Daintree forest, a World Heritage site in northern Queensland, one of the oldest rainforests on the planet and home to Australia’s most diverse range of species, has been saved from becoming a housing estate. The land was sold off by the state’s maverick Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen in the early 1980s, and for the last 20 years has been the centre of a battle between developers and environmentalists. At the end of September 2006, the local mayor banned all development in the forest.

The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office advise against all but essential travel to, or through, the far southern provinces of Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat and Songkhla, where there is continuing violence due to insurgency and civil unrest. Since January 2004, there have been regular attacks including bombings and shootings. There were a number of explosions in August 2006. The Thai Government has declared a serious state of emergency in the provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat. You should also maintain high levels of vigilance when travelling to, or through, the neighbouring province of Satun. There have been media reports that Thai military presence in Satun is being increased due to insurgency fears.

There is a high threat from terrorism throughout Thailand. Attacks could be indiscriminate and against places frequented by foreigners.

On 19 September 2006 the Thai Army Commander, General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, announced that he had established a Reform Council to take over the administration of the country. A nationwide state of martial law has been declared. The situation in Bangkok and elsewhere in Thailand remains calm, but the British Embassy is continuing to monitor the situation closely.

If you are currently in Bangkok, you should use discretion when travelling around the city and refrain from approaching military vehicles and personnel. If you intend to travel to, or are currently in Thailand, you should monitor all available information on the local situation and keep in contact with your tour operator. You should also avoid the areas surrounding Government buildings and locations where large crowds appear to be gathering, as well as any demonstrations.

Since December 2005, there have been a number of small explosions in Bangkok. The motives for these attacks are not clear.

Penalties for possession, distribution or manufacture of drugs are severe and can include the death penalty.

A member of Globetrotters Club? Interested in a £1,000 travel award?

Know someone who is? We have £1,000 to award each year for five years for the best submitted independent travel plan. Interested?

Then see our legacy page on our Website, where you can apply with your plans for a totally independent travel trip and we’ll take a look at it. Get those plans in!!

A 200-year-old pair of French false teeth are going on display for the first time at the British Museum. The 18th century teeth, which belonged to the Archbishop of Narbonne, who died in 1806, were found in his coffin after an archaeologists' dig in London at St Pancras graveyard ahead of building work on the Channel Tunnel's new rail terminus.

The porcelain dentures, which were still sitting in the Archbishop’s mouth feature gold springs. The teeth are being put on display from the beginning of October to coincide with World Smile Day.

Noticed by Padmassana: tourists visiting Iran might be able to add an unusual stop-off on their itinerary – a trip to one of the Islamic republic's nuclear sites. Iran’s state news agency IRNA recently reported that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has given permission for tourists to visit nuclear sites as proof that Iran's atomic activities are peaceful. To date, only United Nations atomic watchdog and reporters have been allowed to visit the sites.

“Foreign tourists can visit Iranian nuclear sites, after Dr Ahmadinejad issued an authorisation ordering this organisation to study ways to do so,” the head of Iran's Tourism and Cultural Heritage Organisation Esfandyar Rahim Mashaii said.

No details were given on the nature of the visits that would be allowed or when it would become legal for tourists to take a trip to one of the facilities. Possible attractions for tourists would include the uranium conversion facility outside Isfahan, the uranium enrichment plant in Natanz or the Islamic republic's first nuclear plant being built in the southern city of Bushehr.

The world recently crowned a new King and Queen of the conker. Sounds strange? This news come from Reuters – competition ringmaster Richard Howard said: “This year we had entries from 19 countries.” Amid much revelry and competition on the village green in the town of Ashton, Chris Jones, 48, of London was declared Conker King out of an initial field of 256 entrants. Sandy Gardener, 35, from the Dordogne region of France, was likewise crowned Conker Queen for the year out of an entry of 64 women.

