CAA data shows flights departed more than 23 minutes late last year, with Birmingham and Manchester second and third-worst
London Gatwick is the UK’s worst airport for flight delays, official figures showed, with air traffic control issues blamed for continuing disruption.
In 2024, flights departed on average more than 23 minutes late from Britain’s second-biggest airport, according to data from the Civil Aviation Authority.
Continue reading...Laurie Lee and Robert Graves among ‘English-speaking Quixotes’ in new book celebrating literary love for all things Spanish
Almost 200 years ago, the pioneering British travel writer Richard Ford offered an observation that has been happily ignored by the legions of authors who have traipsed in his dusty footsteps across Spain, toting notebooks, the odd violin or Bible, and, of course, their own particular prejudices.
“Nothing causes more pain to Spaniards”, Ford noted in his 1845 Handbook for Travellers in Spain, “than to see volume after volume written by foreigners about their country.”
Continue reading...Number of Brits crossing Atlantic down 14.3% from 2024 – and the travel industry fears decline could continue
After backpacker Rebecca Burke was arrested and locked up for nearly three weeks by US immigration officials in February, she started urging people not to travel to America.
Britons seem to have listened: UK residents visiting the US were down 14.3% in March compared with the same month in 2024, official figures show.
Continue reading...HBO renewed Mike White’s hit drama before third season aired and rumours abound about luxury settings and return of stars
You’ve only just got home from a holiday when you start planning the next one. So it is with the super-rich spa satire The White Lotus. The gunsmoke is still clearing from the finale of the third season but speculation is rife about where the HBO hit will head next.
This week’s climax of Mike White’s drama might have divided critics, but it was still group chat-dominating, column inch-gobbling TV, notching its highest ratings yet. The show was renewed for a fourth trip before the third had even aired, with White reportedly pitching HBO execs his next idea while still filming in Koh Samui. Buzz is now building about the next chapter, expected on our screens in late 2026.
Continue reading...The value of one Australian dollar dropped to a low of 59.64 US cents, its lowest point since April 2020
Consumers and travellers will face higher prices after the Australian dollar fell to Covid-era lows, as markets reel from Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariff plan.
Fears of a global recession dragged the Australian dollar sharply lower on Monday against the country’s major trade partners and to its lowest point against the Euro, pound and US dollar since 2020.
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Continue reading...Replica of world-famous train aimed at reviving glamour of the classic version makes debut journey from Rome
A replica of the world-famous Orient Express made its debut journey from Rome on Friday, transporting well-heeled passengers into the heart of Tuscany’s wine region.
La Dolce Vita Orient Express, the first Italian-made luxury train, is aimed at reviving the glamour of the classic version as well as the romanticised notion of Italy’s dolce vita, or “sweet life”, all the while promoting slow tourism.
Continue reading...LSPH chief executive announces ‘groundbreaking proposal’ intended to grow international rail travel from the UK
Cross-Channel train services serving new destinations will be cheaper to run under a scheme to grow international rail travel from the UK.
London St Pancras Highspeed (LSPH), which owns and operates the railway and stations from the capital to the Channel tunnel, said it would slash charges for operators planning new routes.
Continue reading...Concerns about cable theft raised with airport before substation fire but Heathrow chief defends handling of incident
Airlines warned Heathrow about risks to its power supply days before the airport was shut down by a substation fire, a Commons committee has been told.
Heathrow’s chief executive, Thomas Woldbye, apologised for the disruption, which affected more than 200,000 passengers on Friday 21 March, but defended the decision to close as he said staying open was potentially “disastrous”.
Continue reading...Government says lessons need to be learned after the substation fire that caused chaos for 300,000 passengers
The government has launched an urgent investigation into the power shutdown that crippled Heathrow airport, with experts warning it was a “wake-up call” about vulnerabilities in the nation’s critical infrastructure.
The energy secretary, Ed Miliband, has commissioned the independent National Energy System Operator (Neso) to investigate the incident and assess the UK’s energy resilience. The regulator Ofgem warned it would “not hesitate” to take action if there were any breaches of standards or licence obligations.
Continue reading...Westerners increasingly hesitant to travel to US out of fear of arrests and detentions as Trump enforces crackdown
A string of high-profile arrests and detentions of travellers is likely to cause a major downturn in tourism to the US, with latest figures already showing a serious drop-off, tourist experts said.
