Trek the Planet with Kyle

City Park is one of our nations oldest urban parks and it's right in our backyard. At over 150 years old and encompassing 1,300-acres, there is a plethora of space to venture out and explore everything this park has to offer! Whether you want to partake in an athletic activity, play with your dog in the dog park or stroll under ancient oaks there is something for everyone. And best of all, a lot of these activities cost little to no money! Golf - Book your tee time here for the recently opened championship level course Bayou Oaks at City Park South or the more affordable option Bayou Oaks at City Park North ($12-$119) The brand new Bayou Oaks at City Park South course Tennis - Come test your stroke out of one of 26 lighted courts (16 hard; 10 clay) at the City Park/Pepsi Tennis Center. Book a private lesson and classes available for all ages. Call the clubhouse more info @ 504-483-9383. ($12-$15/hr to rent a court) Botanical Garden - Opened in 1936, the garden today...

There are quite a few day trips you can take if you're based in Rome on vacation. You can head south to Naples, Pompeii (Mt. Vesuvius) or the Amalfi coast. You'll want to spend more than a day around the mountainside/seaside towns along the Amalfi coast though. Save a few days to explore this stunningly beautiful part of Italy. If you head east, you can visit Tivoli where you'll see two famous villas. Villa Adriana is the former emperor Hadrian's huge estate during the 2nd Century and Villa d'este, the Renaissance era estate with lavish gardens. Head north and you can check out the city of Florence or Pisa which also falls into the basket of 'you should stay a few days here.' But a gem halfway to Florence and a perfect day trip in Tuscany lies the quaint town of Orvieto. Orvieto funicular via Orvietoviva.com A popular destination only about 75 miles north of Rome lies this beautiful, serene hilltop town (It actually sits on a large, flat...

It's been a long, long layover since my last post (over three years!), so I figured my trip to Rome was a good place to jump back into travel writing and hopefully post more frequently about some beautiful destinations around the world... There's always a nervousness that comes over me as the plane begins its decent, and I see the land of a new country coming more into focus. I worry about the language barrier, how we are going to get to the hotel or wherever it is we're trying to go or a hundred other minute details while still sitting on the plane looking out onto the land of a foreign nation. But that nervousness quickly turns into excitement at the endless possibilities of what this trip will be and all the wonderful things we'll see, eat and do. Colosseum Recently, a couple of buddies and I made our way to Rome, Italy to explore the sights and to see ancient history intertwined with modern day living. I tried to learn some basic Italian words leading up to ...

Right now they have some great deals on flights to the Caribbean from several cities. From New Orleans the drive to Houston is only five hours and an easy drive to spend some time in the Caribbean on the cheap. Flights hover around the $300 mark. Check out this link to see which islands you can get to for this deal that won't last long. So jump on it and soon you'll be chilling on a beach in the warm Caribbean waters! Deals are valid for travel until June 12th or August 11th – December 17th or January – March, 2015 from the United States and until June 29th or August 24th – December 31st or January, 2015 – March, 2015 to the United States. You can book through Kayak or American Airlines . Some of the destinations include the Bahamas, Aruba and Sint Maarten! AA flight on approach to land at SXM. Photo from Wikipedia.com. Great Bay, Sint Maarten. Photo from Wikipedia.com

Hey y'all, I just launched my photography portfolio at spreadthelight.smugmug.com . Go check it out and maybe purchase a photo or two! Thanks!

This past weekend I took a trip to San Francisco and Lake Tahoe, California. The flight, hotels and rental car only cost me $100 total and it could have ended up being a lot less! I used American Airlines miles to fly from New Orleans to San Francisco. This usually costs 25,000 miles and $10 in taxes and fees if you book before 21 days of departure. Also, if you have a Citibank American Air credit card you receive a 10% refund of points used. So it only "cost" me 22,500 points to take this flight. I didn't book before 21 days of departure so I had to pay a $75 late fee to book, which is a bummer, bringing my total amount paid for the flight to $85. Still not bad at all for a flight that would normally cost anywhere from $300-500+ depending on when you go and when you book. Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco  For my hotel rooms, I used Marriott reward points that I earned from my Chase Marriott credit card. I stayed my first night in Rancho Cordova which is just ea...

New poll question added. Go and answer it please!

Noob Traveler has some great simple tips on Christmas shopping and on shopping in general. Go check out his blog post and others at www.noobtraveler.com . Remember what this season is all about. It's not about the stuff. It's not about the deals. It's 100% fully about Jesus Christ and his perfect life and death on the cross for ALL of our sins. There is no other way to Heaven but through Jesus. Though we should daily think about his sacrifice for us, this season is a good reminder of it. Let's not let commercialism, materialism and the worldly view of this season get in the way of that.

You can go here to see what Frugal Travel Guy says about ways to earn points and miles without getting credit cards to earn the bonus sign ups. They all require a little work but if you're willing to do it you could come out ahead in some situations. Photo from frugaltravelguy.com

Hyatt has a game that you can play by going here. The game is called 'The Chase' and you're trying to find the woman with the red hair and her trunks she's traveling with. When you find them you will be offered some kind of prize ranging from 15% off a night at a Hyatt to being entered into a contest to win five nights at a Hyatt anywhere in the world to winning points. If you are not signed up for the Hyatt rewards program you can go to this page and sign up. You will need this number to start the game. Hopefully you'll win a sweet award! You can also sign up for the Chase Hyatt credit card  here . It will give you two free nights anywhere in the world after you spend $1000 within 3 months, which is a fairly easy thing to do. It has a $75 annual fee that isn't waived the first year. You'll also receive one free night every year on card membership anniversary good for a night at a 1-4 category property. 

