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# Wednesday, 22 October 2008

New plans could mean that George Best Belfast City Airport will have an extra 3,000 scheduled flights. The plans would mean that an additional 0.5m passengers would be able to use the airport every year. The airport will also be subject to tighter regulations on noise and activity levels. Local residents groups have reacted angrily to the plans for more flights.

posted on Wednesday, 22 October 2008 08:47:53 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback
# Tuesday, 21 October 2008

British Airways and Virgin will cut their fuel charges in response to falling oil prices. The charges will be cut by up to £13 for most passengers as the airlines pass the reductions onto their customers. Whist the charges will be cut in their two cheapest classes those who fly in classes above Virgin's premium economy and BA's World Traveller Plus will not see a reduction.

posted on Tuesday, 21 October 2008 14:54:57 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback
# Monday, 20 October 2008

The Spanish airline LTE International has suspended operations because of serious financial difficulties. LTE stopped taking bookings last Thursday after it announced it could not cover costs for the next few days. The company said that several thousand passengers had been affected by the cancellation of flights. Some customers were also stranded in Spain. LTE currently run flights from Spain to the UK, Italy and Saudi Arabia. They employ 300 staff and have a fleet of seven Airbus 320s. The company has said that it will refund the cost of stranded customers flights but that it is unable to provide alternative transport. It has also said that around 3500 LTE passengers had their charter flights from Tenerife to Europe cancelled and that tour operators are legally obliged to find these passengers an alternative carrier.

posted on Monday, 20 October 2008 12:30:34 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback
# Sunday, 19 October 2008
lightloadtowel

blogoftheweek_thumbThis weeks Travel Blog of the Week is TravelGearBlog. The blog as the name suggests is  concerned with stuff you might need when you are travelling and it contains useful reviews of various travel related products. One of the more recent reviews looks at lightload towels pictured right. These are pocket sized that expand when you get them wet. They come in a dish towel size and a full beach towel size and are super absorbent, quick drying and biodegradable. According to the article they also roll up smaller than a regular towel even after you have used it. They sound like a great space saving idea and at just $6.95 won't break the bank, they get a 10 out 10 rating from TravelGearBlog so its certainly something I will be packing for my next trip.

A product that gets a slightly lower rating scoring only 5 out of 10 is TravelSmith's Disposable Briefs. According to the review the briefs are made out of lightweight cotton and look and feel like regular briefs. The only difference is that they are biodegradable so you can wear and wash them a few times and then simply throw them out with very little environmental impact. The initial reaction of the reviewer is that the product is a little unnecessary but upon further consideration they reach the conclusion that the product could be useful on a backpacking trip when saving space is a concern. They also have the advantage that you can dispose of them before you fly home leaving more space for an extra souvenir. Apparently the same company also makes disposable socks.

steripen Another product that receives a very good review is the SteriPEN Traveler Handheld Water Purifier. This device is a pocket sized travel ready UV powered water purifier. It works by submerging the mini UV flashlight in water for 45 to 60 seconds. Any viruses and bacteria living in the water are then killed, in fact it kills 99.9999% of bacteria. The reviewer points out that the device has the advantage of being quicker and easier the using a pump filter and without the aftertaste of iodine pills. The only drawback seems to be that the device is battery powered but you can purchase a solar charger accessory separately.

These are just a few products highlighted on this blog but it has a wealth of information on a variety of products and is well worth checking out before purchasing any travel gear for your next trip.

posted on Sunday, 19 October 2008 19:29:56 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback
# Thursday, 16 October 2008

This article suggests that rail passengers are likely to see above inflation fare rises coupled with more overcrowding. Despite fares rising by as much as 20 per cent last year, overcrowding increased on may routes. Passengers on routes into London are likely to see increased overcrowding at peak times until plans to increase capacity can be carried out.

posted on Thursday, 16 October 2008 12:52:24 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback
# Wednesday, 15 October 2008

A man who attempted to hijack a Turkish Airlines plane was overpowered by fellow passengers. The man had claimed to have a bomb but he was quickly subdued by other passengers. No explosives were discovered on the man who was reportedly drunk. He was taken off the plane and arrested by Russian police. No one was injured in the incident.

posted on Wednesday, 15 October 2008 11:47:26 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback
# Monday, 13 October 2008

blogoftheweek_thumb This weeks Travel Blog of the Week is Travel Wonders of the World. The blog was created with the aim of bringing together in one place what the author believes are the true wonders of the world. One of the more recent posts which is in two parts looks at Machu Picchu (lost city of the Incas) in Peru. Part Two of the article provides a useful map to help guide you around the site with an in depth description of the various parts of the city and pictures of some of the main features of the Inca city. Part one of the same article gives an overall picture of how the city would have functioned with different areas being set aside for the nobles and leaders and residential areas for the rest of the population. The article also points out that the Incans understood how to build their structures to withstand tremors  and that many of the structures are precisely aligned to the equinoxes. The detailed information combined with a number of pictures makes for a very informative and interesting read.

Photo Vermont Fall1 Another article looks at fall in New England and the stunning array of colours that the season brings (pictured left). The author describes the local past time of leaf peeping where newspapers publish a daily map to help people pin point the best locations to see the vibrant colours and travellers sneak down little known back roads to try and get a better view of the vibrant autumn colours.

A slightly more humorous article looks at Australia's obsession of all things big. The author here, highlights the Big Pineapple, the Big Banana, the Big Potato, The Giant Earthworm and The Big Crab just to name a few. It certainly seems that Australia is the place to go if you want to have your photo taken with something big.

posted on Monday, 13 October 2008 16:05:21 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback
# Friday, 10 October 2008

Thousands of bus workers will stage a 24 hour strike over pay starting today. Staff at First, Metroline and Metrobus will walkout in a move that is expected to cause widespread disruption. Unite has called the strike in support of a campaign for a single pay rate of £30,000 per week for drivers. The rate currently varies among the 18 bus companies by up to £6,000. The dispute may escalate as Unite is currently balloting workers in other bus companies for industrial action later this month.

posted on Friday, 10 October 2008 08:23:20 (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)  #    Trackback