At the present time, the centre of the construction boom is undoubtedly Dubai. In the hotel sector alone there are plans to build 150 more hotels over the next five to seven years, expanding the number of hotel rooms from 20,000 in 1990 to 55,000.

Other new projects underway in Dubai are the $2 billion Dubai International Financial Centre, a huge office complex rumored to include a major skyscraper; the $2.5 billion expansion of the Dubai International Airport; the $3 billion Palm Island project; $1.6 billion Dubai Marina leisure and residential development; $1.6 billion Festival City mixed-use development; further phases of the Dubai Internet City and Media City; and the new Convention Centre at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

In addition, Emaar Properties is developing the Emirates Hills/Emirates Lakes into a massive residential new town, and Majid Al Futtaim has a massive shopping mall and indoor ski resort under construction on a nearby site.

Around the Gulf region shopping malls are under construction all over the place. But for now the focus of building activity is Dubai , and all these new offices, homes and hotels will need furniture and interior design. In 2003, the value of building projects under construction in the UAE were estimated at $28 Billion. The projects include new high-rise commercial/residential districts, hotels, houses, hospitals, schools, universities, public parks, large shopping centers, beach resorts, man-made residential islands, the massive expansion of the airports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi , and other commercial premises.

Future Development
?The World Island ($4 billion)
?China Town ($650 million)
?Two Palm Islands ($6 billion)
?Dubai Lost City Project ($165 million)
?Gardens Shopping Mall ($200 million)
?Dubai Pearl ($820 million)
?Hydropolis Hotel ($500 million)
?Wellness and Hydrotherapy Center ($120 million)
?Burj Dubai
?The Dubai Marina
?New Dubai International Airport
?The Dubai Mall
?Dubailand

The World Island
Construction of a central tourist centre, in the form of coastal islands. Hotels, apartments and leisure facilities will be erected on each island. The individual islands will be laid out so as to give the shape of a world map. Each island will be of a different size and will have a theme suitable to the country it represents. This project is scheduled for completion by the end of 2008.

Two Palm Island
The construction of two islands in the shape of a palm tree. Palm Jumeira (5km long) and Palm Jebel Ali. Almost 2,000 villas, 40 luxury hotels, 2 sea and water theme parks will be constructed on the islands. In addition, there will be bridges, tunnels, shopping centres and entertainment centres. The project is scheduled for completion at the end of 2007.

These two project are the most expensive projects, but other more notable projects are in progress as well.

The China Town development involves the construction of 25 buildings, office buildings, a shopping centre, apartments, hotels and entertainment facilities. This construction project measures approximately 357,167 m 2 in overall size. In addition the Dubai Marina is aiming to become a city-within-a-city with an overhaul that will provide new residence for 40 000 people

For more information and photos visit

http://www.theworld.ae/
http://www.thepalm.co.ae
http://www.vacationindubai.com/Pages/construction.htm

The role of the child in public life has changed significantly in the last two centuries. From the eighteenth century definition of a child as one that must be seen and not heard, to the present-day celebration of childhood and protection of children’s rights, the child has always been one of our most enigmatic and enduring images. The development of children’s museums across America in the last two decades, for example, seems to be an antidote to the stuffiness of some public museums and galleries which still do not allow or approve of children as visitors. One of these commendable projects is the Children’s Museum of Kansas City.

Aiming to provide an innovative, hands-on, learning environment where young children explore, discover and imagine through play, the Children’s Museum of Kansas City offers a constructive facility through which kids can enjoy constructive and educational fun. Through a variety of tools and learning exhibits, the museum adheres to particular key fields in order to help a child’s development, namely in areas of: diversity, problem solving, literacy, creativity, imagination, relationships, communication and curriculum integration. By using this method, the museum and its activities are designed to appeal to a wide range of childhood learning styles and modes of intelligence.

Having begun in the Carriage House of the Kansas State School for the Visually Handicapped in 1989, the museum has, to date, played host to over 270,000 children. Its main events include organising after school programmes and providing Classrooms on Wheels; in fact, the museum is now one of the best places to take your children in Kansas City, and it boasts a yearly attendance rate of over 23,000 people.

