Recently, no frills airline Ryanair cut as many as 2,000 flights from its schedules. Ryanair has said this is due to its pilots and crew having to use up their annual holiday entitlement.
More than 400,000 passengers across Europe have been affected by the flight cancelations. Many passengers have been left stranded, broke and unable to get home. Ryanair has published a full list of affected flights that have been cancelled, which cover a six-week period.
The budget airline has offered full refunds for passengers affected by the cancelled flights. When the news first broke passengers received a text message, asking them to call a premium rate phone line, which left them more out of pocket.
Today, we are going to talk about the best and worst airports, and airlines, in the world. Try to think of your own experiences, when reading this article.
Most of us, at some point, will have had an opportunity to travel around the world, using different airlines and airports. Some terminals are old, others modern. Their facilities can vary from very good to dire. The same applies to airlines.
According to AirHelp, who conducted a survey, the best airport in the world to visit is Singapore Changi, followed by Munich in Germany, and then Hong Kong. Copenhagen was fourth, then Helsinki. The main metrics to rate the airports were their quality of services and claim processing records, as well as their on-time performances.
Recently, teenage blogger Jordon Cox decided to do a return journey from Shenfield in Essex to Sheffield in northern England. Cox, 18, managed to book himself a cheap £19 ticket for the journey north but discovered the cheapest fare home was £47. An open return would have cost him £97.70. He decided to look for an alternative way to get home.
Following some online research he discovered he could save money on the rail ticket if he included a flight via Berlin in Germany. The ticket would normally have cost £47.00 by train and taken 3½ hours. By going via Berlin it took him an extra 1,017 miles and 13 hours to get home. It also included a quick tour of Berlin.
(Photo: Jordan Cox)
The Russian plane crash in Egypt was brought down by a bomb. According to French aviation officials it was not due to technical failures. They added the flight data recorder – the black box - suggests a “violent, sudden” explosion caused the crash, killing all 224 people on board.
According to British spies, intercepted militant calls indicated a bomb was put in the hold before take-off. Militants, known as the Sinai Province, and who are linked to the Islamic State group (IS) in Syria, have said they downed the plane.
‘Mind the gap’ – one of the most iconic phrases once heard on several London Underground tube stations is set to return to one tube station. Passengers standing at the platform at Embankment Underground station on the Northern line will once again be able to hear one of the most famous phrases in London. What’s more, it will be the original voice of Peter Lodge, the man who recorded the classic phrase back in the 60s.
Category: London / London Underground / Places to Visit
Most people who visit London tend to try out the London Underground. Going on the tube is an experience in its own right. It is part of the exciting London experience when seeing the sights. Oyster cards are a popular way to get around.
London Underground first opened on January 10th 1863 with the opening of the Metropolitan line between Paddington and Farringdon. Originally, there were many companies who each built separate lines. It was only in 1902 that a Charles Yerkes bought most of the lines, putting them under one company. Over the years the network grew into what it is today.
Londoners and tourists alike all use the famous Underground map to get about the city. Created in 1931, Harry Beck’s Tube map is a classic map design of non geographical layout and colour coded lines. Many other transport lines around the world copied the idea. Compared to the real map it simplified how to get around the capital quickly.
Category: London / The Underground / Underground Stations
A tent that looks like a VW Camper Van is set to be a hit at camping sites and music festivals this summer. The life size replica of the original VW Camper Van has been officially licensed by the German car manufacturer for the first time. The pop up tents each contain two zip-separated double sized rooms and provides enough sleeping space for four to five people.
The tent, which is available in red, blue or yellow cost £299.99 (€340), which is a tad cheaper than the real VW Camper Van that can still sell for up to £25,000 (€28,000). It measures 398cm long, 187cm high and 155cm deep, so it’s easy for most people to stand up in. The fabric roof and sides have a high waterproofing rating, ensuring it will provide an effective shelter if the summer festival season is a washout.
Category: VW Camper Vans / Tents / Camping
There are many places in the world to go and ski - like the Alps, Bulgaria or North America. But have you ever considered skiing in Slovakia? The country that is in the heart of Central Europe has an abundance of ski slopes in the Tatra Mountains. In fact the country has a long skiing tradition.
Coming to Slovakia won’t even break the bank, as the cost of living makes it one of the cheapest places to currently visit in the eurozone. The euro is another major plus point for visitors when they visit the country now. Slovakia lies within the Carpathian mountain system, which after the Alps is the second largest and longest in Europe. The huge arc of the Carpathians begins beside the Danube, close to Bratislava, and stretches through the length of Slovakia, Ukraine and Romania.
Category: Europe / Slovakia / Skiing
A Czech travel agency has come up with a novel idea for a holiday. It is offering holidaymakers “retro” holidays where punters are given the opportunity to turn back the clock and re-live the past. These ‘communist’ holidays are package holidays for people nostalgic for the trade union perks of communist Czechoslovakia, when factory workers were bussed off to recuperate from the daily grind.
For a modest sum guests can stay at a grim-looking hotel in Slovakia’s Tatra Mountains, to relive the sights, sounds and smells of pre 1989 holidays the BBC recently reported. These ‘retro’ holidays are being offered in the style of the workers’ breaks that used to be organised by the Communist Revolutionary Trade Union Movement – or ROH – to use a Czech acronym.
The holidays were a reward for a year of toil in the offices, factories and coal mines of socialist Czechoslovakia. Most visitors today are middle age or elderly Slovaks or Czechs – coming to rekindle fond memories of times gone by. Why not?
Spectacular scenes emerged from southern Iceland recently as its Eyjafjallajoekull volcano began erupting. On April 14th it suddenly began sending a plume of ash 8.5 km (5.3 miles) high into the air. The volcanic ash spewed out gradually spreading across Europe, causing travel chaos, not only in Europe but worldwide.
Within days, the ash had crossed many parts of Europe, forcing closure of most of Europe’s air routes. The Met Office in Britain warned the disruption could go on for another week, causing flight misery to passengers. Geologists warned the travel chaos could last months.
Meanwhile airports remained closed across much of Europe. Travellers instead opted for any means possible to get home. Cross channel ferry services were rapidly booked up, as was Eurostar, who raised prices and was accused of profiteering.
