It’s been a number of years since I went to Mark Warner resort, having travelled to Neilson and Club Med resorts more recently. Mark Warner was a favourite when James was young, and of course the hotels and destinations in which they operate have long since changed. Therefore, it was nice to be invited, along […]

Explora Journeys is preparing to take its luxury travel experience from the ocean to Europe’s rivers, with the brand signing a Letter of Intent with Dutch shipbuilder Den Breejen Shipyard for the construction of its first river ships. Since launching, Explora Journeys has set out to offer a different take on ocean travel, built around […]

Get ready to pack your bags and explore even more of Europe with easyJet’s exciting new routes for Summer 2027! Whether you’re dreaming of sipping espresso in the vibrant streets of Milan, soaking up the Mediterranean sun in Montpellier, or discovering the historic charm of Thessaloniki, your next unforgettable adventure is just a flight away. […]

Although it’s later than usual, we have a 2027 Formula 1 calendar with many of the favourites now available to book, possibly as part of a larger holiday (and yes, a few make for a great holiday). We might not know about the Middle East year yet for later this season, so we’ll have to […]

The advantage the Caribbean has over Mauritius and the Maldives, is the number of flights it has to a number of different islands, that apart from the slightly shorter flying time (depending on the island you’re flying to). Virgin Atlantic makes this easy from Heathrow. Barbados is served daily, and from there the Caribbean begins […]

With its calm, turquoise waters and powder-soft beaches, Barbados’ west coast has long been one of the Caribbean’s most coveted escapes. Fringed by swaying palms and home to some of the island’s finest luxury hotels, this is where effortless beach days unfold from sunrise swims to spectacular sunsets, with the gentle Caribbean Sea creating the […]

Dramatic, lush and impossibly beautiful, Saint Lucia is an island that captivates from the moment you arrive. Rising from the Caribbean Sea, the iconic Pitons frame a landscape of emerald rainforests, volcanic peaks and secluded golden beaches, creating one of the region’s most breathtaking settings. Whether you’re seeking adventure or complete relaxation, every day brings […]

Greece, Italy and Portugal are among nine European countries reportedly being given flexibility to delay full enforcement of the EU’s Entry-Exit System (EES) while the technology and border-processing systems are brought up to standard. The EES applies to UK travellers because, since Brexit, the UK is treated as a non-EU country for border purposes. It […]

The Sani & Ikos Group Autumn Offers are now open, with exclusive early-access privileges for the Season 2027 calendar. From 16th September to 1st November, step ahead of the crowd to secure the Mediterranean’s most coveted suites, private villas, and peak-season dates, all while enjoying exceptional privileges. Up to 15% Off Elevate your escape with […]

Last Thursday, we headed to The Soho Hotel in London for an evening with Caribtours, one of our long-standing Preferred Partners. It was a great opportunity to catch up with the team, hear what’s new and revisit some of the hotels we know and love. From GoldenEye in Jamaica and Silversands Grand Anse in Grenada […]

More and more of us want to travel long haul in more comfort, and for those who can’t stretch all the way up to a lie-flat seat in business class, Emirates could have just shaken up the Premium Economy market with a brand new seat on their upcoming Airbus A350 aircraft. It will introduce the […]

American Airlines is continuing to expand its international network for summer 2027, announcing seven new international routes and three new destinations. The new routes will connect the US with Europe and Asia, with additional services to Amsterdam, Barcelona, London, Nice and Tokyo. All seven new routes will operate daily, giving travellers more choice when planning […]

We’ve been hearing about for well over a year, but today we got a glimpse at what JetBlue is calling ‘BlueFirst’, its brand new domestic First Class cabin. Arriving later this year, BlueFirst will sit between Even More (extra legroom), and Mint which will remain the airline’s premium lie-flat service which can be found on […]

This winter is expected to bring a historically strong El Niño event, and that’s going to have an impact to many of the places we enjoy travelling to, both later this year and all the way through to next summer. It’s also likely to mean that we’re going to have a wetter winter, and therefore […]

