Your Beat-Recession Travel Guide Because it's cheaper flying to Bangkok than Kolkata

Week alone with yourselfu00a0

Approximate damage: Rs 60,500 (stay plus airfare)
It's the place where everyone goes to find "love and labels", the famous Carrie Bradshaw once said. Go here to feel like a star.
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Top 4 must dos
1. Get to the top of the Empire State Building: It's a view to die for that you can take in the way Meg Ryan did in Sleepless in Seattle, waiting for a secret lover.
2. Take a helicopter ride: Enjoy the 12-minute helicopter ride that gives you a close look of the Statue of Liberty, Manhattan's famous skyscrapers, the George Washington Bridge and Central Park.
3. Take a NY harbour cruise: Explore Manhattan's skyline as you relax under the sun on a boat. It's the perfect way to see it allu00a03 rivers, 7 major bridges, 5 boroughs, over 25 landmarks and, a magnificent close-up of the Statue of Liberty.
4. Visit Anthony Bourdain's restaurant: If you are addicted to TV cookery show No Reservations, like we are, drop in for a meal at the celebrity chef's French restaurant Les Halles on 411, Park Avenue South.

The best deal: Thomas Cook offers a 3 night-4 day New York Special package for Rs 60,500 (inclusive of accommodation and airfare).

Log on to https://www.thomascook.in/

Celeb recommends
You just have to go for the Summerstage concerts in Central Park, over the weekends. Just carry a dari along, lay down under the sun and watch bands perform all day long.
Paromita Vora, Documentary filmmaker

BANGKOK, THAILAND

Best for: Incentive trip with colleagues
Approximate damage: Rs Rs 5,936u00a0 (excluding airfare)
This is an up-and-go destination if you suddenly feel like taking off for the weekend. Bangkok or Krung Thep, which means the City of Angels sees the coalesce with the modern; ideal when you want to pack a world of things in a short trip.

Top 4 must dos:
1. Take in a muay thai (Thai kick-boxing) match: This traditional sport is played every day of the year at major stadiums in both, Bangkok and the provinces. Thai boxing matches are preceded by elaborate ceremonies and accompanied by lively music.
2. Dive with the sharks: The aquarium at Bangkok's Siam Ocean World allows you to dive into a three million-litre tank in the Deep Ocean exhibit, where the aquarium's fiberglass rocks are artist-designed, but all the marine life, from the algae to the three-meter sharks, is real.
3. Drift through the Floating Market: This trip goes along the klongs, a network of canals leading off the river, and lined with dwellings opening directly on to the water. Life has changed little for those living along the klongs; it's a slice of life untouched by snazzy technology.
4. Try Thai cooking at a cookery school: Learn how to blend the many herbs and spices that give Thai food its unique flavour. At some schools, you have to do your own marketing and head out into the market to buy provisions for the meal you are about to stir up.

The best deals:u00a0Cox & Kings offers a 3 day-2 night Bangkok Free & Easy package for Rs 5,936 per person, inclusive of accommodation on twin sharing basis, daily breakfast, return airport transfer and sightseeing. The return airfare on Thai Airways is Rs 7,400 + Rs 7,560 taxes (valid till June 30).
Log on to https://www.coxandkings.com/
Thomas Cook offers a 3 night-4 day Splendid Bangkok package for Rs 15,420, inclusive of accommodation and airfare.
Log on to https://www.thomascook.in/

Celeb recommends
Drop byu00a0 Koh Samui and Krabi islands, where you can gaze at serene waters while tucking into fresh seafood. Don't return without going snorkeling and scuba diving.
Aditya Bal, Model and TV host

DUBAI, UAE

Best for: Four-day holiday with family
Approximate damage: Rs 11,660 per person (excluding airfare)

Top 4 must dos
1. Shop! As an open port with low import duties: Dubai's retail prices are reasonable and the variety of products available is unparalleled. Whatever your tastes couture from Paris or Milan, hi-tech electronics from Japan, or a piece of silver Bedouin jewellery you will find it at the right price.
Dhow Cruise: Get out of stuffy restaurants and hop onto a traditionally-decorated wooden dhow that sails along the Dubai creek under the moonlight, while you nibble on dinner.
Desert Safari: Dip low in the deep trenches and rise high on the pinnacle of the dunes. Try your hand at sand boarding.
Take a city tour: It takes you through the historic sites of the famous Burj Al Arab, Jumeirah Mosque, Al Bastakiya, Al Fahidi Fort. Cross the waterways by Abra (the water taxi). It ends with a walk through the Spice and Gold Souk.

