Arinsal

Arinsal Resort What A Fantastic Range

This prime Andorra Ski Resort with its annual snow festivals and races is a fantastic place for beginners and advanced skiers alike. This really is a party Ski resort so is very popular with young people with its good bars, and clubs(Ciscos a prime varorite) and easy access to the Gondola in the morning its very good value for money.  People often think it will be sleepy in an Andorra village no chance. The view at the top station is fantastic and has long winding run looked after blue runs and some fast reds and blacks for the more adventurous. So get a great Arinsal Ski Holiday that will have top days on teh sloped and top nights apres ski.

Courchevel

Courchevel Prime Powder Skiing

Courchevel, in France, is set in the famous Three Valleys and is one of the most impressive resorts in Europe. Skiiers of all levels will find exactly the slopes they desire. Snowboarding is excellent here too. The slopes vary from beginner to advanced, with 4 star slopes and 3 star boarding. Courcheval is great for families, and also offers many other activities from ice skating to tobogganing. Go snow shoeing, ice climbing or even hot air ballooning! Apartments, hotels and chalets are scattered all around the slopes for your convenience.

Filzmoos

Filzmoos Breathtaking Views

Austria’s Filzmoos will provide you with the most magnificent scenery in the country. Nestled at the foot of the Bischofsmütze mountain and the famous Dachstein glacier you will find the quaint village of Filzmoos. The six person gondola rides take skiiers to the top for a dramatic and breathtaking ride back down to the village. The crowds here are rarely a problem, and there is hardly a queue line for the lifts. After a day of skiing, take a romantic sleigh ride through the forest for a relaxing ending to your day. Cozy up in a blanket and let the horses be in charge. They will take you on a spectacular hour long ride, stop and give you time to hang out with the locals, and enjoy an amazing return ride. The village has many beautiful hotels for families or singles, and the mountain chalets are the perfect setting.

Stowe

Stowe Mountain View Just Stunning

Stowe, Vermont is rated the number one ski resort in New England. There are two major peaks to ski on; Spruce Peak and Mount Mansfield, which is Vermont’s highest. While Spruce Peak is great for beginners, the Front Four double black diamond runs are excellent for the advanced skiier. The terrain varies from soft powder and deep drops to big bumps, and also offers glade skiing. The resort is also happy to have the snowboarders, and offers three terrain parks and a super half-pipe. The resort also has husky dog sledding, snowmobiling, and ice skating. Or take a guided snowmobile tour and give your legs a rest.

Do some shopping at the General Store on Main Street for some nostalgia. The Stowe Craft Gallery has unusual and unique items you will enjoy browsing through. The Vermont Ski Museum is also located in Stowe. Check out some great skiing history.

There are so many great resorts to take your skiing holiday. Each one is different in it’s own way, and they all have so much more to do than just ski. Choose the right one for the activities that you seek and you will have a fantastic time.

There are a lot of people will love your product and a lot of people who probably won’t. The people who love of hate your product are the people who will talk about you in social media. The people in the middle shrug their shoulders and won’t mention you either way.

Two lessons from this chart:

1. Stop marketing to people on the right side of this bell curve. They might deliver short-term cash flow but hurt your business in the long run.
2. Moving the curve a little bit to the left will increase the number of positive conversations and grow your business through word-of-mouth.

Many tour operators provide all-in package holidays where accommodation, food, drink and entertainment are all included in the price you pay. These deals are popular with honeymoon couples and anyone who just wants a thoroughly hassle-free break.
But things can always be pushed that little bit further… there are always a few services you just wish were included in all inclusive holidays. Here are a few ideas for that fantasy no-hassle trip:

Packing service

Packing can be a real chore, so why not include Mr Giorgio Armani himself to help you pack? Once he’s seen your wacky waterside wardrobe, he may even choose to fill your bags with his latest creations.

Pick up

Transfer from your house to the airport should be in a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti – the perfect combination of space, luxury and speed. And just in case you’re running a touch late, which you always will be, it’ll be driven by Michael Schumacher.

