Louis Cruises, a Mediterranean and Black Sea cruising specialist, has announced that it is offering a 10-day cruise at just £1 to the third and fourth passengers that share a cabin with two adults paying their advertised rates.

The cruise operator, based in Greece, has made the offer on the two itineraries scheduled on its Orient Queen. Known as “Mediterranean Jewels’, the cruises depart Marseille on 29 August and 28 October 2009.

Louis Cruises’ special offer is available on a range of the ship’s four-berth cabins. Full fares for the October departure start from £439 per passenger for a standard inside stateroom.

With this offer, four friends or a family of four could enjoy the August Mediterranean cruise for just £920 - or take the same cruise in October for only £880.

Full board on the Orient Queen is included, as is on-board entertainment and all port taxes. Flight costs are not included.

Stops on the Orient Queen itinerary include Genoa and Naples in Italy, before the cruise ship heads to Greece and Turkey, where it will call at Piraeus, Kusadasi, Patmos, Mykonos, Santorini and Katakolon before returning to Marseille, stopping at Messina at the tip of southern Italy on route.

For more information on this article please visit www.travelmole.com.

www.louiscruises.com

The summer holidays are made much more affordable with discounts of up to 50 per cent featured on the popular website DiscountVouchers.co.uk. Special offers can be found on games, DVDs, clothing, books, travel and more.

Currently-available offers include 20 per cent off on online orders for books at Borders; 10 per cent off CDs and DVDs at CDWow, with free delivery; three CDs for just £10 at HMV; as much as £79 off a Sony camera at Jessops; and clothing at 50 per cent off at Miss Selfridge and New Look.

A range of travel offers is also featured on DiscountVouchers.co.uk. A discount of up to 40 per cent is available at Disneyland Paris, and up to £100 off a last-minute holiday is being offered by Hoseasons at this time.

Simon Terry, the managing director of DiscountVouchers.co.uk, commented: “The summer holidays can be an expensive time for parents, but a bit of savvy shopping can make them much more affordable in terms of entertaining children at home or overseas. DiscountVouchers.co.uk is continually updating the site with new offers, so whether parents need DVDs and games, or savings on holiday clothing, the site features easy to search discounts in one place.”

All offers found on the DiscountVouchers.co.uk website are updated in real time so that consumers can be assured they are getting the latest-available savings. The site is easy to use and visitors will find that they can quickly search and locate offers by store name, type of deal and the most popular offers.

For all the latest available offers visit www.discountvouchers.co.uk.

Thai Airways is offering free domestic flights to passengers coming to Thailand from outside Asia. Hotels on popular Phuket island are offering their guests a fourth night at no charge. Mountain lodges in the north of Thailand are adding free spa visits and rounds of golf.

Thailand’s economy is facing a downturn not seen in years, and tourism operators are offering major discounts and freebies to incoming visitors to bolster business that has been hit by the global recession, the swine flu outbreak and political upheaval in the country.

So far this year, foreign arrivals have dropped off by 16 per cent, and hotel occupancy throughout Thailand has fallen to 44 per cent – down from 66 per cent in 2008. Bangkok’s luxury hotels are reporting even lower occupancy rates.

Kongrit Hiranyakit, chief executive of the Tourism Council of Thailand, said: “I don’t see any positive factors. Oil prices are increasing, influenza is spreading all over the world. Political protests are bad for the country’s image.”

The council head added that he expects the country’s tourism industry to lose around 200 billion baht this year.

In a move to compensate for declining overseas visitor numbers, Thailand is also promoting domestic tourism, with hotels offering rock-bottom discounts to residents of the country.

Thanks to news.yahoo.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.thaiair.com

On Sunday, Terminal Five at Heathrow Airport experienced a baggage handling problem that left many passengers unable to check in for their flights.

A backlog of baggage built up during the day, but just after 6:00pm the problem was corrected, according to a spokesman for British Airways.

Last year, the opening of Terminal Five was shambolic, plagued with baggage reclaim problems that forced the cancellation of 34 BA flights on the first day of operations.

A BA spokesman said: “The Heathrow airport operator BAA informed us of a problem with its baggage system in Terminal 5 today. As a result of the problem some passengers have been unable to check in bags. Check-in has now reopened but there will be some delays.”

He added: “We apologise to our customers for the inconvenience. We are doing everything we can to minimise disruption.”

A spokeswoman for the airport operator indicated that flights scheduled continued to run normally in spite of the baggage problem, and that delays experienced earlier in the day, or two hours or more, were unrelated.

