Rhodes is well known as being the former home of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Colossus of Rhodes. This massive statue of the Greek Titan Helios was erected to celebrate Rhodes’ victory over Antigonus I Monophthalmus whose attemptet siege of Rhodes in 305BC proved unsucessful. The massive structure was erected between 292 and 280 BC and at that time was one of the tallest structures in the world. The site on which it stood, as well as other sections of ancient Rhodes have become one of the most popular destinations in Europe, large numbers of visiors flock to its Medieval old town, which is a World Heritage Site

Rhodes lies in close proximity to the other islands in the region, many of which are much much smaller and some of which are unhabited. Their seperation and somewhat isolation makes them well worth a visit. Many, even the smallest are studded with sites of historical interest. Interesting casltes, Byzantine Churches and other ancient ruins that dot their landscapes. Many boat tour operaters based in Rhodes offer boat trips to a number of these smaller islands. Often refreshments or barbeques are included in the price, the operator will often stop at beauty spots on the way so you’re able to go for a swim and explore the area better.

The weather on Rhodes is something upon which you can usually rely. It enjoys long, hot summers, where sunshine reigns and rainfall is rather unlikely. The main tourist season for the island is June to September during which time the average temperature is 28°C. Wind blowing over from the Sahara brings hot, dry air that often brings the temperature into the high 30s during July and August. So be sure to bring the sun cream! Temperatures rarely drop into single figures, even in the winter months. Although this is Rhodes wet season. The island see 60% of its annual rainfall between December and Febuary.

Photo by Alexander Saprykin/ flickr.com

A historical twist to a widely modernised celebration provides you with an unforgettable experience found only in the incredible city of Prague.

Individuals looking for an amazing New Year’s Eve experience should look no further than the beautiful city of Prague. A scenic and archietectually breathtaking city, set in the backdrop of the centuries old castle, surrounded by sprawling cobbled lanes and magnificent walled courtyards. These are just some of the reasons that make Prague the idyllic holiday destination. Let your imagination run wild and be prepared to be taken aback by the inspiring bridges, towers and a wealth of cathedrals have helped to cement this city into the most popular destination in central Europe. The contagious and diverse energy of this city is evident in the arts, music and dining. All of these appealing features blend into an unforgettable experience that will no doubt make this New Year a one to remember.

Planning your New Year’s Eve

Some prefer the romantic and calm approach, fine dining with high quality wine, good local beers and a welcoming atmosphere. Others thrive on bouncing from bar to bar, reveling in the bustling activity and merrily dancing the night away. Increasingly popular are the party boats or cruises. You can purchase a ticket for one of these private parties at most tourist information offices and enjoy the festivities throughout the night. These packages typically offer a champagne toast at the strike of midnight as the New Year is ushered in.

Regardless of what you’re in to, Prague has something to offer to you.

Renowned Fireworks Display

Well known for it’s New Year’s Eve fireworks display, Prague offers a dazzling show of a high pyrotechnical standard and everyone is encouraged to find a spot to witness this amazing event. This outstanding show is set amongst an array of medieval architecture provides an aesthetic experience that is second to none.

The best locations to get the best possible view are found in areas overlooking the river. Petrin Hill, Prague Castle and the Charles Bridge are set upon by those who don’t want to miss a thing as the pre-midnight invasion gets underway as midnight approaches and the fireworks begin to light up the night sky.

The Old Town Square is where you should go if you’re looking for a display with a thrill factor. This location provides not only the scheduled fireworks display but individuals in the crowd are also permitted to bring their own and set them off. A fun and hair-raising experience indeed, not for the light hearted.

Picure: donald judge/ flickr.com

The Red Sea in Egypt is best described as an underwater paradise and the perfect destination for all scuba diving enthusiasts. Egypt has much to offer. One of the seven wonders of the world is located here, the magical pyramids at Giza. The Valley of the Kings and Tutankhamen’s tomb are also located here, an awe-inspiring sight for anyone, not just enthusiasts of ancient history. Diving is very popular in this region and brings many tourists to Egypt every year; as a spot of natural beauty the sight is preserved and protected so that divers may enjoy it in its unspoit glory.

There are two options available for divers in Egypt and which to choose depends on whether you’re looking exclusively for a diving holiday or whether you plan to divulge in some of the other activities on offer here. For the diving enthusiast who wishes to spend their entire time in Egypt diving, liveaboard diving may be the best option.

Liveaboard diving offers the opportunity to visit some of hard to reach and stunning parts of the red sea. Divers can stay on board the boat for a few days and travel to destinations such as Elphinstone which has some of the most beautiful corals and a huge variety of large marine life: hammerheads, manta rays and whitetips, for example. The Brothers are two small reefs which are fairly isolated. Big Brother offers challenging diving for the more experienced and thrill seeking diver. Reef sharks, silkies and tuna can be spotted in these deep waters. Known as being one of the most scenic dives in the Red Sea, with a very deep drop of over 40 meters, this reef offers sights such as black coral and the amazing fan corals which can be up to 3 meters high. Sponges and anemones cover the walls and the a network of caves and tunnels make this a truly exciting experience.

picture: derekkeats/ flickr.com

Winter is often considered to be the season of indulgence during which the fire blazes, the wooden logs crackle and those who can’t face the outdoors retreat under a cosy blanket while ensuring that there is no danger of the hot chocolate supplies running out. As Baudelaire said in his famous poem Les Fleurs du mal « when the low heavy sky weighs like a lid / Upon the spirit aching for the light ». This ‘light’ that we crave during the winter time is never as far away as it may seem.You must admit that after reading « In Search of Lost Time » for the third time in the middle of a dark Sunday afternoon, time-starts to drag and you have only one thing on your mind; heading south for the winter towards the blazing sunshine rather than withering by a dying fire.