Flights

None of that first-class commercial flying for this fantasy trip. A private jet should be included in the price of your holiday, with a few close friends shipped in to give you a hug and wave you off at the airport. Clearing customs will never be so easy.

Transfers

You’re in less of a hurry once you’ve arrived, so for a luxury transfer you’ll need to be regally escorted to your resort in a Rolls Royce Phantom. With a 6.75 litre V12 engine it’s not exactly slow, however, but with features like heated/cooled drinks holders and DVD entertainment system, it’s the perfect all inclusive ride to your destination.

Arrival

Despite the luxurious surroundings, you’ll be feeling a little tired after all that travelling. Your all inclusive holiday will therefore include a spa session and relaxing massage. From Sean Connery. Guys, you know you’d love that too.

Room service

Room service food by knuckle-faced chef Gordon Ramsey would also be included. To maintain the peaceful atmosphere, his kitchen will be soundproofed and he will not be allowed to leave it for the duration of your stay. He would still be all shouty and angry as his “personal creative style” demands, but you won’t know about it.

Pam and Dave lifeguard service

Just for a laugh, the original crew of Baywatch could always be nearby for any swimming accidents or sun cream back-rubbing emergencies. All included in the price of your all inclusive holiday, of course.

Weather included

Now there’s one thing which should always be included in the price of your holiday: blazing sunshine! Blue skies or your money back, that would be an advertising lure.

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Five years ago, social media was only just beginning to show its potential to the market.  Although many of us had been blogging for some time, small businesses had yet to see the opportunity that exists in blogging or social media in general.  Even today, most small businesses are so focused on day to day operations that they miss out on the opportunities of engaging with social media.  Those that had websites felt that their web presence didn’t do much for them other than serve as a virtual brochure.  For many, this is still the case, and still more don’t even have websites.  In 2006 I conducted some research into the activity provider segment and found that only about 20% of operators had websites, yet almost all of them print rack cards and brochures.  My sense is that this is still the case for many of them.

I did learn recently however, through some research that will be made public in early 2011, that the tour and activity segment faired better than all other travel segments in 2009.  While much of the travel industry contracted by almost 9%, the tour and activity segment contracted by only about 3%.  This is the benefit of a segment powered almost entirely by small and micro enterprises.  These are businesses run by entrepreneurs and proprietors who can make decisions quickly, adapt to opportunities, and reduce their costs by being frugal.  Small businesses, in times of crisis, can find revenue opportunities is quite different ways.  A growing number of operators have already used services like Groupon to fill empty seats or sell excess revenue.

Working with small business is never easy, but it can be incredibly fulfilling.  Unlike working with large corporations, small businesses are generally an extension of the owner.  When you work with a small business, you are working with a person who can make decisions, cares deeply about their business, and is looking for technology partners for the long term.

In keeping with the spirit of empowering small businesses, I decided to extend my Savvy Operator project.  I recently set up a community using Ning to provide a place for tour and activity operators to share and learn together.  The inspiration for this came from Alex Bainbridge’s Small Fish Big Ocean community which he has been running successful for several years.  In the same way that Alex has brought small niche travel agents and specialty tour operators together, I hope to bring in-destination tour and activity providers together.  If you are a DMO or an organization that works with a number of activity providers, I hope you’ll consider getting involved.  The biggest lesson I have learned over the years of working with small business, is that they are eager to learn.  Hopefully we can help them all become Savvy Operators this coming year.

Mansion in the Sky

This Place is something else with its breath taking scenic views, they call it the Mansion in the Sky and that’s exactly what it is it is. It Overlooks the Smoky Mountains and has 10 luxury rooms sleeping up to 40 people. People less able are catered for with specially designed rooms and amenities. All 10 rooms have King sized Beds and 8 of them have roaring fully working fire places, hot tubs and fantastic views of the Old Smokey! A central feature is a home movie theater with luxury home theater seating that will hold 30 people with a 14 foot Screen, and blue ray player. The theater is alos decked out with some great theater furniture and all wooden to fit in with the house and it really gives off a whole eco feel with the mountains outside.

