An airline losing your luggage is a surefire way to ruin the start of a holiday. You don't want to have to be buying emergency clothes when you should be sipping cocktails on the beach instead.
28.01.2025 - 21:15 / afar.com
Emirates will soon make flying more accessible for autistic travelers and their families. The Dubai-based airline is set to become the world’s first commercial Autism Certified Airline—when the airline finishes training more than 30,000 cabin crew and ground staff members.
That training, developed and led by the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards (IBCCES), an organization that trains professionals to work with autistic individuals, will help airline staff better understand what autism is and will improve their ability to support autistic travelers through their journey.
“Becoming certified means the organization is going above and beyond to welcome travelers via staff training and knowledge, sensory guides, and other enhanced support,” said Meredith Tekin, president of IBCCES, adding that meeting certification requirements is a rigorous process that demonstrates long-term commitment because the certification must be renewed periodically.
In the coming months, new autism-friendly services are also expected to be rolled out. In the air, that will include handing out neurodiverse sensory products, such as fidget toys, to help with anxiety and stress. On the ground, one of the services will include releasing a sensory guide to prepare travelers for the surroundings they’ll encounter on their journey, from sound levels and smells to lighting and potential sights.
While air travel can be stressful for anyone, for travelers with autism, flying can feel particularly overwhelming. Going through airport security then boarding and flying on an airplane can involve dealing with crowds, loud noises, cramped spaces, bright lights, and other situations that could cause sensory overload. Zoe Gross, the director of advocacy at the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, said that could lead to a meltdown where an autistic person loses control of their body.
“People who don’t understand what is happening may call security or police if they see someone having a meltdown,” Gross said. “Many autistic people are also concerned that if we show traits of autism, such as repetitive behaviors or avoiding eye contact, we may be perceived as ‘suspicious’ or ‘threatening’ during travel. Because of all of these concerns, it’s important that people who work with the public, such an airline’s customer service workers, learn how to treat people with intellectual and developmental disabilities fairly.”
For Cynthia Andrew, an influencer who often shares about traveling with her autistic twin sons, the news is welcome. However, she’s curious to see how the certification is implemented and how well staff are trained.
“Sometimes it feels like a stamp, a thing to do, but not really a day-to-day effort to
An airline losing your luggage is a surefire way to ruin the start of a holiday. You don't want to have to be buying emergency clothes when you should be sipping cocktails on the beach instead.
Here at the TPG, we are always looking for ways to earn as many points and miles as possible — sometimes in more extreme ways than others.
At Condé Nast Traveler, we are always thinking about what’s next for luxury travel. Which is why, at our first Points of View Summit to be held in the Middle East, we gathered a trusted group of local and international experts in travel, the arts, luxury retail and design to discuss just that.
Before my days at TPG, I didn't know much about airline elite status nor did I particularly care. Lounge access and first-class upgrades felt like something only attained by road warriors who flew weekly and only saw their families on the weekends.
For fliers who haven’t encountered it before, SSSS on a boarding pass stands for Secondary Security Screening Selection. It’s the Transportation Security Administration’s method of selecting passengers for additional security checks. If the acronym appears on your ticket, it means you’ll be subject to an extra-thorough screening—despite having pre-approval through a Trusted Traveler Program such as Clear, NEXUS, Global Entry, or TSA PreCheck. This can extend the boarding process by 15 to 45 minutes (or longer), which is always frustrating if you’re running on a tight schedule.
Eight months after my 30th birthday, I realized that I did, in fact, want children. In my 20s, I was never really sure. I thought of it as a kind of eventuality, something I’d get to once my life no longer revolved around friends and travel and chasing the next story. Something for the next, much more grown-up phase of my life. Then I learned that the choice might not be mine to make. My egg reserve levels were teetering on the edge of “critically low” and all signs pointed towards early menopause, a condition I now know runs in my family.
Multiple earthquakes are rattling Santorini, a volcanic island in Greece, prompting authorities to dispatch rescuers with tents, a sniffer dog and drones, and to shut schools on four islands.
Feeling overworked, undervalued, and generally a bit frazzled? Then, it's time to start planning a wellness-focused getaway that will totally re-align you. And Book Retreats has just got the place to go. In December, Book Retreats released its Holiday Relaxation Report, which ranked the best relaxation destinations around the world, including a special focus on the top spots for wellness. To determine its rankings, the team created a seed list of 76 places, which it selected based on their «safety, solitude, serenity, nature, and wellness.» The team at Book Retreats then ranked those selections using nine data points, including the percentage of protected area, forest coverage, crowd density, noise and light pollution, peacefulness, and total wellness experiences. Finally, it gave each destination a score of 1 to 100 to reveal the top spots.
Schools were closed and emergency crews deployed on the volcanic Greek island of Santorini on Monday after a spike in seismic activity raised concerns about a potentially powerful earthquake.
Blessings from an altar boy amid the sound of chanting monks is not how I expected to begin my first-ever three-star Michelin restaurant experience.
Condé Nast Traveler celebrated its 2025 Gold List in Dubai, with a glittering party against the Jumeirah Burj Al Arab, which marks its 25th anniversary, as well as being featured on the prestigious Gold List. The evening, which included a "Touch of Gold" dress code, was hosted by Condé Nast's CEO Roger Lynch, chief content officer and global editorial director of Vogue, Anna Wintour, and Condé Nast Traveller's global editorial director Divia Thani. The list is created annually by Condé Nast Traveler and is a selection of hotels and cruises that its discerning editors across the world deem as their own personal favorites.
Dubai International Airport was the world's busiest for international travel in 2024, officials announced on Thursday.