I for one love the flexibility and ease of travelling around a large city on the tube. In my home city of London the tube makes zipping around the sights and attractions quick and easy and somewhat affordable if you buy the correct ticket. In any city which has an underground transit system you will definitely see the advantages of a tube if you are used to travelling across town on a bus in the middle of rush hour. You could argue that tubes can be just as uncomfortable and sweaty in rush hour as buses as you will get packed on, but some places such as Tokyo have employed people to make sure every last person is squeezed into the carriage by using force if necessary. In Hong Kong however, the journey’s can be much more pleasant as the carriages are air conditioned so even on the snuggest journey you can be pretty confident that your armpits will remain dry. This is a rarity because many of the underground networks are very old and an effective air conditioning system would be expensive to put in place.

I found a wiki site which lists all the cities in the world which have an underground transit system. This is a good reference if you would like to visit a city knowing that travel around it is easy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_metro_systems#A

Another good article I found shows arguably the best underground systems in the world.

http://www.virgin-vacations.com/site_vv/11-top-underground-transit-systems-in-the-world.asp

In 2007 the last leg of my round the world trip was from Boston to New York City. I was looking around for a cheap bus service between the two cities and stumbled upon the Fung Wah Bus Company. For a budget traveller it was top notch as the three and a half hour bus journey only cost $15! To put this into perspective, the cab fare from the hostel in Boston to the bus terminal was the same price.

I travelled at about 11am and the bus was completely full but I guess this all adds to the atmosphere right? Despite the cheap price, you may have to put up with mediocre on board entertainment which for us happened to be a low budget martial arts movie, so I just put on the iPod and closed my eyes (what a party animal). However, after a little research on the web, I found that my Boston to New York price could be beaten by the Lucky Star bus company. They could offer the same journey for as little as $1 if you were prepared to travel at 6am, or competitive prices at other times of the day.

It does seem that these Chinatown buses from Boston do offer very good rates travel and beat the Greyhound services hand down. It is always wise to shop around online for alternative bus companies to the Greyhound as you may be surprised by what you find. There are other cheap services operating down the East Coast to Washington, Philadelphia and Georgia to name a few so always consider these before you pick the tempting yet pricier option of a budget airline. For a comprehensive list of alternative bus services at competitive prices so be sure to take a look here.

If anyone else has bagged a transport bargain on their travels please leave a comment so we can all ‘tap that resource’.

As promised I have comprised a list of good ideas to minimise the costs of a ski trip this coming season.

Get a late deal

To get a late deal you need to be flexible with your holiday dates and sometimes where you fly into or from. Booking as late as a week before your desired date of departure can save you hundreds of pounds on accommodation because companies are eager to fill every empty bed. The biggest savings are commonly found on chalet accommodation and less so on hotel rooms. If you need to go on a certain date and want to go to a particular location, then waiting for a late deal is extremely risky. It pays to be flexible.

Book a chalet not a hotel

If you have a big party or even if you do not, a chalet can be very cost effective as most of the time they offer half board living. In every chalet I have stayed in I have received breakfast and a three course meal in the evening with a good helping of wine. This is great value as restaurants in ski resorts can be pricey especially as the Euro is so strong. Chalets in my opinion are also much more comfortable than hotels as you have your own living area and not just a bedroom, plus it is a good way to meet other people.

Buy a Sensible ski pass

Use common sense and be realistic when you buy a ski pass. It will obviously be cheaper to buy a weekly pass over 5 or 6 daily ones, but also think about where you want to ski. Many resorts are huge and have hundreds of kilometres of runs in several valleys. Buy a pass which includes a couple of valleys but not all. It is unlikely you will get time in a week or be quick enough (unless you are a very confident skier) to get across to further valleys and back in a day anyway so save your money. In the unlikely event that you do tire of your current ski pass boundary, you can usually buy daily passes to other areas. If you buy passes through your tour operator you can sometimes get a discount so ask.

Slope cuisine vs packed lunch

Ski resorts can be quite snobby places and this is one of the reasons why the mark up on food is quite high. You will find a lot of eateries on the slopes but you can easily pay over the odds. The food is great but do not just stop at the first convenient place. Ski around on the first day or ask people’s advice for the cheaper restaurants/cafes where you can get a pizza, a sandwich or bowl of soup. I have experienced mountain restaurants at either end of the price scale so I know what it means to find a suitable restaurant. Alternatively you can take a packed lunch onto the piste. On a good sunny day you cannot beat it plus it is by far the cheapest option. Many chalets will offer a packed lunch to you for free or you can pick up supplies in the resort before you take the gondola up to the slopes.

Drinks and Apres Ski

A lot of money is thrown away in the evenings at ski resorts in bars and clubs. You can pay up to £5 for a beer at a bar and more for spirits so be sure to either pick up a crate before you get to the resort from a supermarket or get tanked up on free wine at the chalet if you are staying in one. I will add that nightlife in ski resorts is always good natured and very lively, often with live entertainment, but the drinks will burn a whole in your pocket.

Borrow or buy equipment

If it is your first time skiing or boarding then definitely hire your gear and take out the insurance. If you know someone with a pair of skis or a board then ask if you can borrow it as this will save you a packet. Alternatively, if you have been a couple of times and plan to go again, consider buying your own gear because it will be a very worthwhile investment over a 5 to 10 year period. If you do think this is the way to go then always wait until the end of the season before making a purchase. Ski shops generally have their sales then to make room for the new season’s stock. Many a bargain can be had.

