New air safety guidance for UK travellers

In this day and age few issues prey on the public psyche as much as air transport safety. Most of us admit to feeling just a little anxious before jetting off to the sun, which is why the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) constantly reviews and updates its passenger advice.

As part of that commitment, the industry group has just issued a brand new Travelling Safely leaflet. Much of the guidance centres on which items can and cannot taken on-board an aircraft, but the pamphlet also includes a wealth of additional information on cabin safety issues.

By following the CAA advice outlined in this guide, travellers can ensure their trip is as safe and stress-free as possible. Nervous flyers should also find it reassuring to see how much effort is directed towards preserving air travel's reputation as the safest mode of transport.

Avoiding the hidden costs of budget holidays

Today's fast-paced travel industry has never been more competitive, and with many carriers offering year-round sales it's tempting to buy into the hype about holidaying for pennies. Before you signed on the dotted line, though, there's a raft of hidden expenses that you need to watch out for.

The worst offenders for slipping in extra charges are none other than the airlines themselves. We've all been bowled over by fares advertising 1p flights, but by the time you get to the booking stage things often seem less rosy. Check-in desks, extra baggage allowances, in-flight meals and even pillows: they all come at a price when you're flying with a low-cost carrier.

Decide beforehand how many frills you can really do without, therefore, and ignore any fares that omit the crucial phrase "all taxes and surcharges included". Some extra fees – such as credit card booking charges – are simply unavoidable, so make sure you factor them into your budget. And don't for a second think that only the airlines are up to it.

Consumer champion comments on Competition Commission’s report

Well, there were no surprises last week contained in the Competition Commission’s final report on the break-up of BAA (as reported by Cheapflights). Perhaps it is also not surprising that the CC’s report contained recommendations which closely echoed the Department for Transport’s proposals the previous week for the Civil Aviation Authority. It is proposed among other things that the CAA will be refocused "on the interests of consumers rather than airlines."

Earlier this year we also had the Government’s announcement to allow the third Heathrow runway to go ahead as well as the Stansted second runway. All in all the biggest shake-up for aviation in 20 years which looks dangerously close to being a “joined-up” strategy for the updating of UK aviation’s infrastructure and it’s regulation.

How to find cheap ski holidays

With the snow falling even in London, our thoughts are turning to this season’s ski holidays. But bearing in mind the economic climate, this isn’t the time to be spending big on the traditional ski package. Cheapflights has a few suggestions up its sleeve to help keep costs down, and enjoy a week on the piste.

Firstly, steer clear of those all-in-one chalet package holidays, which include airport transfers, ski hire and cake every tea time. Heading out by snow train, or booking flights to local airports and then arranging independent onward transfers can immediately save pounds.

Many low-cost airlines now fly to airports convenient for the slopes. See our travel tip on Ski Airports to work out which resorts you can reach from which European airports, details on who flies there and how to arrange onward transfer. Keep an eye on the seat sales for cheap flights, book your train ticket as soon as possible and you should be able to get out to the piste for next to nothing.

40% of Brits label climate change 'media hype'

Four out of ten Brits believe that the threat of global warming is little more than media hype, new research has revealed.

Travel portal (website: www.trivago.co.uk) conducted a survey to investigate the impact that rising airfares and growing publicity over climate change are having on Brits' travel behaviour.

It found that 40 per cent of us believe talk of carbon footprints is simply media hype. A further 44 per cent acknowledge the threat, but nonetheless continue to travel as normal.

Airline bankruptcies: How to protect yourself

With the recent collapse of XL Airways (website: www.xl.com), people will be forgiven for harbouring anxieties about the prospect of further bankruptcies leaving them stranded and potentially out of pocket.

Some 80,000 customers of XL were stuck abroad following the grounding of the airline's fleet, while a further 200,000 had their bookings cancelled and two smaller travel operators collapsed in the wake of the failure.

Though more than 150 hastily-arranged emergency flights have now ferried most passengers back home, as many as 10,000 can expect no refund following the bankruptcy.

That has prompted a flurry of advice-mongering from industry groups, with operators keen to stress that taking a few simple precautions will guarantee holidaymakers complete protection.

The cost of airline food

It's a well-known fact by now: you'll save money on the ticket price but a low-cost airline could sting you for all the extras. If you're planning on having a snack or a drink on the plane, this newly updated research from Cheapflights is essential reading.

We've found out the cost of some staple items of food and drink from different airlines - a ham sandwich and a gin and tonic included. Our handy table lets you quickly see where you can get the best gastronomic deals... and on which airlines it would be better to take a home-made sarnie.

Most flag carriers continue to offer complimentary meals and drinks, but it may be surprising to see the difference in price from the low-costers. A full meal on Air Southwest, for example, costs less than the price of a sandwich on many other carriers.

Unforgettable trips around the UK and Ireland

Our last column took you to wonderful cities and beaches from Spain's sultry capital, Madrid, to the Turkish port town of Bodrum. This week we decided to stay closer to home and introduce you to some great cities, towns and islands in the UK and Ireland that are truly spectacular.

