by Richard Greco – So you’re stuck in West Virginia. You’re getting ready to hop into a time machine and go where life moves a little slower, good old West Virginia. The home of the mountaineers doesn’t have too much to offer, but the second you set foot on the Morgantown campus, West Virginia pride won’t be too far behind.

No matter what season it is when you choose to venture to the West of the East, you will always be able to find the gold and blue playing some sort of sport with the passionate Mountaineer crazies not too far behind. Pride is the one word you will find entering your head when walking through downtown Morgantown. From pizza parlors to beauty shops to bookstores and churches, everyone will have the WV colors hanging proudly in their window.

Once you’re finished reliving your youth on their hilly college campus, the next step would be to explore some on West Virginia’s great golf courses. The two that stand out are the Lake View Golf Course and the Paradise Lake Golf Course. Both of which have their own pros and cons, but both can list their beautiful locations with lakes on site in their pro columns.

Photo Credit: Bobjgalindo - Wiki Commons

Lake View is ranked in the top 100 public golf courses in America and was given a four star rating by Golf Digest.  The 18-hole course is a par 72 and costs roughly $100 for a full day of golf.

Paradise Lake is a great golf spot for beginners. This nine-hole course isn’t nearly as difficult as Lake View and creates a very relaxed environment that is more suited towards families trying to enjoy a vacation.

If golf doesn’t seem like it is exciting enough to fit into your itinerary, don’t fret, West Virginia has ample other attractions that are bound to leave you searching for your breath.

If you’re feeling extra adventurous you could go white water rafting down the rapid filled Cheat River. The Cheat River facilities will offer more than just white water rafting and for the land lovers, both paintball and rock climbing are available. All three of these excursions will all be held under supervision, which makes the margin for error very small.

Photo Credit: Tara Adventure - Wiki Commons

To keep on pace with these exciting adventures, West Virginia offers some great rocks for climbing. One specific spot, the Coopers Rock State Forest, is a great spot for inexperienced hikers to get their feet on the ground and enjoy some serene wildlife. The hike lazily follows the Laurel Run and should take no more than three hours to complete.

West Virginia also offers some great annual festivals. My personal favorite takes place each January at the Lakewood Resort. The Festival of Food and Wine occurs in the resort overlooking the golf course and combines some of West Virginia’s top chefs to compete in a fun iron chef based competition that includes plenty of wine to easy the mood.

When taking the long trip west across I-95 there is always one thing to look forward to, the hospitality and inevitably good times that keep rolling along good old Country Road.

Richard is a student at Rutgers University double majoring in Journalism/Media Studies and English. He has been exploring various areas of journalism, but often finds himself inevitably returning to the subject matter that drew him to writing to begin with, sports. He tries to combine elements from both of his majors to create interesting, vivid articles that exemplify the imagery expressed in poetry.  As a junior in college still trying to find his way, Richard plans to do a lot of soul searching during a summer filled with traveling to music festivals, Bonnaroo in Tennessee, and some adventures that would leave Jack Kerouac impressed. 

Although for the last years the prices have raised, Budapest is still a cheap city so if this is the first time that you stay in Budapest apartments you shouldn’t have any problem in knowing the city at a reasonable price. Still, if you are on a budget there are many things you can do in Budapest for free, so pay attention:

Admire the Chain Bridge

Budapest is bisected by the Danube which is crossed by 9 bridges that link Buda, the former royal seat and most elegant residential area, and Pest, the economic and commercial heart of the city. The bridges include all styles of architecture from Classic, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and Art Nouveau.

Spanning the Danube between Clark Ádám Square (Buda side) and Széchenyi István Square (Pest side), you will find the Chain Bridge, the first bridge to permanently connect Buda and Pest. Crossing the bridge is just a short walk and no matter which direction you go, the view is beautiful. It’s also well worth a visit in the evening, when the bridge is all lit up.

Explore Castle Hill

Sitting to the west of the Danube, Castle Hill is a must-see district for any Budapest visitor. The castle walls and cobbled streets make for a medieval atmosphere. You’ll find plenty of cafés and shops in the area, as well as the Buda Castle (Royal Palace), which lies on the southern tip. Also make time to explore Castle Hill’s Matthias Church and the Fisherman’s Bastion.

