Apart from being a South East Asian and an Australasian tourists destination, with a totally different culture, weather and religion, Phuket and Gold Coast do have something in common. Both of them have beautiful long, white sandy beaches, beautiful sunshine, and friendly people. Also they are both very popular destinations among travelers around the world.

Why travelers around the world, including Australians love to visit Phuket while Thai and South East Asians love the beaches and sun in Gold Coast? Here are the top 5 travel experience travelers can have either in Phuket or Gold Coast and tourists should travel to these 2 hot tourists spot with 2 different approaches to have 2 separate travel experience:

1. Phuket is best for singles while Gold Coast is best for family. You can stay up late until even next morning in Phuket for endless and lively night life. Bars, dance clubs and restaurants are open until late at night especially in Patong Beach. If  you feel hungry in the middle of the night, you can always find something to fill. On the other hand, Gold Coast’s lifestyle is more relax and ‘healthier’. Most shops and restaurants close very early at night. Nightlife in Gold Coast is very limited. However, if you visit if your family, there are so many themes park for family and your children in Gold Coast. Being the Theme parks capital city of Australia, your family would love to visit either Warner Bros’ Movie World, Sea World,
2. Gold Coast is best to drive around while Phuket is best to hike a Tuk-tuk. Perhaps it’s just my perception, I feel much safer and easier to drive in Gold Coast than in Phuket. Motorways are more systematic and motorists are more behaved (though not necessary at weekend night) in Gold Coast. The best part of driving in Gold Coast is to be able to drive up to the Hinterland and soak with the beautiful mountain scenes and vineyards. On the other hand, Phuket’s taxi or Tuk-tuk are so convenient that you better don’t risk yourself driving through all the trunk roads;
3. Phuket’s food is cheap while Gold Coast’s wine is cheap. Quite a straight forward calculation. Aussie Dollars is much stronger than Thai Baht. Living standard in Australia is much higher. Thailand holidays is famous of its cheap but fantastic local cuisine. However, if you are a wine drinker, drink a lot of Australian wine in Gold Coast where they are cheaper than a Coke in Phuket!
4. Gold Coast is best to stay higher. Phuket is best to stay lower. Why? Gold Coast has many high rise apartment along its 57Km long beaches. Staying higher at one of those apartment can have a wider and better view over the vibrant city. There isn’t many high rise apartment in Phuket and their best accommodation type is beach resort (perhaps it would be better for a city which experienced Tsunami attack before);
5. Gold Coast is cool and windy while Phuket is hot and stuffy. My favorite time to visit Gold Coast is in March or Autumn when the weather is cool in the region of 18°C but still have plenty of beautiful sunlight. What about Phuket? Gosh. When I was there in October last year, it was really hot at day and stuffy at night. Without any wind blow, it felt even warmer than in Malaysia!

So be prepare when you travel to one of these 2 popular beach destinations in the world. They should be explored differently in different approach and travel experience you are going to have in both places are simply unforgettable. Good travel! – Travel Feeder, your ultimate travel photo blog

Guest Post by Lisa Fantino

New York, New York – the town so nice they named it twice has lots to do for those visiting for the first time or even city folk who want to play tourists-for-a-day. Here are the Top 5 travel attractions you shouldn’t miss in New York:

1. A Circle Line cruise around Manhattan is lovely on a beautiful day.  The cruises range in length from 75 minutes to 3 hours and there’s even a powerboat cruise called The Beast for those who want a pure adrenalin rush.
2. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a bit far from midtown on the upper east side but it’s worth the trip.  It’s located at Fifth Avenue and East 82^nd Street and you could easily spend half a day there.  At night and on weekends, the Museum’s Rooftop Garden Café has become quite the picturesque spot to grab a martini until 8pm.  And don’t forget to visit the Egyptian Gallery, the mummies and The Temple of Dendur; the new American Wing; and the Roman and Greek galleries are best bets!
3. Forget the double decker tour buses and get out and walk.  Fifth Avenue between 34^th Street and 60^th Street is just made for walking and cheap souvenirs.  You can really walk away with ten “I Love NY” t-shirts for ten bucks.  Who cares if they fall apart after the 1^st wash, at least the folks at home will know you thought of them!  The Diamond District will be marked by huge diamond-looking street lights at the corner of Fifth and 47^th Street; Rockefeller Center will catch your eye at Fifth and 50^th, directly opposite the magnificent St. Patrick’s Cathedral; not to mention the shopping, everything from Saks Fifth Avenue and Tiffany’s to the huge Nike store and H & M………..oh, and did I mention the Empire State Building at Fifth and 34^th Street and the Top O’ the Rock observation deck at Fifth and 49^th Street.  Fifth Avenue offers so much to do that it needs its own Top 5 list!
4. Hayden Planetarium takes you outside of the city and into another universe.  The exhibits are very interactive and the star show is wonderful.  The Planetarium is on the upper west side of the city, at Central park West and 79^th Street, but you can plan a whole day there to include the Museum of Natural History and IMAX theater which are also part of the complex.
5. No trip to NYC would be complete without taking in a Broadway show.  You can wait in line for hours to get cheap, same day tickets at the Times Square Ticket Booth or you can visit their booth at the South Street Seaport, where the lines are generally shorter.  If not, plan ahead and go to Broadway.Com before your visit and you may find promo codes for shows still in previews or shows which are not doing so well at the box office.  And if you’re not sure where to dine before or after the show, 2 of my favorites on Restaurant Row are The Firebird Café or Barbetta…….or Utsav Indian Restaurant at 46^th and Sixth …………all are within a five minute walk of the Theater District.

