Canada Travel Tips

Canada travel tips are basically meant to inform travelers about various necessities which they have to have before entering the country. The following are some Canada travel info:

Registration
Travelers should register to the State Department so that they receive assistance in the situation of requirement. Free online registration facility is being made available by the government wherein travelers can register their travel plan. The registration helps as when the traveler is at some emergency, the government contacts with the family members.

Possess Valid Visa and passport

A valid passport and Visa has necessarily to be carried along so that in case of any inquiry the same can be furnished. Additionally, there should be proper information about who to contact in any emergency.

Family should know about tour plan

Travelers are advised to have briefed their family members about the travel so that they are able to contact for any purpose.

Checking overseas medical insurance coverage
Travelers should check whether their medical insurance has cover to their overseas ailments or not. If there is no medical insurance for overseas country, please make it sure that you have some kind of medical insurance to cover during your outside stays.

Know law of the land
Travelers are expected to be law abiding citizen and comply with the local laws. In order to be a decent traveler, one should familiarize himself with local conditions and laws.

Avoid being a target of crime
It is better to avoid target of crime. Though Canada is an advanced country and has low crime rate, travelers are expected to wear minimum jewelries. Travelers should not leave their baggage unattended in public place.

Language
English is an official language in Canada. However, French is spoken widely.

Smoking
Canada is cautious about the harmful effects of smoking. Some states in Canada such as British Columbia ban smoking at public places.

Measures
Officially, Canada uses the metric system wherein distance is measured in kilometers, speed signs are in kilometers per hour. Petrol/gas is sold by the litter and temperature is measured on the Celsius scale.

Taxes in Canada
The country has a regime of taxes imposed on travelers. In Canada the Goods and Services Tax (GST) of 7% applies throughout the country and is added to most purchases and services. However, basic groceries have been exempted from it. In British Columbia, a Provincial Sales Tax (PST) of about 7% applies to retail merchandise and services with certain exceptions - such as food, books, children's clothing, restaurant foods and personal services. Canada taxes hotel rooms too at the tax rate of 8-10%.

Tipping
As always, tipping is a personal subject matter and can be paid at restaurants, bars and pubs, taxis and hairdressers, etc. Travelers should remember that it should not exceed to 15% of the total cost.

Alcohol
Drinking alcohol in public is prohibited by law in Canada. A person must be 19 years of age to consume or purchase alcohol in the province of British Columbia. However, the minimum age varies from province to province.

Canada travel tips are basically meant to inform travelers about various necessities which they have to have before entering the country.

Travel Guide For Thailand - 5 Activities Not to Be Missed in Thailand

Thailand offers a vast variety of both indoor and outdoor activities, from going up to the top of the forested hills to down under the ocean. As a result, it is hard to narrow the choices of destinations and things to do in Thailand to the five best options. However, if we really have to choose, this travel guide for Thailand will pick the following 5 not-to-be-missed activities instead. Yet, as mentioned, they are not all of the best attractions visitors can enjoy in Thailand.

1. Experiencing amazing underwater World
Experiencing the beautiful underwater nature is one of the most popular visiting activities located in the southern and eastern part of Thailand. A large part of the reef is still protected by Thai government in order to limit the impact from human activities so that there are still vast biodiversity under warm sparkling water existed in this country. Moreover, due to the accessibility from the tourists, the underwater world is a popular destination for travelers, especially for scuba diving and snorkeling. The well known places for this are such as Krabi, Trang, Phuket, Koh Samet, Koh Phangan, Koh Phi Phi, Koh Tao etc.

2. Enjoying the World's famous beach party on Koh Phangan (Full Moon Party)
Koh Phangan is a famous destination for full moon party. 10,000 - 30,000 party lovers would come and enjoy the all-night beach party which will be held every month on the island. Besides the night time, this island still has some beautiful nature of clear sky, blue sea, white sand and coconut trees for visitors to enjoy. This is the place where the peace of nature and fun of the big live party come together.

3. Relaxing with a traditional Thai massage
One thing that any travel guide for Thailand can't be missed to mention about is traditional Thai massage or in Thai "Nuad Phan Thai". Thai massage is an art with long history. The massage is something unique involving stretching and deep massage that traveler should try once visiting Thailand to experience some peaceful relaxation during their trips. Visitors can choose to enjoy this kind of service from many places around the country from luxury spas in hotels to trusted traditional place for Thai massage as Wat Pho, the place close to the Grand Palace.

4. Shopping cheap but quality products back to your home
Thailand is one of the best shopping destination in Asia and popular for its bargaining markets. Best buy products include Thai silks and cottons, silver and gold, batiks, leather goods, beautiful pottery, precious stones such as rubies and sapphires, pearls, wood artifacts, bronze ware, designer items, tailor-made cloth, technology, etc. Travel guide for Thailand shopping places would include both shopping streets and malls such as Chatuchak, Suan Lum Night Bazaar, Silom area, Sukhumvit areas and shopping malls such as Central Plaza, The Mall, Paragon, Emporium, etc.

5. Cooking the delicious Thai cuisine with cooking classes
Thai food is one of the world's most famous and healthiest. Many dishes have become favorite dishes for people around the world such as Thai fried noodles (Pad Thai), hot and spicy soup with shrimp (Tom Yum Gung), coconut soup with chicken (Tom Kha Gai), etc. There are many Thai cooking classes now available for travelers around Thailand both in hotels and in institutions. So, here is the chance for visitors to learn how to make this finest cuisine back home.

