Do you have a really big family or a lot of close friends? How often do you see them? Wouldn’t it be great if instead of trying and failing to host a big meet-up every other month, you all could go on one big vacation of a lifetime together? This idea isn’t for everyone but for those of you with a close but large network of people you love and who are important to you, why not add some magic to the mix and plan something exciting and memorable…like a group vacation! With a little organization and the help of the internet, you can find Disney World vacation packages that are cost effective and fun for you and all the special people in your life.

You Scream, I Scream, We All Scream for Disney!
Now don’t set yourself up to become some militant event coordinator from hell…understand that even though you will be planning group activities, there are different people going who may not all be interested in the same thing. Give people some room to groove and explore Disney World at their pace, specific to the activities that they are interested in – with a friendly option to do things together with others. Again, this isn’t a responsibility that just anyone can handle, but if you fancy yourself something of an organizing wizard, here are two things to consider when making your plans!

1. Have A Pre-Vacation Party! (It’s actually more like a meeting, but don’t tell ‘em that)
Plan a casual dinner party, throw on a Disney movie dvd and pull out the games if you want to for more fun after. This meeting is important to the success of a large group vacation because it lets people share ideas and concerns as well as their availabilities. You don’t want to go planning a vacation that half the people can’t attend. Emphasize the importance of flexibility and try to get everyone to commit to a set of dates that is realistic and do-able. If most of your group doesn’t live near enough to attend a physical party, throw a virtual one! Get everyone together on Skype for a group voice chat or on an i.m. messenger. Most importantly, whatever decisions are made at your party-meeting, record them and send them to everyone later on for final approval. This is already shaping up to be tons of fun!

2. Where will we be staying?
At Disney World you’ll have several lodging options to accommodate the needs and tastes of each person or sub-group. Visit deal websites to get a feel of the kind of discounts you can enjoy with large parties and even smaller ones. Sometimes in the interest of cost it may be more feasible to break the troops up. Whichever route you decide to take, let individuals make their own lodging arrangements. Why? Because this is the one thing that you don’t want to mess with and a middle man will get the blame should something not go as planned. Make suggestions on where to stay and deals that are available, but ultimately, let the individuals do the bookings.
Most importantly, you want to remember that this is supposed to be fun. Be flexible. Be thorough and organized, but do not let yourself get so stressed that you end up throwing the idea away or using the vacation experience to hibernate! Have a blast!

Source: http://my.englishclub.com/profiles/blogs/disney-world-is-it-for-kids-only

Captain’s Quarters Resort was ranked as the number 1 Kid-Friendly Hotel in Myrtle Beach by Oyster.com. Oyster.com cited the hotels game room and bowling alley, as well as its water park and summer children’s programs as some of the most kid-friendly features of Captain’s Quarters.

Sea Watch Resort was ranked as the third most Kid-Friendly Hotel in Myrtle Beach, thanks to its six pools and ten Jacuzzis and lots of kid-friendly amenities like two lazy rivers and a family-friendly restaurant.

The Caravelle Resort was also one of the most Kid-Friendly Hotels in Myrtle Beach. Oyster.com noted its game room and daily summer children’s activities, as well as its large pool complex and rooms with full kitchens as reasons for its high ranking.

VacationMyrtleBeach.com is the official vacation site of Myrtle Beach, SC offering the guaranteed lowest rate on nearly 4,000 accommodations units ranging from studios and efficiencies to one bedroom suites and two, three, four and five bedroom condominiums. Vacation Myrtle Beach resorts also offer a wide range of amenities including pools, water parks, lazy rivers, whirlpools, on site restaurants, oceanfront pool bars, bowling center, tennis center, racquetball courts, fitness rooms, miniature golf course and even South Carolina’s first swim up pool bar. www.VacationMyrtleBeach.com is the online home to reserve your place for fun in the sun.

The largest creative industries festival in the southern hemisphere, featuring live music performances at Sydney Opera House, creative industry events and large scale light installations around the harbour foreshore, Vivid Sydney was recently ranked as one of the world’s top ten ideas festivals by The Guardian newspaper in the UK.

Developed by Destination NSW on behalf of the New South Wales Government, Vivid showcases Sydney as the creative industries hub of the Asia Pacific, with over 500,000 visitors and Sydneysiders expected to attend the free and ticketed events this year.

In 2012 award-winning German light collective, URBANSCEEN will design the centrepiece of Vivid Sydney, the lighting of the Sydney Opera House sails.

