It should be no suprise that in the booming Mexico All Inclusive travel market competing resorts are pushing the boundaries of luxury accomodations. But with so much available, it can be easy to miss out on everything these resorts have to offer. Before setting off for Mexico’s El Dorado Royale Resort my boyfriend and I conducted extensive research and worked closely with our Resort Rentals Travel Agent. We spent many hours on the web hunting for the best activities, restaurants and attractions the resort and area had to offer. Though we did find some valuable information, for the most part however we learned from trial and error once we arrived. It was these hidden treasures that made our vacation truly amazing. Now we’ve compiled these tidbits and interesting resort features for you, to ensure that you get the most out of your time at El Dorado Royale. We hope they help to make your experience at El Dorado as wonderful as ours was. (more…)

The experts have made their choice! The travel-savvy honeymoon experts over at “Modern Bride” have made their definitive list of all-inclusive brands that deliver the top experiences for honeymooners. In the September 17 issue they have listed their top-ten all-inclusive resort families, to include Occidental Resorts and Karisma Hotels and Resorts. Both of these top-ten resort families have properties in some of the best destinations around the world. Occidental Resorts provides honeymooners with possibilities from Mexico,throughout the Carribbean, and even Spain! On the same note, Karisma has an excellent reputation for their offerings throughout the beautiful country of Mexico.

Both families of properties make the top ten list due to their unfaltering attention to detail and earnest desire to cater to their customers’ every need. They understand that it’s important to be more than just be a resort, but to be create an experience that you’ll never forget. The location of each resort is carefully selected to create the perfect environment for your fairy-tale honeymoon. Offering some of the top-rated honeymoon experiences in the world, you should start your marriage off the right way with Occidental and Karisma resorts!

On June 8, the U.S. Department of State, along with the Department of Homeland Security, announced that U.S. citizens traveling to several countries in the Western Hemisphere will be able to take advantage of more flexible re-entry requirements upon returning to the US. This announcement is a result of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) which was designed by congress to tighten border security. The WHTI officially went into effect on January 23, 2007.

Affected countries include Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, and most countries in the Caribbean. The announcement states that US travelers who have applied for passports but have not yet received them can gain re-entry to the United States by air. However, travelers are still required to meet the requirements for entry for their destination country. This means that your destination country could still require you to have a valid passport, although there has been some cooperation by countries affected. You should contact your airline or the State Department prior to departure to find out if your destination country will allow you to enter without a passport.

Citizens with plans to travel to any of the affected countries and have applied for a passport, but not yet received it, are still required to present certain documents in order to re-enter the United States by air. Travelers must have a government issued photo ID as well as official Department of State proof of application for a passport. This procedure will be extended for all American citizens until September 30, 2007 in order to accommodate the high demand and time required to process passport applications.

For children under sixteen who travel with their legal guardian or parents, the legal guardian will be allowed to travel using the child’s proof of application status. If children are traveling alone it is important that they have with them a copy of either the hospital record of birth, record of baptism, or birth certificate to show they are a US citizen. In addition to this proof of citizenship, children are still required to possess documentation of their passport application status.

The U.S. State Department makes it fairly simple to obtain documentation of passport application status through their online service, which is usually able to track the status of your passport 7-10 days after the initial application date. As a service to travelers during this time, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection will exercise its authority to deal with unique circumstances on a case by case basis for individuals who fail to provide proper documentation of citizenship or identity.

Here’s the basics:

1. If you’ve applied for a passport and haven’t received it yet, you can still gain re-entry to the United States from WHTI countries
2. Not all WHTI countries require a passport for entry, but be certain of the foreign entry requirements for your destination before you leave
3. Legal guardians and parents traveling with children 16 and younger can travel using their child’s passport application status
4. This temporary program will expire on September 30, 2007