Audiences have been mesmerised by the 3-D beauty of James Cameron’s latest blockbuster, which is nominated forBest Film…

Set on the pristine, forest-covered planet of Pandora, it’s thrilling to realise that, unlike its Na’vi inhabitants, the real place does exist — if a little less digitally enhanced. The stunning landscapes were shot on Kauai island, Hawaii…

This 552 sq mile island has all the requisites of paradise: palm trees, aquamarine sea, waterfalls, canyons, ravines, rainforest and dramatic cliffs. Go there and dream.

A Single Man - Los Angeles

Tom Ford’s acclaimed movie debut is shot in soft, muted, retro colour tones that bring its 1960s’ West Coast locations beautifully to life. The story of a gay man grieving over the loss of his lover features a flashback, in black and white, to a rocky beach that was filmed inland at Vasquez Rocks Park in Los Angeles County. The rock formations are part of the San Andreas fault. They have been used often for film and TV locations, including, most famously, Star Trek.

Inglourious Basterds  - Potsdam

Quentin Tarantino’s film about a Jewish attempt to assassinate the Nazi leadership in the Second World War was filmed at the legendary Babelsberg Studios, Potsdam, in Germany. Babelsberg is the world’s oldest large-scale film studio, where numerous classics, including The Blue Angel with Marlene Dietrich and Fritz Lang’sMetropolis, were filmed. Attractions at its “film park” include a stunt show and a TV studio where children can test their skills as a newsreader or cameraman.

Crazy Heart  - Santa Fe

Relive part of the movie while you ride horses, swim, play tennis or relax at the 450-acre Bishop’s Lodge Ranch, Resort & Spa where part of the film, which stars Jeff Bridges, was shot. The New Mexico town provides another interesting link to the Baftas tomorrow: Cormac McCarthy, who wrote the Pulitzer prize-winning novel upon which The Road (Best Cinematography) is based, lives here.

Up in the Air – United States

George Clooney is shortlisted for Best Leading Actor and Up in the Air is also a frontrunner for Best Film at the Baftas. You don’t need to spend as much time in the air as George Clooney does as he plays an emotionally washed-out character who travels across the US, but in real life, a US plane-hopping trip can be a lot of fun. ” (via  timesonline.co.uk)

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Book your 2010 vacation package now and get incredible prices to popular destinations! Book: 9/11/09 – 10/30/09 by 6:00 p.m. CT Travel: 1/1/10 – 3/10/10 from Southwest Airlines® Vacations Location Hotel Name Rating Flight + 3 nights per person, per night Anaheim Holiday Inn Anaheim $92 from San Francisco Anaheim Holiday Inn Buena Park $83 from San Francisco Clearwater/Tampa DoubleTree Beach Resort Tampa/North Redington Beach $91 from Jacksonville Clearwater/Tampa Holiday Inn Clearwater Beach $82 from Jacksonville Clearwater/Tampa Sheraton Sand Key Resort $107 from Jacksonville Ft. Lauderdale The Westin Beach Resort, Fort Lauderdale $238 from St. Louis Ft. Lauderdale Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa $186 from Kansas City Keystone Keystone Lodge & Spa, a RockResort $219 from Albuquerque Keystone River Run Condominiums $205 from Amarillo Las Vegas Bellagio $139 from Denver Las Vegas Circus Circus Hotel & Casino $57 from Ontario Las Vegas Excalibur Hotel & Casino $96 from Cleveland Las Vegas Luxor Las Vegas $78 from San Diego Las Vegas Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino $87 from Tucson Los Angeles Beverly Garland’s Holiday Inn Universal Studios $101 from San Francisco Los Angeles Hyatt Regency Newport Beach $127 from San Francisco Los Angeles Sheraton Universal Hotel $138 from San Francisco New Orleans Hilton Riverside $116 from Birmingham New Orleans Sheraton New Orleans Hotel $119 from Birmingham New York City Holiday Inn Midtown 57th Street $125 from Baltimore New York City New York Marriott Marquis Hotel $150 from Baltimore New York City Warwick New York $159 from Baltimore Orlando DoubleTree Hotel at Entrance to Universal Orlando $105 from Nashville Orlando Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort $157 from Baltimore Orlando Disney’s Port OrleansResort - French Quarter $140 from Nashville Orlando Sheraton’s Vistana Resort Lake Buena Vista $179 from Manchester Orlando Sheraton’s Vistana Villages on International Drive $169 from New Orleans Park City The Yarrow Resort Hotel $142 from Denver Park City Three Kings Condominiums $205 from Denver Phoenix/Scottsdale Fairmont Scottsdale $213 from Los Angeles Phoenix/Scottsdale Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Gainey Ranch $224 from El Paso Phoenix/Scottsdale The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa $154 from San Diego San Diego Holiday Inn San Diego Bayside $101 from San Jose San Diego La Coasta Resort & Spa $139 from San Jose San Diego Paradise Point Resort & Spa $116 from Tucson San Diego The Dana on Mission Bay $106 from Sacramento San Francisco Hotel Carlton $68 from Los Angeles San Francisco Radisson Fisherman’s Wharf $88 from Los Angeles San Francisco Sheraton Fisherman’s Wharf $90 from Los Angeles St. Petersburg/Tampa Alden Beach Resort & Suites $92 from Jacksonville St. Petersburg/Tampa Tradewinds Sandpiper Hotel & Suites $117 from Raleigh/Durham Vail Manor Vail Lodge $308 from Albuquerque Vail The Lodge at Vail, a RockResort $212 from Amarillo Customized vacation packages include: • Roundtrip flight via Southwest Airlines® • 3-night hotel accommodations (including taxes) • Rapid Rewards® credit on flight portion • 24-hour traveler assistance

