Category: Tips for Picking and Planning Vacations

If you’re thinking about the perfect, always hard-to-please man and father or grandfather in your family, or you’re a dad wanting to pick what you want to do for Father’s Day, especially if you’re a part of the huge Star Wars fan club, consider this galactic idea: An amazing, low-cost Star Wars™ Weekends vacation in Orlando, Florida, this May-June that includes complimentary accommodations typically at the spectacular Calypso Cay Resort, a Walt Disney Good Neighbor® Hotel. With a low-cost

Muggles, mudbloods, magic and much more make up the magnificence behind the Harry Porter series. Many of us and the characters have spent the better part of 10 years growing up with author J.K. Rowling’s infectious book series and its 8 films over the last decade that has developed a huge population of die-hard fans of all ages. Rowling’s amazing storytelling and uniquely brilliant mind to create such a magical, creative and intriguing story created a huge following that still captures the hearts of new generations. With film set designers and her collaboration, Rowling’s visions were brought to life at Universal Studios Orlando© Resort, a huge draw still for travelers. Now, people of all ages are anxiously awaiting this summer’s 2014 for the massive Daigon Alley expansion that Universal Orlando Resort has already

Whether you’re lakefront or seaside, fresh or salt, the sheer bliss and near paralyzing tranquility of water cannot be matched to the vacations available through Best Vacations Ever. When planning spring or summer travel, water-based or beach destinations are a traveler’s favorite and a top vacation selection of many couples and families for the romanticism and the adrenaline pumping thrills. Just imagine the offshore or lakeside breezes blowing in your hair, soaking up the warm sun, simply sitting outside on a balcony or in lounge chairs on the shore while gazing into some of the most intoxicating water views, and especially GETTING WET! Exciting water-based activities include thrilling water sports of all varieties, inland and deep-sea fishing, crabbing, scuba diving, snorkeling, lounging on a raft in the soothing surf or on a placid lake, on-water dinner cruises, chartered boat cruises or sailing through exotic waterways, or just relaxing on a pristine beach

Can’t get enough of the great outdoors….  Hiking, biking and exploring till your heart’s content while getting fit as a fiddle with the health and wellness benefits of vacationing? If you’re an ambitious biker, hiker or just intrigued walker ready to explore many different destinations, typography and geographical regions with numerous activities and attraction, we’ve got the top list of destinations for you. The list to follow will get your feet dancing for a Best Vacation Ever (BVE) low-cost, custom vacation provided by 30-plus year travel leader Preferred Guest Resorts (PGR) that can take you to some of the most spectacular hikeable and bikable places in the world.

I remember the day my dad told our family we were moving to Orlando. I was in second grade and thought, “Wow, I’m moving to Walt Disney World!” As the decades passed and Father Time ticked away, I grew to call it home, and to know and love “The City Beautiful” and how much it has to offer—way beyond the phenomenal Orlando theme parks and nearby beaches. Of course those are the top and most wondrous reasons tens of thousands of traveling families and cohabitating couples vacation in Central Florida year-round. But not everyone is all about pixie dust and Mickey Mouse. Some travelers in the group want more – something more cultural, outdoorsy or adventurous in more unique ways. They want to find their “magic” and satisfaction in activities beyond the theme parks, and they can. I’ve managed to uncover just about every treasure and activity that Orlando has to offer and say with certainty that Central Florida is truly America’s playground and the ideal vacation for everyone in the family.

Ah, yes…tethered lights, unruly crowds with long lines, races to get the best items for gifts at low prices, and the bewilderment that comes when trying to find the perfect gifts for loved ones. You got it… Tis the season for online and in-store Black Friday and Holiday shopping, both in-stores and online, and those perilous decisions. One of the greatest and often overlooked presents for any holiday, birthday, anniversary, graduation and so much more that is available on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, all through the holiday season and all year long is the gift of a custom, up to weeklong Best Vacations Ever (BVE) promotional vacation packages provided by Preferred Guest Resorts (PGR). Extraordinary low-cost vacation packages for up to four people and with 12 months to travel. The BVE vacation packages save you hundreds of dollars off retail and even off many discounted travel rates that make for the most incredible and most shocking holiday gift of an upcoming travel vacation this spring or summer to worldwide destinations often with complimentary accommodations. You can find all the information, glorious destination, preferred accommodation selections, and fun and educational videos about PGR /BVE on bestvationsever.com, then call 800-656-2780 to talk about choosing, planning and booking your holiday gift of travel for up to four people, with up 12 months to travel.

