The festive season is upon us and in the largely Christian western world there is a full calendar of events linking to the celebration of Christmas to look forward to. We at Perpetual Traveller challenge you to do something different this year, by visiting an event in another country or culture. After all with the crisis there are plenty of offers! We can assure you of an truly uplifting experience where money is not the ultimate objective, which is so often the case thee days. Here below are some ideas around the world that we highly recommend with a few non Christmas options to.
German Christmas Markets 28th November - 24th December 2008
World famous Christmas Markets like no other! If you’ve never experienced a German Christmas Market you should add it to your list of must do’s. It’s especially interesting for all the family.
One of the most famous markets is called Nuremberg .The Old Town is decorated in its Christmas regalia and permeated with tempting aromas of mulled wine, sweet roasted almonds, Nuremberg sausages and gingerbread, thus creating an unforgettable atmosphere. The Christkindlesmarkt lies right at the heart of the city which is steeped in more than 400 years of tradition, providing a truly international showcase for all Franconian and German Christmas Markets.
Further information: www.christmasmarkets.com
Covent Garden Piazza, London, England, Great Christmas Pudding Race 6th December 2008
“Seasonal Silliness” The 28th annual Great Christmas Pudding Race will be taking place at Covent Garden Market in London on December 6th.Participants will participate in a all action fun relay race at which time they will have to navigate an obstacle course at speed while carrying a Christmas pudding on a tray. A festive good laugh and expect to see some weird and wacky sights!
Further information: http://www.viewlondon.co.uk
Espace Fontevieille, Monte Carlo, Monaco 28th November – 1st December 2008
When in Monaco why not pop along to the Espace Fontevieille and experience first hand Monte Carlo’s Gastronomy Fair. A great opportunity to experience the smells and delights of the region. This year the Master Chefs have a real challenge on their hands, as they have to create a Chocolate piece based on the theme “The Chocolate Woman”.
Further information: http://www.visitmonaco.com
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 1st December 2008
Does anyone do it bigger and better than the UAE? To celebrate UAE National Day a unique concert and on stage for the first time in the Middle East, George Michael and Alicia Keys will play at the Zayed sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi for what is certainly the biggest concert ever in the region.
Further information: http://www.timeoutabudhabi.com
St André Fair Avignon, France 30 Nov - 1 Dec 2008
Since the middle Ages bargain hunters and sellers have flocked to Annecy for its traditional and quaint St André Fair. These days more than 1100 stalls and 6000 visitors crowd the winding streets and dainty bridges in the centre of town. The inhabitants of Avignon welcome in the crisp Provence winter with this attractive and traditional Fair, held every year throughout the streets of the town.
Further information: http://www.beyond.fr
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil National Samba Day 2nd December 2008
National Samba Day in Rio de Janeiro is a party not to be missed. Samba is a significant part of Brazilian culture, which involves people of all ages dancing in the streets the rhythm of the powerful beat! Traditional Samba groups from Rio take train compartments on the ‘Samba Train’ and party from Central do Brazil station to Oswaldo Cruz.
Further information: http://www.highbeam.com
Tübingen, Germany ChocolART 2nd – 7th December 2008
Imagine this, participating in a chocolate-making course followed by a tasting session ! Yum Yum workshops of enthusiasts galore learn the Art of chocolate decorating and lets face consumption too. If that all sounds a bit much for you try out the relaxing and very tasty Chocolate Massage. Now for the best news, the ChocolART festival is all FREE! Eat your heart out Cadbury’s
Further information: http://www.tuebingen.de
Ponzano Romano, Italy Spinster Festival 6th December 2008
How about this for something a little different on the matchmaking scene! Representatives of the council collect names of all the unmarried women between the ages of 18 and 34. Names are put into a container and later in the day one name selected the winner receives a symbolic dowry and the best wishes of the council to find a Husband soon! A gastronomic event is also held at the same time offering local delicacies, one imagines to attract virile young men.
