Words About Travel

Getting more internet bookings to your website can be a challenge. Especially when you are juggling the day-to-day tasks for your small tourism business and working with limited resources. Often during the busy summer months you just don’t have the time to sit down and work out the nitty gritty of how to market your bed and breakfast. However, there are a few things I would recommend for you to consider if you want to increase online bookings.

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The Black Sheep Beer Menu - Capel Street, Dublin

Since we’ve been away there has been a big increase in Irish microbreweries and pubs that stock their produce. I visited Against the Grain on Aungier Street with some mates from The Netherlands and decided to check out their sister pub on Capel Street The Black Sheep.

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We started this walk by talking the DART to Shankill, alternatively and in hinsight it may have been quicker to take the 145 bus. However, it was a miracle day filled with sunshine so I enjoyed the view along the coastline from the Dart. The walk is signposted and starts from Bradys pub in Shankill. Just walk towards to carpark and follow the signs for the Dublin Mountains Way.

For a more detailed description take a look at this excellent guide . We just followed the Barnaslingan laneway to the south to Enniskerry. While waiting for the next 44 bus to take us back into the city we went for some food at The Olde Forge Inn.

Airbnb Guinness Guestroom

The good thing about returning home after extensive travelling and not having a 9-5 job is that you have lots of free time to explore your own city. A lot has changed in the 2 years I’ve been away from Dublin and I’m enjoying getting to know her again.

For the first time, I have managed not to sink into a deep depression after returning from long-term travel. This possible has been to do with the fact we have had a string of visitors and have felt like I was ‘on holiday’ with them touring sights, going on day trips, road trips, eating out, having creamy pints of Guinness and listening to lots of traditional Irish music.

To get some extra cash while we are looking for work we have listed our spare room on Airbnb. The response has been phenomenal, with inquiries practically everyday. I think it has to do with the amount of hotels and accommodation providers closing in the past year and the amount of festivals & events at the moment so there is actually a shortfall.The Navy v Notre Dame football game alone drew 35,000 visitors to the city, the GAA football semi-finals and tall ships festival all gave a much-needed boost to the tourism sector here.

So far we’ve had a German and an American couple stay with us. It’s been a bit like an anthropological study. Some nationalities live up to their stereotype while others are polar opposite to what you would expect. It makes you stop and think and understand more about other cultures & countries through real conversation rather than through the media. Learning things that you would not otherwise be aware of. It is also interesting to learn about your country through the eyes of a stranger and their observations. Next up we have a couple from Hong Kong and a girl from Russia which I am really excited about.

Gadgetry set for world domination

It is no surprise that tablets, smart phones, e-readers and the like are now the mainstream. How the travel industry will embrace these technologies in 2012 will be interesting to witness.

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Sherbrook Falls, Dandenongs, Australia

I appreciate a state that gives its residents a day off for a horse race. The 5.6 million inhabitants of the State of Victoria are given a public holiday for the Melbourne Cup each year. So, to take advantage of this free time I roped a friend in to taking us on a road trip.

Sometimes you only realise how much you miss open space and nature when you escape from a metropolis. Ferntree Gully is in the Dandenong Ranges it is only about an hour from Melbourne CBD but feels like another world. Even in the carpark the green & red parrots swooped overhead and happily pottered about in gangs on the tarmac. The sounds were unfamiliar, the air pungent and the temperature was even a few degrees cooler. Read the rest of this entry »

Travel writer Pico Iyer talks with Marcia Franklin about his journeys, his travel tips and his latest book, The Open Road, about the Dalai Lama. The conversation was taped at the 2010 Sun Valley Writers’ Conference.

 
I have just created a Youtube channel with a few interesting videos of various travel writers. Stop by and have a gander.
 

Travel Mags at Magnation Melbourne

Here is a round up of various types of travel articles from writers I admire. Have a gander.

1) World’s Weirdest Animal Smuggling Incidents by Lola AkinmadeTravel + Leisure (Sept 2011)

2) Exploring the pass through province by Robin Esrock – The Globe and Mail (Aug 2011)

3) Magic Moments around Ireland by Manchán Mangan – The Irish Times (Sept 2011)

4) In the bush by Eva Holland – Vela Magazine (Nov 2011)

5) Dubai City Break Guide by Lara Dunston - The Sunday Telegraph (Oct 2011)

If you have a recently published travel article you would like to see here. Let me know.