Here’s a round-up of luxury travel stories that have caught the eye this week. To make sure you receive these new weekly alerts in your web browser, please click on the red bell icon in the bottom right hand corner of the page and click ‘subscribe’ (works on desktop only – for other ways to subscribe, please click here). This will also alert you to any other posts on the blog. Should you wish, you can unsubscribe at any time, by clicking on the icon again and selecting ‘unsubscribe’.
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, these travel brands have suspended or altered service to China
In light of the grave concerns that the Wuhan novel coronavirus outbreak has raised—and the over 200 deaths of the contagious respiratory illness—the World Health Organization declared the virus a global emergency and the U.S. State Department has urged all Americans to not travel to mainland China… [read more]
What it’s like to go to the Super Bowl as an ultra-wealthy VIP
Nearly 100 million people watch the Super Bowl on live television every year, but their experience of the big game has little in common with that of the growing number of ultra-wealthy people who spend tens of thousands of dollars to watch in person from the sidelines… [read more]
The UK has four of the world’s most Instagrammed parks
Looking to escape London for a wilderness fix? Hold off on booking that long-haul flight, because picture-perfect national parks might be closer than you think. According to a study released today, some of the most Instagram-worthy national parks in the world can be found right here in Blighty. That’s if the folks at Faraway Garden Furniture are to be believed. They totted up national park hashtags used on Insta to compile a list of the 20 most Instagrammed in the world… [read more]
World Wetlands Day 2020: Wetlands and biodiversity (2 February)
World Wetlands Day marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Today’s World Wetlands Day under the theme, ‘Wetlands and Biodiversity,’ is an opportunity to highlight the importance of wetland biodiversity conservation… [read more]
In Wuhan, luxury hotel feels haunted by virus outbreak
The receptionist’s seat is empty, the five-star hotel’s restaurant is no longer serving customers and staff flee at the sight of any guests. Welcome to the Marco Polo in Wuhan that is haunted by the spectre of the deadly novel coronavirus that has infected nearly 6,000 and originated in this central Chinese city. Wuhan and its 11 million residents – plus anyone who was visiting – are now cut off from the rest of the world, quarantined until the government in Beijing can get a handle on the outbreak… [read more]
We really enjoy hearing from our readers and would love to hear your views on any of these stories! Please click on the comments below and share your thoughts. Thank you.
Have a story you’d like to share? Please contact us for details.
Paul Johnson is Editor of A Luxury Travel Blog and has worked in the travel industry for more than 30 years. He is Winner of the Innovations in Travel ‘Best Travel Influencer’ Award from WIRED magazine. In addition to other awards, the blog has also been voted “one of the world’s best travel blogs” and “best for luxury” by The Daily Telegraph.
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9 Comments
The Coronavirus is certainly dominating the travel news. You have to wonder for how long it will be doing so. Another question could be whether it will lead to a redefinition of luxury travel. There are already signs that the hotel in Wuhan is changing what it offers trying to provide extra layers of precaution against infection. Could it be that as we look ahead the luxury segment will be protecting their guests and their own existence with more screening of guests’ health?
I did a river cruise last year where the management are obviously worried about infection taking hold of the ship. Whenever we returned to the ship after an excursion there was one of the ship’s officers checking that we used the hand sanitiser. It was like being back at primary school and having a teacher checking that you had washed your hands before lunch.
It’s so good that you carried the story on Wetlands Day. Nearly 50 years on from the Wetlands Conference in Iran it is worrying that the world’s wetlands are still so threatened. The more people are aware of Wetlands Day the better. It would be brilliant if A Luxury Travel Blog readers could share this story as much as possible.
I’ve got mixed feelings on the Super Bowl. Having all the celebs and high rollers there, splashing the cash, brings glamour to the game. Sure it’s good for the host city too.
Then you have to feel sorry for the average Kansas City Chiefs fan who turned up for home games during the regular season but couldn’t get a ticket for the Super Bowl.
It’s getting to be quite worrying now with how many have been infected by the Wuhan coronavirus. It’s logical to shut down Wuhan and suspend travel but it must be having a huge knock on effect to the travel industry and businesses in the area, let alone on an individual scale for people in that area. It’s sad when you read people from Wuhan that are in other countries at the moment aren’t allowed to go home. I did read that apparently a vaccine may have been created but it would still take a few months to get it tested fully and enough ready to be disseminated worldwide.
