Take a short drive out of Halifax and you will find some of the top rated beaches in Nova Scotia. The region north of the city is great for surfing. Nearby interior lakes offer up warm safe waters, or stay in the city and head for Point Pleasant Park for a quick and watery escape.

Surfing is the best at Martinque and Lawrencetown. Lawrencetown is about 35 minutes outside Halifax and offers world class waves to both surfers and swimmers. The beach is 1.5km and is actually located inside a provincial park with hiking trails and other activities to while away the time.

Martinique Beach is a 5km crescent that is located a one hour drive north of Halifax. Lifeguards are always on duty, and the sand is perfect for building sandcastles.

Another beach is Black Rock Beach, located in Point Pleasant Park. Black Rock is not recommended for swimmers, but it does make for a great place to escape for sun and sand. Many people watch the gulls search for food or play Frisbee in the grass or take walks along the waterfront. The Park is filled with Maritime memorials dedicated to keeping history alive in the current day. Visitors can also watch Shakespeare performed by the company Shakespeare by the Sea.

Safe swimming can be done at the Halifax Lake Beaches. The lakes feature warm and salty water away from the strong currents of the ocean. Nearby campgrounds make the lakes very family friendly and safe for kids at play. You can find the Lakes at Shubenacadie-Grand Lake, which is 35km northwest of Halifax. Boating on Grand Lake is also an option. Another possibility is Porters Lake located on Highway 107 about 30 km from Halifax.

If you are planning to take children or elderly relatives along, you will want to plan your trip accordingly. For example, Alaska offers many wonderful wilderness experiences on rivers, lakes, and even glaciers, and most of these are accessible to people of any age. But it would be a good idea to find out in advance so everyone will be prepared.

There are many ways to get to Alaska, depending on where you live. Air travel is available to the major cities like Fairbanks, Anchorage, and Juneau, as well as some of the smaller villages. Several steamship cruise lines offer Alaska getaway packages that last anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks. Of course, you will need to book travel to the port of departure first, and then schedule your cruise from there. Canada boasts an exciting array of train trips that can get you to Alaska from many different locations. The scenery is breath taking! Car travel is another possibility, again depending on your point of departure. Be sure to get up-to-date maps and heed all weather and wildlife warnings.

You can take in many types of culture in the urban areas, such as native art museums, since Native American tribes people have inhabited the area for centuries. There are zoos that offer close-ups of Alaskan animal and bird species, and aquariums filled with samples of sea creatures from surrounding lakes, rivers, and the seacoast. A bevy of dining experiences beckon from the resort and less-traveled areas. You can find many kinds of cuisine, from European to Asian dishes, so take your appetite along.

For the truly adventurous in heart, you can even sign up for a dog sled trip, accompanied by an experienced guide. Climb a glacier, hike a forest, or canoe across a pristine lake. If you bring the kids, though, you may need to take a few extra precautions, so call ahead. Many attractions, even the more rigorous ones, are handicap accessible. You will want to know in advance, though, in case some aren’t, so you can find something fun for Mom and Dad to do while you tour the great outdoors.

If you decide to drive to the outlying areas, take along extra fuel and water since there aren’t many rest stops or convenience stores between smaller towns. You may want to check with the highway patrol or a park ranger, if that’s where you’re headed, to inquire about weather and road conditions.

Then pack up the family and have fun!

World Resort Vacations is a veritable cornucopia buffet of travel adventures. Our Edmonton travel agents are World Resort Vacations professionals who specialize in helping you create the perfect vacation, full of memories that will endure for a lifetime.

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Just imagine a full week of pure sun-drenched glory on a pristine white beach, tropical drink in hand and taking in the warm rhythm of the waves at your toes… all for less than what you might spend for a night in a dreary hotel room back in your hometown. Or how about a luxury cruise on a five-star liner at cost? Or a thrill-of-a-lifetime jungle safari for substantially less than you would have spent if you’d stayed home! Membership in World Resort Vacations and your Edmonton travel agents can make dreams like these possible. In fact, they do it every day.

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“Affordability is a key reason why RV travel appeals so much to families,” says David Humphreys, president of RVIA (Recreation Vehicle Industry Association). Humphreys also suggests that, “there are other key reasons to travel by RV. RVs are a comfortable, convenient, stress-free way to travel, enjoy the great outdoors, and spend quality time with family.”