Further information: http://www.italiantourism.com
Museum of the Romanian Peasant, Bucharest, Romania Winter Gifts Festival December 2008
Marking the start of the festive season, the Winter Gift Festival at the Museum of The Romanian Peasant in Bucharest features the work of roughly 150 local artists. Objects for sale range from traditional wood and pottery items to decorative rugs and hand-made jewelry. A great place for original and truly unique Christmas presents.
Further information: http://www.romaniatourism.com
Livigno Resort, Sondrio, Italy Art in Ice 2nd - 6th December 2008
Livigno hosts the annual international Art in Ice competition, where ten teams of 3 sculptors compete to transform three-meter blocks of pressed snow into works of art Italian Ice. Artists the world over head to the festival to make the mono-color artworks. The event strives for purity and simplicity, with strict rules on the dimensions of the 3 square meter snow blocks and banning of chainsaws, other electrical cutting tools and all means of coloring the snow
Further information: http://www.italiantourism.com
So whatever your flavor, try out something new this year and take a few days of the Shopping and 21st Century consumerism that has engulfed our lives. You can always take advantage of the sales in January, because with the Credit Crunch of this disastrous financial year, will surely promise the best recorded sales ever in January 2009!
Monday, December 1, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
SKIING IN ANDORRA
It may not have the highest mountains in all Europe, but those who have tried it would say that skiing in Andorra has it all.
In the last ten years, over €50m has gone into staggering improvements in ski facilities and many times that into Andorra’s tourist infrastructure. When the sun shines – and it shines a lot in winter, so don’t forget the sun cream – literally thousands of the latest snow-cannons ensure that the resorts have excellent snow cover from Dec 1st to the end of April.
There are now two macro-resorts in Andorra, grouping the five original stations, both with skiing at between 2.500m and 1.750.
GrandValira (comprising Pas de la Casa, Grau Roig and Soldeu/ElTarter) has the biggest skiing area in the whole of the Pyrenees. Dedicated skiers will probably go for this option and their whole holiday will probably cost them about 70% of what it would cost in the Alps for the same quality of facilities and some pretty challenging skiing. As for après-ski fun, it might lack St Moritz chic but instead of platinum prices, read bronze.
On the other side of the country, Vallnord (comprising Pal-Arinsal and Arcalís) centres on La Massana and Arinsal and Ordino. Vallnord is a much more intimate resort and ski holiday prices are even more reasonable. Families with young children tend to prefer being in Arinsal which, despite having slightly more limited skiing, is Andorra’s premier all-year-round holiday village, partly because 90% of Andorra’s international community live within a five km radius of Pal-Arinsal and it is only 15mins by car to the capital’s outstanding tax-free shopping facilities and spa centre. The Vallnord area has recently seen vigorous growth in the summer as well, due to the growing demand for biking and hiking holidays.
In 2009, Vallnord hosts the World Mountain-Bike Championships for the second year running and the Copa Catalana 2008 was also held there.
On both sides of the country, despite a whole range of excellent hotels offering 33.000 beds (one for every 2,5 residents) there is steady demand in the high seasons, from Andorra’s 11m visitors a year, for affordable accommodation in private apartments and chalets.
Servissim, established for nearly 20 years, is the largest English-speaking services company in Andorra and via its www.andorra-holidays.com division, is the leading country-wide organisation dealing with the direct-selling private of holiday accommodation owned by its foreign-based clients.
In many years, clients have seen spectacular growth in their investments, but Andorra has always been better-known for its solid growth in the long-term. Even with the property shocks of the last year, returns (income and capital appreciation) have hardly wavered from 9% per annum, cumulative, in all of those 20 years and taxes on foreign-owned property held long-term are negligible. Because of this – and a natural flight to quality – prices are already beginning to stabilise and Andorra, with its overall lower price advantage, should do better than most other destinations in weathering the current recessionary tendency. Bookings, if anything, are slightly up over the same period last year.
However, much of the interest in having a holiday property in Andorra is not just in the investment itself, but in the owners being able to pick and choose their own dates to visit Andorra, one of the safest, most-enjoyable, places to live in the whole of Europe.
