Vacation Home Rentals

posted by Vacation Home Rentals on Mar 11

Last week I flew back to Glasgow airport from a short business trip to Frankfurt with a colleague.

On my return flight to Glasgow from Frankfurt last week I unfortunately shared my flight with a disturbingly drunk and unpleasant passenger.

We had just taken off from Frankfurt airport when a chap seated about three rows in front of myself and my colleague left his seat and headed towards the lavatories. This was before the ‘fasten seatbelts’ light had been turned off so the vigilant flight attendants wated no time in telling him that he needed to return to his seat.

He wasn’t in the mood to be co-operative, clearly already seriously inebriated he became argumentative and obstreperous with the patient flight attendants. Eventually he sat back down but as soon as he was able his finger was on the flight attendant call button and he was ordering more booze.

No more than 10 minutes into the flight our belligerent European co-passenger was on his feet again, this time trying to make friends with some of his fellow passengers, none of whom wanted to engage in conversation with him. Several times, as flight attendants passed his seat, he leaned over and tapped them on the backside. They were very clear in their warnings about his behaviour but he persisted in annoying fellow passengers until we landed at Glasgow.

There have been a number of high profile reports of worrying incidents in which drunk passengers have been responsible for putting the lives of themselves their fellow travellers at risk. In one incident a drunk male passenger tried to open the aircraft’s emergency door while they were at 30,000 feet. This resulted in the passenger being rewarded with a jail sentence.

In another recent incident a drunk woman, on a plane flying to Tenerife, hurled abuse at the flight attendants. She was handed a two month jail sentence for her unacceptable drunken behaviour.

Disturbing occurrences like this one force us to ask, ‘Is it ever acceptable to serve alcohol on aircraft?’

To save money on Glasgow airport parking I always go online and book in advance with Gosimply.com.

posted by Vacation Home Rentals on Mar 9

Historic Scottish Castles

Many people in the UK are considering ‘staycations’ this year, instead of jetting off for sun drenched holidays in the Canaries or the Costa del Sol. Staying at home and visiting many interesting destinations that are within easy reach is becoming increasingly popular as people try to save money and lessen their carbon footprints.

One destination that is proving increasingly popular is Scotland. One of the main attractions that brings people to Scotland is the countries colourful history.

Scotland has a wealth of ancient and often bloody history. There have been many battles on Scottish soil and the country is littered with ancient castles and grand homes. The armed forces used many stately homes and castles during the second world war for troops and hospitals. Some became damaged and run down leading to their demolition. It’s interesting to note that during the 1960s around one large house was pulled down every week somewhere in Scotland.

Luckily this practice came to an end but property owners were faced with huge maintenance and repair costs. Many have now been restored into functioning homes and hotels like the magnificent Glenapp Castle hotel which was acquired by hoteliers in 1994. Lengthy and expensive restoration has turned this not-so-ancient castle into a popular luxurious hotel.

Many ancient Scottish castles are nothing more than ruins, no longer occupied or maintained. Castle Sween is one such fantastic, historic ancient castle. This castle was originally built in the 11th or 12th centuries and was names after a Dane called Sueno. Robert the Bruce captured the castle in 1315.

To make the most of any visit to a Scottish castle it is useful to have some knowledge of the castle history. This will really bring your visit to life as you picture the people who lived, loved, worked and died in the castle.

I can recommend a tour of ancient Scottish castles and monuments as truly fantastic and memorable holiday experience.

When flying from Edinburgh or Glasgow I always book my Edinburgh Airport Parking or my Glasgow Airport Parking space in advance as this always gives me savings of up to 60%.

