TRAVEL NEWS It rains in Africa. Fact.
KIWI BIKE TRAIL
TRAVEL
The New Zealand Cycle Trail project got the thumbs up this week in a move that will see 2000km of cycleway open up in September 2011. Following the news, Australasia specialists Austravel is predicting a rise in Kiwi biking holidays.
NEW FLIGHTS EasyJet will introduce flights from Gatwick to Zagreb, the Croatian capital, next February, operating five flights a week. Meanwhile, Ryanair will run more than 500 extra flights over Christmas to Poland, Italy, Germany, the Canary Islands and to ski destinations, including Grenoble, Turin and Salzburg. British Airways plans to introduce a new service from Gatwick to Buenos Aires and São Paulo from March 2011.
PRICEY HIRE CARS Ireland has been hailed the cheapest place to hire a car, according to a study by Travelsupermarket.com. Of the 131 locations surveyed, Georgia, Zambia and the Seychelles have been branded the most expensive destinations to rent a vehicle for a week.
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WORLD-WIDE IGNORANCE One fifth of all UK residents think it never rains in Africa, according to a recent survey. Widespread ignorance about world geography and climate was unveiled in a poll of 1726 people, conducted by online travel agency Sunshine.co.uk. Half of the people quizzed incorrectly believe that it rarely snows in France, despite the fact that the French Alps entice millions of skiers and snowboarders every year. And almost 70 per cent think the Sahara Desert is always hot. The reality is that temperatures fall to below freezing every night. A total of 17 per cent said there were no volcanoes on the Canary Islands. In fact, the Canaries are volcanic islands, and the landscapes
are made up of cones, lava fields, caves and underground galleries. Moreover, Tenerife is home to the third biggest volcano on earth. Another survey, also carried out by Sunshine.co.uk, revealed that 54 per cent of Britons think Timbuktu is an imaginary place, while one in 10 believes that Kazakhstan does not exist. They thought it was a place dreamed up by Sacha Baron Cohen as the birthplace of his comedy character Borat. Meanwhile, seven per cent think Africa is a country rather than a continent. In response to the findings, Sunshine.co.uk founder Chris Brown suggested that travellers undertake some research before heading abroad.
Value for money in Sri Lanka
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Vegetarian hotspots India has been named the world’s top veggie destination, according to a list compiled by Skyscanner to mark World Vegetarian Day on October 1. As almost 40 per cent of Indians are vegetarian, there is an abundance of meat-free fare.
Sri Lanka has eclipsed Thailand to become the bestvalue long-haul destination, while Australia and Hong Kong have been branded the priciest, according to a new report from Post Office Travel Money. In the study, researchers totted up the cost of 10 tourist items, including meals, drinks, postcards and cigarettes, in 22 holiday destinations. In Sri Lanka, a “basket” of 10 items cost £46.85, compared with £155.48 in Sydney. While an evening meal for two costs £25 in Sri Lanka, travellers to Sydney can expect to fork out £116.88.
Paradise on the cheap
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Mexico and Kenya took second and third place in the survey, while Malaysia and Indonesia finished fourth and fifth. Thailand has fallen to sixth place in the affordability survey due to the strength of the Thai baht against the pound, compared with the same time last year.
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