Planning Ideas For A Romantic Getaway

The palm trees sway in the oceanic breeze, as the scent of fresh sea salt, pineapple juice and Jamaican Jerk chicken wafts through the air. There is not a single cloud in the cerulean sky and it seems there are no impurities in the soft powdery sand.

Looking over to your left, you see your lover, entranced by the lush surroundings that can only be described as "paradise." The sound of steel drums plays some distance away and this romantic vacation lifts your spirits far from hectic work tasks and far from the stress of achieving countless goals you've set for yourself. Isn't it about time you planned a romantic getaway?

Grand Lido (www.superclubs.com) is another popular name in romantic resorts. SuperClubs owns the Grand Lido franchise, as well the all-inclusive Breezes, Hedonism, Starfish and Rooms On The Beach. Grand Lido is their ultra-luxury brand, with resorts in Braco and Negril, Jamaica.

Once you pay one price, you'll receive all meals and snacks, all drinks from juice and sodas to top-shelf premium brands, all entertainment, all tips and gratuities, room costs, airfare fees and transfers, land sport rentals (for tennis, beach volleyball, flying trapeze, rock climbing walls, fitness center equipment, golf) and water sport rentals (scuba gear, snorkeling gear, kayaks, sail boats).

They also offer CD players in every room, free wedding vow renewals and piano bars that stay open late.

No matter which romantic getaway you choose, there will be no unpleasant surprises. You can take an effortless vacation, without worrying about bills, tips, gratuities, activity fees and currency exchange.

Before you make your decision, narrow down your choices and read traveler reviews of each romantic destination you find interesting. Was the food as good as they say? Were there any surprise charges?

How were the shows? Which rooms were most luxurious? Often the location of these resorts means little because you will spend most of your time on the private beach, in your plush room and enjoying all that the inclusive facility offers.

To read more Planning Ideas For A Romantic Getaway

Escaping Together For A Romantic Honeymoon

Romantic honeymoon destinations often depend upon the time of year one gets married. After all, the last place you want to find yourselves is in the middle of a hurricane evacuation! To a lesser extent, it would also be dismaying to pack a suitcase full of summer clothes, only to find that your chosen location is unexpectedly chilly at that time of year.

Whether you're planning your romantic travel for January or July, there is perfect weather awaiting you somewhere in the world.

You're snowbirds, what can you say? Your bridesmaids may have frowned when you informed them this December they'd be wearing sheer dresses and boots rather than heels, but this is your dream wedding.

There's something so tranquil about this time of year, with the snow lightly falling and white blanketing the world, causing you and your darling to huddle closer together. Yet, for your romantic honeymoon, you want to get away from the weather for a spell.

Las Vegas is the ideal romantic weekend in December. The cheapest time to visit is the weeks before Christmas and Sundays through Thursdays. You needn't gamble all your savings away.

Instead, you can stay off the strip at the brand new Platinum Hotel and Spa, where you'll enjoy Swiss showers, couples massages and plush suite amenities. If you're the adventurous types, why not try skydiving over Vegas from www.vegasextremeskydiving.com?

Come May, you can take a romantic honeymoon to the Greek Islands. This month is ideal for a Greek island vacation because it's a month before their high season and tourists are fewer.

The Katikies Hotel (www.katikies.com) looks down over blue waters and boasts a romantic atmosphere with its infinity pools, winding staircases, terraces and antiques. This romantic resort is also world renowned for their White Cave Restaurant, which is actually located inside a seaside cave.

Since there are only three tables there, you'll need to book your reservation in advance. With ancient architecture and Old World charm, you'll fall in love all over again on the Greek Islands.

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Time To Relax Together With A Romantic Honeymoon Vacation

"Most couples are looking for a place that is obviously romantic, but also a place to create memories," explains celebrity wedding planner Mindy Weiss. "After all, for most couples this can be their first real trip together."

