide: NYC and The Kid's Guide: Cruising Alaska. E-book guides are available in the Nook and Kindle e-book stores.

Scotland – Highlands and Lowlands - distance-wise, they’re close together, but their heritage is different

If you’re planning that Scottish trip, then think of Scotland as two destinations, two experiences. Firstly, there is the city. Edinburgh, Scotland’s capital, makes a stunning first impression: it’s just so romantic with that castle against the skyline!  Visit during the Edinburgh International Festival in late summer and you will certainly experience a cultural kaleidoscope. (Book your accommodations in advance though.)

The Edinburgh Military Tattoo is very much a Scottish icon. Wildly popular, this takes place every year around the same time as the main Edinburgh festival in late summer.

But north of the city, there is another Scotland. In the days of the old Highland clans, where the mountains began also marked where a different culture, language and way of life began. But partly because of a mad adventurer called Bonnie Prince Charlie, and partly because hard economic facts caught up with them anyway, many Highland folk had to seek better times in other corners of the globe from the 18^th century onwards.

But the ambience of the Highlands is still there – the beautiful hills and empty glens with their “Standing stones on the vacant wine-red moor / Hills of sheep, and the howes of the silent vanished races / And winds, austere and pure”. My, how Robert Louis Stevenson distilled it into a couple of lines!

Loch Lomond, looking north to where the hills close in and the Highlands start.

And today, getting around is easy – journey times are short. There is plenty of accommodation choice and good local foods in restaurants. Add in Highland Games, whisky distilleries, heritage museums galore and even a steam train trip over the Glenfinnan Viaduct that featured in the Harry Potter movies - and the city-and-Highlands Scotland experience makes for a stimulating vacation, packed with interest.

Finally, remember that there are direct flights from the US into Scottish airports, at Edinburgh and Glasgow. And there are good Scotland connections from several hub airports on mainland Europe.  Or to put it another way, you don’t have to get to Scotland via London, England – though that’s fine too. Yes, we have our own Parliament now – and we’ll have to look at full independence soon. But for all that, we still get along with our neighbours south of the Border!

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Gilbert Summers is a native Scot who has written about his homeland nearly all his life for publishers and tourism organisations. But his website www.scotlandinaweek.com avoids the hype of the tourism brochure. It’s an honest account for the Scottish visitor, with lots of tips for places to see, as well as tour suggestions and even some advice on the likelihood of seeing the Loch Ness Monster. (Probably zero – but you should visit anyway.)