Travel for the Over 30s

 If anyone is heading to the UK or out of the UK and need some airport parking then you need to check out this cool little site: Go Simply: Airport Parking

The site also includes some near airport hotels mainly in Europe and the UK as well as world-wide airport lounges but their focus seems to be UK airport’s notoriously expensive  parking: for exampleEdinburgh airport parking  starts from around £25!

That said a site like this will let you make the most of a bad deal if you HAVE to take a car to an airport (the much better deal would be to take the train - Manchester is one of my favourite UK airports cause the long-distance train is right there under the air terminal!)

I like this site though- its clean, fast to load and has lots of user-reviews which are always very handy - remember price is one thing but you need to have a reliable service if you are going to need a pick up/drop down service to actually get you to the terminal on time.

Oh and triple check your airport too - its very easy to end up at the wrong one in the UK - rule of thumb the cheaper the air ticket the further away the airport is likely to be!

Ever wanted to inhale your drink, rather than drink it?Me neither but its the latest fad in London at the “Breathable Bar“. Patrons in the “breathable bar” have to done a sexy head to foot protection suit before entering the bar where they can breath in a gin and tonic.

Apparently its legit and safe: it won’t explode and it won’t harm you. It won’t get you too drunk either because you get kicked out after an hour - apparently inhaling alcohol gets it to the bloodstream faster than merely drinking it.

The bar in Soho uses industrial technology to create a vapour of Hendrick’s Gin and tonic- what a very English experience.

Visitors are charged £5 (US$7)  for entry to the Alcoholic Architecture bar - but hurry its only open for a week!

Snorkeling  with whale sharks is nothing at all like cage diving. Whale sharks are the biggest of all sharks, the biggest fish in the sea, and are plankton feeders, harmless to humans. They grow up to 7m long and migrate up Australia’s west coast. From Exmouth you can take a day tour to swim with the whale sharks.

In a similar manner to what spotting tours the boats use spotter planes to find the whale sharks who swim only a metre or two below the surface. While they are finding the fish the guests get to practice their snorkeling - this is not a trip for beginners and its compulsory to snorkel first off just to make sure that your gear is OK and you are not going to panic being in deep water.

The whale sharks come so close into Exmouth because the continental shelf drops off very close to shore at this part of the coast line. When a whale shark is spotted the idea is to jump in after the dive master and sprint snorkle to keep up with the group -€“ this is harder than it sounds in  1 to 2 metre swell its surprisingly difficult to see others in the water. The boat isn’t allowed within 250 metres of the animal so the last bit is up to you. Unlike all the frantic bubbles and splashing from the humans on the surface the whale shark doesn’t even seem to be making an effort its hard to judge that they are moving fast as with only the blue of the deep ocean below it.

The whale shark season in Exmouth runs from March to July. Its the end of the summer at the water temperature was 28C the same out with the whale sharks as on the beach. You will however need sun protection.  An all day tour costs around A$360 including all gear, pick up from accommodation, lunch.

The photos are from the on-board professional photographer I was too busy swimming hard to take take any pictures.

Need something to do over the long-weekend if you aren’t taking a road trip . How about coming up with a cute name for some of Air Asia X ’s new planes? The cheeky Malaysian startup is doing very well these days - taking on the old tired airlines and winning. But I recently a couple of extraordinary things they are doing:

• offering return flights Australia-Europe for under A$1000 - you have to change planes in KL of course -no great hardship - but for the price who cares if food is extra?
• they actually have an entertaining corporate blog - who would have thought it was possible?
• they are buying new planes left right and centre 23 A330s and a A340 on order.

Which brings us to the point of this point - they need some more names: they like the “X” thing - Xanadu being their call sign and recent names include Xuberance and Xcalibur (on the London route of course)

Winners will get a free return trip anywhere on the network which would take you from the Gold Coast to Stanstead to China - Detail are on the Air Asia blog here

I’m not a huge fan of twitter - but for finding cool videos about people in dancing at train stations its pretty useful. This is a new one with a orchestrated rendition of “Do Ra Me” from Sound of Music. You just have to love how the passer by’s go from confused and slightly annoyed - to engaged and smiling and laughing -there is just something about dance and music that makes everyone feel good - except for one old grumpy guys who just keeps on walking!

I’m not sure this is like the early video of a flash mob at Liverpool Station, England also dancing in the middle of a train station actually a well designed ad - there is a byline at the end but my Flemish is not up to it!

Anyway keep an eye out for the usual it may be a flash mob -or at least a viral advertisment and you could get famous on youtube if you get with the beat, and remember that you can have fun even if you are not travelling!

Do you prefer to drive to your holiday destination or fly? Its always a dilemma - we are driving 2500km round-trip over Easter and decided to drive instead of flying made me think of the factors that go into that decisions:

Why Drive to Exmouth

• Exmouth is 1200km (750 miles) from Perth and it will take us two days to drive because neither of us really enjoy 12 hour driving marathons and dodging kangaroos anymore!
• We need a car at the destination: hiring one is expensive in small town Australia
• If we drive we can take cheap camping gear and camp for A$35/night rather than  get a room for at least $120/night
• Flying to a regional location not serviced by cheaper airlines like Tiger Airways means that you pay a lot: a month ago it was going to be around A$500/return - each.
• Flight disruptions can ruin a short break like Easter, strikes are always more likely at times like Easter.

Disadvantages of Driving Long-Distance In Western Australia

• Western Australia has some stunningly beautiful locations: some of the best scenery in Australia in my opinion - but the distances between are vast.
• Long straight roads really make it very easy to fall asleep or drive off the road -  I’d rather drive somewhere with curves in the road or traffic - neither are common in Australia.
• The petrol prices are always more expensive just before a long-weekend and much more expensive in regional areas.
• Road houses are not the most exciting places to over-night.

Oh and why are we going to Exmouth - you better subscribe to the feed to find out what we are seeing in Exmouth!

Its all good news at the moment if you have the money to travel. Singapore Air is making headlines in Australia having slashed their return airfares to Europe by more than 50%. Return fares from Perth to Europe with Singapore Airlines start from A$1352  -which is around $1000 cheaper than similar Asian airlines such as MAS and Cathay Pacific. The flying Kangaroo Qantas normally charges nearly A$3000 for the trip.  Sale prices to London include all taxes and charges and are valid until 30 November though bookings have to made and paid for by 17 April.

Singapore Air is arguably one of the best airlines in the world and offers modern A380 and 777 planes ex Australia. European destinations on sale with Singapore Air include Barcelona London, Milan, Paris and Frankfurt. All flights ex-Australia require a change in Singapore - but this is no hardship  given that Changi airport is often on the world’s best airports lists of travel magazines. Pack your swimming gear for a swim in the pool or pay for a spa-like shower experience - or do a whistle stop city tour courtesy of Singapore Air (does not require you to pass immigration into/out of Singapore).

Photo Credit