We begin our trip on the sandy beaches of the British Isles in Cornwall in the extreme southwestern part of England and then to the hip capital of Wales, Cardiff. Our next stop is the fascinating Isle of Skye off the coast of Scotland. And the last trip on our circuit ends in Ireland where we visit Galway, the arty city on the west coast.

A cultural sojourn through Europe

Our last column took you to some exciting Mediterranean cities – Barcelona, Rome, and the stunning island of Corsica. We also discovered the cool Nordic capital, Copenhagen, haggled in the souks of Marrakesh, went skiing in Dubai and travelled across the Atlantic to sexy Miami.

This week we’ll be going on a cultural trip through Europe, the birthplace of the Renaissance, which inspired great artists and philosophers including Leonardo da Vinci and Galileo. We’ll begin in Gaudi’s home, Barcelona, then head to the vineyards of Bordeaux, stop by the markets of Bologna, visit Salzburg, Mozart’s birthplace and end our journey in the Latvian capital, Riga.

Off the beaten track holidays

In our last column we took you to romantic destinations around the world: from the hills of Tuscany all the way down to Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast. This week we’ve decided to take you somewhere a little different, to places less popular than you’re used to but just as (or even more) exciting…Let’s go on a journey: off the beaten track.

We’ll start in the quaint Brazilian town of Olinda, then head up north along the Caribbean coastline to Honduras in Central America. In the East, the Andaman Islands in India and the ancient splendours of Laos beckon, Djerba in Tunisia thereafter and finally the north of Spain, to the green hills of picturesque Asturias.

So if you’re in the mood for some adventure or ready to explore the road less travelled read on. And remember, as someone once said: “Life is known only by those who have found a way to be comfortable with change and the unknown. Given the nature of life, there may be no security, but only adventure.”

Romantic Escapes

Feel like it’s time to take a break from the mundane routine: work, home, gym, etc? Well we thought we’d entice you even more with our new fortnightly column filled with ideas from long weekend breaks to adventurous journeys. This first week, we're looking at romantic breaks – with a twist.

Since Valentine’s Day is almost here it seems like a good time to plan a romantic trip with your loved one. However most of us either can’t take time off work after the long holiday break or simply need more time to plan that special holiday. But the trips you’re about to read about aren’t reserved for Valentine’s Day, they can be enjoyed whenever you feel like spending time alone with the one you love – or when you just need to escape from it all.

Paris, Venice, Rome – yes they’re all very romantic destinations but seem a little predictable don’t they? This week we’ve found some exciting – and very unpredictable ideas for an unforgettable holiday. The first trip takes you on a driving tour of Andalusia where you’ll drive from Cordoba to Granada, exploring castles and canyons along the way. Or if you prefer a more active trip then biking through Tuscany while stopping to sample wine and learning to cook in an authentic cucina is perfecto. So read on for other whimsical ideas that’ll have you daydreaming for days...

The best winter reads

The chilly winter days are finally here and while ice skating in the park or visiting a Christmas market might sound tempting most of us would rather stay home than brave the cold; and nothing beats curling up with a good book and a hot cup of tea. So we’ve picked our favourite reads that will take you on a tour of Siberia, the streets of Bombay and back to medieval England without ever having to get off your sofa (except of course to make another cuppa).

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything
by Elizabeth Gilbert

Gilbert’s brutally honest travelogue tells of her spiritual journey of self-discovery, after her divorce, through Italy, India, and Bali. With humorous declarations such as, "I can make friends with the dead. . . . If there isn't anyone else around to talk to, I could probably make friends with a four-foot-tall pile of Sheetrock", it’s easy to understand why Eat, Pray, Love is one of the most talked about novels of the year.

Christmas shopping above the clouds

You’ve traded your shoes for socks, reclined your seat, and slipped on the eye mask when it suddenly dawns on you that you haven’t done any of your Christmas shopping yet. Panic sets in from the mere thought of having to face the hordes of crazy Christmas shoppers, all frantically fighting to jump the queue. Relax. You’re 30,000 feet in the air, it’s just you and the glossy in-flight catalogue; the only fighting you’ll need to do is deciding what to buy your loved ones. Here’s our pick of the best in-flight shopping out there (up there) that you may encounter on your next trip:

The sky is the limit
Most airlines offer similar shopping onboard: alcohol, chocolate and stuffed teddy bears. Yawn. But others including British Airways and Virgin have luxurious goods and exclusive gifts that could rival even the swankiest department store.

New aviation website addresses climate change

The impact of flying on the environment is a hot topic, much contested between environmentalists and the aviation industry. Enviro.aero is one of many websites that discusses the issue, but it's a website with a difference: the first one from the viewpoint of the aviation industry.

Developed by the Air Transport Action Group, the website aims to show the facts - and myths - about aviation's environmental impact, along with many ways that these are being minimised.