I’m not surprised the Lake District is on that list, very Instagrammable. Beautiful place.
There’s a great story popped up in the news feed on my home page about a British teacher in Wuhan who didn’t even know that he had the Coronavirus until he’d almost recovered and his doctor said that the test had come back positive. Going for a traditional Granny’s remedy he had successfully self-medicated with hot honey, lemon and whisky. He didn’t have to wait 6 months to get that mixture approved by NICE after clinical trials. Or maybe he should have?
That’s pretty sad to see a deserted hotel in Wuhan. I saw photos of empty streets and shut up shops. Hopefully things get under control before too long so things can go back to how they were, but at the moment it just seems to be getting worse.
I think these days we hear more about the music and half time performances, from the likes of Shakira and Jennifer Lopez this year and Lady Gaga previously, than you do the actual games. I’ve been in America when the Super Bowl was on and it was INSANE, so busy and so full of energy, but in a good way.
In 1984 Apple spent mega bucks on a one minute long television advert to run through the Super Bowl advert breaks.
Search on You Tube and you can still find film of a grainy dystopian world where one brave rebel smashes the screen where a Big Brother figure speaks.
Business legend has it that the advert increased sales for the Apple Macintosh Computer by in excess of 1,000% and that Apple could not keep up with demand.
The Coronavirus story is definitely bigger than I thought it was going to be. I’ve been traveling around Southeast Asia for the last few months, and it’s certainly disconcerting to see how much this has impacted tourism and travel. Here in Vietnam, there have been a few businesses that have refused Chinese travelers which make up a huge part of the tourism industry. Likewise in other countries in the region. I will say though there still seems to be a lot of Chinese tourists here still, and tourists from all over the world enjoying the beaches in Da Nang and Hoi An. It’s definitely a difficult time but I believe things will turn around and travelers will realize how lucky we all are to enjoy good health as we move about the world.
I haven’t read that one Grace. How curious. I wonder if he had a stronger immune system too though. Some getting this are developing pneumonia and that’s what’s proving fatal, so perhaps they haven’t had the same level of defences to begin with. Still, it’s somewhat reassuring to think someone can recover like that and without requiring any medications by the sound of it. Apart from his own concoction. I think that was all thanks to the whiskey personally. Good excuse as any to have a few.
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, these travel brands have suspended or altered service to China
In light of the grave concerns that the Wuhan novel coronavirus outbreak has raised—and the over 200 deaths of the contagious respiratory illness—the World Health Organization declared the virus a global emergency and the U.S. State Department has urged all Americans to not travel to mainland China… [read more]
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, these travel brands have suspended or altered service to China
In light of the grave concerns that the Wuhan novel coronavirus outbreak has raised—and the over 200 deaths of the contagious respiratory illness—the World Health Organization declared the virus a global emergency and the U.S. State Department has urged all Americans to not travel to mainland China… [read more]
What it’s like to go to the Super Bowl as an ultra-wealthy VIP
Nearly 100 million people watch the Super Bowl on live television every year, but their experience of the big game has little in common with that of the growing number of ultra-wealthy people who spend tens of thousands of dollars to watch in person from the sidelines… [read more]
The UK has four of the world’s most Instagrammed parks
Looking to escape London for a wilderness fix? Hold off on booking that long-haul flight, because picture-perfect national parks might be closer than you think. According to a study released today, some of the most Instagram-worthy national parks in the world can be found right here in Blighty. That’s if the folks at Faraway Garden Furniture are to be believed. They totted up national park hashtags used on Insta to compile a list of the 20 most Instagrammed in the world… [read more]
World Wetlands Day 2020: Wetlands and biodiversity (2 February)
World Wetlands Day marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Today’s World Wetlands Day under the theme, ‘Wetlands and Biodiversity,’ is an opportunity to highlight the importance of wetland biodiversity conservation… [read more]
In Wuhan, luxury hotel feels haunted by virus outbreak
The receptionist’s seat is empty, the five-star hotel’s restaurant is no longer serving customers and staff flee at the sight of any guests. Welcome to the Marco Polo in Wuhan that is haunted by the spectre of the deadly novel coronavirus that has infected nearly 6,000 and originated in this central Chinese city. Wuhan and its 11 million residents – plus anyone who was visiting – are now cut off from the rest of the world, quarantined until the government in Beijing can get a handle on the outbreak… [read more]
We really enjoy hearing from our readers and would love to hear your views on any of these stories! Please click on the comments below and share your thoughts. Thank you.