'Mansion in the Sky' 30 Seat Home Theater

The slopes are just 8 miles away at Ober Gatlinburg Ski Resort so you will need a car but it’s a short drive to hit the snow and have a day on the mountain.

Mansion in the Sky View from Deck

There is 3 levels of balcony to wander along your holiday cabin with outside hot tubes, and rows of riocing chairs facing the mountain to gather with your friends and loved ones and take in the view. There To finish there is a communal pool and tennis courts for some exercise and to help brush away the cobwebs and work stress that you need for your perfect luxury break I found the place on www.holiday-rentals.co.uk and would recomend giving them a ring to work out the perfect holiday cabin break for you.

The furcifer chameleon. Picture courtesy of Wikimedia

Anyway, Madafan went to the Enjoy 2010  Madagascar exhibition and this post is one of the “voan-dàlana” that we want to share with you: trekking in the Ibity mountain searching for the furcifer chameleon. Thanks to the “Office Régional du Tourisme du Vakinakaratra” for providing us with some of the elements.

The Ibity massif: 25 km from Antsirabe on the national road heading to Fianarantsoa can be accessed either from the “commune rurale” of Ibity, from Sahanivotry or from Manandona (Ibity is 9.5 km south-east of Manandona).

For trekkers, it’s good to know that this massif’s altitude is 1900m, 13.5km long and 8km large for a total of 45km². MATOR Madagascar rural tourism association will guide you through the trails so as to discover about 20  endemic flora species, bats and other insectivorous species, and the furcifer … Another interesting scenery consists of appreciating the tapia tree growing on quartzite.  It’s interesting to know that the Ibity’s peak (2254m) is the highest quartzite peak in Madagascar. While wandering into the Ibity site, you’ll go through natural pool, some royal graves as well as a rova (a royal’s palace).

As rural tourism is also part of the attraction in this region, you can see the peasants weaving the silk- called “landy” in Malagasy. As the local community is involved in this rural activity, you can stay at the inhabitant – a network of rural family are working with the Furcifer association in order to give you a better sense of how’s their daily lives. Otherwise, you can stay and eat at the Bakobako cottage.

So now you know that once you’re planning your stay in Antsirabe, either for the gemstones, the thermal source or for any other reason, you’ve got another experience to live through rural tourism in this Ibity location.

If you have anything else worth discovering in Antsirabe or its surroundings, feel free to mention it on the comment section …

However, since the author can’t personally move from his house (for technical reasons), I just wanted to crawl the internet seeking for infos about what’s happening during this event. As I just participated into live-blogging and live-tweeting (with other bloggers fellow) last week-end, I just hoped that the some real-time online coverage will also be seen for Enjoy Madagascar 2010.Given my experience with last years’ edition, I wasn’t expecting a lot of online presence for this year – frankly, I don’t understand people attending such event which aim is to boost the tourism sector and who are so used to answering to desk-request that they don’t even think of outreaching outside the small number of people who made the trip to Andranomena. Most of the participants have made serious investment for attending this event, so why the heck don’t they go the last mile of outreaching through the internet? As Erik Hersman rightly pointed out during last week’s event, “we must own our narrative”.

Some may say that it’s a cost of technology constraints that don’t push them on doing so. Well, I’m sorry guys, but I’m pretty sure you all have seen how other people in other context do it (just look at how Madagascar political news spread on the internet) – they aren’t geek at-all – just plain simple citizens who want to have their voice heard – why the hell tourism players can’t (or don’t) do that? So forgive me if I don’t abide to the excuse “we’re not well-versed into this technology thing” – I bet you all read your e-mail every now and then. Moreover, this salon has its own website – for God’s sake, if you have decided to do it, please do it well, don’t just do it because some guys have convinced you that having a website is “in” – how can you trust a salon that still title “salon du tourisme 2009″ on his website while we are in 2010 edition; a website that proudly has a forum feature that has “0″ (NIL) messages (guys, let’s be serious, just shut this forum down). I know having organized such an event despite the current situation deserves a standing ovation, and don’t get me wrong, I do acclaim you for having achieved that- but for God’s sake, do things seriously or refrain from implementing it if you are not comfortable with (I’m referring to the online presence here). But back to technology constraints, I think we have no excuse at all not to report what’s happening in real-time (or at least by the end of the day):

