Cheapflights.com Salutes National Parks & Recreation Month

BOSTON, MA–(Marketwire – July 14, 2010) –  The National Recreation and Parks Association (NRPA) designates each July as Parks and Recreation Month. With July 2010 marking the 25^th year the nation is celebrating National Parks and Recreation Month, Cheapflights.com, the online leader in finding and publishing travel deals, has put together its list of Top 10 National Parks featuring parks in the US and around the world. Additionally, Cheapflights.com offers the next installment of its ‘How-To’ Series titled How to Pack for a Camping Trip if You’re Flying. From what to pack, how to pack and key baggage rules, the guide is a helpful resource, whether planning a camping trip through the Grand Canyon or the hiking trip of a lifetime to New Zealand.

Here we highlight some of the North American National Parks to make the list:

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming: Yellowstone National Park is Americana in the most picturesque sense. Sprawling through Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, it’s most known for its famous hot spring, Old Faithful, and its vast subalpine forests. Travelers can enjoy the warm seasons here by hiking, camping, boating and fishing. Search and compare cheap flights to Wyoming.

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona: This is one place for which words do no justice, but we’re writing about it anyway. One of the world’s most studied geological landscapes, the Grand Canyon is an enormous archeological site with artifacts dating back 12,000 years to the Paleo-Indian period. Caves, rivers, streams, forests, prairies and natural springs are just a few of the reasons that attract campers and hikers from far and wide as well as the incomparable views of both the North and South Rims. Search and compare cheap flights to Phoenix.

Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada: Grizzly bears hang out here, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t visit. Discovered in 1885, Banff National Park is a 656-square mile area where snow-capped mountains and deep valleys coexist among cobalt blue lakes and rushing rivers. In the summer, hike among the lush poppy gardens; in the winter, ski down soaring peaks with ultimate views of Peyto Lake and sulfurous hot springs. Search and compare cheap flights to Calgary.

The Cheapflights.com’s list of Top 10 National Parks also includes:

• Fiordland National Park, New Zealand;
• Masai Mara Reserve, Kenya;
• Great Barrier Reef, Australia;
• Swiss National Park, Switzerland;
• Yellow Dragon Scenic Area, Huanglong China;
• Galapagos National Park, Ecuador and
• Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary, Peru.

To read details on these parks, visit http://news.cheapflights.com/2010/07/top-10-national-parks/

Some of the practical tips offered in Cheapflights.com’s How to Pack for a Camping Trip if You’re Flying include:

• Cut the amount of clothing you carry to the minimum — travel detergent is your friend. Leave your bulky, hard-to-dry jeans at home and, instead, pack layers of light weight, breathable clothing and extra socks. Make sure you’re prepared for all weather conditions you may encounter but don’t carry an outfit for all occasions. You are going camping, after all.
• Invest in a set of good micro-fiber towels. They are amazingly absorbent, dry fast and even the beach towel-sized versions fold down to a tiny parcel.
• Pack recipes for one-pot meals and find a pot that can double as a frying pan if you want to fry or scramble eggs in the morning. Pack a plastic bowl for cereal and soup, a light chopping board and a collapsible water container.

Also, there are a few baggage regulations that ban certain camping utensils either from hand luggage or from being carried altogether:

• Most airlines allow camping stoves in checked luggage but you’re not allowed to pack fuel of any kind. Compressed gases and flammable substances are on every airline’s list of prohibited items, so you’ll have to buy fuel once you’re off the plane.
• Lighters on flights to, from and within the U.S. are not permitted. On non-U.S. flights, you can carry one lighter worn on your person.
• Cutlery and knives as well as any other sharp items have to go in checked luggage.

For additional tips on ‘How to Pack for a Camping Trip if You’re Flying,‘ visit http://news.cheapflights.com/2010/07/pack-camping-trip-flying/

About Cheapflights Media
The trusted partner in flights, Cheapflights Media is a global Internet media network that has been delivering great deals since 1996. Headquartered in London with offices in Boston and Toronto, Cheapflights Media serves advertisers and consumers through its vast portfolio of websites and services. Packed with travel guides, tips and the latest news and information, the Cheapflights sites are online shopping comparison engines that make it easy for consumers in local markets to research, compare and save on domestic and international trips. With brand-name deals on airline tickets from more than 250 partners and 600 airlines and a team of travel experts hand picking the best offerings, Cheapflights offers visitors a mix of deals they can’t find anywhere else. There are currently Cheapflights-branded sites for the U.K., U.S., Canada, Germany, Australia and New Zealand, France, Italy and Spain. For more information visit www.cheapflights.com

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