All roads don’t lead south

We have a habit in Ireland of only looking south or east when we consider holiday destinations. It’s partly because we associate such destinations in Mediterranean Europe with guaranteed sunshine. It’s also partly due to conditioning and assumptions — false assumptions as it turns out. We assume that it is only southern European destinations such as Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece and, to a lesser extent France, that hold the monopoly on good weather and whilst

The best fun you can have standing up!

2018 will go down as one of the best Irish summers ever — certainly the best one that I can recall in almost 60 years. Eight weeks of almost unbroken sunshine, warm temperatures and blue skies created feelings of ambivalence in travel people such as myself because the selfish hedonist in me wanted it to last for ever whereas my pragmatic side new that it wasn’t good for business — after all, our job is

WHERE TO GO IN 2018? — PART 3

‘Familiarity breeds contempt’, so the saying goes, and it is always a disappointment to me when people denigrate Spain as a holiday destination as it is still, in my opinion, one of the most amazing countries in the world and indeed that is one of the many reasons why it is still the most popular destination with Irish people. Ironically, the expression ‘Familiarity breeds contempt’ was never about places but about people — children in

Is anywhere safe anymore?

After the tragic events that took place last week in Barcelona, Cambrils and Turku, that surely must be a question that more and more people are asking themselves nowadays. We live in an increasingly dangerous world it would appear but according to academics such as Stephen Pinker in his 2011 bestseller ‘The Better Angels of our Nature’ the statistics would suggest otherwise. Indeed, if you look at the accompanying graphic to this week’s blog you’ll

The Pleasure Paradox

The pleasure paradox, also sometimes called the paradox of hedonism, refers to the practical difficulties encountered in the pursuit of pleasure. Unfortunately for the hedonist, constant pleasure-seeking may not yield the most actual pleasure or happiness in the long run—or even in the short run, when consciously pursuing pleasure interferes with experiencing it. At least so says Wikipedia. The subject of this week’s blog is the Amusement Park — that modern construct (both literally and metaphorically) beloved of holidaymakers

Timely Advice

    It’s that time of year again when most people’s minds turn to New Year resolutions, the next credit card statement and of course the inevitable where to go on this year’s holiday and, equally importantly — when to book it? Many people still mistakenly think that if you are flexible in when you can take your annual leave and are also a bit of a gambler then it is always worth your while

2016 is not the year to hold off booking your holiday arrangements!

It is part of the human condition to want to try and beat the system and the travel industry is no different in that respect. Every year, intending travellers tend to look into their respective crystal balls to find out when they should book their holiday arrangements. They reason (not unreasonably) that since commodities such as airline seats and hotel rooms are essentially perishable products, it makes more sense to leave making such arrangements until

The culinary landscape around the world is changing!

When we think of culinary excellence, we tend to think of places like New York, Barcelona, London, San Sebastian or Lyon. Countries like France, Spain and Italy have been — with much justification it must be said — lauded for centuries as representing the epitome of culinary art. In more recent years however, the centre of gravity has begun to move away from these traditional gastronomic capitals as tastes change; new processes have come into
safeness

Where should I go on my next holiday?

There are all sorts of reasons why people choose the destinations that they do. For some it’s simply price, for other’s weather is their primary concern. Some choose destinations based on their proximity whilst other travellers choose places based on their ‘safeness’. It is therefore interesting to note the results of the latest biannual report from the World Economic Forum which rates countries around the world based on a wide ranging set of metrics that

How cultured are you?

When people are asked why they travel abroad on holidays  they usually cite reasons such as weather (if you're Irish!), cuisine, history, scenery, people. The list is obviously longer and more nuanced than that but I think we would all agree that one of the single most important reasons why many people travel abroad is for a taste of that other country's culture and heritage. The Google dictionary defines the word 'culture' as 'The arts

The Top 10 Destinations in the World in 2013

Let's face it, we all love lists! Compilations of the 10 fastest this, or 10 most expensive or exclusive that appear to exert a magnetic draw on our collective curiosity that has to be satiated! I cam across the following list just today and what amuses me about it is that it claims to indicate the 10 top travel destinations in the world as voted for by Facebook users. How could that be when we're

Move out of your comfort zone in 2013

Carrying on from last weeks' blog in which I suggested that you combine one of the most typical new year resolutions (getting more exercise!) with that of choosing a destination ideal for walking or trekking, I would like to suggest that even if you don't want to get that energetic in 2013 that you at least take the opportunity to move a little bit outside of your comfort zone this year. This doesn't have to

The art of getting a quote that is both competitive in price and relevant to your needs starts with gathering all the right information about what you want to do (or think you want to do!).