Posts filed under 'holidays'
It’s what we all look forward to, our holidays.
You’ve done the hard part - you’ve chosen where to go, you’ve booked your holiday and you’ve bought your Travel Insurance. You’re all packed and at the airport in plenty of time, you’ve done everything that you need to do and all you are waiting for now is to be called to your gate. But you don’t get called and then you hear the dreaded announcement that your flight is delayed.
I think that we have all experienced being delayed at one time or another, whether it is before we are on the plane or once we have landed due to baggage going missing. But what do you do while you are waiting?
Unfortunately airports view you as a captive audience and so many of the activities that you can do involve parting with money.
Some of my top tips for passing the time are:
Eating and drinking - some airports like the new Terminal 5 at Heathrow have some fantastic restaurants including a Gordon Ramsay so you can now dine in style while you wait. Be careful how much you drink though as you may not be allowed on your flight if you have one too many.
Shopping - there are usually a selection of shops at airports where you can buy books, food for the flight, jewellrey etc.
Go online - surf the net, catch up on your emails or edit your Facebook account.
Read books or magazines - don’t wait till you are lying on a beach to relax, lose yourself in a good book and you’ll forget where you are (even if only for a short time).
Sleep - you can always catch up on some beauty sleep, particularly if you have had an early start. I found this article entitled How to Sleep in an Airport which gives some good tips.
People watch - sometimes there is nothing more interesting to pass the time then to people watch. Give it a go you might be quite amused. At Stanstead airport some people put on a rather unexpected performance to amuse the travellers, vist this link to view it on You Tube.
Listen to music - ipods are great, all your favourite tracks in one place.
If you have any more great ideas, let us know.
June 9th, 2008
It is actually finally starting to feel like summer and it is that time of the year when people start to book their holidays. It is very easy to spend all your time choosing your holiday destination and then busily buying new summer clothes and shoes that forgetting to buy or check your travel insurance is common place.
There are many travel insurance providers and it can be very confusing as to what type of policy to go for and who to go with. Some people may already have received free travel insurance through their bank account but please ensure that you have read the small print and understand exactly what you are insured for.
The Times Online have compiled a really helpful article about how to choose your travel insurance policy. It takes you through what The Foreign and Commonweath Office recommend your travel insurance should cover and more useful information.
Don’t forget that if you are travelling in Europe you need to apply for your European Health Insurance Card as this entitles you to free or discounted medical treatment.
Make sure that the Travel Insurance you buy is the best for you in terms of price and cover. For example if you normally have two or three holidays in the year then it would probably be cheaper to buy an annual multi-trip policy rather than a single policy for each trip. Also, if you are a sporty person and plan on taking part in a certain sporting activity on holiday, make sure that this is included on your insurance. An article by MSN gives more tips on this including ensuring you have adequate car insurance cover if driving abroad and the all important luggage and baggage cover should anything go missing or get damaged.
May 6th, 2008
This year’s winners of the Telegraph Travel Awards have just been unveiled.
New Zealand beats the Maldives and Australia to win Favourite Destination Worldwide, whilst Sydney - followed by Cape Town and Vancouver - gets the nod as the Favourite City Worldwide. Italy is, as it was ten years ago, winner of the favourite European Country award, ahead of Greece and Switzerland, whilst York - beating Edinburgh and Bath - tops the list for Favourite UK City.
You can browse the full list via the link above but just as interesting is the commentary provided by Nigel Starmer-Smith in which he unpacks the results and makes comparison with the first awards of ten years agoshowing how, in these awards at least, the US has fallen off the map despite the weak dollar and largely due to the increased security measures that make entering the country so much more of a struggle. France has also fallen from favour as one of the favourite countries, as has Paris as one of the favourite cities, though it’s ski resorts have found favour again, ousting the previously more popular North American destinations.
