Before booking a holiday many people check out reviews of the accommodation they are planning on staying at to make sure there are no hidden nasty surprises and to make sure the accommodation is as good as it boasts on websites and brochures. Tripadvisor is the most popular review site and hotels from all around the world are featured, reviews on the site can make or break a hotel. So it’s no wonder some less than acceptable hotels are looking to undo any negative reviews on Tripadvisor with glowing reports, even if they may not be true.

Some guests have been bribed with cash or cut-price rooms in exchange for good reviews, so far around thirty properties around the world have been blacklisted because of their suspicious reviews. There seems to be a bit of a black market for good reviews on hotels and accommodation that isn’t up to scratch. The Office of Fair Trading said it would investigate if they receive any direct complaints. For the best part, Tripadvisor, will red flag any hotels that they consider have been placing, overly enthusiastic reviews on their site that could have been ‘interfered’ with. However it can be quite hard to tell considering there are nearly 45million reviews on the site.

Back in 2009 a company in New York was fined £200,000 for posting fake consumer reviews.

A campaign has been started by First Choice, owned by TUI, the world’s leading international leisure travel group. The campaign is against low-cost competitors to promote itself as “value for money.” The campaign precisely compares its own holiday offers with the low-cost price of EasyJet’s holiday packages and follows the launch of its sister brand Thomson Holidays’ ‘There’s no comparison’ campaign last week.

The campaign suggests that the airline EasyJet, uses boring and ordinary hotels as its hotels in its ‘holiday packages,’ creates chaos at boarding times and provides extremely poor customer service.

The movement has been named “Big on frills, low on price” and has been launched today. The latest First Choice campaign is launching in famous newspapers: the Metro and Daily Star today and will run across other national newspapers over the weekend with further adverts online and via e-mail.

The campaign has five key messages: promoting the exclusivity of First Choice’s holidays to “action-packed” resorts, Holiday Villages and SplashWorld,; allocated seating on its flights; the presence of in-resort Holiday Advisors available 24/7; ‘thousands‘ of free child places in the holiday packages and an amazing 40 years‘ experience!

Jeremy Ellis, head of marketing, TUI UK & Ireland, said: “Consumers are looking for certainty and reassurance, and our brand tracking is showing significant growth in consumer confidence for package holidays where everything’s taken care of. This is First Choice’s heartland. We see a great opportunity to capitalise on this trend by demonstrating the advantages of going with First Choice rather than trying to cut corners with low cost carriers.”

First Choice became the first conventional holiday operator in the UK to only sell all-inclusive holidays, in April.

There were some notable ‘large’ winners and ‘small’ winners in the first Cruise Critic Awards, the larger winner was the largest cruise ship, Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas which came out as a surprise winner after receiving rave reviews from travellers.

When Royal Caribbean launched the Oasis of the Sea’s two years ago to much fan fare, of it being the largest ever liner, many people believed travelling on a ship this size with so many passengers would be unpopular. However the vessel has proved critics wrong gaining recognition for best cabins, dining, embarkation, entertainment, value, fitness and public rooms as well as best large ship overall. It is also fast becoming a popular choice for Caribbean cruises amongst seasoned cruisers.  The 225,282-ton vessel was frequently given a rating of five or five plus rosettes, which is the highest accolade given by passengers, who described the record-breaking ship as ‘awesome’ and ‘wonderful’.

However it’s not only the large cruise ship which dominated the awards, Azamara , which has two ships, Journey and Quest, which take 694 passengers, received a higher review over all, scoring 5.3 from cruisers, more than the Oasis of the Seas 5.0. Azamara offers more overnights and longer stays at their ports of call compared to larger cruise lines. The Journey won the best ship accolade and was nominated in six other categories, with Quest following closely behind. Both ships scored highly for shore excursions, service and dining.

Affordable cruise lines also came out on top with Thomson’s ship the Spirit coming out on top in the mid-sized category. The vessel was voted the best overall, coming out on top for dining, entertainment, value, and service and shore excursions. This is good news for Thomson Cruises who have recently announced that they would once again be sailing from a number of UK regional ports in summer 2012 after taking a three-year hiatus.

For a second time in a year tourists have been banned from visiting Tibet, with exclusion thought to last until at least August. The ruling from China comes around the 60th Anniversary of their controversial rule of the area.

Hannah Methven of the specialist tour operator Explore said: “Tibet tourist permits are not being granted for travel between 25th June and 25th July 2011, marking the 60th anniversary of Tibet’s incorporation into the People’s Republic of China. As a result, Explore has had to cancel one of its tours scheduled to visit Tibet during this time. Customers have been given the option to join alternative trips or receive a full refund.”

