Weekend vacations are incredibly underrated. First, they are a great way to escape daily hassles, de-stress, relax, and unwind on a weekend. Second, weekend trips have many benefits. Imagine, you can explore a new destination without spending a fortune, travel even with a 9 to 5 job, and see the lesser-known towns in your area. I bet this is really cool! But how do you go about it? How to plan a weekend getaway?

While planning a weekend adventure might seem like an easy task, it actually involves some work. You will still need to think about budget, where to stay, what to pack, food, and, the most important thing, how to keep your luggage light! However, it can’t compare to a long, annual trip. In this post, I’m going to give you some killer tips to help you plan the best weekend trip ever. These are the basics people usually forget while planning a weekend away, but taking them into account when planning your fun 48 hours will make a huge difference in your overall enjoyment of the journey!

Top Travel Tips for Planning a Weekend Getaway

So you’re on a mission to plan a weekend trip but still unsure where to start? Fret not. In fact, you can even do your weekend planning last minute!

1. Think About What Kind of Trip You Want

Start by identifying your travel goals and reasons you want to visit a particular destination. Are you looking to get off the grid so you can forget about your job for two days, or are you looking to visit a location you’ve always wanted?

When planning a weekend getaway, think about what kind of trip you’re hoping for. This will help you narrow down selecting a destination and get the creativity flowing. Once you know what kind of trip you’re looking for, come up with a list of destinations, whether it’s cities, small towns, or countryside getaways.

2. Choose the Right Time To Go

Next, you’ll want to figure out when you will be traveling, because that will determine your packing list, accommodation options, and the booking process, which may involve getting permits in National or State Parks.

Choosing the right time to go depends on what you want to do while you are there. Whether it is boating, sightseeing, hiking, camping, or spending time at the beach. Obviously, you can’t predict weather two weeks ahead but it’s important to get a reliable weekend weather forecast. It’s a no-brainer, they can adversely affect your travel experience.

Flooded country roads make it hard to access remote areas, heavy downpours can spoil your plan of a bike trip. Suffocating heat and humidity can shed away your dream of hiking making it unbearable and risky as well. However, with a little planning ahead, you can actually save yourself from these bad experiences.

Today, social media and apps have a very deep impact on our lives and they help us way beyond. So here is the time to make the most of your smartphone. The best way to plan a mini-vacation is to add cities you wish to travel to your phone’s weather app. The moment you check the weather for the location you are in, you can also check to find how the weather will be in your future destinations as well.

3. Choose a Destination And be Flexible About It

Once you have decided when you are traveling, it’s time to think about where you want to go.

When it comes to picking a destination, keep your mind open.

The beauty of a small trip is that it can lead you to unexpected places. You may find inspiration as you browse Facebook pages and stumble upon your friends’ recent post about a nearby place they ventured to, or you may find a great travel deal.

With that said, perhaps you want to explore the city you live in, and that can be a rewarding experience! This brings a lot of practical advantages too. At the end of your workweek, you won’t have to rush to the airport or worry about forgetting things. You can start a mini-vacation whenever you want it.

However, if you plan on leaving your home town, compare flights, hotels, and car deals to/in nearby destinations to determine the best trip for the weekend you’re looking to a weekend getaway. You can also research what’s going on in those destinations. Check whether there are concerts, shows, and festivals coming up you’d like to attend.

Keep in mind if you have only 2-3 days, it’s best to pick a destination that is no more than a three- to four-hour plane ride away so as not to eat too much into your actual trip.

If you’re feeling adventurous and want to hike popular trails, pick your destination accordingly? Making sure you will be able to do what corresponds to your desire will help you pick exactly the right place.

Your travel buddies can also dictate the destination. If it’s a solo trip, of course, you have a place that speaks to you. But if you are looking for things to do with friends on the weekend, options can differ dramatically since they too have their own bucket list. Comparing places on your lists may help you come to a compromise, or maybe you’re lucky and everyone already wants to visit the same place.