Discover the Heroes’ Square

Dedicated to “the memory of the heroes who gave their lives for the freedom of our people and our national independence,” Heroes’ Square (Hosök tere) is one of Budapest’s most moving landmarks. Swing by this area and take a picture of the Millennium Monument and its famous tall column with the archangel Gabriel standing atop.

Visit St. Stephen’s Basilica

St. Stephen’s Basilica is the largest church in Budapest. It’s free to enter the church and there is only a nominal fee of HUF 500 to go up to the observation deck. You can also enjoy the loveliest free organ music during the high Sunday masses.

Admire the Hungarian State Opera House

Central Pest’s Hungarian State Opera House has been an institution in Budapest since its opening in 1884. Designed in a neo-Renaissance style, the Opera House holds more than 1,200 seats and has a reputation for exceptional acoustics.

You can take a guided tour any day from 3 to 4 p.m. for $12 USD, but most visitors choose to just admire the beauty of the building on their own, which can be done for free.

Enter the Budapest Parliament

The Parliament of Hungary is the world’s third largest Parliament building and when the National Assembly is not in session guided tours are available. The tour takes about 45 minutes and it covers the main entrance stairs and hall, one of the lobbies, the old House of Lords and the Hungarian Crown Jewels. If you hold a European Union passport, don’t forget to take it with you, as you will have free entrance.

Take a free walking tour

It’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the attractions in Budapest, but there are some tours and itineraries that will help you pack as much as possible into your trip. Some of them are free, like the Free Budapest Walk, the Free Jewish Quarter Walk or the Free Communist Walk. For more information about the Free walking tours visit: http://www.triptobudapest.hu/

Budapest is a stunning city. I’m sure after being all day out visiting it you will arrive to your apartments in Budapest exhausted, but with the feeling you have discovered one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

This is a guest post by Only Apartments

By Elise Walsh – Are you sick of waiting until your boring desk job will allow you time off? You finally get that time and you’re left with a little more than a week out of the entire year to yourself and your travel desires. Here are some options if you are looking for a gap year or a lengthy break from a ho-hum life.

Teach English: Many non-English speaking countries, especially developing countries, are in need of English Teachers. Some schools and education centers may require a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) Degree. This is a four-week certificate program and may be worth looking into, but is not always necessary- especially in the developing countries. The great thing about this is that you use this as a short-term opportunity or extend if you love it. It’s definitely a good experience if you want to know the locals and get really involved in local culture.

Photo Credit: Kryukov Wiki Commons

Reporter/ Travel Writer: These are two different professions that require a writer’s mind. If you are dedicated to travel and writing, then this is the profession for you. Reporters are always involved in the heart of foreign lands, digging deep into culture and current events. You will be required to observe and know almost everything about the culture, get involved in people’s lives and get paid for it. Travel writing is a different approach to writing, it often exploits to feature story aspect of travel. Travel writers often use blogs and advertisers, but there is also a market for travel magazines and niche feature magazines to look into. Either approach, you must be prepared to constantly pump out articles and information.

Resort Jobs: What a better way to experience a place than to be a ski instructor or a cruise director. You must often sign a contract for a season or several months to work for a resort or cruise ship. This is a really wonderful opportunity because you meet many people and help them have fun, plus you have a secure job for whatever work visa you’ve applied for. This is great if you want to stay in an area for short time period and enjoy the local culture.

Photo Credit: Edserrano

Peace Corps: This is a serious two-year commitment. It takes time to apply and you will be interviewed and have your skills assessed, but it is a seriously rewarding experience. The application process itself takes between six and twelve months, and this is no joke. They do not want people with lukewarm desires. You must want to help people grow and get involved with their culture. This is not an easy or luxurious travel experience, but it is definitely something that will have a lasting impact on your life.

Flight Attendant: This is a great travel career opportunity for those who are customer service oriented. You are able to travel to a variety of places for your job, but you also have a home base. The education required for this is typically a high school diploma or GED and the appropriate training from a travel oriented institute. You will surely have to deal with cranky people, but there are also those so excited to be on a plane. If you like people, customer service, planes, travel and a steady paycheck this is the job for you.

Hopefully we gave you some ideas. There really is more out there than your cubicle and Starbucks drink. If you’re unhappy or just want a break, don’t be afraid to see what else is out there. Start exploring jobs, find some cheap flights, and have an exciting travel-filled life.

