Travel to Amazing Lijiang China

Lijiang is located in northwestern Yunnan Province, China. It's a world of cultural heritage. Lijiang has attracted many people with its tranquil ancient town and beautiful scenery. Have you been there,you will never wish to leave.

The Old Town of Lijiang
The old town of Lijiang was built by the ancestors of the Naxi ethnic minority during the late years of the Song and early Yuan dynasties (from 12th to 13th centuries), and named Dayan at the time.

The people of Naxi, while developing their land of snow-clad mountains and turbulent rivers since ancient times, have created the "Dong Ba Culture", a culture all-embracing while unique.

Black Dragon Pool Park
Located just to the north of Lijiang, Black Dragon Pool is a famous pond located in the scenic Jade Spring Park. It was built in 1737 during the Qing Dynasty and offers a spectacular view on the region's tallest mountain, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, over its white marble bridge. The park also features several smaller temples and pavilions.

Lake Luguhu
Lake Luguhu is located in the northeast of Lijiang City. The lake surface is 52 square kilometers. The water of the lake is generally clean and green, with different shades of color: now turquoise blue, now sapphire blue, now white-gray, simply beyond one's imagination.

Around Lake Luguhu lives an ancient nationality - the Mosuo nationality, a branch of the Naxi nationality. Up to now, the Mosuo people retain the vestiges of matriarchal society and follow the tradition of "walking marriage."

Jade Dragon Snow Mountain
Ten miles from Lijiang is Jade Dragon Snow Mountain(Yulong Mountain). Its landscape includes one of the southernmost glaciers in the modern world. Shanzidou, the main peak of the mountain at 18,000 feet above sea level, looks like a gigantic dragon clad in white snow all year round. Access to the mountain is provided by a cable lift to Dragon Spruce Meadow, halfway to the glacier peak.

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The Must See Parts of Phuket

Thailand is a very popular tourist destination with more and more people each year taking advantage of the wonderful facilities and attractions that it has to offer.

When taking Thailand holidays it really pays to have a good knowledge of what the country has to offer and try to plan your activities and excursions to give yourself the best chance of seeing as much as possible in the time you have.

Thailand has everything from golden beaches to historic temples and lavish modern cities. Depending on your interests you will be able to find something to take your fancy each and every day in Thailand, who knows you might even find a new interest with so much choice and variety available.

Many people take Phuket holidays because of the islands great beaches and shopping districts. Due to its large size I will attempt to include some of the most well known and popular sites and attractions to give you some help if you only have a short time to explore.

PhuketOld Town

You will find many delights within the provincial cities old town, be prepared for smart cosmopolitan stores mixed in with local handicraft markets giving it an appeal of its own. If you enjoy architecture then this certainly will be an area you will want to explore with its Sino-Portuguese building styles throughout.

Big Buddha

This gigantic statue has become one of Phukets most famous landmarks and is almost 45 metres in height. Located on top of the Nakkerd hills between Kata and Chalong, the wonderful figurines elevated location gives stunning views across the whole island including Karons Beaches and Phukets old town.

The Phuket Fantasea show

Phukets Fantasea show is the Thai Islands most well known and popular attraction and bills itself as the 'Ultimate cultural Theme park'. The attraction hosts a huge stage show that involves animals, acrobats and includes one of the biggest buffets available in Asia. The fun doesn't stop when the show finishes as it is set within a huge theme park complete with shopping village. It's certainly something for all of the family to enjoy and treasure during a Thailand Holiday.

This article was written by Thom Sanders on behalf of the Qantas Holidays. Providers of great Thailand holiday packages and a fantastic choice when booking Phuket holidays.

Visiting Beaches in Phuket

Beaches are integral part of any Phuket tour. The island hosts an array of beaches, all of which have something distinct about them. Famous beaches like Patong, Karon, Kata and Kamala are located in Phuket. Beaches of the Island are the rendezvous of sports, adventure, shopping and night life.

Patong Beach

Patong, most visited beach in Phuket, offers mist-wrapped mornings and the sunsets which are always worthy to watch. And Patong isn't finished with natural beauty. Add to it colorful atmosphere, a range of restaurants, fun-filled nightlife, fabulous fun-making, and the temptation to visit Phuket become irresistible. A long white sandy stretch, Phuket offers thrilling adventures and fast-paced shopping. Any visit to Phuket is incomplete without Patong trip.