In employing particular education techniques and organising highly successful learning events, the Children’s Museum of Kansas City has been integral in aiding childhood learning and playing in Kansas and its immediate vicinity. Its most popular programmes include: Discovery Days, exploring issues of science, art, history and culture; Family Fun Days; Youth Achievements Programs (YAPs) and Tot Time, a fun-learning program designed particularly for 2 – 3 year olds. The C.O.W., or ‘Classroom on Wheels’ facility, is a popular feature of the museum’s services; a full-size bus, it contains a fossil-dig for children to enjoy, which includes an entire dinosaur skeleton made from copies of actual bones.

Furthermore, the Children’s Museum of Kansas City even organises themed birthday parties; popular themes include teddy bear parties and monster makeovers, as well as a Victorian-style tea party in which kids in attendance are given Victorian etiquette lessons from the Museum’s Party Hostess, as well as elegant costumes in which to dress up. The success of the Children’s Museum of Kansas City seems to be emulated in other children’s museums across the country, including The Indianapolis Children’s Museum and Detroit Children’s Museum. Parents who wish to give their kids an education tour of America might find it enjoyable to take their children on a tour of the country’s best children’s museums; and with many of the larger hotel chains currently offering excellent rewards systems this isn’t an unaffordable aspiration.

Andrew Regan is an online journalist who enjoys socialising at his local rugby club.

Long lines and restless guests in popular queues are a thing of the past at Walt Disney World. At least it is for those who choose to take advantage of Disney?s free service: FastPass.

So what is it?

FastPass debuted in 1999 and was embraced as a brilliant innovation in theme park engineering. This computerized system allows visitors to avoid standing in line for the most popular attractions throughout the Walt Disney World Resort. Many guests did not understand the system at the time and some still do not. As a matter of fact, during the three and a half years I was a cast member at the Disney-MGM Studios, I would often overhear guests remark: ?Hey, that?s not fair! Those people pay extra and get to cut ahead of us in line!?

How does it work?

The FastPass attraction reservation system is very simple to use and best of all?it?s free. Go to a participating show or ride, locate the FastPass machine and insert an admission ticket for each person in your party who wishes to enter the attraction. The FastPass machine reserves a return appointment for your party and prints a pass for each ticket with a one-hour window (for example, 10:20-11:20 a.m.). From here, you can feel free to explore the less crowded attractions in your selected park. During that one hour time frame, you can usually squeeze in two (maybe three) smaller attractions instead of waiting in that bloated line. Give yourself at least 15 minutes to be able to make it back in time for your designated FastPass time. When you arrive at the attraction, simply hand the cast member standing in front of the FastPass entrance your passes and you?re in!

Wow, that?s so cool! I think I?ll get one for every ride!

Not so fast. In order for Disney?s FastPass system to work properly, they had to implement restrictions on the amount of FastPasses a guest can hold during a given period of time. Each guest may hold one FastPass for one attraction every two hours or after the one hour window expires; whichever comes first. Why? If everyone were able to come in to the parks and get a FastPass for every attraction at once it wouldn?t be very fast, would it?

Great, I?m ready to go!

The most important factor in getting what you want out of your Disney World visit is time management. Now that you know the FastPass system inside and out, you?ll be able to get out there and experience more of what the Walt Disney World Resort has to offer?faster, of course!

Article Source: Orlando Vacation

Jose M. Negron has been a resident of Orlando, FL for the past 17 years and is a copywriter and web programmer for Affordable Travel, LLC and http://www.orlandovacation.com Feel free to visit to read more articles by this author or contact him directly: jose@orlandovacation.com

Hotels in India have an infinite variety that you can hardly fathom. Much like the diversity of its national culture, the hospitality industry in India too has different ways of treating different guests coming from different parts of India as well as from all over the world. Hotels in India have understood that the only way to survive in the rat-race is by providing anything and everything that a customer asks for. The hospitality industry has taken up the arduous task of providing guests with an unprecedented level of comfort. Be it hotels in Mumbai or hotels in Delhi, the wish of the guest is their order. People stay in hotels for various reasons and the hotels are trying to identify the exact requirement of the guest in order to provide customized service.

The economic growth of India has had an impact on the hospitality industry too. Traveling is now no more limited to leisure tourism only. People travel extensively for the sake of business and the hotels are cashing in on it. Today, the utility of a hotel is not just limited to being a place for relaxation, it is also used as a place of meeting. No wonder, hotels across India are furnishing themselves with meeting facilities. Hotels in Pune and Mumbai, the economic nerve center of India, are making sure that the guests on business tours get the best of facilities and are not troubled by petty matters. To help them focus on the business, the hotels are going all out to make them as comfortable as possible. Food too is not a problem. Whatever your food-habits are, vegetarian or non-vegetarian, hotels throughout India will serve you according to your choice of food.