Part of a "global cross-industry initiative", the site helps educate flyers about the facts and figures behind aviation. Browse through FAQs, "ask an expert" your question, see what's being done and what's in the pipeline and read such factoids of little known information as: "Today's aircraft fly more than three times as far with the same amount of fuel as they did 40 years ago."

Flight News from American Skies

Boeing’s new aeroplane, the 787 Dreamliner, featured in a couple of stories on our US Cheap Flight News site last week. The Dreamliner is the super new aircraft that is lighter (made of composite material) and up to 20 per cent more fuel-efficient than other jets.

In one story, Jerry Chandler wrote that the 787 could be the most accessible plane in the skies. Boeing and Oregon State University have come up with ways of making the plane more accessible to disabled fliers. These include wheelchair-accessible toilets, easier-to-operate door handles, taps, bins and toilets that are activated by infrared sensors and easier-to-reach overhead lockers.

Meanwhile, Adfero reported that Avianca, the Columbian national airline, that flies to Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale, Miami and New York has invested in ten 787 Dreamliners and has purchase rights for another ten.

Insider tips to trust...

When booking a holiday, or planning a trip to an unknown city, the web savvy already know about some great sites based around user feedback and reviews. Timbuktu doesn’t seem so quite so remote anymore – if we want to stay in a boutique hotel when we’re there, we can check a guidebook, search online or look for personal recommendations on a host of sites that publish traveller’s reviews.

But what if you just want to go to a new pub in your home town? And how do you know whether to trust the taste of other reviewers? After all, if you asked six colleagues in the office where to go for an all-important first date, you’d disregard the advice from at least two of them straight away.

AmEx offers tips on preventing baggage loss

American Express has offered air passengers tips on how they can prevent their baggage being lost when they fly.

Lost luggage is a concern for many holidaymakers and the issue was thrown into the spotlight before Christmas when British Airways mislaid thousands of items of baggage, partly because of fog delays.

However, there are various steps that you can take to protect your luggage when flying:

Website rates airline seat comfort

A new feature on the website www.seatscorecard.com allows travellers to identify the best and worst seats on planes operated by airlines including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and easyJet.

Visitors to the site can search by airline or aircraft type to find the best seat on a specific plane. Details such as laptop ports, bathrooms, galleys and other factors that may affect a seat's comfort are provided.

The seating diagrams are colour-coded so that passengers can easily see which seats are above or below average comfort, and which have partial or no recline. Seats are given a comfort rating out of five stars and browsers will also find customer reviews of specific seats.

2007 in the air: the year ahead

Air transport in the UK last year was somewhat overshadowed by the events following the terror alert in August and the stringent security measures that followed. But some truly exciting developments were also announced, many of which promise innovations for air travel this coming year. What does 2007 hold in store for the flyer?

In-flight mobile use
One of the more controversial advancements, mobile phones will become airbound in 2007 as a number of airlines introduce in-flight use. Ryanair was the first airline to announce the use of the technology to allow passengers to use their phones on planes, which will be in place by summer 2007 on 50 of the airline's fleet. Dubai-based Emirates, however, will be the first to offer the service worldwide, scheduled to start this month.

Don't turn up too early... and other Christmas travel tips

British Airways has advised passengers not to turn up too early at the airport over the busy Christmas period.

The airline is advising people not to arrive more than two hours before departure as congestion is occurring on the concourse as travellers wait for check-in desks to open.

A BA spokesperson told the BBC website that some passengers were turning up at airports four or five hours in advance, as they were worried about security checks following August’s terror alert.

Christmas presents for high-flyers

There are less than two weeks to go to complete the all-important Christmas shopping, but if the prospect of facing the high streets at this time of year brings you out in a cold sweat, fret not. There is an abundance of presents available for those with a love of travel and flying - all to be bought from the calm of your own home by shopping online. The following are just a few suggestions that would bring a smile to the face of even the pickiest jetsetter in your life...

Flight vouchers are a relatively new phenomenon that have become increasingly popular in the last couple of years. That bit more exciting than a book voucher - though not necessarily more expensive - they're perfect if you just want to give someone the chance of a holiday, but not risk choosing the wrong destination.

New rules for liquids

Passengers can now take through airport security liquids such as toiletries including, perfume, toothpaste, deodorant, shaving foam and lip gloss, provided they are no bigger than 100ml each.

All individual liquid items must fit comfortably into one transparent, re-sealable bag no larger than 1 litre or approximately 20 x 20cm (about the size of a small freezer bag).

The bag must fit into the one permitted piece of cabin baggage (a maximum of 56 x 45 x 25cm), but passengers will be asked to present the bag separately when going through airport security.

Liquids of any amount can still be carried in luggage checked into the aircraft hold.

For full details on preparing for your flight please visit www.dft.gov.uk/airportsecurity

'The Times Holiday Handbook' reviewed

Travel guidebooks are two a penny in any bookshop. Glossy, sleek, weighty editions provide meticulous information on any destination you can think of - from bus times, to local attractions via any bizarre customs you have to know about. They are a wonderful resource for the intrepid traveller. But therein lies the rub - most of us, sadly, don't have the time to spend six months in Cambodia, but just two weeks to enjoy somewhere hot in the summer.

