Author: Lee Fletcher
The Indian state, Odisha, is planning to promote its Buddhist lineage with road shows in Taiwan and Thailand. The road shows are planned in August and the government is also intending to market the state in other major markets where Buddhism evokes an interest. After Taiwan and Thailand, the government will expand the road shows to South Korea and Japan, in an attempt to draw as many tourists as possible. The tourism development programme will see the Odisha Tourism Department and the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), work together to extend the popular Buddhist train, the Mahaparinirvana Express,…
Switzerland-based tour operator, Kuoni, has announced that it is planning to organise adventure trips to South America. The company, which has already started marketing the concept, said that it would create holidays that are tailor-made to customers’ needs. The firm’s 21 retail stores and four partnership stores will offer bespoke advice, and plan adventure tours to South America, in line with the customer’s own preferences. The firm said that its experienced staff, many of whom are also claimed to be seasoned travellers, would design the adventure tours from available itineraries. Brazil is one of the highlights in the proposed itinerary.…
London Luton Airport, an airport in the county of Bedfordshire in the UK, is expanding its capacity, according to Luton Borough Council, the owner of the facility. Luton Airport is gearing up to expand its capacity by around 50 percent, as the airport’s owner has extended the airport operational contract with the current operator. The airport contract with London Luton Airport Operations Limited (LLAOL) to operate the facility, has been extended by three years, to 2031. The airport is currently drawing up detailed plans to increase its capacity from the present annual limit of 11.5 million passengers, to a proposed…
London Underground, a rapid transit system in the UK’s capital city, has reported the completion of around 46.95 million passenger journeys in the first 12 days of the recently concluded Olympic games. The transport system has reported the completion of 11.05 million more journeys during the initial 12 days of the 2012 Olympics, or around a 30 percent increase, compared with same period in the preceding year. This is a record number of journeys completed in a given period by the network. This news comes as the transport network continues to serve record numbers of passengers, as Londoners and visitors…
Flybe, a UK-based airline company, has reported a decrease in passenger traffic for the last quarter of 2012-2013. The airline has reported a decrease in passenger traffic of 3 percent for its UK division, for the period from April to June 2012, with a decrease in load factor of 0.7 percent, to 62.4 percent, compared to the same period in 2011. The airline is blaming the downturn on a general slump in business travel, as most world economies are still hampered by the financial crisis. The airline chief executive officer, Jim French, said, ‘2012 is a significant year for Flybe.…
Easyjet passengers could face delays and disruption to their plans this week, due to threatened strike action by pilots. The UK-based budget airline company is asking its passengers to check that industrial action in France and Portugal has not affected their flights before they journey to the airport. Strike threats by French pilots are in force for tomorrow, Wednesday August 15, and for this coming Friday and Sunday, August 17 and 19. The strikes, backed by the French pilot’s union, the SNPL, are the latest development in an ongoing dispute over pay. While the dispute only involves French pilots, some…
Bush fires have ravaged the Canary Islands of Tenerife and La Gomera, with tourists being warned to steer clear of the danger. As thousands of the islands’ residents have been evacuated from the danger areas, the British Foreign office has put out a warning to UK tourists to maintain contact. By yesterday afternoon, 8 towns or villages on Tenerife and 10 on La Gomera had been evacuated and sealed off, as it was reported that fire-fighting crews were having difficulty keeping the blazes contained. Included in the areas under threat are a number of Spanish national parks. Although flights to…
A new green caravan is now in the offing, deigned to appeal to fans of portable holiday homes that are also keen on sustainable caravan travel. Park Resorts, a UK-based company that offers caravan holidays and caravan ownership around the UK coastline, is partnering with ABI, a caravan manufacturer, to introduce the ABI Pure range of environmentally friendly caravan holiday homes in the UK. The new ABI Pure range of caravans are claimed to be better insulated to prevent energy loss, offer dual flush in bathroom cisterns for lower water consumption, as well as having controlled double glazing and central…
Restaurant chains in the UK have reported an increase in annual turnover in 2011, from that in 2010, reports Technomic, a UK based company offering all-inclusive information and analysis on the food industry. Around 100 restaurant chains in the UK have reported a 5.6 percent increase in annual turnover, compared to a 2.6 percent increase in the same period last year. UK outlets of the restaurant chains have grown by 4.9 percent to 17,593 in 2011, compared to an increase of 3.9 percent in the previous year. The limited-service restaurants have reported that the biggest increase in the food categories…
The London Olympic Games Organising Committee (LOCOG), the agency that is responsible for all Olympic preparations in London, has reported that the Games Lanes on the A30 Egham Bypass in Surrey will be open for traffic during the period between the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. Earlier it was reported that A30 Egham Bypass Games Lanes would remain in force until the end of the Paralympic Games on September 6, 2012. The Games Lanes have been working efficiently, without any incidents of traffic queues except in the mornings during rush hour, to help athletes and officials move easily between venues…