Many people don't realize that a great vacation can be had right in your own backyard. For example you can plan a week's vacation into day trips.

Many of us live close to a major city; check out their tourism guides chances are you will find many fun activities for you and you family. We live in the Toronto area where there is an abundance of wonderful things to do. From water parks, amusement playgrounds, museums, live theatres, sporting events just about something for everyone. Every city or small town has its own website which will link you to all the tourism activities within their region. Check it out you will be surprised how much there is to do in your own backyard.

Cruise Vacation:

A cruise can be the ultimate vacation experience. Mostly because of the fact that a cruise takes you to multiple destinations. Great example is a Carnival Cruise. Carnival offers great vacation packages and at a reasonable rates. A family of four can take in a Southern Caribbean cruise for about $4500.00. A cruise offers so much for families, from relaxing on a pristine sand beach to adventures through a tropical rainforest. All cruises offer excursions to each of the islands you visit, from a hike through the rainforest, golf, swimming with the dolphins to parasailing. Cost depends on the type of excursion you wish to take. The average price is around $150.00 for a family of four.

Beach Vacation:

Many places along the east coast the United States offers great beach vacations. Myrtle Beach, Virginia beach, Ocean City Maryland is but a few that offer great deals for the ultimate beach vacation and at a reasonable rate as well. I singled out those three spots as they are the ones I have vacationed in that last four years. Myrtle Beach is known for the golf enthusiast and offers great package deals on many of its fine tracks. The Beach itself has many find oceanfront properties and the warm waters and excellent overall atmosphere makes this a great family getaway.

Virginia Beach is one of true beauty its southern hospitality, excellent variety of seafood's and beachfront properties are equipped to handle any and all of your needs. It has a stunning boardwalk that stretches on all the oceanfront hotels and an excellent transit system that takes you from one end of the beach to the other at a minimal coast. Ocean City Maryland is one of Americas best kept secrets. This stunning oceanfront city, has an endless array of activities for young and old alike. If you are a fan of Crab, then Ocean city is the place for you.

1. Ontario, the second largest province borders four of the five great lakes, Ontario, Erie, Huron and Superior. Lake Michigan is the only Lake that is exclusively in the United States.
2. Despite what you may have heard on the contrary, Canada does have extremely hot summers, so don't expect to see snow or see Canadians driving around in Snowmobiles in the Summer time
3. Canada has its own football league the CFL (Canadian Football League) it operates out of 8 major cites across the country and plays from June to November. You may want to check out a game if you are football fan.
4. Poutine is a cuisine invented n Quebec, it consists of Fries, gravy and cheese curds and is a popular food among Canadians
5. Canada is a huge coffee drinking nation, Tim Horton's coffee and doughnut shops alone has over 2700 franchises across the country. Don't be surprised by how many you see when you visit here.
6. Toronto is Canada's largest city and the fifth largest in North America. It is also the Capital of Ontario.
7. Canada is considered a Bilingual country its main languages are English and French. However the majority of French speaking people are located in the province of Quebec.
8. Canada's currency may leave you a bit confused. Canada has a one dollar coin and a two dollar coin. The one dollar coin has the nickname loonie because of its depiction of a loon on the coin. The Two dollar coin has the nickname twoonie, so don't be confused if by chance someone tells you that something will cost you a twoonie or a loonie, now you know.
9. Canada has ten provinces and three territories. Its political system is the parliamentary system. In Canada they vote for the party, not a particular candidate.
10. Curling is a Canadian sport and if you have to ask what it is, then don't

The moderate resorts, offer quick serve restaurants and in house dining, while the luxury resorts offer much more and with a step to elegance. No matter what resort you choose, you can expect the same treatment and service which can only be expected from Disney.

For the camper, Disney even has its own campground, where you can sit down and roast marshmallows and have a campfire sing along with your favorite Disney character.

Each resort has transportation to and from any of the attractions, so there is no need to worry about driving. Let Disney take care of it.

Downtown Disney offers the best in entertainment, shopping and dining out. It's a metropolis all in its self. There are night clubs, kid's entertainment, fine dining and you can even take in movie if the mood strikes you.

The attractions offer so much to see, it is wise to buy a Disney Hopper pass, which gives you in and out privileges to each of the attractions. The Hopper pass gives you the freedom to hop from attraction to attraction without any restrictions. See the Magic Kingdom in the morning and pop over to Epcot in the afternoon and maybe take in Animal Kingdom or MGM in the evening. Some folks like to take in a resort in the morning, and then relax at the pool in the afternoon then back to one of the attractions for the night time shows. Either way it's up to you. The Hopper pass gives you the freedom to choose.

Each attraction offers something for all. For the Thrill rides, to shows and just everyday Disney magic.

You will find many deals offering discounted prices on a resort which at the time may sound good, but remember you are getting what you pay for.

Check out all the details before you book. Look up the resort on the Web and check out any traveller reviews.

Find out what the food is like and the condition of the property and rooms.

Look for the star ratings on multiple websites as some may rate it lower then others.

Your best bet is to look for a four or five star resort and try and stay away from anything that has a lower rating. If not you could be in for a big disappointment upon check-in.

Make sure that the food at the resort has good ratings or you may find yourself living off potato chips and soda if the food is not up to quality standards.