Online travel reservation systems have been the primary force behind travel bookings for some 40 years. Now, more than 75% of travel planning and bookings are done online. What’s the new competition? Mobile devices. A 2012 comScore behavior study found that nearly 40 million U.S. consumers accessed travel sites or apps from their smartphone and tablets. Mobile devices are outpacing computers when it comes to travel planning because of “convenience”— the instant access to travel websites, airfares, contact information, flight schedules and mobile alerts, area restaurant apps and easy travel bookings. Meeting mobile device demands, our website, bestvacationsever.com, offers easy searches from your mobile-to-web friendly browser for promotional family vacation packages that blend online mobile convenience with the personal touch of  professional Travel Concierge agents at 1-800-656-2780.  Best Vacations Ever combines an integrated, simplistic system to customize travel itineraries with added incentives, like attraction tickets and free or discounted car rentals, to offer incredible  family vacations at hundreds of dollars off retails prices—all from the convenience of your mobile devices.

                                                                                   Following the Mobile Trends

Best Vacations Ever follows numerous studies and the continuous use of

mobile device  for travel planning. The Google/Ipsos MediaCT “The 2012 Traveler study” reported that 83% of leisure travelers plan and book travel through mobile device browsers—a  450% increase since 2009—and that  70% of leisure and affluent travelers begin their travel planning on mobile devices without a destination even in mind. Meeting the convenience of mobile demands, you can access bestvacationsever.com and its simple system to book amazing family vacations at a fraction of the cost of retail vacations, along with our professional travel agents geared toward customer satisfaction and customization.

Bestvacationsever.com  allows for easier, more convenient travel planning and offers a variety of destination packages.You can quickly and easily access extensive key write-ups on bestvacationsever.com with Fast Facts, Must Do activities and Resort features for each destination, making travel planning/booking easy and convenient. You can read about our amazing family vacation destinations and preferred-partner properties—including Walt Disney Good Neighbor® Hotels—with no carbon-copy-style information often found on antiquated search engines. With mobile ease and convenience, you can book a Best Vacations Ever promotional family vacation for up to four people with FREE accommodations, saving you hundreds of dollars off your travel budget.

Meeting Mobile Convenience With Online Videos

“Online videos have become another resource for planning travel, growing over time from 14% in 2009 to 26% in 2012,” states the 2012 Google traveler study. Travelers watch various online travel-planning videos, and according to the report, 74% of affluent travelers indicated that watching informative online videos on mobile devices prompted bookings. Our website’s extensive information and online videos are geared to make travel planning and and convenient through your online and mobile devices.

Learn all about the incentives, benefits,  incredible destinations,savings of FREE accommodation,s and advantages and customization of promotional travel through Best Vacations Ever and bestvacationsever.com—right at the fingertips of your mobile devices. Use our mobile-to-web-friendly browser to watch some of Best Vacations Ever’s online video, and call your Best Vacations Ever travel representative at 1-800-656-2780 to customize your trip and travel itinerary.

So, grab your mobile device and turn the ordinary vacation into an extraordinary adventure! Some of the testimonials and online videos you can watch online to help you plan your family’s Best Vacations Ever  include:

• Reasons to Take Your Next Family Vacation in Orlando
• What to Expect on a Best Vacations Ever Promotional Vacation
• Best Vacations Ever—Travel Clubs
• Unique Vacations—Smoky Mountains

How do you use your mobile device for travel planning?

