Who are the world’s most obnoxious tourists? Hint: it’s not the Americans

by Anna Brones on

Monolingual, white tennis shoes, an unbecoming outfit and an ugly fanny pack: my stereotypical image of an American tourist. But apparently Americans don’t win the number one spot for the world’s most obnoxious tourists. In Europe, that special place is held for the French, reports Time Magazine.

According to an international survey conducted for Expedia.fr, the French are in fact considered to be overall the worst of the worst of tourists. Employees in 4,000 hotels in Germany, the U.K., Italy, France, Canada and the U.S. were asked to rank their clients on different levels ranging from willingness to speak the local language to discretion and elegance, and French travelers did not fare well.

France fell behind India and China as providing the world with the worst tourists. And the stereotypically obnoxious American tourist? Out of 21 countries, with the most liked at the top, the US got an impressive 11th place. Why is that? Among other reasons, despite language faults, Americans get the top spot for trying to speak local languages the most. Quelle surprise.

Travel + Leisure: Bangkok is the world’s best city in 2008

by Jeffrey White on

It’s that time of year when Travel + Leisure unveils its much hyped “world’s best” list of cities, hotels, islands, cruise lines and more.

The poll, in its 13th year, is generated by T+L readers worldwide, who vote online for their favorites.

The big news in this year’s survey is that Bangkok edged out last year’s winner for world’s best city, Florence, which dropped down to No. 5.

T+L‘s 10 best cities in the world are:

  1. Bangkok
  2. Buenos Aires
  3. Cape Town
  4. Sydney
  5. Florence
  6. Cuzco (Peru)
  7. Rome
  8. New York
  9. Istanbul
  10. San Francisco

Other highlights from T+L‘s world’s best survey, as summarized by Reuters, include:

  • Best hotel: Singita Sabi Sand, South Africa
  • Best island: Galapagos
  • Best large cruise line: Crystal Cruises
  • Best small cruise line: Silversea Cruises
  • Best international airline: Singapore Airlines
  • Best domestic airline: Virgin America
  • Best rental car agency: Hertz

Check out all the world’s best here.

EU puts ban on misleading airline advertising

by Anna Brones on

While I was living in France a few years ago I remember that Ryan Air was in the throngs of becoming all the rage. The novelty of tickets that cost a mere euro was exciting and soon after low cost airlines began popping up all over the place. Unfortunately — as many travelers will attest too — an airline ticket rarely costs less than an espresso. Yes, the advertised fare may be low, but once you throw in all those fees and taxes the full price of your ticket can soon jump to triple digits.

In an attempt to be more fair to travelers, the European Parliament has agreed to ban airlines from advertising fares that don’t include the necessary fees and taxes. The new regulation — not officially voted on but approved as a “common position” of the assembly — is set to take effect across the European Union at the end of the year. What does it mean? The bold figures that you see advertised by airlines will be the exact price you can expect to pay; no pesky hidden fees.

I can only wonder whether here in the US, with all the new baggage fees and beyond, we will go the same route?

Thanks Moody75!

Denmark first in yet another survey of the world’s happiest countries

by Jeffrey White on

Back in April, Catherine posted about Denmark being ranked the world’s happiest country by the University of Leicester in England, which published its so-called Map of World Happiness.

Well, just in case you doubted that institution’s findings, another study, this one released last week by the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, has also ranked Danes No. 1 in terms of happiness and life satisfaction.

The Michigan study’s overall conclusion: Happiness is on the rise worldwide.

It’s perhaps no surprise that Denmark tops the list, since it is a perennial favorite in any survey of this ilk. There is just something about life in that Scandinavian country that is apparently better than anywhere else. But a few other countries in the top 10 do surprise…at least me: Puerto Rico. Colombia. Northern Ireland.

The 10 happiest countries in the world:

  1. Denmark
  2. Puerto Rico
  3. Colombia
  4. Iceland
  5. N. Ireland
  6. Ireland
  7. Switzerland
  8. Netherlands
  9. Canada
  10. Austria

The U.S. comes in 16th on the list, not too shabby given the sad recent years we’ve lived through.

This is the 26th edition of the U of M study, which annually surveys around 350,000 people worldwide, asking them, well, just how happy they feel.

The 10 unhappiest countries in the world:

  1. Zimbabwe
  2. Armenia
  3. Moldova
  4. Belarus
  5. Ukraine
  6. Albania
  7. Iraq
  8. Bulgaria
  9. Georgia
  10. Russia

Not many surprises there.

Check out the complete U of M rankings here.

Collapsed lung, ruptured spleen, broken ribs and other injuries of bull-runners

by Iva Skoch on

As Abha already mentioned in one of her posts, the 9-day bull-running festival in Pamplona, Northern Spain, started today.

BBC reports that today’s run only took 4 minutes and claimed thirteen injured people. Although the injuries were mostly cuts and bruises suffered by people falling over or getting trampled by one of the six bulls set loose, some more serious injuries were reported.

One man suffered a collapsed lung, ruptured spleen and broken ribs. Another, 23-year old man from Ireland, died after falling from the city’s walls. (This actually happened yesterday and had nothing to do with being chased by the bulls though.)

Here is how the festival works. “Up to six bulls and a number of steers are released at 8 a.m. from a pen into a closed-off street. They then run 825m (2,700ft) to the bullring, where they face matadors later in the day. Ahead of them are the runners, who try to stay as close to the bulls as possible without falling or being gored,” BBC reports.

Today, the sprint through the cobbled streets apparently turned chaotic after the pack bulls became separated after ploughing into a crowd of people. Ouch.

It is quite amazing that “only” 14 people have been killed during the festival since record-keeping began in 1924.