planning your next ski winter vacation

A quaint Alpine town in Austria with a gloss of glamour and superb skiing, Kitzbühel offers chalets with roaring fires, miles of top-notch cross-country trails, spectacular intermediate downhill slopes, and evening revelry.
Hotel Tennerhof, an old-world lodge run by aristocrats, is one place to get some rest. Another favorite, in the heart of the old village, is Goldener Greif. On the outskirts of town, Schloss Lebenberg is a castle that's been converted into a luxury hotel.

St. Moritz is another place in Swiss where you can planned your winter vacation for your next sking holiday. It is where visitors whoosh down the slopes alongside.

On the other hand, if you like to ski you may want to consider Alaska in Canana when planning your next ski winter vacation because it has some of the best skiing in the world.
And one of the top resorts in all of alaska is the alyeska Resort. alyeska has a top elevation slightly above 2,700 feet, a vertical drop of 2,500 and the area gets an average annual snowfall of 631 inches.

In addition to offering some of the best skiing in the world, another nice benefit of alyeska is that you won't run into long lift lines or overly crowded slopes. There are nine lifts, including six chair lifts, two surface lifts and one cable car line. The majority of their trails are designed for the intermediate skier but with 68 trails they also have countless runs for both the beginner and expert.

winter vacations : Following in a doctor's footsteps

LAWRENCE - At 17, Tan Nguyen is no Doogie Howser.
But he'd sure like to be.

Nguyen, a senior at Central Catholic High School, spent part of his summer working in a hospital where he was allowed to shadow a doctor, observe an operation, and learn the ins and outs of modern medicine.

"It was a wonderful experience," said the Haverhill teen. "It gave me an outlook on what they do while opening more doors for me."

Nguyen is one of 24 teenagers from across the Merrimack Valley and Southern New Hampshire who participated in the Shadow-a-Professional Program at Lawrence General Hospital.

During the six-week program, teenagers worked in a dozen departments at the hospital, including the nursery, pain management, physical therapy, the pharmacy and the emergency room. They shadowed nurses, doctors and technicians.

Nguyen was assigned to the pain management department and followed Dr. Rami Rustum, staff anesthesiologist and pain specialist at the hospital.

"I wasn't like a shadow walking behind him. I was actually learning," Nguyen said. "There wasn't a moment when I did not want to be there."

He not only interacted with Rustum, but was able to witness an operation up close. He was one of six students who were able to do so.

Nguyen applied for the shadow program to learn more about the medical field since he hopes to be either an anesthesiologist or a surgeon.

"Medicine interests me because I am curious about the human body and how it functions when it's exposed to diseases and chemicals," he said. "Surgery interests me because I am curious about the procedures."

He said taking part in the shadow program reinforced his desire to enter the medical field.

"The experience made me realize I can do this for the rest of my life," Nguyen said. "It doesn't seem to be so stressful all the time. The schedule did not bother me."

Others, such as Connie Cheng of Andover and Lauren Drapeau, both 17, were not too sure.

Cheng, 17, who also shadowed Rustum, made a U-turn after finishing the program. Instead of working in a hospital, the Andover High School senior decided pharmacology was best suited for her.

Drapeau, a senior at Central Catholic, volunteered in the X-ray department, but realized she likes working with children.

"This is not only about observing patients with a student or a potential doctor," Rustum said. "They are learning what obstacles can arise, how to overcome them, and even what to expect in medical school."

To qualify for the program, high school juniors and seniors submit an essay outlining the reasons why they want to participate, what profession they hope to pursue, and what they would like to learn from the experience.

The students also go through an interview process.

Betsy Rayner, director of volunteers at the hospital, looks for confidence, passion, drive and motivation when choosing a participant.

One applicant was so interested in participating, he spent his winter vacation doing research on orthopedic surgery.

Students can intern in several departments, including special care nursery, pain management, pathology, pharmacy, radiology and ultrasound.

Rayner said 14 of the 24 applicants this year wanted to work in the nursery, followed by the emergency room and surgery. The pharmacy was another popular department with five applicants as opposed to one or two last year.

"I think the students want to work in the emergency room because they watch shows like "ER" and see all the stuff that happens and want to see the excitement," Rayner said. "They want to see the crisis, the chaos, and the chance of saving a life right then and there."

