Here at Holiday Velvet we often get asked about where you can leave your luggage whilst you are waiting to 'check in' to your apartment or after you have 'checked-out'. Whilst you can always ask the owner directly if they are able to look after your bags for a few hours, left luggage facilities still exist at many major train stations and other transport hubs. These days, most of these facilities run on an automated locker system (gone are the days when you checked in your bag in as you would a coat in a nightclub). Remember that they may fill up at peak periods. Rome When arriving at Termini Station on the Leonardo Express train from Fiumicino airport, you can leave your baggage in the ‘piazza’ on the lower-ground floor (follow the ‘Deposito bagagli’ signs). It’s open 6am-midnight, 7 days a week. Venice ‘Deposito bagagli’ is available at Santa Lucia Train Station (open 6am-midnight daily). Cooperative Trasbagagli is a private company that will not only store you luggage for you, but take it by boat to your place of accommodation, saving you schlepping bags over the bridges and canals. They have two offices in Venice; one at the Piazzale ...

New York City is such an exciting place that it is possible to find new things to do every day of a long holiday. But, sometimes the sky high buildings can feel oppressive and getting out for a day trip can be totally refreshing. The choice of day trips is impressive and below are listed some of the most popular. NEW YORK DAY TRIP: BELMONT PARK RACE TRACK Belmont Park race track is a superb way to spend a day outside of New York. It is set in 430 acres in Belmont, New York State and has two seasons. The first race season in 2009 lasts for 64 days and is from April 29 until June 26 and the autumn season is from September 11 until October 25. NEW YORK DAY TRIP: NIAGARA FALLS A day trip from New York City to Niagara Falls may seem a little ambitious but there are day trips that leave from Midtown Manhattan, take you to LaGuardia Airport and fly you up to Buffalo. From the airport there is a guided tour of the Niagara Falls and a ride on the Maid of the Mist boat. Once you have seen all there is to see of the ...

Most international travellers flying to New York City will land at one of three airports. The airport with the most traffic, handling about 48 million passengers a year, is JFK International Airport. JFK is situated in Queens County at the western end of Long Island, south east of New York City and is about 12 miles from Lower Manhattan. GETTING TO NEW YORK FROM JFK AIRPORT There are several ways of getting to New York from JFK and one of the least expensive is by the Air Train, which is part of the subway and commuter rail network. The Air Train stops at all the termini within JFK, the various parking and car rental lots, and hotel shuttle areas, and connects to the Long Island Railroad. The journey time from JFK Airport to Midtown Manhattan on the Air Train is about forty minutes. By road, there are several public buses and private bus companies that link JFK to Manhattan and they are usually accessible to people in wheelchairs. Hailing a Yellow cab is a traditional way to travel from JFK to Manhattan and the average cost is around $50. The journey takes about 35 minutes, although that definitely depends on the ...