Enter today to win a trip to Jamaica! Go here to enter.

If you have 5,000 points to spare from the rewards program formerly known as Priority Club rewards you can book a night at any hotel on this list. Each one is only 5,000 points per night and they have a bunch of Holiday Inn type hotels on the list. This list of hotels is valid for booking through October 31, 2013. If you have Chase Ultimate Rewards you can also transfer those points over to IHG rewards at a 1:1 ratio to use to book hotels. Hopefully you'll be able to utilize one of these properties to your advantage and get a cheap rewards booking.

Frugal Travel Guy posted today about how you can get 500 free Southwest Airlines points just for signing up to receive emails from dish network. Once you receive the points you can always go back and unsubscribe. Also if you are in the market for getting Dish Network, you'll be able to get 12,500 Southwest points through this offer. You can get all the details and the link by going to Frugal Travel Guy's site here .

You can enter by going here and watching the short video and then entering your name, email and American Airlines frequent flier number. If you are not a member yet of the American Air mileage program you can join by going here . It is fast and easy.

What is your favorite thing to do while at the beach?! Answer the new poll question on the upper left side of the blog!

Hyatt is having a 48 hour sale right now when you book a stay between June 30-October 8, 2013. You will get 30% off participating hotels. "Hyatt announced another 48h sale for hotels in the U.S., Canada, and Caribbean. Bookable through 11:59 PM CDT June 19, 2013. www.hyatt48hoursale.com For a limited time, simply book a participating Hyatt hotel or resort using offer code C48JUN beginning June 18, 2013 and save up to 30% on a family vacation, romantic getaway, or just a holiday for you. Offer is valid for bookings only between 12:01 a.m. on June 18, 2013 and 11:59 p.m. on June 19, 2013 Central Standard Time, for travel between June 30, 2013 and October 8, 2013 at participating Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, Park Hyatt and Andaz properties in the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean." If you have an upcoming trip and haven't booked a hotel yet, or just want to book a trip based on this sale go ahead and check out the deals and see if it works for you.

From now until June 22 if you are approved for a Chase Ink Plus or Ink Bold business credit card you will receive 60,000 bonus points after $5,000 spend in three months instead of the usual 50,000. They are promoting national small business week and that's why there's a extra bonus. The other two Ink cards also have extra bonuses. Both the Ink Plus and Ink Bold have a waived annual fee the first year and then $95 every year after that. You get 5x points at office supply stores, cable and internet services and cell phone service as well as 2x points at gas stations. Here is the link to the Ink Bold which is a charge card as has to be paid in full each month, so there is no interest build up. (Which you should be paying your cards off each month anyway). Here is the application link for the Ink Plus card. It has the same benefits as the Ink Bold but is a regular credit card. There are also no foreign transaction fees on these cards and you can transfer the points at a 1:...

1. Starwood Hotels has a giveaway on Facebook here called the "Tote-ally Luxurious Resorts Giveaway." You must first "like" the Starwood (SPG) page and then proceed to fill out the entries to be entered and then answer the question: Picture sample of the contest from facebook.com/spg "where is kate spade new york exclusively for SPG tote is hanging out at for your chance to win the tote (over 100!) and be entered for the Grand Prize trip for two to any Member Favorite resort." If you answer correctly you could win a tote bag and be entered into winning a resort getaway. You also must be a member of the Starwood Preferred Guest loyalty program and you can sign up by going here. It is fast and easy. Image from mybanktracker.com 2. Also if you want to earn a flurry of bonus SPG points and have a credit score of over 700, you can apply for the American Express SPG card  here . You will earn 10,000 points after first purchase and an additio...

Southwest is having another one of its awesome sales on fares. It is the same as always with one way fares under 500 miles for $49, 501-1,250 miles for $99, 1,251-1,750 for $129 and 1,751+ for $149. There are other airlines matching these prices and I'm sure most of them will match before it's all said and done. Book by this Thursday and travel is valid from August 26-December 18 with a few exclusions. You can search for fares here . Hilton is also having a Great Getaway Giveaway ! You can vote for a hotel location for all four categories of Relaxation, Adventure, Culture and Food & Wine. The location with the most votes in each category will be awarded to a four winners. So go vote and enter for a chance at a great getaway. Winners will receive five nights accommodation and two free round trip flights. The first category of Relaxation is open now, and every two weeks a new category will open for voting. You can also win a trip to Australia through American Airlines...

I recently took a mini road trip with my wife and mother-in-law to the Texas capital city of Austin. It is the 34th largest city in the country and has close to 850,000 people living in the city limits. The main things known to this part of Texas is the music scene and the food. They know how to do it right here in this neck of the woods! There is some great eating, including some of the best BBQ joints in the country. Also, Austin is home to one of the best schools around, the University of Texas. Texas State Capitol Upon arriving in Austin, we went straight to the capitol for a tour. They are free are leave around every 15 minutes from the lobby. This capitol was modeled after our U.S. Capitol, but since everything is bigger in Texas, they went ahead and made this one 11ft taller! Go figure. The tour was quite informative, as one would expect. They took us to both the Senate and House of Reps chambers as well as the annex part of the capitol which goes four floors underground a...