Elise is double major, focusing on journalism and psychology in beautiful South Florida. She loves starting her day with Ashtanga Yoga and a morning run and ending it writing feature stories, especially about travel. She is an avid Social Media user, and a force to be reckoned with playing Tetris. You will someday find her in the South of France writing, eating, eating some more, and playing with her LED hula-hoop. 

By Richard Greco – Every hiker’s dream is to sit atop Mount Everest or the Himalayas or even trek the entire Adirondack path. While these accomplishments may be the most fulfilling, hikers can’t throw their cares into the wind and begin with these great feats. Beginning hikers need to work their way up to these peaks and it will take years before a climber is ready to tackle one of these difficult challenges.

On the West Coast, Los Angeles holds some of the best peaks for beginners to climb. Hollywood Hills should be one of the first stops along any aspiring hiker’s journey. The three-mile stretch of Fryman Canyon is an easy 90-minute hike, and although you may feel winded at times, this hike really isn’t all too difficult. The shaded path is dog friendly, so feel free to bring man’s best friend along for the ride, but because it is in a park, anyone who brings a dog is responsible for clean up after it. This little known path will lead you through some beautiful scenery including some of Hollywood’s best beaches.

Rocky Peak Photo Credit: Blue Elf, wiki commons

Rocky Peak is another one of Los Angeles great climbs. Located just outside Simi-Valley and an easy ride down CA-118, this five mile hike is a great stepping stone for any beginner. The entire trail takes about two hours, including time for breaks. The breaks will be necessary because unlike Fryman Canyon, Rocky Peak is in the Valley and shade isn’t too easy to come by. If you are heading out to the well-maintained and marked Rocky Peak, make sure you bring lots of water because dehydration is a hiker’s worst enemy.

Iron Goat Trail Wildflower. Photo Credit: Stickpen wiki commons

Heading north to Washington there are some more difficult paths for beginning climbers. The Iron Goat Trail is a very touristy hike which means it gets crowded often, but is nonetheless still a great venture for any hiker. The 7.8 mile path is user friendly, equipped with information kiosks, restrooms, and sign-in boards so everyone can be accounted for. When hiking the Iron Goat, it is recommended to just follow the wildflowers, which makes this hike seem more like a relaxing nature walk. This path will bring its hikers as high as 3100 feet above sea level, which will be a great test in seeing how their bodies react to high altitude.

If a hiker wants to head even more north than Washington, they can head up to the depths of Vancouver. Vancouver has some of the best peaks for beginners. Strathcona Provincial Park is more an experience than a hike. Located on the Della Falls, which is one of Canada’s highest waterfalls, hikers may find themselves sightseeing more than actually hiking. This mountain trail is best hiked from May to October. If you plan on doing some out of season hiking, expect there to be snow covering the peak. This is a long hike for beginners, so it should not be a hiker’s first rodeo, but more a chance for hikers to challenge themselves. In the heart of Vancouver Island, Strathcona Provincial Park’s many paths are a great way for hikers to gauge their skills.

Hiking isn’t like riding a bicycle, hikers need to constantly be training and improving themselves.  These are some of the many great peaks scattered around the sunny West Coast waiting to be explored. Always remember, safety first when hiking and to check in with the nearest park ranger before venturing too far off a path.

Richard is a student at Rutgers University double majoring in Journalism/Media Studies and English. He has been exploring various areas of journalism, but often finds himself inevitably returning to the subject matter that drew him to writing to begin with, sports. He tries to combine elements from both of his majors to create interesting, vivid articles that exemplify the imagery expressed in poetry.  As a junior in college still trying to find his way, Richard plans to do a lot of soul searching during a summer filled with traveling to music festivals, Bonnaroo in Tennessee, and some adventures that would leave Jack Kerouac impressed. 
Featured Photo – Strathcona Provincial Park by Heqs

This post is sponsored by Only Apartments

Barcelona is a city full of things to do and interesting sites to explore. So, you’ll be pleased to know that many of them can be enjoyed for free.