The students commit to 12 hours a week for six weeks. In addition to shadowing a doctor or other hospital staff member, they must volunteer for four hours in another department in the hospital.

Rayner said she has seen the program mushroom in the eight years she's been running it.

"I think the program is popular because they see what goes in a hospital every day in and out, during the tough days and good days," she said.

Over the years, Rayner said former participants have become doctors, nurses and pharmacists.

She doesn't even mind if a student changes his mind about entering the medical field. This summer, three of the 24 participants chose another career path.

"It's OK. I'd rather have them find out now than later when it may be too late," she said.

Nguyen, a member of the National Honor Society at Central, is holding on to his lifelong dream of becoming a doctor.

"I want to be a doctor so I can help people, save lives, alleviate people's problems and pains," he said. "I want to make a difference in society."
winter vacations

By Yadira Betances

winter vacations : Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City, UT - "The days of the station wagon ski vacation are done and over with," says Adam Barker, Marketing and Media Manager of the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau. "Today, many winter vacationers are looking to stay where they can take advantage of a number of experiences, on and off the slopes — a 'multi-faceted winter vacation.'"

Part of a diverse vacation includes visiting a number of ski and snowboard resorts, and the Salt Lake CVB steps up to the plate to fulfill that need with its Ski Salt Lake Super Pass. Now in its ninth season, the Super Pass is good for day passes at the four Cottonwood Canyons resorts: Alta, Snowbird, Brighton or Solitude. The pass can be loaded with up to six days of skiing or riding and also includes free round-trip transportation from downtown and suburban Salt Lake via UTA ski buses and throughout the Salt Lake Valley on Trax light rail. Depending on how many days are purchased, users can ski Salt Lake for as little as $48 a day.

Eric Thompson, Salt Lake CVB Director of Marketing and mastermind behind the Super Pass, says, “The Super Pass allows guests to ski where they want, when they want—all at a very attractive and affordable price. It’s the perfect one-stop shopping approach to skiing Salt Lake.”

The Super Pass is sold through local Salt Lake Valley lodging properties and is frequently packaged in conjunction with lodging specials. The Super Pass is also sold online in cooperation with Travelocity.

Located just 40 minutes from the Salt Lake City International Airport, the resorts average 500 inches of snow each year and collectively offer more than 7,500 skiable acres serviced by 33 ski lifts. Says Jay Burke, Director of Marketing and Media Relations for Solitude Mountain Resort, “We’ve got the best of all worlds. Unbeatable snow and nearly instant access to the resorts from the city make Salt Lake an easy choice for winter sports enthusiasts everywhere.”

The Salt Lake City International Airport has over 990 scheduled daily flights offering more than 84,000 daily airplane seats through Salt Lake. Delta Airlines alone has 108 non-stop flights servicing Salt Lake, allowing more than half of the U.S. population to reach Salt Lake City in less than two and a half hours.

Proximity, however, doesn't translate to crowding on the slopes. According to a study conducted by Ski Utah, there are approximately 153 skiers per acre at Utah resorts — fewer than half the 323 per acre in Colorado.

All content herein copyright © 1994-2006 First Tracks!! Online Ski Magazine - All Rights Reserved

winter vacations : Passport Rule Changes

As part of new Homeland Security Department rules, for the first time ever, you will be required to have a passport to re-enter the United States if you fly or cruise into Mexico, Canada, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Bermuda starting Jan. 1, 2007.

Starting Jan. 1, 2008 you'll need a passport to cross the Canadian or Mexican border by car.

It's no wonder the government expects to issue a record 12 million passports this year. Nationwide there's been a 25 percent increase in the number of passports applied for this year compared to last.

It typically takes 6 to 8 weeks to get your passport back, but the government is now saying it could take longer than two months because of the increased demand. So if you are planning any winter vacations, it's in your best interest to apply early. You can pay an extra $60 to expedite the process.

What You Need
To apply for a passport you need a certified birth certificate or your naturalization papers, a driver's license and a picture. You'll also need to fill out an application form.

The total cost for a person age 16 and older is around $100, but different cities charge different fees to process the picture. A passport for children under age 16 runs about $82.