Discover a more spacious way to experience the world at sea with Explora Journeys’ An Invitation to the Ocean offer. Available on selected journeys from September 2026 to March 2027, this special offer includes Penthouse and Ocean Suite Guarantee fares, with savings of up to £4,000 per suite when booked by 29 September 2026. Choose […]

JetBlue has opened its second BlueHouse lounge, bringing its distinctive flair on premium airport hospitality to Boston. Located in Terminal C, the new lounge opened today (27 August 2026) and follows the success of the first BlueHouse at New York JFK, recently named the Best Airport Lounge in Newsweek’s 2026 Readers’ Choice Awards. Designed to […]

United Airlines is planning its biggest international expansion to date for summer 2027, adding 10 new international cities to its global network, alongside four additional routes to destinations it already serves. The new destinations span across Europe and Asia, with United particularly strengthening its presence in Southern Europe. Eight of the ten new cities will […]

Explora Journeys has announced a change to its Winter 2027/28 sailing programme, with EXPLORA V being redeployed to the Mediterranean and EXPLORA I moving to South America, having previously been on sale for the Middle East.  The decision has been made well in advance, giving guests plenty of time to make alternative arrangements and plan […]

We were delighted to host Advantage Travel Partnership CEO Julia Lo Bue-Said, for a TV interview with ITV News focusing on the wildfires across southern Europe and the impact it has on imminent travel, and what it may mean for travelling in the future. In the interview, which aired on Tuesday, Julia spoke about the […]

As part of the work we’re doing, as a founding member of the Responsible Travel Advisor Collective, there are a number of different areas that it would be beneficial for the industry to have a common stance on. One of these is animal welfare. It was three years ago that parliament introduced the ‘Animals (Low-Welfare […]

Explora Journeys launched its latest ship, Explora III in Italy this week, marking an important milestone in the ‘cruise line’s’ growth plans. Explora Journeys is a ‘luxury cruise line’ for people who don’t do cruises, essentially. Their ships feel and act more like upmarket hotels rather than a traditional cruise – there are no sail-away […]

We’re delighted that we’ve been shortlisted for the ‘Top Luxury Responsible Travel Agency’ award at this year’s TTG Media Top 20 Luxury Travel Agency Awards. We won the inaugural award last year, much to our surprise, and we’re really pleased that we’re ‘in the running’ for a second consecutive year. Whilst we don’t see ourselves […]

easyJet is starting a brand new service to Prishtina this December from Luton, just for the Christmas period, with three flights a week, making it really flexible for a pre-Christmas city break. December is one of the most atmospheric times to discover Prishtina, as Kosovo’s youthful capital embraces the festive season. Christmas lights brighten the […]

Earlier in the year, I was invited on two ‘luxury’ train journeys. The first was the British Pullman, which I went around the Kent countryside on a couple of months ago, with an excellent ‘murder mystery’ themed lunch.   The second, by invitation of Audley Travel, and their agent member’s club Kindred, was to travel […]

If there was ever such a thing, easyJet would be our ‘home’ airline. It’s the airline we fly the most, and the airline we recommend when flying short haul, for its general punctuality, dependability and cheerful service – although many of you know that hasn’t always been the case. Our ‘home’ airport, Luton, was easyJet’s […]

I’m absolutely delighted to say that I’ve been nominated for the ‘Champion of Change’ award at this year’s ATAS (Association of Adventure and Touring Suppliers) Awards, which are due to take place in September. Unlike many of the awards for agents in the travel industry, it wasn’t self-nominating, so someone has nominated me, which is […]

The FCDO (UK Foreign Office) has relaxed the travel advice for the destinations on the Arabian Gulf, including the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia – which allows us to once again travel through the region as normal.   Bahrain * The FCDO no longer advises against all but essential travel. * There are now […]

Yesterday, I was invited to attend the UK Outbound Travel Group’s first summer reception at the House of Commons. The group was set up during the pandemic as a vehicle for highlighting the specific needs of the outbound travel industry and the economic benefit that travel agencies and tour operators have across the country. The […]

