First things first – let’s look at what’s exactly meant by a ‘visa’… A visa (from the Latin, Charta Visa, meaning ‘paper that has been seen’) is a written document (or a stamp in your passport) that gives the bearer expressed permission to enter a specific country. You don’t always need to have a visa in order to visit another country, it’s usually for extended visits to somewhere. Some countries have special treaties agreed with each other which mean that visas are not necessary – the EU, for instance. Laws and rules about visas vary Read more…

  Some people look at me in a very strange manner when Porsche 911′s are mentioned. There’s actually a very large slice of people out there who just don’t ‘get it’. I know good drivers, experienced people, who’ve driven Porsche 911′s and just don’t like them, can’t see what all the fuss is about. “Engine’s in the wrong bloody place, prefer my Ferrari any day…” I sympathise and try and explain, recalling my own first 911 experience.   Way back in 1991, in my previous life, I was a sales manager at a Toyota dealership. Read more…

Last minute booking, like a children’s playground, has its swings and roundabouts. If you’ve got nerves of steel, you might be happy to cling on not knowing where you’re going until the last second. If that’s the case, you’ll probably be okay. But holding out isn’t for everyone. Some people are meticulous planners and like to know what their vacation plans are well in advance. Perceived wisdom says that if you hold out until as late as possible to book your holiday, you’re going to save a heap of cash. But is this true? We Read more…

Stag dos used to just be you and a couple of pals heading down to the local boozer on your last night of freedom. You’d have a few beers, a couple of bags of cheese and onion crisps and if you were lucky, the best man might have ordered up a ‘policewoman’ to pull up her skirt and take down your particulars. Then things moved on to The Big Night Out kind of stag. Groups of six or seven of you would jump on a train or hire out a minibus to take you to Read more…

Taking a year-long holiday? There is nothing more exciting (and stressful) than planning your long vacation. Now, I assume you already have all the basics covered. You know, someone checking your post and watching over your house. I bet you even got your holiday all planned out. Well, that leaves just one important thing…packing! When planning a year-long trip, what to pack is the most asked question. Let’s face it, some of us (this includes me) have a hard enough time packing for a week vacation. How in the world can I pack for a Read more…

Plane rides can be kind of stressful. This goes double if you take part in a long journey. Of course, it does not have to be this way. In fact, there are a number of things that you can do to make your long plane ride more enjoyable. Today we are going to talk about a few tips you should consider before you head off on your next trip. First of all, let’s talk about your general health overall. Being trapped on a plane for hours can lead to a few different health problems that Read more…

Identity theft is on the rise. In the UK in 2010, nearly half of all frauds committed (there were approximately 180,000) were criminals impersonating hapless members of the public in order to rip them off. This rise in identity crimes can partly be attributed to our ever-increasing reliance of technology and that technology’s vulnerability to attack. In fact, there’s a worrying new program available, created by hackers, called Zeus which allows even the most basic computer users to be able to hack into people’s computers to steal information. Hmmm… We’re at our most susceptible to Read more…

Traveling the world does not have to be expensive. However, traveling on a budget does not have to be either. There is a fine line that you can walk when traveling across the world. It’s a line between traveling for cheap and still having fun. People who are willing to spend loads of money can typically have fun anywhere they go. For the rest of us, we have to use our money sparingly. Of course, we can still have a good time doing it. Today, we are going to cover traveling the world on a Read more…