Karon Beach

If you wish to avail full range of facilities, dining and activities, but are not too fond of crowds, Karon is your destination. A stretch of squeaky white sand, Karon beach has a number of budget guest houses, restaurants and bars. Some artists have built here a complex of huts and galleries, which would interest art lovers. A football stadium, which hosts both national and international events, is also located near Karon Beach. One can get here rejunevating spa and shop for handicrafts. For enjoying nightlife, you could visit Patak East Road.

Kamala Beach

Kamala is considered the most beautiful beach in Phuket, offering panoramic views of the Andaman Sea. Ringed by forested hills, this calm and pleasant beach has pretty white sands. If one seeks more than sunbathing, facilities like boats are available. At Kamala Beach, one can get a feel of old Phuket. Shopping in village markets has its own charm. One would find a range of hotels and apartments are nestled around the fishing village. After a day of water sports and shopping, one can entertain in evenings at Phuket FantaSea Entertainment Complex, known for sparkling dances and leg-shaking music.

Kata Beach

Milky sands and turquoise waters make Kata Beach different. Surfers like to have fun at Southern end of Kata beach. Every year, during December, beautiful yachts from all over the region arrive in Kata to participate in King's Cup Regatta, Asia's premier sailing event. Tourists wishing to explore beyond the beach can take assistance from several dive shops and tour operators. One could also shop for souvenirs and readymade clothes at shops in Kata village. A popular tourist resort, there are sufficient number of restaurants and hotels too.

Surin Beach

If you wish to relish delicious seafood and sunbath in peaceful and pleasant atmosphere, Surin could be your option. A casuarina-lined beach, Surin has calm and refreshing atmosphere, thanks to the absence of jet-skiis and speedboats. However, the beach is good to enjoy activities like snorkeling and and surfing. Near the beach, one can find facilities like shops, bars, cafes and small hotels.

Bang Tao Beach

A long milky beach, Bang Tao is known for luxurious resorts and villas. One can enjoy a slew of activities including golfing, windsurfing, elephant riding, kids sports, rock climbing, horse riding and ropes course. At open-air village market in close vicinity of the beach, one can get first-hand experience of a conventional Thai market.

Chalong Bay

Muddy coastline makes Chalong Bay unsuitable for most water sports. However, it does have a jetty where you can hire boats. Tourist facilities like parking, restaurants, information kiosks and shops are located on jetty.

Panwa Beach

Panwa is a tranquil beach at a short distance from Phuket town. The foremost attraction of the beach is Phuket Aquarium at the Phuket Marine Biological Center. It is the centre of most water sports competitions in Phuket.

Laem Sing Beach

People wanting a reclusive day can visit Laem Sing which has a white beach at the center and rocky outcroppings at both ends. Located between Patong and Surin, Laem Sing is good for snorkeling and sunbathing. You would find some locally run restaurants and bars, but no accommodation facilities are available.

Dinesh Patairya has been writing on tourism for several online and offline publications for years. He is currently working for a project on Phuket [http://www.yourasianvacations.com/thailand/phuket/index.html] with YourAsianVacations.com

The Amazing Nightlife of Phuket

Phuket is a very popular travel destination located in Southern Thailand. One of the principal reasons why Phuket has grown into one of Asia's leading travel destinations is because of the wild and amazing nightlife which visitors encounter on this tropical Asian island. Of course this leading Thai travel destination has plenty of other attractions and activities to offer its tourists, which include white sandy beaches and these popular tourist shows found at Simon Cabaret and Phuket Fantasea. However the nightlife has been ranked as the leading attraction for many travelers and tourists.

Phuket has many repeat visitors and the vast majority of these repeat tourists return back to this popular holiday destination because of the large variety of excellent bars and the many cute Thai girls that are employed at these Phuket nightlife venues.

Travelers who are planning to spend their vacation on Phuket and who would like to spend many evenings exploring the exiting nightlife should definitely reserve accommodation in Patong beach. This popular beach resort area is where most popular Phuket nightlife establishments are located.

There is a wide range of different type of nightlife venues on the island which we have listed and reviewed for you.

Discos

Any tourists who would like to do some clubbing during their stay on Phuket will be happy to hear that there are some really remarkable discos. All the discos on this popular Thai island are located in Patong beach. The largest of all the discos on the island is the famous Patong Tiger Disco and other popular discos include the Safari Club, Banana Disco and the Patong Tai Pan disco.

