Venice still featured strongly in the vote, as did Barcelona, Singapore and Rome.

The poll was carried out by YouGov for the Passenger Shipping Association (PSA) to help celebrate National Cruise Week, which this year runs from Sunday 18 September to Sunday 25 September.

“The survey highlights why more cruise holidays are being taken by Brits than ever before – it’s an effortlessly [sic] way to visit many great destinations across the world while only unpacking once.” said Bill Gibbons, director of the PSA.

According to the PSA, some 1.7 million British passengers are anticipated to board cruise ships this year. If their expectations are met, it will mark an increase of 800,000 passengers from 2010. This will be a remarkable achievement for the industry, seeing as 2001 saw only 800,000 British passengers enjoying a cruise holiday.

A growth in the cruise industry bodes well for travel job seekers looking for cruise ship jobs.

Photo by Koshy Koshy.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

easyJet has increased the price of taking sporting equipment on a flight from £18.50 to £25.
Jet2 has raised their price from £20 to £25 for golf clubs and there has been an increase from £25 to £30 for bicycles.
Bmibaby now charges £24.99 for flying with a bicycle, whereas they used to charge £17.99.
Flybe has hiked their fee from £28 to £30.
Ryanair has not raised their prices, but do not get too excited, as their charge fee of £40 is more than their rivals anyway.

This research was conducted by a price comparison website called Travelsupermarket.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

As a reward for his loyalty, United Airlines are to name a plane after Mr Stuker, and he will always be upgraded on their flights. He has been told he will never again have to queue for a flight from United.

Mr Struker admitted that he had once held a phobia of flying, “It really bothered me. But now it’s evolved to a time where if I go week without a flight, I just feel something is not right.”

The travel mad sales consultant says he takes his wife on up to five “honeymoons” every year, and their marriage has not been damaged by his travels; dispelling comparisons to George Clooney’s character in the film, Up in the Air.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

Airports have warned travellers about disruptions when arriving in the UK. The main disruptions will be at airports, ferry terminals and at the Channel Tunnel.

The strikes could pose a worrying threat to security in airports.

The strike will not directly affect those working in the travel industry within private companies. The knock on effects may be felt though. It is still to be seen what the ramifications will be on tourism in the UK.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

The APD changes are currently under debate by the Treasury and members of the travel industry. It is thought that long haul flights could cost £15 more on average, and short haul £4 more. This would come into effect from next April.

Virgin’s chief commercial officer, Julie Southern, says that Britain’s APD is the highest in Europe.

Passengers could also suffer further price hikes with the introduction of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) next year. This scheme requires airlines to buy credits to cover excessive CO2 emissions. Government says these costs will not be off set by APD and the tax will not be reduced to make allowance for it, either.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

The ministry claims that the practice of getting Buddhist tattoos is culturally insensitive. They believe that tourists are getting these tattoos as a “fashion.” The concern of Culture Minister, Niphit Intharasombat, is that the religion is not respected. He says that tourists do not know that their behaviour could be seen as offensive.

The complaints have come as a result of tattoo parlours giving non-Buddhist tourists tattoos of a sacred nature.

Millions of tourists travel to Thailand every year, where Buddha statues and images are considered to be sacred.

The government is now looking to pass a law to prevent these tattoos and wants to inspect tattoo parlours to “seek their co-operation”.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

Nile cruises and holidays to Luxor are set to resume after the Foreign Office relaxed its stance on travel to the Egyptian city, reports the Telegraph.

It is no longer advising against “all but essential travel” to Luxor, based on “the improved situation on the ground”.

Thomas Cook and Tui Travel, Britain’s largest tour operators, will resume flights to Luxor next Wednesday, after nearly four weeks of cancellations.

Discover Egypt will begin flights from Manchester and Gatwick, and Red Sea Holidays will resume its Nile cruises on February 28.

A spokesperson for Thomas Cook welcomed the news, and said it would continue to monitor the situation and adhere to Foreign Office advice. Thomas Cook and Tui announced last week that unrest in Egypt had cost them £20 million and £30 million respectively.

Read the full story.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

Namibia has become what is thought to be the first country to designate its entire coastline a national park, reports the Telegraph.

