Travel Features

Are you afraid of flying? How to overcome your fear

Aerophobia is the term used to describe the fear of flying (as well as an irrational fear of breezes and fresh air - I can understand why a gale-force storm might induce fear but a little summer breeze?), and while it just makes a flight a very uncomfortable experience for some people, it completely stops others from getting on a plane at all.

If you suffer from a fear of flying and would like to overcome in it in order that you can see the world, then you may be pleased to know that there are a number of courses and resources to help people do just that.

How to holiday with teenagers (honestly, it can be fun!)

When did browsing for your family become a stress rather than pleasure? When your little cherubs turned into turbulent teens, of course. Not as easily contented as when they were tots, and they have much more varied tastes. But family holidays can be as happy now as they ever were, or even better.

It goes without saying that including your teens in the planning is pretty much essential if you’re going to have great holidays. In fact, they might even have better ideas than you. Let’s face it, they’re probably more global in their outlook, than most adults reading this, as well as internet savvy – and they will likely have some set ideas about holidays, at least about what they don’t want to do!

Hot spots for volunteer travel

If giving to a culture as well as learning it is important to you, then a volunteer project could be the thing, especially if you want your charitable donations or aid to be far more 'hands-on' and practical. According to this article eight hot spots for volunteer travel on Forbes.com, there is a huge appeal for business executives to participate in this type of philanthropic holiday, as well as people who just want to feel like they are giving something back. The article has the eight hot spots in a wonderful picture gallery, leading with Santa Cruz in Bolivia.

Trekking and Cycling: find the right trip for you!

Trekking and cycling tours are some of the best to be had for getting to explore the bits of a country that tour buses or trains just can’t take you, and we work with a number of wonder tour operators who offer this type of experience, such as Explore, Exodus and The Adventure Company.

Treks and cycling trips come in many shapes and sizes, ranging from leisurely and easy-going to downright tough. You need to think about which level of tour is best suited to you, and we have ten pointers here to help you decide:

The Foreign Office for travel safety advice

Researching a potential holiday destination should really feature as an essential part of any trip, whether it is about finding out what visas are required, what you might have to consider if travelling through Ramadan, or whether there are parts of a country that are 'off-limits' to tourists.

Whatever your query regarding the safety of a destination, entry requirements or even travel health, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office is the best resource to find out what you need to know, or signpost you further.

Why are older people more at risk in the heat?

This excellent health advice feature is from the NHS Direct travel health guide:

Older people, especially those over the age of 75, are at risk of serious illness, and even death, during very hot weather. In 2003, the heatwave was reportedly responsible for the deaths of around 2,000 older people. There are several reasons for older people being particularly at risk during a heatwave.

Firstly, as we get older, our bodies become less able to recognise hot temperatures. Plus, in older age we have fewer sweat glands and sweat less. Sweating is the body's natural cooling mechanism and therefore not being able to sweat as much means that it is not possible to stay as cool naturally.

NHS travel advice and health tips

The NHS is a wealth of information on travel health advice and offers some excellent advice for all travellers.

From the question of whether you can fly with a plaster cast to which travel vaccinations are free, the NHS travel health website is a one stop shop knowledge bank of travel health information.

Watch this space for more health advice from specific parts of the NHS website.

Top tips for safe travel in a foreign country

Many problems encountered overseas can be avoided if some simple precautions are taken. Follow Jana Jordan 's overseas travel tips to be well on your way to having a hassle-free journey.

Travel News - Check the latest travel news for your destination and subscribe to receive e-mail notification each time travel advice for your country is updated. You always want to take steps to keep yourself out of hazardous situations so a good idea is to monitor the news for any instability from the country that you will be visiting.