I hope you enjoy New York.  It has so much to offer and is one helluva town!

Lisa Fantino is an award-winning journalist and attorney and the creative force behind Wanderlust Women Travel and the soon to be launched Wanderlust Weddings.  She also writes travel features for MNUI Travel Insurance and blogs as Lady Litigator.

Starting today until 23rd of May or this coming Sunday, The world best budget airline, AirAsia of Malaysia is giving away Free seats to all destinations within its route map! This zero fares offer does not include airport tax, check-in baggage, on-board meal and seat selection. However, it is still tremendous value to have free tickets for most of its destinations especially for AirAsia X flights to Australia, UK or China.

Book your flights in advance during this period and fly to your destinations FREE between 3rd January to 8th May next year 2011 .

If you want to travel to Europe next Spring, grab your free seats now online! Last November, I managed to grab some cheap tickets, though not free, for my recent trip to London and subsequently other parts of central Europe countries last week. Spending RM1,900.00 on a AirAsia X Airbus A340 flight Return Tickets to London inclusive checked-in baggage, on-board meal and seat selections were truely fantastic value that I have just experienced!

Go ahead NOW and try your luck as the airline website is too busy to surf and book smoothly. You might need to try and try and try again to complete your booking process! Try to get access during midnight when traffic is lower. Good Luck! – Travel Feeder,  the ultimate travel blog

p/s: I’m not attached to AirAsia airline in any way. I’m just a big fan of budget airline which benefits people like me with limited budget but passionate to travel.

This is another post for my Top 5′s series this month. I wrote the Top 5 tips to book cheap accommodation for your travel before. After booking my hostels and apartments for Europe tour this coming May, I found out there are more ways you can save on your accommodations in Europe travel especially when you didn’t manage to book well in advance. Off course, the biggest saving you can get from hotel booking is still when you book it way ahead of your departure to Europe. However, a lot of cases are, you decided to fly only a couple of months before that. Moreover, if your travel period is so short (mine is only 14 days) and you have to plan really hard to maximize your time in sight seeing and other travel activities, your itinerary could only be finalized in the last minutes. With another month or so before you are actually flying, everything booking online seem to be more expensive (in fact they are a lot more expensive).

Don’t worry. There are still ways to save some costs on your Europe tour accommodation. Here are another 5 last minutes tips for you to book cheaper accommodation in Europe:

1. Compare rates of hotel and hostel before booking. Don’t be misled. Hotels aren’t always a lot more expensive than hostel or B&B especially when last minutes and you are looking for private rooms for 2 persons. Some lower star-rated hotels are even cheaper than popular B&B in Europe! Hotels in Dublin for example is cheap even in the city center. Some budget hotels are not much more expensive than hostel even though their facilities in hotel and rooms are much more better! If money is your only concern, go ahead and book your bed in 8 or 16 person dorm. They are still the cheapest accommodation you can get in Europe. If not and you need more privacy, then check the hotel rates at your preferred location together with B&B and hostel or guesthouse. You may surprise to the results.
2. To book through your affiliate account. This option is for travel bloggers. Most of the travel bloggers have affiliates accounts with one of the hotel booking agents out there. They will get some commissions when their blog readers click the link in their travel blog and book hotels through it subsequently. In this case, you can book hotels through your own link (as long as your affiliate contract allows that) and get your own some commission. In other words, you have just saved as high as 20% of your accommodation cost.
3. Do check on last minute deals on hotels. check online for super saver last minute rates on hotels exactly 1  month before your departure. There are many online agents offer last minute rate on hotel booking and the rates could be knocked down over 70% from the published rate. Why exactly one month? This is to make sure most rooms are still available. Hot deals sell fast!
4. Book local package tour to Europe countries. This is another last option you could have if your flight is just around the corner. Check online also for local package tour to include your preferred  destinations or countries in Europe. The package normally would include transportation to and from your starting country or city as well as accommodations, with some discount! It might be even cheaper than booking it individually online last minute!
5. To see it yourself with your own eyes before you book. If none of the above has been done or is preferred by you, no problem. You can just do nothing until your departure. Fly over to your first European country, transfer to the town center, walk around and look for hostel or B&B, see it yourself, check the rate, check in immediately! Don’t worry. There are a lot more hotels or hostel than you could ever imagine or find online. A lot of them don’t have any websites nor linked with online agents. You may still find good deals if not the best. The only problem is you need to spend some times to look for accommodation when you arrive at the city. The worst possibility is during peak seasons where you may not be able to find any London hotels or beds unless paying double or triple or more! However, this is always the last option.