Whatever the case, keeping an open mind and being flexible will help you embrace the weekend – and with that attitude, you’re sure to have an amazing time wherever you end up!

4. Budget For a Weekend Getaway

It’s easy to plan a weekend getaway within two days, but your budget will largely determine where you want to go to. With so many things you need to pay out each month, it can be hard to save up even for a weekend trip. In fact, money stress is one of the most significant things that prevent people from traveling. However, with some budgeting and forward planning, you can avoid overspending on your credit card and plan for a small trip.

To make budgeting easier and simpler, set aside money in a vacation budget before you even start planning. You can open a separate vacation savings account and set up auto-payments that deposit to it every week or month. You will end up having a decent amount of money to pay for accommodation or airline tickets. My friend uses this trick so that he always has enough money for a vacation trip in case an opportunity to travel comes up.

If you’re looking for easy ways to save money for travel consider using tools such as Digit and Qapital that let you accumulate money without thinking about it. These apps can help transfer “extra” money into a dedicated account that you can use for vacation purposes. Similar to a savings account, you can withdraw your money when you’re ready to use it. Otherwise, set it and let it grow!

As you actively put money away for a weekend getaway, you will be more likely to put it to good use and plan an incredible trip.

5. Check Your Car For the Trip Or Keep an Eye Out on Flight Deals

There are many ways to save on weekend getaways and even more of companies that can help you do so! To ensure your weekend trip goes smoothly, you should next determine whether you travel by plane or opt for using your own vehicle.

If you choose the latter, have your car undergo technical check-up and maintenance before leaving your city. It is a good idea to make sure your driving license and insurance are valid. Download offline maps and update the map data to prepare for your road trip. Don’t forget to plan out your perfect route and decide when the best time to leave will be.

If you are flying, check your passport (ensure it’s valid) and book your airline tickets. Look at Skyscanner or a similar flight search engine and score some great deals for cheap flights.

Consider signing up for airline newsletters that will deliver travel deals straight to your inbox. If you don’t want to limit yourself only to only newsletters, you can also proactively search for deals from airlines, travel companies, hotels, and more. I’m also loyal to Star Alliance (Lufthansa, United Airlines, Air China), and I keep tabs on their travel deals by skimming the occasional emails they send.

6. Plan Your Stay

No weekend trip is complete without finding proper accommodation. Arguably one of the most important things you need to factor in, finding the best and cheapest room for your weekend trip requires some effort. Moreover, since you only have two or three days, the location should be your top priority.

Here are some tips and advice to help you decide, and choose the right travel accommodation:

Beach Getaway: To maximize your time, find accommodation near the beach to reduce the amount of time traveling from your room to where the beach is.

Romantic Getaway: To create unforgettable memories while on vacation consider staying at a luxurious suite in a 4+ star hotel or villa. if you planning a hike for your next outdoor adventure go glamping or turn your tent into an amazing staycation.

Family Getaway: If you travel in a group or with your family go camping or book an apartment-style hotel/Airbnb so that kids can move around. Apartment-style hotels with kitchen and hostels are great for anyone looking for a sociable atmosphere with friends.

7. Plan & Manage Your Vacation Itinerary

When planning out your weekend trip itinerary, it’s vital to take into account the logistical details so you don’t end up spending all your time running from one side of a city to another. Calculate the average time it takes to get to each activity, landmarks, and how far the different activities are from one another. If you can’t afford to add an extra day to your weekend trip, try to cluster the places that are located near one another during the same time blocks of your day.

Pro Tip: Put together a list of things that interest you in the area and save their locations on Google Maps so you can keep track of where everything is and have a clear travel itinerary.

Things look a bit different when it comes to indulging in activities that require pre-book a selected time-slot (some museums require this, as do more adventurous activities). Beyond that, I just keep the bucket list I created days in advance saved on my phone and bring it up whenever I’ve finished an activity and I’m ready to move further. This prevents me from feeling anxious about not seeing everything and makes for a more relaxed trip overall.

