Airline & Holiday Information

Archive for November, 2009

The city of Manchester is a metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. The city has an estimated population of 458,100 as of the year 2007. Manchester is located in the south-central area of North West England, the outer limit of the Pennines to the east and north, and the Cheshire Plain to the south. The city formed a component of the English Core Cities Group, and is the centre of commerce and education, media, and the arts. These are factors that add to the city of Manchester’s status as the Second City of the United Kingdom for the year 2002. Here are two popular flights to Manchester that you may want to try:

1) British Airways

This is the biggest airline in the United Kingdom in terms of fleet size. This flag carrier has its base of operations in Waterside, near the main hub of the Heathrow Airport of London. British Airways Group was established on the first of September in 1974 when the Labour Government at that time nationalised it. British Airways was considered the biggest airline in the United Kingdom in terms of passenger traffic until 2008.

2) Lufthansa

This flag carrier of Germany is the biggest European airline in terms of all the passengers it has carried in flights, including ones to Manchester. Deutsche Lufthansa is a company name taken from Luft, which means air in German, and Hansa, similar to the strong medieval trading company called the Hanseatic League. The airline’s base of operations is in Cologne, and its main traffic hub is located at the Frankfurt Airport. Lufthansa also has another hub at the Munich Airport. Around 70.5 million passengers were carried by Lufthansa in the year 2008.

The airlines that offer flights to and from Dublin, the capital of Ireland, include Ryanair, Aer Arann, Aer Lingus, Flybe, Air France, BMI, Air Southwest, Germanwings, Lufthansa, Spanair, Iberia, TAP, SAS-Scandivinian Airlines, Swiss, Air Baltic, FlyLal, Malev Airlines, Czech Airlines, Swissair, Bulgaria Air, Malev Hungarian, British Airways, Iberia, Royal Air Maroc, Virgin Atlantic, Etihad Airways, Gulf Air, KLM, Turkish Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, Virgin America, Continental Airlines, US Airways, Flyglobespan, Air Canada, United, Alaska Airlines, Emirates, Cathay Pacific, Qantas, Gulf Air Australia, Singapore Airlines, Luxair, Air France, TAM and Tap Portugal.

Dublin International Airport is approximately 12km north of the city centre and has excellent public transport and road links. Facilities in this airport include airline ticket desks, car hire, national bus and rail information, hotel transfer service, left-luggage area, catering facilities, Bank of Ireland branches, Bureaux de Change and tourist information and reservations service.

Tourists can explore the city by taking a bus, using the Dublin Area Rapid Transport (DART), taxi or hire car. The DART suburban rail service operates between Malahide, the northern part of the scenic coastal trip and Greystone, the southern part of the coastal trip.

Trains have two major stations in the city, at Connolly and Heuston, while taxis are hailed, booked by telephone or hired from taxi ranks. Three of the city centre’s main taxi ranks can be found on Dame Street, O’Connell Street and St. Stephen’s Green.

Tel Aviv, the second largest city in Israel, is located on the coastal plain and was founded on the outskirts of the ancient port city of Jaffa, in 1909. Soon, the growth of Tel Aviv outpaced that of its older neighbour, which was largely inhabited by Arabs.

Within two years of the establishment of the State of Israel, in 1950, the two cities were merged into a single municipality.

Tel Aviv is classified as being a global city and has grown to become a major economic hub and the wealthiest in Israel. It is home to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, research and development centres and numerous corporate offices.

Tel Aviv’s beaches, cafés, bars, restaurants, cosmopolitan lifestyle, upscale shopping and great weather have made it a popular tourist destination for both domestic and overseas visitors alike. Over the years it has gained a reputation for being the “Mediterranean metropolis that never sleeps”.

Alongside its position as Israel’s financial capital, it is also home to Israel’s major performing arts and a bustling business centre. Tel Aviv is now the Middle East’s second largest city economy and the Foreign Policy’s 2008 Global Cities Index ranked Tel Aviv at no 42. Many visitors are sure to have problems finding the time to fit in all that this city has to offer before they have to board their homeward flights from Tel Aviv.

The city is the most expensive in the region and the world’s 17th most expensive city. When David Kaufman, a New York-based writer and editor paid it a visit, he called it the “Mediterranean’s New Capital of Cool”.

