Author: Shawon Hannan

London can expect a massive influx of British-based visitors for the 2012 Olympic Games, according to a new survey. The survey, which was carried out by hotel comparison site, Trivigo, suggests that 73 percent more British travellers than usual will be visiting London during the period July 29 to August 12. That is 17.5 percent of all UK travellers at that time. Additional data compiled by the company also concludes that visitors for the Olympics chose to book early in order to guarantee the accommodation that they required, rather than wait in the hope of getting a cheaper last-minute deal,…

Since ancient times man has had a fascination with listing the world’s must-see wonders, but there can be some confusion for the modern traveller intent on ticking off the top seven current wonders from his bucket list. The ancient civilisations that were responsible for compiling the first and most famous Seven Wonders, not surprisingly, chose their own feats of creativity and engineering over the natural wonders that had been formed by nature. Unfortunately, lighthouses, colossi and temples were all unable to pass the test of time, and only one of the seven, the Great Pyramid of Giza, near Cairo, Egypt,…

Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations earlier this month helped bring about record figures for London’s hotel industry. According to figures released by STR Global, a provider of market data to the hotel industry and a company that tracks more than 41,000 daily rooms around London across all segments, London hotels achieved occupancy of 90.5 percent on Saturday June 2, and even the Sunday night, which is traditionally poor for hotels, saw an occupancy figure of 79.3 percent. Commenting on the figures, Elizabeth Randall, managing director at STR Global, said, ‘The Jubilee weekend has been a fantastic opportunity for London to…

Australia has revealed plans to extend its national marine parks to make them the largest marine park network in the world. Already famed for the quality of its beaches and the diversity of its sea life, the country intends to increase its marine reserves from the current 27 to 60, with the inclusion of 3 million square kilometres, or around a third of its waters. The new reserves will mainly be created between the Perth Canyon in the southwest, and the southern coast’s Kangaroo Island, but the Coral Sea off the Great Barrier Reef in the northeast is a key…

As the UK’s beach resorts gear up for the main summer holidays, Skegness, a traditional seaside town on the Lincolnshire coast, has been accused of using dirty tricks to lure visitors away from its rivals. The Daily Mail has reported that Skegness has released a series of adverts headed, ‘For sights you’ll want to remember, visit Skegness,’ and showing photographs of walls covered in graffiti that were taken at some of the towns rival UK resorts, Brighton and Blackpool. In a predictable response, the two towns that were targeted have criticised what they see as underhand tactics. In their defence,…

A study of the impact of the London 2012 Olympic Games on the leisure and tourism industry has revealed that London-based hotels could face a glut of no-shows for bookings made to coincide with the event. The analysis, which was carried out by holiday lettings company, CLC Leisure, claims to have revealed that considerable numbers of games fans are attempting to offload their pre-booked hotel accommodation. In the main, these are people that bought event ticket and hotel packages with the sole aim of securing the tickets, and without any real need for the inclusive accommodation. Commenting on his company’s…

British Airways has revealed a giant-sized image of British World Champion heptathlete, Jessica Ennis, on the flight path in to London’s Heathrow Airport, as a welcome to visitors and competitors arriving for the 2012 London Olympic games. The image, which measures 53 metres by 75 metres, carries the wording, ‘Welcome to our turf,’ which can also be read as a reminder to arriving athletes from other countries that only one team has home advantage. The image has been created using biodegradable paint and should be visible for the next five weeks, including on July 16, which is the date that…

Morgans Hotel Group, a New York-based hospitality company, is to open the London Hudson hotel in the UK capital in 2015. MHG has a twenty-year management agreement on the boutique-style property, which will be a 200-room sister hotel to the company’s original Hudson branded property that is undergoing a renovation and re-launch in New York, US. That development has seen an investment of $30 million, and includes a complete renovation of the hotel’s 834 rooms, with new furnishings, upgraded technology and state-of-the-art lighting. Commenting on the announcement of the London development, Michael Gross, the chief executive officer of Morgans Hotel…

Visitor numbers travelling to the UK have increased in the first few months of 2012. The latest figures from the International Passenger Survey (IPS) have shown a healthy increase of 10 percent in the inbound visitor figure for April this year, compared to the same month in 2011, and a similar 10 percent increase in the amount spent by visitors to the UK during their trips. In April the UK welcomed 2.9 million visitors, who spent £1.4 billion. Holiday visits increased by 5 percent, with 1.2 million April arrivals contributing to a total of 3.3 million holiday visits for the…

The government of Qatar is preparing to issue a new tourism law as part of its preparations for hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The new tourism law is designed to enable the Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) to develop the country’s tourism infrastructure so that it can cope with the demands that the influx of visitors for the competition will put on it. Take a look at the FIFA world cup guide. The QTA is aiming for a 20 percent increase in tourism to Qatar in the next five years, assisted by the development of new hotels and infrastructure. Currently,…