Carlson Passport Nights
Carlson Wagonlit Travel is offering to help, by hosting a number of passport nights. There you can get all of the necessary paperwork, pictures and learn about various trips.

The events are being held at the Inver Grove Heights Carlson office Aug. 21 from 5 to 7 p.m. and at the Plymouth Carlson office Aug. 22 from 5 to 7 p.m.

Nearest Passport Office
To find the nearest passport office to you, head here. This list will also tell you which offices will take pictures for you on-site.

For more important travel information head to the U.S. Department of State Web site.

© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

winter vacations : Advice by Arthur Frommer

The beaches of Barcelona — the Costa Encantada ("Enchanted Coast") at Lloret de Mar, 40 miles south of Barcelona on the Spanish Mediterranean — have suddenly become a winter-vacation option for American retirees.
Though the weather of Barcelona from November through March is a bit chillier than farther down the Spanish coast, the proximity of this remarkable city with its extraordinary culture is a decided plus. And the prices offered by an aggressive American tour operator have made beachside Barcelona a worthy competitor to the better-known winter vacations of the Costa del Sol near Malaga on Spain's southernmost Mediterranean coast.

For nearly 25 years now, American tour operators — Sun Holidays of Orlando, Fla., (www.sunholidaytours.com, 1-800-422-8000) and Grand Circle Tours of Boston (www. grandcircletravel.com, 1-800-959-0405) — have vied with each other to lure Americans over age 60 to winter vacations on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. The great attraction has been cost. For just slightly less than $1,000 per person for two weeks and $1,200 and up for three weeks, including round-trip trans-Atlantic airfare, they have been offering fall/winter vacations spent in the many high-rise Spanish hotels that line the Costa del Sol around Torremolinos and Fuengirola, near Malaga and Gibraltar.
That price has persuaded tens of thousands of mature Americans to substitute Spain for a winter vacation in Miami Beach or Phoenix. Though it certainly isn't swimming weather in Spain in the fall/winter months, ocean swimming isn't a popular activity among elderly people anyway, and the high quality of Spain's hotels, cuisine, culture and sightseeing near Malaga (Seville, Granada, Cordoba, Gibraltar) has tipped the scales for a great many Americans.

Copyright © 2006

winter vacations : 2006/07 Winter European programs

Insight Vacations has announced that its Winter European program is selling fast with bookings for 2006/07 up almost 30 per cent in its first few weeks. With a fantastic mix of warm and wintery destinations and a selection of styles of travel, Insight has cornered the market in premium escorted winter vacations.

Lorraine Sharp, managing director, Insight Vacations said, “Overall our business is even stronger than last year, and we are predicting this growth to continue. Traditionally, as customers try to organize their Christmas holiday plans at the last minute, bookings are made much closer to departure. It is important for agents to get in quick before tours are completely sold out.

“While all tours are performing well, our most popular tour this year has been the Winter Explorer, which shows how interested Australian travellers are in seeing all their favourite places like Venice, Florence, Paris and Amsterdam in the quieter winter season”.

“Interestingly, the surprise hit for this season has been Vienna, Prague and Budapest tour. We are finding there is a lot of interest in these central European countries with the adventurous Aussie travellers, particularly those on their second or third trip to Europe and I think we will continue to see excellent growth in this emerging region.

“Italy is of course one of the most popular countries to visit over winter. It’s relatively mild climate and relaxed culture keeps wooing Australian travellers time and again. In response to clients wanting to explore Italy more thoroughly, we offer a Southern Italy and Sicily tour, an Amazing Italy (which takes in Rome and Florence and Venice) along with an Easy Pace Italy style tour, which allows travellers wanting a flexible itinerary to relax and enjoy Italy however they want.

“Egypt has shown no sign of wavering this season, with travellers as keen as ever to discover the ancient world. With five different tours, Insight remains one of the largest operators to carry Australians visiting Egypt”.

Insight launched its 2006/07 program on the back of a successful 2006 European summer travel season. It’s Insight’s winning combination of quality, impeccable service, perfectly planned itineraries, and reputation as a premium quality tour operator has ensured it has continued to set itself apart in the market.

Throughout its history, Insight Vacations has built its enviable reputation by offering premium quality, leisurely touring vacations.

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