Our weekly Hot or Not series, brings you some of the highs and lows in this week’s travel news headlines.
HOT, HOT, HOT!
1. Gwyneth Paltrow rocks up to FC’s Global Gathering
To say we’re somewhat jealous of all the agents that attended the annual Flight Centre Global Ball in Las Vegas over the weekend would be an understatement.
Why you ask? What could have been so special you wonder?
Well, for starters they had American actress, food writer and mother of two adorable children, Gwyneth Paltrow on stage as this year’s keynote speaker.
2. KLM works with aircraft AHEAD of their time
There’s no doubt that over the next 40 years the look and feel of aircraft will change, but exactly how much of our beloved planes will alter?
Some engineers predict travellers will soon fly in triple-decker aircraft that can carry up to 800 people; others say planes will have retractable wings; and others predict they will be designed to fly on runways raised above cities and urban streets.
There are also some designers that say lavatories onboard will be even smaller and others suggest there’ll be a new seat configuration, which sees the middle passenger in each row flying backwards.
3. US opens Cuban embassies
It’s good news for American travellers, but maybe not so good news for other Caribbean destinations as the US and Cuba take a step towards establishing a new commercial relationship.
The two governments announced overnight that they would reopen the US Embassy in Havana and the Cuban Embassy in Washington.
This comes after Cuba’s Tourism Ministry reported a 36 percent increase in visitors from the US alone during the first half of this year compared to the same period 2014.
American Airlines welcomed the reopening of embassies, saying it is an ‘important step’ towards reestablishing air services between the destinations.
“American Airlines has operated charter flights to Cuba for nearly 25 years and we stand ready to begin scheduled service when it’s allowed.”
Doug Parker, American Airlines Chairman and CEO
Travel between Cuba and the US is taking off in the cruise sector, with two cruise lines recently receiving permission to cruise from Florida to Cuba.
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NOT, NOT, NOT!
1. Abandoned airport could sell for $14,000
An abandoned airport in Spain is on the market and a group of investors are hoping to pick it up for $14,000, roughly 0.0009 percent of what it cost to build seven years ago.
A group of Asian and British investors from Tzaneen International put in the purchase bid for Ciudad Real Central Airport, but the offer was rejected because according to a commercial court, it was ‘too low’, News.com.au reported.
However, according to the investors, they were only ones bidding to purchase the abandoned gateway which is located roughly 200km south of Madrid.
In a statement from the group, they said they’d hoped to invest around $125 million into the abandoned site and turn it into a hub for Chinese imported gods.
But if they want the property that bad they’ll have to look at forking out a little extra, because the commercial court in Ciudad Real has set a $40 million euros minimum price for the airport, despite it having been abandoned for nearly three years.
2. Cathay Pacific’s costly loss
Cathay Pacific’s baggage handlers have misplaced one costly bag – more specifically a million dollar bag – which disappeared while being transferred in Hong Kong.
According to reports, the bag was lost on Friday night before the plane took off from Hong Kong International Airport.
Inside the suitcase there was NZ$1 million (or around AU$900,000).
3. Airline customers pranked on Facebook
Funny? Smart? Or just kind of sad? We’re still trying to decide after reading about these two pranksters that used fake Facebook accounts to fool airline and general retail customers.
The pair took to an airline’s page earlier this month to respond to customer complaints under the made up account ‘Customer Service’.
Targeting what they’ve dubbed as ‘petty complaints’, the comedians left cheeky responses to a number of passengers.
JURY IS OUT
Aussie surfer’s close call in South Africa
Aussie surfer, Mick Fanning, was left scared and emotional yesterday after coming face-to-face with a shark during the world tour final in South Africa yesterday.
The footage, which was aired live to millions of surf fans, saw Fanning knocked off his surfboard by a Great White Shark at Jeffreys Bay. He was forced to fight for his life before safety crew on jet skies fished him out of the water completely unharmed.
Opening up to media after the incident, Fanning said the shark was pulling him underwater by his leg rope, which thankfully broke, giving him enough time to punch the animal and swim away.
“I was just about to start paddling again and all of a sudden I had this instinct that something was behind me.”
Mick Fanning
“Then I started getting pulled under water and the thing came up and I was on my board and it was right there and I saw the whole thing, it was right there. I was getting dragged under by my leg rope.”
“I felt like it was dragging me underwater and then my leg rope broke so I started swimming and screaming … I just can’t believe it, I’m just tripping out.”
Following the incident, organisers decided to cancel the final and split the money between Fanning and his opponent fellow Australian Julian Wilson.