Making hotel reservation in India is not at all a difficult proposition or a cause of concern. Most hotels now-a-days have the facility of online hotel booking. With the click of a mouse you can reserve a room in luxury hotels across India. If you are on a tour and are on the look out for unadulterated luxury, there are many hotels in India from which you can pick and choose.

Eco-tourism is gaining momentum and hotels are upgrading their facilities so that people who come to enjoy nature do not end up confined in a jungle of brick and concrete. Various hotels and resorts in India are offering package tours and safari tours to the guests. Hotels located near reserved forests and sanctuaries are especially benefited by the prospect of eco-tourism. Indian hotels are offering facilities that match international standard. Know more about some of the finest hotels from across India from http://www.desiya.com

Theme park is a great fun. It is also possible to spend more time on the ride. You don?t want to spend money to stand in line, get sunburn, and feel sick from junk food. A little research will help you a long way. It is possible to have a fun, safe, and healthy day at theme park.

Before you make your reservations at the theme park, you should call to check on the big rides. You do not want to feel disappointment, if the big rides are closed. You can also save your energy and gas to drive there,

Try to make a plan before you go. Some theme parks are gigantic. You may not be able to see everything in one day. Some of the rides are better than the other. You may want to ride some rides more than once. Many parks have longer hours on a certain days. You want to find out when it is best to visit.

If you are a member of associations, you may get special treatment at the theme park. You may get special seating, VIP lounge, or be allowed to skip to the front of line.

You also want to check for special light shows, fireworks, parades, or live music on certain days. Some days are better than the other days. The Parks usually publish schedules with this information. Try to get your hand on them.

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Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin is a fun destination for a family vacation, and with a little research and advance planning the trip doesn?t have to make your wallet cry out in pain.

Wisconsin Dells (and the area is really two towns: Wisconsin Dells and Lake Delton) has been a popular summer vacation destination for people who live in the Midwest since the late 1800?s. In recent years, several indoor water parks have been built making Wisconsin Dells a popular year around vacation destination, not only for people who live in the Midwest but for people from around the world.

What first drew tourists to the Wisconsin Dells area? It was the scenery. The Wisconsin River meanders through the Wisconsin Dells area and has beautiful sandstone rock formations. A trip to Wisconsin Dells wouldn?t be complete without a boat tour of those rock formations.

There are two basic choices of tours; either boat tour or a ?duck? tour which also includes some sightseeing on the land. If you have small children, they?ll enjoy the ?duck? tour the most.

If you take a boat tour, you?ll have a couple of options. You?ll be able to take an ?upper Dells? tour, a ?lower Dells? tour, or both. The upper Dells boat tour lasts about 2 hours and the lower Dells boat tour lasts about 1 hour. The upper Dells tour includes a few shore stops to look at some outstanding landmarks.

The ?duck? tour is a combination land and water tour. It?s a really fun way to see some of the beautiful scenery on the land and water. And the tour is a big hit with kids of all ages! My family takes a trip to Wisconsin Dells nearly every year and we go on the Duck tour almost every trip because we find it so much fun. The ?duck? vehicles used for the tours are amphibious vehicles used in WWII that have been revamped. The tour starts out on dry land. During the tour you?ll be taken down streets of Wisconsin Dells; through lovely wooded areas where wildlife is often seen (we usually see white-tail deer) and then it?s on to the really fun part of the trip.

The duck driver drives into the water with a big splash ? well; usually with a big splash. The driver will ask the customers if they want to go into the water slow or fast because fast gets some of the people wet. On every tour I?ve been on the fast trip into the water has won the vote and it is fun! After the twists and turns of the wooded trails (some of them steep and narrow, but always safe) the water part of the trip is a nice change of pace. After being in the water for a while and seeing some of the breathtaking sandstone rock formations, your driver takes you back onto dry land and your fun tour is complete. During the entire tour your driver entertains you with a funny and informative narrative.

Even though our family loves going on the Duck tour when we go to Wisconsin Dells, if they have a choice of only one activity to do, going to a water park wins hands down. There are over 20 water parks in Wisconsin Dells. There are outdoor water parks; indoor water parks; and combination indoor/outdoor water parks. So no matter what time of the year you want to splash in the water and have fun you can do it in Wisconsin Dells.

