Niagara Falls gets nearly 6 million visitors every year. The Canadian tourism industry is on decline. So some extravagant experience has been planned to attract these visitors to Table Rock.

The hi-tech show begins with animation and geological history of Niagara Falls and then the time lapse 10,000 year history lesson is recreated through special effects and hit-tech imaging. Visitors have full fury experience with complete glacial snow, pelting rain and rumbling erosion. They live through it all to see creation of biggest natural wonder. This family friendly Fury is different from all amusement parts on the American side of the falls. This will be a great hit with genX who enjoy a mix of fun, travel, study, adventure, special effects and real- life virtual experiences.

Much technology and research has been sourced from Japan, China, Korea, the Philippines, Europe and parts of North America to create this technological wonder next to one of the Seven Wonders of the World. No guesses for which one ends up as more crowd-puller!

Source: usatoday

This world map is the first document to indicate the western hemisphere and label the Pacific Ocean. The cartographer drew this map in early 1507. Later the map was lost in a library of a German castle for 400 years and was rediscovered in 1901. Ultimately in 2003 US Library of Congress purchased the 12 sheets of 4-ft by 8-ft document for 10 million US dollars from Prince Johannes Waldburg-Wolfegg. Now the Library is going to display this precious treasure of cartography in public.

This map has drawn lots of attention not just because of its antique value but also for some unsolved doubts and confusion,that it has created among the research scholars and specialists. The map maker displayed the Pacific Ocean as its own body of water long years before it was found. He had also portrayed South America almost seamlessly. Before sketching the map Waldseemuller collected lots of information from the famous explorers like Christopher Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci and some other unknown Portuguese and Spanish resources. But John Hebert, Chief of the Geography and Map division of library believes that as the way Vespucci described,it was almost impossible to draw such a near-perfect sketch of America. Library of Congress said that the map represents a total contemporary view of the world. Another doubt is also troubling the specialists. They are busy finding the reasons why the German scholar stopped using the name ‘America’ in the next maps. Rather he started indicating this land as ‘terra incognita‘ or ‘unknown land’. Afterwards he also gave misgivings as he first mistakenly named that new territory as ‘America’ after Vespucci’s first name, thinking that he [and not Columbus] had discovered that.

The researchers believe that the map may disclose some more unknown facts. However, for the time being, the library has decided to exhibit it in its specialized display casing from December 13, 2007.

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This is the first hotel in US to customize its facilities for motorcycle enthusiasts and travelers. Scheduled to open in March 2008, in Milwaukee, home to the manufacturing unit of the legendary motorcycle Harley Davidson, Iron Horse Hotel is the country’s first modern luxury boutique hotel with a separate facility for the large and growing segment of motorcycle enthusiasts.

Announcing the hotel’s special biker suites and facilities Tim Dixon spokesman for the Iron Horse Hotel said,

Today’s motorcycle riders are senior executives, CEO’s and successful entrepreneurs. These are weekday business travelers accustomed to luxury hotels. We’ll offer this customer the business services they expect along with features and amenities that address their needs as riders.

Promoted by Dixon Development, the hotel will offer the standard features such as wireless Internet, a top-notch business center, well-appointed meeting rooms, a secured covered motorcycle parking, rag bins, an on-site bike wash, packed saddle bag lunches, road trip maps and in-room storage areas for boots, helmets and heavy riding leathers, among others.

The Iron Horse Hotel aims at capturing the 20 million Americans that hit the road on their motorcycles annually. The Motorcycle Industry Council, the past 14 years has seen a rapid increase in the sale of motorcycles, peaking at one million for three straight years, the industry represents a $23 billion dollar business.

Dixon, a rider himself and frequent business traveler says that this market is so niche and nobody has promoted an exclusive hotel for them yet. He said,

It’s a leisure market segment that travels by its very nature, yet no high-end hotels are offering the special amenities they need,

A national trend

According to a Motorcycle Industry Council owner survey, the average motorcycle rider in America is 41 and over 50 percent of them are married and are college graduates and their earnings are much above the national average.

A heritage hotel

Architecturally, the Iron Horse Hotel will be housed in a 100-year old warehouse and retains an incomparable property with interiors that reflect the American Industrial era. The six-story building will feature exposed brick walls and iron details are being preserved and enhanced by soft finishes and a warm color palette and will offer 102 luxury rooms.