Of course ten years ago, the Internet was just a babe in arms and travel agents would just not have been concerned about the prospect of customers independently booking holidays, flights, hotels and so on online rather than relying on the packaged holidays they were being offered in the high street. It’s a different story now of course - and in this tenth year the winners of best travel websites are tripadvisor.co.uk followed by dealchecker.co.uk and kayak.co.uk.
Whether it’s comparing offers, booking your flights or accommodation, reading a fellow traveller’s review of a city, hotel or restaurant, or arranging your travel money or travel insurance…the fact that you can research it and book it all online shows what a remarkable transformation has occurred in recent years. Who knows what else lies ahead? Maybe one day we really will be taking holidays like those in Total Recall where you can enjoy an imaginary holiday through memory implants. The upside - if you’ve never seen the film - is great holiday memories without the risk of poor weather or a bad hotel, and all without taking the time off work, and you can even choose to ‘travel’ as a romantic or adventure hero and take a holiday from yourself. As for the downside, well, if you have never seen the film, make sure you do!
December 2nd, 2007
As of today, Eurostar started offering carbon neutral journeys. ‘Carbon neutral’ is a phrase we read a lot about and - without wishing to teach the eco warriors amongst you to suck organic eggs - in simple terms it means reducing and offsetting the total calculated CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions you cause. In the case of Eurostar they are doing this by buying ‘carbon credits’ in specially chosen projects that will reduce an equivalent amount of CO2 to the amount created giving a net balance of zero.
Now, not only is it good for the planet, it is also a very potent marketing message to give to customers - “take a green train, rather than a damaging flight” - and one that they make good capital of on their website, pointing out that travelling by Eurostar to their ‘core destinations’ (Paris, Brussels) emits ten times less CO2 than flying.
It’s a persuasive message - and for short-haul trips it might be an easy choice to make especially if the fares are good, the journey more convenient not to mention global warming concerns. If however. you are planning a long-haul flight this winter to some warmer clime, getting a train may not be an option, and the airline you book with may not offer a carbon offsetting programme.
So, what to do? Well, one thing to do could be to take care of your own ‘carbon footprint’ yourself. and one place you can do this is via the Carbon Neutral website. Amongst its many offerings are Carbon Flights where you can quickly and easily choose to support a project that is helping to reduce carbon dioxide levels. The cost of this, from around £4 for a short-haul flight to around £50 for a long-haul flight.
Offsetting before you go off-jetting is a great way to reduce the environmental damage but leaving it to us individuals may not see many people taking the initiative and paying up. That Eurostar have taken the lead and done the job for each passenger - and without ostensibly increasing prices - is to be commended.
We’ll update future posts with other green travel news - but please do let us know your views on this subject.
November 14th, 2007
Q: When is a destination not a destination? A: When it’s only a stop-over of course. Okay, so it’s not the best riddle you’ve ever faced, but it does provide a link between two articles published by the Telegraph and Times this weekend.
First up is the Telegraph’s insider guide to Dubai and covers all you need to know about this oasis in the desert from the world’s first ’seven star’ hotel - the Burj Al-Arab - to the huge indoor ski slope - ideal if you miss the snow while in the desert - and all the best places to shop, eat and be seen! Check out the full article for the low down on the high-life to be enjoyed in Dubai.
The Times chose to focus on Dubai too - as well as neighbours such as Qatar and Abu Dhabi but only to commend it as a stop-over on the way to the Far East or beyond on account of the cheap fares available should you travel via the Middle East. The article keenly notes that despite the subsidised fares - hoping to entice you stay and spend - one can stay just an hour or three, before flying on to your final destination, and save a fortune in air fares. Lots of bargains to be had - though you may of course spend all that you save in the shopping malls.
October 29th, 2007
It’s not even the second last week of October and already the first Christmas commercial is on television.
I can’t remember who it was for – possibly Argos - but it definitely had “I wish it could be Christmas every day” throughout – not to mention Roy Wood (the original singer of said ‘classic’ song) in a cameo role.