Have a story you’d like to share? Please contact us for details.
The Coronavirus is certainly dominating the travel news. You have to wonder for how long it will be doing so. Another question could be whether it will lead to a redefinition of luxury travel. There are already signs that the hotel in Wuhan is changing what it offers trying to provide extra layers of precaution against infection. Could it be that as we look ahead the luxury segment will be protecting their guests and their own existence with more screening of guests’ health?
I did a river cruise last year where the management are obviously worried about infection taking hold of the ship. Whenever we returned to the ship after an excursion there was one of the ship’s officers checking that we used the hand sanitiser. It was like being back at primary school and having a teacher checking that you had washed your hands before lunch.
It’s so good that you carried the story on Wetlands Day. Nearly 50 years on from the Wetlands Conference in Iran it is worrying that the world’s wetlands are still so threatened. The more people are aware of Wetlands Day the better. It would be brilliant if A Luxury Travel Blog readers could share this story as much as possible.
I’ve got mixed feelings on the Super Bowl. Having all the celebs and high rollers there, splashing the cash, brings glamour to the game. Sure it’s good for the host city too.
Then you have to feel sorry for the average Kansas City Chiefs fan who turned up for home games during the regular season but couldn’t get a ticket for the Super Bowl.
It’s getting to be quite worrying now with how many have been infected by the Wuhan coronavirus. It’s logical to shut down Wuhan and suspend travel but it must be having a huge knock on effect to the travel industry and businesses in the area, let alone on an individual scale for people in that area. It’s sad when you read people from Wuhan that are in other countries at the moment aren’t allowed to go home. I did read that apparently a vaccine may have been created but it would still take a few months to get it tested fully and enough ready to be disseminated worldwide.
I’m not surprised the Lake District is on that list, very Instagrammable. Beautiful place.
There’s a great story popped up in the news feed on my home page about a British teacher in Wuhan who didn’t even know that he had the Coronavirus until he’d almost recovered and his doctor said that the test had come back positive. Going for a traditional Granny’s remedy he had successfully self-medicated with hot honey, lemon and whisky. He didn’t have to wait 6 months to get that mixture approved by NICE after clinical trials. Or maybe he should have?
That’s pretty sad to see a deserted hotel in Wuhan. I saw photos of empty streets and shut up shops. Hopefully things get under control before too long so things can go back to how they were, but at the moment it just seems to be getting worse.
I think these days we hear more about the music and half time performances, from the likes of Shakira and Jennifer Lopez this year and Lady Gaga previously, than you do the actual games. I’ve been in America when the Super Bowl was on and it was INSANE, so busy and so full of energy, but in a good way.
Never underestimate the power of the Super Bowl.
In 1984 Apple spent mega bucks on a one minute long television advert to run through the Super Bowl advert breaks.
Search on You Tube and you can still find film of a grainy dystopian world where one brave rebel smashes the screen where a Big Brother figure speaks.
Business legend has it that the advert increased sales for the Apple Macintosh Computer by in excess of 1,000% and that Apple could not keep up with demand.
The Coronavirus story is definitely bigger than I thought it was going to be. I’ve been traveling around Southeast Asia for the last few months, and it’s certainly disconcerting to see how much this has impacted tourism and travel. Here in Vietnam, there have been a few businesses that have refused Chinese travelers which make up a huge part of the tourism industry. Likewise in other countries in the region. I will say though there still seems to be a lot of Chinese tourists here still, and tourists from all over the world enjoying the beaches in Da Nang and Hoi An. It’s definitely a difficult time but I believe things will turn around and travelers will realize how lucky we all are to enjoy good health as we move about the world.
I haven’t read that one Grace. How curious. I wonder if he had a stronger immune system too though. Some getting this are developing pneumonia and that’s what’s proving fatal, so perhaps they haven’t had the same level of defences to begin with. Still, it’s somewhat reassuring to think someone can recover like that and without requiring any medications by the sound of it. Apart from his own concoction. I think that was all thanks to the whiskey personally. Good excuse as any to have a few.