Holiday & Travel

Islanders in the Caribbean nation of Aruba celebrated the shining example their homeland sets for International Women's Day.  In addition to having a woman prime minister, three leading roles for this Dutch Caribbean's economically-vital tourism industry are filled by women.

Eveleyn Wever-Croes became Aruba's first female prime minister in 2017, leading the island's first coalition government through many issues, including the turmoil of Covid. Meanwhile, the two top posts in the Aruba Tourism Authority are held by women, while the influential Aruba Hotel and Tourism Association's (AHATA) president and CEO is Tisa LaSorte.

The annual VisitEngland Awards for Excellence are now open for nominations for the category of Travel Content Award, which recognises the important contribution that media and influencers make in championing the huge array of amazing tourism experiences on offer in England.

This year judges are particularly interested to see submissions of features/blogs/vlogs that bring to life the VisitEngland Escape the Everyday campaign ethos, which first launched back in 2020 and aims to encourage people to take domestic day trips and overnight stays once again, embracing new experiences or destinations across the country.

A new set of guidelines will help both governments and businesses better address the needs of women in the tourism sector.

The guidelines published by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) were developed with the support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Development (BMZ), the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and UN Women.

‎Qatar Airways has enhanced its presence in Nigeria with the launch of four weekly flights to Kano (KAN) on 02 March 2022, and three weekly flights to Port Harcourt (PHC) on 03 March 2022, both operating via the Nigerian capital, Abuja. To mark this milestone, the new service was inaugurated by the airline’s state-of-the-art Boeing 787 Dreamliner featuring 22 seats in Business Class and 232 seats in Economy Class.

As travel restrictions relax, summer holidays are high on the nation's agenda and to meet the demand TUI UK has added an additional based aircraft at Birmingham Airport this summer. Birmingham Airport will see an increase of flights throughout the summer to 6 different destinations including Greek hotspots Kos, Rhodes and Crete as well as Turkey and Palma. 

Western Australia has welcomed back its first international visitors with a warm and smiley Quokka welcome, native to Rottnest Island. The first international arrivals have landed at Perth Airport, with the visitors receiving vouchers for tours and experiences in the Perth purchased by Tourism Western Australia.

Jamaica has eased its entry protocols, making it easier for travellers to visit the destination. Effective March 1, 2022, international visitors will no longer be required to obtain travel authorization to enter the island. 

Major travel and hospitality companies are beginning the year with confidence as COVID-19 cases go down again and major tourist destinations lift travel restrictions. Businesses are already seeing trends and signs of what to expect for the rest of the year, many of which point to the industry going big and green in 2022.

Hilton, as one shining example, believes its third quarter will eclipse the peak of 2019.

The city of Birmingham has moved up to ninth in the world’s top ten destinations for large international meetings within the Northstar Meetings Group Convention Cities Index (CCi).

London is the second-ranked UK destination at 21st, with Frankfurt leading the list.

The luxury travel market size was valued at $22.2 billion in 2021, and it is anticipated to reach nearly $40 billion by 2028, registering a CAGR of about 8.4% during the forecast period (2022–2028).

The luxury travel market is expected to be driven by rising middle-and upper-class disposable income and consumer spending, rising demand for accumulating travel memories, and an increase in micro trips.

The impacts of plastic waste on the environment and our health are global, drastic and countries around the world are enforcing plastic bans. As the call to end single-use plastics gets louder, the nation of St Kitts and Nevis is moving ahead with its plan to combat plastic pollution and promote a healthy environment. The world now produces more than 380 million tons of plastic every year, which could end up as pollutants entering the natural environment and oceans.

Luxury hotel brand, The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts has confirmed the reopening of its newly extended all-suite sustainable resort The Pavilions Anana Krabi in Thailand from 1 March 2022, following the addition of 20 brand new Pool Access Suites. First opened in February 2021 on the southern west coast of Thailand's famous Phang Nga Bay, the 79-suite ecological resort puts sustainability, nature and wellbeing centre stage.

The Government of the Virgin Islands has announced that the 70th edition of Carnival Virgin Islands on St. Thomas will be held from April 27 to May 1, 2022.

The U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism’s Division of Festivals reports that the official version of St. Thomas carnival will be held under the theme “A New Cultural Roogadoo for Carnival 2022”.

A region famed for its tea plantations plays host to Karma Group's new Indian resort. International Karma Group continues to cement its status as one of the world's leading resort companies with its latest acquisition of not one, but two new locations. Joining its new Egyptian-based addition the elegant cruise ship Karma Kanak, is Karma Munnar, a destination nestled among the famously green rolling hills of the state of Kerala in India.

Australia has reopened its international border for the first time in nearly two years, bringing joyful family reunions and a boost to tourism. The country imposed some of the world's strictest travel bans after shutting itself off in March 2020 due to Covid.

Australians and some others were allowed to return from late last year, but most foreigners have had to wait. There were tearful reunions at Sydney Airport on Monday as hundreds of people began arriving on flights.

As the travel industry bounces back, with over 320 Travel Counsellors reporting their best ever selling month in January 2022, the leading independent travel company has announced a major recruitment drive.

This comes as a recent survey from people in the company’s talent pool revealed that almost two thirds are interested in setting up their own travel business within the next year, with over 70 percent of those looking for new career opportunities from outside of the travel industry.