For a romantic honeymoon vacation, she often recommends romantic resorts like One & Only Palmilla in Mexico and Parrot Cay in the Turks and Caicos. It's not unusual for couples to consider romantic accommodations over romantic destinations, she says, since so much time will likely be spent in the room and on the resort property, just enjoying each other's company and a bit of quiet after a harried wedding.

Service is a definitive factor for a romantic honeymoon vacation suite. "Couples are very aware of whether the hotel staff 'get them' and are turned on to how much attention or privacy they need," explains Anne Morgan Scully of McCabe World Travel.

Many of the most romantic resorts offer round-the-clock butler service, she adds. To offer greater seclusion and privacy, a number of resorts offer stand-alone villas with beach access from their terraces (like Parrot Cay in Turks and Caicos), suites separated from the rest of the resort with private entrances (like Palacio Duhau in Buenos Aires) and exclusive over-water beach bungalows (like Four Seasons in Bora Bora).

Choosing the right romantic honeymoon vacation involves checking the weather, the hurricane seasons, the tourist traffic and the romance level of different destinations. Some places are always hot, says Susan Moynihan, the Editor in Chief of Destination Weddings.

Hotel de Crillon in Paris, France offers romantic views of Place de la Concorde and packages with flowers, champagne and custom cocktails. Halekulani in Hawaii lavishes newlyweds with a bridal suite designed by designer Vera Wang, as well as access to Vera Wang bath products, flowers, china, glassware, movies and a romantic travel package that includes meals and other freebies.

The One & Only Palmilla in Mexico offers private yoga classes and couples massages in a private seaside cabana. Parrot Cay in Turks & Caicos delivers half-days of spa pampering in the Spa Cottage, along with a private dinner. The best romantic resorts go the extra mile to see that their guests are lavished with attention and special perks.

To read more Time To Relax Together With A Romantic Honeymoon Vacation

Couples Reducing Costs With A Romantic Vacation Package

Americans in general may be experiencing financial difficulties caused by the recession, but it's not affecting romantic luxury vacations, experts say. "People are generally going to take the holiday that they want," says Darren Noel, commercial director of www.hitched.co.uk.

"More and more places are accessible -- like Mauritius, Seychelles and the Caribbean," he adds. By budgeting, planning a year in advance and possibly postponing the holiday, couples are able to save for the more exotic hotspots they crave. Of course, there are many other ways to save on a romantic vacation package as well.

Couples who feel they may have trouble financing the romantic vacation package of their dreams can find help from family and friends. "There are a lot more honeymoon registries these days," says Kyle Brown, executive director of the Bridal Association of America.

Honeymoon registries are popular for first-time newlyweds who may not have as much savings and also for couples who are getting re-married, since they don't need all the home goods.

Honeymoon registries (like those found at www.sendusoff.com or www.honeymoonwishes.com) allow guests to give gifts like suite upgrades, romantic dinners, traveler's checks or cruise shore excursions to make romantic travel more affordable for the bride and groom.

Couples who are booking a cruise can often set up a gift registry right through their cruise line's website as well. Wedding guests often like this thoughtful type of gift purchase, which is ideal for couples who already have everything they need.

Couples can also get amazing bargains on a romantic vacation package if it's booked alongside a destination wedding. Hotel chains like Sandals and Palace Resorts offer complimentary weddings when the newlyweds agree to stay at the hotel for the honeymoon.

A seven-night stay for the couple and two guests at one of Sandal's 12 Caribbean properties will cost around $3,500 to $5,000. This price does not include airfare, but includes all meals, premium drinks, activities and rooms.

For more information on booking a destination wedding visit >www.sandals.com or www.palaceresorts.com.

To read more Couples Reducing Costs With A Romantic Vacation Package

Showing Your Thoughts With An Idea For Family Reunion Invitation

If you're planning your first inter-generational gathering, then you'll want to come up with a unique idea for family reunion invitations. After all, this invitation will be your first link to family members you may not have spoken to in awhile.

In that simple card and envelope, you need to inspire some of your faraway relatives to buy a plane ticket or take a long road trip to this worthwhile event. You want the family reunion to look organized, fun, important and enticing. While you could save a few bucks by printing out your own ragtag invites, you may want to consider some of these more innovative family reunion ideas.

