Kevin from the UK wrote in to say: “I think it depends also on whether you need a visa to actually set foot in a country e.g. when I came back through Saudi last Xmas, there were lots of people in transit from India, but you cannot get out of Jeddah airport without a Saudi visa. Whereas Changi airport in Singapore actually gives you a free city tour if time allows between connecting flights. So you will in my book have visited Singapore, even if it is only for 4 hours”.

Any more comments, anyone? E-mail to the Beetle

Win a Frommer’s guidebook on Seattle 2003. See www.frommers.com for info on Frommer’s guidebooks.

Some people have said the quiz is difficult, we say do some research; try google.com or Ask Jeeves, if you need help with the answers.

The winner of last month’s Moon guide is Andrew Hindley.

Some thoughts by Padmassana, likening travel to yoga – or the other way round!

He says: “When you travel you are thinking about what you are seeing, where you are going to stay, how you are going to get there, the people you are with. You are absorbed in where you are at that moment in time, not thinking about the past or far into the future. In yoga you are thinking about the practice, the breath, the foot positions and the bandhas. As with travelling, you have so much to think about, you are absorbed in that moment.

In both yoga and travel, you are enjoying being where you are at that time and the clarity of mind and general happiness; you leave behind all the daily worries. I think that yoga has become a substitute for travel for me, for the 48 weeks a year when I am at home”.

You can contact Padmassana by sending an email to padmassana@globetrotters.co.uk

The tourism industry has been heavily hit by the current conflict in Iraq. Holidaymakers are avoiding Turkey and Cyprus and indeed, the most of the Mediterranean. Muslim countries, such as Egypt and Turkey, or those that have suffered recent terrorist attacks, such as Kenya, are the worst affected.

Destinations as far away from the war zone as Spain are also suffering. It looks like family bookings are the hardest hit, with six out of ten who went abroad last summer not yet having booked for this year.

People who are travelling appear to be shortening their holidays. The number of fortnight breaks booked in the UK for this year has fallen by half while the number of one week stays is down by only 20 per cent. Travel Trade Gazette deputy editor Ian Taylor said: ‘It is clear Easter is likely to be poor by industry standards and family bookings probably won’t come back in large numbers until a ceasefire.

You can contact Padmassana at padmassana@globetrotters.co.uk

For the first time this spring, visitors will be able to walk the full length of what was the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire. Opening May 23, the 81-mile Hadrian’s Wall Path – one of 13 long-distance National Trails – is a signposted route from Wallsend (Newcastle upon Tyne) in the east to Bowness-on-Solway in the west, via the city of Carlisle.

Though ideal for a week-long walking holiday, 40 short walks have also been created for those with less time or energy.

Farmhouse and bed-and-breakfast accommodation is available near the trail. Tel: 01434 602 505 for more info or take a look at: http://www.nationaltrail.co.uk/hadrians-wall-path

Source: britainexpress.com

If you are planning to travel to the Sahara in Southern Algeria, you may want to re-think your plans. 8 Austrian tourists have just gone missing, bringing the number of foreign travellers who have disappeared in the region since mid February to 29: 16 Germans (in several different groups), 4 Swiss and 1 Dutch national have all gone missing in the desert since mid-February. All were travelling by motorbike or car and most disappeared between the towns of Ouargla and the towns of Illizi and Djanet in the far south of Algeria. Smugglers and drug traffickers are known to haunt the area around southern Algeria, near the borders with Niger and Libya, and there are fears the tourists may have been kidnapped. Austria has also issued a travel warning for the country, urging all its citizens to leave the country or contact its embassy in the country.

Vineyard tours and wine tasting are planned to mark English Wine Week this spring (May 24 – June 1). There are 379 vineyards and 115 wineries all over the country and English Wine Producers aims to promote wider interest in them. For more information, please see English Wine Producers

Britain’s longest national walking trail, from Minehead in Somerset to South Haven Point near Poole in Dorset, will celebrate its 25th anniversary this year.

The 630-mile South West Coast Path takes in steep, ‘hog’s back’ cliffs rising to 800 feet, fishing harbours, pretty villages and unspoilt countryside.

