Have any photos from your travels that make you want to strike a pose? Upload them to Gadling’s Flickr pool, and we just might choose one for our Photo of the Day feature.
Most travelers are keen to mingle with locals while taking in the sights. Do both and save money by hiking along the fjords and fjells of Scandinavia and/or the soaring majesty of the Alps.
Don’t like the idea of lugging your gear over the mountains? No worries. Join one of the following hiking clubs that maintain hut-to-hut hiking trails and get discounts on accommodations. This lets you can pack light and spend each night in the company of local hiking enthusiasts:
Happy trails!
[Photo: Flickr | Geir Halvorsen]
The five happiest countries in the world have two things in common: their all pretty far north in Europe, and money generally isn’t a problem. Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands top the latest list of the world’s happiest nations, due in large part, it seems, to the fact that basic needs are covered by sufficient incomes. Spain, on the other hand, ranked seventeenth of 21 European countries … it must be the relaxed lifestyle.
Gallup, which conducted the study, found that money is good for a certain kind of bliss:
“Money is an object that many or most people desire and pursue during the majority of their waking hours,” researchers wrote in the report. “It would be surprising if success at this pursuit had no influence whatsoever when people were asked to evaluate their lives.”
Denmark boasted a per-capital GDP of $36,000 last year, putting it ahead of 196 of the 227 countries for which the CIA collects data (don’t go down the conspiracy road – it’s for the agency’s “World Factbook”).
Now, monetary satisfaction only addresses how happy people are about future prospects. When it comes to day-to-day smiles, having basic social needs is much more important, which is why Gallup found that Costa Rica finished sixth:
“Costa Rica ranks really high on social and psychological prosperity,” says [Jim] Harter [chief scientist at Gallup]. “It’s probably things systemic to the society that make people over time develop better relationships, and put more value on relationships. Daily positive feelings rank really high there.”
So, there are two keys to happiness: being rich and being loved. How do you measure up?
[photo by dotbenjamin via Flickr]
Do you get frustrated when you walk into an airport? Even before you get there? On good days, it’s a painful experience, with long lines, the security gauntlet and procedures (which may or may not be appropriate) that are guaranteed to annoy. It should come as no surprise that some are better than others. While the hope for a headache-free flight may not change your vacation plans, knowing that you’ll pass though one may take the edge off a bit.
The Air Transport Research Society has put out a list of the world’s most efficient airports, large and small, in the top three regions for travel: North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe. The rankings were based on a wide range of statistic, including “traffic data, on-time statistics, financial reports and passenger throughput.”
According to the ATRS, the five airports least likely to drive you nuts (by region) are:
So, which one is the best in the world? The ATRS gives that distinction to Atlanta, which is tops for traffic and has solid financial management. Seoul-Gimpo, according to the study, has made a “remarkable turnaround, and Oslo knocked Copenhagen out of the winner’s circle that it had owned for several years.
[photo by Franco Folini via Flickr]
When 52 year old Henrik Ulven ordered a “fresh made premium sandwich” on his Ryanair flight, he fully expected to receive just that. Instead, he described the food as inedible and “tasting like rubber” – so asked a flight attendant for something different.
According to Ulven, his request did not go down too well, and the flight attendant told him that if he didn’t stop complaining, she’d report him to the authorities.
Ulven thought she was kidding, but upon landing at Norway’s Rygge airport, local police boarded the plane and escorted him off. According to the police, he had given the cabin crew “a mouthful.”
So there you have it – if you fly Ryanair, you’ll eat what you are given, keep your mouth shut and refrain from complaining. Obviously there are always two sides to a story, but to have one of your customers arrested because he did not approve of the quality of your food takes “low cost carrier” to a whole new level.
[Image from: Corbis]