Adding quickly that the several of the design concepts and finishes arose from focus groups of both business travelers and motorcycle riders Dixon said,

This isn’t a themed hotel - it’s a hotel that addresses the needs of a diverse clientele.

Everybody in the world knows that Dinosaurs lived, walked and thrived on earth some millions of years ago. But there is very little evidence to prove their era. Few skeletons here and there, few fossilized remains in various museums across the world. But, ever heard of a place where one can actually see fossilized Dinosaur footprints and find fossils of creatures that lived 250 million years ago!

Hidden away deep within the countryside of the wild western state of Texas, US is this small town known as Glen Rose, on the outskirts of which is sited the Dinosaur Valley State Park. A lucky coincidence enabled me to visit, explore and enjoy the location.

Glen Rose is a pleasant aberration from the flat as pancake Texan landscape. It is mountainous, there are hills, valleys and a crystal clear river running through the valley. It is in this valley that Dinosaurs raomed arond 250 million years ago. According to the state park findings, two varieties of the giant beasts thrived in this area: the 45-foot Tyrannosaurus Rex and the 70-foot Apatosaurus.

The state park administration is highly proactive, in that they have marked trails so people wont get lost in the 1,500 plus acres of thick forest. As we pulled into the gates of the park the courtesy staff of the park welcomed us with beaming smiles and handed a highly informative map.

In a bid to follow the map we made a beeline to the first location in the map which said Track one. A board explained to us where to look for and how to identify dinosaur footprints which are located on rocks below the water surface. We walked on a rough trail through tall trees and soon came to the river Paluxy. Full of crystal clear water and embedded with big rocks, flanked by tall mountains flanking, Paluxy looks beautiful.

We walked along the river looking for dinosaur tracks and lo, there they were: three toed gigantic prints on the rock face. The giant footprints originally imprinted on soft soil were ultimately fossilised due to changes in the earths climate and now after 250 million years they are available for us to see, explore, enjoy and feel awed.

Comparing our feet with the size of footprints is a humbling experience, my feet felt as if it would fit into half of one flange of the dinosaur’s footprint. It is about 2ft in length and 1.5 ft width. The three sharp ends reveal the kind of razor sharp claws that these creatures might have had.

Further along the river, the scenery is simply panoramic and soul soothing. We enjoyed the tranquility, marveling at the scenery. After sometime we arrived at a spot where we could cross the river and explore the mountains on the other side. Here the river is shallow, only about a 2-3 ft deep and thanks to park arthorities who have placed huge boulders across the river so hikers can walk across easily without getting their shoes wet.

But due to several people walking on the boulders, they have become smooth and slippery and it was dicey to walk on them across the river. We gingerly stepped from one boulder to the other and crossed over and began walking through the forest.

After walking about 0.5 mile through the forest we arrived at a small stream and decided to follow the stream and reach the river. This was a unique experience, walking on a semi-dry river bed flanked by two tall mountains. After walking about 45 mins we reached the river. It was shallow and we decided to cross the river. One step into the water, sent shivers through our body, the water was icy cold but soon our bodies acclamatised and we were on our way across.

The rocky river bed was fully covered by algae and we had to be extra careful as we put one step after another towards the other bank. But as we neared the opposite bank we were surprised to see several giant dinosaur foot prints. This time there were two varieties of them... one belonging to the 45-foot Tyrannosaurus Rex and another to the 70-foot Apatosaurus.

People who come to US from India, visit the Niagara falls, Liberty statue, Golden Gate bridge, Grand Canyon etc... but then those are known across the world and one has to just tune into National Geographic or Discovery Channel to see them.

But Glen Rose is something one doesn’t get to see or hear in the TV. It is only coincidences and explorations in the backyards help us know about these unique places.

Source: Bangalore Outings Blog

For long, Europe knew about luxury train travel on the Orient Express. The opulence of Orient Express has been recreated in the USA with the GrandLuxe Rail Journeys. Six 1950s railway cars are attached to Amtrak’s California Zephyr that passes through some of the most historic and picturesque locales of USA.