Also a French media agency also suggested that the ban may even go on for much longer, Agence-France Presse reported claims in Chinese newspaper the Global Times that said tourists will not be allowed into Tibet until mid-August, due to ‘safety concerns’. The same agency also published comments of an employee at the travel agency China Travel Service, based in the Tibetan capital Lhasa, who admitted that: “At the moment, we are not admitting foreign tourists.”

It’s no surprise that tension in the country are running high as 2011 marks the 60th anniversary of China’s rule in the area which over the years has provoked unrest and protest since the Chinese took control in 1951 following military conflict. In March 2008 violent anti-government riots broke out in Lhasa which then triggered similar demonstrations in surrounding Tibetan provinces. During that period, tourists were also excluded from Tibet for over 12 months.

This recent ban is the second one this year, back in March one was in place as the third anniversary of the demonstrations approached, however it was lifted between April and June.

Cruise ships seem to be getting bigger and bigger with plenty of larger cruise ships been launched recently such as Oasis and Allure of the Seas and Norwegian Epic and now P&O get in on the action with plans for their own mega cruise ship.

Currently the ship is unnamed however it will be costing around £340 million to build and will be able to carry 3,611 passengers. It won’t be as big as its massive rivals, but will be the biggest for the company, weighing in around 141,000-tonne, which is less than the largest cruise ship, Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas at 225,282 tones. However it will be the largest cruise ship designed for the British market.

If you fancy a cruise on the new P&O vessel you still have a bit of a wait, it’s not due to be launched until March 2015. Although P&O Cruises promises the ship will ‘offer a stylish and innovative new design and an unprecedented number of passenger facilities.’ So it will be worthwhile for keeping an eye out and getting on a waiting list for the launch.

Managing director Carol Marlow said: ‘This next-generation ship will deliver the ultimate P&O Cruises experience, with ‘sophisticated wows’ and new features to attract thousands of newcomers to our brand.’

Although the ship will have a British theme, it won’t be built here in the UK, instead it will be by Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri, which is the company behind Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth and world-renowned cruise brands Silversea, Holland America and Oceania.

If you can’t wait to travel on the new P&O vessel you could always book a trip on the new Disney, MSC, Carnival, Costa and Celebrity Cruises, cruise ships which are all launching new ships!

On Saturday, Welsh Icon, Dame Shirley Bassey christened the latest addition to the P&O cruises fleet, the Adonia. She christened the vessel in traditional form, by smashing a bottle of champagne (Balfour Brut Rose, an English pink sparkling wine) into the Adonia’s Hull.

As part of the christening, and her godmother duties Dame Shirley also sang to the guests on board, singing her classic hit, ‘Diamonds Are Forever’, which was followed by a firework display in Southampton Docks. She also spoke about being Godmother to the ship, saying: “I’m really excited I’ve been a godmother to children but never to a ship.”

Also at the christening was Down Town Abbey start Hugh Bonneville, who made a speech to the 500 guests on board about the classical myth of the goddess Venus and her young lover Adonis and the festival of Adonia, which the ship takes its name from.

Hugh Bonneville stated: “When Adonis died, Venus beat her breast, weeping over the loss of her beloved. It is said a two-day festival of Adonia was begun in honor of his passing. On the first day all was toil, wailing and tribulation. On the second day, joy, celebration and rebirth. Well, the toil of preparing this splendid vessel is over. Today we celebrate her rebirth as she begins her new life on the high seas.”

The Adonia is the smallest ship in the P&O fleet, holding a maximum of just 710 guests, with 75% of the rooms having balconies. The ship will begin sailing this month, with numerous cruise deals available.

P&O Adonia

Picture courtesy of eastleighbusman

For the beginning to middle part of the last decade, going on long foreign holidays to far off exotic destinations became the norm for many families. However since the recession hit and people’s pockets are no longer as deep as they once were, that all import long break away in the sun may not be as achievable as it once was. But don’t worry you’re not alone, many people are now looking at downsizing their holidays, so they can still go away somewhere, albeit more situated to their new pocket.

For some that means cutting a fourteen day break down to ten, or a seven day break down to four, it also means looking at where you stay also, if you once enjoyed a stay in five star, you may need to drop down a couple of stars to afford a holiday now. 

It’s also worth choosing your destination carefully too, with the rate of the pound against the Euro being poor many favourable parts of Europe such as Spain and Portugal can be pricy, where as non Euro destinations such as Turkey come out better priced.

