Monthly Archives: March 2023

Trip

Motorbike Trip To Ladakh: The Ultimate Mountain Motorcycling Adventure

Nestled between the Himalayan Range and the Kunlun Range, Ladakh is a land of extremes. Dry deserts roads lead to lovely lakes, cold wind join hands with sharp sunrays to make your life difficult, and divine beauty is underscored with severe hardships. The front seat of a moving motorcycle is the right place to be when travelling through such an enchanting terrain. The Indian government has built a number of new roads here, making it possible for bikers to enter the magical world of Ladakh.

A motorbike trip to Ladakh is the ultimate challenge for adventurous bikers. The high altitude, the harsh climate, the rough terrain, and the narrow roads make it very difficult to travel in Ladakh. Additionally, the area is sparsely populated, and the bikers are not always close to civilization. The treacherous roads and the high altitude demand a focused attitude and strong determination.

A handful of motorcycle clubs and groups in India organize a Royal Enfield bike trip to Leh and Ladakh every year. Royal Enfield is a powerful cruiser bike, and it works perfectly on the rough roads and harsh climate of Ladakh. A full-length motorbike trip to Ladakh lasts over 15 days, and the bikers cover more than 2000 kilometers of mountainous terrain. Over the course of years, this route has found favor with motorcyclists from all over the world. Consequently, several tour companies offer diverse Ladakh bike tour packages for travelers.

The tour starts from different Indian cities, and all the bikers gather at the Jammu railway station. The Ladakh bike trip starts from here. The reverberation of powerful Royal Enfield bikes signals the beginning of a long journey. Over the course of two weeks, the motorbikes will cruise over some of the highest mountain passes in the world: Zojila Pass (11696 feet), Fatula Pass (13,480 feet), Changla Pass (17,300 feet), Tanglang La Pass (17,582 feet), Lachungla Pass (16,600 feet), Baralcha Pass (16,040 feet), and Rohtang Pass (13,051 feet). They will also ride on the world’s highest road, Khardung La (18,380 feet).

The motorbike trip to Ladakh is considered to be the mother of all adventure tours in India. The riders need a lot more than a decent bike, support and money to complete this grueling tour – they need a strong body and an even strong mind. They need to know their bike inside out, and they need patience while traveling over long stretches of dangerous paths. The effects of high altitude make the Ladakh bike trip a lot more difficult than other motorcycle tours of India.

At the end of the day, the Ladakh bike trip is a long adventure that takes place against a backdrop of wild mountains, flat plains and cerulean skies. It is the test of the true biker: mere junkies cannot stay the course for such a long time.

Travel

Planning A Trip Outside Canada? A Travel Tip You Simply Can’t Afford To Ignore

Your holidays are booked, your bags are packed and you think you have everything you need–money, passport, tickets, and clothing for every occasion. What more could you possibly require?

For almost 41% of Canadians who do not always travel with it, the answer is emergency medical travel insurance. Whether simply forgotten or deemed unnecessary, the fact is that travel health insurance should be a must-have before you leave the country.

When you are away from home even the most minor injuries or illnesses can become a major expense. So while an accident or illness can happen anywhere at anytime, emergency medical travel insurance helps to protect you from the unexpected costs that can come with a visit to a doctor or hospital outside of your home country.

Consider for example the following estimates: A stay in a US hospital typically costs about $2,500 Canadian per day. Even more shocking is that if your condition is serious and you require intensive care, it is not uncommon that you would end up paying about $10,000 per day.

If you’re not worried about the costs, because you believe your province’s health insurance plan will cover it, make sure you look into your province’s coverage first. You may be surprised to learn that if your province’s health coverage does extend outside of Canada it will likely be limited.

For example, if you are an Ontario resident travelling outside of Canada you will be covered for emergency care from a physician but only for as much as that service would have cost in Ontario. And, if you need to stay in a hospital to receive emergency services you are covered up to $400 per day for intensive, complex care. If it is less intensive, the maximum is $200.

Why risk it, when emergency medical travel insurance is so inexpensive?
There’s a good chance you’ve spent hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on your trip. For a few extra dollars, you can protect yourself by ensuring you get the attention you need, when you need it while not having to worry about how your emergency treatment will get paid.

The following travel health insurance quotes can be found easily online and show how little emergency medical travel insurance actually costs:

o For travellers aged 16 to 40 years, emergency medical travel insurance is available for as little as $15 for a 2 week trip–or for as little as $26 for an annual travel health insurance policy that covers you for every 2 week trip you take in a year.

o For travellers aged 41 to 55 years, emergency medical travel insurance is available for as little as $15 for a 2 week trip–or for as little as $27 for an annual travel health insurance policy that covers you for every 2 week trip you take in a year.

o For travellers aged 56 to 59 years, emergency medical travel insurance is available for as little as $21 for a 2 week trip–or for as little as $28 for an annual travel health insurance policy that covers you for every 2 week trip you take in a year.

