Few things can strengthen a friendship quite like an adventure. And it’s usually the craziest adventures that turn you into best friends for life. Have you been on such an adventure with your friends? Here are some real-life adventures of some of our Nixplay Family:
“My friends and I were on holiday at a beach resort, and we impulsively signed up to camp out overnight, Survivor-style, on a deserted beach island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean along with a handful of newfound friends. There was no electricity, we slept in tents and hammocks, and we built a bonfire for warmth and cooking. After dinner, we went skinny dipping in the sea while drinking beers under a starry night sky. It was definitely a night we’ll never forget!” – Megan, 33
“My best friend and I celebrated our 25th birthdays by planning a 2-month trip around South America. We visited the beaches of Brazil, went to the Machu Picchu in Peru, then continued our trip onwards to Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile. It wasn’t always easy–we had a few quarrels and got into a few mishaps, but we emerged from that trip closer than ever.” – Philip, 27
“After our college graduation, my friends and I went on a road trip across the USA. We started our vacation in New York (where we were based) and followed the Atlantic Coast, driving down the Overseas Highway and crossing New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, eventually making our way to Florida. It was a lot of fun, and I’d love to do it again!” – Jan, 41
“My closest girlfriends and I have been joined at the hip since high school, and we’ve been each other’s confidantes throughout the years. On the year we turned 50, we went on a girls-only trip to the Maldives for a luxurious vacation. We spent a week in a villa, snorkeling and SCUBA diving, watching dolphins, enjoying spa treatments, and watching the sunset while sipping drinks. We don’t know when we can go on an adventure like this again, so I’m glad we got the chance to do this while we’re all still alive and strong.” – Greta, 51
The best friendships are forever. Commemorate your bond with your pals with a Nixplay Frame! Get up to 25% off selected frames, only until August 4!
Marianne is Nixplay’s Web Content Editor. Her hobbies include exploring new places, playing table tennis, and cuddling puppies. Send her a message at marianne.salazar@nixplay.com.
Meeting new people is always a major highlight of any trip. Whether you got to know friendly locals at a sports game or hobnobbed with fellow tourists while sightseeing, one thing’s for sure: The memories you shared will be cherished forever.
However, making friends on the road isn’t as easy as it looks, especially for introverts. Befriending other people involves deliberately stepping outside your comfort zone and making yourself a bit vulnerable, and it can even trigger moments of mind-wracking anxiety. But rest assured, the payoff is usually worth it.
So how does one go about making friends while traveling? Here are some easy ways to do so.
Hang out at a bar
Traveling alone? Seek out a lively bar, order a drink, and chat up the person who eventually sits next to you. Start with small talk—bring up the weather or ask about the person’s drink—then proceed from there.
Join a free tour
You can find free walking tours in several cities worldwide, and the good news is that they’re usually free. It’s a lovely way to see the sights while learning interesting things about each landmark’s history. Don’t forget to give your guide a good tip!
Get active on social media
Join travel groups on Facebook and ask around for travel tips, interesting restaurants, and other fun activities in your destination. Who knows, you might even get invited to fun events!
Volunteer
Volunteering hits two birds with one stone: You’ll get to meet new people while helping out the community. It also provides you with an in-depth view of the issues surrounding your destination and gives you a newfound appreciation of the life you’re lucky enough to live.
Just strike up a conversation!
Really, it all boils down to getting out of your comfort zone and chatting up the people around you. Stuck on a bus for a long trip? Strike up a conversation with the person beside you. Taking pictures around the city by your lonesome? Don’t hesitate to a stranger to take a picture so you’re in the frame, and return the favor. Just go ahead and chat!
With the right mindset, you’ll befriend a ton of people before your trip is over. Don’t forget to take lots of photos with your new pals and display them on your Nixplay Frame!
Invite your new friends to share their photos with you so you’ll always have memories of your adventure together. Take advantage of Nixplay’s International Friendship Day sale and get up to 25% off selected frames, only until August 4!
Our pets are our babies—they’re our best friends and the loves of our lives, and even if they sometimes make a mess out of our stuff, we have to admit that our lives would be less colorful without them. Our hearts break every time we leave them at home when we go on vacation, and we can’t stand the sight of their sad, hopeful eyes as we close the door behind us on our way out.
Thankfully, dogs and cats are more welcome everywhere these days, and thousands of establishments across the USA have opened their doors towards our furry friends. Here are some excellent vacation spots where both you and Fido can have fun this summer.
Huntington Beach, California
This Southern California city is one of the most famous pet-friendly destinations in the USA. The city’s main draw is Huntington Dog Beach, a 1.5-mile stretch of sand where your pooch can run free. The city also hosts several events for our furry friends, including Corgi Beach Day, a gathering of corgis and their owners, and Surf City Surf Dogs, an annual dog surfing competition. After a day of frolicking under the sun, you can stop by one of the city’s many animal grooming centers and pet-friendly cafes to unwind.