Our best recommendation is to go and see the opportunities there for yourself.
By Simon Binsted
In the last ten years, over €50m has gone into staggering improvements in ski facilities and many times that into Andorra’s tourist infrastructure. When the sun shines – and it shines a lot in winter, so don’t forget the sun cream – literally thousands of the latest snow-cannons ensure that the resorts have excellent snow cover from Dec 1st to the end of April.
There are now two macro-resorts in Andorra, grouping the five original stations, both with skiing at between 2.500m and 1.750.
GrandValira (comprising Pas de la Casa, Grau Roig and Soldeu/ElTarter) has the biggest skiing area in the whole of the Pyrenees. Dedicated skiers will probably go for this option and their whole holiday will probably cost them about 70% of what it would cost in the Alps for the same quality of facilities and some pretty challenging skiing. As for après-ski fun, it might lack St Moritz chic but instead of platinum prices, read bronze.
On the other side of the country, Vallnord (comprising Pal-Arinsal and Arcalís) centres on La Massana and Arinsal and Ordino. Vallnord is a much more intimate resort and ski holiday prices are even more reasonable. Families with young children tend to prefer being in Arinsal which, despite having slightly more limited skiing, is Andorra’s premier all-year-round holiday village, partly because 90% of Andorra’s international community live within a five km radius of Pal-Arinsal and it is only 15mins by car to the capital’s outstanding tax-free shopping facilities and spa centre. The Vallnord area has recently seen vigorous growth in the summer as well, due to the growing demand for biking and hiking holidays.
In 2009, Vallnord hosts the World Mountain-Bike Championships for the second year running and the Copa Catalana 2008 was also held there.
On both sides of the country, despite a whole range of excellent hotels offering 33.000 beds (one for every 2,5 residents) there is steady demand in the high seasons, from Andorra’s 11m visitors a year, for affordable accommodation in private apartments and chalets.
Servissim, established for nearly 20 years, is the largest English-speaking services company in Andorra and via its www.andorra-holidays.com division, is the leading country-wide organisation dealing with the direct-selling private of holiday accommodation owned by its foreign-based clients.
In many years, clients have seen spectacular growth in their investments, but Andorra has always been better-known for its solid growth in the long-term. Even with the property shocks of the last year, returns (income and capital appreciation) have hardly wavered from 9% per annum, cumulative, in all of those 20 years and taxes on foreign-owned property held long-term are negligible. Because of this – and a natural flight to quality – prices are already beginning to stabilise and Andorra, with its overall lower price advantage, should do better than most other destinations in weathering the current recessionary tendency. Bookings, if anything, are slightly up over the same period last year.
However, much of the interest in having a holiday property in Andorra is not just in the investment itself, but in the owners being able to pick and choose their own dates to visit Andorra, one of the safest, most-enjoyable, places to live in the whole of Europe.
Our best recommendation is to go and see the opportunities there for yourself.
By Simon Binsted
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Genoa
The Genoese have stopped grumbling. According to the poet Edoardo Sanguineti, the Genoese were always grumbling and this grumbling sound had become Genoa’s background noise, so rooted in her inhabitant that they had lost their original accent. Such grumbling, which had accompanied the slow decline of the city after the end of the second world war, became muffled as Genoa started getting her former color back – not just that of her salt-washed palaces – to take back her rightful position and shed her backwater reputation first with the 1992 Expo and now as a City of Culture for 2004. Today Genoa is dynamic, high-tech and many splendor city as of old, as well as being extremely beautiful in its position between sea and mountains.
