The Busiest Labor Day Destinations

by Justin Glow on

Where is everyone traveling to this Labor Day? Orbitz.com has compiled a list of the 10 busiest Labor Day destinations based on booking trends. Here’s what they found:

  • Busiest U.S. airport: Chicago O’Hare (Last year: No. 3)
  • Busiest International Airport: London Heathrow (Last year: No. 2)
  • Busiest U.S. City: New York, NY (No. 2: Chicago)
  • Busiest International City: London (No. 2: San Juan, Puerto Rico)

If you plan on traveling through O’Hare this weekend, give yourself plenty of time before your flight to battle the crowds. It may not be too bad, however, because for the third year in a row, O’Hare was ranked by Global Traveler as the best airport [PDF] in North America. I was there briefly this year and was really impressed at the speed in which I made it through security. Plus it’s so damned big, I can’t imagine it ever filling up beyond capacity!

Safe traveling this weekend!

[via]

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Best Underground Transit In the World Is…

by Iva Skoch on

…apparently London’s, but this is a list compiled by Virgin, a British company, so go figure. Anyone who has ever spent more than two seconds in London’s tube during rush hour must question their sanity.

Don’t get me wrong, I think London has a great and extensive subway system but during rush hour it is a nightmare – packed and no air-con. Plus, it costs 4GBP (about $8) for a single ride, unless you buy an Oyster Card, their version of a pass which is well-worth it but still very expensive.

Anyway, here is Virgin’s Top 11 Underground Transit Systems in the World:

  1. London
  2. Paris
  3. Moscow
  4. Madrid
  5. Tokyo
  6. Seoul
  7. New York
  8. Montreal
  9. Beijing
  10. Hong-Kong
  11. Sao Paulo, Brazil

Out of all of these, my vote goes to the Paris and Hong-Kong subway systems. New York’s is relatively cheap ($2) and easy to navigate, but geez, it looks, smells and operates like something from a third world country!

Flood Update From the UK

by Iva Skoch on

It appears that the flood is spreading closer to London. Here is a map of the currently affected areas. Today, some 250 people were evacuated from Oxford.

Friends in the UK tell me that the weather in London has been better in the last few days, so hopefully the Thames will remain tame. Although London has some of the most sophisticated flood wall system in the world, let’s hope they don’t have to use it.

Shoes for the British Summer

by Iva Skoch on

I got this photo from a friend in London and thought it was too witty not to share. I wouldn’t normally make fun of another country’s unfortunate weather but since I got this from a London resident, I figured I could.

Although the UK is not exactly known for their sunny summers, this year has been especially wet. As you probably know by now, Central Britain has been swamped by rain and flooding. Tens of thousands have even been left without electricity and running water, thousands fled their homes. Even London (some 80 miles from the areas hit hardest) is not an ideal destination right now – wet, wet, wet! If you are planning to go to London, you might consider rescheduling (or prepare yourself for spending your vacation in a pub.)

The Top 100 Hotels in the World

by Justin Glow on

As odd as it was to have some of the most extreme poverty I’d ever witnessed co-existing with the most grandiose luxury, it was no coincidence that the nicest hotel I’d ever been to was in India. I didn’t have the privilege of staying at the JW Marriot on Mumbai’s Juhu Beach (I was there for a wedding reception), but I did spend plenty of time getting lost in the lavishly decorated hallways leading to the pool and deck area. While the hotel guests were served fantastic, Indian-flavored hors d’oeuvres on one side of the massive, guarded concrete pillar, thousands of Mumbai’s poorest combed the beach for broken bottles, and peddled their wares to the tourists on the other.

And this hotel wasn’t even one of the “nice” ones. Udaipur, India’s Oberoi Udavilas (pictured right) scored the number one spot in Travel and Leisures 2007 World’s Best Hotels award. This is the first time an Indian hotel as scored first. Here are the top ten hotels in the world:

  1. Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur, India
  2. Singita Sabi Sand/Kruger National Park, South Africa
  3. The Oriental, Bangkok
  4. Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at Sultanahmet, Turkey
  5. The Milestone, London
  6. Relais Il Falconiere, Cortona, Italy
  7. Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve, Sabi Sands, South Africa
  8. Mandarin Oriental, Munich
  9. Four Seasons Resort Hualalai, Hawaii
  10. Oberoi Amarvilas, Agra, India

For the rest of the list, visit Travel +Leisure. [via]