| One of the best ways
to research a trip is to watch Travel Shows and Documentaries
to learn about travel destinations, activities and history.
Researching your trip will help you plan your travel
route as well as reveal things to see and do. Our advice is to not
simply plan to show up not knowing anything about the locations you are
visiting. There are often hidden gems you will never know about
without first spending a little time researching. You don't want
to spend time somewhere only to return home to find you missed something
important that was right in front of you.
Interesting and important artwork and other items can be found all
around Europe; in places you would never expect. There is a church in
Bruges Belgium that houses one
of Michelangelo's sculptures - 'Mother with Child'. You
may not expect to find an original Michelangelo here and may
completely pass it by without ever knowing it was there if you did
not do your research.
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History |
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As Europe's history goes back thousands of
years, take some time to research the places you will visit to
learn about the importance and historical significance.
If you are interested in WWII, history is
everywhere. Take time to learn and contemplate what really
happened at various locations. When you are there, reflect
on the events that transpired. A popular place for
tourists and locals in
Munich Germany that is not to be missed is the famous Hofbrauhaus
Beer Hall. Did you
know this was one of the places where Hitler gave his first
speeches?
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Hofbrauhaus Beer Hall -
Munich, Germany |
In February 1920, Hitler
and the National Socialists held their very first meeting at
Hofbrauhaus in Munich. During this gathering in the Festival
Room, Hitler
presented the Nazi Party 'Twenty Five Point Program' (a
political manifesto outlining the party's philosophy and
mission). The
Hofbrauhaus is also where Hitler publicly denounced the
Jews and gave his infamous "Why We Are Anti-Semites" speech.
In fact, the Hofbrauhaus played such a central role in
Hitler's
rise to power that they would celebrate the founding of the
Nazi party here every year on it’s anniversary.
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If you have cable or satellite TV, you may have
the Travel Chanel where you will find shows such as Travel
with Samantha Brown. Some of the best travel shows
out there are Rick Steve' Europe and Smart travels with Rudy Maxa;
both can be seen on your local
PBS station.
If you have Netflix or Amazon Prime, many other travel shows are
available.
You will find shows dedicated to travel locations
as well as ones focused on sports, food and other activities. Every travel show is unique and
will cover different
information and activities. In fact, different shows on the same
location may have a different focus and present entirely different
information. No show will cover everything and you will no doubt
discover things on your own that were never mentioned in any show.
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Travel Shows & Documentaries |
Rick Steves' Europe
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Rick Steve's travel shows are some of the
best around. They are informative and entertaining giving
you a perspective on what to see and do as well as a focus on
museums and history.
Travel DVDs and Blue-ray
All the travel shows are available for
purchase at a great rate - we think the best available anywhere.
You may purchase DVDs and Blue-rays directly
on the website and often on PBS during specials. Purchased
on PBS, a portion of the money goes to support public
television.
Individual DVDs can be found on the website
for around $10-$20 for an entire season of shows. For
example, the 2015-2016 DVD contains 12 shows for 6 hours of
viewing. The best deal is to purchase the entire boxed set
catalog of shows for around $65 providing 63 hours of viewing.
We own the entire set of shows and highly recommend purchasing a
copy for yourself.
Watching the shows prior to planning a
trip will give you ideas on what to see and do. Even when
not planning a trip, the shows are fun and entertaining to watch
at anytime. |
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Rudy Maxa's World
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Rudy Maxa, one of America’s premier consumer
travel experts, is host and executive producer of 'Rudy Maxa’s
World', the Emmy Award winning, public television travel series
featuring destinations as diverse as Korea, Argentina, South
Africa, Tuscany, and Thailand. |
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Smart Travels with Rudy Maxa
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Host Rudy Maxa models hassle-free ways of
getting to great places, discovering the world’s vitality and
character, and plotting memorable, independent trips. Maxa, a
well-known travel personality, writer and lecturer, is an MSNBC
business travel columnist, a Pulitzer Prize nominated reporter
and the original host of public radio’s "The Savvy Traveler."
