Luxor balloon flights set to resume

Published on CNN on 17th April 2013:

Hot air balloon rides at Egypt’s popular tourist destination of Luxor are set to resume Wednesday, according to a statement on the Egyptian Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission’s (CARC) website (Arabic).

President of the CARC, Mohamed Ibrahim Sherif, confirmed balloon flights would restart, the Egypt Independent reported.

Hot air balloon rides were banned in Luxor after a February 26 accident that killed 19 tourists.

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London’s dash to ‘toilet restaurants’

Published on CNN on 15th April 2013:

Also published on CNN Espanol on 24th April 2013

When the first toilet-themed restaurant, Modern Toilet, opened in Taipei in 2004, public reaction was mixed.

Was it weird, funny or just plain unsavory?

Whatever the answer, the concept’s popularity quickly became obvious — the chain now has successful franchises across Asia.

London, however, has put a new spin on the business.

Read more at CNN

Stealing, lying and other outrageous things you do while traveling

Published on CNN on 12th April 2013:

You walk into your Caribbean resort’s lobby and see a promotional sign: “Free suite upgrade for newlyweds.”

Do you and your mate tell a white lie and snag the cheap trip?

Plenty of travelers would.

According to a recent survey, 5.5% said they’ve pretended to be on honeymoon or celebrating a birthday or anniversary to get a room upgrade while on vacation.

Read more at CNN

Brace yourself: Transatlantic flights set to be bumpier, costlier

Published on CNN on 10th April 2013:

Among all the woes of modern air travel — cramped seating, extra charges for baggage, outrageous prices for airport food — perhaps nothing frays the nerves of passengers faster than air turbulence.

Well, brace yourself for even bumpier skies. And costlier flights.

A pair of British scientists are predicting that the white-knuckle rocking and rolling at 35,000 feet is going to get worse.

Read more at CNN