Another creative idea for family reunion invites is to make a family calendar, with the date of the next reunion printed on it. If you choose this sneaky route, be sure you stick a post-it note to the cover, hinting to look very closely at the month of the reunion, so they don't miss it!

Creating a family reunion memories calendar is ideal for families who have had many gatherings in the past because you can use photos of past reunions for each month, which your family members will just love!

A good place to go for your family calendar needs is FedEx/Kinkos, which does 12-month calendars for $19.99 or 18-month calendars for $24.99 a piece. They allow you to use different photos for each month, so you can really pack a lot of memories in.

As the family reunion planner, you may be concerned about getting a tally for attendees at your big event. One idea for family reunion response eliciting is to use online invitations from a family reunion web site like www.purpletrail.com.

This website will let respondents RSVP with the click of a button, making the process as easy as reading the invite itself. They'll also be able to see who else has responded (which sometimes ups the count too), leave notes, announce what they'll be bringing and view other updated details about the party.

Best yet, the website also has built-in features like "Request a Response" and "Send a Reminder," which can automatically zing out additional emails to family members as the date draws near.

To read more Showing Your Thoughts With An Idea For Family Reunion Invitation

Tips And Ideas For Dealing With A Breakup

Dealing with a breakup can be a rather emotional time, when you need to start again. You can start by dating new people. You can take the long way and hope to meet new dates at social events, nightclubs and all night bars. The other option, is to find dates much quicker by going online and become a member of several dating sites.

From the comfort of your own home, you can go online and visit several dating sites. The really good sites have many dating resources, like online chat, live web cams, dating profiles of potential dates and many other dating facilities. Most of these dating sites charge a membership fee and you will find they are worth the cost.

Some dating sites are free, but have very limited resources and may not be as useful as the sites with many more dating resources. You may try out one or two free sites, just to gain experience with online dating and then look at joining better dating sites.

Dating sites have many resources you can use to meet new dates. There are online chatting facilities, live web cam dating and exchange emails. You can also place your dating profile on these dating sites, so that potential dates can contact you. You can also browse through the dating profiles to find appealing dates.

You can meet all these potential dates, from the comfort of your own home, just by online dating. These are some of the many options when you are dealing with a breakup and need to start again.

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Creating Lasting Memories With Family Reunions

You might look at the $1,000 price-tag of some rentals for family reunions and instinctively say, "No way!" However, if you really think about it, what's $10 to $20 per person to have amazing entertainment at your event that creates lasting family reunion memories?

Some families ask everyone to bring an old item lying around the house to auction or raffle off at their reunions, which is a good way to drum up money for next year's reunion rentals.

You could rent a game show, a murder mystery acting troupe, a karaoke machine or a bounce house, for instance. Here are some family reunion tips and ideas to get you started.

Sumo suits can be a blast at family reunions. For about $375/weekend, you could rent an inflatable sumo wrestler suit to liven up the party. Do you have that one cousin you've secretly always wanted to battle?

Imagine grappling in a ridiculous-looking sumo suit for supremacy! This is one of the family reunion activities that can even get teenagers involved. If you plan this family reunion rental, then make sure someone has a camera handy to capture all those family reunion memories! For more information on ordering and shipping, visit www.sumonationwide.com.

When you send out your family reunion invitation itineraries, you may want to let everyone know about what you've booked to get them excited! Let them know that you've taken the time to creatively plan family reunion activities, games and events for both kids and adults to enjoy.

If you've had trouble reeling in far-away folks in the past, you'll no longer have a hard time when you consider rentals for family reunions!

To read more Creating Lasting Memories With Family Reunions

Planning Family Reunion Festivities For A Night To Remember

Often times we collect so much junk lying around the house, it's crazy. So, when planning family reunion festivities, why not ask each family member to bring one special item to auction or raffle off?

