Thai and Malaysians among the UK’s fastest growing shoppers April 28, 2014 WEST END retailers are bracing themselves for a surge in Thai and Malaysian shoppers over the next three months as they escape their hot summer season and come in search of the UK’s cooler climate. Visitors from Thailand and Malaysia were the fastest growing consumers in the UK last year, each spending 51 per cent [...]
Prague: famed for its beauty, and its stag dos April 6, 2014 Can you escape the dawdling Americans and the lairy parties THE trouble with cities like Prague is twofold: one, their wholehearted embrace of tourism and two, Americans. Formerly ravaged by Soviet rule (a guide on a river tour noted the site of a statue of “that monster” Stalin), then opened up for the beer-swilling stags [...]
Giant panda numbers are up: see them in Chengdu February 23, 2014 They famously eat shoots and leaves. LISA YOUNG gets up-close and personal with the Chinese city’s most famous residents IT’S a warm August morning, the time of year when the sizzling Chengdu summer gives way to cooler climes. Chengdu sits in a fog-filled bowl 500 metres above sea level in the Sichuan Province of south [...]
Iceland: the world’s most dramatic landscapes February 16, 2014 There may only be one proper city in Iceland, but with geysers, volcanic caves, and grinding tectonic plates, there’s plenty to sink your teeth into YOU WILL get lost in Iceland: not geographically, but inside your head. It’s easy to get disorientated when stepping out in swimming gear, exposing your vulnerable flesh to temperatures well [...]
Letters to the Editor – 17/01 – Readers respond to our criticism of France’s failed socialist experiment January 16, 2014 Although I now live in China, I worked in France for 26 years, and have a lot of affection for the country and its people. Like Allister Heath, I feel sad to see the country going down the drain because it cannot rid itself of socialist dogma. The problem is that France is paralysed by [...]
Chinese holidaymakers lead the charge over Christmas period January 13, 2014 WEALTHY foreign visitors helped keep Britain’s tills ringing over Christmas with spending up a record 40 per cent on the previous year. Chinese tourists led the charge, with spending up 52 per cent to around £741 per transaction in December, according to figures out yesterday by tax-free shopping specialist Global Blue. China accounted for the [...]
Chinese holidaymakers lead the charge over Christmas January 13, 2014 Wealthy foreign visitors helped keep Britain’s tills ringing over Christmas with spending up a record 40 per cent on the previous year. Chinese tourists led the charge, with spending up 52 per cent to around £741 per transaction in December, according to figures out today by tax-free shopping specialist Global Blue. While China accounted for [...]
UK to relax visa rules for visitors from Gulf states December 9, 2013 VISA rules for nationals from several Gulf states coming to Britain are being relaxed by the government in a drive to boost visitor numbers and encourage higher tourist spending. The Home Office announced yesterday that short-term visitors from Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates will be able to obtain a new electronic visa waiver [...]
Greek economy to miss growth forecast in 2014 November 27, 2013 THE TROUBLED Greek economy will continue to shrink in 2014, despite official forecasts to the contrary, according to international researchers. The Organisation for Co-operation and Development (OECD) released an updated economic survey yesterday, suggesting that the embattled Mediterranean economy will contract by 0.4 per cent next year. However, the Greek government has forecast that growth [...]
Thai visitors among the UK’s big shopper league this Christmas November 18, 2013 WEALTHY foreign visitors are expected to keep Britain’s tills ringing over the crucial Christmas period, with spend from Thai tourists outpacing all other nationalities so far this year. Thai visitors are the fastest growing consumers of luxury goods in the UK this year so far, with spending up 53 per cent compared to the 37 [...]