Bars

There are thousands of bars located on Phuket and most of these nightlife venues can be found in Patong. There are different types of bars which include beer bars, Irish bars, cocktail bars, wine bars, go go bars and gay bars. Some of the most popular Phuket bars include the Kangaroo Bar, Molly Malone's Irish bar, Patong Aussie Bar and the ever so popular Boat Bar.

Beer Bars

The most popular type of bars on Phuket is most certainly beer bars. This type of Phuket nightlife venues come in all shapes and sized and most can be found along Soi Bangla in Patong beach. What makes these bars so unique and popular is the fact that there are many cute and sexy bar girls working at these of popular bars. Visitors who are interested in getting to know one of the cute Thai girls are able to bar fine the girl for the rest of the evening.

Go Go Bars

Thailand is well known for its Go Go bar and there are more than a few outstanding Go Go bars on the island which travelers can explore. If you would like to visit one of these Phuket nightlife venues then we recommend for you to head over to Soi Seadragon which is located just off the popular Bangla road in Patong.  Thai Go Go bars are basically bars where there are Thai girls dancing on stage in very revealing clothing.

For more information about the various different Phuket nightlife venues be sure to visit the nightlife section which is located in the author's Phuket guide.

James is living on Phuket with his family and is employed in the travel industry. Tourists seeking information about Phuket should visit his Phuket travel guide which includes an excellent chapter on Phuket Nightlife.

Club Lime Still Phuket's Best Clubbing Venue

Rewind a few years and clubbing in Phuket was in a dire state. There was nothing but pop and cheesy techno, along with clubs playing local rock and country music. Times have changed, and visitors to Phuket now have a far superior choice of clubs to select from, and nowhere does it better than Club Lime in Patong.

What Phuket was missing for a long time was a venue championing the finer sounds of dance music. It was possible to hear zany chipmunk techno music, but for something with a little more soul, you had to look to Bangkok or else outside of Thailand. There are currently a small group of DJs in Phuket who have been steadily helping to build a vibrant clubbing scene in Phuket.

Club Lime first opened its doors a couple of years ago. The club had style and was a far cry from the typical beer bars and cheesy discos that Phuket is famous for. Club Lime was more like the type of venue you could find in England or America. It had the drinks prices to match, but it was difficult to complain because of the music policy.

From the beginning, the people behind Club Lime made a point to book serious DJs with a passion for the music they were playing. DJs such as Eddy and D[r]eadmongey rose to fame at Club Lime, playing everything from house to techno. But Club Lime didn't stop there. Every week it was possible to hear breaks, electro and even drum n bass.

What has helped cement Club Lime's reputation has been the string of quality DJs booked to play from overseas. These include everyone from Barry Ashworth and Jo Mills to Kraft Kuts and Inland Knights. These were DJs that might previously have played Koh Samui, but nobody was interested in bringing them Phuket.

The only problem that Club Lime has come across has been attracting a steady crowd of people on quieter nights. On the weekends the club has almost always been full, but during the week, except for the occasional group of tourists, numbers are usually no more than 20 or so.

The same, however, can be said of many clubs in Bangkok. It takes a big night to get people to make the effort. Club Lime is still one of Phuket's most enjoyable night spots and one only hopes that it continues to be so.

While Club Lime in Patong is a great place to spend a night, Phuket nightlife has a lot to offer travelers, including everything from indie clubs to hip hop venues.

How To Save Money by Buying Direct from Property Developers

One of the most obvious things most people don't think about is buying direct from the developer directly and not using a local real estate agent. Most local agents are selling either their own projects they developed on their own or some other project that the agent is getting extra commission on. They will go on and on how they sell on unbiasesed basis but the truth remains the same. They sell the properties they make the most commissions on. Some agents do know the local market but are in the business of buying low and selling high. I remember going to see an agent in town when I was new in town. He showed me three different properties. All three I found out later he or his partner owned. So remember you will get the best deal if you go to see the developer directly and save.

Buy properties developers will wheel and deal on

Most developers are trying to make a big name for themselves. The only way to do this is to have successful projects in their portfolio. This means the developer needs to complete a project on time and that the customers who bought in on pre-construction are happy with their purchase. New developers who lack many successful projects under their belt may be more willing to negotiate on the price. Best thing to ask the developer is what project they have completed in the past. They should be able to provide a few customer references also. If they cannot do this, they may be a new inexperienced developer. Knowing this will allow you to save because you know you can make a great reference. By letting the customer use your name as a reference he may give you some extra discounts that a normal customer may not receive.