Now while it does seem a little early to be snapping up crackers and ordering your turkey, there are those who clearly like to get the whole thing – literally – wrapped up by Halloween.
Playing to those who are not just organised but also with an eye for a bargain, there is an extremely timely article on the Telegraph website about Christmas shopping in the US and taking advantage of the superb exchange rate – still hovering around the £1 = $2 mark.
Their tip was that Boston was a better destination than New York City, and the article features a host of tips on exactly where to go for the best choice and of course the best savings in both cities.
For those with more exotic trips in mind, a follow-up piece also offers an inside guide to Christmas shopping in Hong Kong, Marrakesh, and Mumbai and Istanbul. Beats Argos I suppose…
October 21st, 2007
Selected highlights from the weekend’s travel press….
Telegraph: With the Rugby World Cup nearing its conclusion in Paris and England making it all the way to the final once again, this feature looked at some of the best brasseries in Paris to er…try if you fancy some decent scrum for your tum. Will you be converted? Are they worth a punt? Okay, no more rugby puns.
Times Online: On the subject of Paris…this article covered everything you need to know about Eurostar and it’s move next month from Waterloo to St. Pancras. The good news is 1) the journey gets quicker: down to 2h 15mins. 2) £59 fares will still be available 3) Eurostar is now better-positioned for the rest of the UK, with seven train lines coming into either St. Pancras or nearby Kings Cross or Euston terminals.
The Independent: Picked out France as the best bet for top-class skiing. Pros: 1) the height of the mountains - meaning a better chance of snow. 2) the amount of intermediate terrain, what most Brits need apparently. 3) the quality of the lift system. 4) plenty of transport options from all over UK. 5) accomodation that isn’t all very expensive. The only downsides they seemed to find were the lack of good, simple restaurants, and the amount of British skiiers.
The Guardian: They also took on skiing with their answer to the question “So which ski resort is right for us” which provided six bespoke solutions ranging from the quaint and quirky to the more rampant and rabid resorts to suit different travellers.
Wherever you head to…don’t forget your travel insurance ; - )
October 15th, 2007
The rise of the cheap flight airlines has meant a rise in holiday ’snacking’ - bite-sized breaks in addition to ‘main’ summer holidays. And for many, this snacking takes the form of drinking - whether it be the opportunity to sip sherry in the Jerez region of Spain or sample champagne in the actual Champagne region of France. October however heralds one thing in the drinking world: Oktoberfest, the annual festival of beer which takes place in Munich every year.
Plenty of airlines provide inexpensive flights to Munich, so getting there is easy enough - but rather handily for those that want to enjoy something of an Oktoberfeast as well as an Oktoberfest (their word play, not mine), The Guardian has recently provided a Top Ten list of Munich eateries offering a variety of fayre to pad out the pints (or, should I say, soak up the steins).
My favourite has to be the currywürst - bite-sized slices of sausage smothered in a curry sauce. They may not exactly serve curry like this round Mumbai way, but as they say, when in Rome, do like the Romans…
October 3rd, 2007
Right now, my son is satisfied with Thomas the Tank Engine DVDs and day-trips anywhere on the London Underground. More mature appetites, hankering for a more luxurious railway experience might wish to peruse this pick of the world’s most exclusive railway journeys as published in this weekend’s Sunday Telegraph. There are a couple of expected names on the list from the Venice Simplon-Orient Express to the Blue Train that runs between Pretoria and Cape Town in South Africa and, of course, being a list of the most exclusive journeys, you can bet your Family Railcard that none of these are exactly inexpensive ways to get from A to B.
September 24th, 2007
Not to be outdone by The Telegraph - see yesterday’s post - The Observer today published their list of “25 Great Ideas for Autumn Getaways” a veritable feast of food festivals, wine tours, forest retreats and more to explore once our Indian Summer fades.
September 16th, 2007
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