This might sound Pollyanna-esque but as a traveller, I want to see a better world. I travel to learn more about this world and further the lot of myself and others. I support the work of others in creating a better world. As I come to the start of the year, I wanted to share five international charities that travellers should consider supporting as part of our travel adventures. (I also encourage people to support the charitable group I work for but that is a different story!) The Railway Children First came across them in India. Linked to…
Happy New Year for 2016
Thanks for journeying with me in 2015. I had my quietest year for air travel since 2003 with only three flights a month! All of my flights were in Australia and Asia. I flew just six airlines in the whole year but two were new airlines for me: Nok Air and Thai Smile! This brings me to 1064 flights in my life with 90 airlines (see right for my lifetime stats) to 48 countries. I have also travelled to four countries by bus, two by ship and six by train. Giving a total of 6o countries In 2015, I had…
Happy Christmas
Celebrating Christmas today in Melbourne, Australia by the beach. To those celebrating around the world, I wish you a Merry Christmas.
Airline fined for using ladder for passengers
34 passengers on a charter flight with Aero Contractors arriving at Nigeria’s Bauchi State International Airport from Abuja last Saturday used a builder’s ladder instead of airstairs to exit their chartered Boeing 737-500. (registration 5N-BLG). The video has gone viral. The airline has said that impatient passengers used the ladder, against the company’s wishes, when they found that the stairs were out of order. The paasnegres were on their way to a wedding and the group included the groom himself. The Nigerian government launched an investigation concerned that the passengers were ‘at high risk’ of serious injury. The result…
Taking Notes en Route
The older I get, the more I realise, I will not remember the name of the random person I met on the airport bus or the book they recommended or the walking tour guide’s name, or the artist whose sculpture I loved. I need to record it in some way on the spot. I used to write it down in my diary or travel journal but in this electronic age, there are my three favourite note programs. These are my top three: Evernote has been stable mate. It allows me to photograph things and imbed them…
Finnair A350 connects Bangkok
Finnair switch their daily Helsinki-Bangkok-Helsinki service to an Airbus 350 service on Christmas Day this week. Offering three classes, the service is a great way cost wise and time wise to connect between Asia and Europe: Business: 46 flat bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration with 78 to 81″ pitch and 21″ width Economy Comfort: 43 seats, 3-3-3 layout. 35″ pitch and 18″ wide Economy also arranged 3-3-3 with a 31″ pitch and 18″ width HEL (Helsinki) is well set up for connections to most of Europe. They are a member of OneWorld so picking up points is easy for…
TAM’s new Airbus 350
Brazil’s TAM air has welcomed the first of their 27 beautiful Airbus 350 XWBs. This follows Qatar’s receipt of the 350 in January, followed by Vietnam Airlines and Finnair. The 348 seat TAM plane has a two class layout: ‘Premium Business’ cabin with 30 forward-facing business class seats arranged 2-2-2. All seats convert into fully-flat beds and have a personal 15.4 inch HD video screens 318 seats are crammed into the Economy in a 3/3/3 layout admittedly with an 18″ seat width Their A350 has the same seats and cabin design as sister carrier LAN’s…
Qantas returns to San Francisco
There are few experiences worse than getting off a 14 hour flight and encountering LAX customs and immigration. Walking through miles of grey corridors one encounters a huge understaffed space. The custom agents have been rarely welcoming. San Francisco, by contrast is a joy. One agent asked me why I flew through SFO and I told him “because you guys are a delight“. Much nicer airport, friendlier staff and easier to connect. (Plus I prefer the Bay area to its rival down the coast!) This is why I am so excited to see SFO is back on the…
Qatar’s A350 Aborted takeoff-lets not exaggerate
Disaster? MegaFail? Embarrassment? Last week, Qatar Airway’s inaugural flight from New York’s JFK to Qatar had an aborted take off 18 seconds into acceleration. The jet’s computer system canceled it’s own takeoff — because it calculated that runway 22R was too short. Journalists and staff onboard the plane were filming the take off and watching it on their individual screens when the craft came to a juddering halt. Pillows from economy reportedly flew through the cabin. The Points Guy Editor-in-Chief Zach Honig reported that he and others were terrified. He and other passengers wanted to get off the plane…
Don’t choose hotels just on cost
Out of the 1000+ nights, I have spent in hotels, I have only been disappointed on nine occasions and of those six were chosen by my client! And I suspect their major motivating factor was cost! In our modern cost conscious world, hotel choices are often made on the basis of their cost alone. The number of accounts departments that enforce decisions about accommodation on this factor alone are numerous. Assuming the hotel itself is not a flea ridden unpleasant place, there are five factors I consider and argue for with my travel and that of my staff:…
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