On the piste in Suffolk: Snoasis gets the green light, kind of

May 9, 2008

The Metro reports today that Europe's biggest indoor ski slope Snoasis has got the go-ahead 'as long as problems with its environmental impact are sorted out'.

Hmm, still some way to go then. In the meantime, here is a picture of what it might look like.

snoasis.JPG

The forums on the Snoasis site are very quiet, which is odd considering the amount of noise the anti-Snoasis protestors are making.

Martin Couzins, online editor

Ghent tips and photos: three of the city's best bars

So you're in Ghent. You'll be needing some of that world-famous Belgian beer, but where's the best place to drink it? This is far from exhaustive, but I uncovered a couple of gems on my recent jaunt:

Dulle Griet

On Vrijdagmarkt. Dulle Griet claims to offer 250 beers - and while we didn't count 'em, the menu was very extensive. And delicious.

It speciality is 'Kwak Max', which is a large Kwak served in a glass so desirable that customers are asked to leave a shoe as a deposit. I didn't get a picture of it, but found one on flickr:

Dulle Griet, Gent

Mosquito Coast

On Hoogport. A travel-themed joint with a guide book library, souvenirs dotted about the place, a globe-trotting menu, maps in the toilets and even a branch of travel agency Connections out front. Get a seat on the sun terrace overlooking the beer garden.

Mosquito Coast, Ghent

Mosquito Coast, Ghent

Hot Club de Gand

A small, rootsy music venue down an alley off Groentenmarkt. There's a small courtyard out front and another room upstairs. We turned up just before midnight to find three young people doing remarkable things with a piano, double bass and drum kit.

Hot Club de Gand

Here are all three bars on a Google Map...


View Larger Map

Nathan Midgley, web producer

Video: Soap stars reveal best and worst holiday destinations

Travel Weekly's Flora Ioannou was in Ibiza at the the annual Pirates Charity Premiere which raised over €100,000 for Great Ormond Street Hospital.

While there, Flora asked some of the British soap stars - Tom Chambers, Rebecca Grant, Gaynor Faye, Linda Robson, Charlie Condou and Sue Cleaver - about their favourite and least favourite holiday destinations.

Martin Couzins, online editor

Video: Haggling in Morocco

Following on from the news Cadogan Holidays is offering customers haggling lessons, we decided to cast around for examples of haggling.

Here we have a haggle over shoes. I had a similar experience in Marrakech a few years ago, which was remarkably similar to this . . .

Martin Couzins, online editor

Belgium photos: gadgets at Brussels-Midi station, Graslei in Ghent

May 8, 2008

I passed through Brussels on the way to Ghent over the weekend and snapped these pics:

Self Supermarket, Brussels Midi station

A large-scale vending machine called 'Self Supermarket'. One of our party observed that it should have been called 'Roboshop'.

Television listening point, Brussels Midi station

A television with isolated listening points. You can't hear a thing unless you stand on the orange spot.

Graslei, Ghent, Belgium

...and this is Graslei, in the heart of Ghent itself. There are more Ghent pics in my Travel Weekly photo gallery.

(If you want to help us test the photo galleries by setting up one of your own, email jackie.david@rbi.co.uk.)

Nathan Midgley, web producer

Cadogan Holidays offers travellers haggling classes

No more headaches for travellers to Morocco who fancy some souk shopping.

Cadogan Holidays is offering travellers a unique addition to its Morocco Souks tour – haggling classes.

Its Marrakesh tour guides will run through the essentials of haggling with market traders and offer top tips on shopping hotspots, handicrafts and how to get the best deals.

Martin Couzins, online editor

Willie Walsh takes the rap for Heathrow T5

May 7, 2008

BA's chief exec has told the House of Commons transport select committee that with hindsight he would not have moved into T5 when he did. TW's Ian Taylor was at the committee and here is his story.

Martin Couzins, online editor

Streamed TV: Transport select committee on T5 fiasco

Watch the House of Commons transport select committee grill BAA and BA on the Heathrow Terminal 5 fiasco live. BAA's Coiln Matthews and Nigel Rudd are currently being quizzed and BA's Willie Walsh is up at 4pm.

Watch the fun here.

Martin Couzins, online editor

Video: Behind the scenes on Independence of the Seas

Not often you get to see behind the scenes on a cruise ship but TW was shown the engine room and galleyon Royal Caribbean's Independence of the Seas. Here we have the engine room footage - six enormous diesel engines are used to power the ship (not all at the same time).

When we dropped in one engine was operating and the heat and noise was quite something.

Martin Couzins, online editor

Sun awareness week

This week is Sun Awareness Week - a part of the British Association of Dermatologists' campaign to raise awareness of skin cancer.

Good timing - this is the week in which the UK is getting warmer (it feels like summer - hoorah)and the press is full of tips on getting in shape for the beach.

Add to this the fact that half of Brits are unable to recognise changes to skin that could indicate cancer and that every four hours someone in the UK dies of skin cancer and you have some compelling reasons to think about the effects of tanning.

And here is a publicity stunt picture for a self-tanning product taken at St Pancras station to mark the start of Sun Awareness Week.

sun%20awareness.JPG

Martin Couzins, online editor

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Nathan Midgley
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Travel Weekly

Martin Couzins
Online editor
Travel Weekly

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