Here you have some great things you can’t miss while staying in Barcelona apartments, so pay attention:

Walk down Las Ramblas

Las Ramblas is the most famous thoroughfare in Barcelona and often the first stop for many tourists. It runs from the port to Plaça Catalunya, just over a kilometre where you will find flower stalls, human statues or talented painters selling their works. Mid-way along Las Ramblas is the Gran Teatre del Liceu, the Opera House of Barcelona, which has a beautiful building. Shortly after the Liceu you can experience the marvels of La Boqueria Market, a great food market with architectural displays of fruit and vegetables. There you will also find from seafood to meats, wine and other delicatessen. At the bottom of La Rambla you’ll also find the monument to Christopher Columbus.

Take a Stroll along Las Ramblas in Barcelona

No doubt La Rambla is always fun and busy, full of colours and different people. But take into account that such places are often popular for pickpockets so be careful and keep an eye on your belongings.

Discover Gaudí Work

The Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family, commonly known as the Sagrada Família, is a large Roman Catholic Church designed by Antoni Gaudí. Although incomplete, the church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is the most famous landmark of the city and although they charge admission to get in and climb to the top, appreciate the building from the outside is free.

Located on a hill above Gràcia you will find Parc Güell, also designed by Antoni Gaudí. The park includes several houses, wonderful structures and mosaic designs; you can spend hours here enjoying the views and the architecture. Some of the famous structures included in the park are the mosaic salamander at the entrance and the main terrace supported by pillars and surrounded at the top by an undulating mosaic bench. The Gaudí House Museum charges admission but everything else is free.

On Passeig de Gràcia 92 you will find Casa Milà, commonly known as La Pedrera. And in the number 43 of the same street there’s the Casa Batlló. Both are designs from Antoni Gaudí which deserve a visit even if it’s just to appreciate the building from the other side of the road.

Explore Barcelona Museums

There are many art museums in Barcelona that offer free entry all the time. One of the greatest is the CaixaForum, an art gallery housed in a beautiful building that used to be a textile factory. The permanent exhibition includes details of the CaixaForum building itself, its architect Josep Puig i Cadafalch and other contemporary artists of the Art Nouveau style. And among the temporary ones you can find from Delacroix and Goya along with photo exhibitions of the best artists.

Other great museums that offer free admission at certain times include the Museu Picasso (first Sunday of each month and every Sunday after 3pm), the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (first Wednesday of each month), the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (first Sunday of each month), the Museu d’Història de Catalunya (first Sunday of each month), the Museu Marítim (first Saturday of each month after 3pm), the Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona (free entry for exhibitions on their first day of opening). These free days tend to be very popular so you should get there as early as possible to try to avoid the queues.

There are a lot more things to do when staying in one of the apartments in Barcelona, so don’t forget to also visit the Montjuic Fountain, the Gothic neighbourhood or spend a day on the beach. Enjoy!

Photo Credits: Las Ramblas by Javi Barceló, and Featured Photo via letteringtime.org

by Elise Walsh – Not everyone has a digital single lens reflex (SLR) camera, but most people have access to an optical zoom digital camera or smart phone. This is nothing to be ashamed of, these cameras fit in the smallest of bags, are very light and can take quality photos. The optical zoom cameras are a little trickier to use at night or from farther distances. Here are some tips for the modest traveler with the basic digital camera.

Figure out what you want from you photos

What are you trying to get out of your photograph? What or who do you want to include in the photo? Don’t limit yourself to taking pictures of only the iconic spots. There beautiful moments and places everywhere you go. Take pictures and take many of them. You will probably delete most of them, but have some gems in there to be proud of.

Scope Out the Places you Want to Photograph in Advance

This is something I’ve found to be totally necessary to get that great picture of an old church, a statue, or beautiful setting. This is key to making your photo look professional and clean. If you visit your favorite spot at the right time, you can avoid unsightly crowds and strange lighting. This only works if your not in a time crunch. The best part is you probably have access to a digital camera or a smartphone camera, meaning you have something travelers in years past did not have. You have to ability to see photos seconds after the click. You can always just delete the photo, or continue to take as many as you want (protip: get a good memory card).

Pay Attention to the Lighting

Weird shadows and red eye always occur because of poor lighting or poor choices in the positioning of your subjects. Noon and the early afternoon hours are notoriously the most difficult to photograph. Of course, if you’re doing a lot of traveling during the day, waiting for better lighting won’t really work. The sun should face the subject and not rest behind (this will be back-light and it will form a silhouette). If you absolutely must take the photo with the sun behind, you can combat this with the flash. Keep in mind that the flash range is 10 feet for most digital cameras. If you’re taking photos under fluorescent lighting, you will need to pop that flash on to avoid a green hue in the pictures.