8. Decide What To Book in Advance

When you plan a weekend getaway you’ll want to maximize your travel time and know exactly what are the best places to see and the best free things to do.

As much as I like to just show up, some weekend planning is a good idea before heading towards a popular bucket list destination in high season or there is a risk that the tour might be booked out by the time you get there.

Popular attractions like Alcatraz in San Francisco and Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London are booked out well in advance, so you will waste your time showing up without a prior reservation.

Research and organize your tickets to any museums, theatres, and festivals, etc. Another simple way to save money on attractions is to purchase City Passes. Research those in your weekend planning!

Dubai Desert Safari is the most popular tourist attraction in Dubai. The tour offers an amazing buffet restaurant that serves delicious food every day.

We have made a list of everything you need to know about this place. So that when you visit it next time, you would know what’s going on there.

Buffet Dinner

Buffet dinner is included in the price of Dubai Desert Safari. Even though it’s not a free meal, it’s still very affordable and worth trying out. You will get to enjoy a variety of dishes like fish or meat with rice or pasta. It even offers salad, fruits, and desserts prepared by a chef.

The buffet dinner can be served in multiple ways:

• You can choose between two or three options for each dish on the menu. Then there’ll be more choices when you add them all up together. This makes it easy for people who don’t know what they want yet!
• The service staff will serve everything on individual plates. So that everyone has plenty left over after eating their fill!

For a buffet, you need to reach the place 45min in advance:

To enjoy the buffet, you need to reach the place 45min in advance. You can book online or call the hotel and tell them that you are going for a desert safari. They will then send an employee out with a camel who will take you all around their reserve.

They will be showing off some of their most popular attractions. All will be done while educating you on what they have been doing here over the years.

If you arrive late, there won’t be any food left because once it’s gone then so is your money! This is why it’s important not only to book but also to arrive early. So that they can provide you with excellent service at all times!

There are several different buffets available at Dubai Desert Safari. If you prefer something more casual than formal dining then try one of their buffet options such as ‘The Grill’ or ‘The Asia’.

Before the buffet, there are plenty activities to enjoy:

1) Dune Bashing

Dune bashing is a fun activity that allows you to drive your Jeep across the sand. It’s not as easy as it sounds and requires some preparation before you go. You’ll need to buy an official dune bashing kit.

It includes everything from helmets and body protection to emergency medical kits and fire extinguishers.

Once you’ve got everything ready, head over to the dunes so that your guide can explain how everything works. Remember: always follow directions from your guide at all times!

2) Camel Rides

The camel ride is a great activity for children and adults alike. You can choose to ride on the same old, tired camels that you see every day in the city. You can even opt for a more exciting experience by riding with Arabian horses.

The duration of your trip will be 2-3 hours. It will be enough time to explore all Dubai Desert Safari’s attractions. You’ll also have plenty of time to enjoy some lunch before heading back out into the desert again!

3) Sandboarding

Sandboarding is an exciting activity that you can do on the dunes of Dubai Desert Safari. Sandboarding involves riding a board made of wood or fiberglass over the dunes and enjoying the view from above as you speed along. You must be at least 12 years old to participate in this activity. It involves getting up close to nature’s beauty.

You will need to wear protective goggles, gloves, and a helmet before starting your sandboarding session. This type of adventure is perfect for kids who want something different than riding their bikes around town or going shopping in malls!

4) Live Belly Dance

If you like to be entertained, then the belly dancer is a very talented performer. The belly dancer is a very beautiful performer and the audience will love her performance. She will make your trip worthwhile by providing some amazing entertainment for all of your friends and family members who are going too!

Conclusion

We hope this guide will help you plan the perfect trip to Dubai Desert Safari. We also know how much of a treat it is to get yourself the best meal of your life at Dubai Desert Safari. So you can imagine that this is one event most food lovers would love to attend!

Now that you know all about the Dubai desert safari buffet, isn’t it time to book your ticket? The dinner menu is extensive and there are numerous options for you to choose from. So, don’t worry if you love a variety of dishes. Just book your ticket now!