Quotes are for single and annual trip emergency medical insurance for a resident of Ontario travelling overseas or to the US.

Without emergency medical travel insurance, an illness or injury could not only ruin your vacation but would likely have financial consequences for years to come. Why risk it when emergency travel health insurance costs so little and can save you so much? Not to mention the peace of mind it will give you knowing you’re covered.

Don’t leave home without travel health insurance. Compare emergency medical travel insurance quotes online today and get the coverage you need for your travels. It is a travel tip that could save you thousands of dollars.

Tips

Tips for Saving Money

We all know we need to save. Yet, few of us do save. Why? Because there are too many competing priorities for money in our lives. But, you can you can save for those larger purchases, for the emergencies that are sure to come, for your children’s college, for a home, and for your retirement. You may not think you have enough money. You may think you are living paycheck to paycheck with nothing left over after meeting your expenses. You may think you have to earn more money in order to have enough money to save.

The truth is saving isn’t a math matter. It’s an emotional one. Once you make saving a priority, then and only then will you save. Until you decide to pay yourself first, you won’t save. By the time you get to the end of the money, there won’t be enough left over for you. Here are some quick tips on how to save money.

Tip #1 – Know where your money is going
Keep track of what you spend for the next month. Write down each purchase, or ask for a receipt. But at the end of the month, your assignment is to account for every penny.

Tip #2 – Get control of your debt
Unsecured credit card debt and car loans are two of the biggest drains on personal finance. Adopt the attitude that if you can pay cash for it, you don’t need it. Stop using your credit cards and paying high interest rates on things you probably don’t need anyway. Stop buying new cars on credit that lose their value as soon as you drive them off the lot. Use the snowball method to get out of debt and then stay out!

Tip #3 – Are you a collector?
Many people spend money collecting things. Maybe you collect records, books, antiques, coins, dolls… look at your collections. Do they have any real value (a limited amount with a high demand), or are they one of thousands with no real resale value? Do you have duplicates? Are you buying more than you can enjoy?

Tip #4 – Review your gift giving budget
Do you buy expensive gifts for a huge list of friends and relatives? Can you make something instead that might have even more meaning to the person receiving the gift? Sometimes giving a consumable, homemade gift to someone whose house is cluttered and including a handwritten note will be the best gift they receive.

Tip #5 – Use the “sleep on it” rule
Before you make a major purchase (for most people, that would be anything over $300, but your personal threshold could be lower or higher), sleep on it. Why do you think a salesperson tries so hard to close the deal before you leave the store? They know that if you have time to think about it, you may decide that you really don’t need to make the purchase right now. So, go home and sleep on it. If you are still sure the next morning that buying is the right thing to do, then go ahead and do it (assuming you won’t be violating Tip #2 by using a credit card or otherwise going further into debt!).

Tip #6 – Always write a grocery list before you go shopping
Shop with a list, and don’t buy anything that isn’t on the list. A lot of research has gone into the creation of store displays to get shoppers to make those impulse purchases. If you stick to your list, you won’t fall prey to that marketing ploy. Another good technique for grocery shopping is to use the envelope method. When you get paid, write a check out for cash for the amount of your grocery shopping for that pay period and put it in an envelope. When the envelope is empty, you stop buying groceries until the next payday when you can refill the envelope.

Tip #7 – Throw a party
No, I don’t mean an all-out, expensive affair. But, instead of going out to dinner, why not invite some of your friends over instead. You could even ask them to bring their favorite dish and have a potluck meal. You could discuss a good book or watch a $1 Redbox Rental. Entertainment can still be fun without being expensive.

Tip #8 – De-clutter
Go through your closets and dressers and sort through your clothes. If you’re like most people, you have clothing that needs to be mended, clothing that needs to be thrown out and clothing that either no longer fits you or you just don’t like anymore. Set aside the mending and actually mend it instead of replacing it. The clothes you don’t want anymore can be sold in a yard sale, taken to a consignment shop, or even donated to Goodwill for a tax deduction (just ask them for a receipt for your taxes).

Tip #9 – Buy used
Not everything needs to be purchased new. Did your washing machine break down? You can get a used one from your local appliance store for $75. Does your son go through video games in a day? Buy used from Hastings or your local video game store. You can also buy pre-owned movies from your local store or from your nearest Redbox outlet. Never, ever buy a new car. It will lose thousands of dollars of its value within the first couple of years. Let someone else take that hit; buy used.

Tip #10 – Cut back on convenience foods
It’s easy enough to cook in bulk and freeze leftovers to create your own “convenience foods”. You can take these to work with you saving that $6 – $9 fast food lunch bill. Not to mention, the food you prepare at home will probably be much healthier than what you buy from your local fast food restaurant.

These are just a few tips to help you find ways to save money. But remember, unless saving becomes a priority for you, it will never happen. So, start today, even if you save just a little. Make saving a habit, and you’ll be amazed at how quickly your savings account will grow.