Tel Aviv prides itself on its White City and in 2003, this area of town was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is made up of the largest concentration of Modernist-style buildings in the world.

For details of flights to Tel Aviv contact your local travel agent or visit the many online sites offering both scheduled flights and package holidays.

Venice, which has a population of 271,367, is located in northeastern Italy and is the capital of the Veneto region of the country.

Together with Padua, Venice forms part of the Metropolitan Area of Padua-Venice. In total, this region has a population of some 1,600,000.

The city was built on a total of 118 small islands stretched across the marshy Venetian Lagoon, which opens out into the Adriatic Sea. This saltwater lagoon stretches along the shoreline between the mouths of the Piave or north and the Po or south rivers.

Venice was historically an independent nation and over the centuries has been known by a number of romantic and impressive sounding names. They include The City of Light, Serenissima, La Dominante, City of Water, Queen of the Adriatic and the City of Bridges. Luigi Barzini, writing in The New York Times, once described the place as, “undoubtedly the most beautiful city built by man”.

Before you leave for home on your flight from Venice; the archetypal romantic city, you really should sample a gondola ride. Join the couples as they are rowed along the canals, often to the accompaniment of the gondoliers singing a suitable refrain. In fact, many weddings have been performed in these romantic vessels.

In history, the Republic of Venice was a major maritime power, especially during the Middle Ages and Renaissance period. It was a very important centre of art and commerce, from the 13th to the 17th century, when it traded in silk, grains and spices. Venice has also always been famous for its musical and operatic history. 

If you have never been, you should seriously consider taking a flight to Venice. Your local travel agent will be happy to provide you with details of the airlines that offer services from you particular location or you can check out the numerous websites that offer information on travel to the city.

Flights from London, Birmingham and Manchester, to Brussels, in Belgium, take around two hours. The city’s main airport (BRU) lies near the R0 road, some 12kms to the northeastern side of the capital. This modern airport boasts two multi-story parks; one of which is located opposite the main terminal and the other towards the northern side of the airport, around 6kms from the main terminal.

The airport has its own railway station, which is conveniently located below the main terminal building. Trains heading to the centre of the capital are usually available four times an hour, with fares costing around €3. Bus services are also frequent and reliable and there are taxis, which charge around €30 for travel to the centre of Brussels.

There are some 17 bars, cafes and restaurants in the airport, as well as money changing and cash machine facilities, retail shops, an Internet area, post office, and places of worship. The retail space, which is located at Pier A, carries a number of international brands.

Carriers that offer flights from Brussels to the UK and Ireland include Brussels Airlines, BMI, Lufthansa, VLM Airlines and Flybe.

Another international airport, located reasonably near to the city, is Brussels South Charleroi Airport, which is 46kms away. This airport is strategically located to make it accessible from key European regions, lying south of the Netherlands, west of Germany, 1-2hours by road and northeast of France and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

Are you desperate to see the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx? Or how about the many towers that soar into the skies? If your answer to either question is yes, then you should go to Cairo. As the centre of religious and commercial activities in the Arab world, the “City of Minarets” is undoubtedly one of the must-see, must-go-to places in the world.

Access to the city is easy, as both domestic and international flights are handled by Cairo International Airport. It is worth noting that 14,360,175 passengers flew in and out of Cairo in 2007 and Airports Council International reported it had the highest growth rate of any airport in 2008. This only goes to show that Cairo is a place with its roots firmly based in trade and tourism.

International travellers from Africa, America, Asia and Europe have a wide range of airlines to choose from, including Aeroflot (Moscow), Air France (Paris), Cyprus Airways (Larnaca), Czech Airlines (Prague), Delta Airlines (New York), El Al (Tel Aviv), Iraqi Airways (Baghdad), KLM (Amsterdam), Middle East Airlines (Beirut), Royal Jordanian (Amman), Syrian Arab Airlines (Damascus), Air Berlin (Nuremberg), British Airways (London), Emirates (Dubai), Jetairfly (Brussels), Korean Air (Seoul), Olympic Airlines (Athens), Lufthansa (Frankfurt), Singapore Airlines (Singapore) and Turkish Airlines (Istanbul).