Best Vacations Ever! by Preferred Guest Resorts, is connecting with travel lovers through social media to talk about options for affordable family vacations. Best Vacations Ever! offers promotional vacations to private-branded resorts all over the world. Through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and weekly blog posts, Best Vacations Ever! will share travel tips, packing how-tos, and feature stories about its many resorts. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZbe5U0yDBY

Budgeting was already a priority when you purchased your Preferred Guest Resorts’ promotional vacation package, which was designed to offer enhanced, high-quality vacations at budget-friendly prices, for families and adults. And when it comes to traveling, you want to spend as little money as possible on airfare, right? Regardless of when you plan to travel, it’s incredibly wise to start scoping  flight prices months in advance to find the the most affordable travel options. The later you wait, the greater the risk you’ll end up forking out premium or peak prices when there are plenty of chances to grab lower rates for your upcoming vacation.

Economists say you can find some of the cheapest airfare bargains about eight weeks out—a basic rule of thumb to use when planning and booking a trip, especially affordable family-fun vacations to some of the best U.S vacation spots. But according to the New York Times, major markdowns could be coming this fall when the annual “fall-off” in fares is expected to be substantial, as airline carriers are expecting  more trouble than usual this year selling post-summer travel. That essentially means even bigger savings for those booking their Preferred Guest Resorts’ vacations, even during the peak seasons.

The Wall Street Journal also discovered that you can find the best bargains on airfare during two windows: At the end of AUGUST through the BEGINNING OF SEPTEMBER and the END OF DECEMBER through the BEGINNING OF JANUARY when consumers are burned out on travel and bookings come to a screeching halt. Savvy travelers know these slow time periods are the best times to grab serious money-saving opportunities on everything from airfare to theme-park tickets and car rentals so they have more fun money to spend on vacation, especially those with kids.

If you’re heading to a family-fun destination with major parks and attractions you plan on visiting, keep an eye on those vendor websites, as well. Even the big-name parks, like Walt Disney World® Resort and Universal Studios® Orlando, are known to push out advance-purchase ticket package specials to entice future travelers.

During the off seasons, you also have the opportunity to save money on a variety of attractions, rentals cars and other travel-related vendors, which also feel the sting of these slow periods and push out some their best advance-purchase specials for future travel during slow periods, as well. A family of four or more can save a lot of money on airfare, tickets, cars and much more that could otherwise be a barrier for traveling if they play their cards right – or in this case, their timing right.

Even if you just got back from a trip or you’re just procrastinating, it’s always best to start looking for airfares in advance, especially with fall just around the corner and prices expected to drop considerably. Start looking for airfares online right now, and make sure to set up alerts with your favorite carriers so you get instant emails and texts sent right to your mobile devices. Airlines and travel-related vendors are now using more mobile and web-based marketing tools and apps to reach consumers faster.

It’s true that the early bird gets the worm, so why procrastinate and agonize over airfares, when the result could be major markdowns this fall? You can maximize your time and budget more effectively for your Best and Most Affordable Vacation Ever through Preferred Guest Resorts, if you start doing your homework.

Trust us and your wallet will thank us later.

So nail down those travel dates and get ready to begin your journey to magnificent destinations through the enhanced travel experiences  and premium partnerships provided by Preferred Guest Resorts. Call your Preferred Guest Resorts’ travel agent at 1-800-656-2780 with any questions or any assistance in booking your travel and have your Best Vacation Ever!

Travelling is always an exciting adventure, especially when children are part of the crew. It can be difficult to balance fun and safety, especially when you or your child may be in a place where you don’t the layout or the laws. Before your trip, create a family plan of action in case of emergencies. Every state presents its own set of unique challenges, but there are a few safety rules that apply wherever you plan to go for a fun and super safe family-friendly vacation:

