Author: News Team

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…

South Africa’s estimated £2.6 billion investment in infrastructure and media for the recent World Cup is paying off. While the games are over and the country’s stadiums significantly more empty (albeit less noisy) the country is experiencing a continued period of high tourism. More travellers arrived in South Africa during the first seven months of 2010 than any year before it, data shows. It’s easy to point to the World Cub for the country’s success, but doing so ignored the huge amount of long-term planning that went into South Africa’s investments. As one of Africa’s most stable and developed nations,…

A new survey from Hotels.com has revealed that London’s taxis are the most friendly, comfortable, and safe in the world. The survey and complete report asked users to contribute their experiences in taxis around the world, pointing out how safe they felt and how comfortable the ride was. Britain’s capital took the top spot, closely followed by other major European cities such as Madrid. Surprisingly, it was taxi capital New York City that came in last place for ‘taxi quality’, with users suggesting that despite the city’s large fleet of go-anywhere transportation, the surly and abrasive nature of many taxi…

The cost of travelling within Australia has decreased significantly over the past five months, giving an increasingly large amount of the population access to low-cost fares and simply travel options. A study of airline prices has revealed that passengers in Australia and New Zealand enjoy some of the cheapest in the world, with flight ‘value’ measured in distance travelled and compared to fares. The value on offers has been most visible throughout June and July, where the low cost of travelling between Australia’s eastern states lead to a surge in short-distance bookings. The most popular route was that between state…