Our family usually takes a summer trip to Wisconsin Dells. And with mid-summer temperatures in the 90?s, and even occasionally in the 100?s, splashing in the water is very refreshing. Our family?s favorite outdoor water park is Noah?s Ark. It?s currently the largest outdoor water park in Wisconsin Dells. You can easily spend an entire day there and not get bored. I have a few tips for you though if you do go to Noah?s Ark (or any of the water parks in Wisconsin Dells) to help keep your costs down and to make the trip as enjoyable as possible.

1) If at all possible, don?t buy your admission tickets at the front gate the day you want to go to the park. You?ll pay full price and there are lots of ways to find discounted tickets. If you live in the Midwest check with your local Parks and Recreation Department to see if they have discounted tickets available. Also check with your place of employment to see if they offer discounted tickets. An Internet search may also give you sources for discounted tickets. Another option is to go into downtown Wisconsin Dells or Lake Delton before you go to Noah?s Ark and stop at one of the ticket booths there. You can almost always purchase discounted tickets there, especially if you are planning to do more than one activity while you are in Wisconsin Dells. For example if you are planning to go to a water park, take a duck tour, go to a water show, and go to one of the amusement parks to ride on the roller coasters and go-karts you can get some pretty good discounts by buying all your tickets at the same time.

2) Take waterproof sunscreen. You?re going to be in and out of the water all day so make sure you have waterproof sunscreen in order to avoid having to constantly reapply your sunscreen throughout the day.

3) Take towels. It may seem like a silly item to list but it?s surprising how many people forget to take a towel. You can purchase beach towels inside the water parks but they are expensive.

3) Consider renting a locker in the park. There are locker rentals available in the park for a nominal fee. I always rent a locker and put dry clothes for my family in the locker along with the things I don?t want to carry around all day, such as my sunscreen. At the end of the day we retrieve those dry clothes and change into

4) Take plastic bags for your wet swimsuits and towels.

5) Take a small waterproof container for extra money. Get one that attaches to your wrist or hangs around your neck. If you don?t have one or don?t know where to buy one, you can purchase one inexpensively at one of the stores inside the water park.

6) Bring your own lunch. There are several covered picnic areas inside the water park available free of charge for your use although it?s likely some of them will be unavailable on any given day because they will be reserved for groups who are at the park. Even if you don?t want to pack a cooler at home, bring along the empty cooler and pick up your lunch items from a store the day before. Although there is good food available inside the water park, it is expensive and will quickly put a big dent in your pocketbook.

7) Bring water shoes. Sandals are okay too but you want ones that are water friendly which typically means flip-flops and those can easily fall off your feet when you?re on some of the rides. I don?t advise going barefoot. The park is paved and if it?s a sunny day the pavement gets very hot.

Go on rides early in the day and late in the day. That?s when the lines are the shortest. The lines are really long in the middle of the day. Have your picnic lunch at that time, do a little browsing in the water park stores, and take a short rest before heading back on the rides.

Going on the ducks or a boat tour and going to a water park aren?t the only activities to do in the Wisconsin Dells area. You could stay busy for weeks (if your pocketbook could handle it) doing all the activities available to you. You could go horseback riding; go-carting; riding on roller coasters; shopping; take in the Tommy Bartlet water show; play miniature golf; play regular golf on one of the golf courses; rent a boat and go fishing (you?ll need to purchase a Wisconsin fishing license); rent a canoe and go canoeing; enjoy a movie at the drive-in movie theater; rent a jet-ski; visit the railway museum; visit the history center; play paintball; or do any of the dozens of other available activities. You could even take a short drive to Baraboo and watch the Al Ringling circus. There are literally hundreds of things to do in the Wisconsin Dells area.

I have one more thing to keep in mind as you are planning your trip to Wisconsin Dells. August is the busiest month in Wisconsin Dells. How busy? Consider this: Lake Delton and Wisconsin Dells have a combined year-round population of around 5,000 people. During the weekends in August, the population in the Lake Delton/Wisconsin Dells area can swell to more than 200,000 people. Lines at the attractions will be the longest in August and the hotels will be booked solid (I don?t mean to scare you though. Our family usually goes in August even though we know it?s going to be busy and we have a great time). Book your hotel early or consider going there at another time during the summer. June isn?t as busy but the weather may not be as warm either which means it could be a little chilly if you?re going to be visiting one of the outdoor water parks.

D Ruplinger is a featured writer for http://www.wisconsindellstoday.com Visit the web site for more information on Wisconsin Dells attractions.