Perhaps it's an antique piece of furniture that's just been collecting dust, a piece of old jewelry, a knick-knack, baked goods or an article of clothing that no longer fits.

The proceeds can then go toward organizing future family reunions, which will take some of the stress off the family reunion planner. With a little creativity, your family reunion can be the best it's ever been.

Planning family reunion events can encourage friendly competition and be a rite-of-initiation for new spouses, boyfriends and coming-of-age teens. Active outdoor games like football or volleyball are great for younger and middle aged family member bonding, while they also entertain the older family members who get to cheer from the sidelines.

An excellent game for family members of all ages is a water balloon toss. To play, you simply fill up water balloons and have your relatives form two lines across from one another. Simultaneously, each partner tosses the balloon to their cohort. If the cohorts catch the balloons, then everyone moves one step back.

If a family member drops the balloon, both individuals are eliminated. This continues on until only two family members remain the victors! These outdoor activities make fun family reunions the best they can be.

Planning family reunion festivities sometimes requires a bit of forethought. For instance, when you send out the family reunion invitations, you could ask each family member to bring a baby picture with them to the gathering.

You can then assemble all the pictures on a bulletin board, next to a corresponding number. Then you can pass out numbered sheets of paper and have the other family members try to guess who is who.

The person who guesses the most correct wins! Sometimes the game will be funny because the current set of babies will be obvious guesses! Some of the older family members may have such antique-looking photos, they'll be easier to guess too, but some of the middle-aged family members may be a real mystery.

It's always fun to see what photos people feel best represents themselves too.

To read more Planning Family Reunion Festivities For A Night To Remember

Find Your Next Date With A Totally Free Online Dating Site

Totally free online dating site is available for those who wish to take advantage of free dating services. Many of these sites may offer chatting, webcam and dating profiles of singles in your area.

Some of these dating sites offer free services with limited facilities. If you wish to take advantage of more and better dating resources, then you have to pay a membership fee.

If you find the limited resources of free sites rather restrictive and of limited usefulness,then you should consider taking advantage of better dating facilities, to help you find better dates online.

There are many advantages of using dating websites. You can go online anytime. You do not have to wait for the weekend to come around, or to attend a range of social events in order to find your next date.

Some of the paid membership sites offer the option of a free site with limited resources. You can try out one of these sites and if you find you are happy with these sites, then you can take advantage of the additional facilities with a paid membership.

To read more Find Your Next Date With A Totally Free Online Dating Site

Escaping Together With Romantic Getaway Packages

Romantic getaway packages can be found online including travel agency websites. If your plan is to spend a few days together, escaping from the daily grind of work, social and family pressures, then spending time together may be your best option. Sometimes, a weekend together, is enough to regenerate the love for each other.

You do not need to spend a small fortune just to spend a few days together. Look, you can be pampered with five star accommodation, all night room service with spa and beauty treatments or take the more affordable option by taking a road trip to a place outside your home town and stay the weekend at a bed and breakfast.

Another option is to search Google maps and find locations you want to travel and find out about the accommodation options in the area. Then you can find out the prices by visiting the websites of relevant locations and make all your bookings before you leave for your road trip.

This way, you will have created your own romantic getaway packages.

To read more Escaping Together With Romantic Getaway Packages

Organizing Reunions With Reunion Planning Software

If you're a seasoned reunion planning pro, then you won't need to get help organizing your family reunion from a software program. However, if you're new at the game, then a few well-organized checklists, address books, surveys and budget calculators would be a world of help.

Sometimes you may catch yourself feeling stressed for no good reason. Likely it's just that you need to take a moment, sit down, collect your thoughts and make a few lists. There are several different family reunion software packages to choose from.

Other features of the $29.95 Family Reunion Organizer reunion planning software allows you to plan family reunion vacations or select an appropriate reunion location, whether it is a cruise ship, a park, a backyard, a VFW post, a restaurant or another venue.

You'll get advice on making reservations and creating maps for out-of-town relatives. Creating reunion invitations is easy, given all the information contained in the software program. You can print and mail invitations or use the program to create a custom family reunion web page for you to alert family members of your plans.

