Train Miles

I had a light bulb moment yesterday when I was booking three return journeys on trainline.com. Why was I not getting rewarded for all of my spending? Why has no one introduced Train Miles? I googled it today and found Virgin Trains had proposed the idea back in June 2007 and the last comment was 'When is this going to happen?' dated 07/09/2008. It had 1147 votes of support. Does anyone know what happened to the scheme?

Another good point is one that was made on Excess Baggage this Saturday. Why do we have so many trains (high frequency) which should provide travellers with flexibility and yet you have to book months in advance to get a reasonably priced ticked? Wouldn't it be better to have a flat (lower) rate so that you can jump on a train when you get there? You shouldn't have to pay extra for the privelege of having an open ticket.

Acts of Kindness

This is such a great idea for a writing competition from Global Giving and a fabulous prize as well. I recommend reading through a few entries HERE.

I think its such a good idea, I would like to see it as a permanent blog. Its a well needed antidote to all the ranting, moaning, negative spaces on the internet.

The many uses of a guidebook

I agree 100% with Vicky Baker's 'In defense of guidebooks' posted 18th June on Going Local Travel.

Guidebooks have a valuable place in the traveller's tool kit. They give you that cushion of reassurance that you have come prepared. It's a perfect back up for the independent traveller. I personally use them to get some background information on a place and to find interesting tit bits to share with my fellow travellers along the way. No where else do you have a hand-held condensed copy of useful and often very interesting information on a place. You never know when you might have a burning question about the date of a particular building and more often than not guidebooks hold the answer.

Buying the guidebook is also part of the anticipation. You buy it. You carry it around for weeks before departure just to remind yourself that you're going away somewhere and then 5 minutes before you land, you start to read it.

One of the greatest benefits of guidebooks, it has to be said, is your chance to display your great adventures on your bookshelves. I use my collection of Rough Guides to (perhaps not so subtly) say, 'just look how well travelled I am'.

Italy earthquake - from a local perspective

This by Elena, YSPerson South Italy

" It’s hard to try and write about the current situation in my country and remain “politically correct”. I suppose that in the rest of the world the media talked about the earthquake in terms of a natural disaster, I suppose you all read the usual kind of articles that you can find in these cases: the rising toll of deaths, the damages caused, the reaction of the government, some interview of a survivor… and so on. But within the country where the event happens, it’s a whole other deal: its not about sadness, its about rage. Against who builds houses poorly, against bureaucrats that authorize builders, against politicians that create the legal and economic circumstances that push and justify this chain. Against journalists that act like vultures searching for every tear-jerking story they can find (pretty soon they’ll start interviewing cats and dogs about their losses…). Against organizations that collect goods and money that don’t deserve our trust (some steal, some disperse, some despotically decide who’s to be helped and who is a sinner…). Against our very own “Marie Antoinette” that replies to the desperate that don’t have bread: “well, eat cake then!”.
Against unclear information about the unattended alarms, that will become more and more mysterious, until, a few weeks from now, everyone will have forgotten about the left over families that are still living in metal containers or tents (see the San Giuliano case, 2002).
Against “selective justice” that protects the puppeteers in black suits, as our prime minister proudly demonstrates.
Please excuse my pessimism, although my area luckily hasn’t suffered damages, the tremors have been continuing day and night since the big earthquake on Monday, and our nerves are a bit… well, shaken. "

Should we still visit Thailand?

Political disruption overseas often leads the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office to advise against travel to that country. Not to the disrupted town, or even that region, but against visiting the whole country. The FCO are in a difficult position of course, accountable for the welfare of British citizens and therefore must be cautious, but we have seen the impact this has on local communities whose income is reliant on tourism.

Recently I was asked by Tom Hall at Lonely Planet to comment on visiting Kenya, which was a destination hounded by bad press during the December 2007 political disruption. During this time I received emails from local contacts who expressed the real and devastating impact of this situation. Families could not put food on the table nor send their children to school. Such is the mismanagement of the tourism industry that local suppliers are forced to live hand to mouth, so when the tourists leave, so does their livelihood.

So what can we do? It's actually quite simple - we keep visiting, while avoiding areas of tension. Advice from Tapanee, our YSPerson in Bangkok, for travellers concerned about the situation in Thailand was this:

" The political situation in BKK is not as bad as it looks on TV. I was quite annoyed because cameras get the worst of the images and keep looping them while they are reporting so it gives Thailand a really bad image in the international eye - it makes it look worse than it actually is.

Right now as you already know, the protests have ended. While the protests were going on they were very much localised, and the streets that were not in the protest area were really normal - you would not know that anything was going on.

Right now there is a state of emergency in BKK, but the situation is really calm - the state of emergency has been declared, but it is mainly to stop the red shirts from re-gathering (that is not allowed under the emergency decree) and there is absolutely no violence on the streets at all despite the emergency state. In fact, everything is quite pleasant and we're enjoying the last few days of the Songkran festival, with mad partying now that the protests are over!'

Tapanee's reports echo those of many others living in Bangkok, but at the end of the day it's your choice. You should never visit a place that you feel is dangerous but be sure you are armed with all the facts before writing off a destination. As many have before, you might find that once you've spent a couple of days there you fall in love with the place.