For Filipinos, Hong Kong is one of the top of mind travel destinations in Asia for its numerous tourist attractions, growing recreational activities, and simply vibrant metropolis.
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You only need to hop on an hour-and-a-half flight from the Philippines to Hong Kong. Plus, it’s visa-free for Philippine passport holders!

After almost three years of closed borders due to COVID-19, Hong Kong reopened the city to tourists in May 2022 with strict restrictions and guidelines. Eventually, the rules eased up following the improvements in the pandemic situation.

If you’re planning to go to Hong Kong this 2023, here are five essential things to know and prepare for ahead of your trip.

1. Rapid Antigen Test requirement within 24 hours before scheduled flight

While Hong Kong waived the RT-PCR test and isolation requirements, a self-administered Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) is still required within 24 hours before the flight departure time.

You should keep a photo of a negative result of your RAT test throughout your Hong Kong trip for inspection, or you may also voluntarily submit your test result through Hong Kong’s Department of Health’s health declaration form link.

2. Wearing of face mask is still mandated

Wearing a face mask is still required in Hong Kong, especially in public spaces and public transport vehicles. However, you may remove it if you’re in a country park or are conducting a strenuous physical activity.

3. Credit cards and electronic payments are widely accepted

For those who are traveling cashless, fret not, as most of Hong Kong’s establishment widely accepts international credit cards and other electronic payments. But for emergencies, bringing a small amount of cash with you is highly encouraged. In any case, ATMs and currency exchange offices are easy to spot as soon as you land at the Hong Kong International Airport.

4. Bring an electrical adaptor

Hong Kong uses the UK-style plug, which is three-pronged, so it’s best to bring an electrical adaptor with you at all times for your convenience throughout your stay in the city.

5. Check Hong Kong’s weather conditions on your scheduled trip

Generally, Hong Kong’s weather is mostly fine since it is sub-tropical. But depending on the month of your visit, it does get quite humid in summer and cool in winter, so pack your clothes accordingly.

Travel shots. Travel photography is a form of photography that involves capturing the landscape, people, cultures, customs, and history of a location. According to the Photographic Society of America, the travel photos is an image that captures the essence of a time and place, depicts a country, its people, or a culture in its natural state, and is not limited by geography.

But not everyone is proficient in photography techniques, and especially in travel photography. With Moustache’s quick guide to travel photography tips, you can enhance your travel photography skills, just by normal adjustments in lights, composition, and other common factors.

Hereby enlisting the photo tricks and photography tips for beginners to capture the perfect travel shots. Let’s, take a look at the list.

1. Have a Good Lighting

As one of the important photography tips, a good lighting makes a huge difference in the creation of a good picture. Not only does lighting affect brightness and darkness, but it also affects sound, mood, and atmosphere. As a result, to achieve the best texture, color vibrancy, and luminosity on your subjects, you must correctly monitor and manipulate light. You can create stylized professional-looking photographs by correctly distributing shadows and highlights.

2. Composition

Human eyes are always looking for patterns and symmetry. Let be any shape, any architecture, color, or any physical form, human brains complement some sorts of order that complement each other. As our brains are drawn to the patterns for a variety of reasons.

Understanding these trends and what makes the human brain happy is a quick way to improve your photography. And that is what photography composition is all about.

However, before we get started on these photography tips, there are a few things to keep in mind. To begin photo taking, make sure your camera is level. Wonky horizons are a no-no. They’re the visual equivalent of nails on a chalkboard, and your brain doesn’t like them.

Next photography techniques, is to stop blurry pictures, keep your hands as still as possible when shooting. Keep your camera steady in both hands, or use a tripod. This photography tricks is equally applicable to all sorts of photography and considered to be one of the basic photography tricks.

3. The Rule of Thirds

The Rule of Thirds is one of the most important compositional principles while taking travel photos. As per the rule of thirds, a picture should be divided into three equal parts viz. vertically, horizontally, or both. The aim is to fill those thirds with important compositional elements. And, no matter if you are using a DSLR or your smartphone, you can apply the rule of third by locating the option to enable a grid over the preview screen on your smartphone or tablet (enabled in DSLRs). Can be taken as an important mobile photography tricks as well. Two vertical and two horizontal lines will appear and you are good to go.

