Ten Essential Apps for Business Travellers

Not so long ago we posted our guide to Essential Apps for Travel Lovers and with more and more smart phones on the market there are more tools for every kind of traveller. Here we look at some indispensable apps for the traveller who needs it most; for many, business travel means a minefield of information and very little time to process it all – if there was only a way to make things simpler…

Expensify

There are few people who’ll disagree that filing expenses is the worst part of business. Expensify is the rescue remedy for all those accounting headaches. Record and keep track of mileage and cash expenses and save images of receipts for uploading. Link a credit card with the account and will generate e-receipts for all purchases. Painless and paperless.
FREE for Blackberry, Android, iPhone and iPad.

Talk To Me

Talk To Me for Android

Android phone users really lucked out with this app, one of the very best text-to-speech (and speech-to-speech) programs on the mobile market. Talk To Me will translate over 40 languages and speak the translations back to you for most of them. It’s so simple to use and might well be your best friend in any communication tight spot.
FREE for Android.

The Trainline

One of the essential downloads of last year and an indispensable app for anyone doing business in the UK*. Finding out when your next connection is couldn’t be easier. Aside from browsing comprehensive schedules for the whole country, you can now buy tickets within the app.
FREE for Android, BlackBerry, iPhone and Nokia.

WorldMate

Though available across all mobile platforms, WorldMate is really one for the BlackBerry user. The BB version can manage itineraries, check weather, convert currencies, search Yelp for local recommendations and more. Its niftiest feature however, is TripCatch which automatically identifies your travel confirmation emails and syncs them with the itinerary in the app. The paid Gold adds real-time flight info and alerts.
Basic version FREE for Android, BlackBerry, iPhone and iPad.

EasySign Mobile

Quick, straightforward and green, EasySign allows you to sign invoices, orders or whatever you like on the go. Just import email attachments (PDF, Word, Excel, Powerpoint, jpegs, text documents) into the app, add your signature on screen and send without the pain of searching for a printer.
FREE for iPhone.

EasySign Mobile for iPhone

Keypoint

KeyPoint for iPhone

Create, edit, play, share and publish presentations on the go; Keypoint is the essential tool for the time-strapped traveller on their way to an important meeting. The great easy to use interface comes loaded with 10 themes and 7 animation styles to choose from and you can export straight to Keynote or PDF.
£1.19 for iPhone.

TripCase

One of a number of cover-all organisational tools on the market, TripCase stands apart with a few key features. Once all your itinerary details are imported to the app, its intelligent messaging system uses it to inform you of any delays or other useful information and advice relating to your journey or accommodation. Real-time alerts of cancellations and gate changes also come as standard with the free version. You can also post updates to any or all of your social networks at once.
FREE for Blackberry, iPhone and Android.

Taxi Magic (US)

All hail the app that eliminates the need to hail. Taxi Magic is fully integrated with taxi dispatch systems across the US* and allows you to book a cab, track its journey to you and pay with your credit card within the app. Get an e-receipt for expenses and well, what else do you need? We eagerly await the arrival of as effective an app in the UK.
FREE for iPhone. (*US store only. If travelling to the States from elsewhere click on your account at the bottom of the app store homescreen to change country.)

Virgin Atlantic Flight Tracker

Virgin Atlantic Flight Tracker for Nokia Ovi

We couldn’t really go without mentioning our own Flight Tracker app, especially as it’s now available for Nokia Ovi users. Reliable real time flight statuses and schedule information, straight from the source. Simple.
Free for Nokia and iPhone.

Help Call

One final lifesaver (literally) for the iPhone crowd comes in the form of Help Call. This app automatically detects where you are in the world and activates local emergency numbers for one-touch access. You can also store a designated friend’s number alongside the usual police, fire and ambulance services.
59p for iPhone.
Are there any awesome apps you just can’t travel without? We’re always on the lookout for tips, so let us know in the comments below.