On boarding the luxury train butlers escort the guests to the wood-paneled ‘vintage Pullman’ room, 5 feet wide and 7-feet long with a 4 inch wide closet and two drawers. A beaming butler will show the passenger how to fold down the Pullman’s tapestry-upholstered seatback to become a bed and how a nozzle serves as a shower in the 2 feet by 3 feet toilet. There are guidebooks for every passenger that explains the detail and historical importance of every stop.

A week onboard the GrandLuxe, with all the luxury and tours of plantations and cities such as Savannah and Charleston starts at $4,320 a person. The cost includes meals and tours. Meals on GrandLuxe are quite a lavish spread with expensive wines and the Manhattan entertainer Annie Lebeaux playing your favourite tunes on the piano. There is cooked-to-order breakfast, lunch and a five-course dinner.

The train runs from Emeryville, California to Chicago.

Image: passenger train journal

Source: usa today

Walt Disney has been busy making cartoons and long animated movies. Lately, they seem to keep themselves busy with the idea of U.S. tourism promotion. How so? Well, the movie that they made on popular U.S. landmarks is supposed to attract foreign visitors to the country. Also, it will hopefully put a friendly perspective to the often sad and depressing business of foreigners traveling to the U.S.

Walt Disney Parks and Resorts is trying to make things cooler and present the U.S. as a friendly country to the foreigners, in order to promote international tourism. The post nine eleven era resulted the U.S. tourism to take a nose dive. So, the Disney short is just the Federal govt.s effort to attract international visitors.

The movie hardly has any dialog whatsoever, except a meager welcome. The movie does a pretty good job of showing all the popular tourist destinations in the country. It will be shown at all the popular ports of entry in the U.S. Statistics tell us that the international travel to U.S. has dropped by 17% not including the Canadians and Mexicans.

The Department of Homeland Security needs to put in more effort on U.S. tourism development. I think before anything else they need to make the folks in smaller towns more aware of other cultures and societies. Unfortunately, a greater percentage of Americans are geographically challenged.

Disney should make more movies on foreign culture and society for the Americans. An interesting aspect about this particular movie is that it shows the extraordinary lives of ordinary people. Movies can do so much to boost tourism. The rest of the effort lies on the economy. The decreasing dollar in the international market is the only hope of U.S. tourism going up.

Image Credit: Go

When it’s fall in U.S., it is the season for cranberry harvesting in Massachusets. Not only is Massachusets famous for the Great American revolution, but also for the cranberry bogs. The U.S. state even has the Cape Cod Cranberry grower’s association. As a matter of fact about 27 percent of world’s cranberry’s originate from Massachusets.

These berries might be a little fruity for you, but they do make a pretty tasty snack. Personally, I feel that the Cranberry harvesting process is quite interesting. Here’s a quick glimpse at the process. Once the bog is flooded, the harvesters will go around in their vehicles knocking those berries off the vines. This allows the cranberries to float in the bog.

The harvest season is only about six to eight week long. So the cranberries can only be picked up by the end of October. I am sure they will be great for some cranberry juice. Although, I seriously doubt that none of the cranberry juice manufacturers use 100% cranberries for their product.

The red cranberries floating in the bog are quite picturesque indeed. ’tis the season for a trip to Massachusets. So, if you are planning a weekend visit to somewhere in fall, might as well try Massachusets. Come on down and check out the spectacular cranberry harvesting.

Image Credits:asergeev[1], [2]

If your idea of a perfect holiday is to be with your loved ones on a mesmerizing tropical island where nature’s whispers and murmurs are the only chatter you can hear, then head to Little Whale Cay, a private island in the Bahamas.

Little Whale Cay can perfectly be described as nature’s own paradise, where the palm-fringed, white sandy beaches surround pristine water and exotic birds, butterflies, and foliage on the turquoise lagoons create a picturesque scenery.

This private island that is shaped like a whale spans over 93 acres was developed by Wallace Groves in 1930s. There are just three secluded bungalows which can accommodate a maximum of 12 guests at a time. The island has its own landing strip, private harbor and a sea plane ramp.

