As part of revisions that Delta will implement to its loyalty program next year, the airline will begin counting each dollar that SkyMiles members spend on a direct Delta Vacations booking toward Medallion loyalty status accrual. But that change won’t apply to bookings made through travel advisors and travel agencies. Instead, SkyMiles members will continue to only accrue Medallion Qualifying […]

Vindolanda: Archaeologist discovers 500 Roman Empire letters Are you a man? How many times have you thought about the Roman Empire today? According to TikTok videos, men tend to think about the Roman Empire at least every couple of days. In one video, a man said he thought about the sewage system created during the Roman Empire every time he […]

Hotel Maria is poised to open in Helsinki Dec. 15 as a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts’ Legend Collection — the first of the collection’s properties in Finland. Located in the Kruununhaka district, the Hotel Maria features 117 guestrooms, including 38 suites, two restaurants and bars, a ballroom, a chapel and state-of-the-art spa and wellness facilities. The property comprises […]

Ryanair has issued a flight warning for Britons travelling to and from the UK as high winds could cause delays. A spokesperson from the budget airline said: “Some potential delays to and from the UK due to high winds. “Affected passengers will be notified and any passengers travelling to and from the UK on Thursday, September 21 should check their […]

The world’s 50 best hotels for 2023 named: A luxury Italian property is No.1, Claridge’s in London flies the flag for the UK and Aman New York is America’s top entry Twenty-one of the winning properties are in Europe  London has ‘solidified its reputation as a global travel hub’ with four entries Asia has 18 hotels on the list and […]

Uniworld Boutique River Cruises will give clients and travel advisors an inside look at its 2024 world cruise, a 55-day itinerary. CEO and president Ellen Bettridge will host a virtual preview event of the 2024 Rivers of the World cruise on Wednesday, Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. Eastern.  The webinar will feature interviews with two guests who sailed the inaugural […]

Carnival Cruise Line will introduce a vegan menu in its dining rooms fleetwide by the end of the year. Created by Carnival chefs, each item is prepared without the use of animal products, according to the line, with some items made using meat substitutes.  The menu includes three vegan appetizers, including Hawaiian poke using plant-based salmon, mushrooms stuffed with plant-based […]

I originally had difficulty pronouncing “Hurtigruten.” The word took me a while to sound out, then several tries in normal conversation to say confidently without tripping over its consonants. I am not alone (as a blind item in our pages in 2007 illustrated). Hurtigruten Group spent $2 million last year on a North American marketing campaign teaching people how to […]

Northumberland: TikToker gets tour of ‘haunted’ Chillingham Castle Britain is a wonderful country with many historic and quirky castles to visit, but have you ever wondered which one is considered the most haunted? Chillingham Castle is located in the village of Chillingham, Northumberland and has taken the crown as the ‘scariest’ castle in both the UK and Ireland according to […]

Google is further integrating its generative artificial intelligence (AI) product, Bard, with its suite of apps and services, giving Bard the ability to answer more specific travel requests. Bard users starting today will be prompted to link to other Google accounts, including Gmail, Docs and Drive. That will give Bard the ability to summarize and answer questions about users’ personal […]