Blogs

Hi everyone,

Just a quick note: It's been rather quiet here on this blog because we're finding that Facebook is a better medium for us to reach out and give updates, share insights on travel tips, destinations, etc.

We invite you to check our regular posts on our Zicasso Page on Facebook. And we'd be honored if you click on the "Like" button to follow us there. We do our best to ensure that if you like authentic, experiential travel, you'll enjoy our posts :)

Brian Tan
Founder & CEO

Chinese New Year is celebrated with great food. Conde Nast Traveler claims Vancouver to have the best Chinese food in the world!

Where on the planet have you discovered the best Chinese food?

Happy Chinese New Year to everyone! It's also Vietnamese, Korean, and Tibetan New Year...so many celebrations. If you haven't made your new year resolutions, it's not too late to do them today :)

To learn more about the history of Chinese New Year, check out this informative site by History.com: http://www.history.com/content/chinesenewyear

We're happy to share that we've now got a Zicasso Facebook Page and we'd love it if you can become a fan. That's where we'll be sharing our insights on "handcrafted travel". We'll bring you relevant travel news and inspiration, and it's also a great format to get your comments.

So, help us spread the word: Become a fan and also invite your friends to become fans!

As the New Year unfolds and ushers in a new decade, we wish everyone everywhere a happy, healthy, and peaceful New Decade!

In the travel industry, 2009 was perhaps one of the most roller-coaster years. Business at Zicasso was no exception. The first quarter saw many travelers being nervous about making a purchase decision for leisure travel, particularly for longer, complex international trips. Conditions fortunately improved during each subsequent quarter and by the fourth quarter, we saw a remarkable recovery and improvement in traveler confidence.

As you may have noticed, Zicasso now has a good bunch of Travel Reviews! For the first time on the Internet, or anywhere for that matter, real travelers are forming a community that rates and reviews travel agents and tour operators! Only travelers who booked and traveled through Zicasso are invited to write these travel reviews so you know they are from real travelers sharing real experiences.

Zicasso is proud to announce our Quarterly Travel Photo Competition Winner! Balázs Szabó contributed Lonely Day from the largest lake in Hungary.

Lonely Day

For many Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman fans, The Bucket List is a must-see movie. While hospitalized, two men played by Nicholson and Freeman decide to create their lists of what they want to do in their lives before they "kick the bucket" and pass on.

Seeking value for your money makes good common sense. These days we know that precious memories are priceless. Who knows when you'll get the next chance to escape? Plus, you don't want to sacrifice your time, energy, and money on a ho-hum vacation that leaves you yawning.

Here are a few hand-picked traveler value tips based on trends we're seeing and some hot ideas spotted in Money magazine and Conde Nast Traveler.

In case you're scrambling together a last-minute trip over the next few months, here's some food for thought as far as top places to visit this time of year. Many of these fit low cost, high value deals too. You can compare these with the low cost short list that I blogged about earlier for specifics. Hmm...speaking of food, I wish I had something wicked and sinfully delicious from Aussie land's vibrant, coastal metropolitan city, Sydney. Check out any of these top 10 gourmet food shopping spots, if you decide to venture there.