How about one that features top beaches, nearby mountains, shopping that rivals New York City’s, architecture that pleases the senses, cuisine that does the same, and tourist sights galore, but is also safe for the traveler?

How about another one that is a perfect complement to the first, but just a bit slower, yet close by? One that also reflects the variety of Spanish moods and destinations?

In this article of its Iconic Itineraries series, Condé Nast Traveler presents its readers a bite-sized, five-night trip that combines two of their favorite and beautiful cities and countryside destinations. Barcelona and nearby Girona are the perfect complementary pair of fabulous European destinations that enable travelers to experience on the very same trip the charm of the old world and the excesses of the new world.

College campuses now offer far more than just an education and social experience for our youth. Many now have the resources, facilities, and amenities to make an organization’s meeting experience successful.

Able to provide housing, food and beverage services, private retreat areas, and a variety of sports facilities, many college campuses offer event support staffing and meeting facilities ranging from a small private Board Room to stadiums able to accommodate thousands. Most rooms already have built-in, state-of-the-art audio/visual equipment, sound systems, projectors, Internet access, and computer hookups. Many facilities are in thriving population centers offering attendees multiple choices for after-hour activities, while others are in more secluded locations enabling attendees more thought time. While “it ain’t the Ritz”, college campuses clearly are viable alternatives for effective and successful events. This article discusses many of the reasons to go “back to school” to hold your next conference or meeting.

Take a glance, read through all the possible Wedding To Dos. Anything that doesn’t apply to you, just delete! Now take a breath, you will get through this wedding.

While luxury cruise ships come in many different forms and styles, from the traditional mega-ship that we are all so familiar with to sailing ships to yachts to river boats, luxury can mean different things to different people – from elegant décor, huge state rooms, and fine dining, to a more private cruise with few other passengers, to impeccable service, Broadway shows, and gambling. What, then, are some of the best luxury cruises available to travelers to choose from?

This article reviews the many different types of luxury cruise travel styles, providing you, the traveler, with a wide variety of options to choose from and still get the particular type of luxury you are most interested in. Whether it’s gourmet cuisine, open bars, lavish entertainment shows, gambling, or just a private sailing yacht reserved exclusively for you and your party, you’re certain to find in this extensive list a cruise ship that should meet and possibly exceed your luxury travel hopes and dreams.

Everything can be done right in preparing for and executing the conference, but the Master of Ceremonies can be one of the most critical factors in setting the overall tone of the entire event. Not only does the MC have to be a great speaker, but he also needs to be part ringmaster and part storyteller. If he isn’t adding to the conference attendees’ experience, he’s generally detracting from it. The selection of the MC is as important as anything else in a conference’s program. This article discusses this important function and provides ten useful tips for a winning MC performance.

Unfortunately, accidents do happen, unexpected storms do occur, luggage is lost, wallets are stolen, flights are cancelled, cruise lines can shut down, and you can lose your job and therefore your resources to make the treasured, and expensive, trip. Travel insurance, however, lets someone else worry about, and foot the bill, for all this instead of you if something unfortunate happens.

This article answers such important and relevant questions as: What’s the difference between travel assistance plans and travel insurance? Does travel insurance include health insurance? What if a medical emergency occurs, am I covered? What if I get robbed while on the trip? What if there is an earthquake or hurricane and I’m stranded? What if a relative back home gets really sick and I have to cut my trip short?

IRVINE, CA, May 7, 2013 – Events Clique (EventsClique.com), the new way to plan and design weddings and events online, announced a strategic partnership with Event Planners Association (EPA), the national trade association for professionals in the event and amusement industries, to offer EPA members a competitive advantage with the Events Clique’s 3D Event Designer, the easiest-to-use and share web-based 3D event design and planning software for event professionals and clients.

Events Clique’s 3D Event Designer enables users anywhere worldwide with internet to define their event space and layout in 2D and view it in 3D, as well as plan their event with Events Clique’s custom To Do Lists and Budgeters. EPA was designed to empower independent business owners in the event industries, provide the foundational elements of a successful business, and facilitate the highest standards of excellence and professionalism.

