itravelnet.com Travel Blog

Premium Class Airlines (or business class only airlines) haven't fared well in the recent surge of oil prices. While three airlines have gone bust in the last 6 months, there are still Premium Class Airlines in operation.

This is the state of the Premium Class Airline sector:

Closed

Maxjet, based at Washington Dulles International Airport, ceased operations on Christmas eve 2007.


Eos Airlines, based at JFK New York, ceased operations in April 2008.



Silverjet, based at London Luton, ceased operations in May 2008.


Still Operating

L'Avion operate flights from their Paris Orly base to New York Newark. They also operate a codeshare service with British Airways subsidiary OpenSkies


PrivatAir provide scheduled services operated on behalf of Lufthansa, Swiss International Air Lines and KLM.


Proposed

These are tough times to be launching a new airline, let alone a Premium Class Airline, but there are two new airlines on the horizon.

ArabJet is a proposed premium class airline based in Dubai, and is due to commence operations in 2009.


Premjet is a start-up based at London Luton in the UK. Premjet has a different model to previous premium class airlines in that it plans to service the leisure market rather than the business market. It will fly from Luton and Manchester to Toulon (France), Faro (Portugal), Palma - Mallorca and Malaga (Spain).

References: Premium Class Airlines

Labels: airlines, arabjet, eos-airlines, lavion, maxjet, premjet, privatair, silverjet

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Travel blogs added to the directory this week:

polarbearchronicles.com
Travelogue of extreme nomads Simon and Alicia, who are traveling around the world with little more than a sailboat and camping gear.
The Polar Bear Chronicles

Directory Location: Travel Blogs P

travel-georgia.blogspot.com
Georgia travel and information blog.
Travel To Georgia

Directory Location: Georgia Travel Blogs

gypsycafe.wordpress.com
Philosophical reflections and short stories by a long-term backpacker. How to become a modern day nomad. Coffee and thoughts are served at the Gypsy Café.
Gypsy Café

Directory Location: Travel Blogs G

truenomads.blogspot.com
True Nomads is a collection of photos, stories, and philosophies on world travel and the human condition.
True Nomads

Directory Location: Travel Blogs T

If you have a travel blog and would like to be in the directory and featured in this weekly post then follow the details here: submit travel blog

Labels: travel-blogs

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Location: Graz - Austria
Photo: Grazer Kunsthaus


The Kunsthaus Graz, or Grazer Kunsthaus, (Graz Art Museum), also known as the Friendly Alien.

Travel Photo Gallery: Graz Photo Gallery

Labels: austria, graz, photo-gallery

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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The webs largest site about airline catering. Thousands of photos of airline menu trays from all over the world. Readers can send photos and reviews of their own inflight meal experiences.

airlinemeals.net

Directory Location: Airline Meals

Labels: featured-travel-site-2008

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Australian airline Virgin Blue have announced they will commence an Airpass covering Australia and New Zealand from September 2008.

The Virgin Blue Airpass will be available year-round, with no season restrictions and no change fees. The pass is only available for international guests visiting Australia (sorry Aussies).

Highlights of the pass includes:
- Choose from 53 routes across Australia and New Zealand.
- Airpass is valid for 12 months.
- Select a minimum of three flights from any of the 4 Zones. That is, three flight sectors may be selected from within the one Fly Zone, or they may be selected from more than one Fly Zone.

The pass will be available via www.virginblueairpass.com

Labels: australia, travel-advice, virgin-blue

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Here are the newest blogs that have been added to the directory this week.

nomadicmatt.com
Travel site dedicated to personal stories, advice, tips, news, and of course, photos.
Nomadic Matt's Travel Site

Directory Location: Travel Blogs N

asmaliana.com
Tourism Melaka is a blog about tourism activities in Melaka, the most historical state in Malaysia. Blog contest, calendar of events, review of tourism products and cultural events.
Tourism Melaka

Directory Location: Melaka Travel Blogs

thebackpackboy.com
People know me more as a Technology Specialist or Evangelist than as a traveller or a (frustrated) photographer. This site serves as my alter ego and is a travelog for my personal experiences and insights of my trips and explorations.
The Backpack Boy

Directory Location: Travel Blogs T

paradise-india.blogspot.com
Paradise India - Visit a new place everyday.
Paradise India

Directory Location: India Travel Blogs

amazingindonesia.net
Travel & places, backpacking, news & events.
Adventure to Amazing Indonesia

Directory Location: Indonesia Travel Blogs

travel-wonders.com
Photos, stories and reviews from some of the great travel wonders of the world. Special focus on wildlife, places of natural beauty and sites with great cultural or historic value.
Travel Wonders of the World

Directory Location: Travel Blogs T


If you have a travel blog and would like to be in the directory and featured in this weekly post then follow the details here: submit travel blog

Labels: travel-blogs

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Location: Ayuthaya - Thailand
Photo: Head Of The Sandstone Buddha Image



Travel Photo Gallery: Ayuthaya Photo Gallery

Labels: ayuthaya, photo-gallery, thailand

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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If you like cheesy pun making, then you'll love She Went Of Her Own Accord. The site revolves around making a pun around a place name, eg:

My wife's gone to the Caribbean.

Jamaica?

No, she went of her own accord.

You can contribute by adding your own joke. I have added one for Dubai:

shewentofherownaccord.com

Labels: featured-travel-site-2008

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Most people may never consider visiting Iceland as it is seemingly so out of the way. What many people may not know though is that it's possible to visit Iceland as a stopover trip if you are flying between North America and Europe.



Booking Flights To Iceland

Flights deals from to Reykjavik often turn up on flight finders like Kayak and Lastminute.com.

Another way to find Iceland flight deals is to subscribe to the newsletters of Icelandair and Iceland Express.

Icelandair is the flag carrier airline of Iceland that serves destinations in North America and Europe. Their website provides details on stopping over in Reykjavik enroute to your destination.

Iceland Express is a low cost airline from Iceland that flies to destinations in Europe. You could therefore book a do-it-yourself fare where you fly from the USA or Canada to Reykjavik with Icelandair, then fly from Reykjavik onto Europe with Iceland Express.

Labels: airfares, iceland, travel-advice

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Submit your travel blog to the travel blog directory and be featured in this weekly travel blog roll. Submit travel blog


travelsnippetsandmore.com
Travel blog of destination reviews and travel tips.
Travel Snippets and More

Directory Location: Travel Blogs T

Labels: travel-blogs

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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I have stumbled upon two songs that have great travel film clips, and every time I watch them I can't help but get a dose of wanderlust.

The first video is from Death Cab For Cutie. The video for I Will Possess Your Heart follows a girl as she travels around the world, and it goes well with the extra long intro to the song.


If you can't see the video watch it here: I Will Possess Your Heart

The other song is Sunshine from Australian artist Old Man River.

Watch video here: Sunshine

The video follows Old Man River (AKA Ohad Rein) walking around the streets of India. It makes me want to walk the streets of India again (but not jump in the Ganges).

If you have a music video that inspires wanderlust leave a comment.

Labels: music

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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LiveATC.Net provides live air traffic control (ATC) broadcasts from air traffic control towers and radar facilities around the world.

liveatc.net

Directory Location: Air Traffic Control

Labels: featured-travel-site-2008

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Virgin Trains have teamed up with Eurostar to create a single ticket for train travel from north of London to Paris. Travel from Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham to London on Virgin Trains then onto Paris via Eurostar. Tickets start from £39.50 one way.

Sale tickets are available at thetrainline.com

Labels: england, eurostar, paris, train, uk, virgin trains

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Blogs added to the travel blog directory this week:

othersideofnewyork.com
When people think of New York, they think... New York City. This is a blog about the Upstate areas of New York and some well kept secrets. Things to do, places to go, some current issues, history and wildlife, all from the perspective of a family who lives here, raises two boys, and runs a small hobby farm.
The Other Side of New York

Directory Location: New York Travel Blogs


indotravelaholic.blogspot.com
Make your trip to Indonesia with my destination info.
Penggila Traveling

Directory Location: Indonesia Travel Blogs


travelwestukraine.com
Tourist attractions of cities and regions of Western Ukraine. Ukrainian culture, customs and traditions.
Travel West Ukraine

Directory Location: Ukraine Travel Blogs


travelternopil.com
Stories about city of Ternopil (Western Ukraine). Enviroment, music, food, fashion, embroidery, hand crafted art, unique people.
Travel Ternopil
Directory Location: Ternopil Travel Blogs



If you have a travel blog and would like to be in the directory and featured in this weekly post then follow the details here: submit travel blog

Labels: travel-blogs

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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Continuing the theme of airlines that have blogs, here is a list of airlines that use Twitter, the micro-blogging site.

twitter.com/britishairways
twitter.com/deltaairlines
twitter.com/icelandexpress
twitter.com/jet4you
twitter.com/jetblue
twitter.com/qatarairways
twitter.com/southwestair
twitter.com/tigerairways
twitter.com/virginamerica
twitter.com/virginblue
twitter.com/vueling (in Spanish)

If you are from an airline or know of an official airline twitter that isn't on the list please leave a comment.

Follow me at twitter.com/itravelnet

Labels: airlines

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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A guide to packing light. Travel with one bag (a carry on bag) and save time and hassle of checking in luggage.

onebag.com

Directory Location: Travel Packing

Labels: featured-travel-site-2008

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If you are looking for a job where you are paid to travel the world, then perhaps a job as a spy is for you.

Here is a compilation of secret service departments around the world and how to go about getting a job as an international man (or woman) of mystery.

Secret Intelligence Service

Secret Intelligence Service is the official department of international spies in the UK, better known locally as MI6.

The MI6 name isn't as famous as the CIA, but it has the most famous fictional character in James Bond.


MI6 can also claim Austin Powers as its own as well.



British citizens (and budding double-agents) can take this online test to see if they have what it takes to be an MI6 Officer.


CIA

The CIA is an institution that needs no introduction. Thanks to Hollywood (and the orange jumpsuits of Guantanamo Bay) it is a household name around the world.

In the fictional world the CIA doesn't have a character of the same brand power of James Bond. CIA agents are usually portrayed as conservative men in bad suits. Jason Bourne has recently become as popular a character as Bond, but playing a CIA operative gone wrong wouldn't be the CIA's dream fictional character.



I had always assumed that you would become a CIA spy by being found rather than by simply applying, but the CIA are pro-active in publicly recruiting new employees. The CIA even have a Facebook page (login required).

You can view all jobs on offer at the CIA website. If you are wanting to be an international spy then the Clandestine Service will be your department.

This is how The Clandestine Life is described on the CIA website:

Operations Officers and Collection Management Officers spend a significant portion of their time abroad. Typically, Operations Officers will serve 60% to 70% of their careers overseas, while Collection Management Officers will be overseas for 30% to 40% of their careers.

Plenty of opportunity for travel in the CIA.

CSIS/SCRS

For Canadians, you can apply at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) or the Service Canadien du Renseignement de Sécurité (SCRS). CSIS is a boring acronym that doesn't roll off the tongue nicely at all. No one outside of Canada has heard of it either so they must be doing a good job.

There are possibilities for travel with this job. The website states that "Intelligence Officers must be willing to relocate periodically throughout their careers". Further details at the careers page on the CSIS website.

It would be the perfect agency for American "double agents" too. It's probably already stacked with Americans disguised as Canadians with Canadian flags on their backpacks.

Mossad



For Israeli's there is the world famous Mossad. Duties include "bringing Jews home from countries where official Aliya agencies are not allowed to operate" and "planning and carrying out special operations beyond Israel's borders". Ahem, enough said.

ASIO



After reading the US and UK's secret service job possibilities, working at Australia's ASIO seems dull in comparison.

In Australia you accasionally see announcements in the press that ASIO jobs are available. The ASIO website has a Job Application section, but the jobs on offer are more in the way of administrative duties. Doesn't look like there is much on offer in the way of travel. Maybe the international spy jobs come via the way of the traditional tap on the shoulder.


NZSIS

This must be one of the most chilled out jobs in the secret service industry. The island nation at the bottom of the world has no known enemies, and slipping between countries would be a breeze as a New Zealand passport has one of the most unrestricted visa access in the world.

I don't know what a New Zealand spy would actually do. Perhaps the biggest job of the NZSIS is planting agents in Australia to spy on the national rugby team. This might explain why there is a picture of people playing rugby the the NZSIS website.



Further details for Kiwi's at NZSIS Careers.


SASS



South African Secret Service has a how to apply section on the SASS website. Fake passports would be a must for these spies as a South African passport is useless for international travel.

Irish Secret Service

The Irish Secret Service are a special branch of the Gardai Siochana (the Irish Police). They don't have a website and not much else is known about them. In fact the Irish Secret Service is so secret, it doesn't even exist.

I don't know how an Irishman/woman goes about applying for a job but it would be an easy enough job once you got it. You could just work under cover at any one of the million Irish pubs which can be found in every corner of the world.

Labels: international travel, spy

Posted by James Clark - editor of itravelnet.com
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