Travel Blog Carnival Week 5

Until now, I’ve participated in Travel Rants’ Blog Carnival as a contestant. This week I reviewed the entries submitted by other travel bloggers and selected the best three.

Blog Carnival Selection #1

Enchanting Paradise: Kashmir – Kalyan describes the natural beauty of Kashmir, the disputed region tuck in the north of India and shared with Pakistan. The post does not give any insight to practical travel but gives you an enticing description and reason to venture there.

There are snow capped towering peaks, lush green fields & forests, wildlife, religious places, fresh water springs, rivers, beautiful lakes, blooming fruits, pine and chinar trees. Flowers of multi-farious hues and colours every where in the valley. All these attract the tourists from world over. Every Indian nurtures a dream, of visiting Kashmir once in life time in their mind.

Keep in mind that more major India tourism sites no longer accept the US dollar, but rather Euros or the native Rupee. Although many travelers may be reluctant to venture to Kashmir, India is a country you shouldn’t be scared to travel visit. Be wary of renting a car however, India has the most dangerous roads in the world.

Blog Carnival Selection #2

World’s First Carbon-Neutral City Set To Rise – The government of Abu Dhabi will begin construction of a 6-square kilometer city on the Arabian peninsula that will produce no carbon emissions. The concept city is only planning to be green for residents, though may become a tourist destination.

It’ll be powered by an incredible photovoltaic (solar-powered) system and aims to be a resource for academics, entrepreneurs, and family businesses. Can’t see it being a tourist hot-spot though.

I agree with Go Girlfriend, any flight to the city will negated the carbon-neutrality of the city. You could offset the emissions of your flight (although the carbon is still emitted) or green all of your travels.

Blog Carnival Selection #3

American Tourists No Longer Canada’s Bread and Butter – The falling dollar, higher gas prices, and new documentation requirements are causing a drop in American tourists to Canada. Despite the good image Canada has with Americans, it simply isn’t enough to entice them to visit in high numbers.

The report goes on to say that Canada is viewed by all as a friendly, courteous, traditional and safe place to visit. But it does not inspire awe and sense of wonderment of, say, Australia or France.

Americans living close to the border know Canadian tourism and lifestyle attractions. But even these U.S. citizens are distracted by the new regulations like the WHTI (Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative) which requires not only Canadians to have special documentation but also American visitors. And these regulations have not been made clear to the American people yet. ??So,?? many might ask, ??why should we go to Manitoba when Michigan and North Dakota have similar natural attractions??? Or, ??Let??s just go to Mt. Rushmore.??

There are still some great international destinations to visit on a weak dollar. If you’re looking to stay close to home, there are 8 great places in the US to visit on a weak dollar. It’s a shame that the US tourism industry is not taking advantage of the global tourism boom.

It was difficult to select from the entries this week, many of the submissions were worthy of being selected. In case you still can’t get enough, you can read my posts that were chosen for week 1, week 2, week 3, and week 4.

[photo by: gbatistini]