Ten Essential Apps for Business Travellers

Not so long ago we posted our guide to Essential Apps for Travel Lovers and with more and more smart phones on the market there are more tools for every kind of traveller. Here we look at some indispensable apps for the traveller who needs it most; for many, business travel means a minefield of information and very little time to process it all – if there was only a way to make things simpler…

Expensify

There are few people who’ll disagree that filing expenses is the worst part of business. Expensify is the rescue remedy for all those accounting headaches. Record and keep track of mileage and cash expenses and save images of receipts for uploading. Link a credit card with the account and will generate e-receipts for all purchases. Painless and paperless.
FREE for Blackberry, Android, iPhone and iPad.

Talk To Me

Talk To Me for Android

Android phone users really lucked out with this app, one of the very best text-to-speech (and speech-to-speech) programs on the mobile market. Talk To Me will translate over 40 languages and speak the translations back to you for most of them. It’s so simple to use and might well be your best friend in any communication tight spot.
FREE for Android.

The Trainline

One of the essential downloads of last year and an indispensable app for anyone doing business in the UK*. Finding out when your next connection is couldn’t be easier. Aside from browsing comprehensive schedules for the whole country, you can now buy tickets within the app.
FREE for Android, BlackBerry, iPhone and Nokia.

WorldMate

Though available across all mobile platforms, WorldMate is really one for the BlackBerry user. The BB version can manage itineraries, check weather, convert currencies, search Yelp for local recommendations and more. Its niftiest feature however, is TripCatch which automatically identifies your travel confirmation emails and syncs them with the itinerary in the app. The paid Gold adds real-time flight info and alerts.
Basic version FREE for Android, BlackBerry, iPhone and iPad.

EasySign Mobile

Quick, straightforward and green, EasySign allows you to sign invoices, orders or whatever you like on the go. Just import email attachments (PDF, Word, Excel, Powerpoint, jpegs, text documents) into the app, add your signature on screen and send without the pain of searching for a printer.
FREE for iPhone.

EasySign Mobile for iPhone

Keypoint

KeyPoint for iPhone

Create, edit, play, share and publish presentations on the go; Keypoint is the essential tool for the time-strapped traveller on their way to an important meeting. The great easy to use interface comes loaded with 10 themes and 7 animation styles to choose from and you can export straight to Keynote or PDF.
£1.19 for iPhone.

TripCase

One of a number of cover-all organisational tools on the market, TripCase stands apart with a few key features. Once all your itinerary details are imported to the app, its intelligent messaging system uses it to inform you of any delays or other useful information and advice relating to your journey or accommodation. Real-time alerts of cancellations and gate changes also come as standard with the free version. You can also post updates to any or all of your social networks at once.
FREE for Blackberry, iPhone and Android.

Taxi Magic (US)

All hail the app that eliminates the need to hail. Taxi Magic is fully integrated with taxi dispatch systems across the US* and allows you to book a cab, track its journey to you and pay with your credit card within the app. Get an e-receipt for expenses and well, what else do you need? We eagerly await the arrival of as effective an app in the UK.
FREE for iPhone. (*US store only. If travelling to the States from elsewhere click on your account at the bottom of the app store homescreen to change country.)

Virgin Atlantic Flight Tracker

Virgin Atlantic Flight Tracker for Nokia Ovi

We couldn’t really go without mentioning our own Flight Tracker app, especially as it’s now available for Nokia Ovi users. Reliable real time flight statuses and schedule information, straight from the source. Simple.
Free for Nokia and iPhone.

Help Call

One final lifesaver (literally) for the iPhone crowd comes in the form of Help Call. This app automatically detects where you are in the world and activates local emergency numbers for one-touch access. You can also store a designated friend’s number alongside the usual police, fire and ambulance services.
59p for iPhone.
Are there any awesome apps you just can’t travel without? We’re always on the lookout for tips, so let us know in the comments below.

How To: Make The Most of a Wide-Angle Lens

People use lenses to make things bigger or smaller in the frame, right? So if you’re photographing something big like a landscape, you should use the widest zoom setting. This is the accepted logic, but it misses out on one of the most important aspects of photography: the selection of lenses for more creative effects.
Most people are comfortable using a telephoto lens to make something appear bigger in the picture. This tends to make pictures more dramatic, but wide-angle settings tend to be largely ignored or misused.
Lens choice is about more than just the crop. Each style of lens has its own unique characteristics. As wide-angle lenses tend to cram more of the scene in the frame and have a broader view than the human eye, they tend to distort the image. While some people dislike this effect, I love it and will often deliberately compose my pictures to exaggerate it.