The full Vivid Sydney program is available at http://vividsydney.com

Through interior design, a space can become simultaneously luxurious, comfortable, and hygienic benefiting both guests and owners. Interior Image Group carefully selects furniture, fixtures and equipment to highlight a property’s space. Now, Crypton’s microbial resistant fabrics allow Interior Image Group to choose products that allow rooms to stay in service, and in turn, producing additional revenue.

Utilizing microbial resistant elements is also an extremely important consideration when designing for commercial spaces such as healthcare and education facilities.

Interior Image Group’s expert team of interior designers will showcase their design of a luxury hotel “clean” guest room at the HI Connect Conference, March 21-23 at the Gaylord Hotel in Nashville, TN.

For more information about Interior Image Group, visit www.interiorimagegroup.com or follow on twitter at @InteriorImageGp.

The best part? The winner receives a Qantas Vacations travel voucher for up to $12,000 USD towards their ultimate Aussie vacation.

The winning entry will be selected from the top-voted entries for each of the nine destinations. A jury composed of representatives from the three sponsoring organizations – Ensemble Travel Group, Qantas Vacations, and Tourism Australia – will determine the winner. Contest deadline is 5:00 p.m. PT, June 7, 2012. No purchase is necessary to enter or win.

To enter and/or vote, visit www.aussieexperiences.com.

In addition to the contest, the website is full of helpful travel information, broken down by region and experience in Australia, and supported by related travel offers. Other highlights include:

A “discover” tab connects visitors to a live events calendar and restaurant guide, both powered by Frommers.
A “best of” section showcases the ultimate in popular activities such as beaches, dive sites, and outdoor activities.
The home page features an engaging blog, written by an Aussie native and updated at least weekly.
And there is even a way to connect with an experienced destination expert via the website.

For more information about the My Aussie Experience Travel Contest, visit the South Pacific Experience Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/southpacificexperiences.

Europatour Pro in Bulgaria was established in 1991 and today the family owned business is No. 9 in BSP share and with nearly 20% growth in BSP revenue for 2011 compared to 2010; one of the fastest growing travel companies in Bulgaria. The company is known for its creativity and great service to premium class passengers. Proof of Europatours team’s devotion and competitiveness are years of continuous cooperation with corporations as Siemens, Bayer, Pfizer and Roche.

Commenting on behalf of GlobalStar; Mark van Iersel, Director Marketing and Partner Recruitment, says “To say that we are excited to have Club Corporate Travel onboard with us now is an understatement. The accomplishments they have made in their market are quite impressive and we are excited to put Club Corporate Travel on our global platform. They have the knowledge and infrastructure to make GlobalStar’s expansion into Africa a success.”

The Cancun Convention and Visitors Bureau strongly disagrees with the statement issued today by the Texas Department of Public Safety advising against spring break travel to Mexico. The Department’s advisory generalizes safety in the entire country and provides contradicting information to the latest Federal Travel Warning, which states there is no advisory in effect for Cancun. As it stands, the Texas DPS alert may cause unnecessary fear to the more than 20,000 tourists that are scheduled to visit Cancun this Spring Break season.

Cancun prides itself for being a safe place to travel, and the #1 international tourist destination for Americans in 2011 as stated by Orbitz. According to a recent statement by the Hon. Roberto Borge, Governor of the State of Quintana Roo, Cancun and the entire state remain one of the safest zones in all of Mexico, and no North American traveler has been affected in the entire Yucatan Peninsula by issues plaguing other parts of the country.

In fact, Cancun is located more than 1,300 miles away from affected areas mentioned in the Federal Travel Warning and at a similar distance to those regions than that between Miami and New York City.

The safety of our visitors is the biggest priority for the Cancun CVB and State authorities. In anticipation of heavy travel periods like Spring Break, precautionary measures are expanded and security is increased along Cancun’s public beaches. The following are preventative actions the destination takes to provide spring breakers added safety and security during their stay:

– Increased number of security rounds along the beaches
– Increased number of lifeguards stationed on public beaches
– Local authorities and Cancun International Airport distribute extensive information, including safety tips, as well as rules and regulations for appropriate behavior on Cancun’s public beaches and entertainment areas
– Emergency units patrol the hotel zone and public beaches on a nightly basis to provide rapid emergency care and first aid should emergency situations arise
– In conjunction with the Aquatic Rescue of the Mexican Red Cross and the Mexican Association of Lifeguards, an aid and security watch station will be located directly on the public beaches

Cancun also encourages all visitors to abide by all local, state and federal laws when visiting Mexico, and any other foreign country, to ensure a safe and memorable vacation.

