In Cambodia, Angkor Wat is the main draw for tourism today, and rightly so, called the Crown Jewel of South East Asia the temple complexes? 40 Sq Kilometers? of temples is famous the world over, but now, more people are visiting the rest of Cambodia and the word of mouth is that the rest of the Cambodia is worth a visit as well. The Beach resort of Sihanoukville is fast becoming a holiday destination in its own right, with lots of islands and parks and things to do from hiking and exploring, scuba diving & snorkeling and boat rides, water falls, jungle treks and chilling in a hammock in a quiet beach park reading a good book. Culturally there are the markets, the local wats and the schools, where many come to donate time and money towards educating the kids.

Sihanoukville has a 5 star resort on its own kilometer long private beach. The pool could be classified as a small lake and is almost visible from space, complete with a bridge to its own little island. The hotel is only 2 years old and has a staff to guest ratio of 4/1. The prices for comparable hotels in South East Asia would be substantially higher.

If you are a budget traveler then Sihanoukville is your place as well, there are many rooms available with air con, hot water, refrigerator and Cable TV for $10 – $20 a night and if you want a place to stay for 6 months or more, you can get a business visa at the border on demand and stay as long as you like, works out to around $1 a day for the visa extensions, making the town attractive to pensioners and semi retired people.

Backpackers also like Sihanoukville with a few places offering 50 cent tall cold beers and cheap food starting at $.50. Some are also finding work as bar tenders and working the restaurants. Backpacker hostels start as low as free, Yup free, all you have do is buy one of your meals at the lodging and the price for the food is still cheap $1.50 to 2.50 a plate.

One local expert expat?s guess?s that there are more western owned business per population in Sihanoukville than any other place in Asia! Many are coming and starting guesthouses & hotels, small bed and breakfast places, restaurants and bars and small resorts with a few starting to pop up on the islands off the coast. Want to rent your own fantasy island for a week check out Magic Island?

Logistically everything that you will need is here including reliable electricity, internet, and western restaurants as well as a lot of Asian European specialty foods prepared with the western travelers tastes in mind including Khmer seafood, Thai, Vietnamese, French, Italian, German, Russian, Indian, Sri Lankan and more coming soon. English languages schools are many in Sihanoukville, so you can almost always find someone to speak English when you need it.

Money use to be a problem as you had to go inside the banks to get cash and with 26 holidays on the Cambodian calendar, you could get stuck with out cash for a few days, now there are ATM locations in Siem Reap- Angkor Wat, Phnom Penh, Battembong and Sihanoukville. You can change just about every currency including Yen, Euros, Baht, Kip, Dong, and Sing Dollars. US Dollars and Cambodian Riel are the two most common currencies in use.

Sihanoukville is getting easier to get to with cheap international flights into Bangkok and really cheap regional flights into Phnom Penh. Flights into Sihanoukville are very close to being a reality as well. Regularly scheduled busses from Phnom Penh will get you to Sihanoukville in 4 hours on a excellent American built road. You can also arrange taxis and vans for moving groups of people, and an established over water route form Bangkok to Trat to the Had Lek – Klang Yai border to Sihanoukville. You might even arrive here via a cruise ships, as more are placing Sihanoukville on their itineraries.

The Islands of Cambodia in the Gulf of Thailand are mostly uninhabited; you will find isolated Spartan fishing villages with populations normally fewer than 100 people. One Island, Koh Tang, has only 7 residents and would take the better part of a day to hike around, so if you are looking for that deserted island to strand yourself on, to work on your coconut carving and ship in a bottle skills there are many here to chose from, bring your own hammock and Gal Friday or they can be acquired here in Sihanoukville.

The Cambodia of the past always seemed to bring up horrific images of the past misfortunes that the Khmers suffered at the end of the Vietnam War. Even today, the genocide in Cambodia is still in the news as the country has its tribunal to hopefully put the events behind them,

One of the few backhanded benefits of the recent past history was that Cambodia missed out on all of the heavy industrialization, that the other countries in the region experienced, notably Thailand and Vietnam; which means that they missed out on the pollution that goes with it. A UN survey of the waters in Asia, that included Cambodia, found only 3 areas of concern for ocean water quality near shore, where as Vietnam and Thailand, had allot problem locations, mostly from the industrial pollutions and shrimp farms. This may change, unfortunately, as oil has been found in Cambodia and the drilling of exploration holes has begun. So now is a really good time to come.

