Standing Room Only

In an attempt to keep RyanAir in the headlines, RyanAir boss Michael O'Leary has announced that his airline are considering removing seats to offer cheap or even free standing room tickets on some flights. They have reportedly asked Boeing about the logistics of providing 'vertical seating' in their ne fleet of aircraft.
Apparently the small privately-owned Chinese airline 'Spring' have already started the ball rolling by working out they could pack an extra 40 or 50% extra passengers into planes with standing room. Having only 13 planes, Spring have been looking at ways to carry more passengers with their existing fleet.
Airbus have apparently been talking to airlines about offering this option, but obviously there will be some stringent safety guidelines to be met.

£5 flights...

It is my duty to bring news of cheap flights and here is the latest offering:
For Journeys between 17th July and 29 March must book by midnight tonight! (2nd July) - note that dates of all school breaks and major sporting events are excluded - destinations include:

Aarhus - Belfast (City) - Berlin - Billun - Bournemouth - Bremen - Brussels (Charleroi) - Budapest T1 - Cork - Derry - Dublin - Dusseldorf (Weeze) - Edinburgh - Eindhoven - Frankfurt-Hahn - Glasgow (Prestwick) - Haugesund - Inverness - Karlsruhe-Baden - Kerry - Knock - Limoges - Marseille (MP2) - Milan (Bergamo) - Montpellier - Oslo (Torp) - Paris-Beauvais - Perpignan - Prague - Shannon - Stansted - Trieste - Toulon-Hyeres.

Thanks once again to the MoneySavingExpert for the heads-up
Visit the RyanAir site for the full details...

Massive discounts possible...

Travel firms may be forced to heavily discount their late bookings to clear 'stock' that has not been sold. Despite the downsizing of the available stock in an effort to avoid massive discounts, the travelling public have not been dipping into their savings to purchase holidays it seems.
With just a month to go before the schools break up, some retailers are reporting just 65% take up whereas 80% is the norm at this point. Many holiday makers are booking just three weeks in advance for 'late' deals whereas eight weeks has been the average in the past. There is anticipation that a price discounting war will ensue fairly shortly as retailers attempt to get rid of unsold stock ahead of their competitors.
Even if you have already decided not to take a holiday this Summer, you may be tempted back into the market, at least that is what the retailers are hoping for..

Running away to get married

For generations English folk have been running away to Scotland to get wed, mainly because of the relaxed Scottish marriage laws, but since rules about where couples can get married were relaxed there are some wedding venues in scotland more attractive even than Gretna Green where you can enjoy your big day.
There still remains a degree of romance in having your wedding in scotland and it is certainly a beautiful place to have a honeymoon away from the crowds of shoppers and sunseekers. Romantic and remote images are conjured up by images of the Highlands of Scotland, it's wind-swept shores and craggy purple-heathered scenery.
Hoscote House is the most complete wedding venue I have seen, with it's wild scenery, imposing house and fine estate. It can also serve as a self-catering accommodation for up to 33 people, so your wedding party can take all week if you want. Nowadays Scotland is not just a place for English runaways to get married without their parents permission, folk from all over the world are travelling to Scotland to get married in the most romatic of settings.

Selfish Rail Strikers

London Underground Rail Strikers attempted to make a point by calling a strike on a day when thousands of football fans would have been trying to make their way to Wembley to see England play Andorra in a World Cup qualifying match on Wednesday.
Despite talk about playing the game behind closed doors, the game went ahead as normal and 58,000 fans made it to Wembley. England players and manager Fabio Capello paid tribute to the fans who made the extra effort to cheer their team on to victory as England score six goals without reply.
Members of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) returned to work at 7pm Thursday, and a fresh round of talks is expected in bid to avert further action. That will be little consolation to those who failed to make the game and one can't help feeling disppointed for any youngsters who may have missed out on their first trip to Wembley.

Off to Sunny Spain

Planning for Summer Holidays is upon us and as a holiday destination, Spain is still bound to be one of the most popular places visited by UK holidaymakers. Having been top of the favourite destination lists for decades, Spain still has plenty to offer in it's various resorts and Islands. A package holiday in a Hotel remains the most popular way to visit, but there is an up and coming holiday rental market for Villas in Spain offering a viable alternative to those who prefer a little more privacy.
A Spanish drive holiday will open up some of the wonders of Spain mostly left unexplored by generations of UK tourists. Most visitors would opt to hire a car for this type of Holiday, yet it would be entirely feasible to travel through France and bring your own car to Spain over a few days or even catch a car ferry to Bilbao.
Whether you opt for traditional resorts such as Costa del Sol or Rent a holiday villa in Tenerife, or The Canaries, Majorca, Costa del Almeria... Spain is geared up for your holiday needs, guaranteed sunshine and fabulous food come as standard. If you venture outside your complex, with a little Tourist information you can also find culture and fabulous scenery to match the beautiful beaches that Spain is famous for.