You’ll never have dull moment in this island. The lazy ones can hang around on the beaches soaking in the sun for endless hours or relax on a hammock reading your favorite books and the others can head for adventures like snorkeling, water-skiing, wind-surfing, and fishing. The sporty ones can swim leisurely in the infinite swimming pool overlooking the sea or play a game of tennis and had for the spa to get pampered with a massage.What’s more, the romantics can even get married in the church in case they just make a sour-of-the-moment decision.

November to May is the best time to visit, as the weather is cooler and the sun is just perfect for you to laze around. The island is all yours for a week if you shell out £33,000.

If I were you, I would book the island for 12 people and leave the ten back home and rush there with my love!

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For the tourists in Bolivia, there is a new kind of attraction - salt desert. Mostly known as Salar de Uyuni, this desert has become popular lately after it was listed as the top 25 wonders of the world. Before this, Bolivia didn’t really have any star attraction.

As of now, about 60,000 tourists visit the 1100 kms. of salt flat a year. So you can well imagine the tourist boom. But, how’s the weather in the weird salt desert?

Here’s an example. A typical weather condition in this part of the world would call for about freezing night temps. and scorching heat during the day.

Here’s a little history about the salt desert. Roughly, about 40,000 years ago, this desert was part of the lake that covered up most of the Andean highlands.

Now, it’s very much akin to a dry riverbed. Interesting , huh! After the floor dried up, the appearance was very much like a lunar landscape.

In order to further improve the tourism in South America, the residents of the town Uyuni plan to transform the town into a major hub. Attractions will include a newly built llama museum.

For accommodation, tourists will be provided with salt made hotels at Salar. Wow! I need to try them out soon.

Image Credit: News

Tired of football, basketball or other boring sports? Well, here’s real sports news. Every year, an exciting sport event popularly known as Wife Carrying Championship takes place in Maine. You’ll be surprised to know what men get if they win the contest. Men earn their wife’s weight in beer plus five times the partner’s weight in cash and a chance to compete in the World Championships in Finland. Sounds amazing!

It’s a 250-meter track race in which men lug women weighing a minimum of 108-lbs on their backs. Contestants can use any carrying method, whether it’s the fireman’s carry, the piggy-back carry or some other lesser-known method. The only rule is you can’t drop your wife. For every time she hits the ground you lose five points. To be a part of the race, you need not be related but teams need to be made up of one man and one woman, both over the age of 21.

Run in heats with two teams racing together. Tackling a pool and several hurdles, team with the fastest times and the least number of drops qualify for the championship round with the winner of that round claiming the North American Wife Carrying Champion title.

The eighth Wife Carrying contest was held on October 6, 2007 near the Sunday River Ski Resort. Negotiating two 3-foot high wooden hurdles and a 10-meter-long pit of muddy, waist-deep water, a Boston couple claimed victory by a margin of only a third of a second. Just check out the images in the gallery pinned below to know how much fun this contest is! Believe me it’s entirely worth it to see the pictures.

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Source: Spluch

If Las Vegas is a place you have added in your travel destination list then I’ll suggest you to check out MGM Grand Detroit. Raising the city’s hospitality offerings to unparalleled heights, the new MGM Grand Detroit debuted last week. Billed as the first Vegas-style resort in one of the major metropolitan area, $800 million MGM Grand includes 400 rooms and suites and its 18-story hotel has electronic concierges in each room.

Developed by MGM MIRAGE, one of the world’s most respected hotel and gaming companies, MGM Grand Detroit is the only resort-style spa in southeast Michigan and 30,000-square-feet of meeting and convention space. The resort also features a 20,000-square-foot spa and, the lobby that has 20-foot ceilings and a private ‘living room’ for casual gatherings. The casino has 4,500 slot machines, more than 90 table games and an upscale eight-table poker room. Nightly rates start at $299.

The opening was attended by Grammy-nominee Kid Rock and Grammy-Award winners Ashanti and Anita Baker along with celebrity chefs Wolfgang Puck and Michael Mina and many other Detroit dignitaries. MGM Grand Detroit is anticipated to be a draw for many audiences from the business traveler and international visitor.

Source: The New York Times

If you’ve been anxiously awaiting a tour of the Canyon Lake Gorge, get ready as the Gorge Preservation Society (GPS) has opened once a month. Said to be formed in just three days, Canyon Lake Gorge was till date open just only to researchers since the 2002 flood but GPS now plans to share the beauty and wonder of this natural phenomenon with the public.