Visitors can also fly to Cairo on domestic and European charter flights operated by Air Cairo, Air Europa, Air Memphis, Alexandria Airlines, Cairo Aviation, Euro Mediterranean Airlines, Iberworld, Lotus Air and Midwest Airlines.

Amman is the capital city of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and apart from being the largest city in the country; it serves as its administrative capital and commercial centre.

Amman is both a modern and ancient capital, being one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world today. The city is made even more beautiful by the modern buildings, which incorporate traces of ancient civilisations. The abundance of kebab stalls, with roasting meat, luminous white houses and cafes where Arabian coffee is enjoyed in the afternoon sunshine, invoke a mood straight from ‘A Thousand and One Nights’.

Visitors will delight in Amman’s older central areas. There, life is focused and centred in old souks, colourful traditional markets and grand mosques.

However, because Amman resembles Rome, the city was a favourite with Roman soldiers and officials and a Roman theatre still stands in the city today.

Compared to its neighbours in the area, Amman has a moderate climate. When it gets too hot in other regions, Amman is visited by millions of Gulf holidaymakers. Along with these regional tourists, international tourists and expatriates also enjoy its pleasant summer temperatures.

In addition, because of Jordan’s location in a region that is frequently at the centre of conflict and violence, Amman remains a safe place to visit.

Amman is popular with a range of travellers who go there to take advantage of its jewellers, souvenir shops, world-class hospitals and schools for the Arabic language.

The Titanic, ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ and Milk of Magnesia, what do you think they all have in common?

You may be surprised to learn that they are all products of men living and working the city of Belfast. Locals find it amusing that they all came from their humble city. Now, it is your turn to experience the grandeur of Belfast.

Access to the city is quite easy, especially for visitors coming from other parts of the UK or countries within the European Union (EU). Belfast has two airports catering to both domestic and international flights, George Best Belfast City Airport, which is closer to the city centre and Belfast International Airport, which is situated to the north of the city.

Travellers arriving from inside the country or from the rest of the UK can fly to Belfast International Airport on flights operated by airlines such as EasyJet, the airport’s largest operator, BMI, Jet2, Manx2 or Aer Lingus, depending on the departure point. Obviously, the airport also operates return flights to most UK airports. George Best Belfast City Airport mostly caters to domestic flights and the main operators using this airport include Aer Arann, BMI, Flybe, Ryanair and Manx2.

For visitors travelling from international locations, Belfast International Airport is the usual point of arrival. However, from some countries it may be necessary to fly into London’s Heathrow or other major UK airport and then take a domestic flight to Belfast. International airlines flying directly into the city include Continental Airlines, Bulgarian Air Charter, Spanair, Thomas Cook Airlines and Thomson Airways.

Many airlines fly to Moscow from European and Asian cities, along with Hong Kong and New York. They include Aeroflot, Air China, Air France, Alaska Airlines, Air India, Alitalia, ANA, Balkan, CSA, British Airways, Korean Air, Delta, Finnair, JAL, KLM, LOT Polish, Lufthansa, Malev, Sabena, PIA, SAS, THY Swissair, and Transaero. There are also charter services offered in most major cities in Europe and North America.

Some of the most popular tourist sights in Moscow include Red Square, the Kremlin, fine art and other museums, theatres, old Moscow and Christ the Saviour Cathedral. Mementos of the old communist system are also in great demand by visitors.

The Kremlin is a self-contained city that dates back to 1147. It has a multitude of palaces, armouries and churches. Red Square, though, is associated with images of Soviet leaders standing atop Lenin’s Mausoleum in the bitter cold, while viewing parades of military power.

Surviving artefacts of old Moscow include Novodevichy Convent and Cemetery, the English House and the Palace of the Romanov Boyars, while the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery and Gorky House Museum are among the most interesting places to visit.

However, the newly renovated Christ the Saviour Cathedral, which was demolished during Stalin’s regime, in 1931, is a magnificent symbol of the largest construction boom in the recent history of Moscow.

Moscow is a Russian city, somewhere an individual comes face to face with all the finest and the most frustrating events in the country. It is the place where Soviet history collides with the capitalist future in Russia. Furthermore, Moscow’s most striking aspect is not its much-publicised embrace of Western culture, but its proud revival of its own traditions.