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Always take advice and do contact us for free, impartial information.

Other wonderful destinations we'd highly recommend but get 'bad press':

* Colombia
* Ethiopia
* Rwanda
* Sri Lanka
* Uganda

Interview with UK Minister for Tourism

At the Best of Britain and Ireland Show, last week, Barbara Follett MP UK Minister for Tourism announced the publication of the DCMS Framework on Sustainable Tourism. The Framework aims to lay out the Government’s stance on sustainable tourism with advice for industry on how to embrace changing times. Mrs Follett was then interviewed for VISION on Sustainable Tourism about the Framework’s intentions and potential impacts on the industry.


A key point made by the Minister was that “sustainability is not as cataclysmic as everyone makes out, this is a learning curve. For example, we need to manage the amount we fly sensibly. But, dare I say, it is media hype that makes this difficult. We need careful management”. Mrs Follett went on to argue that in relation to the current economic crisis, sustainability issues are here to stay, saying “sustainability will have a bigger impact than anything else on the shape of the industry. The current economic crisis will be a shorter period of disruption but we have experienced similar things in times gone by and they pass. When it comes to sustainable tourism the change will happen once and remain”.


When asked about accreditation schemes Mrs Follett drew attention to Green Start Scheme which is an ‘opt in’ programme for travel organisations, something that Mrs Follett believes is critical to its success. “We don’t want to force companies to comply, we want to ensure they understand the scheme and then opt in”



Finally The Minister was asked if she has advice to the tourism industry about the future of the sustainable travel, to which Mrs Follett replied “Keep calm, this is not as bad or as difficult as it sounds and we need to keep going and find new ways of doing things. This is a case of business evolution, simply with new parameters.”


Interview by Sally Broom, Founder of YourSafePlanet, on behalf of VISION on Sustainable Tourism



DCMS Framework on Sustainable Tourism in brief:

• Challenge 1 - minimise environmental impact and resource use

• Challenge 2 - address the impact of tourism transport

• Challenge 3 - improve quality and make holidays available to all

• Challenge 4 - improve the quality of tourism jobs

• Challenge 5 - maintain and enhance community prosperity and quality of life

• Challenge 6 - reduce the seasonality of demand

Is green the new luxury?

As part of the ITB CSR Programme a panel discussion “Who is the EcoTourist” was held that yielded some interesting results.

Jurgen Maier of American Express Int presented results of research they conducted looking into the green marketplace, which suggested that a typical eco-traveller is around 30 years old living a broadly healthy lifestyle that is good for themselves and good for the world – the “Conscious Consumer”. “Green” says Amex is new luxury

Andrew Harding, founder of Nature and Kind said he believed that travellers desire more immersive and diverse experiences yet lack the time to research holiday options. Harding suggested here that green and ethical travel is actually not the luxury commodity; it is time that we crave..

The important point was made that going local actually costs less while being a more sustainable way to travel, and so the future of eco-travel may not be considered luxury only that it makes sense.

Going local makes as much sense to business as to the consumer by saving time and money while enhancing the overall experience. Harding also argues that ‘responsible tourism’ often coincides with emerging niches in the market and is an effective way of securing new business in difficult times, a way of looking ahead to the future. So, if the eco-traveller is the ultimate prize, how do we go about winning that market?

Amex’s research found the key interests of this customer lie in a unique experience, value for time and money, access to valuable knowledge and the opportunity to be conscientious. Some established points here along with new ideas of building a holistic package that affords the customer that feel-good sentiment.

Consumers occupying these niches are loyal, passionate travellers, argues Harding, and there are rich rewards for any company that can strike a relationship with them.

So how to do this? Offering something unique, intimate and responsible. For inspiration look at Ritz-Carlton’s work in community participation. Sue Stephenson explained how the company’s hotels are all connected with local projects, supported actively throughout the year by their employees. Guests who show an active interest are invited to visit the projects and even be involved, proving a huge hit all round, not least with families. This initiative was enlarged after Hurricane Katrina boosted interest.

Ritz-Carlton suggests these breaks allow visitors to understand how their trip is making an impact locally.

The most interesting thing about this programme is that it is not marketed, promoted only by word of mouth and yet with 50% uptake.

Marc Aeberhard, founder of luxury Seychelles Frégate Island travel, adopts a similar approach. He says that the truly green credentials of their resort, which again are not actively marketed, are only fully demonstrated on a guest’s arrival and this is where that message has its strongest impact. As with Ritz-Carlton’s approach encouraging visitors to participate and learn during their holiday there is huge potential here to combine a strong sustainable tourism policy with a fantastic product and service.

What does this say for how ‘green’ and ethical travel is combined into traditional travel packages? It seems customers don’t want to be labelled as ‘green’– perhaps there are too many socialist connotations with the term, but this begs the question, as had been so often asked before, whether a change in language is required to stimulate a change in perception. Green washing agendas have demanded a chance in language and accountability, leaving the seminal question as whether eco travel is just the new form of travel.

The panel moderator concluded by suggesting that ‘conscience’ as an attitude could replace the rhetoric of green to bring about a shift change in the way people travel and the way company’s operate.


Sally Broom

First published on TravelMole