1. PLAN THE VACATION TOGETHER. Be realistic when planning your family vacation. Use common sense, and include your family members in the decision. The vacation will be all that more enjoyable when everyone in the family is onboard from the beginning and feel like they are part of the process. Your trip will be much more fun and most memorable if you plan the family holiday together. Have each family member write down where they hope to go and what they want to do, then review them together and determine which destination meets everyone’s objectives. Preferred Guest Resorts has a slew of options for family-friendly destinations and cruises that offer adventures for everyone in the family, from the youngest baby and kid to adults and grandparents. Call your Preferred Guest Resorts reservation agent for help planning an itinerary that suits the needs of everybody in your group so that the whole group has their Best Vacation Ever at resorts, hotel and vacation time shares right in the heart of the action, no matter your itinerary.
2. SET GROUND RULES: Establish rules for family members before you even leave on your trip. Talk about the dangers and obstacles that may be faced in such a destination, and how you expect the family to act accordingly. This can be as simple as a young toddler being told never to let go of Mommy or Daddy’s hand, to teenagers that must travel in pairs and be home to the hotel by 11 pm.
3. CREATE A PLAN OF ACTION: Establish a family plan of action for the most common family travel troubles: a lost family member, getting separated or an injured child. Give each person a specific task – even toddlers can learn to grab onto Mom or Dad or look for somebody official like a police office or a retailer with a nametag when repeatedly taught. Practice each scenario at home until everybody knows what he or she needs to do in an emergency situation.
4. FAMILY CELL PHONES: Make sure each person in the family has a cell phone, even young children can have a prepaid phone with minutes for emergencies that is pre-set to dial Mom or Dad. Program each family member’s name and number, along with their identifying picture if capable, into each phone so everyone knows how to reach each other at all times. Establish a family code word that signals when someone is in trouble that only the family would know. Make sure to call you cell-phone provider as well to ensure you have international service at least the dates you are there. Many companies will pro-rate international calling plans, so you only pay for the percentage of the days you are there.
5. STASH EVERYONE WITH CASH: Pack each person’s pockets with enough cash in case of emergencies and separation. There’s nothing worse than feeling stranded without any money and not knowing what to do. Also be sure to call your bank and let them know the days you will be in what countries and when so they do not assume your card was stolen and cut if off.
6. FAMILY PHOTOS: A picture truly is worth 1,000 words. Collect and bring current family photos of each person in your party in case of an emergency. Better yet, before heading out to explore each day, snap a photo of family members on your cell phone. That way, if someone should get lost, you have a current photo of that person with the exact clothing and hairstyles they were wearing that day.
7. ASSIGN ROLES: Designate each person to have a role during the trip, which may include one person counting heads each day, another for buying the day’s tickets, or older teens being responsible for younger children while you attend to the baby or more emergent parental issues. Enforce responsibility and accountability for family when it comes to traveling to a different state.
8. DESIGNATE A SAFETY SPACE: Wherever you go on your family trip that day, find a “safety spot” that everyone knows to go to immediately of they should get separated or lost from the group. Pick a public, highly visible, easy-to-find central spot like a fountain in the square, a large statue, a lobby in a museum or a restaurant café, so that younger children kind easily find it and remain in a safe open space. Remind younger children to seek help only from a police officer or a retailer at a store wearing a nametag, and if they have their cell phone to call you immediately.
9. USE THE BUDDY SYSTEM: It works just as well for adults as it does for children. Require that young children hold the hand of either Mom or Dad or an assigned responsible teen at all times, especially in crowded areas or getting on certain transportation. Even have teens hold the back of a parent’s shirt. A hands-on approach ensures the family sticks together in the tightest of situations and no one strays from the pack or gets left behind.

Travelling with children to fun family-friendly destinations can be one of your Best Vacations Ever, especially if you take a proactive, pre-planning approach that offers a strong peace of mind because of a family plan in action. Preferred Guest Resorts has done part of the legwork for you, offering a wide variety of family-friendly destinations and cruises that meet everyone’s hopes and dreams for a memorable family holiday with reliable, premium family-friendly vendors in everything from budget hotels, luxury resorts and vacation timeshare rentals. Call your Preferred Guest Resorts reservation agent at 1-800-656-2780 for any questions you may have and any help planning your itinerary for your Best Vacation Ever.