To avoid red-eye in your night pictures, aim the flash a different direction from the subjects’ eyes. You will really have difficulty shooting buildings or any sort of landscape at night unless your shooting in night mode and these places happen to have lots of unnatural lighting.

Eiffel Tower Mid-Day

Change up You Levels

Most photographers will say that you can’t just stay in the same position for each shot if you want interesting photos. If you always set up the exact same shot, your photos will lack personality. Get on the ground and set the sense of space and place. Or, find a higher area to stand so you can focus on the person or figure of interest. Try using the natural lines of the area your shooting to show scale.

When all else Fails… Cheat!

If you own a computer, you should have Photo Gallery for Windows, iPhoto for Apple, or pay for an enhanced editor like Photoshop. And that is all you will need to add spice to your photos. Just look at your pics in the photo editor and make the little adjustments that will make you photos fabulous. Make sure the horizon is straight and the color balance makes sense, if it doesn’t, adjust the color and tones of the photo until it does. If you have Photoshop, you have the option of burning and dodging your photo to intensify or reduce shadows.

These are only a few tips for taking better pictures. If you have any other ideas, please comment!

by Elise Walsh – Please note: RAMA Food Tours did not pay me to do this review. Opinions are my own.

Crimson Bamboo recently released their new Food Tours app for Apple iPhone, iPad, and iTouch on April 6, 2012. This is a nice addition to the History Tours, which RAMA offered before this apps conception. This is an incredibly cool app for food lovers and travelers alike.

You can download the RAMA App for free and check out what they have to offer, but tours themselves cost between $.99
and $2.99. Accessing these delectable entries requires you to either download, or update to, RAMA 2.0. Also available with this app. is downloadable “offline” maps which is perfect for travelers. With this option your map doesn’t require cell service, only your GPS.

This application is different than simple restaurant review apps. There are specialty food writers and “local experts” at each of these locations around the world who are proving they have “the inside scoop” And they can tell you about the taste of the food, the culture, and the customs to learn about. You get this culinary experience as if you were with a curator in a culinary museum. Read of more than just about the food itself, but the people behind. It is very detailed and worth checking out if you are planning a trip to one of their locations, or even if you enjoy reading about food.

You also get information about the author. Readers get a great sense of voice, which can help you decide what you enjoy reading. Finding your tour is simple by searching: food, title, or author. RAMA currently includes 22 different locations and 31 new food tours, and the company has hopes to grow the base to fifty cities towards the end of 2012.

Sadly, this app is not yet available for the Android Market. Android users must wait for the release a little later this year, which may come out in summer 2012. Though I am one of those Android users, I was very interested in seeing how this thing worked and borrowed an iPad, using iTunes. It was very simple to find and download.

Layne Mosler is the editor of RAMA Food. Layne has a lot of experience with food and great restaurants. Much of her experience comes with her Taxi Gourmet blog, where she hops into a cab and learns of the best local joints through her cab drivers knowledge. She brings a similar feeling through the app, but a more personal experience. Readers get intimate insight to locals’ knowledge and traditions through food. Layne made many food blogger connections through her experience and travels. Through email she wrote: “I’ve had the pleasure of coming into contact with fellow food writers whose work I respect, who know how to tell the story behind a dish and put flavors in the context of a place… [And] who do an exceptional job of pointing people to the most delicious things in their cities.”

RAMA came around in February of 2010 and has been gaining users and awards ever since. The writing is intelligent, interesting and inviting. This app was reviewed April 15. At this time RAMA food offered the tours “Istanbul in Berlin” and “Dubai: Ethnic Eats” for free as a promotion. Go ahead and check it out.

This post is sponsored by Only Apartments

After you have found accommodation in one of many great Rome apartments you will be probably deciding what you will visit during your vacations. Some of the main attractions can be expensive but there are some other famous places you must visit and where you don’t have to pay anything to get in.

