Yangmingshan (Yangmin Mountain), Taipei

Advantages: see review
Disadvantages: distance, language

...I was afraid of my stay for one-day stopover without prebooking any hotel in Taiwan to Hanoi. I had been arrived early in the morning at 7.30 a.m. and the flight to Hanoi was departing the next day at 7 a.m. The airport, which should close at night, is 50 km from Taipei city and I was told that people shouldn’t speak hardly English and all is written in Chinese characters. Taipei was waiting with nice weather. I passed a gate, which checked my temperature by a calorimeter camera, a caveat against SARS. At the customs clearance I got a Visa for 1 month for free and near the exit was tourist information. There I was offered a free half-day sight seeing tour and I was supplied with a town map leaflet and information about the airport bus back and the possibility to stay overnight at terminal two. My mood lightened. I was starting... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: A holiday of a lifetime, lovely people, lovely place, lots of fun
Disadvantages: none, even though I fell off my bike!

...Me and my boyfriend went on a mountain-biking holiday back in May 2000 and I still have the memories warming my heart. It really was a perfect time. We were looking for something a little bit different to do for our summer break, perhaps including some sort of activity. I entered the term "alternative holidays" in Google's search engine and found the website www.mountain-beach.co.uk which instantly grabbed my attention. They offer a variety of holidays for mountain-bikers; to Greece, Canada, the Alps and Costa Rica. Also some weekend breaks in Yorkshire. What I found most appealing was the fact that they claimed riders of any level would enjoy the Greek and Alpine holidays (the Canadian and Costa Rican holidays include some more challenging routes). My boyfriend has a certain amount of cycling experience in that he cycles to work... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Lots to see & do, easy to get to
Disadvantages: Not for the lazy

...may as well go to The Blue Mountains as we are only 30 minutes away. "Sounds great" so off we went. The Blue Mountains are approx 100 kms West of Sydney (60-90 minutes drive) and form part of The Great Dividing Range. This was an impenetrable barrier on the voyage of discovery and it wasn't until 1813 that they were crossed by Gregory Blaxland, William Charles Wentworth and a Lieutenant Lawson, along with four servants. By July 1814 a 47 mile road had been built and within six months the road extended all the way to what is now Bathurst, 101 miles away. They were originally named Carmarthen Hills and Landsdowne Hills in 1778 although not long after were renamed The Blue Mountains due to the distinctive blue haze surrounding the area. I must say that the name to me is a bit of a misnomer. To my mind they are neither mountains nor... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful