TRAVEL NEWS
Sunday, October 28, 2007
France's handful of luxury hotel "palaces" face an uncertain future after the government announced plans to align itself with international practice and create a "five star" category of top notch lodgings.
stuff.co.nz
stuff.co.nz
Saturday, October 27, 2007
9 new EU members to join borderless travel zone Dec. 21
EU officials reached a tentative agreement on the date that nine of the bloc's new members would join the borderless travel zone, setting it for Dec. 21...
iht.com
iht.com
Thursday, October 25, 2007
25.8 million Amtrak riders in fiscal '07
A record 25.8 million passengers took Amtrak in the last fiscal year, an increase of 1.5 million over fiscal 2006, the national passenger railroad said Tuesday.
news.yahoo.com
news.yahoo.com
Labels: amtrak
France to test free museums
France, home to some of the world's great art, is trying a six-month experiment. If museums are free, culture officials wonder, will they attract the kind of people who would usually rather watch television?
iht.com
iht.com
Ireland, UK to end passport-free travel
Britain and Ireland are to end a passport-free travel arrangement between the two countries that has existed since the foundation of the Irish Free State in the early 1920s...
theage.com.au
theage.com.au
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Wildfires force California exodus
More than 500,000 people have been ordered to leave their homes to escape wildfires in California in the biggest US evacuation since Katrina.
news.bbc.co.uk
news.bbc.co.uk
Labels: california, evacuation, fire
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Australia advises against travel to the Philippines
Australia on Saturday re-issued its advisory to its citizens not to travel to the Philippines following the bomb explosion in the Glorietta mall in Makati City.
newsinfo.inquirer.net
newsinfo.inquirer.net
Labels: Australia, philippines, travel warning
Atlantic City Sands casino demolished
Atlantic City, N.J. - In about the same time it takes for a roulette ball to fall and settle on a number, the Sands Casino Hotel was demolished Thursday night.
news.yahoo.com
news.yahoo.com
Labels: Atlantic City, casino
Train travel rise in Norway
Norwegians are riding the rails like never before. State railway NSB released its best half-year results in history this week, along with hikes in passenger traffic on both long and short routes.
aftenposten.no
aftenposten.no
Waters of Rome's Trevi fountain turn red
Rome's Trevi fountain turned into a blood red pool on Friday after colouring was dumped into the water, police said.
in.reuters.com
in.reuters.com
Labels: Rome, Trevi Fountain
Thursday, October 18, 2007
New signs to orient NYC subway riders
After emerging from the labyrinth of New York City's subway system, riders often feel they could use a compass to navigate the world above. Now transit officials are providing one, in the form of large stickers pointing out north, south, east and west and the nearest streets in each direction.
news.yahoo.com
news.yahoo.com
TSA changes turban screening policy
Washington - Air passengers will no longer have to remove bulky headwear such as turbans at screening checkpoints if doing so makes them uncomfortable.
news.yahoo.com
news.yahoo.com
Labels: air travel, checkpoint, security
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
French strike expected to affect travel elsewhere in Europe
A strike by public sector workers, which is expected to shut down significant portions of the French transportation system Thursday, will create ripple effects for travelers elsewhere in Europe.
iht.com
iht.com
Labels: Europe, France, strike
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Paris travel frenzy for World Cup final
Eurostar has laid on extra trains between London and Paris in the days leading to the England v South Africa game on Saturday and estimates that 25,000 people will use the rail service to travel to Paris between Thursday lunchtime and Saturday afternoon.
travel.timesonline.co.uk
travel.timesonline.co.uk
Labels: Eurostar, France, London, paris, world cup
Monday, October 15, 2007
3 sentenced in Cuban travel scheme
A Florida businessman will spend more than two years in prison for his role in a scheme to use fake religious organizations to get thousands of people permission to travel to Cuba.
starbanner.com
starbanner.com
Labels: Cuba, travel ban
Hundreds of airline websites may break EU law
Hundreds of websites selling air tickets could be breaking the law by adding extra charges to advertised prices, a coordinated investigation by EU countries has found.
theage.com.au
theage.com.au
Labels: airline tickets, European Union, websites
If it's a Moscow hotel, be prepared to pay up
If pricey hotels put you off travel, China, South Africa and Florida might be more attractive destinations for your next vacation than Europe.
news.com.au
news.com.au
Labels: hotel
Saturday, October 13, 2007
German train drivers walk off job
Thousands of German commuters jumped in their cars or packed buses on Friday, as 1,500 train drivers staged strikes in an effort to disrupt the nation's vast commuter network. More than 1,700 regional trains — about 50 percent of Germany's commuter rolling stock — did not run, railway operator Deutsche Bahn AG said.
iht.com
iht.com
Labels: germany, strike, train
Friday, October 12, 2007
Air transport body launches mobile check-in
Airport queues could become a thing of the past under a new scheme for travellers to check in with mobile phones, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said today.
theage.com.au
theage.com.au
Labels: air travel
Dubai unveils 11 billion dollar canal plan
Cash rich Dubai on Wednesday unveiled the latest in a series of grandiose projects, a 75 kilometre (46 mile) canal which will extend the business and leisure hub into the heart of the emirate's desert.
afp.google.com
afp.google.com
Passport-free travel in Europe
Planned expansion of the Schengen area provokes anxiety across Europe.
economist.com
economist.com
Labels: Europe, passport, schengen
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Travelers in U.S. will still have to remove shoes
You will still have to take your shoes off at the airport checkpoint. The Transportation Security Administration said Tuesday that it had rejected the use of a General Electric shoe-scanning machine that was supposed to provide a central benefit for members of the Clear version of the Registered Traveler program: the ability to pass through security with their shoes on. The machine would instead have scanned the shoes electronically for weapons or explosives.
iht.com
iht.com
Cunard to build new liner
Shipping company Cunard is to build a new 92,000-ton liner to be called Queen Elizabeth, it has been announced.
ukpress.google.com (page not found)
ukpress.google.com (page not found)
Labels: cruiseship, Cunard, Queen Elizabeth
Sydney ranked top city in tourist poll
Sydney has been ranked the world's top city in an international tourist poll by a top US travel magazine.
au.news.yahoo.com (page not found)
au.news.yahoo.com (page not found)
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Britons named world's biggest emitters of CO2 from air travel
Britons produce more carbon emissions from air travel a head than any other country, a study reveals today, citing the country's predilection for low-cost airlines as a major factor.
guardian.co.uk
guardian.co.uk
Labels: air travel, carbon emissions, UK
New subway eases Beijing travel misery
A major new subway line in Beijing opened this week as part of China's bid to transform the city into a world-class capital prior to the Olympics and ease the misery of its long-suffering commuters.
news.yahoo.com (page not found)
news.yahoo.com (page not found)
Labels: Beijing, China, subway
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Mutiny looms on jinxed bus to Sydney
Maybe it was the threat of another sober night sipping bottles of Bavaria, Iran's famously alcohol-free lager. Or perhaps it was the mechanical breakdowns and hours of mind and bottom-numbing coach travel that threatened to bring the dream crashing down.
Whatever the final straw, on Sunday night it was reported that the 38 passengers aboard the OzBus, a 1960s-style charabanc trip from London to Australia, were threatening to mutiny.
travel.independent.co.uk
Whatever the final straw, on Sunday night it was reported that the 38 passengers aboard the OzBus, a 1960s-style charabanc trip from London to Australia, were threatening to mutiny.
travel.independent.co.uk
Labels: Australia, bus, London
Monday, October 08, 2007
Travel guide praises British grub
Home-grown restaurateurs have risen to the challenge of redeeming the "dismal" reputation of British food, according to the latest edition of a major travel guide.
ukpress.google.com (page not found)
ukpress.google.com (page not found)
Friday, October 05, 2007
The unacceptable face of air travel: BAA ordered to sort out queues at Heathrow
From tanks outside the terminals to catering disputes and stringent security rules, passengers these days are used to having to accept the latest reason for queues at Britain's busiest airport.
But yesterday the waits to get through security checks at Heathrow were described as "unacceptable" and the company that runs the airport, BAA, was ordered to make sweeping changes.
guardian.co.uk
But yesterday the waits to get through security checks at Heathrow were described as "unacceptable" and the company that runs the airport, BAA, was ordered to make sweeping changes.
guardian.co.uk
Labels: Heathrow
Italy seeks revival of Milan's forlorn canals
When it comes to Italy and canals, Venice has the glamour but Milan has the mileage: three times longer than the waterways of its tourist magnet neighbor.
But the 152 kilometers, or 94 miles, of historic shipping canals, construction of which the Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci helped oversee, are falling apart and experts are fighting to save one of Italy's lesser-known treasures.
iht.com
But the 152 kilometers, or 94 miles, of historic shipping canals, construction of which the Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci helped oversee, are falling apart and experts are fighting to save one of Italy's lesser-known treasures.
iht.com
Labels: canals, Italy, milan, Venice
Go-ahead expected for Crossrail
The £16bn Crossrail scheme to build a new rail line through the centre of London is expected to be given the go-ahead by PM Gordon Brown later.
news.bbc.co.uk
news.bbc.co.uk
Labels: crossrail, London, rail
Passport now required for some air travel
U.S. citizens now required to have passport for air travel to Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean.
ifallsdailyjournal.com
ifallsdailyjournal.com
Watchdog eyes raised airport fees
The UK's Competition Commission has recommended raising the charges airlines pay to use Heathrow and Gatwick airports.
news.bbc.co.uk
news.bbc.co.uk
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Tourists hurt in Maldives blast
Twelve tourists have been wounded in a bomb blast in a park near the main mosque in the Maldives capital of Male, the UK Foreign Office has said.
news.bbc.co.uk
news.bbc.co.uk
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
BBC Worldwide buys controlling stake in Lonely Planet travel guides
Like the backpackers who swear by their advice, the Lonely Planet travel guides sing the praises of independence. But after more than 30 years of going it alone, Lonely Planet finally found a place where it seemed better to be part of a group: the Internet.
iht.com
iht.com
Labels: bbc, guidebooks, lonely planet