Many people rent before buying to see if RVing is right for them before making a purchase. Also, since many only want to use an RV once or twice a year they do not see the need to invest their money for purchase, insurance, and maintenance of an RV. Vacation seekers who live far from their destination and have limited time find it worthwhile to fly to for example to Seattle from California and rent an RV for a vacation on the coast of Washington or a visit to beautiful British Columbia, Canada.

Before renting an RV, consider that there are a number of different types of RVs to rent each with pros and cons depending on preferences and your specific travel needs.  When most people of RVs they often think of Class A Motorhomes because they are the top dogs on the road.  They are big and have just about every creature comfort for that home away from home feeling. Think big screen HD TVs, inside-outside stereo systems, stainless steel appliances and even jetted bathtubs for relaxing after a hard day on the road.  Some models are up to 40 feet in length and can sleep up to eight people.  Of course, as you can imagine, one of the cons of renting this class of RVs is the cost.  But if luxury on the road is what you seek then make sure to check out what’s available for rent from your local RV Rental company for Class A Motorhomes.

Class C Motorhomes are smaller, scaled down versions of Class A RVs with just as much sleeping room but range in size from 20 to 30 feet.  In order to fit the kitchen, living room, bathroom and sleeping areas into this size motorhome the space is used much more wisely and consequently less luxury and more practicality.  In this RV Class, you may have do without the master bathroom with the jetted tub.

For those looking more for a camping experience consider the rental of Travel and Folding Camper Trailers.  Travel trailers may be as small as 10-feet long or as big as 35-feet long. Many feature a slide out to quickly extend the unit’s living space. Travel trailers must be pulled by a separate tow vehicle. Although tow vehicles will need a load distributing hitch and sway control, most full-size sedans, vans, SUVs, and pickup trucks are capable of towing even the biggest trailers. Folding Camping Trailers are the least expensive type of RV. Commonly referred to as tent trailers or pop-up trailers, folding camping trailers are designed to be lightweight with many of the comforts found in a basic travel trailer. Folding camping trailers can easily be towed by mid-sized car and even compact cars except for maybe Yugos and Geos. Basically a folding camping trailer is a large, expandable tent on wheels.

A nice compromise between the motorhome and the camping trailer is the Fifth Wheel.  Many RV renters like this type of RV because you can disconnect the trailer from your truck or towing vehicle and use the car for day trips without having to haul the RV during your excursion and still have the amenities and space of an RV as your living space.  Fifth wheels can sleep up to five or six and range in size from 20 to 40 feet.  Make sure to check with the campground you plan on staying at because some restrict the size of RVs to 35 feet.  Fifth wheels usually come with cooking appliances, refrigerator, heating, air conditioning, shower, and water tanks.  In addition with side outs Fifth Wheels can have just as much or if not more living space as their Motorhome counterparts.

Whatever the occasion or destination, consider renting an RV to get you to your next vacation adventure.

Five articles on page A3 of a daily newspaper began as follows:

The special investigations unit has been called in after a man was shot and a second man broke his jaw during an arrest…

A woman described as armed and dangerous is wanted by police in a home invasion robbery…

A man barricaded himself inside a house for almost an hour after attacking another man with an axe…

A man tried to lure a 14-year-old into his truck…

A young man is clinging to life after being shot in the head at a west-end community centre during a brazen afternoon shooting…

From June through December, 2006, and in fact well into 2007, foreign governments issued initially travel advisories, then outright advice against traveling to Oaxaca because of purported rampant violence and safety concerns, and again more recently warnings about civil unrest and violence in this southern Mexico city of about 400,000, a mecca for tourists.  Yet New York, Chicago, L.A. and Toronto remained immune from such government wrath…oddly so given that while residents in large Canadian and American cities are regularly subjected to street violence, no tourist was targeted or injured during months of Oaxacan unrest.

The excerpts from the City Page referenced above are not from a Oaxaca newspaper, but rather from The Toronto Star, April 8, 2007, in the midst of arguably one of the most tranquil and peaceful family weekends of the year, Easter. 