The Times Holiday Handbook is, as it calls itself, an "essential trip-planning guide" which will see you through many holidays, not just the one fortnight. From a weekend break in Paris to a year travelling round the world, it covers every last detail you might need to know when booking any sort of holiday. There is advice on where to find the best deals for independent travellers, but also a section containing every thing you need to know before booking a package holiday.

The cost of airline food

It's a well-known fact by now: you'll save money on the ticket price but a low-cost airline could sting you for all the extras. If you're planning on having a snack or a drink on the plane, this new research from Cheapflights is essential reading.

We've found out the cost of some staple items of food and drink from different airlines - a ham sandwich and a gin and tonic included. Our handy table lets you quickly see where you can get the best gastronomic deals... and on which airlines it would be better to take a home-made sarnie.

Most flag carriers continue to offer complimentary meals and drinks, but it may be surprising to see the difference in price from the low-costers. A full meal on Air Southwest, for example, costs less than the price of a sandwich on many other carriers.

Mobiles on aeroplanes – is it good to talk?

With the dawn of in-flight mobile phone use upon us, technology once again takes to the skies. Ryanair has recently announced plans to allow passengers to make calls and send text messages from their mobile phones during flights.

Ryanair leads the way
The hugely popular low-cost carrier has finalised a deal with communications firm OnAir to equip Ryanair’s entire fleet of Boeing 737s with small base stations called picocells. Picocells avoid interfering with ground-based networks by connecting mobile signals to networks using satellites. Previously, it was this type of interference that constituted the main reason for the ban on in-flight mobile phone usage.

Keep your laptop safe when flying

More and more laptops are being lost by travellers passing through airports in the UK, with a recent upsurge in computers handed in to lost property at London hubs.

Each month many portable devices, including laptops, are misplaced at Heathrow. According to Pointsec Mobile Technologies, between 40 and 50 per cent of those who lose these items do not bother to check the lost property office, preferring instead to claim on their insurance policies when they get home.

Around 120 laptops are received by Heathrow's lost property every month and about 15 of these end up being auctioned.

Think Twice to save endangered animals

A campaign has been launched to warn travellers of the impact they have on endangered species when they buy wildlife souvenirs.

The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) says many animals including elephants, rhinos, leopards and turtles, are being illegally slaughtered to feed a growing trade that turns ivory, fur, claws, teeth and shells into holiday trinkets.

Travel industry body ABTA has backed the Think Twice campaign and will highlight the issue to its members and feature the IFAW’s work on its website.

Sending luggage ahead

The recent security alert has led to restrictions on the amount, and size, of luggage allowed to be carried on planes. Many airlines won't accept more than one piece of hold luggage, but the reduced hand-luggage size means more has to be checked-in than before.

Would it be easier just to send your bags ahead and let them come to you at your destination? Many delivery companies offer a door-to-door service: they will collect your bag in one country and deliver it to you in the next. All you have to do is pack your suitcase. But with the proliferation of companies offering similar services, which is the best to use?

Cheapflights has researched the costs of sending a 30kg suitcase via different delivery services to Paris, New York and Beijing. If you'd prefer to get on the plane holding nothing more than a book, the info below will be crucial.

Speed more important than cost? We've rated the services in two tables: one for the cheapest and one for the fastest. Just take your pick...

Mile-high reading: 'High Life' reviewed

© British Airways

Tighter security measures put in place after the events of Thursday mean that, for the foreseeable future, passengers will not be able to carry any hand luggage onboard with the exception of a few essentials. No music, no laptops; even the humble book is banned. But what of the airlines' own in-flight entertainment? Is it good enough to keep passengers from boredom? If you're lucky enough to be on a BA flight and you’ve seen all the films before, then the answer is probably yes…

I'm not going to hold back on this one – I think that BA's in-flight magazine High Life is truly excellent. As I've said before, all aeroplane magazines nowadays tend to contain articles, information and stories to rival any glossies that you’d choose to buy in shops. But even considering this, High Life is in a class of its own.

A pilot’s view of the world

So where do airline pilots like to fly to and, more importantly, where are the best places to head to once at your destination?

These were the two questions posed by The Daily Telegraph to various pilots, in an article that chats with those whose job sees them criss-cross the planet, in the same way we might cross the city.

Virgin Atlantic pilot Captain Hugh Smethurst picks his favourite route. Heathrow to San Francisco is the winner: as he heads down the Pacific coastline to the US city he passes a number of mountains, including St Helen's, Rainier, Hood and Shasta.

Food, glorious food - Sunday travel section digest

"You don’t expect to read the words 'Manhattan' and 'kayak' in the same sentence." Matt Rudd (The Sunday Times) is right. You don't. Of all the ways to see Manhattan - by skyscraper, helicopter or boat - kayak would not be the first conveyance to spring to mind. This is where the Manhattan Kayak Company comes in. Rudd, a complete beginner, has 35 minutes of training - on dry land, the carpet of the Kayak Company to be precise - and then hits the Hudson River, paddling where, in the words of the hard-boiled receptionist: "In one direction, you got the mile-wide Hudson. In the other, you got 3,000 miles of Atlantic tidal power."