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to Book your 2010 Vacation Package today! Flight + 3-night Hotel packages starting at $57 per person, per night.

From beach barbecues to tropical vacations to low-key family gatherings, the Independence Day possibilities are endless.

Your favorite celebs always seem to keep it exciting, so check out the top 10 celebrity Fourth of July destinations.

Catching a cab can be easy, whether you’re in a big city or a crowded sporting event.

But seemingly everyone has had difficulty calling or hailing a cab at some stage, on vacation or a business trip or when stranded in a city center after a night out.

So what’s the best, and quickest, way to get hold of a cab in New York? Or Los Angeles, California? Or at a major sporting event? We find out.

Beware the bandit

Basil Enerieze, a taxi driver in Los Angeles, says in general a passenger’s situation dictates the quickest way to get a cab. In downtown LA or in a commercial or tourist area, hailing a cab works best, he says, but calling one is the quickest way in suburban areas.

Cabbies, he says, prefer fares that are called from a home or business as it gives the taxi company some information about the customer – their phone number, name and residence – in case the fare turns into trouble. Does this mean that taxis are more likely to respond to a call than being hailed? “If they’re there and need a ride I stop my cab,” Enerieze says.

“The biggest problem we face is bandit cabs. Never take a bandit cab,” he says. Enerieze says he’s seen unlicensed operators in LA since he got his license 15 years ago, and that while they might in some cases be quicker or more available; the risks of hailing one are too great to justify.

He says that licensed cabs will be clearly marked with a city insignia, and tells the tale of when he went to the theater in downtown Los Angeles and saw the long lines for a cab and decided, against his better judgment, to hail one of the many unlicensed cabs outside.

On the 10-or-so mile drive to his home, he noticed the meter was running too fast. “I said, ‘I am a cab driver. I know that your meter is running too fast.’ He [the driver] said: ‘That’s the way it is.” And I paid the fare. [But because] it was an illegitimate taxi, I could not phone anyone to complain.”

Bad apples in the big apple

Matthew Daus, the chairman of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, concurs, telling AOL: “I think the number one, most important thing for anyone seeking taxicab or taxicab-like spontaneous service in New York City to understand is that only yellow, medallion taxicabs are legally empowered to solicit or accept street hails from the public. The driver of any other kind of vehicle that is soliciting passengers or responding to your taxi hail is already doing something illegal.” 

He says that in adverse weather conditions or during peak demand hours, customers can be tempted to hop into something that looks like a legitimate limo or black car, but he, too, warns of the risks.

“TLC-licensed drivers are drug-tested and have had a criminal background check, and TLC licensed vehicles are inspected three times annually and carry insurance levels well in excess of the state’s minimum requirements.” 

“Taxicabs go where the people are. If you are hailing from the street, hail in the direction you are traveling to save turn-around time for both you and your driver. If you have the time to plan ahead, a call or Web site visit to a local livery service, black car or limousine service can quickly and conveniently arrange guaranteed door-to-door pick-up and drop-off. Look for the TLC diamond sticker inside the right-hand side of the windshield.”

Use your iPhone

Taxi Magic is the latest innovative application to come to your iPhone and allows a user to book a taxi at 25 of the nation’s biggest cities – excluding New York – and track the progress of the driver en route, all by pressing the iPhone’s touch screen a couple times.

Helpfully, while saving you time talking to an operator it also cuts down on the number of calls the operator has to field, speeding up the service for others.

The app, which pinpoints your location with GPS and calculates the nearest cab firms, was released by Web site ridecharge.com, which also features online booking and other goodies like taxi expense and receipt tracking and, in partnership with some companies, payment and account options that are always useful on vacation or business trips. “( via www.cnn.com) by Craig Howie

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