There are many opinions as to why false and misleading information is disseminated about occurrences in Third World countries, and in this case Mexico (more specifically Oaxaca), while fact based reports from First World countries in the Western Hemisphere, take Canada for example, do not result in, for one thing, government advisories.

Western governments have a history of paternalistic attitudes towards their citizens dating to the period of colonization.  It continues to date.    Perhaps more importantly, during the 20th century civil liability has become a concern, more so in the US than in Canada in terms of claims for monetary damages arising out of allegations of negligence perpetrated by governments against citizens:  “You had information about civil unrest and the possibility of injury, so why didn’t you warn me against traveling to Oaxaca?”

What is a Western consul, resident in Oaxaca, to do or recommend to his or her principals in Mexico City, Washington or Ottawa?  Especially when local and international media, each with its own agenda, report incidents of unrest and at times violence?  Does governmental due diligence include checking the veracity of reports of targeting or injury to tourists, and when there are no such reports, ought they include some such reference to their findings in their warnings?  Should this writer have not stated that no tourist was injured, when in fact there was a report of a tourist who elected to walk alongside a march with his video camera, apparently inadvertently receiving a bit of mace or pepper spray in his face, then smiling and laughing it off when questioned by reporters?  Should we demand more particulars from our governments upon which we are expected to rely?  Should we perhaps request comparative statistical data when advisories are issued, regarding injury to innocents in Canadian and American cities of comparable size to that of Oaxaca?

Mexico, with different legal and political systems both historically and in contemporary times, would appear to have a different attitude towards protecting its citizenry traveling abroad, at least to Canada and the US, and certainly the federal government does not appear to have the same legal liability concerns, not having developed a British common law system which gives residents significant rights regarding claims of negligence. 

Perhaps the Mexican government should begin to issue travel advisories based upon reviewing newspapers, wire service and internet reports, and first hand accounts of violence against citizens of Western cities:

“Violence erupted against innocent people, some of whom may have been Mexican tourists, in at least five separate incidents over Easter weekend in Toronto.  We urge our citizens to exercise extreme caution should they dare to maintain their existing travel plans to that part of Canada.”

While arguably misleading, at least the facts would be accurately stated.  We would then see how much pressure would be brought to bear by Canada, and how fast, upon Mexico to retract its warning.  The Mexican government would then have received a good lesson on how to use diplomacy to convince foreign governments to be more detailed, accurate and cautious in issuing advisories.   

Before the critics and skeptics jump on the obvious gap in reasoning and fallaciousness of the analogy, they ought to research whether or not the Mexican government issued travel advisories regarding Toronto, Ontario or Canada, in the face of the two incidents bearing the closest similarity in recent memory to the Oaxacan unrest…the Oka reserve uprising and the Dudley George killing with associated conflict. 

The foregoing should not be relied upon by anyone considering traveling outside of his or her home country, and the article’s intent is not to influence anyone’s travel plans nor to opine regarding any government laws, rules, regulations, policies or procedures.     

*Author’s update:  Since the foregoing article contains historical information, I’ve taken the liberty of examining more recent news pages, the front page of the same Toronto Star, online version, for the Greater Toronto Area, from May 28 and May 31, 2009, and for April 17, 2010.  Dare to compare with headlines from mainstream Oaxaca media? Consider the following:

May 28, 2009:

“Teen guilty in rugby death”

“Body of missing teen found in Toronto harbour” [he had been in an argument the night he went missing, so accidental drowning is not suspecte]

“New Tori murder charge” ["An 18-year-old woman charged in the disappearance of eight-year-old Tori Stafford saw her charges upgraded to first degree murder Thursday]”

May 31, 2009:

“Suspect in bludgeoning slaying was on probation”

“York U. student’s body pulled from Lake Ontario”

“OPP [Ontario Provincial Police] officer charged with breach of trust”

April 17, 2010:

“Complaints overwhemlm human rights watchdog”

“Yonge St. [main commercial thoroughfare in the city] remains closed after wall collapses”

“Belleville police pull woman’s remains out of Moira River”

“Suspect and child in custody after morning attack”

“OPP [Ontario Provincial Police] union wants to know why cocaine charge dropped [against husband of politician]”

“Suspect sought in elevator fire”

“Pickering man stabbed in chest during domestic dispute”