Leave the car at home
A third of the UK population claim to be in favour of using public transport on holiday, but the vast majority still used a car to go on their last tourism trip, a survey by the English Tourism Council has revealed. The survey coincides with the publication of the Council's new strategy to improve the quality of tourism travel in England, which includes measures to get holiday-makers out of their cars. Ways forward include: integrated transport packages for travellers, customer-friendly interchanges to make public transport easier to use, investment in public transport and improvement in the quality, scope and availability of information for tourists. The report is available for £15, tel: 020-8563 3276 or 0870 6067204.
Munich-bound
Lufthansa is launching a new service from London City to Munich on October 28. The introductory fare is £95.70 return. 0845 7737 747, lufthansa.co.uk.
Testing times
Cricketers Phil Tufnell, Gus Fraser and Dermot Reeve are hosting tours to New Zealand to watch England play there in February and March next year. The tours, with a maximum group of 20 in each, are being organised by Bridge the World, with prices starting at £3,195 for a 17-day itinerary including two Tests. 0870 4447474, bridgetheworld.com.
Adventurous over-55s
More people over the age of 55 are taking holidays abroad than ever before, according to a report in Insights, the bi-monthly market intelligence magazine. The proportion of holidays taken by the over 55s in the UK has remained constant at around 25% of the total but the picture for holidays abroad is markedly different. In the past seven years overseas holidays by the 55-64 age group have increased by 90%.
Wild weekends
Earthwatch, the environmental charity, has places available on scientific exploration breaks running between now and December in the UK, some for a weekend, others for a week. Projects include studying badgers in Oxfordshire, monitoring eagles on Mull and taking part in a Natural History Museum botany workshop in London. Prices start at £75. For more information, tel: 01865 318831, uk.earthwatch.org.
Volunteer base
A CD-rom database that can put young people in touch with volunteering opportunities around the world has been launched by the charity Worldwide Volunteering for Young People. It contains information on over 800 volunteer organisations with potential placements for around 250,000 16-25 year olds. An annual subscription costs £95. For information and how to subscribe, go to worldwide volunteering.org.uk.
Shoreline award
Shoreline Cottages of Whitby has won the Yorkshire Tourist Board's Best Newcomer White Rose Award for Tourism. The company has 16 period holiday homes in and around the north Yorkshire port. Prices range from £310 for a week's stay and short breaks are also available. For a brochure call 0113 2893539 or e-mail reservations@shoreline-cottages.com.