Elephant in India, shot with a 14mm lens. This makes the elephants trunk and head seem much larger compared to the rest of the animal and the crowds behind.

Get in close

To exaggerate the distortion effect of a wide-angle lens, try to shoot closer to the subject. This gives a more dynamic effect. I often get much closer than I need to be to the thing I’m photographing  and zoom to a wider setting, just to magnify the effect.

Wideangle for portraits

Conventional logic says that you should use a mild telephoto lens for shooting portraits, as it gives a pleasing perspective on the face. In many cases this is true, but if you shoot a little closer, and use a slightly wide-angle lens, you can get a more engaging portrait. This effect is magnified if the subject of the portrait is leaning towards you slightly.

Pilgrim, West Bengal. Shooting a portrait with a mildly wide lens and leaning in slightly, creates a dynamic and engaging effect.

A wide-angle lens is also perfect for shooting an environmental portrait. You can get in close to your subject in order to preserve the feeling of connection and empathy, while still showing enough of the scene to give a sense of context.

Buffalo seller, India. Shooting an environmental portrait with a wide lens allows you to combine an intimate, close-up portrait with a significant background.

Most people would advocate shooting candid portraits with a telephoto lens, but you can also shoot them with a wide lens. Point the camera slightly away from the subject, at an interesting or significant object and you can still have the subject of the portrait in the corner of the frame.

Accentuate distortion

You can also accentuate distortion by tilting the camera upwards or downwards. This will cause the subject to narrow at the top or bottom, creating a bolder effect.

Golden Temple complex, Amritsar. If you shoot vertically and use a very wide lens, you can show the foreground and much of the sky in the same shot, creating a dynamic, distorted effect.

A wide-angle lens will always make a subject stand out from the background, as it makes the subject larger. This can be a great technique for making the subject stand out from crowds or from a landscape. Again this effect can be amplified by shooting up close.

Incense burner, Tokyo. This was shot with a fisheye lens: a super-wide lens with huge distortion. This gives a very dynamic and stylised effect.

All photos by Steve Davey. Header image: Detail of the Grand Palace, Bangkok. Shooting with a wide 17mm lens and getting in close has completely distorted the statues, making a right-angle seem exaggerated.
Steve runs travel photography tours to Asia and to Morocco.

How To: Make The Most of a Wide-Angle Lens

People use lenses to make things bigger or smaller in the frame, right? So if you’re photographing something big like a landscape, you should use the widest zoom setting. This is the accepted logic, but it misses out on one of the most important aspects of photography: the selection of lenses for more creative effects.
Most people are comfortable using a telephoto lens to make something appear bigger in the picture. This tends to make pictures more dramatic, but wide-angle settings tend to be largely ignored or misused.
Lens choice is about more than just the crop. Each style of lens has its own unique characteristics. As wide-angle lenses tend to cram more of the scene in the frame and have a broader view than the human eye, they tend to distort the image. While some people dislike this effect, I love it and will often deliberately compose my pictures to exaggerate it.

Elephant in India, shot with a 14mm lens. This makes the elephants trunk and head seem much larger compared to the rest of the animal and the crowds behind.

Get in close

To exaggerate the distortion effect of a wide-angle lens, try to shoot closer to the subject. This gives a more dynamic effect. I often get much closer than I need to be to the thing I’m photographing  and zoom to a wider setting, just to magnify the effect.

Wideangle for portraits

Conventional logic says that you should use a mild telephoto lens for shooting portraits, as it gives a pleasing perspective on the face. In many cases this is true, but if you shoot a little closer, and use a slightly wide-angle lens, you can get a more engaging portrait. This effect is magnified if the subject of the portrait is leaning towards you slightly.

Pilgrim, West Bengal. Shooting a portrait with a mildly wide lens and leaning in slightly, creates a dynamic and engaging effect.

A wide-angle lens is also perfect for shooting an environmental portrait. You can get in close to your subject in order to preserve the feeling of connection and empathy, while still showing enough of the scene to give a sense of context.

