Author: News Team

Australia and Japan claimed a shared first place in Visa’s international travel survey. The countries were consistently ranked as top Asia-Pacific travel destinations, with one-fifth of respondents keen to holiday in either country. The survey polled frequent travellers from the United States and other international destinations, featuring people aged over 18 years who had booked a trip recently. Residents of Thailand, Hong Kong, and Mainland China favoured Japan for international travel, claiming that its combination of high-tech cities and natural beauty makes it one of Asia’s leading holiday destinations. Australia ranked highly for similar reasons, albeit with a different audience…

When Australian low-cost carrier Virgin Blue announced its plans to withdraw from New Zealand service, travel industry experts predicted that the move was aimed at cutting costs. But the airline has reported a steady profit throughout 2010, cutting down on conjecture that it was failing to hit revenue targets and fuelling industry discussion that it may expand further into other markets. Given the airline’s recent partnership with UAE-based Etihad Airways, it appears the speculators were right. Virgin Blue plans to expand its travel fleet over the next twelve months to compete in markets formerly dominated by Australian national carrier Qantas.…

Most holidayers dream of a tropical beach or cosmopolitan city. But for customers of French travel firm Ultime Réalité, an ideal holiday could involve helicopter chases, kidnappings, and a simulated abduction and kidnapping. The firm is a one-of-a-kind ‘extreme’ holiday provider operating in east France, and it’s rapidly gaining attention throughout the world for its bizarre holiday packages. One such package from Ultime Réalité’s website combined a harsh, unexpected kidnapping with a four-hour confinement and isolation package in one of France’s historic cellars. Customers have an obligation to purchase the packages during an extended period of holiday or work inactivity,…

Following a disastrous hostage crisis, Hong Kong has banned its citizens from travelling to the Philippines. The special territory, which is controlled by its own government, has set an alert to warn travellers of the potential dangers associated with travelling in the country. HK citizens in Manila have been advised to return home – advice that many have taken swift action on. Eight tourists from Hong Kong were killed during a bus hijacking in the city, after a disgruntled former police officer took control of a tour bus and executed its passengers. Manila’s police force was slow to act on…

When it comes to peak travel fares, a significant portion of Britain’s rail users are growing tired of the confusion. Throughout the country, ‘peak’ travel times vary from just thirty minutes daily, with some regions experiencing a supposed four-hour peak travel period throughout the afternoon. It’s a major annoyance for Britain’s rail users, and many are interested in an answer to the confusion. Scotrail Aberdeen was the most generous of the polled services, holding out a peak travel period of just thirty minutes daily. Most rail users were able to purchase low-cost off-peak tickets for journeys outside of the most…

Travellers to New York City will have significantly less housing options to choose from over the next few months. The city recently passed a law banning the rental of apartments and houses for periods of under thirty days. New York Governor David Paterson signed the bill after saying that such legislation would likely be vetoed, enraging part-time renters throughout the city. The bill is a major blow to the city’s inexpensive rental housing industry, which has offered rental properties for vacationers and budget travellers over the last decade. New York City has some of the highest hotel prices in the…

American budget air carrier Southwest Airlines certainly knows how to stand out. The inexpensive carrier has spent the last twelve months giving its flight attendants rapping duties, shunning charges for bags and other carry-on items, and finally revamping its fleet to include bigger, better, and more efficient planes. But its latest move – a small contract addition– could be the strangest of all. Southwest’s latest policy change reflects its ability to claim certain expenses under insurance, and to subsequently reimburse them to passengers. Up until two weeks ago, the airline could give credit to passengers with delayed flights due to…

It’s not just international travel businesses that are feeling the spending squeeze – some of Britain’s most well-known domestic holiday destinations are seeing just a trickle of visitors, many of whom are opting for a shorter, less expensive holiday than usual. Cornwall is one of several regions under the financial weather, with tourism-dependent businesses reporting lower-than-usual revenue. From hotels to the region’s restaurants, this year’s peak travel season has been fairly commercially underwhelming. While Britain’s economy is officially on the return to health, limited budgets and an all-round avoidance of needless spending have pushed many Britons to forego this year’s…

Lonely Planet’s new augmented reality travel guides are proving hit amongst Android users. Built to use the operating system’s advanced data mapping and navigation features, the applications lay out landmarks and other tourism-focused data across a complete three-dimensional view. With similar technology under the hood to that found on leading iPhone AR apps, the guides are top downloads. Users can purchase the applications from Google’s Android App Store – the operating system’s main extension and application interface. Priced at just $4.95 each and available for twenty-five different cities. Popular downloads include Sydney, New York City, and San Francisco – three…

While some of Britain’s biggest travel operators close shop, the number of adventure travel firms is increasing on a weekly basis. Offering skiing vacations, surfing, and mountain trekking holidays, a surge in bookings for high-end adventure holidays is changing the face of British travel. Even more strangely, the growth isn’t propelled by 20-somethings – it’s grandparents that are leading the way. The amount of mature holidayers opting for slopes n’ slow on their holiday is increasingly at a rate few could have predicted, leaving adventure travel firms rushing to complete bookings and arrange trips. Over-fifty travellers are one of Britain’s…