We’ve delved into the most interesting travel stories from around the web so you don’t have to, taking the hard work out of finding the best content out there. This week, we’re intrigued by travel that is out of this world, everyday travel hacks and the notion that you can travel too much. Read on to discover the eight best travel stories we’ve read over the past seven days.
The Verge – ‘Google’s best travel feature is an orange blob’
Discovering the best areas of a city to explore can be tricky, involving plenty of research ahead of your trip. Jacob Kastrenakes found that by paying attention to what he coined ‘the orange blobs’ on Google maps, he and his girlfriend could navigate their way around a new city discovering everything from exciting restaurants to hidden plazas. The way the ‘orange blobs’ (officially known as Areas of Interest) work is determined by algorithms but as they tend to mark streets and squares that are populated with plenty of attractions, shops and restaurants, they are a great tool to use to unearth interesting areas to explore. Read the whole article ...
Robb Report – ‘Far Out: MIT Students Design a Luxury Space Hotel
Space tourism isn’t as far away as you may think. A team at MIT recently won a NASA prize for designing the ultimate luxury space hotel, attached to a gigantic space station that would orbit the planet. Sheila Gibson’s article delves into the specifics of this dramatic design, featuring a petal-like structure attached to the bottom of the space station featuring eight inflatable private rooms with windows looking out onto the best view imaginable. The hotel would incorporate a minimalist design to prevent injuries from all that zero-gravity floating around and there would even be opportunities to don a spacesuit and take a walk through space. The main downside would be the cost – approximately $5 million per person (although that would include travel). Read the whole article ...
Herald Courier – ‘Travel with Renowned Photographer’
Our attention was captured by Ann Y Youngmeyer discussing WALLSabout Luxury Travel, a new series of guided trips executed by renowned fine art photographer and gallery owner Benjamin Walls. Although Benjamin’s background is in photography and these trips to destinations including Africa, Australia, New Zealand and Cuba would certainly involve opportunities to get snap happy, the main focus of the tours is to offer a luxury immersive experience where travellers can get experience the breath-taking natural landscapes of these locations. Read the whole article ...
Ars Technica – ‘A Travel Guide for our Future Solar System’
Space travel has been a common theme online this week, with this delightful article by John Timmer dissecting the tongue-in-cheek tome, Vacation Guide to the Solar System. Written by Olivia Koski and Jana Grcevich, part of the Guerilla Science performance art collective, the book takes the form of a traditional travel guide explaining where to visit, when to go, what to see and what precautions you need to take for a variety of planets and moons within our solar system. Perfect for a bit of fun for those who have wish to explore a little further afield. Read the whole article ...
Reuters – ‘At Pan Am Experience, diners relive the golden age of air travel’
Jane Ross delves into the LA restaurant that is encapsulating the retro experience of dining on a Pan Am flight in the 1970’s heyday of glamorous air travel. An exact replica of a Pan Am airline has been constructed to allow diners a unique opportunity to dine in either a First Class cabin, the Main Deck or Clipper Class, complete with retro cocktails, a five-course meal served from trolleys and even the waitresses decked out in full vintage uniforms. Read the whole article ...
The World Link – ‘Everyday Cheapskate: Travel Tips, Tricks and Hacks’
For anyone looking to save time and money while travelling, columnist Mary Hunt has shared her expert travel hacks. If you’d like to know the best way to pack, how to find cheap flights or the best place to hide your valuables in your hotel room, these ten tips are guaranteed to help. Read the whole article ...
Pop Sugar – ’10 Things to Pack for International Travel’
Focusing on female travellers, this useful article by Hilary White is perfect to print out and check off when packing for trips. Encapsulating the obvious, the essentials and the items that you may otherwise overlook, don’t even consider packing your suitcase until you’ve consulted this list. Read the whole article ...
Conde Nast Traveler – ‘Is There Such Thing as Too Much Travel?’
This excellent Conde Nast podcast delves into the above question, talking to two people who have dedicated their lives to travel: Lee Abbamonte who once held the title of ‘youngest American to have travelled to every country’ and Fred Finn who took a record 718 Concorde flights before the airline retired in 2003. The podcast discusses the saturation point for when travel becomes more about bragging than it does exploring, and whether this is actually a negative point. Read the whole article ...
