Holiday & Travel

The ultra-luxury Raffles Doha and luxury Fairmont Doha – which herald the entry of the aspirational Raffles Hotels & Resorts and Fairmont Hotels & Resorts brands to Qatar – are now open exclusively to FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 guests and the VIP delegation. The dual-branded five-star properties, housed within Katara Towers, have welcomed their first guests while supporting the nation's historic FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 by delivering exemplary service and truly exceptional experiences in both hotels.

International tourism is on track to reach 65% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2022 as the sector continues to bounce back from the pandemic.

An estimated 700 million tourists travelled internationally between January and September, more than double (+133%) the number recorded for the same period in 2021.

After participating in World Travel Market 2022 in London last week, Gooding-Edghill engaged with cruise industry partners as he and other Barbados stakeholders met with representatives from Royal Caribbean Group and the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) in Miami and had much to share about the island’s plans and outlook for its tourism product.

Passengers will benefit from a better, more reliable railway in 2023 thanks to upgrade and maintenance work taking place this Christmas and New Year.

The work in Network Rail’s North West and Central region - which runs from Euston and Marylebone in London, to Scotland via the West Midlands and North West - has been carefully planned to impact the fewest number of passengers.

Coulibri Ridge located in Petit Coulibri, Dominica is the first Caribbean property to become part of Beyond Green's global portfolio of sustainable hotels.

The resort is elated to be welcomed into the membership of Beyond Green – a global portfolio of planet Earth's most sustainable hotels that represent sustainability leadership based upon action and impact.

An incredible number of travel professionals walked through the doors at World Travel Market last week, with over 35,800 people participating - exceeding expected attendance - and presenting over double the attendance than that of 2021.

One of the key attendee types at WTM London is global travel buyers - individuals with direct purchasing responsibility for travel products. This year, buyer numbers were up 25% compared with 2021. 

The Dominican Republic is the “Most Visited Destination” this year, according to a major industry reference for global travel trends and insights. In announcing the performance of the top global destinations of 2022, ForwardKeys revealed the top country list is headed by the Dominican Republic, and the top city list by Antalya in Turkey.

Viking have announced it has taken delivery of the company's newest ocean ship, the Viking Neptune. The delivery ceremony took place this morning when the ship was presented at Fincantieri's shipyard in Ancona, Italy.

While identical to Viking's other ocean ships, the Viking Neptune is equipped with a small hydrogen fuel system, making it the cruise industry's first ship to test the use of hydrogen power for on board operations.

Exciting new facts have been released ahead of Christmas at Wimpole, which runs from November 25 until to January 1, 2023.

The popular Christmas lights trail will feature a host of new light installations when the festive extravaganza opens.

The Executive Chair of Sandals Resorts International called on the young people of the Caribbean to tap into their creative genius, never to settle for mediocrity, and to keep betting on the future of Jamaica and the Caribbean.

Delivering remarks after being conferred with an honorary Doctor of Laws (LLD) degree at the 2022 graduation ceremony of The University of the West Indies, Mona Campus over the weekend, Adam Stewart encouraged the graduating to be the generation that competes on the world stage and outperforms any society in the world.

The newly elected president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), hotelier Robin Russell (centre) has hit the ground running and is keeping critical issues alive since taking up the post recently. During a courtesy call to Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett (right), the tourism sector leaders discussed challenges facing the local tourism sector, including labour supply, driving growth, and security measures.

World Travel Market London (WTM) is now on, and is expecting to facilitate a record number of deals this year as the growing number of new and returning exhibitors grows, making the event a must-attend for travel buyers from around the globe.

Across all areas of the exhibition floor, new faces will be present, as well as familiar ones. There are more than 3.000 exhibitors confirmed, over 70 of which are making their WTM London debut.

Italy remains stable at the top of the rating for international presences. This is one of the key messages that has emerged from ENIT's research on Istat, Unwto and Bank of Italy data that will be at the centre of the debate in the panels of the National Tourism Agency at the WTM in London from 7 to 9 November 2022.

easyJet celebrated its inaugural flight from BHX to Lisbon. Flights to the Portuguese capital will be twice-weekly - on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Ali Gayward, easyJet’s UK Country Manager said: “I would like to thank our fantastic customers to choosing to fly with easyJet and we can’t wait to welcome more customers on board.”

Due to popular demand for forward bookings, Emerald Cruises has launched its 2024 Europe River cruise collection unveiling new sailings, new ports of call, city stay extensions and a raft of exciting new activities. Guests securing their future adventures today can save up to £2,000 per couple if booked before 29 December 2022.  

While Cayman Airways prepares to launch new flights between Los Angeles and Grand Cayman this weekend, officials in the British overseas territory are looking towards the next frontier: tapping the robust South American travel market.

Speaking this week on ‘The Resh Hour’ (Cayman Compass’ talk show), Minister of Tourism and Transport Kenneth Bryan revealed that Panama was among Cayman’s consideration set of destinations for 2023, potentially served by the national carrier.