Luxury vacations aren't always best spent relaxing by the pool in between spa treatments. Those are great pampering (non)activities, but the real luxury, of being in a different place or culture, can be lost when guests don't leave the resort property. Luxury Travel has discussed the benefits of LiveMocha before: This free website helps travel planners learn the basics of a new language before traveling. It enhances any vacation, luxury or otherwise, to be able to communicate even a little with locals in a foreign destination. A deeper appreciation for the language, people, and history of a vacation destination can only be a good thing, right? There are, in fact, several ways to create positive travel experiences, and the memories they create. Here are some tips.
Best Tips for a Meaningful Vacation Abroad
Learn about the foreign country. Besides a possibly different language, there are different cultural aspects that vary even within a country's borders. Understanding the relationship between a country's history and current cultural attributes enhances interactions with locals. Further, cultural knowledge can help prevent any cross-cultural misunderstandings.
Take a day-long (or even weekend-long) local cuisine class. Everybody eats, of course; vacations are famous for what can loosely be called "enhanced food appreciation." Many destinations offer special courses to visitors related to a country's cuisine. Culinary vacations are growing in popularity - for example, some chefs in Tuscany takes guests through the step-by-step process of preparing a full, authentic Italian meal.
Find long-lost relatives. Family trees have many branches. These days, genetic tests are available for just about anyone who wants one (they're not free). Filling in some of those blanks on the family tree is incredibly fulfilling. Some people believe that we cannot fully appreciate who we are without knowing where we came from; how better to achieve this than through a visit to another land, the land of our forebears? Ireland is especially known for its guided tours of the ancestral lands of Irish Americans.
Take a guided tour of the city's architecture or history. These are common in most important and major cities of historical or architectural interest, and can deepen appreciation for modern architecture and current events as well.
Learn the language, even just a little. As previously noted, LiveMocha has, at no cost, foreign language instruction. The opportunity to try out new language abilities with native speakers adds to this with live audio chat. Languages available for this include not just French, Italian, and Spanish (the big hitters, so to speak), but also Russian, Icelandic, Japanese, Mandarin, and German. It's a very active online language learning community.
Thanks, LiveMocha! These are some of the best tips to help get the most out of any trip to a foreign destination. After all, the best luxury vacations are ones in which valuable experiences are shared, and lifelong memories are created.
Jennifer W. Miner - Jennifer has years of travel writing experience, spoken at several national conferences, and more. See Jendeavor.com for more details.