This is one of the more useful articles I have written for ezinearticles.com and thought I would share it with my readers.

When you pack your bags and head off around the world with only a backpack and a few essential belongings, you become more aware of what you are leaving behind. You forfeit frequent contact with friends and family, miss social events and can feel isolated. With thanks to the World Wide Web, technology has bridged the gap and we are now able to communicate, upload photos and create blogs to share experiences with loved ones from any where on the globe, but how easy is it to find cheap access to the web.

Well this depends on where you are. Having navigated the globe myself, I always kept an eye out looking for Internet access to keep my blogs going, photos up to date, and to book the next stages of my journey online. It was clear how the ease of Internet access varied from one destination to the next and found myself planning my time online.

The USA was flooded with wireless access points in the cities and many hostels offered free access to those blessed with a laptop, something which grated on my nerves when I was sat ploughing dollar bills into the wired terminal. Hostels in New Zealand and Australia seemed also to grant free wireless access to people carrying laptops and yet charged those that did not. I came to the conclusion that people with laptops carried the burden of having to be extra security conscious with their expensive equipment while I travelled for months without the worry. The best free wired spots I found in “The Western World” were local libraries which seem obliged to offer free access even if you are not a member. It is always worth checking where the nearest library as the Internet does drain your wallet if you seek frequent access. Wireless points on the other hand seem to be all over in major cities and very common in airports, budget hotels, hostels and you can even use any house hold connection if people are foolish enough to leave it unsecured.

In South East Asia offered access at the cheapest rates but Internet cafes were slightly harder to find the further from main cities you ventured and free wireless access was unheard of in hostels. This was true for Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia but the number of Internet cafes improved in Malaysia and further again into Singapore. Most towns boasted at least one terminal to burn CDs and a couple with Skype facilities whereas larger towns and cities have plenty. Skype incidentally is a great way to make international calls for the price of the Internet connection time. Be sure to set up an account for yourself and your other party at home before you leave in order to take advantage.

The most expensive access I found was in the Cook Islands in the South Pacific. You may be thinking why would I want to go on the Internet in location so beautiful. Well, there is not a lot to do beside sunbathe and swim in the sea, and if you get caught in an afternoon downpour, playing cards soon loose their appeal. The charge was over 4 pounds an hour for rather slow access. Others in the hostel told of how they had spent 10 pounds for an hour on the neighbouring islands of Fiji.

I would recommend if you are going more to “The Western World” on your travels to buy one of these cheap, small, lightweight, low spec laptops (or notebooks) as you will save big bucks on access, and would be good for backing up photos. These are being sold for as little as £150 from manufacturers such as Acer and ASUS commonly with 4GB of flash storage. Alternatively you could invest in an iPod Touch which can act as a web browser, video and music player and general entertainment system all in one.

It is also important not to be glued to a computer screen for your entire journey as there are far more brilliant things to see and do outdoors. After all, you did not decide to travel the world to go web surfing!

I think top 5 lists are very helpful to people trying to find good and concise information. Below is a list of the items I found most useful when I went backpacking but would not necessarily be obvious to the first time traveler. Hopefully you will learn from my experience. These are in no particular order.

1. Good pair of shoes:

Your number one priority should be getting a good, sturdy pair of comfortable shoes as traveling does mean you will be doing a lot of walking. Some people opt to buy proper walking shoes from an outdoors outlet such as millets or blacks which will guarantee good quality, that they will last a long time and will be waterproof. I however chose to take a comfortable pair of trainers which admittedly did wear out in Washington DC and started to let in icy cold water but were good while they lasted. If you do purchase a new pair of shoes I highly recommend wearing them everyday for a week before you leave to ensure they are comfortable and do fit your feet.

2. Swim shorts:

This mainly applies to men but I found these a very useful item of clothing. They can be used as everyday shorts, can help you out of a tight spot when you have no clean underwear (the netting becomes invaluable), and of course as swim wear. You would always find these at the top of my backpack.

3. Quick dry towel:

The pros of this item speak for themselves. They are light weight, small for efficient packing and dry in half the time of ordinary towels. If you have to leave early for a long bus journey and want that all important shower, this little gem will prevent you from opening your bag 10 hours later to find that the awful damp towel smell has spread to your nice clean washing. If you a larger person then you may find the dimensions of a quick dry towel challenging if you want to retain some dignity in a dorm. Let the good times roll.

4. Torch:

At some point on your travels you will find yourself in the dark scrabbling to find a light switch when you need the loo. I found that in South East Asia some guest houses and hostels had outside toilets and they were not very well lit. A torch can be a life saver when you need to be watching where you are treading if you know what I mean.

5. Locks:

Security can be an issue when on the road, moving from dorm to dorm and taking international and domestic flights. I recommend purchasing some small padlocks which clasps your zips together prior to going traveling. Be aware that they could be broken off at airports for security checks so maybe take a couple extra, it is your call. If you are traveling a lot in the USA, you can get special padlocks which also have a master key slot so the locks do not need to be broken at the airports.

I also took a light weight bicycle chain with me so that when I was out during the day I could chain my rucksack to the bunk bed frame so nobody could walk off with it. Remember if you loose your passport or credit cards it could be game over for your trip.

Let me know what items you found most useful when traveling by leaving a comment below.