As Cambodia moves forward towards the future, it is obvious to most that the future in Cambodia is tourism. And for Cambodia?s beach resort of Sihanoukville, to misquote the tune ?the futures so bright, in Sihanoukville, that your gonna need shades?

Fred Tittle has lived and worked in resorts his entire life, from South East Wisconsin at the famous Lake Geneva Playboy Club and Nippersink Resort, Aspen Colorado where he was a rock jock for KSPN FM, Waikiki on Oahu in Hawaii where he drove big bikes and learned to scuba dive and now as a owner of EcoSea Dive in Sihanoukville Cambodia where he teaches PADI and SSI Scuba Diving and runs holiday adventure tours to the outer islands. Fred is working on a new website project CheapCharliesHotels.com as a excuse to travel more and work less, basically his life?s ambition. His website is http://www.ecosea.com

As a tourist, sometimes the best thing about a vacation is the comfortable hotel. So while you are visiting Rome, Italy, why not try one of the many historic hotels?

Between visiting beautiful historic fountains, the Coliseum, the Vatican Museum and enjoying the night life in Trastevere, you?ll need a cozy place to relax in the evening, but don?t let the vacation stop the moment you arrive at your hotel. There are plenty of exquisite hotels that only add to the experience of a true Roman holiday.

Suggested Historic Hotels in Rome

Amidst the city streets of Rome are lovely historic hotels like D?Inghilterra. Founded in 1845, the hotel?s guest list has included Hans Christian Anderson and Mark Twain. You understand why this is one of the most popular hotels when you first see the location, which sits close to the Spanish Steps. It?s unique interior style makes heads turn. With a delectable restaurant, Caf? Romano, this makes for a stunning all inclusive five star hotel.

Not far from the Vatican Museum is an historic district called ?Prati?. Within the floors of an ancient palace, is the Les Chambres D?Or. The quiet atmosphere and sophisticated style and grace are revealed at every turn. You get some of the best views of the Eternal City when you stay at the Les Chambres D?Or.

How to Pick the Right Historic Hotel in Rome

Rome has many culturally intoned historic hotels, and choosing the right one for your stay may be important.

First, figure out the tourist destinations you are interested in. Is there a certain museum you would like to see? Do you only have a short weekend to stay in Rome? Factors like these may be of some assistance if you want to get the most out of your vacation.

For example, if you are going to visit for a short while, you could pick out the museums and all the places you would like to see, and then pick a hotel that is center to everything you want to do. You would not want to pick a hotel that is on the other side of the city from the places you want to visit.

Benefits of a Historic Hotel

You could stay at one of the Hilton, Sheraton or Holiday Inn hotels. They are very luxurious and in convenient locations. However, why stay there, when there are thousands of those in cities around the world? You would get the same standard room from a standard hotel, but a trip to Rome shouldn?t be standard.

A cultural vacation shouldn?t end the moment you reach the hotel steps. The more historic hotels in the district offer fantastic views, traditional styles and more. You are swallowed up in Italian history at ever turn. With sleek marble baths and plush carpets and the opportunity to open you window up to an ancient structure or an exceptionally beautiful church, you simply can?t miss a chance to reserve a hotel in one of the finest cities in the world.

Fionn Downhill is President of Four Corners Hotels offering hotels in cities around the world. To find out more about hotels in Rome visit http://www.fourcornershotels.com/index.php/IT–Rome

When it comes to hotels, things boil down to a tradeoff between low cost and convenient location. In many cases, especially when traveling to major cities and popular attractions, the closer the hotel to the city or attraction the more you can expect to pay. The best way to save money, particularly in large cities, is often to stay in the suburbs.

Of course, this means that you will spend more time getting to the places you want to visit, and this will mean spending additional money on gasoline, etc. It is important to compute all these costs to make sure that you will really be spending less on a less convenient hotel room.

There are of course a number of ways to save money on hotels and motels without compromising quality. For one thing, a membership in AAA or a similar auto club also entitles you to discounts on hotel rooms, as does military service and senior citizen status. When inquiring about a hotel room, always inquire about discounts that may be available.

In addition, shopping early for a hotel room can often yield the best deals. That is because hotels often reserve a block of low cost rooms, and when they are gone they are gone. Thus, the last room at a hotel may be much more costly than the first. Getting the best hotel room deal is often a matter of timing.

