One size fits all in Australia

Australia accommodates everyone’s idea of a perfect holiday -from four-year-olds to grannies, reports Pippa Jacks

Spotlight on San Francisco

Ahead of the Golden Gate Bridge’s 75th birthday on May 27, San Francisco has never looked more golden writes Kaye Holland. Read her guide to the city with its head in the clouds, here

Trading Standards

From the website:

“The Trading Standards Institute is a not-for-profit professional body formed in 1881. We have members in the public and private sectors in the UK and abroad.

TSI encourages honest enterprise and business and helps safeguard the economic, environmental, health and social well-being of consumers.”

Spain Encourages More of us to Visit

Over the summer we have heard a lot about the decline in the numbers of people travelling to Spain and its islands. Nonetheless, Spain, the Balearic Islands and the Canaries are still the most popular destinations for us when we go abroad. Given all year round warm weather, the Canaries are popular throughout the year. Now the Balearics, (Ibiza, Menorca and Majorca) are trying to convince us that they are winter destinations as well.

The three main Balearic islands had a 12% drop in visitors this year from the UK and more in the case of Ireland. Now they are pushing for more of us to visit the islands when special events are being held or just to enjoy the sports facilities that have been built there. Recently, Rafael Nadal was used to push that message to the travel trade.

Rising Prices

Sad to relate, but in boring company with the rest of life at the moment, we can expect to pay higher prices for travel insurance soon. You can bet your bottom dollar that by the time the busy summer booking season begins in January, insurance companies will have raised their prices quite a bit. It isn’t helped by the fact that VAT will rise from 17.5% to 20% in January so that will automatically cause an increase.
AXA has forecast increases in excess of 10% but hasn’t said how much. Brokers are talking of sharp rises, whatever that means.
Why should increases be so “sharp?”

Ryanair refuses to get rid of credit card charges

Last week we told you how airlines et al had been ticked off for the silly surcharges that they imposed on people paying by credit card.

Celebrate an Alternative St. Valentine’s Day

In most parts of the world, Saint Valentine’s Day on the 14th of February, and is the celebration of Love and Affection. Traditionally (and commercially!) it is marked by the exchange of flowers, chocolates and greeting cards, but is now also used as an excuse to have a romantic weekend away.
There are many facts and figures about the history of St Valentine’s Day, which I am not going to bore you with, however I would like to offer a few alternatives for this over-commercialised day: Forget the gifts and flowers, the weekends away and the social obligation of a romantic meal out in an over-priced and over-flowing restaurant this Valentine’s Day, and stray from the norm.