He shows viewers how to travel smart and
take charge of their own trips. The itineraries lead into the
tourist-savvy destinations first and then beyond, making travel
easy for first-timers and anyone who can read a map, browse a
guidebook, pack lite, and enjoy good wines and food. Smart
Travels motivates independent travel and appeals to armchair
travelers. These are real trips with precise you-are-there
details. In every episode, Rudy highlights a manageable
itinerary of famous spots and off-the-beaten-path surprises.
One note, Rudy does tend to stay and highlight higher end
accommodations which may not be as economical as other locations
especially when traveling on a budget. |
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Travel With Kids
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Award-winning television series Travel With
Kids® educates families about the people and places of the world
by immersing in the history, culture and nature of a destination
while featuring lots of family-friendly fun and adventure along
the way. With 85 episodes under their belt, Travel With Kids®
imparts expert family travel advice while entertaining with
kid-friendly antics and high-flying adventure. From the glaciers
of Alaska to the wilds of the Amazon, from diving to depths to
climbing to heights, Travel With Kids® explores the remote
corners of the globe meeting locals, trying new foods, dancing
in festivals, discovering history, climbing through nature and
more! |
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Travelscope
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Journalist Joseph Rosendo likes to recall a
quote from Mark Twain at the end of each episode of his Emmy
Award-winning television series: "Travel is fatal to prejudice,
bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." Embracing that philosophy, "Travelscope"
leads viewers on journeys to the world's most exotic locations
with the goal of filling in the missing link between cultures.
Rosendo provides not only insights on the numerous places he
explores, but important travel information for the conscientious
globe-trotter. |
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Burt Wolf: Travels &
Traditions
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Award-winning journalist Burt Wolf leads
viewers in educational jaunts around the globe in this series
that combines the joy of traveling with related explorations of
history, culture and cuisine. In each unique location that he
visits, Wolf reveals the influences of foreign traditions,
investigates its past, and explores the architecture, food and
customs. From tiny Ellis Island to the considerably larger Sea
of Cortez, Wolf's relaxed personal style keeps the trips lively,
informative and entertaining. |
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Samantha Brown
Samantha Brown's Place to Love
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Samantha Brown has visited dozens of
countries, hundreds of cities and countless hotels around the
world. She gives and entertaining and interesting
perspective on travel. |
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Travel Man |
Richard Ayoade attempts to visit all the top tourist attractions in various cities in a 48-hour period. Richard hates long, boring holidays so he challenges himself to make trips as efficient as possible. He devises a plan to ensure that he makes every stop on his site-seeing journey. Each episode sees Richard travelling with a different companion to places such as Iceland, Barcelona, Istanbul and Marrakech. Celebrities taking on the fast-paced travel challenge with Richard include Kathy Burke, Adam Hills, Jessica Hynes and Stephen Mangan. |
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Travels with Darley
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Emmy Award-nominated host Darley Newman travels with locals to experience the history, food, music and art of exciting locations around the world. |
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Somebody Feed Phil |
Philip Rosenthal is perhaps best known as being the creator of long-running sitcom "Everybody Loves Raymond," but since that show went off the air he has gotten more on-camera exposure. In this series, he takes viewers on a goodwill eating tour of the world. Rosenthal -- joined by friends and family -- visits cities that include Tel Aviv, Mexico City, New Orleans and Bangkok to get a taste of the local cuisine and culture at each stop on his journey. |
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Real Rail Adventures
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Host Jeff Wilson explores the Swiss rail system, including the local history and traditions of the cities and towns the trains travel through.
We have watched several of the rail journeys through Switzerland and really enjoyed them. You will get a different view of places to go and things to do. We really enjoyed the show through the Jungfrau Region of Switzerland, going through places we had previously been. Even one of the unnarrated shows was entertaining to watch. |
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