Of course getting a great deal on a hotel will mean nothing if the place is a dump. Shopping for a budget hotel should not mean settling for a hotel that is dirty, poorly run or in an unsafe location.

Fortunately, finding a good budget hotel has been made much easier with the help of the internet. What used to take weeks or even months to research can now be done in a matter of hours or even minutes. Many hotels, even budget properties, feature pictures of the property and the surrounding area, so be sure to research the property you are considering if you have never stayed there before.

It is important to research the area in which the hotel is located as well. Be sure to check out things like restaurants and attractions within walking distance of the hotel. Doing research on the area will help ensure you do not end up staying in a dangerous neighborhood just to save a couple of bucks.

The internet also provides a number of review sites where those who have stayed in various hotels share their experiences and their impressions of the hotel properties. These review sites can be very useful for travelers, particularly those traveling to a new location for the first time.

In addition, the internet hosts a number of comparison web sites where travelers can easily find and compare hotel properties for their individual dates of stay and destinations. These web sites offer a number of ways to search, including distance from a particular tourist attraction, price, star level and more. The only caveat to consider when using such a web site is its independence. Some comparison web sites feature only properties that pay an advertising fee, so using a comparison site does not necessarily guarantee the best price. It is best to use a number of such web sites to get a true picture of the lowest prices available.

For more information about securing cheap or discount hotel rates, visit these sites, Cheap Hotels and Discount Hotels.

Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey and has a history that dates back around three thousand years making it one of the world?s oldest cities. Until 1930 Istanbul was formally known as Constantinople named after the Roman emperor Constantine. When the city was originally founded it was known as Byzantium.

Istanbul is located on the Bosphorus strait and is split in two, one half located in Europe and one half in Asia. This division makes it the only major city in the world to be located on two continents. Istanbul has a population of over 15 million.

Istanbul summers are hot and humid while winters can be cold and rainy with occasional snow

Istanbul is a colorful city and a center for commerce, culture, education, shopping, tourism, entertainment and art. The city abounds with bazaars, Byzantine churches and Ottoman mansions. It is a major port and a center for trade. Istanbul is at the centre of the Turkey’s economic life

The neighborhoods of Istanbul are a melting pot shaped by many different ethnic communities including Greek Orthodox Christians, Armenian Christians, and the Sephardic Jews.

Istanbul is a major center for arts and culture with the International Arts and Cultural Festival being held each year in June and July attracting artists of international repute. Nightclubs abound throughout the city and provide both traditional Turkish entertainment such as belly-dancing and also more modern such as cabarets, discos, and clubs.

Shopping in Istanbul is a multi-faceted experience. For a truly unique experience try the Covered Bazaar with more than 4,000 shops located in the old city. This is the traditional Turkish way of shopping and an experience not to be missed. Local crafts abound including carpets, pottery, glassware, jewelry, spices and leather goods.

For a more modern shopping experience try the Taksim – Nisantasi – Sisli areas of the city. Here you can explore fashionable stores selling clothing made from Turkey?s high quality textiles.

Turkish baths or hammams are the perfect way to rejuvenate after a days of shopping and sight-seeing. These usually include a Turkish massage, steam bath and tea.

Food in Turkey shows the influence that other cultures have had on the city. There are influences from the Far East and the Mediterranean which merge within Turkish cuisine. From home meals and sidewalk cafes to fancy restaurants you will experience good food and value for money. Local tradesman eateries serve lunches such as sulu yemek (stew) and pilav (rice).

Traditional Turkish cuisine includes delicacies such as kebap, baklava, lokum, and rakı, Meals include soups, rice dishes, stuffed veggies, pastries and rich desserts. Turkish coffee is renowned around the world and is a long way removed from the coffees found in North America. Turkish delight is a sweet confection flavored with rose water or lemon. It is eaten in small cubes dusted with sugar.

There are so many delights to be had when visiting Istanbul. The city offers something for everyone. It is a wonderful, fascinating place with such a rich heritage and diversity of cultures. The historical buildings and houses, the bridges crossing the Bosphorus, the stores, bazaars and restaurants and the Turkish people make the Istanbul experience one never to be forgotten.

Fionn Downhill writes for Four Corners Hotels http://www.fourcornershotels.com/index.php/TR–Istanbul which offers hotels in cities around the world.