Hooray for Hollywood for there are two features on it today. Tim Jepson (The Sunday Telegraph) discovers that West Hollywood, where the stars come out to party, is packed full of bustling cafes, clubs and shops, while Daisy Waugh (The Mail on Sunday) goes in search of early Hollywood, when "Hollywood Boulevard was still surrounded by orange groves and film stars weren't yet required to speak". There's not much left of it. Waugh writes that "Hollywood has never been precious about its past... Time, glamour and the dollar march forever onwards". So does Waugh eventually, shopping at Rodeo Drive and star-spotting at the Four Seasons hotel rather than hunting the ghost of Rudolph Valentino.

Speaking of Hollywood, Captain Jack Sparrow continues to swashbuckle through the travel sections. After yesterday's Guardian article on Dominica, Gavin Bell (The Sunday Times) discovers another location for Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - St Vincent and the Grenadines. The islands, Bell writes, are "classic treasure islands" best explored by boat. Luckily for landlubbers, "you don’t have to own one, or even know a bilge pump from a bowsprit" because there are old seadogs like Brinsley, a freelance skipper for Sunsail who "guides clients around his native waters".

Are we there yet? - What the Saturday papers say

We start where we left off last week: Morocco. easyJet started flying to Marrakesh this week. Now for £60 or so, the "exotic and exclusive enclave for British bohemia" comes into the reach of significantly more people. How many more? Lots, hope the Moroccans. Charles-Starmer Smith (The Daily Telegraph) reports that by 2010 the country hopes to attract ten million tourists per year, and The Guardian pays the city a flying visit, signposting where to stay and what to buy.

For Chris Stewart, the author of Driving Over Lemons, the arrival of four Moroccan lads to his farm in Andalucia was the push he needed to start writing his second book, The Almond Blossom Appreciation Society. Stewart draws on his love of all things Moorish and his past travels in Morocco as he retraces the steps of the Moroccan boys to El Ejido, "the plastic greenhouse country" where work is plentiful and no questions are asked.

"Are we there yet?" "I need to go to the toilet." "Waaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh." School's nearly out and it's almost time for the family holiday. The Times today has several features on how to make them go smoothly, with a minimum of tears. Cath Urquhart writes that preparation is key. She has a checklist of things to remember. Passport in date? Check. Travel insurance bought? Check. Children happy? Errrr. This is where Jane Knight comes in. Knight tries six toys that may keep the little ones amused and several luminaries including Jeremy Paxman and psychologist Oliver James explain how to keep the family friendly. Feed them early and feed them often is one nugget.

Keep your home safe and secure when away

If you are looking forward to your holiday in the next few weeks, before you go make sure your home is secure because burglars are unlikely to be taking a break at the same time.

According to security specialists Micromark around three-quarters of us are worried about our home being burgled when away on holiday.

Also when convicted burglars have been questioned, 49 per cent said they targeted empty properties whilst the majority of burglars (67%) are put off by visible security measures such as an alarm or CCTV system.

The rising cost of ‘extras’ on flights

One of the things that annoys passengers when booking flights is the additional costs and charges added to the price.

It soon becomes clear that a bargain ticket may not be such a great deal as extras such as fuel surcharges, booking fees and baggage restrictions are tagged on.

And according to research by The Telegraph it would appear that the majority of airlines must share the blame and stresses the importance of double-checking prices before booking.

The way we were: flying in a far off time - Jerry Chandler lets fly

Nostalgia is lovely - the world in misty, watercolor pastels. And so it is with flying. I’ve been doing it an awfully long time. While it’s not the "kinder, gentler" experience it once was, it still has its magic moments. But I digress. Here’s what I loved about it, once upon a time:

Going straight to the gate without having to queue up in a long, solemn line to run a gauntlet of quasi-competent security; walking out on the terminal concourse to meet someone at the gate, and absorbing the excitement of air travel from others on their way to far-away places with strange-sounding names; using an outside observation deck at the airport, and drinking in the sights, sounds, and smells of aircraft as they taxied in and out; being served a hot meal free of charge back in coach, and having enough elbow room to eat it; holding a real paper airline ticket in my hand, the kind that came in a designer envelope proclaiming the airline’s latest sojourn to paradise.

Long-haul and last-minute hols - Sunday travel section digest

Excellent news for holiday makers. The Sunday Times' campaign against rental car companies' sharp practices has borne fruit. Mark Hodson reports that the EU commissioner for consumer protection plans to close a loophole that exempts companies from having to explain their terms and conditions "at the point of sale". The commissioner has also voiced his support for another aim: "a ban on companies adding charges to customers’ credit cards after the rental period." It is very good news indeed.