It goes like this – each player has a conker (from the horse chestnut tree) supplied to them by the competition organisers. It is attached to a piece of string and they take turns in trying to break their opponent's conker by swinging at it. The prize? Last year's prize was a year's supply of a brand of ice cream supplied by the sponsor, this year the new Conker King and Queen received just a trophy for their efforts.

Police in Australia are hunting for a thief caught on a Gold Coast’s pet shop's security camera stuffing a lorikeet down his underpants and running to a getaway car parked in the street outside. Hhhmm, gives a new version to the phrase budgie smuggler. Mr Westaway, the shop owner said that the theft was an act of animal abuse, “The way that man shoved that lorikeet inside his pants is animal cruelty.”

I'm thrilled to let all Globetrotter e-newsletter readers know that the Travel Writing Workshop, until now exclusively held at the Guardian Newsroom, is wandering abroad. This November, the first Paris Travel Writing Workshop will take place at the famous Shakespeare and Company bookstore, just opposite the Notre Dame.

The Paris Workshop will include a 'travel experience', where participants will wander out on to the Left Bank to gather notes to use throughout the day.

This will be a very small Workshop, maximum twelve participants, so please do let us know as soon as possible if you would like to attend by emailing me at: travelworkshops@deabirkett.com

Pattaya, the seedy resort in Thailand is home to a Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum. In October, a Thai snake charmer attempted to break the Guinness Book of World Records record set in 1999 when an American kissed eleven venomous snakes by kissing nineteen extremely poisonous king cobras. The snakes were provided by Ripleys and a medical team was on stand by. Khum Chaibuddee managed to kiss all nineteen but told children and bystanders not to try this themselves. He said, “I, myself, have been bitten several times by snakes. Always bear in mind the old story about the snake charmer who died after being bitten by snakes.”

You may want to avoid travelling on Bangladesh’s state carrier, Biman Bangladesh Airlines. The airline is planning to cut down on the frequency of flights to international destinations because it cannot pay for the repair of five of its fleet of 13 aircraft. Five out of Biman's 13 aircraft are now out of service due to mechanical faults and routine maintenance. Besides lack of aircraft, Biman was losing money because of high operational costs, including soaring fuel prices, and poor management. The airline has been unable to pay for aviation fuels.

According to newly released US government statistics, lost or mishandled bags increased by nearly 25 percent in August as airlines struggled to handle an increase in checked luggage after authorities banned most liquids and gels from passenger cabins. At United Airlines, mishandled bags jumped from 5.4 per 1,000 passengers in July to 9 in August, a 66 percent increase, according to statistics tracked by the Department of Transportation. Overall mishandled bags jumped from 6.5 per 1,000 passengers in July to 8.08 in August. On Aug. 10, U.S. security officials banned most liquids and gels from the passenger cabins of aircraft, resulting in a 20 percent increase in checked baggage. At the end of September, US officials revised the ban, allowing passengers to carry-on small toiletries in a clear plastic bag.

A recent study by British insurers, the Halifax Travel Insurance says that climate change may lead to the British package holiday to the Mediterranean becoming “consigned to the scrapbook of history”. Places like Majorca may be too hot by 2030, and replaced by UK holidays, and health, sport and cultural visits. The report said more extreme weather events and higher temperatures may put tourists at greater risk abroad.

People may switch their main holiday to the winter or the spring, for example, a winter holiday to the Mediterranean and a summer holiday to Sweden might become a popular trend. By 2030, global sea levels could rise by 25cm affecting large parts of the Maldives and Seychelles which could be submerged and shorelines could retreat by as much as 1,230ft, it is claimed. As much as 90% of the world's reefs, including Australia's Great Barrier Reef could die. Long-haul destinations such as Florida could be hit by increasingly powerful hurricanes and a loss of beaches. And extreme conditions such as drought, storms and torrential rainfall could increase, according to the study.