The lucky ones among us will have maybe one or two weeks of vacation at this time of year. Enough time to embark on a trip with the kids and gear up for a trip to Australia or Mexico and get a nice tan on the beach. The rest of us, who are not as lucky are stuck at work with no way to escape, or are we?

If you can’t take a vacation, there is one possible solution: convincing your employer that taking a business language course for professionals is essential to your personal development and will benefit the whole company. It is proven that the more languages an employee can speak, the greater their chances of progressing in their career.

Many organisations offer language courses abroad for professionals. You could, for instance, improve your English in South Africa. It is an excellent opportunity to combine business with pleasure and recharge your batteries whilst improving your skills. This is a textbook win-win. Not only can you broaden your horizons, go to interesting places and experience new cultures you’re also guarenteed to be rid of those winter blues that only a few rays of sunshine can cure.

If, however, you’re not too keen on the idea of going too far afield but are still looking for somewhere to escape to, then maybe a
language course in Tuscany would be more suited to you. With its fine wines, glorious landscapes and its rich artistic legacy and influence on high culture, Tuscany is the perfect place to be at anytime of the year.

Photo : sassi mom – Loren Sztajer – Bryan Alexander – diloz / Flickr.com

Perhaps you knew it before thank to the podcasts about Latin America on Lengalia.com, but Guatemala doesn’t celebrate Carneval with Pancakes or King Cake but with Cascarones. Cascarones are empty eggshells that are filled with pica-pica paper confetti and then covered up with another piece of papel china and finally painted in a colorful way. Guatemalans then throw the eggshells on the head of family, friends or passers-by. There is no specific costume like princess, or Zoro or Batman…etc but Guatemalan costumes for carnaval are wonderful and really colorful. The show doesn’t look like the Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro but people walk around in roving gangs armed with plastic bag empty of flour and throw it on passers-by or all passing vehicles.

Any way, come in Guatemal for carnaval and you’ll have fun! If you want to have more information about Guatemala, go on Horizon Guatemaya website.

There are many companies online such as Eurocamp, Haven and Butlins that offer amazing holiday destinations in the UK as well as comfortable campsites on the Mediterranean or Adriatic Sea. The best locations and best prices go to the guests who apply first, so as soon as your mind turns towards summer fun is the time to book your place.

Butlins.com offers holiday packages in the UK. At Minehead, Skegness and Bognor Regis there are accommodations to suit all budgets, delicious food and a huge amount of activities from fantastic water parks to West End quality entertainment and live music.

Haven has 35 UK holiday parks on the seaside. They offer thrilling water parks, rock wall climbing and many other sports, comfortable, modern accommodation and first class family entertainment. Their website offers big discounts to people who book their holidays early.

Eurocamp offers camping or self catering accommodation in 150 campsites throughout Europe. These parks are clean, comfortable and well organised to make a happy experience for the whole family. They have a wide range of activities beginning with amazing water parks with slides, chutes and whirlpools. They also offer special discounts for people who book early. You can book into several campsites and travel throughout the area spending each night in a new camp.

Booking in advance gives the staff at the holiday destination the time and information they need to plan for an amazing summer holiday. To achieve this, they give special deals for early bookings. If you wait, all the best places will be full.

As a result, Sir Richard Branson, owner of Virgin Atlantic has announced today that he will be witholding payments to airport operator BAA until the official report has been released at the end of March. Claiming that the BAA’s disorganisation has cost the company millions of pounds. Other airlines have been equally as critical of the BAA’s capability to deal with the adverse weather conditions and the length of time it evetually took to clear planes for take off and landing. Last week, British Airways announced that the extended closure of airports across the UK has cost the company over 50 million pounds.

]]> http://www.tourism-news.eu/investigation-into-airport-disruption/feed/ 0 http://www.tourism-news.eu/melting-snow-causes-havoc-in-germany/ http://www.tourism-news.eu/melting-snow-causes-havoc-in-germany/#comments Fri, 07 Jan 2011 14:21:40 +0000 admin http://www.tourism-news.eu/?p=309 After the chaotic Christmas freeze in Germany where many towns and cities battled with never-ending snow fall and sub zero temperatures; it seems as though temperatures are finally getting milder across the country and the build up of snow is finally melting. However, due to records amounts of snow across the country, the winter thaw has caused major flooding across all parts of Germany. Rivers in many areas have burst their banks causing various towns and cities to be affected. In the West of the country the Rhine has overflowed causing problems in both Bonn and Cologne. Rivers have reportedly not yet reached their peak in Cologne but further flooding is predicted to carry on until late Tuesday.

The worst affected river appears to be the River Mosel, which flows through towns such as Koblenz, Cochem and Trier. Reports say that up to 30 villages in the wine-growing region south of Koblenz have been majorly affected with experts predicting water levels to reach 7.7m by Monday afternoon.

Experts are blaming this flash flooding on high levels of snow fall throughout December followed by a sudden increase in temperature at the beginning of 2011 causing such a rapid thaw.

Senegal’s cultural explosion in the post-independence years was obviously linked to the country head of the state Leopold Sedahr Sengor who strongly promoted local music. The first World Festival of Black Arts and Cultures was held in 1966 on his initiative in Dakar gathering musicians from all around the continent.

Beginning on the 11^th December has a specific theme this year about the « African Renaissance, cultural diversity and African unity ». This festival in 2010 is trying to promote a new image of Senegal as a liberated, proudly, creative and optimistic country. This year Brazil, America, Senegalese and African stars are invited in order to show a melting pot culture and a multicultural dialog. This festival is going to be free and a lot of educational activities are organized to make the Young’ sensitive.

If you want to take part to this festival, you can stay in an holiday village.