Cancun also continues enforcing safety measures such as the toll-free 911 emergency service hotline that operates 24 hours a day with bilingual operators, as well as the C4 Center, a special unit that coordinates police efforts in order to provide immediate response during emergency situations using a system of strategically-located cameras.

OAG, the global leader in aviation intelligence and a UBM Aviation brand, has released the latest in its series of Aviation Market Reports. This new report explores how changing market dynamics within the Americas are impacting US carriers’ growth strategies.

The aftershocks of the global economic downturn are still being felt throughout the so-called “mature” markets of North America and Western Europe. With a small 1% GDP growth in 2011 (versus 2010), the path to recovery in the US is underway albeit slowly. The aviation industry continues to adapt to these conditions with airlines meeting demand by increasing capacity over frequency of flights, in effect offering fewer flights with more seats per flight. This helps manage yield but if it is growth the airlines are after, then surely they will have to look further afield.

Fortunately for the US carriers, the solution is right on their doorstep, just look to the South!

Returning a year-on-year GDP growth rate of 5% and an 11% airline capacity increase in 2011, the Latin American markets represent a huge opportunity to the airlines that can adapt their strategies successfully to meet the demands of these growing markets. “The exceptional growth of the Low Cost Carrier sector across Latin America and the Caribbean has captured everybody’s attention,” said Mike Malik, Chief Commercial Officer UBM Aviation. “If the major US based carriers can adapt their service to compete effectively with the LCC sector, then this region undeniably represents the largest short to mid term growth opportunity for US carriers, whose margins are continually being squeezed in their domestic heartland markets.”

The detailed review of the impact of changing market dynamics upon the Aviation Industry across the Americas is available to download now at www.oagaviation.com/americas-analysis.

The MPSI scores are tabulated from a poll of meeting planners who rate their overall experience at Starwood brand hotels and resorts. This program allows Meeting Planners to voice their opinions on the individual properties, as well as the brand. Starwood’s brands include Sheraton, Westin, W, St. Regis, aloft, four points, Le Meridian and Luxury Collection.

Meeting planners are surveyed via email on 49 different categories and the criterion is based on a scale of one – five, with five being the highest. The MPSI includes all Starwood hotels with a minimum of 10,000 square feet of meeting space, who host meetings, conferences and social events.

The 2011 meeting planners ranked Sheraton Sand Key Resort in first place in nearly a third of the categories, including Overall Experience, Overall Value, Likelihood to Recommend, Overall Service from Sales, Front Desk Helpfulness and Partnering to Achieve a Successful Meeting. The resort remained in the top five for nearly all of the categories.

Sheraton Sand Key Resort is Tampa Bay’s premier meeting destination with incomparable meeting and convention services. The resort offers more than 24,000 square feet of indoor meeting space as well as 10 acres of exquisite private beach on the Gulf of Mexico.

Additional meetings accommodations include:

Grand Ballroom, accommodating up to 800 guests.
Island Ballroom, accommodating up to 500 guests.
Six conference or breakout rooms.
390 guest rooms and suites.
Award-winning catering and conference coordination services.

To learn more about the Sheraton Sand Key Resort, please visit their website at www.sheratonsandkey.com.

Here is the schedule for the new flight:

From Los Angeles to Washington Reagan:

Flight 240

Departs: 8:00 a.m.

Arrives: 4:00 p.m.

From Washington Reagan to Los Angeles:

Flight 245

Departs: 5:10 p.m.

Arrives: 7:40 p.m.

Tickets go on sale for this new flight on Sunday, March 4, 2012. The route will be flown using Boeing 757 aircraft with 22 First Class seats and 166 Main Cabin seats. As part of American’s fleet renewal effort, the airline is currently upgrading its Boeing 757 aircraft used on domestic routes. Modifications include new Main Cabin and First Class seats, new sidewalls that give the interior a lighter and brighter look, and new LCD monitors to enhance inflight entertainment viewing. In addition, American, the first airline to launch inflight Wi-Fi Internet service in North America, will expand its Wi-Fi product offering to nearly all aircraft used to fly within the continental United States, including select 757s.

American and American Eagle offer about 150 daily flights at LAX, with service to destinations in Asia, Mexico and Europe from Los Angeles. Six of American’s oneworld partners also serve LAX – British Airways, Japan Airlines, Iberia, Cathay Pacific, LAN and Qantas, which is the most partners operating in the same location than at any airport in the world. American also operates joint business agreements with Japan Airlines, Qantas, British Airways and Iberia Airlines. Joint businesses provide customers with more price and schedule flexibility to more destinations throughout Asia, Australia and Europe.