“Events Clique is thrilled to be partnering with Event Planners Association to bring our 3D Event Designer to its members. This unique partnership further builds upon EPA’s foundational elements of empowering independent business owners in the event industry. With the addition of the 3D Event Designer, EPA members will have an unparalleled competitive advantage by being able to provide their clients with realistic 3D visuals of their event design, as if they were physically standing there in person,” said Co-Founder and CEO of Events Clique, Kristin McClune.

The strategic partnership gives EPA members a 25% discount on Events Clique’s user subscriptions.

“The Event Planners Association is very excited to bring Events Clique’s 3D Event Designer to members. Event planners, venues and rental companies will benefit tremendously from this easy-to-use program as it will give them an edge on the competition, help their clients visualize their events, and enable them to create an event blueprint – making their lives easier! Events Clique is a powerful addition to our Member Strategic Partner Program!” said Kim Sullivan, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Office for Event Planners Association.

EPA members looking to take advantage of the strategic partnership discount can learn more about Events Clique and their 3D Event Designer tool during a Webinar that will be hosted this Thursday, May 9, 2013 at 11AM PDT. The Webinar will showcase the advantages and capabilities of using the 3D Event Designer. To register for the Webinar, visit: http://bit.ly/EventsCliqueWebinar. Additionally, EPA members looking to receive the 25% savings, simply need to log in to the EPA Member Center at www.EventPlannersAssociation.com to sign up for Events Clique.

About Events Clique:

Events Clique is the new way to plan and design weddings and events online. Events Clique’s 3D Event Designer is the easiest-to-use and share web-based 3D event design and planning software for event professionals and clients. Easily plan and design events online from any computer anywhere in the world, then “walk around” your events in realistic 3D, and share them with anyone worldwide. Visit www.eventsclique.com or connect with EventsClique.com on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/eventsclique) or Twitter (@EventsClique).

About Event Planners Association:

The Event Planners Association is the national trade association for professionals in the event and amusement industries, which includes professional meeting planners, event and wedding planners, inflatable games and amusement rental companies, florists, caterers, DJ’s, entertainers, venues and more. The EPA provides a unique support system for independent business owners as members benefit from the EPA’s in-house law firm, in-house insurance agency, marketing specialists, professional certifications, local networking opportunities, continuing education, and strategic partner program. The EPA is designed to empower independent business owners in the event industries, provide the foundational elements of a successful business and facilitate the highest standards of excellence and professionalism. Visit www.eventplannersassociation or connect with EPA on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/TheEventPlannersAssociation) or Twitter (@EPAcommunity).

Fortunately, with the state of technology today, many things that were yesterday’s dream are today’s reality. Video conferencing is one that not only accelerates the business process, but also does so with tremendous financial and environmental savings.

Arrive in the office at 6:30 AM, rapidly deal with the early morning emails and phone messages, then begin your business collaborations around the world, or maybe just with a group in the building down the street. Either way, the benefits of virtual meetings via video conferencing can outweigh the time-consuming and costly travel required for the meetings of yesteryear. Observe the facial expressions of the others, see how they react to proposals or comments, do the deal or hold training sessions in real-time, and then move on to your next virtual meeting halfway around the globe.

Star Trek previewed it, and now your group can experience it. Clique here for an explanation of video conferencing, the Top Ten Reasons for using it, and the time, financial, and environmental savings you’ll enjoy.

“All-inclusive” resorts, especially in exotic locations, can frequently be quite expensive, many with a nightly rate in excess of $450 per person. And when you find one in a lesser price range, there many times is a “catch” – for example, “all” does not include “everything” like meals, drinks, and activities, or the beach is fifteen minutes away and not on the premises, etc.

Budget Travel Magazine, however, decided to see if they could help the common traveler. What they found was remarkable. Ten reasonably priced, “all-inclusive” beachfront resorts in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Central America, and Mexico – including double rooms, three meals each day, sodas and cocktails, and a ton of activities… all charming, and all starting at only $100 per person per night.

Many people in the know, of course, would say with certainty that it is highly likely that something will go wrong! So, with your job possibly on the line as the company’s point-of-contact for the event, what should you do to prevent, or at least be better able to deal with, whatever disasters are looming their ugly heads out there?

These six tips will help you plan for, and be able to quickly respond to, the various problems, anticipated or not, that might occur. Whether it’s venue, vendor, budget, numbers of attendees, or just the weather, problems, you can save the day and show just how good you are at event planning, or at least how good you are at contingency planning, by taking these simple steps into account up front!