Check local Market prices

Know what the local prices are selling for in the area. Make sure to compare apples to apples however. Some properties and very little common area and other have as much as 25%. Knowing this will help you evaluate the property you looking to purchase. I found the best way to do this is looking at the price list sheets and either downloading them or printing them off. Put all the projects you like side by side and compare them. Also look in the local newspaper for news events and promotion shows. Most places will also have real estate or home shows every few months. This is a great place to pick up new information about projects that are just starting.

Buy pre-construction to save raising costs

There are whole books written about buying pre-construction properties. The pro's and con's to both. I like pre-construction properties because you get in on ground level. One of the things you want to make sure here is that the building permit has been issued for the project. You may even want to keep talking with the developer to make sure your stage payments don't come until the project is at least 50% complete. If you're buying in a western country they may even have escrow accounts that can keep your money safe during the early stages of construction. Countries like Mexico and Thailand do not so better to negotiate to keep your risk as low as possible. Most developers will want 50 -80% during construction and the balance due on completion. Thanks for reading and please sign up for my newsletter if you would like more information on saving on your holiday purchase.

Scott Riefler is an expert in dealing with Phuket Real Estate and finance related matters. He has written several informative articles on topics like mortgage, home refinancing, real estate loans and real estate insurance. He regularly contributes articles to web guides on real estate and home refinancing.
You can sign up for my newsletter at: Phuket apartments

Expensive Ticket to Paradise

Low fare airliners have changed the tourism industry significantly in the recent years. Holiday destinations across the globe are now reachable at affordable cost. In Asia, the largest low fare airliner AirAsia connects South-East Asian hubs to numerous holiday destinations in the region.

Now everybody can get cheap flight ticket from Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, or Bangkok to Bali, Phuket, Penang, Hainan, Macau, even less popular new emerging destinations like Krabi in Thailand, Guilin in China, or Bandung in Indonesia.

Unfortunately it is not the case with Koh Samui, the newly emerging tropical island in the southern part of Thailand. Flights to Koh Samui are rather limited and expensive. A flight from Phuket to Koh Samui - which is only about half an hour - costs a lot more than two hours long flight from Kuala Lumpur to Phuket.

AirAsia flies to much less visited Krabi, so if we are looking into airliner's readiness, I believe they are much more than ready. Residents of Koh Samui explained that the situation is caused by absence of airport. The only airport in Koh Samui is owned and operated by Bangkok Air only to serve their own flight with an exception for Thai Airways. Without competition Bangkok Air retains the power to dictate any price they want.

From tourism development point of view, it is quite a bad situation, especially because Koh Samui is a very potential island destination. In addition to beautiful calm white-sandy beaches it is also serves as gate to its surrounding smaller islands including Koh Phangan. So attractive that some tourists are prepared to pay the price, but still, the vast majority chooses to save their money and somewhere else.

Providing private villa accommodation for high-end tourists to whom money is not really an issue, Wisna Wedhana, the Managing Director of Private Leisure International saw the airfare as a significant barrier even to her wealthy clients. "We have many interested clients who decide to go somewhere else as son as they know the ticket price", she complained. "It may be okay if you are traveling alone, but if you are a family of 10, it is a significant amount of money", she added.

Actually there is a few other ways to get to Koh Samui. You can drive from either Phuket or Krabi to the pier at Khanom and take a short ferry trip to Koh Samui. Air-conditioned coaches and train are available from Bangkok to the southern provice of Suratthani where you can take a short drive to Khanom pier. The super luxurious Orient Express train also stops at Suratthani. Another alternative is to take a yacht from Bangkok directly to Koh Samui. "Yes, but no one is comparable with a flight, how do you expect people to take a 10 hours land trip after a long haul trip from Europe", Wisna commented about the alternatives.

Before the authority finds affordable transportation solution, maybe we should see it from the positive point of view, being only available to those who are prepared to pay more or take the pain, Koh Samui is kept as a peaceful tropical paradise.

Private Leisure International's collection of private villas in Koh Samui is available in its website Koh Samui Villas Online. Those who prefer to avoid the hassle and choose Phuket instead can find private villa accommodation options at Phuket Villas Online. The company also provides private villa accommodation in Krabi and Koh Phangan.

Adi has been spending more than five years focusing on helping his clients in private villa and holiday rental industry in Bali to gain better online exposure. Combination of information technology and marketing backgrounds brought him to become the man behind most commercially successful websites in Bali.