Google is attempting to put an end to the days of standing in front of a landmark, wondering what it is called and when it was built. The technology giant is rolling out a new service that performs visual searches using cameras on smartphones.
Google’s Goggles enables travel search by site
Sir Richard Branson has unveiled the rocket plane he will use to take fare-paying passengers into space.
SpaceShipTwo was presented to the world in Mojave, California
UK government backs ATOL overhaul
British travellers are poised to receive greater protection should an airline go bankrupt, following government plans for an overhaul to the ATOL protection system.
Flybe adds 16 new routes for summer 2010
Flybe has announced plans to add 16 new routes to its summer 2010 programme. These will operate from its UK regional hubs – Birmingham, Exeter, Guernsey, Jersey, Manchester and Southampton and Gatwick – to mainland Europe. The new routes will boost Flybe’s summer weekly schedule to 3,738 flights.
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group honoured in 2010 Michelin Guides
Mandarin Oriental hotels have long been renowned for their excellence and innovation in food and beverage, and the Group’s passion for creating memorable dining experiences has once again been recognised, with no fewer than nine diverse restaurants from around the world being honoured in the 2010 Michelin Guides.
The odds of a merger between British Airways and Iberia have lengthened following news that the pension deficit of the British flag carrier has grown by £1.6bn over the past year. BA may now no longer be able to meet long-term payments to its entire workforce, which has been the main hurdle in the proposed merger with Iberia
French water and transport group Veolia Environnement is in advance talks to run high-speed train services to compete with SNCF, including its Eurostar services between London, Paris and Brussels.
Le Figaro newspaper said that Veolia and Italian train operator Trenitalia, part of Italy’s state-owned rail firm, could focus on routes from Paris to Brussels, London and Strasbourg, starting in 2012.
Veoila and Trenitalia mount rival Eurostar service
With a bumper calendar of mega sporting events, sport tourism is set to play a catalytic role in sparking the recovery of global tourism in 2010. Experts predict that the sector will post record profits and contribute an astonishing 14% to the travel and tourism economy.
2010 - The Year of Sports Tourism
Heathrow is to become the first of BAA’s six UK airports to install full body scanner. The airport operator said the scanners would be in place “as soon as practically possible”.
The move follows Prime Minister Gordon Brown saying the UK was committed to using the new technology, and that airports had to “go further” on security measures following the foiled terror attack on Christmas Day.
Heathrow to deploy full body scanner
Just a Drop launches Haiti earthquake appeal
Clean-water charity Just a Drop is appealing to the travel and tourism industry to raise funds to supply clean safe water to Haiti following the earthquake.
Hundreds of people have died in the disaster as a result of having no access to clean, safe water supplies, while half those currently in hospitals in Haiti are there due to dirty water. Just a Drop will send in teams as soon as the initial relief period is over to help rebuild water and sanitation infrastructure and encourage displaced communities back to their villages and homes.