There are also budget calculators, shopping list templates, expense tracking forms, committee delegation listing, fundraising suggestions and activity planning suggestions.

Another alternative to reunion planning software is to simply create your own lists in MS Word or spreadsheets in Excel. Of course, you can't be sure you're covering all bases necessarily.

You won't need these programs if you're just having a simple family gathering, per say, but if you're interested in preserving your family history, learning as much as you can about other family members and gathering the tools to be more committed to remembering birthdays and staying in touch, then you will find this tool to be a great asset.

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Creating Memories With Family Reunion Planning

Family reunion planning can be as extravagant or as simple as you want it to be. Some families plan dinners at the house or picnics at the park, while other families prefer staying at all-inclusive resorts and taking family reunion vacations together.

Any way you look at it, memories will be created, whether you burned that peach cobbler or not! So there's no use stressing out over the minute details. Yet you may be thinking that is easier said than done, so here are some tips for organizing a stress-free and fun reunion.

To avoid the stress of family reunion planning, some families choose to go on a reunion vacation that is arranged by a travel agent. For as low as $98/night, you could take a Vermont family reunion vacation at Tyler Place resort (www.tylerplace.com).

For $119/night, a family of four can rent a cabin at the YMCA campground in the Rocky Mountains (www.ymcarockies.org). For $179/person, a family of four could stay four nights at the Atlantis family reunion resort in the Bahamas.

"Over the past few years, we have seen a marked change in the numbers of large family groups traveling together," says Lauren Snyder, CMO, Atlantis Paradise Island Resorts. "As a result, we've upgraded our connecting rooms and created a Family Olympics program for large groups, including events on the beach and trophies for the winning team." As you can see, there are many options for your group to travel at affordable prices.

The most important thing to remember is that family reunion planning should be fun. The key to a stress-free family reunion is to plan well in advance, thus giving yourself enough time to get everything done.

Before you mail out family reunion invitations, send out a survey asking family members to number their top 3 choices (out of a list you've compiled) for an upcoming gathering. On the list, you could write family reunion ideas like someone's home, a Carnival Cruise, a mountain cabin, national park, YMCA park, banquet hall, restaurant, or an all-inclusive resort.

Be sure to do a little research and come up with price quotes and specific places so you can help family members select something in their budget. There are limitless possibilities, but you want as many kin to attend as possible, so it's important to survey before you book.

You can't please everyone, but at least you'll arrive at a general consensus.

To read more Creating Memories With Family Reunion Planning

Tips For Planning A Family Reunion

Organizing a family reunion is a lot of work, with the cooking, cleaning, supervising kids, finding sleeping arrangements for all relatives and deciding upon transportation. For these reasons, many far-flung families are deciding to meet at sea, where gourmet meals are covered and planned activities make the gathering more memorable than ever!

There are activities suitable for everyone on a cruise and the neutral territory will prevent anyone from feeling like they're "intruding" upon another family's space. A family reunion cruise can be easily arranged through a travel agency or a company like World Voyager Vacations.

The best way to plan a destination family reunion is to stick to the basics and not over-stress. Focus on the cruise line and family reunion location. Be sure the cruise line knows you're planning to make this a reunion and travel together. Don't worry about shore excursions, dining times or other minute details beforehand.

It's best to see what everyone is up for when the time comes, but you could email everyone with updates and details to get them excited, such as which shore excursions are available, which port stops are on the itinerary and when family members must book by to receive the promotional rates. Not surprisingly, a lot of planners go with a travel agent to get the best deals.

When choosing a cruise line for your next family reunion, try to find a ship line that specializes in family reunion vacations. For instance, Royal Caribbean offers VIP room amenities, rock wall climbing sessions, on-board family scavenger hunts, a reunion trivia challenge, door decorations and personalized cakes.

Disney Cruise Line's family package includes personalized t-shirts and commemorative certificates. Carnival offers complimentary champagne and chocolates or private cocktail parties for groups of 8 or more.