- mobile phone companies all have mobile internet offer: some even allow you to be connected on facebook for 500 MGA/month (that’s USD 0.25/month), another operator allows you to be connected on facebook via SMS. There’s even competition on the mobile phone market to get people use facebook from their mobile phone. Another mobile phone operator also allows you to use twitter through SMS so that you don’t need to have a state-of-the-art handheld in order to be able to tweet – a plain simple GSM that can send SMS can do it (want more details, read @ariniaina  post about the solutions she use for updating from her mobile phone [fr])

- moreover, a lot of the organisations attending Enjoy 2010 have their own website, some even have an official facebook fan page; see? we aren’t that “disconnected”. But when we look at those websites or fan pages, guess what? Almost nothing about Enjoy 2010 is published. Guys, don’t do it because it’s “in and fashionable”, use it as a core element of your communication tool – which media gives you detailed infos about your “followers” than the internet? Please go beyond the “have you seen the article on …”, we all know that one article can’t fit-it-all, on the internet, you can decide to write a whole article on one single topic, then write another – people would read and even give you feedback, they will even help you spread the word and share it with their friends and followers.

- I’m almost sure that internet providers are happy to provide WI-FI connection inside FUTURA exhibition park – this has already been done for previous exhibitions. This means that you could bring your own laptop and post on the internet whatever is worth spreading.

So guess what would happen once you published something on the internet: there’s plenty of people ready to read/relay whatever you published – there’s plenty of Madagascar lovers out there who couldn’t make it to this event but who are willing to share it.

Anyway, from the small portions of published elements I could grab from the internet (hey, here I’m playing the role of the guy who couldn’t make to the event and who tries to catch-up via the internet- which most of us do), I’ve read that

- “there’s 120 certified guide in #Madagascar” – if published on twitter (read it on orange.mg today), I’m pretty sure it won’t take hours for it to spread like fire on the internet,

- or even better: the Tourism minister announcement that “the free-visa fee for a stay less than 30 days is maintained for the next season” is just a scoop that you can share with other people – giving you (and Madagascar) visibility.

Guys, you’ve decided to be dumb (online-speaking) for this event, please don’t be deaf to suggestions coming from other people. We all want to use any available promotion tool so as to get people visit Madagascar. Don’t take it personally- being controversial also helps having my voice heard. Feel free to give your feedback/suggestions on the comment section below (either by using your facebook comment so that your facebook friends are aware of what you said, or via the usual comment section); or tweet it so as to bring the conversation to twitter (BTW, follow madafan on twitter; we also have a facebook fan page)

I bought it today

This is a very different post than I normally write. I was planning to write about my new website that I’m about to launch called the Travel Blog Challenge, along with the 1000-1000 Blog Challenge experiment. But since the website and the challenge are geared toward helping all us wayward travel bloggers gain more visitors and earn more from our websites I decided I needed to let you know about a great sale going on that lasts only 72 hours (well 48 hours as of time of posting, it ends at 10am EST on December 2).  I’ll write about the Challenge next post.

OK, so basically there is a huge sale where you can buy 23 Business Courses and Ebooks for only $97 that would normally cost $1,052 if you bought them separately. I’m usually skeptical about these types of things and I passed over the links to this for the past day thinking it was all spam. But it turns out the the books and courses are actually very good,  by a number of people I follow regularly and I own a couple already.

They are aimed teaching you how to create an online businesses and helping you earn money from your websites. so you can live anywhere. Just getting Chis Guilebeau’s Guide to Working for Yourself and Corbett Barr’s Guide to Ethical Affiliate Marketing is worth the price. I have both already but decided I wanted to read the others too, especially since I’m trying to build the business side of my blogging.

[Update: I just learned that a portion of each sale goes to building a well in Ethiopia through Charity:Water. Very Cool!]