As per this photography techniques, these points are normally where we focus first on a picture. Placing the subjects on intersecting points will naturally attract the viewer’s attention to them, and this is a great starting point for a good composition. PS: Sunsets and sunrise are one of the favourite subjects to practice this travel photography tricks.

4. Use Shapes, Curves, and Perspective to your advantage

The mood of a photograph can be influenced by its shapes and types. Apart from other photography tips, the shapes, textures, and lines can also contribute to the overall feel of a portrait, just as a certain color can elicit various emotions. As per this travel photography tips, one can understand how each aspect contributes to the mood of an image. Ultimately, helps you to manipulate your travel photos, composition, exposure, and other elements to elicit the emotion.

According to the best travel photographers, it is advised that Rounded shapes like circles and ovals give the impression of movement, since they lack corners and edges.

On the other side, squares and rectangles, with their smooth edges and sharp corners, evoke a sense of stability.

Triangles in photography draw the viewer’s attention to the triangle’s point. When you turn the triangle upside down, with the point down, the lack of a proper foundation gives the impression that the form is off-balance.

Irregular shapes of different length sides can also give an image a tense feel. In the case of lines, the image’s emotion is influenced by the line’s direction.

Since diagonals appear to be moving, they give the impression of movement inside the picture. These lines also draw the eye to the point where the line is pointing. A leading diagonal line that extends into the distance will add dimension to an image.

A horizontal line, on the other hand, is more commonly associated with a calm or peaceful picture, while a vertical line evokes a sense of strength or stability. Curved lines would have the same effect as circles and ovals in terms of creating a sense of motion.

Apart from shapes, perspective is another important consideration when capturing a 3D world for a 2D picture. Different angles produce different shapes of the same 3D structure, as we all know. When viewed from the head, a coffee mug, for example, appears to be a cylinder with a curved line as a handle. From top to bottom, the same cup is a full circle. For many things, changing the perspective will cause them to take on several shapes. A proper light arrangement onto the subject can also add depth and texture to the image. Finally, just by looking at a 2D image, you can get a good picture of what the subject looks like in 3D.

Furthermore, experimenting with shape by varying focal lengths can be a significant photography tricks, impacting the overall story behind any given picture. The lens you choose will have a big impact on how the shapes appear in your shot. Tilt-shift lenses correct the distortion caused by wide-angle lenses distorting straight lines. Also, remember to see lines, as they help to guide the viewer’s eye to the focal point and upscale the composition.

5. Foreground, Midground, and Background

Have you ever taken a shot of a mountain or a city skyline and later wondered why it didn’t manage to capture the beauty of what you were seeing?

This is most likely because your picture is a two-dimensional image, and you have lost the sense of scale that is present when you are in the moment. As one of the principle landscape photography tips, you should consider the various elements in the foreground, midground, and background of the shot when composing a shot.

Consider all around you while you’re out and about in the city, taking travel photos. If you see a distant mountain you want to photograph, look around to see if you can find anything interesting to include in the foreground or midground. If you live near a river, a canoe could be an option. It might be a house somewhere else. Alternatively, a flock of sheep. Alternatively, a car begins to climb a winding path.

If you’re filming a city scene, pay attention to what’s going on around you. Street vendors, various modes of transportation, as well as signs and storefronts, can all be used as a foreground to give your city skyline or that oddly shaped building background and scale. If you can’t find it, think beyond the box. To add size to your clip, find someone to stand in it. Just bear in mind not to overwhelm your audience with too many compositional elements and to keep the subject of the picture clear. You can make more balanced, appealing images by thinking about the large background sections of the picture and concentrating on the smaller components.

