Top tips for holidays

FOUNDER and director of campervan, caravan, and motorhome insurance provider, comfort-insurance.co.uk, Peter Cue, shares his holiday tricks to save you time, money … and sanity.

1. Keep sun cream separate - It’s happened to most of us, you’ve opened your suitcase to find your personal belongings are soaked in sun lotion. To prevent this from happening to you – keep sun cream in a separate compartment to your clothes or wrap the bottle in a tight-sealed bag. 
2. Take a plug adaptor  - Plug adaptors are like gold when travelling. Having more than one also saves the hassle of waiting for your phone to charge and wanting to use your hairdryer. 
3. Bring a torch - You’ll never know when you may need one. To get extra light in your campervan, strap your torch to a jug of water to fill the entire room with an ambient light. 
4. Use pill boxes to store ingredients - To save space in your kitchen area or if you find yourself cooking food by a campfire but can’t go anywhere without your salt and pepper, store your spices in empty plastic pill boxes. No mess and easy to take with you everywhere. 
5. Disguise your valuables  - If you’re heading to the beach or off on a hike, put your money and keys in a lip balm case or empty water bottle to prevent them from getting lost or stolen. 
6. Keep mozzies away - Baby oil is a brilliant mosquito repellent. In case of any bites, deodorant is a fantastic skin soother. 
7. Foam floor tiles - If you’re sleeping on the floor in a tent or a campervan, make sure you bring foam floor tiles to add extra comfort. 
8. First aid kit - Plasters, antihistamine, pain killers or Berrocca – you never know when you might have an emergency. 

www.comfort-insurance.co.uk


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Tourists banned from three more Thai islands

THAI authorities have ordered the removal of all tourist facilities on three small islands off Phuket, citing coral damage due to the sheer volume of sightseers. All tourist related structures including shops and restaurants will be removed from Koh Khai Nok, Koh Khai Nui, and Koh Khai Nai islands, and designated areas only will be set aside for boat trips in the area.

The Thai government recently closes off the island of Koh Tachai in the Andaman Sea for similar reasons.

‘We want operators and guides in #PhangNga and surrounding areas to understand the rules and procedures in conducting a tour to prevent further damage to our marine natural resources and the coastal area. They must practice environmentally- friendly tourism,’ said the government’s department of marine and coastal resources.

‘Tour groups spend at least three hours swimming, feeding fish, and snorkelling in the water, which severely damages the marine ecosystem, especially on coral reefs.’

A report by the Phuket Marine Biology Centre said more than 60 speedboats a day visit the area.

Officials are clearing all beach umbrellas and beach chairs in the area. Shops and restaurants on the #KohKhai #islands will be removed.


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Fishguard opens for business as cruise port

A PEMBROKESHIRE port has welcomed the first of 5,000 international visitors this summer. Nineteen cruise ships are due to dock in Fishguard between May and September.

Fishguard received just seven calls in 2015. This year’s increase is down to the positive feedback received from visitors and support from Visit Wales. The cruise ship industry is expected to bring in £2.5 million to the Welsh economy this year.

A cruise committee has been formed in Fishguard to ensure visitors get a warm welcome and experience its attractions.

A committee spokesman said they were ‘delighted that North Pembrokeshire has been chosen as a major visitor destination for cruise companies’, with only Holyhead on Anglesey receiving more visits in Wales this year.

The group is hoping the 19 calls in 2016 can be added to year-on year to make Fishguard one of the most ‘important cruise destinations in the UK’.

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It’s Devon Restaurant Month!

DEVON RESTAURANTEURS come together to celebrate the county's food and drink with Devon Restaurant Month throughout June. With special seasonal menus, offers, and chef demonstrations, the promotion aims to put the county more firmly on the map for food tourism in the South-West and beyond.

To mark its fifth anniversary, there’s a competition for customers to enter; the winner and their guest can attend any Devon Restaurant Month event of their choice.

Venues already involved in Devon Restaurant Month include The Orangery Restaurant in Exeter, Ottery St Mary's Rusty Pig, the Buckland Tout-Saints Hotel near Kingsbridge, and The Greedy Goose on the Barbican in Plymouth.

For full details, go to www.devonrestaurantmonth.co.uk.

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More French air traffic control strikes announced

AIRLINES are warning of a possible ‘summer of discontent’ due to an unprecedented wave of air traffic control #strikes in #France. Thousands of passengers will see their #travel plans disrupted again during the weeks leading up to the school summer holidays. 

Recent industrial action is to be followed by further strikes announced for June 3-5 and June 14, meaning more cancelled flights, delayed journeys, and detours across Europe, according to industry lobby group Airlines for Europe (A4E).

Strikes by air traffic controllers in Greece, Italy, Belgium, and France in March, April, and May caused more than 2,500 flight cancellations in European airspace.

A4E managing director Thomas Reynaert comments: ‘For the seventh time in the past two months the air traffic controllers in France are infringing people’s rights. The overall impact of these strikes will be immense as they are taking place at a very busy time of the year.

‘We are hurtling towards a summer of disruption and frustration for customers. The European Commission and governments must act immediately to protect the rights of millions of European travellers affected by this repeated and disproportionate industrial action.’

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Picture Credit: By Wouter Engler - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=45254270

Five stars in Devon

WEST COUNTRY rental agency Helpful Holidays has added a five-star house to its portfolio.

Lower Widdicombe Farm, Beesands, South Devon has seven bedrooms, six bath or shower rooms, a games room, and a terrace views towards the sea over South Hams farmland.

The pet-friendly house is two miles in either direction from two quiet seaside fishing villages. One of them is Beesands, where it’s claimed that Keith Richards' family had their holidays in the 1950s, and where Richards and Mick Jagger gave their very first public performance in the The Cricket Inn.

Prices from £1,800 (£129 per person) to £3,600 (£258 per person) per week. 

www.helpfulholidays.co.uk

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Picture Credit: www.helpfulholidays.co.uk

Responsible Travel awards – longlist published

RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL has announced the names of the 75 organizations longlisted for the 2016 World #Responsible #Tourism award.

Organizations in the running for the most rigorously judged awards for responsible tourism in the world cover a diverse range of issues from campaigning and innovation to poverty reduction and the inclusion of marginalized people, and from hotels with exemplary employment initiatives to wildlife and habitat conservation.

Representing a diversity of work in 30 countries worldwide, the longlist includes:

• A hotel in Dubai rescuing, rehabilitating and re-releasing turtles and educating guests and local children about conservation 
• An association of hotels and restaurants in Kerala, India, working to ensure food isn’t wasted and that no-one in their community goes hungry 
• A tour operator in India making heritage sites, street food markets, and festivals accessible to all through sensory tours and tailored assistance 
• A campaign to stop child abuse in tourism in Cambodia 
• A hotel offering employment and training to refugees in Austria

Justin Francis, managing director of Responsible Travel and founder of the Awards says: ‘This is an exciting time of year – it’s when we first get our real glimpse into diversity of the stellar work being done in responsible tourism worldwide.’

The shortlist of finalists will be published in August, and the winners will be announced at the World Travel Market in London in November.

The full longlist can be seen at www.responsibletravel.com/awards/media/longlist.html


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