You should also look at the type of accommodation you stay in too, if you’re a young couple or with friends, sometimes self catering can be a viable option, although you will be keeping an eye on the cost of eating and drinking, however sharing meals, especially large ones can save you money. If you have a large family then sometimes it can be worth looking at all inclusive packages, although more expensive you do have the option of all you can eat type buffets, perfect for fussy kids as you generally find a supply of chicken nuggets and chips, as well as local delicacies.

The only place you will find it hard to save money is with flights, as the cost of these keep rising thanks to fuel prices, however you should be aware that with long haul flights to certain areas you will be paying different levels of Airport Tax (APT) so Caribbean and holidays that far will face bigger taxes. So sticking closer to home could save you some money.

According to figures from Keep Brittan Tidy, England’s beaches are maintaining their cleanliness levels; this year 70 English beaches have been awarded the Blue Flag, which is one less than in 2010. Keep Britain Tidy who is responsible for the scheme in England awarded 108 beaches around the country Quality Coast Awards, compared to 45 Blue Flags in 2002.

There are 32 beaches which have achieved both the Blue Flag and Quality Coast Award, which means that there are now 146 award-wining beaches in England. Torbay in Devon has six Blue Flag beaches, while Southend-on-Sea in Essex has five for 2011, many of the English regions have done just as well for Blue Flag beaches this year, however the number awarded in south-east England has fallen from 17 to 10.

Phil Barton, chief executive of Keep Britain Tidy said: “Traditional beach holidays in this country were always centred on our seaside resorts and we urge holidaymakers to rekindle their passion for our wonderful coastline and quality resorts. The continuing high standards of our beaches are testament to the hard work carried out by beach managers throughout the year in order to provide clean and safe beaches for everyone to enjoy, whether you live on the coast or are a visitor.”

As we approach the wedding season the Foreign Office has warned British travellers who are planning on taking stag and hen holidays abroad to avoid risqué fancy dress and disorderly behaviour whilst in foreign countries after some of the awkward situations that revellers had found themselves in were revealed.

According to the Foreign Office some of the situations included; waking upside down and naked inside a bin, being chained to a police car, someone being thrown into a canal in Amsterdam and one reveller falling off a balcony causing them to spend weeks in hospital. As well as drunken behaviour travellers are also reminded that some cultures may be offended by some costumes and drunken behaviour is also not accepted.

This year the Foreign Office said that around one million Britons are planning to travel abroad for pre-wedding parties and its thought that some 169,000 will not have travel insurance and those that do, will not realise drunken behaviour which relates to a claim will invalidate their insurance should they need to make a claim. This could prove costly especially if you need expensive treatment if you are injured whilst drinking. This year’s top destinations for stag and hen parties include; Riga in Latvia and Barcelona and Marbella in southern Spain.

Foreign Office spokesman Phil Lord said: “Stag and hen dos are all about having a great time but the celebrations can come to an abrupt end if things go wrong. Cultural differences mean some people will take offence to risqué fancy dress costumes and rowdy behaviour. So, to avoid a hostile reception from the locals or even spending the weekend in jail, make sure you research your destination and know your limits.”

Maria Leng, a consular official in Spain, said: “Consular staff in Spain have to regularly handle cases involving arrests, hospitalisation and lost and stolen passports. Have fun but remember a combination of sun and alcohol doesn’t always mix.”

There is one major problem when we Brits suffer with when we go on holiday abroad and that is Delhi Belly or Moctezuma’s Revenge or god old traveller’s diarrhoea. It has now been revealed that most holiday makers fall ill in Spain, with 32 per cent of Britons stating that they have been unwell while staying on the Iberian Peninsula.

Many travellers presume the places where you are most likely to fall ill are the Middle Eastern destinations such as Egypt or Turkey so it may come as a surprise to find out that most travellers have experienced tummy troubles in the popular Spanish resorts. According to a poll conducted by the company behind Bimuno Travelaid around a third of Britons said they had experienced an upset tummy in Spain, with Greece a close second and more surprisingly France which is known for its food, in third.

The worst countries for TD and the percentage of traveller’s who have become ill:

Spain           32.2%
Greece         14.2%
France         9.6%
Egypt           9.5%
Africa          8.1%
Turkey         7.6%
America       6.6%
Italy             6.4%
India            5.3%
Caribbean    4.2

Most surprising is that the Caribbean comes in, in tenth place this is despite the region having a bad reputation for food hygiene. Out of those polled, 30 per cent had said that they has suffered for at least two days on holiday, with 15 per cent saying they had suffered for three days or more, ruining their holiday.

Geoff Collins, of Bimuno, said: “As a nation, British travellers make 23.7 million trips a year to countries linked with travellers’ diarrhoea, so there is a high risk that a vital business trip or a precious holiday could be ruined by this problem.”