Have international holidaymakers been put off by the recent global terror alerts? Apparently not. According to lastminute.com, late deals to the US were selling above average particularly trips to New York and business was brisk to the Mediterranean. Possible reasons cited by Lastminute’s travel director included passengers possibly feeling safer amid the tighter security measures at airports.

A recent AP/AOL Travel poll says that 79 percent of people surveyed, say the easing of restrictions on taking liquids and gels onto airplanes makes no difference in how they feel about the safety of air travel.

44 percent indicated that they believe security in not consistent at various airports, and 41 percent of Americans feel that it is consistent. While most Americans (64 percent) say the rules regarding liquids and gels are easy to understand, a significant minority, 32 percent, believes the rules on what can be carried aboard airplanes are confusing.

On a positive note for the travel industry, 43 percent of Americans feel that air travel today is very safe, which is somewhat higher than other polls taken since the 9/11 attacks, including one this summer that reported Americans’ satisfaction levels with air safety in the 30s.

We’ve bought you stories about space travellers, well, judging by recent events, not everyone, even if you have the twenty million dollars to buy your ticket gets accepted. Russian Federal Space Agency officials recently announced that Japanese entrepreneur Daisuke Enomoto, who was set to become the world's fourth space tourist, has been ruled unfit to travel into space. Mr Enomoto was due to board the Soyuz spacecraft set to be launched on Sept. 14 – seems like he failed his medial. But no worries, there are other wealthy people ready to step in at the last moment

British low-cost airline easyJet says that thirty percent of all flights in Spain are low cost and believe this figure is sure to rise. They have named Madrid as a base for domestic flights and a hub for southern Europe, putting pressure on Spain’s national carrier Iberia. EasyJet say they are already the second biggest international carrier to Spain behind Iberia, with 7.5 million passengers last year, and from mid-February 2007 they will operate domestic flights from Madrid's Barajas Airport. What does this mean for us? A wider choice of flights within Spain and hopefully lower prices all round as Iberia has to compete.

Space Adventures, the company that sent the first space tourists into orbit is offering future clients the chance to do a space walk. The optional excursion will cost $15m (£8m) on top of the $20m cost for the flight. So what do you get for this? Private space explorers will get a 1.5 hour accompanied extra-vehicular-activity (EVA) outside the International Space Station (ISS). The EVA would lengthen a stay on the ISS from 10 days to between 16 and 18 and would require additional training. Eric Anderson, president of and CEO of Space Adventures said, “those with enough money would get to “hang out” outside the space station with a trained cosmonaut as a guide”.

Cheapflights has been nominated for a prize at this year's prestigious British Travel Awards (BTA).

Along with Expedia, Lonely Planet, Trip Advisor and Yahoo! Travel, Cheapflights has been nominated in the Best Travel Information Online category.

Sponsored by travel industry big hitters such as Avis, Thomas Cook and Reed Travel Exhibitions, the awards reward the best in various categories that also include Favourite Airline, Best Low-Cost Airline, Favourite Cruise Line and Dream Destination.

The BTA organisers recognise that “holiday makers' purchasing patterns have changed drastically in recent years”, meaning that internet-based companies and no-frills airlines have come to the fore to “alter the landscape of the travel industry”.

Have international holidaymakers been put off by the recent global terror alerts? Apparently not. According to lastminute.com, late deals to the US were selling above average particularly trips to New York and business was brisk to the Mediterranean. Possible reasons cited by Lastminute’s travel director included passengers possibly feeling safer amid the tighter security measures at airports.

A minister in Nigeria in charge if the capital, Abuja, has banned “okada” motorbikes citing high accidents rates and being used as getaway vehicles in armed robberies across the city. At the last minute, an extra 150 buses were made available on Abuja's streets, but the public transport system is struggling to cope with the extra demand and fares have almost doubled. Prince Ngige, 26, who says he is the secretary of a branch of the okada drivers' union accuses the government of being insensitive and says, “In the next three or four days, the rate of crime will increase because you know that an idle mind is the devil's workshop.”