Buffalo seller, India. Shooting an environmental portrait with a wide lens allows you to combine an intimate, close-up portrait with a significant background.

Most people would advocate shooting candid portraits with a telephoto lens, but you can also shoot them with a wide lens. Point the camera slightly away from the subject, at an interesting or significant object and you can still have the subject of the portrait in the corner of the frame.

Accentuate distortion

You can also accentuate distortion by tilting the camera upwards or downwards. This will cause the subject to narrow at the top or bottom, creating a bolder effect.

Golden Temple complex, Amritsar. If you shoot vertically and use a very wide lens, you can show the foreground and much of the sky in the same shot, creating a dynamic, distorted effect.

A wide-angle lens will always make a subject stand out from the background, as it makes the subject larger. This can be a great technique for making the subject stand out from crowds or from a landscape. Again this effect can be amplified by shooting up close.

Incense burner, Tokyo. This was shot with a fisheye lens: a super-wide lens with huge distortion. This gives a very dynamic and stylised effect.

All photos by Steve Davey. Header image: Detail of the Grand Palace, Bangkok. Shooting with a wide 17mm lens and getting in close has completely distorted the statues, making a right-angle seem exaggerated.
Steve runs travel photography tours to Asia and to Morocco.

Johannesburg: South Africa’s Heart of Gold

Often neglected on the South African tourist trail, Johannesburg is a cultural goldmine says South Africa expert and regular vtravelled contributor Lucy Corne. Here’s her authoritative guide to the City of Gold’s intriguing museums…

Open your eyes

Lucy Corne

“If you were to judge a city’s personality by its museums then Johannesburg would most likely be labelled schizophrenic – poignant, chaotic, thought-provoking, hilarious, emotional and bizarre, sometimes all at the same time. Thinking about it, this might not be a bad way to gauge this city. But there’s one word that sums up the City of Gold better than any other: overlooked. Too many travellers make the mistake of leaving the city after the briefest of glimpses – or sometimes without ever leaving the airport.”

First steps

Since you’re going against the grain of South African tourism, you might as well begin precisely in the area that most Jozi jaunts avoid – the city centre. Known as the CBD (Central Business District), downtown Johannesburg is surprisingly hectic considering that many businesses have moved out to suburban malls.
Street traders and suited businessmen cross paths to a soundtrack of reggae music belted out by the minibus taxis that sidle by in search of passengers. You soon forget tales that Jo’burg has become a deserted shell of its former self and realise that the striking thing here is that the city is, well, normal. It also has more than its fair share of attractions – above all an eclectic bevy of museums.

Incarceration and intoxication

The best way to approach the museums is to start in serious mode and lighten up as the day progresses, making Constitution Hill the ideal place to get started. Originally a Boer War fort and later a prison, the 19th century building’s current incarnation is as a superlative museum attached to the country’s constitutional court. The chilling exhibits in Number Four, the wing of the prison where Nelson Mandela began his incarceration, offer a grim look at the harsh realities of the apartheid system.

Constitution Hill by ign11 on Flickr

So what about the light relief? Well you won’t find anything lighter than the World of Beer, the perfect antidote to an intense and solemn morning. Not just another brewery tour, the World of Beer is a quirky, interactive, utterly unique and borderline ridiculous homage to the amber nectar. By the time you reach the complimentary bar at the end of the tour, you’ll be well versed in the rites of African beer ceremonies, know why shebeens (illegal drinking dens) popped up all over apartheid South Africa and understand the entire brewing process from picking the hops to sipping a cold pint of Castle with your biltong.

Stark contrasts

Downtown Johannesburg does many things well but for accommodation you’re better off retiring to the suburbs for the night before heading for the city’s top attraction the next morning. Lying southwest of the city, the Apartheid Museum is hardly a barrel of laughs and some of the exhibits are not ideal for little ones, but it’s a superbly laid out, detailed look at every aspect of the regime that ruled over South Africa for almost 50 years.