She is no longer a Cinderella, but a Queen: first sea power, more powerful than Venice or Pisa in the fourteenth century, a rich and cosmopolitan city that could afford imports from all over the world then known. As one of Europe’s major capital cities in the sixteenth century, it moved from French to Spanish influence and at this time became rich with sumptuous palaces and churches, showing frescoes and stucco work. It became an art capital in the seventeenth century when it received the most fashionable Flemish artists of the time, masters such as Pieter Paul Rubens and Antonie Van Dick. The local aristocracy started to buy on a grand scale the works of such masters as Tintoretto and Titian, Caravaggio and Guercino. In the nineteenth century it became a laboratory for eclectic architecture, which, under the House of Savoy, it saw the rise of such masterpieces as the Carlo Felice theatre and the bizarre buildings of the Florentine architect Gino Coppedé. For a few decades, starting from the fifties, the crisis in industry and in port activities started to dim the ancient splendor of the city which was caught between an awareness of its decadence and a frustrating memory of better times. But pride came back as it is only proper for someone who has been too rich and too powerful. Starting from the late Nineties, Genoa took steps, obstinately but cleverly, to regain her lost splendor. The old, mammoth, unproductive industry was replaced by smaller, more enterprising activities; investments were made in advanced electronics and technology. Genoa changed her face as well as her symbols.
Today they are the Bigo, a large, futuristic building rising out of the water holding an elevator aloft, the work of Renzo Piano for the Old Port. Another symbol is the Aquarium, showing 6,000 animals of 600 different species in almost 10,000 square meters, one of Europe’s largest structures of its kind. The future is now. With Expo ‘92, during which Piano redeveloped 130,000 square meters of the Old Port transforming it into the city’s most avant-garde area, Genoa celebrated her reawakening.
As a City of Culture for 2004 she is confirming her status as one of Europe’s great cultural capitals.Liguria’s capital has been transformed under the direction of Germano Celant, curator at Guggenheim Museum in New York, into a crucible of cultural and architectural experimentation. No cultural field has been left unexplored, in the same way all areas of the city have been restored to a splendor more lasting than the duration of an exhibition.
Structural work includes the Old Museums Site, centered on Via Garibaldi, an old street lined with aristocrats’ residences in the sixteenth century, to the museum site at Parchi di Nervi, to the palaces at Polo della Darsena, as
Well as the most beautiful and important museums.
Genoa will move through culture like a creature moving through music and art, film and dance, performances for
Children, sea fairs, a special edition of the Suq or Peoples’ Bazaar: music concerts, dance lessons, foreign language courses and meetings on cultural integration (Old Port, June 1-15). Though Rubens, who lived in the city at different times, will take place of honor in the celebrations (over the year one hundred and eighteen exhibitions and as many meetings), there will be many others on great artists and movements, for example Chagall (Jewish Museum, April 5 to June 15). One exhibition will focus on silversmiths and goldsmiths in Genoa between the sixteenth and the eighteenth centuries, another on the life and the world of Leon Battista Alberti. Genoa’s year of culture will see a variety of events, ranging through all fields of artistic and cultural Endeavour, to satisfy the curiosity of millions of visitors. In the musical field too, people will move from a tango festival running through the city’s squares to a jazz festival at Golfo Paradiso, and from traditional genoese songs to classical music. People interested in talks will be able to choose from among various Nobel Prize Laureates, including the writers Günter Grass and José Saramago (Teatro dell’Archivolto, January through May). Other events will be dedicated to the sea.
The City of Children, for example, the largest play area in Italy, in the Old Port, will offer interactive games in which younger visitors will be able to play with three-dimensional reconstructed stage settings above and under sea level. The leading exhibition in this are will be one on ocean liners, at The National Museum of Antarctica: photographs, pictures and animation will illustrate in great detail the marine environment and other characteristics of the Antarctic habitat. The idea of the sea, however, is not just a temporary fad. March will see the inauguration of the Museums of the Sea and of Navigation, by the Spanish architect Guillermo Vasquez, and a year later the Dutchman Ben Van Berkel will restore the Parodi Bridge. These are important, monumental works as well as symbols of the subtle, ancestral relationship the Genoese have with the sea, the red thin line that still links, today and always, the city to history.