No hard sell here, just wanted to give you the heads up that this deal is on. I bought mine today and will spend the next few months happily reading through everything. If you want to get the books you can find out more information here. If you want some more information here is a quick rundown of what they are offering. By the way, if you like Todd’s Wanderings you will probably also love Chris Guillebeau’s site on Unconventional Strategies for Work, Travel and Life:

Unconventional Guide to Working For Yourself by Chris Guillebeau ($79)

• Unconventional Guide to Working For Yourself (53-page PDF)
• 3 25-minute of audio teaching sessions
• SEO Report (26-page PDF)

The Essential Motivation Handbook by Leo Babauta & Eric Hamm ($15)

• The Essential Motivation Handbook (PDF)

True Strengths + The Metrics of Ease by Danielle LaPorte ($20)

• True Strengths + The Metrics of Ease – Sample Chapter from the Fire Starter Sessions (PDF)
• Video:  The Metrics of Ease
• Video:  The Merits of Self-Centered
• Worksheet:  Passion Play
• Worksheet:  Very Strong Priorities

Upsell 101 by Naomi Dunford & Dave Navarro ($77)

• Normally only available to buyers of How to Launch the S*%& Out of Your eBook
• 78-minute audio coaching session
• 11 Upsell Worksheets (PDF & DOC)

Websites That Sell Webinar by Laura Roeder ($47)

• Normally available only to buyers of Zero to Website course
• Special access to 1-hour Webinar

Guest Posting Guide by Chris Garrett ($17)

• Special access to Guest Posting Info membership site
• Downloadable Guest Posting Workbook (PDF)
• “Kick start” video
• Guest posting checklist and flowchart

3-Day Money by David Risley ($47)

• 14 Video presentations (2.5+ hours)
• Full written transcripts for each lesson (PDF)
• Audio files for each lesson (MP3)
• Step-by-step Worksheet

Email Triage + 2011 Premium Planners by Charlie Gilkey ($32)

• Email Triage (PDF)
• Guided Audio Program (MP3)
• 2011 Premium Action Planners
• 2011 Premium Freelancer Planners
• 2011 Premium Blog Planners

Location Independent Lifestyle Guide by Lea Woodward ($37)

• Location Independent Lifestyle Guide – 2nd Edition (82-page PDF)
• Do-It-Yourself Design & Branding Guide for Bootstrapping Businesses (78-page PDF)

Zero to Business by Johnny B. Truant

• Special membership to full Zero to Business course
• 30+ screen-capture tutorial videos
• Step-by-step screenshot technical instruction

Write for the Web + Beyond Bricks and Mortar by James Chartrand ($54)

• Write for the Web (89-page PDF)
• Beyond Bricks and Mortar (47-page PDF)

Tired of reading? You can Click here to buy the package

Reclaim Your Dreams by Jonathan Mead ($47)

• Reclaim Your Dreams – “Everything Package” (70-page PDF)
• “I’m Serious About Action” Worksheets

How to Live Anywhere by Karol Gajda ($97)

• How to Live Anywhere – Long Haul Edition (58-Page PDF)
• Anatomy of a 4 Figure Affiliate Promotion (PDF)
• 10 Audio Interviews (MP3)
• How To Live Anywhere Audio Series (8 MP3s)
• “Create Freedom” Teleseminar (Video)

Minimalist Business by Everett Bogue ($47)

• Minimalist Business – Upgraded “Minimalist Plan” Version (PDF)
• 30-Day Quick Start Guide

Affiliate Marketing for Beginners by Corbett Barr ($77)

• Special access to Affiliate Marketing for Beginners – “Complete Course”
• 5 Core Teaching Modules
• 21 Affiliate Lessons
• 2 Profitable Case Studies

Beyond Blogging by Nathan Hangen ($47)

• Beyond Blogging (200-page PDF)
• 15 Blogger Case Studies
• “100k Blueprint” Summary

Smalltopia by Tammy Strobel ($27)

• Smalltopia: A Practical Guide to Working for Yourself (156-page PDF)

Guest Post Secrets by Erica Douglass ($77)