Several western travellers have recently been rejected at the US border on increasingly flimsy grounds under Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, some of them shackled and held in detention centers in poor conditions for weeks.
Continue reading...Travel advice updated amid reports of ordeals at US border after Trump said country would only recognise two genders
Denmark and Finland have updated their US travel advice for transgender people, joining the handful of European countries that have sought to caution US-bound travellers in recent weeks as reports emerge of ordeals at the American border.
Denmark said this week it had begun advising transgender travellers to contact the US embassy in Copenhagen before departure to ensure there would be no issues with travel documents.
Continue reading...Oakwood Theme Park in Pembrokeshire shut due to rising costs and declining visitor numbers, owner says
The largest theme park in Wales has closed with immediate effect after nearly 40 years, its owner has announced.
Oakwood Theme Park, in Pembrokeshire, west Wales, announced on Tuesday that it will shut.
Continue reading...Partnership comes as London station looks at ways to almost triple passenger numbers
St Pancras railway station in London and the Channel tunnel operator have agreed to work together to open up more trains from Britain to France, and routes to Germany and Switzerland.
The agreement is the latest sign of growing momentum for new passenger rail links from England across the Channel, after Great Britain’s only international station announced plans to triple the number of people who can travel through every hour.
Continue reading...The United States is unprepared for the burdens placed on its air travel system when the country hosts the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, according to a report released on Wednesday.
The US Travel Association, a non-profit that represents the travel industry, commissioned a report written by former government officials and industry experts. The report raises concerns about visas, creaking infrastructure and poor security technology.
Continue reading...Thailand and Vietnam now often seen as ‘more cost-effective’ than visiting traditional European favourites
Holiday companies are reporting a surge in demand for long-haul breaks amid claims that the likes of Thailand and Vietnam are now often “more cost-effective” than visiting traditional European favourites.
On Tuesday, the travel brand Kuoni said long-haul bookings for the year ahead were 14% higher than at the same point in 2024.
Continue reading...Fire broke out on Valentine’s Day, partially destroying London venue that had been due to host Bafta party
A fire that tore through a luxury London hotel popular with celebrities was caused by wood falling from a pizza oven.
The Chiltern Firehouse, which had been due to host a post-Bafta film awards party on Sunday evening, was partially destroyed by the fire on Friday
Continue reading...A £750 mai tai previously earned the city centre bar the title of world’s most expensive cocktail
Spending a grand on an unforgettable experience might not feel extreme for people keen to shake up their routines. But what if it doesn’t involve falling through the skies, or even going outside at all?
“A life-changing experience” is the promise of one Belfast hotel’s £1,000-pound cocktail, launched as part of a new drinks menu.
Continue reading...New scheme, aimed at reducing platform dashes, will see schedules deleted from boards three minutes before departure
Rail bosses have been accused of patronising passengers by hiding trains’ departure information minutes before they are due to leave in a bid to tackle last-moment platform dashes.
Under the scheme, which is being trialled at King’s Cross, the final call for long-distance trains will be made four minutes before departure. Train details will be deleted from departure boards three minutes before they leave.
Continue reading...The chancellor is under fire after a study cited as evidence for expanding the terminal to boost the UK’s economic growth was ordered by Heathrow itself
Rachel Reeves was facing criticism on Saturday night as it was confirmed that a report she cited as evidence that a third runway at Heathrow would boost the UK economy was commissioned by the airport itself.
Experts and green groups also challenged Reeves’s view that advances in the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) had been a “gamechanger” that would substantially limit the environmental damage of flying, saying the claims were overblown and did not stand up to scrutiny.
Continue reading...Overseas tourists are blocking roads or walking onto railway tracks in Otaru to capture its views, stoking local resentment and complaints of overtourism
Authorities in Japan are stepping up measures to deter crowds of overseas visitors from taking risks in their quest for the perfect photo, in another attempt to address the negative impact of a record surge in inbound tourism.
Tourism officials in Otaru, a small city in the northernmost main island of Hokkaido, deployed security guards this week to prevent people congregating on Funami-za, a steep street and the perfect spot for photos of the port and sea in the distance.
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