Newsletter Issue 24 - July 2006

Hello and welcome to the latest update from Karibuni.

We are currently enjoying an action packed summer. Spending our weekends in the UK alternating between the beautiful Scottish highlands, the Lake District and Snowdonia, we have run a couple of exhilarating 3 peaks challenges as well as several exciting multi-activity tours incorporating canoeing, climbing, biking and walking in some stunning countryside with some fun groups. On top of that we have also enjoyed a glamorous couple of days at Royal Ascot admiring some big hats and sleek horses and are now looking forward to the Cartier Polo at the end of July.

And that was just in the UK! In France, our Bike Weekender and Walk Weekender tours are proving popular so we’ve been able to get out and about with some adrenaline junkies appreciating the beautiful Alpine pastures and mountain views that abound at this time of year around the chalet.

But that’s not all – there’s still plenty to look forward to – and with our Alpine Thrills tour now ready to book for the August Bank Holiday weekend, the Ski season only 5 months away (where does the time go?) and a date for the diary for our Ski Show Party in October we’re hoping there’s going to be something for everyone in this newsletter!

Read on for details of how to spend your autumn………..

Coming up in this issue:

Karibuni news
- NEW Bike Weekender and Walk Weekender trips ready to book now
- Easy Jet flights now available, PLUS take advantage of the Karibuni Early Booking Discount.
- Skiing - Great value all-inclusive half term kids package – book now!
- Date for your diary - our Ski Show Party
Travel news
- TNT launch online E-Bay-Style auctions for travel deals and accessories
- Our favourite travel gadgets
Environmental tips
- Councils may introduce a ‘rubbish tax’ – avoid it by recycling
Global Gossip
- More bizarre tales from around the world

Karibuni News

Experience our NEW Bike Weekender and Walk Weekender tours
Come and experience the stunning autumnal colours in the mountains whilst enjoying one of our new Bike Weekender or Walk Weekender breaks - perfect for those wanting an active long-weekend in the Alps. From novices to advanced, we have just the thing for you!

We like to make your trip away as easy as possible so we provide detailed route cards for you for various levels, showing the best trails and tracks for you to follow in an easy format. As well as an Ordinance Survey style map we also make sure there are easy directions to follow with pictures of landmarks so it doesn’t matter if you can’t read a map. In addition, we will also run fully supported guided walks and bike rides so you will be able to enjoy the scenery in the company of our chalet guide without having to worry about the route at all.

You could fly into Geneva on a Thursday night, hire any gear you may need from our fully equipped bike room and be out enjoying the stunning scenery first thing on Friday morning – catch the chairlifts up the mountains and enjoy walking or biking down again back to the chalet and tea which will await you. For more information check out the website on www.karibuni.co.uk and select the FRANCE ADVENTURE tab.

If you would like to try other activities on top of walking and mountain biking then our Alpine Thrills weekend may be for you. This weekend will give you an opportunity to try your hand at kayaking, climbing and high ropes course amongst other things. This is something we can offer on autumn weekends for groups of 6 or more – so start ringing around your more adventurous friends now! For further details email us on info@karibuni.co.uk or go to the Alpine Thrills page on our website.

Easyjet flights now available, PLUS take advantage of the Karibuni Early Booking Discount.
Easyjet have now announced their winter timetable and currently have some good deals, so if you have been waiting for the right time to book flights for your winter trips away – now is the time! Check out their website on www.easyjet.com Other budget airlines have also brought out their winter timetables so it may be worth checking out www.flybe.com , www.jet2.com and www.bmibaby.com as well.

If you are planning your ski trip for the 2006/07 season why not drop us an email now and take advantage of our Early Booking Discount, available if you book before the end of September and perfect if you want to spend Christmas or New Year with us – there are still a few spaces left for this period. If you are planning a week’s holiday, or want to come over Christmas or New Year, we will give you a discount of £20 per person. If you are coming for a weekend or midweek break at other times through the season we can offer you a £10 discount per person. These discounts are in addition to the kids and groups discounts.

Skiing – Great Value Kids Half-Term Week
We know it’s July but we have already started to think ahead to the ski season! Following last year’s successful February half –term week we have expanded our festivities to two weeks for 2007. Bring your kids skiing with us over half-term, either between 10th – 17 th February or 17th - 24 th February and let our specially designated Kids Ski Team entertain them every evening after kids dinner with a range of activities that they will love, leaving you free to relax after a hard day on the slopes and enjoy a quiet drink in the bar, knowing they are happy and in safe hands. Contact us now on info@karibuni.co.uk for further details, or visit the half-term webpage on www.karibuni.co.uk/ski_holidays/shared/specials/half_term_week.htm

Karibuni Ski Show Party
Sticking with the ski theme, you are all invited to our Ski Show Party, which will be held on Saturday 21st October to coincide with the Metro Ski and Snowboard Show at Olympia (18-22 October). Visit http://www.metroskishow.co.uk/2006 for more details. Our party venue is yet to be confirmed but we will give you further details in the next newsletter.

This will be a great opportunity to catch up with the Karibuni team, take advantage of some special money-off holiday offers, enter some competitions and maybe bump into the person you got on really well with over dinner but promptly lost their email address on returning home! So put the date in your diary and await the venue confirmation and plans with baited breath!