• Special access to Guest Post Secret membership site
• 3 core Guest Post training videos
• Full transcripts for each video (PDF)
• Email Scripts
• Bonus Videos: Online Workshop Recording & How to Deal with Rejection

How to Network Fast by Jade Craven ($44)

• The Guest Posting Mini-Guide (PDF)
• The Twitter Mini-Guide (PDF)
• The Blog Commenting Mini-Guide (PDF)
• The Affiliate Mini-Guide (PDF)

Networking Awesomely by Colin Wright ($20)

• Networking Awesomely (PDF)

Article Marketing Traffic Booster by Henri Junttila ($47)

• Article Marketing Traffic Booster (110 -page PDF)
• 6 How-to Videos
• Bonus Audio Affiliate Interview
• 3 Content Worksheets

Yup, that’s a lot of information

There it is. 23 products worth $1,052 for only $97 if you Buy Now before 10am EST on December 2:

Click here to purchase the package

*Now for the small print. If you buy the package then Todd’s Wanderings gets a cut of the sales and we get to keep the lights on for a little while longer and the heat going for the winter. Like everything else on this site I would never recommend it if I didn’t a) buy it myself and b) think it is a good deal or incredibly useful to you.

Want a location independent life? 23 ebooks and courses to help you is a post from: Todd's Wanderings

Anja told it herself: she felt like an intruder as everybody was talking about social entrepreneurship while she was about to talk about design, more specifically about the creation-process of a designer. Don’t worry Anja, your franchise during the talk was just refreshing (although telling us that some customers give you a headache when chosing a color is probably a bit awkward). Anyway, now I know how the wall of the Gare of Soarano entry to the first store has been made. Have a look at it if you ever go to this place, she did it. Anyway, TED is also about Design, and you brought that design part of the game.

The interesting thing is that she keeps on reminding us that designers also draw.

Anja BessonRasolondraibe AKA A.B.R isn’t one of those designers that you can classify into one category that fits-it-all. Born in Paris, she attended graphical and object design at the Beaux-Arts in Paris, then went to Milan Naba  Nuova Accademia Di Belle Arti (Naba School) where she acquired deeper knowledge on interior and product design. Inspired by Italy’s artistic culture, she improved her drawing and photography skills under Enzo Mari’s supervision. As if she couldn’t stay too long in one place (she loves travelling), she moves back to Paris and joined Vogue Paris, and Agnes B. Those experiences matured her design skills, but i also lead her to meet her idol: Issey Miyake.

Want to “feel more” about the artist’s coup-de-coeur, visit her blog.

Malagasy rural people call their product “tôftôf”, you guessed it, we’re talking about ToughStuff a solar-power device used for lighting and small appliances distributed throughout Madagascar via old 2CV vehicles and bicycles.

I always wondered the reason for the “TOUGH” of this name, well I had my demo when Andrew just standed on one of the toughstuff lamp. As if it wasn’t enough, he threw one of the solar power onto the floor and it didn’t break (was it still working, I don’t know, but I guess he wouldn’t do that kind of demo it wasn’t supposed to work). On one of the video (ok, it’s more an advert), we could even see a child playing with one lamp and using it as a sailboat in the water, a 2CV run on the solar power and a funny passage showed one peasant still saying “still tough0″

Anyway, the toughstuff system is based on three principles:

- don’t give free stuff as people won’t value them

- reduce expenditure

- generate wealth

The toughstuff model is amazing, as there are almost 1.5 billion people in the world that can benefit from such solution.

BTW, if you ever have the chance to talk to Andrew Tanswell, don’t refer to the people constituing his segment market as “the base of the pyramid”:he hates it

Bio:Andrew Tanswell is the CEO of ToughStuff. A british citizen, he’s been working in the change management and in strategic positions for business extension  . He then opened his consulting niche-focused company for public and commercial clients. Andrew Tanswell has huge experience in international aid therough the Swiss Aid Agency Medair. He is a Global Social Benefit Incubator 2009 alumni. Andrew Tanswell is an experienced entrepreneur for start-up or buy-out and is passionate about the role of entrepreneurship for alleviating poverty.