Nantucket, Massachusetts
Nantucket, a quaint island off Cape Cod, has a great variety of trails and beaches that your pooch can explore to its heart’s content. You can even visit a farm or go sailing with your pet! You also shouldn’t miss exploring Nantucket’s historic downtown with your pooch—don’t hesitate to pause every once in a while to admire the architecture of the town’s well-preserved buildings. Just make sure your pet is on a leash when you’re exploring, and you’re good to go.
Bar Harbor, Maine
The town of Bar Harbor loves dogs so much, the townspeople named a beach after a local yellow Labrador named Brady. Start your day with a handcrafted cup of joe at Coffee Hound Coffee Bar, which is run by a dog-loving couple, and stop by the aptly named Bark Harbor dog store to pick up some treats and supplies for your pooch. When you’re all fueled up, go hiking at Acadia National Park, and finish your day with a sunset cruise.
Lake Placid, New York
Beautiful Lake Placid is one of the oldest vacation destinations in the USA, and one of the most pet-friendly. People will stop to pet your dog, and some shopkeepers will gladly offer your pooch treats. Got an active dog? Walk the 2.7-mile trail around Mirror Lake, and unwind on the beach while your pooch swims in the clean water. You can also visit the John Brown Farm, which has a nice trail suitable for pooches of any age.
Key Largo, Florida
A vacation in the Florida Keys is always a good idea, especially when you’ve got a furry friend or two in tow. Key Largo, in particular, has several pet-friendly resorts, as well as restaurants with outdoor patios for your dog or cat. Dogs are also welcome at a number of attractions and parks in Key Largo and the surrounding islands. You can bring Fido to the National Key Deer Refuge (but be on the lookout for alligators), as well as Jack Watson’s Nature Trail in Big Pin Key.
We wish you and your pet nothing but happy, sunny days this summer! Don’t forget to capture your vacation memories on a Nixplay Frame! Get 15% off selected frames, only until June 30!
Marianne is Nixplay’s Web Content Editor. Her hobbies include exploring new places, playing table tennis, and cuddling puppies. Send her a message at marianne.salazar@nixplay.com.
I love planning for a trip to a new and exciting place—anticipation is so much fun! But while wanting to take great photographs of all your fun memories is one thing, making sure you can tick off all the safety boxes is a different matter. Pre-planning and practicing with your gear should make you confident enough that your photographs will not be lost before you even get home. Let’s go over some tips and guidelines to help you bring home those wonderful travel memories.
Know your equipment.
If you have a relatively new camera or are just getting the hang of photography, it’s a very good idea to have your camera manual in .pdf form. Just visit the camera manufacturer’s website and download your specific camera manual onto the phone or tablet that you will be bringing on your trip. If you plan on using your phone to take photos, you should check if its memory has enough space for new images.
Look into purchasing an anti-theft camera bag.
Several companies design and make some good options to feel safer with your valuables inside. Try Pacsafe or Travelon: These brands have a wide range of bag styles with excellent safety features, all at reasonable prices. Look for anti-slash hidden mesh, wire reinforced straps, and RFID-blocking pockets.
Remember to pack light.
Bringing a DSLR camera on your trip does not mean you have to lug all your accessories as well. Challenge yourself to go with just one or two lenses, and maybe a battery pack or an external flash. If you plan on taking photos at night, consider a bringing lightweight travel tripod.
Have a cloud back-up system for your files.
Ultimately, you’d want a spacious backup storage system for all your photographs, which you can access on the go. That’s why the cloud works so well for many photographers, especially with a smartphone.
You don’t want your camera messing up when you’re taking photos in places like the Palace of Versailles.
Delete in-camera as much as possible.
I use traveling time to do this and it really pays off when I get home. Find the images that are out of focus, poorly composed, or just not good, and delete them.
Bring more batteries and camera cards than you think you will need.
If you over-shoot, lose a battery, or get a corrupted memory card, having a spare or two in your luggage will save the day! Finding specific batteries or memory cards for your camera could be difficult in a foreign country, and it’s a waste of your valuable sightseeing time. This is a good contingency plan.
Have a system for downloading photos from your camera, and practice it before you leave.
a. Use a computer, iPad, or external hard drive with an SD card slot adapter to download your images from your camera.
b. Download your photos regularly (every night if possible) to start fresh every day.
c. When you download files from your camera, be sure you are not re-downloading those you’ve already transferred to your device. Still, you should keep a complete copy of your images on your memory cards. This way, you’ll end up with multiple copies of your images for safety, and you can streamline when you return home.
d. Is it best to bring one or two large volume camera cards vs. several smaller capacity ones? While having just a couple of large capacity SD cards means there are fewer components you might lose, having several memory cards with smaller capacities means you may lose fewer images if a card is misplaced. Whichever you decide on, be sure to re-format your SD cards before you leave for your trip (make sure there are no images on them that haven’t been saved) to clear off any metadata that may be corrupted.