Travel News

TNT launches E-Bay-style travel auctions
From the start of July TNT travel magazine will be launching their new service, TNT Travel Auction. This will work in a similar way to E-Bay with advertisers posting travel deals, holidays and accessories online, which readers are then invited to bid for.

Categories will include long haul holidays, short breaks, hostels, B&B’s, flights, car hire, luxury breaks, travel gear and cruises. This is the first specialist online bidding site for these sorts of deals and is promising to prove very popular. So if you fancy a last minute deal, a competitively priced round-the-world ticket or a new rucksack, or even if you have a holiday you can’t take and wish to sell then visit www.tntmagazine.com for further details.

Our favourite travel gadgets
Travelling - although great fun - can be hard work. We’ve made our lives easier with these handy gadgets – check them out and you too could take the hassle out of your holiday planning.

Fujifilm World Adaptor
This compact adaptor works in over 150 countries, allowing you to connect to international power outlets no matter where you are. It can also be used if you’ve brought back foreign products to the UK too, saving the need to have several different adaptors lying around in cupboards. Click on www.amazon.co.uk to purchase the adaptor at the reasonable price of £14.95.

Fair Trade Football
How many times have you found yourself on a beach or campsite just wishing you’d brought a footie along with you to pass some time with a kick-about? Well we recommend you buy yourself a ball straight away, but not just any old ball – the fairly-traded football differs a little in price, but a whole lot in production. The Fairdeal footballs start from £12.90 yet it reflects higher wages for the stitchers, improved working conditions, health insurance provision and the creation of a micro credit fund. More of an equal playing field all round then. Balls available at Oxfam or online at http://www.fairdealtrading.com so whilst you may have the misfortune to make a child cry by knocking over it’s sandcastle, you can feel better by knowing that you have helped make other peoples lives happier elsewhere.

Bite Relief Pen
Insect bites, although small, can drive you nuts! And you’re not immune anywhere at this time of year, be it walking in the Lake District, exploring in Venice or adventuring in the outback of Africa - the only variable is the size of the little critters. We recommend an instant solution in the form of the Bite Relief pen, available from www.travelwithcare.com. An ammonia-based ‘pen’, this gives quick and long lasting relief from bites and stings from all sorts of insects. At only £3.50 it is a very handy gadget to pop in your rucksack – just in case!

Environmental Tips

Will a ‘rubbish tax’ encourage you to recycle?
Did you know that recycling levels are almost three times higher in many European countries than in Britain? Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands recycle almost 60% of their rubbish for example, whilst Britain only manages to recycle 22.5% of all its waste. Our government has advised authorities that Britain must increase it’s recycling levels from the current level to 33% by 2015 however, and is doing all it can to make sure this happens – including considering introducing a ‘rubbish tax’ to encourage individuals to recycle their household waste.

If this happens people could be charged anywhere up to £10 a month, based on the number of black bags collected by the bin men.

We’re sure that the political debate regarding the rubbish tax issue will rage on and on but we thoroughly support the underlying issue here – if we all took the time and effort to recycle more paper, cardboard, plastic and glass, less rubbish would be produced, allowing each one of us to help the environment in a small but effective way. So if you don’t already recycle, contact your local borough council now to find out how you can start – after all, who wants to be hit by another tax when it can be avoided by simply separating out our glass jars from our tin cans!

Global Gossip

More bizarre tales from around the world

Limo driver accepts odd tip
As tips go, Chicago limousine driver Abdul Faraj got a priceless one this week when one of his regular customers offered up a kidney, media reports said.
Faraj and Minnesota businessman Dave Baker underwent transplant surgeries at Chicago's Northwestern Memorial Hospital.Baker has used Faraj, a native of Lebanon, as his driver on trips to Chicago for several years. Making small talk months ago, Baker learned of Faraj's poor health and struggle to find a kidney donor with a matching blood type.
"He gave me part of his body. He saved my life," Faraj, a diabetes sufferer whose kidneys were failing despite a three-times-a-week dialysis regime, told area television stations.
Baker is out of the hospital and expected to fully recover within weeks.
Reuters (Chicago)

New Zealanders unphased by player’s call of nature
New Zealand has reacted with indifference to Jerry Collins's unplanned call of nature before the Tri-Nations match against Australia.
The loose forward was caught on camera on bended knee, discreetly relieving himself on the pitch moments before kick-off.Assistant New Zealand coach Steve Hansen described the incident as unfortunate.

"If you're a male and you're about to play a test match,you're seconds away from kick-off and you get the urge to go to the toilet -- what do you do?" Hansen said.
"Do you rush off and let the game start with 14 men or do you try to be as discreet as you can be and hope that cameramen use common sense and don't go showing it to everyone on the screen."
Hansen then said he would be offering Collins simple advice.
"'See if you can get your ablutions done before you get out on the track'," he said.
Reuters (Wellington)

Well that’s all for now. We look forward to seeing many of you out in the mountains, either enjoying the autumn with us or keen for the snow a bit later in the year. For any queries or questions you may have in the meantime don’t hesitate to contact us on info@karibuni.co.uk or just email to say hello! See you soon……..

Paul, Trudie and Jess