Here you have 5 things you can do in Rome for free:

St Peter’s Basilica

Vatican City is one of the most important places to visit while in Rome. Its focal point, the Basilica de San Pietro, is the centre of the Catholic Church and the largest Roman Catholic building in the world. The entrance to the main floor is free and unlike many churches you are free to take pictures. The outside colonnade and the 30-meter tall baldacchino, the staggering bronze canopy that shelters the Papal Altar, where only the pope may celebrate Mass, were designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, one of the greatest baroque sculptors. Don’t miss the “Pietà,” one of Michelangelo’s most famous, and rub St. Peter’s well-worn foot for good luck as you pass the bronze statue. If you want to climb up to the dome, designed by Michelangelo, there is a six-euro charge.

The Pantheon
The Pantheon was built as a temple honouring all the Roman gods, then was converted in to a Christian church. Located in the Piazza della Rotonda, its most striking feature is the oculus, the open-air aperture at the top of the dome that lets in natural light. It’s the best-preserved monument of imperial Rome and the burial place of several famous artists, including Raphael. Mass is held here Saturdays at 5 p.m. and Sundays at 10:30 a.m.
La Bocca della Veritá
If you watched “Roman Holiday”, with Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck you must remember this place. Located in the Piazza della Veritá, this grotesque sculpture of a wild-eyed face on the portico of the church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin has a famous reputation. The legend says if you put your hand in its gaping mouth and tell a lie, La Bocca della Veritá will bite your fingers off. Be careful, just in case!
Fontana di Trevi
Designed by Niccolo Salvi, the Fontana di Trevi is the largest and most intricate of the baroque fountains of Rome, combining sculpture, nature, and architecture. Although it’s usually horribly crowded, it’s still worth a visit when you’re walking through the city. Have a look at it is totally free but if you want to participate of its famous legend you will need a coin, whichever it is. The original legend says that if you throw a coin into the Fontana di Trevi (with your back to the fountain and throwing the coin with your right hand over your left shoulder) that will ensure you a return to Rome.

The Scalinata di Spagna

The Spanish Steps in Piazza di Spagna make up the longest and widest staircase in Europe, leading from the Piazza di Spagna to the church of Trinità dei Monti, and were originally named after the Spanish Embassy adjacent. Ascend further from the top of the steps to get a good view of Rome. The area around the steps offers designer shops, restaurants and bars.

There are even more places you can visit for free in Rome, so as you can see if you spend your next holidays in one of the apartments in Rome you won’t need to spend a fortune on it!

By Richard Greco – May is a time of year like no other in slow moving Louisville. Country singers sport their best white dresses and cowboy boots while prancing up and down the stage with tambourines in hand. Women have elegant floppy hats sit on top of hair that took three hours to prepare and men wear their brightest freshly dry-cleaned Sunday best. The numerous binoculars sprinkled throughout the stands won’t be what is remembered during this two day festivity. The story will be the 21 majestic beasts center stage with every strained eye in the stadium glued to the muddy track.

A Mint Julep

The 138th annual Kentucky Derby will begin with much anticipation at 6:30pm on May 5th. Twenty-one horses will file into the gates along the aged dirt track awaiting the gate drop. With a countdown and a signal to the man working the mechanical gates, the barriers will drop and the “Race for the Roses” will begin.

Experiencing this once in a lifetime event idolizes all of its spectators in history. Celebrities ranging from Jamie Presley to Doctor J came out to support the event at Churchhill Downs last year. watching a sea of horses sprint through the iconic Twin Spires overlooking the track’s famous homestretch.

The tradition known as the greatest two minutes in sports is more than just your state of the art horse race. With “My Old Kentucky Home,” the song of the Derby, still pouring through the crowd for the horse’s introductions, this ceremony hasn’t changed all too much over the past hundred years.

Any on-looking fan would make a big mistake if they didn’t try the Derby’s famous drink, the Mint Julep. The minty combination of whiskey, julep and boiled sugar and water is served over crushed ice. The official Mint Julep of the Kentucky Derby has been a part of the festivities for the past 18 years and on average about 120,000 are consumed before the garland of roses is placed upon the winning horse’s back.

Watching the beautifully designed silk saddlecloths which identify the horses, is a treat to anyone in attendance. From checkerboard designs to bright solid colors the atmosphere isn’t set until you see these colors blur down the raceway in a sea that almost resembles a moving rainbow.