Lastly, booking online do give you another advantage or I would say it as peace of mind. Why? It give you less hassle when arriving to any of the European countries at the immigration counter. Some officers would ask you which hotels you are going to stay in your travel period before they allow you in, to make sure you won’t overstay! Anyway,  happy travel to Europe. – Travel Feeder, your ultimate travel photo blog.

I’ve been taking it for granted as a Buddhist and Taoist all the while where I didn’t realise that many of the travelers out there are not. Since most of the Asian countries are Buddhist countries (Thailand, Vietnam,Cambodia, Laos or China), it would be great if travelers of different religion could understand a  thing or two about Buddhism, when visiting Asian countries, could really appreciate the beauties of these countries. Most importantly, as a world traveler, could also respect the existence of other religion.

Buddhism is the 4th largest religion in terms of followers and is also one of the oldest religion and philosophy started being taught and introduced in Northern India since 6BC. There are 2 main branches of the religion, namely Theravada (“The School of the Elders”) and Mahayana (“The Great Vehicle”). While the oldest surviving branch of Theravada dominates countries in Southeast Asia especially Indo-China and Thailand, Mahayana Buddhism is widely followed throughout East Asia of China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and Korea. To recognize between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism, travelers could easily spot the differences of these 2 branches through their monasteries and statues. Wat are widely seen in Indo-China and Thailand while temples and big Buddha could be found everywhere in mainland China. Nevertheless, the 3rd branches of Buddhism, Vajrayana, which was evolved from Mahayana school of thoughts, could be seen in Tibet, Mongol and Nepal.

There are many religious practices in Buddhism where followers or Buddhists treat them as part of their lives. It would be great if people from other religion could also know and respect these practices. Here are the Top 5 Things travelers could do to fully appreciate and respect the Buddhism countries.

1. Do wear appropriate clothing and not to be naked. Especially when you enjoy your holidays in one of those Indo-china tours or Thailand, the local people would be very much appreciate if travelers could respect their religion by not disclosing their bodies in public. Hot pants and sleeveless tops are not recommended in this sense. If you are visiting their temples in short pants and sleeveless shirts, there is always a counter to borrow a cloth to cover up your body, at least.
2. Do ‘Wai’ at buddha and in front of temple. You can even ‘Wai’ at monks. ‘Wai’ is a greeting sign among Buddhists by pressing both palms and fingers together as in prayer and bow head and body slightly. By doing this to elderly and monk, you are paying great respect to them. Also not to forget to Wai at temples or wat and also when you see Buddha statues. You won’t miss them if you’re traveling to Indo-China or Thailand.
3. Donate for incense and pray for good luck. One of the common religious practice of Buddhists is to do regular devotion to the Buddha. You can do the same in any Chinese temple or Thai wat. Try the devotion practice by donating a small amount of money into the donation boxes (normally 1 or 2USD will do) in the temple, pick up 3 sticks of jossstick or incense, start praying to the Buddha for good luck and then insert them into the dedicated incense bowl.
4. Do not photograph with buddha statue. You can always photograph any Buddha statues or temples. I took too many shots at Buddha in Wuxi China also. However, in order to respect the important icon of the religion,  don’t photograph with the Buddha (which means pose next to the statue or even hold your hands around him). Always photograph when the Buddha is facing you only, not beside you. This is the basic respect you can pay to the Buddhist.
5. Do try the Buddhist cuisine. If you haven’t done so. Buddhist cuisine is known as Zhai Cai (齋菜) among Chinese which is mainly vegetarian. However, some places might allow milk and eggs while some Buddhists don’t treat onion, garlic or leek as vegetarian. There are many Buddhist vegetarian restaurants in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Holidays in China must include a vegetarian meal in one of these restaurant. They are not only tasty but also healthy. The main ingredients of Buddhist cuisine include bean curbs, gluten and agar among other vegetables. Vegetarian chefs nowadays could also imitate meat and seafood using these ingredients so perfectly and taste as good.

You would not feel any pain or lose anything by doing the above. Instead, you will feel the serenity in your mind. As a traveler, it would be fun also to do what the local people are doing and to appreciate other religions in this world. However, there is one exception: (Travel Tips) If there are monks approach you in your way and ask for donations in money, ignore them and walk away. They are fake monks. Genuine monks only ask for food, if they ever need donations. If you wish to donate, buy genuine travel blogger(that’s me) a cup of coffee instead… – Travel Feeder, the ultimate travel photo blog