She said: “There is a problem with the baggage sorting system at Heathrow’s Terminal 5. We have temporarily suspended luggage check-in and are working hard with British Airways to minimise any disruption to passengers and resume normal operations as soon as possible.”

British Airways confirmed that there had been no flight cancellations due to the baggage problem.

Thanks to www.independent.co.uk for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.heathrowairport.com

For air travellers who have been waiting for fares to drop to their lowest possible levels, there are industry experts suggesting it may now be time to make a move.

Over the past several months, fares have been falling as travellers continued to postpone air travel because of financial concerns or job insecurity – making even a scaled-back holiday seem unaffordable. As the July 4th holiday approaches, and fuel prices begin to rise, it’s likely that airfares are about to head upwards again.

Rick Seaney, the CEO of FareCompare.com, commented that there are signs airlines are attempting to stop the downward price trend, and that he is seeing recent increases of $10 and $20 on round-trip fares.

He added, however, that these recent moves - “have by no means completely curtailed the flood of cheap airline” tickets that have been available for the first half of this year. Seaney noted that AirTran has advertised fares that represent new market lows on many of its routes, for example.

By Memorial Day, traditionally the best airfares have disappeared, but the situation this year has been different. With fewer travellers, airfare sales continued. According to a Travelocity survey, fares are 17 percent lower this year for travel in the period from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

Thanks to news.yahoo.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.farecompare.com

A tourist smart card, providing visitor access to many of the top attractions in Edinburgh, has seen a major increase in sales despite an overall decline in consumer spending.

Official figures show that 9,000 cards, called the Edinburgh Pass, have been sold through the end of April. The sales represent a 4.5 per cent increase over the same period last year. Easter sales this year were reportedly double those of Easter 2008.

VisitScotland developed the card at a cost of £110,000, which was funded by Scottish Enterprise Edinburgh and Lothians and the Edinburgh city council.

Tourism bosses in Scotland are calling the sales encouraging, but say that so far, they are less than 25 per cent of the initial 40,000 target for the year.

Edinburgh’s top three attractions, Edinburgh Castle, Royal Yacht Britannia and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, have not been willing to join the smart card scheme, meaning that there is little or no chance of the initial targets being met.

Sinead Feltoe, the regional director of VisitScotland, said: “To have doubled sales over Easter is a sign that the pass is doing well, but also shows that people are looking for value.”

Feltoe added: “It is great to see that growth and we are continuing to grow sales internationally, working with travel agents and other agents like Expedia. When people are looking for value, this is a great example of groups working together.”

Thanks to news.scotsman.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.edinburgh.org

The tourism industry in Bodrum, Turkey has been forced to deal with decreasing numbers of tourists this year, and is facing yet another threat.

Scot Travel, based in Edinburgh, has been a major player in the Bodrum region’s tourism, bringing in over 60,000 tourists from the UK annually. Earlier this month, the travel company went bankrupt, leading to major concerns about the peninsula’s tourism future.

Authorities are saying that Bodrum is beset with problems related to its tourism infrastructure and local resistance to new development as well.

Serdar Karcılıoğlu, the chairman of Bodrum’s Professional Hotel Managers Association,

said in comments to the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review, that the Scot Travel bankruptcy will negatively impact Bodrum’s tourism, which relies on UK holidaymakers, especially in the current economic climates when visitor numbers are already depressed.

He went on to say that there are more serious problems for Bodrum in need of urgent attention so that the peninsula can bolster its status as a prime tourism destination.

Karcılıoğlu said: “As the actors who direct the world tourism, the tour operators do not see Bodrum as a destination any more. This stems from the fact that the peninsula lacks the necessary infrastructure, direct flights and bed capacity to handle large-scale tourism.” He added that although there is a 70,000-bed capacity, only 20,000 of the beds are considered to be high quality.

Thanks to www.hurriyet.com.tr for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.tourismturkey.org

Lord Adonis has announced a government plan that would enhance cycling facilities in the UK, including more specialist shops and better storage.

Major railway stations throughout the UK will have the opportunity to become “cycling hubs”, with repairs shops and additional bike storage racks, under a government plan to increase the appeal of cycling to train passengers.

Lord Adonis, the UK transport secretary, is launching a £5 million fund this week that will provide better cycle facilities for commuters at 10 terminals. The initiative is an attempt to increase the use of bicycles in the UK, hopefully moving the country closer to the usage in Netherlands, where nearly one-third of all trips to and from rail stations are on bicycles. In the UK, the figure is only two per cent.