A trip to Louisville for the first weekend of May’s annual horse race would be a great experience. It is a fun, family event that really shows Louisville at its best. Kentucky’s historical weekend should be at the top of any American traveler’s bucket list.

Richard is a student at Rutgers University double majoring in Journalism/Media Studies and English. He has been exploring various areas of journalism, but often finds himself inevitably returning to the subject matter that drew him to writing to begin with, sports. He tries to combine elements from both of his majors to create interesting, vivid articles that exemplify the imagery expressed in poetry.  As a junior in college still trying to find his way, Richard plans to do a lot of soul searching during a summer filled with traveling to music festivals, Bonnaroo in Tennessee, and some adventures that would leave Jack Kerouac impressed. 
Featured Photo by Sylfred1977 – wiki commons

When we travel we are largely at the mercy of the companies we choose to do business with. Once you have booked your airline ticket or reserved your hotel room, you are pretty much locked in to flying with that airline and staying in that hotel… And they know it. Unscrupulous companies will use this fact to slip in hidden, unexpected, or unadvertised fees.

Oh, you want to bring luggage on your vacation? That’s going to cost you. Did you want to be able to use the internet to check email or facebook once per day? That’s going to cost you. Were you planning on eating food on your trip? Yep, that’s going to cost you.

Below are the top 5 travel rip-offs that frustrate travelers everywhere.

1. Airline Luggage Check Fees

Over the years, most airlines have started charging fees for checking luggage to offset rising fuel costs. Most airlines allow one carry-on bag and one “personal item” to be brought on the plane for free. Each checked bag, depending upon the size, may cost between $25 and $120. If you want to check more than three bags, it could cost you even more. Maybe this is a crazy statement, but most people need to bring stuff with them when they travel, so these “optional” fees aren’t actually optional at all. The airlines know that this is a fee that almost every passenger will have to pay. In fact, many flights earn more money from the luggage costs than on the actual costs of the airline ticket. This is a huge travel rip-off that should be modified.

2. Rental Car Fees and Insurance

Rental car companies advertise these unbelievable rental car prices that really are too good to be true. Consumers always see the car advertised for $9 per day or lower, but rarely does any customer actually receive the advertised price. After rental car companies have added airport fees and taxes, a $9 per day rental quickly morphs into a $30 per day rental.

If drivers require rental insurance from the rental car company, they quickly learn that daily costs for insurance is as expensive as the daily rental costs. Drivers walk away from the counter in frustration because their $9 per day rental is in reality a $60 per day rental. This is one of the biggest misconceptions and rip-offs in the travel industry.

3. Hotel Mini-Bars

Hotel mini-bars should be off-limits unless there is an emergency. Hotels count on people not wanting to go to a local grocery store while on vacation and buy reasonably priced snacks and water. Hotels may pay $0.50 or less for a bottle of water and charge the hotel guest $5 for the “convenience.” The fact is, most guests would not waste a gallon of gas to travel to a local store and purchase reasonably priced snacks, and the hotels know this. Most people would agree that a 1000% profit margin on water is a complete rip-off.

4. Wi-Fi Charges at Hotels

Business hotels know their customers need Wi-Fi. In fact, in today’s world with social media, even leisure travelers need Wi-Fi. Why would hotels charge between $4.95 per day and $14.95 per day for a convenience that most people need? Customers only pay $30 per month, in most instances, for high speed Internet at home, and hotels don’t pay much more. Every daily hotel Wi-Fi charge is pure, additional, rip-off profit.

Some hotels are more compassionate and only charge a one-time fee for access for an entire stay, but hopefully someday soon free wi-fi will be the standard (like having a color TV with cable in every room) rather than an unexpected surprise.

5. Resort Fees

Resorts lure customers into their luxurious properties with low nightly rates, and then surprise guests with resort fees when they get to the check in desk. When guests make reservations, most are unaware of the resort fees because it is mentioned in passing or it is buried in the fine print. If reservations are made in advance, only the advertised nightly rates will appear on the bill. The rip-off comes in to play because guests cannot decline to use the services, so they must pay the fee or they won’t be allowed to stay. Since guests cannot opt out of resort fees, why not just advertise the price with resort fees included? The answer is simple, if you expected to pay the resort fee, you might stay somewhere else. This practice is dishonest, and a complete rip-off.

What are some other Travel Rip-Offs that irritate you?