Hastings UK

It is a long way to… Hastings 1066

Author: Sandra Orchard

When charity meets historical reenactment... A charity walk is to gather money for the British Heart Foundation and to promote the upcoming Battle of Hastings which will be reenacted on 14th - 15th October 2006 on the very battlefield.After the defeat of Harald Hardrada at the battle of Stamford Bridge, Yorkshire, in September 1066, whilst resting in York, King Harold Godwinson of England received word that the Normans under William of Normandy had landed on the south coast of England near Hastings. Godwinson mustered his troops and marched them down the length of England and did battle with William at Senlac Hill at what is now the site of the Abby at Battle, East Sussex.

This battle became known as the Battle of Hastings.Members of 'The Vikings', Britain's largest 'Dark Age' re-enactment society will take on the mantle of the Saxon army and repeat their successful marches of 1995 and 2000 from York to Battle, collecting for the charity British Heart Foundation on route.

Over night accommodation has been being provided by the Scouts.Starting from the Minster, York, at 09.30 on Monday 25/09/2006 and travelling via Nottingham, Leicester, St. Albans, London and Sevenoaks (full route and schedule available on http://www.vikingsonline.org.uk) we will arrive at Battle on the afternoon of Friday 13/10/2006.Once there, on the English Heritage site of Battle Abbey on Senlac Hill, (the actual site of the original battle), we will re-enact the Battle of Hastings on Saturday 14/10/2006 & Sunday 15/10/2006.

This year will be the largest re-enactment of this historic occasion ever performed with re-enactors from all over the UK & Ireland, Europe, Scandinavia, Russia, America and even Australia. We are expecting some 2000 re-enactors on the battlefield and a full compliment of living history.

This event is being promoted & organised by English Heritage and The Vikings re-enactment society, http://www.vikingsonline.org.uk.Founded in 1971, The Vikings are the oldest and largest Dark Age re-enactment society in the UK, and probably the world. With over 700 members throughout Britain, and others in Europe and the US, The Vikings are the premier society presenting re-enactments of the Viking Age.

While the Society concentrates mainly on the 10th Century, some events are set in the wider period from 790 to 1066, with the appropriate modifications to dress and equipment used. Our aim is to provide an accurate and educational portrayal of the Viking period, with an equal emphasis on the daily life of the period, and on the more warlike aspects of life in what was a formative period in European history.This article is free for republishing Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/

Travel Cheaply

How many times have you wanted to get away from it all and visit someplace new, but could not afford it? Why should you have to charge your vacations now and pay for it later?A tightwad vacation does not mean that you have to be cheap. You do not have to go camping in your backyard or go hiking to the local supermarket.

There are many cost-efficient ways to travel, and tips to help you along the way.Over the course of a year, many families are spending hundreds to thousands of dollars on extra un-needed small wants, instead of using that money wisely at a later time. Try keeping track of some of those wants and cutting back on them.Pretend that every 2 days you get a bottle of soda and a candy bar at a convenience store - just a few of those many impulse buys that we are all tempted to make. 55 cents for the candy bar and 99 cents for the soda adds up to $1.54.

Multiply that by approximately 182 days and you could have saved $280.28. Now $228 will not pay for the vacation itself, but it is a start. Do not fly, unless you can get really cheap rates, or if you are traveling out of the country. Traveling by train or bus can be cheap, but it depends on where you are traveling. Driving to your destination may not be the cheapest way to go. Think of the impulse purchases you make along the way. Snacks, drinks, souvenirs, tourist attractions, etc., and gas to get there may be more than a train or bus pass would have cost.

Make plans a few months early to consider if you want to spend a lot of time doing activities at your destination, or if you just want to have fun getting there. Do not travel during the holidays or mid-summer. Prices are always jacked up on hotel rooms, restaurants, and tourist attractions at most major cities. Instead, travel during the fall when school starts again, or early winter, when prices will be back to normal, if not cheaper than usual.Take along your own food and drinks.

Pack a large cooler with sandwiches, fruit, drinks, vegetable sticks, and so on. Also bring many types of food that will not go bad if they do not get eaten within the first few days. Crackers, cookies, dried fruit, trail mixes, and nuts are always good to snack on.Bring plenty of extra clothes. You do not want to have to buy new clothes just because you do not have anything else to wear. If you are traveling with young children, take a small bag packed with travel games, activity pads, tiny stuffed animals, crayons, and a coloring book to keep them busy.