The Independent on Sunday goes big on far-flung holidays today. Ian McCurrach rounds up ten long-haul deals (last minute too) and even tells us what the weather will be like in each destination. One of the favoured far-flung spots is Banff in Canada - for the walking trails not the ski runs. Coincidentally, The Observer and The Sunday Times have features on high-altitude holidays too.

Search and compare: flights to Banff.

Rhiannon Batten (The Observer) writes that when the snow has melted, the Alps take on a whole new identity and The Sunday Times says that with alpine flowers dotting the pistes, "it’s time to make for the mountains".

Time to leave the country - What the Saturday papers say

Arrrrrrrrggggggghh. Now that England are, sob, out of the World Cup, it may be a good time to book a cheap flight and leave the country. Get away for a bit. Luckily today’s travel sections provide lots of inspiration starting with the exotic, romantic, bustling Marrakesh, which gets special treatment from The Times.

The Moroccan city is coming within reach of more visitors, Cath Urquhart writes. easyJet will launch daily flights from Gatwick from Tuesday; Thomsonfly will fly there from Manchester and Luton airports in the autumn and Ryanair will also join in – albeit from Frankfurt – from the end of October. British Airways and Atlas Blue, a Moroccan airline, offer established services.

Anna Shepard has a guide to shopping in the souks. Juliet Kinsman, editor of the Mr & Mrs Smith hotel guides picks the top 20 stylish hotels around Marrakesh and the coastal city of Essaouira and Rory Maclean writes that the city “discovered” by the boho crowd in the 1960s, still casts its spell on all who visit it.

Handcuffs are provided - Sunday travel section digest

This week’s spa town is Merano in the South Tyrol. Every spa travel story has the journalist writing that, at the end of their stay, they never looked better or felt more serene or had softer skin/brighter eyes/glossier hair etc, but Gemma Bowes (The Observer) goes one further. She now looks like a local. “It's hard not to leave bearing a greater resemblance to the tanned, lithe, glowing local population of fitness fanatics,” she writes.

Most bizarre stay of the week has to be Tim Bryan’s night in a former jail in Liepaja, Latvia. Bryan paid £7 for the chance to experience “the brutal, degrading regime of a damp, rotting red-bricked naval jail”. Liepaja was where soldiers “of a criminal bent” were detained, undergoing a spot of psychological - not physical - torture along the way. The jail is becoming increasingly popular with “Latvian stag groups, college kids, and there is growing interest from corporate team-builders looking for an unusual 'bonding' experience for their employees”.

Mile-high reading: bmibaby’s in-flight magazine reviewed

© bmibaby

Yeahbaby is a classy magazine — from its Austin Powers inspired title, good quality paper, well-designed pages, celebrity interviews, even to the adverts (the May issue has a full page ad for the Royal Shakespeare Company. It doesn't get much more upmarket than that). Which makes it even more of a shame that the first thing you see when you open the magazine is a letter from the marketing director.

I’m sure that bmibaby does want to tell me about the huge amount of new routes it has, the gigantic number of passengers flying with bmibaby last month, the fact that it's the only low-cost airline to allow infants to travel for free. But I don’t want to read all of that PR info on the first page of the magazine, when I have already booked a flight with the airline and am sitting on the plane.

Rubbish island - What the Saturday papers say

This island is rubbish. Literally. Richard Newton (The Daily Telegraph) pays a visit to Spectacle Island in Boston Harbour. The former landfill site, which opened in 1912 and closed in 1959, accumulated so much rubbish in its time that a bulldozer once disappeared in it. Newton writes: “On sunny days, its surface sparkled with shards of metal and glass. After dark, it glowed with spontaneous methane fires.” Sounds lovely. When work began on a $14 billion traffic project in the 1990s, city authorities decided to cap the landfill, dump the dirt there and landscape it. The green and pleasant island is now open to visitors for the first time in a century.

Where Spectacle Island once contained everything the average Bostonian did not want, Siobhan Mulholland (The Indepenent) finds everything she could wish for in Mandal on the southern coast of Norway. This list includes: “Long, light summer evenings, elk safaris, shellfish suppers - and no Brits.”

Falling down - Sunday travel section digest

The papers really are on a mission this weekend to shake up all those readers who once were keen travellers, but who have let work and family responsibilities get in the way of gadding about. For two newspapers, Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman are the poster boys for leaving it all behind and hitting the open road. Preferably on a BMW GS1200.

Mike Carter (The Observer) starts his new weekly column with the story of how he has ended up as a "Loser, with hairy nostrils, a broken marriage, no kids, brittle confidence, stagnating career, bad back and now no bottle," albeit a loser about to rev up, turn left at Calais and follow the open road that will probably go "over the top of Scandinavia, then through Eastern Europe and a big loop of Turkey, back through the Balkans and home in time for Christmas". In The Independent on Sunday, Andrew Spooner also invokes the spirit of McGregor and Boorman as he undertakes a course at BMW's Off Road Skills Course in South Wales, and in The Observer, Laura Goulden has selected five holidays to cure a mid-life crisis, surfing and cattle ranching among them.