The Namib-Skeleton Coast National Park covers 26.6 million acres, making it larger than Portugal.

It stretches for 976 miles (1,570km), from the Kunene River, at the northern border with Angola, to the Orange River, on the border with South Africa, and is expected to be promoted as a unified destination. The protected coastline consolidates three national parks: Skeleton Coast, Namib-Naukluft and Sperrgebiet. The last is the site of Namibia’s diamond mines, which have long been closed to the public.

The national park does not stop at the national borders – at the southern end it connects with South Africa’s Richetersveld National Park, while in the north it is linked to Angola’s Iona National Park. Some coastal roads are good, particularly in Dorob National Park, but there is no pan-Namibian highway.

Historically, Namibia has been a trailblazer in using tourism to fund conservation, and has encouraged tribal communities to set up conservation areas, which they manage sustainably in order to keep poaching at bay and to attract tourism. “The aim of the new park is to rein in environmentally damaging activities and encourage tourism,” said Chris McIntyre, MD of the travel company Expert Africa.

Namibia is the driest country in southern Africa and its national parks are desert and savannah. In the desert wilderness of the Skeleton Coast, wildlife includes hyenas and abundant birds. Black rhino and desert elephants follow the area’s water courses, while small prides of lions have recently returned. Other highlights include African penguins and a vast colony of Cape fur seals.

Read the full article.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

Tour operator Thomas Cook has warned political unrest in travel hotspots Egypt and Tunisia would hit second-quarter profits by around £20 million.

The group said that, while Government travel advice on Tunisia had improved, restrictions to Egypt were ongoing for all but the Red Sea resorts amid escalating anti-government protests.

Thomas Cook said it was switching its travel programme to other holiday destinations to help offset the financial impact.

Riots on the streets of Tunisia last month forced 3,000 British citizens to return home, while the uprising in Egypt has prompted the Foreign Office to advise against all non-essential travel to the cities of Cairo, Alexandria, Luxor and Suez.

Manny Fontenla-Novoa, group chief executive of Thomas Cook, said: “The situation in Tunisia and Egypt is fast-moving and our principal concern is for the well-being and safety of our customers.

“We continue to monitor the situation closely and contingency plans have been implemented to redirect our holiday programme to other destinations and help mitigate the financial impact.”

Thomas Cook said that, even before the riots, bookings to Egypt from the UK for the winter season were already down 4% due to higher air passenger duty charges to that region compared with those to Europe.
Its first quarter figures to December 31 showed revenues up 7% to £1.8 billion and a 10% reduction in seasonal underlying operating losses to £37.3 million thanks to strong performances in Germany and northern Europe – and as it reaped the benefits of a £50 million cost-cutting drive.

Thomas Cook said it remained cautious over the outlook for the UK business, but its bookings for the summer 2011 season have picked up since New Year across all markets and the group is adding capacity.

UK summer holiday bookings are up 6% and average selling prices up 5% – the highest of any of its markets.

Copyright © 2011 The Press Association. All rights reserved.

Bookmark It

No related posts.

With its most famous attractions closed or deserted, Egypt is facing its greatest tourism disaster in more than a decade when 58 foreign visitors were killed in the 1997 Luxor terrorist attack, reports the BBC.

The sealed gates barring entrance to the Great Pyramid at Giza, the oldest of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and the virtually deserted beaches along Egypt’s Red Sea riviera bear testament of the crisis facing the country’s economy.

Since the uprising against Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, began, western tourists have abandoned the land of the Pharaohs in droves.

According to Omar Suleiman, Egypt’s new vice president, nearly one million left in the first nine days of the crisis, costing the country more than £650 million in lost revenues. Tourism accounts for more than 11 per cent of gross domestic profit.

Even though they are situated hundreds of miles from the nearest unrest and are serviced by a safe international airport in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt’s Red Sea resorts have been affected by the uprising.

Clare Mucklow, marketing manager of Camel Dive Club and Resort said: “It is very quiet and people are worried about how long the political problems will go on for. The local dive and hotel staff are worried about their jobs. Dive centres have cut freelance staff and hotels have sent employees off on holiday. We’ve cut staff numbers by about 50 per cent.”

Read the full article.

Bookmark It

No related posts.