The Canyon Lake Gorge in Texas is a beautiful and natural insight into the geology and hydrologic dynamics of glen-rose limestone in Comal County near Canyon Lake. Three-hour tours will be conducted on the first Saturday of the month and will begin at 9 a.m. Fees that the visitors pay to witness the vista of the lake will be applied towards a GPS membership.

The brittle limestone is still breaking away from the canyon walls, so the visitors will not be allowed to hike the canyon on their own. The hike through the canyon is not recommended for the people that have bad knees, ankles, poor heart conditions or are overweight as it is physically very demanding.

The three- hour tours include a hike of the one and a half-mile-long with discussions on the history and geology of the canyon. All those interested to witness the wonderful vista of amazing and beautifully scenic formations that are millions of years old and a sight to behold, plan your trip now!

Source: USA Today

The rail tours are the best way to explore parts of West Virginia. Inside the Monongahela national forest, the Shay locomotive takes pride in making it’s turns.


As the sun goes down behind the horizon, the temperature starts to drop as well.

With the whistle blown and the steam shooting skywards, the Shay starts to make it’s way up the windy railroad.

This locomotive uses about four and a half ton coal, which many agree adds to the uniqueness of the Cass Scenic Railroad.

The best thing about this kind of railroad ride is the warmth of the crew and others. A lot of times the crew will invite the passengers to take a sneak peak into the maintenance shop.

A visit to the railroad shop would give you an idea of how things were about 50 or 60 years ago.A Potomac eagle is just one of the several birds that you get to see during the rail ride.

The Cass Scenic railroad goes through a state park, which is about 11 miles long and 50 feet wide. The ride has a slow but a steady pace at 7 miles per hour.

This is probably the slowest way to explore the park. An unique thing about this ride is that the crew members are mostly volunteers. This is done to keep the costs down.

Overall, this is the best way to explore the national park if you don’t want to travel fast!

Image Credit: Railpictures

Well, who on earth would know that there’s a museum devoted to the great spies? None other than LATimes. The International spy museum is all about the greatest spies and the spy related activities.

The Operation spy package at the International spy museum lets visitors become a spy! — at least for an hour. The Spy museum is located at Washington D.C.

In the Operation spy, the museum visitors who are 12 or older are assigned a secret mission. Technically, they are ‘working’ for the US Intelligence.

These fictitious wannabe spies are then going to operate in a mythical country known as Khandar. I think this is probably an interesting way to glorify the Afghan war in the eyes of ‘future spies’. Khandar and Qandahar(in Afganistan) does sound similar.

It even gets better. There’s a guide for each tour groups. This is well, hilarious to me. Every ’spy’ is briefed at the ‘command center’ before he or she can move in with the team and the spy guide. Amazing concept huh!

As of now, the museum has devised about 6 possible endings to this Kandahar spy game.

It will only cost you anything between $12 to 24 to become a spy for an hour. You can go on spy city tours, scavenger hunts, or even attempt a spy cast. During these ops, you get to decode secret messages, solve problems, use deceptive maneuvers or even take part in solo and team based activity.

Wow! This is very unreal and surreal. But, it all comes to life at the International spy museum at 800 F St., N.W.

Image Credits:Latimes

Renoir is popular for his pink peeked children, fleshy nudes, and sun dappled boaters. Pierre-Auguste Renoir was basically a French artist with exceptional art skills. He was known to develop the impressionist style. He is believed to be a major celebrator of beauty and feminine sensuality through his paintings. 1874 was a big year for this French artist.

To put together a show like this, curators from three museums assembled about 61 paintings of Renoir. All the paintings exhibit a classic impression of beauty. The assembly of paintings include private collections as well. The distinct oils from 1881 trip to Algiers, are the most interesting and unexpected. A year later, he painted along with Paul Cezanne.

Eventually Renoir’s style shifted from portrait to landscapes. Unfortunately Renoir suffered from rheumatoid arthritis. It is said that he could only paint with brushed tied to his hand. I think for an artist of this stature, this is pretty sad. But, this shows that Renoir didn’t give up what he loved the most. If he gave up, we wouldn’t be looking at his artwork today.

Image Credit: Renoir