Family gappers - What the Saturday papers say

The travel sections today seem to be suffering from a case of World Cup-itis - that is, the football is on telly and people are too interested in how England are doing to holiday. Despite this gloomy prognosis, the papers still present an attractive array of holiday options from a city break in Rome (The Daily Telegraph), Dublin with an accompanying podcast (by The Independent's Simon Calder) to download, Ibiza, with the five best beach bars selected by Lucy Lord (The Independent), to a cut-price way to enjoy Paris - Angelique Chrisafis, The Guardian's Paris correspondent, has the low-down on how and where to picnic in a city "short on green spaces".

Lovers of long-haul travel are catered for too. The Independent has a complete guide to Siberia by Neil McGowan and Simon Calder. Siberia is one of our favourite synonyms for "cold", but despite the huge country's minus 50C winters, it enjoys 40C summers, and McGowan and Calder note that while it is not the destination for culture vultures, it is nature's playground - a great wilderness where bears, snow-leopards, Amur tigers, elk and moose still roam freely.

Saints and sinners - Sunday travel section digest

The Observer stays at home this week with its Britain special. "Why go abroad?", the newspaper's literary editor, Robert McCrum, asks. "In the British Isles, all you need is an ordnance survey map, a credit card and a rail pass." And the sun to be shining? Apparently not. "Explore this archipelago and you will quickly relegate the quest for the sun to the category of juvenile obsession, childish things. Does Shakespeare celebrate sun-loungers? I think not." Fair enough.

Stuart Kirby, author of Tip-top Beaches: Great Britain's top 100 beaches, picks his top ten, which starts with Calgary Bay on the Isle Of Mull and ends with Compton Bay on the Isle Of Wight. Dinah Hatch discovers that a quiet revolution has been under way on her tasting tour of the vineyards of the South Downs. The "New New World" wines are hip right now and, Hatch writes, are "set to dominate our palates over the next 10 years". There is more South Downs in The Sunday Telegraph, but Sarah Shuckburgh and her daughter are more interested in the art and history of Lewes than local vineyards. Still enjoying the best the country has to offer, The Independent on Sunday's "Days Out" feature is a Tower Bridge walk.

Germany: a winner - What the Saturday papers say

Now that the eyes of the world are on Germany, Simon Calder, travel editor of The Independent, wonders why the country is not up there with France, Spain and Italy as one of our favourite holiday destinations. Calder writes that Germany is "near perfect". It has the city break covered (with Berlin, Munich and Cologne), the scenery (Bavaria, the Harz Mountains), the history and high culture (Dresden, Weimar, Bayreuth) and "with every degree of global warming, Baltic and North Sea beaches become that bit more appealing". Calder goes off, way off, the tourist trail in this article. He starts with a cheap flight to Dortmund, then ventures into Joachim Neander's valley - Neanderthal. Then it's off to Frankenstein's castle, Rottweil, Worms and Wuppertal. It's a must-read.

Guess where? This "benighted nation" is the "most corrupt country in South America; [and] the smuggling and counterfeiting capital of the continent". It's Paraguay, the country beaten by England earlier today. Despite the unpromising opening, Nick Higham (The Independent) writes that it is a good place to experience the real South America. It's like the Wild West apparently, but quieter. No gunfights on Main Street. Paraguay boasts the impressive falls at Iguacu though, and Ciudad del Este is worth a visit too.

If you haven't had enough sport, Charles Starmer-Smith (The Daily Telegraph) reminds us that today marks the start of 18 months of sporting action, and thanks to the growing sports tourism industry, you could be there to watch British teams take part. Starmer-Smith writes that "the 'I was there' factor will motivate hundreds of thousands of people to swap their sofa for stadiums in Germany, the Caribbean and France".

Paradise Greek islands and local treasures - Sunday travel section digest

You don't have to be Richard Branson to be able to stay on a private island. Tom Robbins (The Observer) manages it on the Croatian island of Plocica, and while he says it may cost more than a package holiday in Tenerife, it "costs as little as £460 a week for up to six people in May or from mid-September onwards - less than £80 per person. Even in peak summer season (when it can be too hot anyway) it would only be £134 each". Croatia boasts more than 1,000 islands, some covered in vineyards, some with Roman ruins, some are mini-Venices, some deserted, and some with lighthouses, the accommodation of which is let out to tourists.

Staying with islands, The Independent on Sunday has a Greece special. Alastair Sawday rounds up the top ten Hellenic havens from "rustic cottages and historic townhouses to modernist whitewashed retreats". Suzi Feay visits Samos, "the birthplace of the goddess Hera and Pythagoras", and also offers nine other options with tour operator details and prices - Skyros, Skopelos, Tinos, Ikaria, Symi, Tilos, Karpathos, Milos and Folegrandos - for holiday hideaways. Mark Mazower, the historian, unveils the secrets of Thessaloniki, Greece's second city, and Adrian Mourby looks at the volcanic island of Santorini while Andy Lynes writes that while the Greeks have given democracy to the world, their "contribution to gastronomy has been slightly less impressive". This is changing though. A new generation of chefs, armed with sun-kissed local produce, is taking inspiration from modern Spanish, American and French cuisine, and producing new Grecian food that "looks like a very attractive proposition".