She is no longer a Cinderella, but a Queen: first sea power, more powerful than Venice or Pisa in the fourteenth century, a rich and cosmopolitan city that could afford imports from all over the world then known. As one of Europe’s major capital cities in the sixteenth century, it moved from French to Spanish influence and at this time became rich with sumptuous palaces and churches, showing frescoes and stucco work. It became an art capital in the seventeenth century when it received the most fashionable Flemish artists of the time, masters such as Pieter Paul Rubens and Antonie Van Dick. The local aristocracy started to buy on a grand scale the works of such masters as Tintoretto and Titian, Caravaggio and Guercino. In the nineteenth century it became a laboratory for eclectic architecture, which, under the House of Savoy, it saw the rise of such masterpieces as the Carlo Felice theatre and the bizarre buildings of the Florentine architect Gino Coppedé. For a few decades, starting from the fifties, the crisis in industry and in port activities started to dim the ancient splendor of the city which was caught between an awareness of its decadence and a frustrating memory of better times. But pride came back as it is only proper for someone who has been too rich and too powerful. Starting from the late Nineties, Genoa took steps, obstinately but cleverly, to regain her lost splendor. The old, mammoth, unproductive industry was replaced by smaller, more enterprising activities; investments were made in advanced electronics and technology. Genoa changed her face as well as her symbols.
Today they are the Bigo, a large, futuristic building rising out of the water holding an elevator aloft, the work of Renzo Piano for the Old Port. Another symbol is the Aquarium, showing 6,000 animals of 600 different species in almost 10,000 square meters, one of Europe’s largest structures of its kind. The future is now. With Expo ‘92, during which Piano redeveloped 130,000 square meters of the Old Port transforming it into the city’s most avant-garde area, Genoa celebrated her reawakening.
As a City of Culture for 2004 she is confirming her status as one of Europe’s great cultural capitals.Liguria’s capital has been transformed under the direction of Germano Celant, curator at Guggenheim Museum in New York, into a crucible of cultural and architectural experimentation. No cultural field has been left unexplored, in the same way all areas of the city have been restored to a splendor more lasting than the duration of an exhibition.
Structural work includes the Old Museums Site, centered on Via Garibaldi, an old street lined with aristocrats’ residences in the sixteenth century, to the museum site at Parchi di Nervi, to the palaces at Polo della Darsena, as
Well as the most beautiful and important museums.
Genoa will move through culture like a creature moving through music and art, film and dance, performances for
Children, sea fairs, a special edition of the Suq or Peoples’ Bazaar: music concerts, dance lessons, foreign language courses and meetings on cultural integration (Old Port, June 1-15). Though Rubens, who lived in the city at different times, will take place of honor in the celebrations (over the year one hundred and eighteen exhibitions and as many meetings), there will be many others on great artists and movements, for example Chagall (Jewish Museum, April 5 to June 15). One exhibition will focus on silversmiths and goldsmiths in Genoa between the sixteenth and the eighteenth centuries, another on the life and the world of Leon Battista Alberti. Genoa’s year of culture will see a variety of events, ranging through all fields of artistic and cultural Endeavour, to satisfy the curiosity of millions of visitors. In the musical field too, people will move from a tango festival running through the city’s squares to a jazz festival at Golfo Paradiso, and from traditional genoese songs to classical music. People interested in talks will be able to choose from among various Nobel Prize Laureates, including the writers Günter Grass and José Saramago (Teatro dell’Archivolto, January through May). Other events will be dedicated to the sea.
The City of Children, for example, the largest play area in Italy, in the Old Port, will offer interactive games in which younger visitors will be able to play with three-dimensional reconstructed stage settings above and under sea level. The leading exhibition in this are will be one on ocean liners, at The National Museum of Antarctica: photographs, pictures and animation will illustrate in great detail the marine environment and other characteristics of the Antarctic habitat. The idea of the sea, however, is not just a temporary fad. March will see the inauguration of the Museums of the Sea and of Navigation, by the Spanish architect Guillermo Vasquez, and a year later the Dutchman Ben Van Berkel will restore the Parodi Bridge. These are important, monumental works as well as symbols of the subtle, ancestral relationship the Genoese have with the sea, the red thin line that still links, today and always, the city to history.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Greetings from Cyprus Airways
Perpetual Traveller Greetings from the air on board a Cyprus Airways flight CY from Larnaka - Rome (FCO) - Milan (MXP), which is a new double drop service. Who said that Business class is all but dead in Europe? Despite the fact the plane is a little tired, the food and service is really quite reasonable. Well done to state-owned Cyprus Airways who also bucked the Aviation trend in Europe by making a 2008 post tax profit of 1.7 million euro.