Adonis said: “I want to see every major station also serve as a cycling hub, as is the case in Holland,” adding: “Cycling in Holland is not in the genes, it’s in the facilities that are available.”

Chris Green and Sir Peter Hall, newly-appointed stations tsars, have been tasked with recommending 10 trial stations for the summer. It is expected that London will see some of the funding, after the transport secretary, on a cycle tour of the rail station facilities in the capital found that a number of the stations had no bike racks.

Thanks to u.tv for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.dft.gov.uk

Air Canada will soon be welcoming dogs and cats on board its flights, when they are accompanied by human passengers.

Canada’s national flag airline, and its regional carrier, Jazz, will make it possible for customers to book the space under the seat for a pet, from 1 July. A fee of $50 will be charged on domestic and North American services and $100 on international flights.

The pet must travel in a leakproof carrier, and the total weight must not exceed 10kg. The airline will accept reservations for up to four pets per flight.

A spokesman for Air Canada said that the needs of passengers with allergies would be taken into consideration when seats are allocated. On flights to or from Britain, no pets will be allowed.

In July, a new airline specialising in dog and cat travel will be launched. Pet Airways will fly on routes in the US linking five cities, on a Beechcraft 1900 plane that has a capacity for 50 animals, one attendant and two pilots.

Recent surveys have shown that an increasing number of Britons will be taking their pets on holiday with them this summer. The UK’s Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) now allows pets that are entering or returning to Britain to pass freely without being quarantined for six-months.

For more information on this article please visit www.telegraph.co.uk.

www.aircanada.com

Airlines in the US have been charging passengers $15 to check a bag for some time now, and two carriers have revealed that they will ask customers to pay an additional $5 this summer for paying at the check-in counter, launching a new wave of fees on top of fees.

Paying baggage fees online before leaving home is an option, and one that airlines are referring to as an “online discount”.

If carriers find that passengers accept this type of new fee, there are likely to be more that follow, according to industry observers, who say that as airlines around the world attempt to increase revenues, they add fees for certain seats and even fees to get through lines more quickly.

United Airlines has indicated that it is anticipating over $1 billion this year alone from fees paid by its customers for accelerating frequent-flier awards to checked baggage. This would account for more than five percent of the carrier’s overall revenue.

The new fees most likely to be introduced are those that have been tried by some other airline, somewhere else. Typically, a new charge begins with one or two carriers, with rivals watching and waiting to see if consumers revolt.

For example, United Airlines and US Airways have introduced fees of as much as $5 to pay baggage charges at the airport rather than online. Irish budget carrier Ryanair is now charging passengers to check-in. Even online, passengers have to pay a five-euro fee to check in, and if they wait until they arrive at the airport, the fee is significantly higher.

For more information on this article please visit news.yahoo.com.

www.united.com

The latest International Passenger Survey is showing that Britons went on 16 per cent fewer overseas trips from January through April this year, as compared with the same period in 2008.

According to the figures, the economic climate is still having a negative impact on international travel.

The number of incoming visitors to the UK was also down, dropping by 10 per cent during the same period, to 8.9 million visits.

Visitor spending totalled just over £4.4 billion, a decline of one per cent for the four-month period, before adjustments for inflation.

Sandie Dawe, VisitBritain’s chief executive was upbeat. She said: “These are stronger figures than we have seen for the start of the year and further evidence that a weak pound has indeed drawn increasing numbers of visitors to Britain.”

Dawe went on to say: “However, sterling is already recovering against key currencies, so we cannot rest on our laurels and, as we enter another summer season, must continue to drive awareness of Britain’s appeal and why they should visit now.”

VisitBritain downgraded its 2009 forecast, and is now expecting the number of inbound visits for the year to drop to 31.4 million, which represents a further fall of 300,000 visits since it issued its last forecast in December.

It is warning that inbound visits could drop by up to five per cent, making the year’s total visitor numbers just 30.3 million.

Thanks to www.travelmole.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.statistics.gov.uk

Two British carriers are listed among those most likely to lose a passenger’s luggage, new airline industry figures reveal.

British Airways and bmi were ranked fifth and fourth, respectively, in a table of winter season performance recently published by the Association of European Airlines (AEA).

The table showed bmi mishandling 17.2 bags per one thousand passengers, leading to its fourth place finish among the 26 airlines that were ranked.

British Airways did somewhat better, coming in fifth place, mishandling 15.6 bags per 1,000 passengers.

Iberia of Spain, however, emerged as the European carrier that was most likely to lose passengers’ luggage, mishandling 19.2 bags for every thousand passengers.