These are the 5 activities that this travel guide for Thailand would recommend visitors to try and gain some experiences like no other. As said, these five are not all you can enjoy in this country. There are more to do such as visiting great diversity of the country's natural heritage for some adventure holidays, enjoying night life in Pattaya for some extra fun, riding on an elephant into the thick jungles for once-in-a-lifetime experience or traveling on a boat trip along Chaophaya river to touch on Thai way of living besides the river.

Last advice, before being able to enjoy those activities, advance booking for those activities and accommodation nearby is always a good idea. Travel guide for Thailand would highly recommend requesting for some promotional rates when booking as bargaining can often work in this country.

See here for more details and promotions.

Thai and US Visas

Traveling to Thailand or taking a loved one back to the USA from Thailand are two endeavors which require preparation and patience.

In comparing and contrasting the Immigration systems in both the United States of America and the Kingdom of Thailand, it becomes immediately apparent that Thailand's immigration system is far less complex than that of the USA. Further, the Kingdom of Thailand allows much greater immigration access than does the United States. Currently, Thailand allows people from many different countries to enter the Kingdom visa free. Those entering the Kingdom without a visa are granted entry based upon a visa exemption. These entrants are required to leave the country usually within 30 days. However, should one enter Thailand using a visa exemption at an Immigration checkpoint on one of Thailand's land borders, then they will only be granted 15 days presence in the Kingdom.

Those who wish to remain within the borders of the Kingdom of Thailand for a longer duration can apply to obtain a Thai visa at a consular post outside of the Kingdom of Thailand. Common Thai Immigration Categories are: Business, Tourist, Education, and "Other" which is used as something of a catch-all category.

By comparing the Immigration process of Thailand with the USA, one can easily see that the methods of controlling immigrant activity are not similar. Where the Thai model is relatively permissive, the United States has been in the process of tightening Immigration regulations. At one time, it was possible to obtain a United States tourist visa without being subjected to a visa interview. After the tragedy of 9/11 regulations have required that those seeking tourist visas to the USA be interviewed by an American Consular Officer.

Royal Thai Immigration does not have a visa category for foreign fiances of Thai Citizens. Bi-national married couples wishing to reside in Thailand are permitted to apply for an "O" visa, if one of them is a Thai Citizen or resident in Thailand. However, a visa based upon an intention to marry a Thai citizen will not likely be approved. Conversely, many foreign fiancees of US Citizens travel to the United States of America each year. Thailand sees many fiancee visas processed through the American Embassy in Bangkok. Thai-American couples who make it through the fiancee visa process generally get married in the United States and the Thai citizen takes up permanent residence in the USA. Unlike Thailand, US permanent residence is somewhat easy to obtain for those married to a US Citizen.

Benjamin W. Hart is Managing Director of Integrity Legal (Thailand) Co. Ltd. He is also a licensed American attorney and Member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. To Contact Integrity Legal please call Toll Free 1-877-231-7533 or email info@integrity-legal.com. See them on the Web at k1 fiance visa or k3 visa

Is it Safe to Travel to Thailand?

Over the last six months, Thailand has reached the headlines across the globe. In November 2008, the "Yellow Shirts" held the International Airport at Bangkok under siege, and over the last few weeks, the country has faced another national emergency, when the "Red Shirts" decided to fight back with their protests in Bangkok. Yet, in many areas of Thailand, all seems peaceful and quiet, and there are no signs of these political protests. No sign that is, apart from the concern and worry of the locals, and the quieter bars, restaurants and hotels.

The issues behind these protests are complex, but to put it as simply as possible:

The Yellow Shirts (also known as The People's Alliance for Democracy or PADs), agree with the concept of democracy, but also feel that people need to have some understanding of the long term economic, social and political consequences of their vote. They believe that Thaksin used corruption to gain the vote of the majority population of the rural regions of Northern Thailand, on the lead up to the 2001 elections that made him prime minister.

The Red Shirts, however, see Thaksin more as a Robin Hood character, who took from the rich and gave to the poor. They believe they would be financially better off both in the short term and the long term under the rule of Thaksin. Now, Thaksin faces corruption charges, and an unelected party and prime minister are ruling their country. As a result, they feel cheated.

Who is right and who is wrong is not for discussion here. We are currently more concerned with the impact these struggles could have on the economy of Thailand and on the number of tourists who want to visit. When the first major protests began in November 2008, many holidaymakers cancelled their trip, and having just recovered from the impact of the Tsunami, many businesses in the tourism industry of Thailand faced yet another season of lowering tourist numbers. The fallout from this is wide spread. Entire families rely on the income delivered by tourism to survive.

As such a high proportion of the population in the tourist hotspots of Thailand survive on the income of tourism alone, the majority of the locals in these places want nothing but a peaceful resolution. They want foreigners to continue to regard Thailand as The Land of Smiles.

Whilst no one wishes to encourage you to walk into the middle of a conflict, I'm sure I'm speaking for the large majority when I ask you to consider the real impact of these struggles on your visit to Thailand. Neither the Reds nor the Yellows have an issue with tourists or expats, but if you are concerned about the recent troubles in Bangkok, I would like to highlight that you do not need to fly to Bangkok if you wish to visit Thailand. You can fly from Kuala Lumpur to Krabi, or fly direct into Phuket. From there you can go straight to your final holiday destination, where a warm welcome and a peaceful atmosphere awaits - just as tourists have grown to expect from Thailand - The Land of Smiles.

This article was written by Paula Westberg, manager of Lanta International Language School. LILS offers fast, fun and effective Thai Language Courses based on the latest findings in educational science. For more information about their courses or methods of teaching visit their website: http://www.effective-thai-language-classes.com