6. Perfectly Framed

Practised by some of the best travel photographers, this compositional technique isn’t about framing a picture; it’s about using the environment.  The photo tricks to “frame” the subject you’re trying to capture, demonstrating what the shot is about and bringing the viewer’s eyes into the scene.

When you’ve found your subject, take a look around to see if there’s a way to creatively frame it. Vegetation, such as tree branches and vines, as well as doors and windows, are good framing choices.

The frame is much wider than the subject in this situation, but the subject is never obscured. One of the basic photography techniques, finding a good way to frame your subject can require you to scout around or step back from it. To get the picture you like, don’t be afraid to stand further away and use the zoom on your lens. There are several more travel photography tips talking about various framing options available. Make sure to experiment these travel photography tricks, while making your next trip.

7. Focus on the Focal Points

As discussed in the above photography tips, focus can play a major role to understand the depth of any composition. One way to ensure that viewers look at the part of the image you want them to look at is to make just a portion of the image sharp and in focus while leaving the remainder blurry.

Look at how much the subject of the shot is the only thing in focus in a wedding or sports photographs of people to see how effective this is for isolating people or animals in images. One of the common photography tips for beginners, is to set your camera to “portrait” or “people” mode.

8. It’s a perfect Color match

Have you ever noticed that all the blogs regarding travel photography tips, or street photography tips or basic portrait photography tips, have one pointer in common, that is Color. It is one thing that every photography tricks blog ignores to miss.

As per all major photography tips blog, color plays an extremely important role in all sorts of photo taking. In particular, how different the colors going to blend in the entire composition. Few basic photo tricks for color you can try is, blue with yellow (a field of sunflowers), and red with green (Christmas!).

Take a look at the color wheel to see which colors go well together.

Also practised as the mobile photography tips, colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel will usually complement each other. These colors don’t have to be equally matched in a shot; sometimes, a small percentage of one and a larger percentage of another works better.

Keep an eye out for contrasting and complementary colors that you can use in your photos while you’re out and about. Spice markets, historic European cities, rural meadows, and old colorful barns in green fields are all excellent places to begin.

9. Let the Lines lead your eyes

When creating a portrait, you want to make it as simple as possible for the viewer to determine the image’s subject and focus.

Leading lines — the use of natural geography or other features that the audience will instinctively look at first and which will lead their attention to the main subject — are one way to accomplish these photo tricks.

Bonus Photo Trick! If necessary, arrange subjects to create symmetry, or line them up diagonally to create balance in the frame. Objects like leaves or branches may also be used to frame subjects.

10. Storytelling: Behind the scenes

One of the final photography techniques is storytelling. As every best travel photographers agrees, there’s a lot more behind than just a perfect shot. The distinct advantage of the thrill and adventure to explore, and reaching the destination that no one else has. To them, a waterfall shot is just that — a waterfall shot. What happened on the five-hour trek through a leech-infested jungle to get there? I’m out of it. When you took a dip to cool off, remember how refreshing it felt on your skin? Likewise, it has vanished. It’s just a two-dimensional image on a screen that will be easily replaced by the next image in the series.

It’s up to you, how you utilize your travel photography tips to reintroduce all of the missing meaning.

An image is said to be worth a thousand words. It is your duty as a photographer to express those terms via your travel photography. Get the shots that entice your audience to join you in your story and the adrenaline rush behind. Your travel photos are such that it makes your shots resonate with your audience. Use as much empathy as possible to locate and freeze moments, ultimately adding the human element in your travel photography.

We recommend taking some time before taking your travel photos. Consider the shot you want to make, the moment you want to catch, and the story you want to tell your audience. Put yourself in their shoes and pretend you’re looking at the photo taking with no other background. From there, try to create the shot.

Travel photography is one of the most diverse genres in terms of subject matter. Some of the best travel photographers specialize in a specific type of photography, such as travel portraits, landscape photography, or documentary photography, in addition to covering all aspects of travel. Thus, it’s no different than any other photography. And, can be perfected only by practice. The more pictures you take, the better you’ll get at composing and capturing great images. So, take your camera and start clicking. After all, what do you have to lose?