Air France was ranked in third place, having 18.9 bags lost or misplaced for every 1,000 passengers boarding its flights during the winter months. TAP Portugal was second-worst with 17.3 bags lost per one thousand passengers. The second place position, where bmi found itself, resulted from the carrier mishandling 17.2 bags for every thousand passengers.

Although it is still ranked among the worst performers in the AEA table, BA fared much better this year than it has in previous tables.

For more information on this article please visit www.telegraph.co.uk.

www.britishairways.com

Airline executives have been saying for the past few weeks that revenues appear to be stabilising after falling sharply during the first five months of 2009. They are also saying, however, that there are no clear indications of an upturn.

The airline industry world-wide is expected to lose as much as $9 billion this year, which could lead to the collapse of some carriers, while low fares are at the same time stimulating demand among business travellers.

Airfares are lower in most markets, and for business travelers, this is the best time to return to the skies. Spot airfare sales have been on offer since the beginning of the year – and continue, even as the costs of fuel and operations in general are rising.

There are signs that the industry is about to change its approach, however. Giovanni Bisignani, director of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said to airline bosses at a conference this past week: “Cash is king,” putting a voice to the growing consensus that selling seats below actual cost to maintain market share is not a sustainable practice.

The association has also indicated that in order to survive, the industry will have to downsize through consolidations and further capacity cuts.

For more information on this article please visit www.nytimes.com.

www.iata.org

DiscountVouchers.co.uk is making it possible for shoppers to give a lift to summer wardrobes this year with a range of money-saving offers from leading fashion brands including Boden, Dorothy Perkins, La Redoute, Miss Selfridge, Urban Outfitters and Wallis – among others.

Visitors to the site will find a growing range of discounts featured from more than 300 retailers, offering savings on fashion items from bikinis, shorts and flip-flops to dresses, summer footwear and accessories.

Current specials include 11 per cent off and free delivery on all women’s fashion at Boden; £40 off on £100 or more in spending at La Redoute; 30 per cent off M&S womenswear; and £10 off at Wallis on selected dresses, scarves, belts and bags.

Discounts on younger styles are also features of DiscountVouchers.co.uk, with up to 70 per cent off selected items at Miss Selfridge; 10 per cent off on £45 or more in spending at Uniqlo; and a number of offers from brands including New Look, Shuh, and Urban Outfitters.

All offers are updated in real time to help consumers save the most with leading high streets brands at specialist retailers.

For more information and for the latest discount offers on clothes, shoes and accessories – as well as everything from games and garden equipment to drinks and home appliances - visit www.discountvouchers.co.uk.

ABTA has urged the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to wait until the total cost of the XL collapse is known before deciding on an increase in the level of ATOL protection.

Claimants have until the end of September to submit forms seeking compensation, and ABTA believes the CAA should not calculate or announce an increase in the APC, or protection contribution, until it is known how much the XL failure actually cost.

ABTA has also called for the ATOL scheme to have a wider reach, offering protection beyond package holidays. It has asking that the CAA consider offering cover to consumers purchasing flight plus accommodation as well.

Mark Tanzer, the ABTA chief executive, said: “This consultation process is a much-needed opportunity for the trade to make its views known and we would urge both CAA and the Government to simplify and widen consumer protection.”

He went on to say: “This would benefit both the industry and their customers for whom the present system is confusing and full of holes.”

Thanks to www.travelmole.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.abta.com

Dave King has announced the launch of his new enterprise, Digitalis Media Ltd, a company that provides online reputation management services to consumer brands, celebrities and high-profile business executives.

His newest offering combines the science of SEO with more traditional PR to deliver reputation management alongside digital marketing solutions – online.

King said: “Clients focus on the fact that we make the bad stuff go away on Google”, adding: “However, online reputation management is so much more than that; from tracking negative comments on blogs to amplifying positive consumer reviews.”

Digitalis Media employs a number of analysts and provides business modelling services and financial projections for online retailers. Methodologies used have been designed by King, and according to the founder - built by “far cleverer people than me.”

Unlike many companies in the current economic climate, Digitalis is currently recruiting to fill 10 new roles.

King has been joined by co-shareholders Joel Cadbury and Alan and Mark Wogan. The business’s impressive senior management team includes Mark Sait, the former COO of Evryx Inc and iBAHN, and James Harrison, who was the Harrison Moscow Communications CEO after filling senior roles at MS&L and Hill and Knowlton.

Both Dave King and Digitalis have profiles that can be seen on LinkedIn.

www.digitalismedia.co.uk

Next week, airports in Europe will launch a new carbon measuring scheme that is aimed at reducing the impact their operations have on the environment.

