Social tips

Surf’s up in the desert.

One summer, many years ago when I was 17, I met a Dutch girl in a pub who was backpacking around Ireland. She said she was staying in hostels and was off to Doolin in County Clare the next day. Somehow, I hadn’t realised it was that easy to strike out and see the world. The next morning I took the bus to Doolin and began a lifelong love of independent travel and the open road. I never saw the Dutch girl again despite a full search of every pub in the village.

Tourism leaders from around the world will join together in Saudi Arabia’s capital city, Riyadh, for 2023’s United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) World Tourism Day on September 27 and 28. Global tourism ministers and others in the industry will participate in events to connect and collaborate. The location of this year’s event shows how far tourism has come in the few short years since Saudi Arabia opened to tourists in 2019.

You'll be waiting a long time to get into Soho House in some of the world's largest cities.

Every year since 2009, the World’s 50 Best Bars has released its list of top tipple temples from across the globe. Not once has a single bar from Africa ever qualified for that list. It actually remains the only habitable continent on earth to be denied such a spot. And it’s not for lack of trying. There are countless candidates from Morocco all the way down to Cape Town befitting of the merit. None are knocking on the door quite so loudly as Hero Bar in the heart of Nairobi, Kenya.

As I totter across a little footbridge in the gloaming, the water below takes on a treacly sheen, slithering out to sea in the fading light. Ahead, over marshy tussocks, the outline of a ruined barracks looms out of the mist and some lights flicker on in the little red-roofed cottage beyond it. A bank of rain is chasing me over the bog. It catches me just as I reach the village’s (closed) inn so I turn and sprint back to my holiday cottage, Taigh Whin, as the deluge draws a soggy curtain over the landscape. I’ve come to Glenelg, in Scotland’s north-west Highlands, to connect with nature and it’s seeping straight in.

Few challenges are as complex in Madrid as finding a cat. Not the animal, but a — someone who was born in Madrid, whose parents and grandparents were born in Madrid. Nobody in Madrid was born here: You’ll seldom be asked where you are from, because the assumption is that you’re from somewhere else, although suspicion — and prejudice — can come up when you have a certain accent or skin color.

Staying in hostels has always been something of a social thing given that you might end up staying with six or seven strangers in a bunk-filled room, and many properties have live entertainment and community events. But Dublin-based Hostelworld has integrated its own social network into its business to such a degree that is materially helping its financials.

Top of this Thursday morning to you, readers! It’s not news, but I found these funny and relatable Airbnb stories amusing. 

Good morning! Is it a toasty Tuesday where you are? What’s on your calendar for this week? I am headed to London to moderate a panel on regulations at the Short Term Rentalz Summit tomorrow. Are you attending? 

Hope you’re having a good week so far. Hello from across the pond — I’m in London bringing you a European edition today. I was here to moderate a panel discussion at the Short Term Rentalz Summit yesterday and it was delightful. 

Top of the morning to you. Do you know that quote, “There are no strangers, only friends you haven’t met yet?” 

Taking on the role during the unprecedented challenges posed by the global pandemic, Luis Felipe de Oliveira steered ACI World through the most severe crisis ever experienced in the aviation sector. While challenges remain in the airport industry and will require long-term attention, he leaves with a sense of mission accomplished, having elevated the organization to new heights.

Genalguacil (Pueblo Museo), Recartografías and Camino del Cid are the winning projects of this edition in the categories of revitalising tourism services, management of depopulated territories and promotion of territories, respectively.

As the most visited destination outside of Dublin, Galway benefits considerably from tourism – with 984,000 domestic trips and 1.7 million overseas visitors contributing €754 million in tourism expenditure.

Europe most popular regional destination with global travellers. Main travel inspirations are social media and friends and family recommendations.

News, travel inspiration and insights directly on your smartphone.

The book defines and provides a systematic classification scheme for sustainable development trends and issues in the public and private sectors reviewing them in four thematic areas on tourism, such as: Sustainability / Planning and Development / Management / Technology.

The first snows have fallen on the sharp ridge below the 700-metre summit of Víkartindur. Walking the village path towards Saksun, we looked across to the ridge of peaks that run along the spine of the neighbouring island of Eysturoy. The jagged landscape was bathed in golden winter light and in the distance the Atlantic was a giant silvered mirror.

Cold weather can throw a wrinkle into packing plans when it comes to what to wear on flights this winter. With airlines already cracking down on carry-on bags, adding puffy or bulky coats and extra layers to your repertoire can make packing for your next trip more complex than usual. And if weather at your destination is warmer than where you started, now you have another style of clothes to carry.

Editor's note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers.