Friday 30 January 2009

PRESS TRIP: Rockwood, Maine ME, USA

The Birches Resort in Rockwood, ME invite you to three-day, two-night trip experience Maine's winter wonderland. Visit The Birches Resort in Maine and Explore the North Woods via Snowmobile. The Birches, located on 11,000 acres on Moosehead Lake, has an extensive network of trails that offer some of New England's best snowmobiling.

Date: February 9 - 11, 2009 (Monday - Wednesday)

Inclusive: Accommodations, Guided activity (skiing or snowshoeing), Dinner, Breakfast,
Snowmobile excursion.

Highlight: guided snowmobile excursion exploring the beautiful trails of the region's wilderness area.

Contact:
Ellen Pulda
Gero Communications
+1 (617) 277-1675
epulda@gerocom.com

Thursday 22 January 2009

Scotland's New Downloadable Driving Itineraries


Instead of spending hours and hours of Internet research, travellers can now visit website www.Secret-Scotland.com to download all the information about attractions, routes, lodging and restaurants, and peiece together into a feasible itinerary.

"When some American friends came here on holiday, they had badly misjudged Scottish travel times and missed lots of great places that don't get mentioned in guidebooks," says native Scot Mike Peddie, co-founder of Secret Scotland with his wife Aurelia. "We realised the need for self-drive itineraries by locals who knew which places to see and which to skip, the best towns for overnight stays, and realistic scheduling of attractions and scenic drives."

Unlike travel agents, Secret Scotland Tours claimed to have no financial interest in the recommendations made to travelers. And unlike printed guidebooks, their itineraries are frequently updated on worthwhile attractions, travel times, routes, lodgings and restaurants.

Secret Scotland's more than 25 tour itineraries start from $7 and vary not only according to the starting point (Glasgow, Edinburgh or Inverness) and the number of days (3 to 14 days) but also according to interests, such as scenery, castles, whisky, seafood, Scottish culture and more. Itineraries come in the form of an instant download from the website, with customized itineraries available upon request for a few dollars more.

All customers receive emailed answers to any additional questions that come up while planning their Scotland self-drive holiday.

To download a copy of "The 12 Most Memorable B&Bs in Scotland", go to:
http://www.secret-scotland.com/department/memorable_scottish_b_bs/

Tuesday 20 January 2009

Fly Abu Dhabi direct to Phuket and Koh Samui

Etihad Airways has teamed up with Bangkok Airways in a new codeshare agreement that is set to fly passengers between the Abu Dhabi-based airline's expanding global network and the popular Thai destinations of Phuket and Koh Samui.

Monday 12 January 2009

PRESS TRIP: Northern Arizona ROCKS, USA


Date: Mar 28 - Apr 3, 2009

Arizona Rocks (Navajo Nation, Winslow, Williams and Page/Lake Powell) Tour the Mother Road in Williams, travel by train to the Grand Canyon, see the Canyon from a helicopter, cruise beautiful Lake Powell, hike a slot canyon, float the Colorado River, stay in the amazing new VIEW Hotel inside Monument Valley, tour Canyon de Chelly, stand on the corner in Winslow, Arizona and stay in the historic La Posada Hotel.

See more details at:
http://azcomgroup.com/AZRocksSpringMediaTour2009.htm

To Apply: Credential journalists please include regular and/or recent outlets and intended placements.

Contact:
Mike Finney
AZ Communications Group
+1 (480) 897-3331
news@azcomgroup.com

Saturday 10 January 2009

2009 Tales of the Cocktail Event


Tales of the Cocktail is inviting journalists to participant at their annual cocktail event.

Date: July 8-12, 2009

Who Can Apply: Credential journalists who properly represent the industry.

Inclusive: Roundtrip airfare to and from New Orleans not to exceed $325.00 from the East Coast and $425.00 the West Coast. Round trip airport transfer allotment to and from the Hotel Monteleone. Hotel accommodations in New Orleans, for 3 days and 2 nights arrival and departure dates are dictated by your event or seminar. Additional nights will be billed to you at a discounted rate to be determined. A VIP bag. Attendance at Invitation only event functions. Complimentary Internet service at your hotel. Complimentary meals and/or food discounts. Opportunities and access to presenters. Professional event coordination.

To Apply:
Complete application with below information:
Personal Info - Name, Title, Address, Telephone, Email.


PUBLICATION/OUTLET INFORMATION:
Primary Publication/Outlet:

Form:
Newspaper
Magazine
Frequency:
Daily
Weekly
Bi-Weekly
Monthly
Quarterly
Other
Distribution
Regional
National
International
Circulation:

TV:
Distribution:
Regional
National
International
Call Letters:

Network:

Program Name:

RADIO:
Distribution:
Regional
National
International
Call Letters:

Program Name:

WIRE SERVICE: (please circle)
Photo
News
Entertainment
Local
National
International

ONLINE
Are you interested in participating in the Collaborative Cocktail blog?

URL:

Hits per month:
Editor/Producer:
Telephone:
Address: (if different from above)
Additional Publication/Outlet:
Market:
Additional Publication/Outlet:
Market:


TYPE OF COVERAGE
**Briefly Describe Stories and Length of Coverage**

Are you interested in story angles and contacts for a selected presenter?
(please circle):
Yes
No

Would you like a 2009 media kit mailed to you?
(please circle):
Yes
No


Application Deadline: March 15, 2009

Tales of the Cocktail Blog Overview:
In 2009, for the second year in a row, Tales of the Cocktail will work closely with more than 30 of the most dedicated and widely read bloggers covering the world of spirits and cocktails. Together, these bloggers will contribute to 'Blogging Tales of the Cocktail,' the largest collaborative cocktail site on the Internet. Participating blogs include The Cocktail Chronicles, Jeffrey Morgenthaler, Kaiser Penguin, Marriedââ,¬Â¦With Dinner, and The Gumbo Pages, among many others. Along with guest contributors drawn from the ranks of Tales presenters and mixologists, and with contributions from guest bloggers from the New Orleans region, these cocktail bloggers will publicize the many aspects of Tales of the Cocktail, from seminars to Spirited Dinners to the mixologists who make Tales such a one-of-a-kind event.

This unique group site is hosted at TalesBlog.com. Beginning in January, the site will feature advance previews of Tales of the Cocktail sessions and events, along with additional coverage that highlights the cuisine and culture of host city New Orleans. From July 8-12, participating bloggers will gather in New Orleans to provide live coverage of Tales of the Cocktail.

Contact:
Tales of the Cocktail
Media Relations
media@talesofthecocktail.com

Monday 5 January 2009

Embark To the Park of Your Choice

By Apolinari Tairo | Jan 09, 2009 | Photo via daylife.com

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (eTN) - Reports from all over the East African Indian Ocean coastal towns showed that Italians love to have sex with African girls to an extent that some fly from Italy to East Africa on sex tourism mission.

Few days after an Italian chef was given persona non grata status by Tanzanian authorities over sexual offense, reports from Kenya said Italian tourists visiting the tourist beach towns of Malindi and Mombasa are champions of sex tourism.

An Italian chef was declared illegal immigrant in Tanzania’s island of Zanzibar after four girls from his kitchen testified to have had sex with him and have conceived.

A similar story was reported this week from Kenya where Italian tourists, most popular in beach holidays were found to be fond of having sex with Kenyan girls.

Parents in the Kenyan coastal towns of Malindi and Mombasa said the two towns are currently the leading destinations for child sex tourism in East Africa.

Through various media interviews, parents in Malindi, Watamu and Diani on the Kenyan Indian Ocean beaches said school girls have failed to attend schools in favor of sexual business with Italian tourists.

“When the girls see an Italian tourist, they even approach him and ask for money in exchange of sex. And when an Italian tourist approach those girls, they become happy and invite him to enjoy sex and pay them some money,” one parent was quoted saying.

More than 2,000 Italians have settled in Malindi, while tens of thousands visit the coast annually. In Tanzania, Italians are mostly settled on the coastal towns of Zanzibar, Pemba, Mafia and Bagamoyo running tourist resorts.

Kenyan Tourism Minister Najib Balala said there was no way that the Kenyan government would kick out Italians from tourism business because they were among the best stakeholders in tourism and have contributed greatly to community social projects such as schools.

He said hoteliers must lead in the fight against child sex tourism, which has attracted a nasty coverage in the western media, particularly, the Italian press.

Findings showed that child sex tourism on the East African coast was driven by poverty which so far attracted them to practice commercial sex so as to supplement family earnings.

The secretary for Children Affairs in the Kenyan Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Development, Jaqueline Oduol, said fifty percent of boys and girls involved in sex work were recruited or connected to tourists by beach boys, who also exploit them.

Unlike other nationalities, Italian tourists are more interested in beach holidays than wildlife photographic safaris. Big charter aircraft from Italy frequently land in the East African coastal towns on tourism missions.

Saturday 3 January 2009

Hawaii Tourism Association Presents AlohaTalk

Haleiwa, Hawaii (USA) 02 Jan 2009: Hawaii Tourism Association, the public and private membership organization recently founded dedicated to establishing specific lobby groups that will cover airlines, tourism policies and communication, has started a new discussion forum dedicated to the discussion of anything and everything that pertains to Hawaii and its tourism products.

Called AlohaTalk, subscribers are stakeholders from both the private and public sectors including the media, thousands of travel agents, tour operators, tourism officials, PR and marketing organizations and associations both from Hawaii and around the globe.

As a member of AlohaTalk, participants are given the chance to share their experiences and expertise by posting comments, opinions, questions and recommendations about Hawaii tourism. The idea behind AlohaTalk is to facilitate the exchange ideas for the betterment of Hawaii tourism products.

Individuals and organizations interested in joining AlohaTalk can do so by visiting www.hawaiitourismassociation.com to sign up. The service costs nothing to join.

Furthermore, AlohaTalk is a sophisticated discussion forum in that it utilizes a program that filters advertisements. So, not only is the service free of charge, members are guaranteed to never be bombarded by advertisements.

To learn more about Hawaii Tourism Association, visit www.hawaiitourismassociation.com