There will be a wide variety of events between April and October, including guided walks, talks and displays of works by local artists, writers, musicians and other performers who have been inspired by the path. For more information, see http://www.swcp.org.uk/

Source: Britain Express

British Airways and Air France have both announced that Concorde will be grounded permanently as from the end of November 2003. Passenger demand has fallen significantly since the Concorde crash near Paris in 2000. BA justified their decision by saying that maintenance costs have become too high for them to continue the service and the global downturn in demand for all forms of premium travel in the airline industry. France said “the deterioration of business results from the transatlantic service”, the aircraft’s only scheduled route.

Air Canada, the world’s 11th largest carrier has filed for bankruptcyprotection. They say they will continue to fly while it reorganises its operations. The company says that Air Canada customers around the world can continue booking with confidence that their travel plans will not be disrupted.

Want to fly to Kuwait? While most of the world’s large carriers are reducing their services in line with a down turn in demand, mainly due to the Iraq conflict, Dubai-based carrier Emirates is introducing extra flights between now and July. They plan to increase services to the Middle East by increasing frequency of flights to Doha, Tehran, Sanaa, Dammam and Kuwait.

Air Wales are planning to start a 50 seat daily flight between south Wales and London, the first for 40 years on April 28^th. The service will run up to three times a day between Swansea and London City Airport, stopping off in Cardiff. The journey time will be 80 minutes – half the time of the train and will cost as little as £19 each way.

Singapore Airlines, who are celebrating their 21st birthday this year, have been named Airline of the Year at the prestigious OAG Awards. Changi airport also won the best airport title for the eighth year running.

US budget carrier Southwest Airlines topped the Best Low Cost Airline category, a title it has held for three years.

Midwest Airlines was named Best Airline based in North America and Canada.

A Czech woman, Hana Peskova of CSA Czech Airlines won the Outstanding Service Award an award given to airline or airport staff who have acted above and beyond the call of duty for her efforts to help the people of Prague during the floods of August last year.

We have been contacted by Felisa Forteza who tells us about her new small and charming hotel in the very heart of Mallorca. Sa Rota d´en Palerm is an 18^th Century house that has been lovingly restored and converted into a countryside hotel. They are offering a special 10% discount to readers of this e-newsletter on stays with them in Mallorca. For more details, take a look at: Sa-Rota website

Similarly, a French barge company approached the Globetrotters Club with some large discounts available on hiring luxury French barge boats. See www.bargefrance.com for more info.

International Childcare Trust (ICT) is organising a coast to coast cycle across Sri Lanka 19-28 September 2003 to raise funds to help support programmes in Africa and Asia with some of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable children.

ICT is taking advantage of the long held peace process in Sri Lanka and cycling up into the north of the tropical island, an area which only very recently opened to tourism. As far as we know, ICT will be the first charity to cycle up into this virtually unexplored part of the island, where elephants roam free! We will unwind after the cycle by snorkelling near Trincomalee, at one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

The cycle offers keen travellers the chance to tour Sri Lanka whilst keeping fit. Those who sign up will also be granted the opportunity to meet other travellers and visit two of ICT’s projects to see how the money raised will benefit some of the world’s most disadvantaged children.

Since the north of the island has opened to tourism, Sri Lanka is being written up in all the UK national papers as the new ‘hot spot’ to travel before it becomes too tourist driven. Over the next couple of years, it is anticipated that the tourist industry will grow and that the prices for travel in Sri Lanka will rise considerably.

Therefore, an entry fee of £250 for the cycle (which covers flight on Sri Lankan Airlines, hotel accommodation, provision of bike, etc) seems to good to be true.

The challenge for people is: can you get fit enough? And can you raise enough for ICT? We think that every individual is capable and it is a memory that you will have with you for the rest of your life.

If you have any further queries or questions please visit http://www.international-childcare-trust.org/cycle-and-trek-challenges

A recent UK survey for the Department for Education found that of over 1,000 adults, 30% felt unable to compare rates in exchange bureaux. A similar proportion said they were not comfortable converting foreign currency into sterling. Over a fifth of those surveyed admitted they had wrongly calculated how much they spent on holiday, with 12% saying they had run out of money.

The Globetrotters Club has just teamed up with Oanda.com to provide people with information about currency conversions and cheat sheets. To translate currency or make a cheat sheet, visit:

The Globetrotters Currency Converter — get the exchange rates for 164 currencies The Globetrotters Currency Cheat Sheet — create and print a currency converter table for your next trip.