posted by Vacation Home Rentals on Feb 5

For quite a few years now a group of the so-called “budget airlines” in Europe have been taking part in a fares war attempting to offer the cheapest fares to a host of European cities. It’s quite normal to read that one of the leading low cost carriers such as Easyjet or Ryanair has an offer of return flights from the UK to France, Spain or Germany for £1 (approx $1.45). There might be taxes and airport landing fees to be added to the fare, but it’s still a real bargain if you’re looking to see a variety of European cities. One of the biggest drawbacks of these flights is that they frequently make use of to the smaller local airports rather than the more well known biginternational ones. This can mean that a flight that is supposed to be flying to a major European city actually lands up to 50 miles away. In fact there are a number of advantages with this situation, the regional airports will normally provide a much slicker service on check-in and luggage since they’re catering for a lot less flights. The disadvantage is that public transport to and from these airports can be patchy at best and a very popular option is hiring a car from the airport. Here are a variety of the beautiful cities that we’ve visited whilst making use of cheap floghts from the low cost airlines. We are confident that you would enjoy visiting any of these fine areas, without doubt they have a lot to offer to visitors to their country.

Glasgow, Scotland

Glasgow, once known for its hard, unforgiving living conditions has seen a Renaissance and is now a wonderful, architecturally diverse city welcoming a vast number of tourists throughout the year. The trendy West side of Glasgow is the home of the fourth oldest university in the United Kingdom. Situated on a hill amidst the Medieval district of the city, its students add greatly to the fun loving and vibrant atmosphere of that area. The budget carriers use Prestwick Airport some 35 miles (51 km) to the north east of the centre of Glasgow and there is an excellent road between the airport and the city centre. This is a popular area for sightseeing, so you are advised to hire a car at Prestwick before setting out on your trip. A congestion free half hour drive from the airport along the M77 motorway takes you to the city centre. Glasgow is an ideal base for an adventure in the Trossachs National Park. A mere 20 km (13 mile) drive out of the city and you might discover stunning countryside seated upon a pony, whereas a 30 mile (50 km) drive eastwards using another excellent motorway will find you in Edinburgh , the city of festivals complete with Princes Street shopping, castle, palace and the seaside.

Florence, Italy

Without doubt one of the most stunningly beautiful locations in Europe, Florence is served by the airport at Pisa, which is 84 km (50 miles) west of Florence. Hire a car at Florence airport and you’ll be in position to explore Pisa’s leaning tower, majestic Florence and a selection of Europe’s most picturesque countryside, that of the majestically beautiful Tuscany. It is therefore not surprising that Florence is high in the popularity stakes when considering European cities. Once you arrive at the city of Florence you will find that a large proportion of the centre of the city is pedestrianized thus preserving the many ancient statues and architectural treasures from the vibrations and pollution associated with heavy traffic. As a result you are overtaken by a feeling of tranquility as you wander from one fragment of history to the next. You don’t have to stray too far before being hit by the ghastly, ear piercing roar from Florence’s legion of scooter riders. Apart from the Ponte Vecchio all of the bridges leading to centre of the city are noisy, polluted places, thus giving us an added incentive to stay within the narrow alleyways and peaceful sanctuaries of Florence’s beautiful piazzas.

Tours, France

Tours is the ideal centre for touring France’s wonderful Loire valley and its magnificent chateaux The ideal centre for discovering the Loire Valley famed for its wonderful selection of palatial residences, Tours boasts a number of charms of its own. Although the little airport is only a few miles out of town, you really need to hire a car at Tours airport in order to explore some of the most stunning towns and villages in the whole of France. A host of cultural treasures can be found along the banks of the Loire. A UNESCO site, the Loire Valley offers beautiful countryside, lots of flamboyant castles plus a good smattering of historic villages. Originally the “Retreat of Kings” back in the days of the Renaissance and the middle ages, the Loire Valley was a firm savourite of the French monarchy. Originally constructed as working fortified castles, the buildings were transformed into the palatial chaeaux that you will find today. Tourists from around the world are drawn to the historic towns that are situated along the banks of the Loire. Towns such as Blois, Chinon and Tours have lots to see and do whilst the most popular of all the chateaux is possibly that on the Chambord Estate. Throughout the region you will find little, family owned vineyards offering a variety of great wines at very low prices. Look out for the word “degustation”, which means sampling I guess, and provided that ‘Le Patron’ is not enjoying a long leisurely lunch you will be made very welcome and he will be delighted to offer you a tasting of all his wines. Of course, it is vital that you take a tee-totaller as your chauffer, some of these tasting sessions can become extremely alcoholic!.