Your best deal: Cox & Kings offers a 4 day-3 night Dubai Free and Easy package, priced at Rs 11,660 per person, inclusive of accommodation with breakfast and taxes, return airport transfers and sightseeing as per the itinerary.
The airfare on Cathay Pacific will cost you Rs 11,580 + 3,200 taxes. (This airfare comes with a 1 year validity)
Log on to https://www.coxandkings.com/

Celeb recommends
There are enough amusement parks like the Atlantis, to keep kids busy. The Dubai Mall has an ice-skating rink and the Mall of Emirates has a snow park.u00a0
Shaan, Playback singer

LONDON, UK

Best for: Time out with friends
Approximate damage: Rs 12,954 (excluding airfare)
History and business co-exist peacefully in a city that is home to many ethnicities, and over 300 languages. So, if you don't know what train to take at the London underground and can't quite grasp the Brit accent, look around. Chances are the guy sitting next to you will be fluent in Punjabi!

Top 4 must dos
1. Party at Fabric: You just have to shake your thing at Fabric. Saturdays are a more glamorous, house-orientated affair with the cream of the world's DJ talent, while Sundays offer spectacularly fashionable gay nights.
2. Take an open-bus tour: Operated daily, the tour introduces you to London's main attractions.
3. Visit Madame Tussauds: Join a host of the world's hottest celebrities cast in wax: Shahrukh Khan, Voltaire, Michael Schumacher and Steffi Graf.
4. Catch a musical: London is home to several famous theatres that play the classics and get a dose of Chicago, Cats or even Moulin Rouge.

The best deal: Cox & Kings is offering a 3 day-2 night London Free & Easy package, priced at Rs 12,954 per person, inclusive ofu00a0 accommodation with breakfast and taxes, return airport transfers and sightseeing. The return airfare on Air India will cost you Rs 11,900 + Rs 19,700 taxes.

Celeb recommends
Leave the city behind and amble towards the outskirts of London. London isn't known for its beaches, but the beaches at Dorset and Dover are great to beat the maddening crowd.
Archana Vijaya, Veejay

ISTANBUL, TURKEY

Best for: Time out with your lover
Approximate damage: Rs 34,200 (accommodation and air fare)
Historically exotic and geographically breathtaking, Turkey has the right mix of Eastern and Western tradition. Unlike other neighbouring states, Turkey's secular nature makes it attractive for tourists. So if you've spent the day admiring the Blue Mosque, while away the night at a rocking club chances are you just might catch a local band playing its rendition of a Michael Jackson classic!

Top 4 must dos:
1. Take the afternoon Bosphorus cruise: On a cruise along the Bosphorus Strait that divides Europe from Asia, you get to feast your eyes on the rich and famous take out their yachts from tiny inlets next to their homes that lead straight into the strait. Talk about luxury!
2. Explore Istanbul by night: Enjoy an evening of folk and belly dancing at some of Istanbul's night clubs. Or just head to any club on Istiklal Street, where the party doesn't end till the wee hours of the morning.
3. Visit a Turkish bath: Do as the Turks do and drop in at a hamam. After relaxing in a warm room heated by a continuous flow of hot, dry air, bathers move to an even hotter room, before splashing themselves with ice cold water. Then comes the massage, which you just have to chase with a long nap.
4. Take a hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia: Flights usually take place at dawn when the gentle and stable wind are predictable. This time of day is ideal for photography as you float over valleys of rock formations, fairy chimneys and narrow canyons.

The best deals: If you are four adults flying together, the fare aboard Turkish Airlines will be Rs 17,000 + taxes return for Istanbul and 6 other Turkish cities Izmir (near Kusadasi), Nevsehir and Kayseri (near Cappadocia), Antalya (the Turkish Riviera), Dalaman and Bodrum.
Compact Travels: 22828208 / 22812593
Cox & Kings offers a 7 day-6 night Turkish Delight package, where you can visit Istanbul, Cappadocia, Pamukkale and Kusadasi for Rs 32,380 per person (inclusive of accommodation with breakfast, return airport transfers, meals and sightseeing as per the itinerary and entrance to all sites and museums). The return airfare on Emirates will cost your Rs 24,990 + Rs 2,250 taxes.
Log on to https://www.coxandkings.com/
Thomas Cook offers a 3 night-4 day trip to Istanbul for Rs 34,200 (inclusive of accommodation and air fare).
Log on to https://www.thomascook.in/

iTALK recommends One of the best things to do in Turkey is to do nothing. The town is dotted with cafu00e9s where you can order an extra strong, creamy Turkish coffee with a slice of Turkish pita bread. Watch the cruise-liners glide on the Bosphorus as you read Orhan Pamuk

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