Archive for the ‘Destinations’ Category

Morocco, growth in tourism

July 20th, 2010

The living history and unique art of Morocco provide an appealing environment for travelers.With its great imperial cities of Marrakesh and Fez or the cosmopolitan city of Casablanca, Morocco has attracted visitors for centuries, and tourism keeps on growing.
This year is also planed to be successful ; The Moroccan government confirmed signals of a record tourism season. North Africa as a whole has also seen strong growth as a destination this year. Thanks to its Atlantic and Mediterranean coast, Morocco lies on Europe’s largest tourist zone and proposes a wide range of summer and winter activities. Tourists will have the chance to experience Trekking amongst the five geographical zones that include desert, coast and plains. An other way to enjoy your holidays in Morocco is to ride a Camel straight into the Sahara, or simply walk in one of those open-air markets with colorful crafts such as carpets, pottery, jewelry, brassware and woodwork.

To discover Morocco, you can find Relais car rental stations where you need them to Rent a car in Casablanca or to Rent a car in Rabat .

London to get billions for investment in time for 2012

November 3rd, 2009

With less than 1,000 days until the start of the 2012 Olympics in London, excitement is already growing over what will be a huge boost for the local visitor economy. To mark the occasion, Visit London has released a report outlining how visitors to the capital will benefit from £11 billion in investment over the coming years. The improvements are already starting to take shape, including the East London Line railway extension, new cycle tracks and walkways, the renovation of the Savoy Hotel and a new urban park being built in East London. In Spring 2011 the Cutty Sark will be reopened after being damaged by fire in 2007 and a new wing of the Tate Modern will be opened in time for the start of the Olympics. These are new and exciting times for such an historic and fascinating city such as London and I’m keen to see how these new developments will improve an already amazing city!

The wonders of skiing in the Pyrenees

October 28th, 2009

According to Chantal Pitin, head of leisure traffic development at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport, more and more people are experiencing skiing in Toulouse with surprising results. As a result of tourists flying into Toulouse, tourism in the area has had a welcome boost. Apparently skiing in the Pyrenees is ‘enjoyable’ and is suitable for everyone, especially as the resorts tend to be small family resorts. I have to admit that although I have been to Toulouse before, I had never thought of it as a ski resort. But I suppose the mixture of sun and snow would be a perfect combination! Although whether it rivals the ski resorts of the Alps remains to be seen…..

Greek Islands still popular with Brits

October 20th, 2009

Historically the Greek Islands have always been popular with Britons holidaying abroad, and this trend doesn’t look like changing. According to Sofia Panayiotaki, director of the UK and Ireland branch of the Greek National Tourism Organisation, beautiful landscapes, friendly people and competitive prices are drawing people back every year. Brits make up 20 percent of the Greek tourism market, with in total 60 to 70 million holidaymakers visiting Greece every year. There are also many holidaymakers from France, Italy, Germany and the US. Although Britons usually visit the Greek Islands of Crete, Rhodes and Corfu, due to the impact of the film Mamma Mia, more are now visiting the island of Skopelos where it was filmed. There are also more Britons taking city breaks in Greece than ever before. And hopefully these trends will continue! :)

Britain in Boston!?

September 28th, 2009

So we all know that Britain is an amazing place to visit, right? Well I read today that Virgin Atlantic and VisitBritain have been trying to reinforce this idea further by holding a special event at Boylston Plaza. To encourage more Americans to visit Britain they have erected famous British icons such as red telephone boxes and monarchs such as Henry VIII around Boylston Plaza. There was even British food on offer! I bet the ex-pats loved it! And all this effort just to encourage more people to visit Britain due to the favourable exchange rate. They even had the mandatory cheesy slogan; ‘get more Britain for your buck‘. This sounds like one publicity I would have loved to have seen!!

Braving the germs?

July 27th, 2009

Although the world is currently sat under the germ-infested cloud that is swine flu, it doesn’t appear to be affecting the popularity of the world’s germiest’ tourist attractions. You may well be thinking ‘how on earth can a tourist attraction be germy?’ so let me give you a few examples…. The Blarney Stone in Blarney, Ireland. 400,000 people last year kissed the Blarney Stone, according to the people from Blarney Castle and Gardens. So how many germs will people have passed on to others through kissing the stone? Next example, Market Theater Gum Wall in Seattle, Washington. In a tradition stretching back to 1993, people waiting to see a show in the theater stuck their chewing gum to the wall. The theater did used to clean it but have now given up so that the gum is now several inches thick on the 15 feet high and 50 feet wide wall. And my final example, St. Mark’s Square in Venice, Italy. Each year 2 million tourists visit St. Mark’s Square, rubbing shoulders with thousands of dirty pigeons leaving mess and attacking tourists. Now it’s probably just a case of luck whether you actually catch anything from these tourist attractions, but just keep it in mind the next time you go to touch or kiss something that thousands of people (or pigeons) will have kissed or touched before you!

To infinity, and beyond…..

July 21st, 2009

So yesterday was the 40th anniversary of the Moon landing and what better way to celebrate than to speculate on the possibility of space tourism in the near future! According to examiner.com, space tourism is not that far away with space travel already an option for the extremely rich. This is mainly due to the fact that in February 2009, space travel halved in price. There is also the fact that there are already two companies, RocketShip Tours and Virgin Galactic, which are vying for our custom. RocketShip Tours has also teamed up with Ensemble Travel Group, an organisation of almost 500 travel agencies, to promote space travel. While on July 27th 2009, Virgin Galactic will unveil their Mothership “Eve” at the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2009. Although I’m sure space travel will be very popular in the future, I’m not sure I will joining them! What with the lack of oxygen and all…..

Rap Jumping?

April 30th, 2009

If you have never heard of Rap Jumping, you are not alone, neither had I! It is described by Tourism Victoria as ‘forward abseiling with a pulse’, so definitely not for the faint-hearted! Essentially you jump off the side of a 25 metre high building and walk, run or Tarzan-swing down the side of it. Rap Jumping takes place in Melbourne on the Urban Central building in the city centre. It was originally started by Peter Mackail, an ex-SAS soldier, in 1989 after developing the technique in the Army. It costs $65 for 3 jumps and is open everyday (weather permitting). Now as much as I would love to have a go, I’m scared of heights so I’ll let you guys try it out first!

Paris, je t’aime

December 26th, 2008

In seven days time, according to the French Government Tourist Office, Paris Ile-de-France will be a new place. The region has apparently been given a ‘facelift’ for 2009 which will be advertised through a new marketing campaign based around famous artworks and events. The artistic side of the capital will be the main focus of the advertising with the involvement of the artists Jeff Koons and Patrick Blanc. There will be many new exhibitions to visitors to have a look at, such as a showcase of work by Renoir in the Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais and a display dedicated to Kandinsky at the Centre Pompidou. Many places around will also look different, such as the Centquatre which will host exhibitions, art projects and festivals. All in all, it should make for a jolly good time!

Bizarre bans in Italy

August 22nd, 2008

If you’re going to Italy any time soon, you had better check if the town you are going to has any strange by-laws! According to Reuters, many towns in Italy have introduced by-laws to improve “public decorum”. However, some of the by-laws have gone a bit too far. In Eraclea, near Venice, you are not allowed to build sandcastles and in Capri it is forbidden to wear a bikini anywhere other than the beach. While in Eboli, you could land a fine of €500 if you’re caught kissing in a car or in Novara no more than two people are allowed to lounge around at night in parks. So my suggestion is don’t do anything until you’re sure you’re allowed to do it!