Respect your destination’s culture and rules for photography.
Be a gracious guest in the community or country you are in. For example, selfie sticks are not a good idea in museums, and in some countries, taking photos of the locals without their permission is heavily frowned upon.
These tips should help you take stunning travel photos.
Go up high and get down low.
Don’t be afraid to test different angles and focal lengths. Play with cropping and composition, and have fun experimenting. You will have “fresh eyes” in a new place and it is always such a thrill—so take advantage of it!
Watch for the light.
The soft diffused light of early morning or late afternoon is the best & prettiest light, so consider going back to a location at these times if you think it’s worth it. It may be a logistical headache, but the images you can get might be worth it! You can also try squinting at a scene to check if there is too much contrast between the shadows and highlights. Don’t forget to take off your sunglasses before shooting, as it will distort your judgment of the light.
Check the backup copies of all the photographs you took.
When you return home, allot a few hours to check your cloud copy, your camera cards, and/or computer/external hard drive/tablet copies. Double-check that you have all the photos, and make sure nothing was corrupted. Gather any photographs taken by others you were on the trip with.
Cull out more photos that aren’t the best, rename your images, and file them into your photo-management system.
Save your original files until your local back-up system has been manually updated with the re-named and culled files, and the cloud service you use has also been updated. Once all your storage systems have been updated with the new vacation files, you can clear the copies on the camera cards, external hard drive or tablet. Now you’re ready for the next trip!
Enjoy and share your photos!
Create a vacation album on your Nixplay account with all the best photographs from your trip. Upload this new album to your Nixplay frame and relive your fun travel adventures!
There are so many things to think about when planning a great vacation, and sometimes we forget that the most tangible things we have left after it’s over are the images and memories we created. These travel photography tips will ensure you will be able to enjoy and reminisce for years to come.
Even the most well-traveled among us will agree: There will never be a shortage of interesting places to discover. If you haven’t booked your vacation leaves yet for the year, we’ve lined up some picturesque locales to suit every kind of traveler. Whether you’re on the lookout for a cosmopolitan hotspot or an idyllic tropical paradise, there should be a destination here that’s perfect for you. Don’t forget to display your travel photos on your Nixplayframe!
1. Singapore
Still feeling the Crazy Rich Asians fever? Same here—we can’t wait for the sequel, China Rich Girlfriend! And if we had our way, we’d be jetting off to Singapore, the movie’s spectacular location, to live out our crazy rich dreams. And if you’re flying there in 2019, you’re in luck: The small nation-state has a lot to celebrate this year, starting from the bicentennial of its founding to the completion of the iconic Raffles Singapore’s renovation. There’s never been a better time to hunt for your own Nick Young or Astrid Leong!
2. The Peloponnese, Greece
Need a break from the crowds at Mykonos and Santorini? Head to the Peloponnese, a laidback region in the south of Greece known for having more wineries and grape varieties than any other place in the country. Its west coast is lined with beautiful beaches, and its spas and retreats promise a tranquil time. If relaxation is your utmost priority, this is the place to be.
3. Matera, Italy
There’s more to Italy than the history of Rome, the fashion of Milan, the art of Florence, the gondolas of Venice, and the food of, well, the whole country. The prehistoric city of Matera, located in the southern region of Basilicata, is known for its sassi: clusters of cave dwellings thought to be among the first human settlements in Italy. The city was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993, slowly transforming into a cultural hotspot with charming hotels, galleries, and restaurants. Matera was declared the European Capital of Culture in 2019, kicking off the year on January 19 with a music-filled street celebration.
4. Siargao, Philippines
White sand beaches and pastel sunsets. Crystal-clear turquoise waters teeming with vivid corals. Waves for surfers of all levels, and unspoiled islands located a short boat ride away. The teardrop-shaped island of Siargao, located in the south of the Philippines, offers all these, and more. This island, perfectly situated to embrace the Pacific Ocean, is a legendary surf spot, and beginners can try the sport at one of the many surf schools lining the shore. Siargao was voted the world’s top island in 2018 byConde Nast Traveler despite its lack of international flights: A testament to its sheer beauty.
5. Vevey, Switzerland
Every 20 years, the lakeside town of Vevey holds the Fête des Vignerons, a UNESCO-recognized festival that pays homage to the region’s vineyard traditions. First held in 1797, what was formerly a grape harvest celebration has since turned into a three-week spectacle punctuated by lavish performances. Interested in going? Mark your calendars: This year’s Fête des Vignerons will be held from July 18 to August 11.