Check out other resorts in the area that may be under construction or if the one you are looking at is undergoing any renovations. This could be a factor in why the price is so low.

Look up the traveller reviews and send an email anyone who had a recent visit, they can give you the whole scoop on what is good and bad about the resort.

At times the resort may be having a last minute sell-off due to cancellations or under bookings and it may be a deal of a lifetime. But it is best to exercise a little caution.

English is not the first language there, so with some of the locals you may find a bit of a language barrier, but not to the extreme. Most of the staff at your resort will be able to communicate with you, but they may not be able to understand some of your terms. For example: We asked for our room to be upgraded at check-in. Well we got upgraded one floor. After a bit of communicating what we actually wanted, we were moved to an oceanfront room for an additional cost of $300.00 U.S. dollars. It's a good idea when booking your trip, to clarify with your travel consultant exactly what type of room you want. This will save some confusion with your resort staff.

All resorts have both alacarte restaurants and buffets. If you are looking for alacarte for your evening dinners, be prepared to wait in line each morning to make your reservation. While some found this a bit annoying, we found it to quite a pleasurable experience as we had the chance to meet people from various countries in line. All in all we had about a 20 minute wait each day, so it was not really a big deal.

I would suggest you put aside about $70.00 for tips. Not that tipping is encouraged by the resort, but it's a nice gesture for the staff. Remember they don't make a ton of money and it's the ones who tip, who get the best service. I gave our bartender $20.00 at the beginning of the week and as a result he waited on me hand and foot. We also put aside $3-$4.00 per day for the housekeeping staff and this in turn got us extra beach towels and a turned down bed each evening. The rest of the tips went to our servers at dinner time.

Make sure you drink only bottled water and brush your teeth with the same. The tap water is not something you want to ingest and it can leave you feeling very sick. Bring a good supply of Imodium if that just in case. As well, be careful of certain foods, most resorts having their own water purifications systems the food is very clean, however it is a wise idea just to take it easy for the first couple of days and not go hog wild at the buffet until your system gets accustomed to the way food is prepared down there.

Bring lots of sunscreen and apply it whenever you get out of the water, the sun is very powerful and we ended up with a case of sun poisoning which made for some pretty nasty itching. When looking for the best resort you have to factor in what best suits your needs. If you are looking for a peaceful vacation, they pick one of the smaller resorts as opposed to the large ones. The small resorts will have fewer children and are more geared to the honeymoon type couple.

If you want to go for the party or family type resort then they larger ones are for you. The will cater to kids and adults and have plenty of night life to take you to the wee small hours of the morning.

As well, remember the rum in most islands is very strong, so take it in moderation or you will find your self with one dozy of a hangover.

The Dominican is an excellent destination and the locals will make you feel welcome and at home. Take in its breathtaking beauty and charm and most of all enjoy yourself.

You can either book and excursion directly with the cruise line or you can check out private excursions for each island you plan to visit. A good hint: if opt for the private excursion, make sure they are familiar with your cruise line. A good excursionist will know exactly the ships schedule and what time to have you back prior the ship leaving dock. As well, do not pre-pay if they ask you to do so most will ask for payment at the end of the excursion. However, you can pre-pay if you are booking with the ships excursion.

Embarking: You will have to provide ID for each family member. As cruise lines are cashless, you will have to provide a credit card or a cash deposit before you embark. As well the gratuities are pre-paid so you will have to have enough cash or room on your credit card for purchases on the ship. Your room card is used for purchases and you can restrict or limit the cards for your children to any amount you want set.

Gratuities are based on the number of traveling with you. The going rate is about $70.00 per person per week. So for a family of four your will need to set aside $280.00 Trust me when I say that will be money well spent. The staff is trained to wait on their guests hand and foot and the treatment you will receive is second to none.

Don't worry about your luggage; it will be waiting outside your room upon arrival. If your luggage does not happen to be at the door, don't panic, it will get there.

Booking a late dinner time may be a good idea, if you are planning excursions every day.

You won't have to rush to change into your dinner clothes if you have an early dinner time

This way you can get back to the ship and relax on the deck prior to eating.

If you opt for the buffet everyday, then you have no worries. (Quick note: you will gain weight cruising, it's inevitable as there is an endless array of food everywhere)

As well, you can order more then one entrée at your evening meal if the mood strikes you. And be ready to loosen the belt a few notches afterwards.

Taking young kids and teens? Each cruise has kids and teen clubs designed to make it a memorable experience for them. It's a great way for them to meet other kids and it can give you and your spouse some much needed alone time.

Budget how much you want to spend per day and stick to it. It is easy to rack up a huge bill at the end of the cruise, and if you go over your limit or what you put in for deposit, you will have to pay when leaving. Good Hint: Each morning pay off what you spent the day before at the purser's desk.

The Island excursions can be a wonderful experience, however take give yourself some time in the morning to get ready. If you book an early excursion, make sure you have time breakfast as you don't want to be rushed and miss your booking time.

An excursion and also be very tiring as well as you are on time constraints and you want to see and do as much as possible in the time allotted.

Our last cruise took us to four islands, two of which we did an excursion and the other two we took for time to relax on the beach, do some island shopping and site seeing. Ask the cruise director for tips on the best beaches, shopping and restaurants, you will find their information very useful.

Remember most of all to take the time to have fun, enjoy yourself and make the most of everything the cruise ship has to offer you.