The new Airport Carbon Accreditation programme will be the world’s first independently-verified certification scheme for measuring, reporting on and reducing carbon emissions that are generated by airport operations.

On Monday, the programme will be launched at the start of the three-day Airports Council International (ACI) Europe annual assembly, to be held at Manchester Airport.

The accreditation programme is a result of the landmark resolution made at the assembly held last year in Paris, when airports jointly made a commitment to reduce carbon emissions with an aim toward eventually being carbon-neutral.

Carbon emissions from all aspects of airport operations are included in the programme, which features a staged approach to implementation, as well as a means for verifying progress. The framework for the scheme involves several levels that include the measurement and inventory of emissions, emission reductions, influencing emission sources outside direct airport control and ultimately offsetting emissions to achieve carbon-neutral status.

Olivier Jankovec, the director-general of ACI Europe, commented: “Given its long standing commitment on environmental issues, it is only fitting that our annual assembly and congress is hosted this year by the Manchester Airport Group, especially as this will see the launch of Airport Carbon Accreditation.”

Thanks to www.clickgreen.org.uk for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.aci-europe.org

In March, economy airfares on transatlantic routes dropped by 34 per cent on average, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The financial crisis that airlines are facing has actually been a benefit to UK travellers, as carriers have slashed fares by more than one-third in order to fill seats as the slump in air travel continues.

Passenger numbers are declining globally, outpacing airline capacity cuts, making it necessary for airlines in most regions to reduce fares in order to fill seats on their planes.

Airline customers in the UK have seen the greatest benefit so far, according to the IATA. In addition to the major reduction in transatlantic fares, economy fares on routes between the UK and the European continent fell by around 30 per cent during March.

“We have seen some of the biggest falls in average fares on the UK international markets,” said the IATA’s chief economist, Brian Pearce.

He added: “Air travel is clearly going to be a lot cheaper for passengers coming out of the UK.” However, he added that the declines seen in March should become less steep as the peak summer period begins, although fares will remain lower than last year when high fuel costs forced carriers into price increases.”

Thanks to www.guardian.co.uk for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.iata.org

DiscountVouchers.co.uk has launched a savings programme to help Britons make the most of their gardens this summer, offering as much as one-third off on BBQs, at BBQ, up to 50 per cent off Debenhams’ garden furniture, a £1000 discount on summer houses at Wickes and 10 per cent off garden games and picnic tables at Raw Garden.

Simon Terry, who is the managing director of DiscountVouchers.co.uk, said: “With the forecasters giving us hope for the summer weather, many people are gearing up to really make the most of their gardens.”

He went on to say: “Entertaining in the garden is one of the best parts of the British summer, and DiscountVouchers.co.uk is helping make it more affordable, with our new range of offers. Everything from discounts on plants to table wear and barbecue equipment is available, with all of our offers updated in real time to ensure customers know exactly what they’re getting.”

On the DiscountVouchers.co.uk site, consumers will find savings and the latest offers from an increasing number of High Street and specialist retailers – and all offers are updated in real time.

For the most up-to-date discounts and offers on equipment, furniture and plants for the garden, as well as everything from clothing and home appliances to drinks and games, visit www.discountvouchers.co.uk.

Carrentals.co.uk, the leading car hire price comparison website, has entered a new agreement with Trade Doubler to expand its affiliate programme. The site features a market-leading conversion rate of four per cent, and offers is affiliates a five per cent commission.

Trade Doubler is the most extensive – and successful – affiliate network in Europe. The aim of the new deal is to expand the Carrentals.co.uk affiliate programme, reaching out to the growing number of UK businesses looking to add new revenue streams.

Gareth Robinson, who is the Carrentals.co.uk managing director, noted: “The affiliate programme has proved increasingly popular since we launched, and the agreement with Trade Doubler will extend our reach to a wider audience. With a 5% commission rate for partners, and an easy to integrate and track solution, becoming an affiliate has never been simpler.”

The Carrentals.co.uk affiliate programme will be managed by the award-winning affiliate specialist Arctic Sunrise, and run on Trade Doubler’s network.

In the 2008 Travolution Awards, Carrentals.co.uk was voted Best Car Hire Website. By using the site, consumers can directly compare deals from leading car hire providers, including Alamo, Budget, Holiday Autos, Sixt and Thrifty – among others.

In all, as many as 35 rental car company deals are searched in over 9,000 traveller destinations. The site provides a quick price comparison, and users can further refine their searches by car type.

For more information please visit www.carrentals.co.uk.