Home exchange remains popular

In these troubled financial times, home exchange schemes remain a popular choice amongst holiday makers looking for a way to get a great holiday for a bargain. This type of holiday would not suit everyone, but if your home is in a good location and in a good state of repair, then signing up with a home exchange scheme could be very beneficial.
'Invented City' home exchange scheme is one such service provider who have just announced that they have 1000 homes in the UK waiting to exchange with other home-owners, and over 2000 homes worldwide in places as diverse as Italy, Netherlands, Spain and USA amongst others. Currently 'Invented City' are offering a two year membership for the cost of one.
Home exchanges offer many advantages over conventional holidays, such as the fact that you will usually be staying in a community rather than in holiday accommodation. Of course the other side of the deal is that you have to open your home to 'strangers', but they are hardly going to trash your house if you are staying in theirs...

Monarch employees could walk out

A ballot has been set for July for Monarch employees to decide whether to strike, a strike that could have a serious impact on British holiday makers and an already tightly squeezed holiday industry..
Monarch employees are happy to defer a payrise until next year, but are asking for a lump sum payment, cabin crew are also looking for an extra allowance in line with pilots. Unions say that the requests are reasonable and take into account the difficult time that the travel industry is facing in the current economic climate.
Thousands of UK holiday-makers could be left stranded at airports across the country, including Gatwick, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Luton and Dublin if the 600 staff vote for industrial action.
Monarch maintain that currently, the company cannot possibly consider extra outlay on employees, but talks continue to attempt to avert what could prove to be a crippling strike taking place. Management state: "Monarch senior management continues to work with the cabin crew trade union to resolve this matter as quickly as possible in the interests of its customers and all other employees."

Let's get the tent out...

At this time of year our thoughts turn to the great outdoors as the weather starts to look like camping is more of a realistic option and less of a pursuit for madmen...
Now it is a well established fact in my mind that US clothing manufacturers make some of the best outdoor gear available, and have made several purchases from US manufacturers in the past. One of the elite outdoor clothing sites I have come across is the 'LA Police Gear' site which has every possible item you could need along with quite a lot that you wouldn't.. for instance, you probably shouldn't be considering the Blackhawk Holsters if you are a UK citizen as taking a hand-gun on a camping trip would be considered a little extreme in Britain.. However, this accentuates the fact that LA Police Gear is a serious site with some serious bits of kit on offer, prices are keen are there are always some great bargains to be had.

Least Popular Traveling Companions

Thanks once more to Essential Travel for a new report into the people we don't want to sit next to on a flight to our chosen holiday destination - Answers vary from those who don't want their personal space invaded by overweight travelers to those who would prefer not to sit next to their own family members - one respondent answering:‘I would pay not to sit next to my 15 year old daughter’.
The feelings against more portly travelers appear to run fairly high with over 40% of the respondents (out of 1000) citing 'Overweight Individuals' as the least desirable traveling companion - To be fair teenage offspring, or more accurately 'family' were only identified as a problem by 2% which translates as 20 out of the 1000 interviewed.
A good number (17%) identified 'babies' as undesirables whilst surprisingly 'smelly' (7%) was pipped by 'chatterbox' (8%) - Please note that surprisingly and smelly are not part of the same phrase... to be 'surprisingly smelly' indeed puts a whole new spin on simply being smelly...
Politicians and bankers were given an easy ride and identified as being slightly less desirable than your own family members and a honeymooning couple.

This survey will no doubt be welcomed by those airlines who are planning to introduce a 'fat tax' for those who find it difficult to fit into a single seat adequate for most other travelers. RyanAir is one of those who is considering this approach. There is some confusion as to how exactly this charge will be made as weight alone may not constitute an invasion of personal space, and any charge is almost sure to be challenged under discrimination laws. Some US airlines are already charging very obese passengers who spill over into neighbouring seats for a second seat in some cases. United Airlines said it would make additional charges for travellers whose size made them "infringe on another guest's seat".

Travelling in Wales

I have posted about the 'ColinsWales' site before when it was hosted on a free site - I have noticed that a number of free site services have been withdrawn lately which will have prompted some people to dump their sites whilst the more adventurous ones have gone on to create a new site on a new domain. I am pleased to report that ColinsWales is part of the latter group and a new revamped Wales Tourism site has been launched. This site features detailed descriptions of seven major South Wales beaches, a Welsh History section, some stunning photography and even a fascinating narrative about Colin's childhood experiences. If you are planning to visit Wales, then visit: http://www.colinswalestourism.co.uk/ there are lots of ideas about places to visit including an indication of opening times and admission prices. This is an informative site, yet written from a uniquely personal perspective - well worth a visit even if you just want to find out a bit more about Wales.

Hawaii Activities

I spoke to someone today who's spouse was taking part in a conference...in Hawaii! No surprise in finding out that this particular conference is very well attended as surely Hawaii figures highly in the league tables of favourite fantasy holiday locations.
Hawaii conjures up images of island holidays at their very best with beautiful beaches, wonderful facilities and one of the best places in the world to do a spot of surfing, snorkeling, scuba diving or fishing.
There are plenty of Hawaii Activities to take part in, and some wonderful scenery and weather which makes any trip to these Islands, the vacation of a lifetime.
Hawaii is made up of a collection of separate islands, each of which offers different activities. As well as the activities mentioned above you can do everything from helicopter flights, surfing, biking, whale watching, kayaking, and even take a close look at some volcanoes in the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park if you are so inclined.
No wonder this is such a popular location for holidays as well as 'working' events, particularly as to counter the full program of available activities comes some of the most beautiful and relaxing surroundings that you could hope to encounter anywhere on earth.