The Intrepids paved the way - What the Saturday papers say

"They travelled east from Europe in clapped-out Austins, on throaty Enfields and, most amazing of all, aboard the magic buses. Over a dozen or so years, freelance operators and casual collectives based in London and Amsterdam drove the rainbow-coloured Routemasters and psychedelic Bedfords towards the dawn of a new age". In two newspapers today, The Times and The Guardian, Rory Maclean (author of Magic Bus: On The Hippie Trail From Istanbul To India, published on June 29) pays tribute to the "Intrepids" - the travellers of the 1960s and 70s who went in search of spiritual enlightenment and paved the way for today's voyagers.

Stops along the way for the "Intrepids" included Istanbul and Cappadocia in Turkey, Bamiyan/Band-e Amir In Afghanistan, Auroville in Pondicherry, Goa and Kathmandu in Nepal. Now they are well-travelled and well-known - some would say too well-known - destinations. Off the beaten track for the Noughties traveller are Palawan Island in the Philippines, Yemen, Namibia, Michoacan in Mexico, Timbuktu and the Maolin mountains in Taiwan.

In a related feature, John Carter, the first Times travel correspondent, recalls what travel was like in the 1970s: "Treasury rules limited your spending power abroad to £50 a year, while other regulations kept the price of a holiday artificially high." Now, when we can pick up a flight to, ooh, say Lake Balaton in Hungary (one of Ryanair's newest destinations), as Andrew Eames does in The Times for the price of a few pints in the pub, it is hard to imagine.

Honeymoon heaven and horse hunger - Sunday travel section digest

Ding dong. The bells are going to chime for four happy couples in The Observer's honeymoon clinic. All are looking for the paradise in which to start their lives of wedded bliss - and three experts to help them.

There is also some dos and don'ts of planning a honeymoon - don't arrange a surprise honeymoon without telling the new Mr/Mrs what type of clothes to pack, but do arrange innoculations in advance, while Rafael Behr recalls his honeymoon heaven, and Olivia Stewart-Liberty relives her honeymoon hell. Ghastly is the word. "The only sound was the scrape of cutlery on plate." With her then-husband now her ex-husband, for Stewart-Liberty's next honeymoon she will be going with "(a) the right man to (b) a city where there will be the option of (c) meeting up with a lot of friends".

Susan d'Arcy (The Sunday Times) lines up ten of the best deserted paradises - that could do for a honeymoon - and Sholto Byrnes (Independent on Sunday) goes somewhere that sounds romantically made-up - Sarawak, the Malaysian state ("across the South China Sea on the island of Borneo") that Somerset Maugham described as a "terribly jungly place".

Celebrity continent, football country - What the Saturday papers say

While the world waits with bated breath for this year's celebrity birth, Sarah Turner (The Times) tracks Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's journeys around Africa. Following in the footsteps of Brangelina needn't cost the earth, Turner writes, and countries to circle include Tanzania, Sierra Leone and Chad (countries Jolie visited as part of her role as a goodwill ambassador for Unicef), Kenya (where her relationship with Pitt blossomed) and Cape Town (where the couple went partying). In the same paper, Jill Crawshaw looks at Kenya’s "tourist renaissance" after the 2002 bombing of the Paradise Beach Hotel.

And in The Independent, Stuart Butler visits Benin in West Africa. Benin, once known as Dahomey, is the home of voodoo, but Butler finds not the "pure evil portrayed by Hollywood". It might, in fact, be the world's "least understood religion".

Mile-high reading: Wizz Air's in-flight magazine reviewed

Forgot to bring the latest Dan Brown book with you on the plane? Already seen all the in-flight films? Time to look in the seat pocket in front for some light reading. We're reviewing the in-flight magazines from all the main airlines that fly to the UK, so you'll know which ones are worth a look. The good news: they're almost all substantially better than a certain blockbuster about Opus Dei and the descendants of Christ.

Wizzit is Wizz Air's in-flight mag: a trilingual, handbag-sized glossy. Unlike many other airlines' magazines, it doesn't include celebrity interviews, fashion, vox-pops or events calendars. Instead, the magazine contains many (excellent) articles focused around Wizz Air destinations.

The Spring issue (February to April) had a Valentine's Day tie-in with a quick rundown on the most romantic Wizz Air destinations (Wroclaw and Krakow put in an appearance alongside the more obvious Paris and Rome); a mouth-watering article about Hungarian goulash; a run-down of Sofia; and an article by Duncan Rhodes about the Post and Telecommunications Museum in Wroclaw with one of the best introductions ever seen in an in-flight mag:

Discovering the slow in trains and tepees – the weekend newspapers

Now I know we like to keep you in touch with all the cut-price deals from airlines, but once you get to your destination have you ever thought of exploring a region by train?

Well the newspapers this weekend are full of interesting stories about travelling across country by train, or staying in places that owe their notoriety to the age of steam.