Holland America's family reunion program (for five or more rooms) gives guests a family photo, a 20-punch beverage card and one of the following: a choice of dinner in the Pinnacle Grill, free snorkel rental, free swim mat rental, or free banana boat rides on Half Moon Cay. For families booking ten or more rooms, the family patriarch gets an upgrade from a stateroom to a veranda.

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Showing Your Gratitude With A Wedding Party Favor

Of all the guests that attend your wedding this year, none are as prized as your intimate wedding party. These are the men and women you and your fiancé have specially chosen to stand up and be a part of your special day. Some of these people have probably been friends since childhood.

Some of them are also probably close family members like siblings or cousins. These are people who respect and value this new life you're creating and who will stand by you always.

That being said, it can be pretty tricky selecting the right wedding party favor to show your gratitude for their friendship. Wedding gifts for this party should be thoughtful, slightly more expensive and personalized than the other guests' gifts.

For the groom's men, you may want to go classy and select engraved cufflinks from www.groomstand.com for $18-$50. Along this vein, you can also select personalized sports watches, pocket watches or business card holders to impress your classy friends.

Visit www.mygroomsmengifts.com for more details. Or, another option is go the drinker's route by choosing personalized wedding gifts like a monogrammed flask, beer mug or pub sign, which can be found at www.weddingfavorsunlimited.com.

Home Wet Bar (www.homewetbar.com, $60) also offers little travel bar sets that allow you to transport your favorite cognac, whiskey or brandy in a leather case with glasses, a 10 ounce flask, a funnel and two matching coasters.

The wine-themed wedding party favor is a big hit among both men and women. You can create your own customized wine bottles at www.customwinesource.com, which can be a relaxing treat after the hustle and bustle of a busy wedding. Other interesting items include wine carrying bags (www.thingsfestive.weddingstar.com, $27.98), wine stopper/bottle opener sets (www.thingsfestive.weddingstar.com, $17.98), a wine collar/stopper/pouring spout set (www.brookstone.com, $25), wine and chocolate or wine sampler sets (www.wine.com, $40-$80) and personalized wine glasses (www.engravedgiftcreations.com, $14.99).

At www.wealthwood.com, you'll find a number of unique wine wedding favor ideas, such as personalized wine holders, wine carrier totes, wine coolers, leather carriers, bottle bags and more.

To read more Showing Your Gratitude With A Wedding Party Favor

Better Ideas For Destination Wedding Favors

Having a destination wedding can be very rewarding for the bride and groom, who probably have always dreamt of a far-off, idyllic beach wedding. Yet, for friends and family members, this forced vacation may be slightly outside their comfort zones.

For this reason, many brides and grooms make up special "welcome baskets" that are held at the hotel where their guests are staying to ensure that they feel comfortable. Inside the personalized favor bags they'll find homemade treats, snacks, bottled water or champagne, mints, scented candles, tissues, soaps, guide maps of the local area and other essentials.

In addition to these welcome baskets, the bride and groom will also have to decide on themed wedding favors that further reflect their personality and interests.

Drinks are popular wedding favors, no matter which theme you have. For instance, a Victorian themed wedding might package up coffee and tea in tulle, pearls and vintage wrap.

Tropical destination weddings often feature pouches of cocktail mixes that may include margaritas, cosmopolitans or pina coladas. Asian themed weddings naturally lend themselves to tea favor/party supplies.

All of these special themed items could be given out for less than $1 each but if wrapped thoughtfully, the sentimentality can still make your guests feel appreciated.

Many couples opt to purchase wedding favors upon their arrival at the destination to save the stress of packing them. Often times, local companies include unique wedding favors right in the destination wedding package to make it more convenient for their clients.

If you are packing your own favors, avoid glass and breakable items, as well as chocolate or anything with powder. If you're only having a few guests, it's not uncommon to skip the beach themed wedding favors altogether and simply dole out "thank-you" cards with gift cards or just pay for a post-wedding breakfast meal.

To read more Better Ideas For Destination Wedding Favors