The Republic of Cyprus receives around 2.4 million tourists annually of which Cyprus Airways carries around 1 million making their aviation contribution critical to the country. Cyprus like all other Tourist destinations is apprehensive about the coming summer, as no one knows for sure how many in the western world will take a vacation in this widely reported year of gloom.
The Republic of Cyprus receives around 2.4 million tourists annually of which Cyprus Airways carries around 1 million making their aviation contribution critical to the country. Cyprus like all other Tourist destinations is apprehensive about the coming summer, as no one knows for sure how many in the western world will take a vacation in this widely reported year of gloom.
I’m bound for my Hotel room the security of which is the theme for Perpetual Traveller this week. Hotel Security is becoming an increasingly important consideration, especially in view of the unfortunate Mumbai attacks, so we dedicate this issue to top security tops. Meanwhile, the other thing we do not seem to be able to predict much in advance is the weather. Hypo Global features a fascinating common guide to Global Warming, which spells our in simple terms the main challenge of our age. La Dolce Vita offers an insight to Barcelona.
By Grant Holmes
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
AIRLINE WEIGHT WATCHERS
Desperate times call for desperate measures; that’s the phrase in the air within the Airline Industry today. The reality of escalating fuel prices means that Airlines are busy analyzing and literally weighing up all the options to balance costs. Airlines are looking at a number of ways to streamline flight costs thereby reducing onboard weight, considering the weight and fuel cost ratio. Everything and everyone is being brought into question.
As travellers we thought it was unfair when airlines stated charging for overweight baggage and then by moving the goalposts downwards. Ryan Air was likely the worst offender when it came to baggage control charges, however at least they kept their promise with low cost passenger tickets. This can’t be said for the Big Boys (National Airline carriers) who jumped on the bandwagon by not only charging high ticket prices, but also nailing unsuspecting passengers for elevated excess luggage too!
Now for the SHOCK; think about this. How would you feel if you were to be personally weighed at check-in? Controversial it may seem to some, but it could come sooner than we think if airlines start charging people according to their body weight?
If cost is not enough; what about the comfort and legal issues of overweight flyers? Virgin Atlantic recently paid a female passenger £13,000 (US$20,289) compensation, after she was squashed by an obese person who sat next to her on a transatlantic flight. Barbara Hewson, from Swansea, south Wales, suffered injuries including a blood clot in her chest, torn leg muscles and acute sciatica and remains in pain two years on.
The obese passenger was only been able to fit into her seat by raising the arm rest, which meant her remaining excess body parts weighed down on poor Mrs Hewson. The injured woman had to be admitted to hospital in Los Angeles when the flight touched down and was sadly bedridden for a month.
Two years later, and after pressure on the airline to take her complaint seriously, Virgin agreed to pay her compensation. Before taking off, the freelance writer had complained in the first instance to the cabin crew about sitting next to the overweight woman, who actually booked two seats on her outward bound flight to London, but failed to do so on the return leg.
Attendants instructed Mrs Hewson that the flight was full, with not a single remaining seat available. She commented that her experience of the 11-hour flight in economy class was simply “horrific”. Mrs Hewson added that she was now forced to walk with a stick and still suffered resulting pain.
It is reported Virgin officials initially offered “a small basket of goods” worth £15 as compensation, but Mrs Hewson took forward her complaint. Then after 18 months of pursuing her claim and undergoing struct medical examinations by Virgin’s own doctors to prove the extent of her injuries, the airline agreed to a proper settlement.