Even if you want the children to look around instead of playing in the backseat, it is always much better to have them, just in case.Jot down every expense you make during this trip, and be sure to save those receipts. By keeping track of how much you spend on this vacation, it will be easier to make an estimate on how much you need for the next vacation, and to keep your family motivated from buying all of those small unnecessary purchases throughout the year. Chris Chenoweth, author of the DO-IT-YOURSELF HOME, HEALTH & MONEY GUIDE writes articles pertaining to diet, exercise, health, and business: http://www.money-home-biz.comThis article is free for republishing Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/

Holiday Parks in the UK

The UK Holiday Park has become one of the great national institutions. Generations of families, from the turn of the century onwards, have left the UK’s cities to head for their two weeks summer holidays on the British coastline. The Holiday Park had a fairly humble beginning, essentially offering accommodation, entertainment and food all under one roof, more often than not on the edge of a large traditional seaside town like Blackpool, Skegness or Great Yarmouth.

These holiday parks were very popular with families looking for affordable holidays, at a time when overseas travel was expensive and unobtainable for a large percentage of the general public.However as overseas travel became more affordable Britain saw the rise of the package holiday in the 70’s and 80’s, which meant that the UK holidays no longer offered the value that was such a unique selling point for many of the popular parks. With the new found competition from guaranteed sun, cheap accommodation, food and drink, UK holiday parks came under increasing pressure.

The challenging times that faced the industry were definitely compounded by a change in perception of the holiday park experience. When you mentioned holiday parks people began to think of the popular TV series Hi-de-Hi and never ending rounds of knobbly knees competitions, donkey rides and red coat style entertainment. Unfortunately combined with cold and windy chalets and indifferent food!

The holiday park has however come a long way since its humble beginnings and in the last ten years the industry has seen a massive revolution in the breadth, quality and style of holiday parks available in the UK. Like many UK tourism business the independent and multiple holiday park owners began to see a decrease in the interest in their holiday offering. The park owners came up with a number of solutions to counter the perception and the improve the quality of the holiday park experience.Firstly the accommodation was upgraded.

Customers were no longer happy with basic facilities, so holiday parks spent millions on improving accommodation facilities, from upgrading the standard rooms to developing penthouse apartments with plasma

TV’s, four poster beds and room service. This resulted in holiday parks giving a more upmarket feel to all their accommodation and provided customers with a much greater range of choice.Secondly the entertainment offering changed enormously. Some UK parks began to specialise in just offering specific entertainment breaks. Top comedians, shows and musical acts have begun to top the bill and themed weekends specialising in entertainment like county western, 60’s revivals and dance and sport breaks.

Parks have also become better at targeting key groups like adult weekends, family activity holidays or special nights for stag and hen groups. Thirdly the traditional three meals a day offering of parks has probably seen the greatest change. To adapt to the change needs of holiday makers more and more parks have began to offer self catering options rather than providing full or half board and charging extra for meals. Some of the larger chain parks have gone even further and don’t offer any catering, just inviting the restaurants and fast food places to offer food on the Park. However, as the parks themselves have diversified, offering different things to different holiday markets, so has the catering, and some holiday parks now make a virtue of the fact that they offer three top quality meals all day.

One example of a company who stayed ahead of the game was Potters Leisure Resort. As the UK’s only Five Star Independent Park they had long been investing to top quality infrastructure, entertainment and catering and the initial costs of the project have been rewarded with a reputation for top quality holiday park experience. But Potters aren’t the only company offering top quality park style holidays.

More and more developments in the UK are building the lodge style accommodation away from the traditional holiday park centres of seaside towns. The inland lodge style developments have specifically moved away from the ‘park’ image and now offer champagne and hot tubs style breaks in a quiet and secluded rural environment.

Parks are springing up right across the UK on the coast and inland and more than ever before the UK holiday park experience offers something for everyone from traditional entertainment in Great Yarmouth, to five star luxury in the Cotswolds.

With so much innovation in the industry holiday parks will continue to offer more of what the holidaymaker wants and needs – a top quality holiday experience.Peter JoynerThe UK’s only 5 star Holiday Park is Potters http://www.pottersholidays.com/ This article is free for republishing Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com

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