So, the news is out there. The ‘Responsible Travel Advisor Collective’ has been born, uniting some of the best travel advisors in the country who specialise in selling responsible travel. This has been somewhat of a passion project for me for the last couple of years, because although we have done a huge amount of […]

Ryanair is expanding it’s Luton to Venice service for the winter the season. Not only will there be seven flights a week, with two on a Sunday – but it’s being switched from Treviso airport to the main Marco Polo airport by the lagoon, and much easier to get into the centre of Venice. This […]

Last night, the UK government outlined a number of different contingency plans aimed at limiting the potential travel disruption caused by global uncertainty over the Middle East. This really is a case of IF there are any such disruptions, not that there will be. There are no immediate signs of fuel supply problems, and a […]

Last week, our friend and colleague Eleni Skarveli, the director of the Greek National Tourism Office, announced that Greece was going to suspend taking the biometrics of all British passport holders when entering the country. As part of the new European Entry/Exit System, the European Union and countries within the Schengen Zone (which includes Norway, […]

easyJet is linking one of our favourite European destinations from Luton this winter, the wonderful country of Slovenia. A new three-weekly service will link our local airport with its capital, Ljubljana, from October, just in time for the winter ski season. Yes, the slopes are just over an hour away – the most famous being […]

Jet2 is taking on easyJet at Stansted (and to an extent the Eurostar), with another city break destination from its largest base in the south east – Paris. At four times a week, it’s ideal for a weekend city break, or maybe even a trip over to Eurodisney, which isn’t too far from Charles de […]

Well, that’s the end of our cruise experiences for this year, rounding off the year in style with Jackie’s mini-cruise with Crystal Cruises, and Ashley’s ship visit on Ambassador’s new Renaissance, based in the Caribbean for the winter months. You may have noticed over the last couple of years, we have spent a lot of […]

If anything, the last couple of weeks have shown just how much we rely on the Middle East, not just for oil and gas, but as an integral part of the world’s connectivity. In years gone past, it was familiar to travel to Australia and New Zealand using one of the large Far Eastern hubs, […]

As you know, we have been extremely supportive of our friend Tony Flanagan’s (known to some as Tony Cannoli) new venture, Magari Tours. These are highly immersive adventures into the very heart of Italy, designed for small groups to enjoy the best that each region has to offer, whether that’s Lombardy, Tuscany, Umbria, Puglia or […]

Although it may seem a long way off, airlines are already planning for next winter. This, combined with the airline not currently flying to the Middle East has led to an opportunity to launch a much wider change to the winter schedule, with the largest changes we have seen in recent years – both with […]

Across many Mediterranean countries, local communities face ongoing challenges, particularly when it comes to caring for stray and abandoned animals. In countries such as Portugal, dedicated volunteers and small charities work tirelessly to protect animals. Over the past 12 months, I have become a volunteer and fundraiser for a local animal rescue charity, O’ Jardim […]

Due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, flights to the region remain disrupted with rolling cancellations. Our thoughts are with all those impacted on the ground and around the world. We have been in contact over the weekend with all our clients whose travel includes travelling through one of the Middle Eastern hubs, […]

As everyone will know, when we left the European Union in January 2020, the process for entering and exiting has changed. Since 2020, every time we have travelled to a Schengen country, our passport has been stamped in and out, and for some who travel very frequently to the continent, this has essentially meant running […]

TravelTime World 254 High Street, Berkhamsted Between 11am and 3pm Join us and Scenic and Emerald Cruises for a one-off special ‘Meet The Expert’ open day at our offices next month. We’ll be joined by our friend and Scenic expert Danny Joel, on hand to talk about anything relating to cruise, expedition of small-ship yacht […]

Earlier than ever, Magari Tours has released its collection of immersive and experiential tours for 2027, which take us up to November 2027. A highlight of the new collection is the new Sardinia: Real and Rustic, similar in nature to the Heart and Soul of Sicily – staying in three different locations over seven nights. […]