Co-op won't sell a KISS

Directors from XL's Freedom Flights left to form a new 'seat-only' company KISS just months before the collapse of XL. Some observers have taken the view that making deals with KISS is a betrayal of the travel industry and the boss of Co-operative travel Mike Greenacre has come out to declare that he will never work with KISS.

Greenacre clearly lays the blame for the millions paid out by the travel industry for the collapse of XL at the feet of the same directors that are now running KISS. Other companies have not taken such a bold stance and have said that Greenacre's reaction reflects personal emotions and that they make use of the services offered by the new company.
As a company, Co-operative are known for their moral stance on all sorts of issues from fair trade retailing to their stance on bank lending. Now it's the turn of the travel arm of the co-op to allow moral judgments take precedence over trading advantage.

Liverpool fans plight

Eufa have temporarily lifted a ban on Athletico Madrid playing their home games at their home stadium much to the relief of travelling Liverpool fans who had already made their travel plans for today's Champions League match before the ban came into effect.
Athletico Madrid incurred the ban after racist behaviour towards players from Marseille and violent behaviour after the match on 1st October. Athletico deny the charge of racism claiming that Eufa observers were mistaken. Liverpool fans have been up in arms since finding out about the ban which should have meant today's match would have to be played at least 200 miles from Madrid, as many of them had already booked their flights and accommodation.
The FA have intervened pointing out to Eufa that this would cause he travelling fans as much if not more inconvenience that the home fans they sought to punish, meanwhile Athletico hope to be able to produce video evidence to support their claim of innocence. Plenty of tour operators are breathing a sigh of relief as many were facing a logistical nightmare arranging extra transport to get their clients to the match.

Panama City Beach condo rentals for fun in the sun

If you want sun, you can do little better than a holiday in Florida and the advantages of Florida don't stop there. Florida offers not only great weather, but a ready-made holiday destination with great beaches, Miami, Walt Disney World, Universal studios and Kennedy Space Center.
The problem is with a destination that is packed with so much to see, getting around all these places can cost a fortune, so how can you get to do Florida on the cheap?

Well avoid expensive package deals and look into Panama City Beach condo rentals offering a high standard of accommodation for a fraction of the cost of a hotel. Rentals have all the advantages of home, the security and privacy along with the ability to really relax and do your own thing. Rentals in larger accommodation also allow you to go on holiday with family and friends in fact the more of you going the more cost-effective it becomes.

A rental home provides the perfect base to get around all the sights in Florida, and also affords you a space of your own to relax in the sun. Coupled with a rented car, you can have complete autonomy in the complete holiday destination. Rental homes often include added facilities such as private pools and a games room along with a fully-stocked kitchen
How about this place for $175 a night with a totally private pool and fantastic views over Miami beach. This apartment is actually in a hotel, and the private owners offer it out at half of the price that the hotel charges. Discounts available for a weeks rental.

How will the economy effect travel?

With the UK on the verge of recession, and the credit crunch impacting around the world, will the travel trade be decimated?
There is little doubt that the average family will be cutting expenditure on package holidays. At the same time, it is likely that the top-end holidays in more exotic locations and cruises will be as well subscribed as ever. The other end of the spectrum will also remain pretty much unaffected and may even get a bit of a boost, this end of the market would include holidays within the UK in general and specifically camping and caravaning holidays.
This is because those with the money to afford top-end holidays will probably retain their appetite for their expensive vacations, and those who take less costly holidays will remain equally unaffected and may well find their numbers swelled by those wishing to go on holiday on a budget.
With the news that globally there will be less and less flights, there is no doubt that the travel industry will have less money to go around over the next few years and there will most likely be more casualties like XL. The likelihood is that it will be the more competitive budget holiday companies at higher risk.

BA take stock....

In a sign of the times, BA have stepped back from their plans to take over Iberia airlines as BA's own share-price has been dropping on the stock exchange. The official view at the moment is that this proposed merger will go ahead at a later date, but with no prospect of steeply rising stock market prices any time soon, one wonders whether it will actually go ahead at all.

With flights set to be cut back across Europe and world-wide, and the global economy in decline, not to mention environmental issues with air travel - the travel industry is in for some turbulence over the next couple of years.

New York getaway

If you are thinking of a trip to New York state, but you are put off by the hotel prices why not consider Hamptons house rental as an alternative?
New York is legendary for many things, the classic Manhattan sights; Liberty, Wall street, Central Park and Times square to name but a few. It is famous for the yellow cabs, bagel vendors on the street-corners, but also the price of accommodation. In contrast to the value offered by much of New York (breakfast for about three dollars if you look around...), the cost of staying in a hotel makes it the sort of place that many people visit for a very short break, meaning that it is difficult to get a proper flavour of the City and State.

There are rental properties available for New York City and around New York state, you can rent a brownstone in Brooklyn or a palatial pad in the Hamptons. Homeaway Rentals have 1800 individual homes available in New York alone. Share your rental with family and friends to get the best possible value for money (you can't fill your hotel room up with guests now can you?).

For a quick comparison, how about this Easthampton manor house at $16,000 a week:
You will be the envy of everyone you know when you invite them to come and stay with you. There is plenty of room as it sleeps 18 (!!) and there are six bathrooms (actually 6 and a half...).
This place has absolutely everything you could ask for, and I guess you could expect quite a lot from a three million dollar mansion.

In contrast for more down to earth living in fashionable Brooklyn, on a tighter budget of just $900 a week:
You will have all the advantages of an extremely well-decorated modern-styled apartment in Stuyvessant Heights. If you are not planning to invite 17 friends and family, then this 5-berth apartment might suit you down to the ground, and will allow you the luxury of pleasing yourself. You won't have to leave a 'do-not-disturb' sign on your bedroom to prevent a maid coming in to clean up at some un-earthly hour - you're on holiday after all.

ABTA bonding under threat

There are more calls for scrapping of the ABTA fund for bailing out stranded passengers such as in the XL failure, and replacing the bond with individual travel insurances. As ever, BA opposed the idea claiming that it meant that it's clients would effectively be subsidising less financially stable companies. This has been countered with the idea that established operators culd charge a lower levy that newer companies.
At the end of the day, the money for repatriating stranded holiday makers has to be met by some mechanism, and it is always going to be some form of 'tax' on the traveller. Individual insurance is as good a way as any in theory, but the idea of a central fund means that there is one body taking responsibility for repatriation rather then twenty different insurance companies. The management of the fund is under question with it currently being in the red, this is a state that cannot continue and there is no doubt that travellers should be the ones to foot the bill in the end.