A statement by Virgin said Mrs Hewson’s injuries arose from “an unprecedented set of extremely unfortunate circumstances”. “We have apologized to Mrs Hewson and have offered her compensation, which she has accepted, and we are pleased that this has now reached a conclusion.”
For your interest in the United States, budget US carrier Southwest Airlines now charge larger passengers for two seats, so is this the start of the trend?
Fat concern
But the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance has taken on airlines over discrimination against overweight people.
The level of obesity in the US is now of major concern, but also in the UK, National Audit Office figures show one in five people are clinically obese. Vale of Glamorgan MP John Smith fought a campaign against cramped economy class conditions, following a series of deaths from deep vein thrombosis (DVT), which have been linked to long haul flights. Source BBC News
For now most airlines are looking once again at re-packaging meals, using lighter trolleys, eliminating “In flight Magazines” (Digital copy will be available), Duty free booklets and the list goes on …..
So can we expect to see people standing on weighing scales at airports in the future instead? Its certainly a possibility and most embarrassing!
As travellers we thought it was unfair when airlines stated charging for overweight baggage and then by moving the goalposts downwards. Ryan Air was likely the worst offender when it came to baggage control charges, however at least they kept their promise with low cost passenger tickets. This can’t be said for the Big Boys (National Airline carriers) who jumped on the bandwagon by not only charging high ticket prices, but also nailing unsuspecting passengers for elevated excess luggage too!
Now for the SHOCK; think about this. How would you feel if you were to be personally weighed at check-in? Controversial it may seem to some, but it could come sooner than we think if airlines start charging people according to their body weight?
If cost is not enough; what about the comfort and legal issues of overweight flyers? Virgin Atlantic recently paid a female passenger £13,000 (US$20,289) compensation, after she was squashed by an obese person who sat next to her on a transatlantic flight. Barbara Hewson, from Swansea, south Wales, suffered injuries including a blood clot in her chest, torn leg muscles and acute sciatica and remains in pain two years on.
The obese passenger was only been able to fit into her seat by raising the arm rest, which meant her remaining excess body parts weighed down on poor Mrs Hewson. The injured woman had to be admitted to hospital in Los Angeles when the flight touched down and was sadly bedridden for a month.
Two years later, and after pressure on the airline to take her complaint seriously, Virgin agreed to pay her compensation. Before taking off, the freelance writer had complained in the first instance to the cabin crew about sitting next to the overweight woman, who actually booked two seats on her outward bound flight to London, but failed to do so on the return leg.
Attendants instructed Mrs Hewson that the flight was full, with not a single remaining seat available. She commented that her experience of the 11-hour flight in economy class was simply “horrific”. Mrs Hewson added that she was now forced to walk with a stick and still suffered resulting pain.
It is reported Virgin officials initially offered “a small basket of goods” worth £15 as compensation, but Mrs Hewson took forward her complaint. Then after 18 months of pursuing her claim and undergoing struct medical examinations by Virgin’s own doctors to prove the extent of her injuries, the airline agreed to a proper settlement.
A statement by Virgin said Mrs Hewson’s injuries arose from “an unprecedented set of extremely unfortunate circumstances”. “We have apologized to Mrs Hewson and have offered her compensation, which she has accepted, and we are pleased that this has now reached a conclusion.”
For your interest in the United States, budget US carrier Southwest Airlines now charge larger passengers for two seats, so is this the start of the trend?
Fat concern
But the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance has taken on airlines over discrimination against overweight people.
The level of obesity in the US is now of major concern, but also in the UK, National Audit Office figures show one in five people are clinically obese. Vale of Glamorgan MP John Smith fought a campaign against cramped economy class conditions, following a series of deaths from deep vein thrombosis (DVT), which have been linked to long haul flights. Source BBC News
For now most airlines are looking once again at re-packaging meals, using lighter trolleys, eliminating “In flight Magazines” (Digital copy will be available), Duty free booklets and the list goes on …..
So can we expect to see people standing on weighing scales at airports in the future instead? Its certainly a possibility and most embarrassing!
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