Eco Travel
Decadence and La Dolce Vita
Why Sicily is Italy’s Best Kept Secret... Lying just off the boot tip of Italy is the Mediterranean’s largest island, Sicily.
Itacare’s Green Tourism Initiative
Itacare, a Brazilian beach town popular with surfers and nature-lovers, is pioneering an exciting environmentally aware tourism initiative.
Iceland: Tourism in a Country on the Verge of Economic Collapse
In 2008 the three largest banks in Iceland collapsed, the government raised interest rates to 18% and in doing so, devalued their currency by a third. The cherry on top of this unappetizing cake?
On what basis will you choose your next holiday trip?
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Road Runner
The days of travelling by horse-drawn wagons disappeared centuries ago, are month-long holidays next?
Looking back on schooldays is a trip down memory lane, filled with nostalgic memories of playground games and classroom lessons. As all good things, the years of education come to a halt and adulthood sneaks up on youngsters like a thief in the night. With it come jobs, new responsibilities and perhaps the most dreaded of all, bidding adieu to the summer holiday. The season doesn’t simply cease to exist once the last of the schoolbooks have been put down, but it certainly comes to take on a different air. Without the carefree spirit and the freedom of childhood summers, its days become just like any other blending seamlessly with their spring predecessors and fall descendants. Of course, there is the grown-up version of summer. This one is known for sunbathing in warmer climates, sipping colourful cocktails and exploring unknown terrains. It may not be as long, though some European capitals do seem quite deserted for the majority of the month of August, and significantly more strenuous on the bank account yet it does provide a hiatus from the mundane every other day.
Unfortunately, the downfall of summer holidays is that they come to an end. Along with the fade of a tan comes the reality of an emptier bank account and the often dreadful autumn weather. The currently sensitive economic times also bring up questions of job stability and the appropriateness of requesting additional time off during the new season, leaving many travellers with no option but to stay at home. There does seem to be an inkling of hope in the bleak forecast as travel agencies and airlines tap into the newly created niche market of short-term getaways.
Stuck between the end of summer and the beginning of winter holidays, autumn is an often overlooked time for trips. With no allocated vacation time, it is also a period when airlines from the budget to the mainstream suffer a dip in sales. The components of the equation and their relation to the instability of the global financial situation do not, however, add up to a disaster. Instead, a different opportunity is presented. RyanAir, Brussels Airlines, Lufthansa and SAS are all popping up with offers for tickets that could even tempt Scrooge into a purchasing spree. The low prices on weekends away also eliminate the need for extra days off, allowing professionals to get away without actually sacrificing time spent in the office. Austerity measures do seem to have stretched beyond the realms of government spending and cut into the pockets of those suffering from vacation withdrawal, but thanks to the bargains available throughout October the weary can once again find themselves enjoying a bit of the jet setting lifestyle, if only for two days at a time.