Apartheid Museum by The Wandering Angel on Flickr

In a spot of town planning that seems highly apt for this paradoxical city, those seeking an immediate pick-me-up are quickly rewarded: the Apartheid Museum is based in the same complex as Gold Reef City, a scream-inducing theme park based on the site of a 19th century goldmine.

Gold Reef City by J@M€S on Flickr

The gold rush

Back in the CBD, other attractions delve deeper into Jo’burg’s beginnings and how it gained its moniker as the City of Gold. The city’s origins are best explained at the wonderfully haphazard Museum Africa back in Newtown: a sprawling collection of everything that’s ever happened in the city, housed in the former fruit and veg market.
If it all gets too much you can take refuge in one of the smaller and more focused museums – the Absa Money Museum with its collection of cash spanning hundreds of years and almost as many countries, or the Dynamite Museum out in Modderfontein which details the dynamite boom (!) that inevitably followed the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand.

On familiar ground

Having spent more time in the CBD than many Jo’burg residents, you might want to end your stay seeing the other side of the city – the sprawling malls filled with gourmet restaurants and fast food joints, chain stores and curio markets and every entertainment option you could think of from ice rinks and cinemas to nightclubs, theatres and casinos.
When you step back and survey the city you will realise that whether you see Johannesburg as exciting or daunting, vibrant or crowded, one thing no-one can claim is that the City of Gold is ever dull.
Check out Lucy’s other features on how to get up close and personal with South Africa’s incredible wildlife, and dining in style in the Cape Winelands.
Thanks to Flickr photographers J@M€S, The Wandering Angel, ign11 and Mister E for the header shot.
Virgin Atlantic operate daily flights to Johannesburg from London Heathrow. Got any Johannesburg tips to share? Let us know in the comments below.

Johannesburg: South Africa’s Heart of Gold

Often neglected on the South African tourist trail, Johannesburg is a cultural goldmine says South Africa expert and regular vtravelled contributor Lucy Corne. Here’s her authoritative guide to the City of Gold’s intriguing museums…

Open your eyes

Lucy Corne

“If you were to judge a city’s personality by its museums then Johannesburg would most likely be labelled schizophrenic – poignant, chaotic, thought-provoking, hilarious, emotional and bizarre, sometimes all at the same time. Thinking about it, this might not be a bad way to gauge this city. But there’s one word that sums up the City of Gold better than any other: overlooked. Too many travellers make the mistake of leaving the city after the briefest of glimpses – or sometimes without ever leaving the airport.”

First steps

Since you’re going against the grain of South African tourism, you might as well begin precisely in the area that most Jozi jaunts avoid – the city centre. Known as the CBD (Central Business District), downtown Johannesburg is surprisingly hectic considering that many businesses have moved out to suburban malls.
Street traders and suited businessmen cross paths to a soundtrack of reggae music belted out by the minibus taxis that sidle by in search of passengers. You soon forget tales that Jo’burg has become a deserted shell of its former self and realise that the striking thing here is that the city is, well, normal. It also has more than its fair share of attractions – above all an eclectic bevy of museums.

Incarceration and intoxication

The best way to approach the museums is to start in serious mode and lighten up as the day progresses, making Constitution Hill the ideal place to get started. Originally a Boer War fort and later a prison, the 19th century building’s current incarnation is as a superlative museum attached to the country’s constitutional court. The chilling exhibits in Number Four, the wing of the prison where Nelson Mandela began his incarceration, offer a grim look at the harsh realities of the apartheid system.

Constitution Hill by ign11 on Flickr

So what about the light relief? Well you won’t find anything lighter than the World of Beer, the perfect antidote to an intense and solemn morning. Not just another brewery tour, the World of Beer is a quirky, interactive, utterly unique and borderline ridiculous homage to the amber nectar. By the time you reach the complimentary bar at the end of the tour, you’ll be well versed in the rites of African beer ceremonies, know why shebeens (illegal drinking dens) popped up all over apartheid South Africa and understand the entire brewing process from picking the hops to sipping a cold pint of Castle with your biltong.

Stark contrasts

Downtown Johannesburg does many things well but for accommodation you’re better off retiring to the suburbs for the night before heading for the city’s top attraction the next morning. Lying southwest of the city, the Apartheid Museum is hardly a barrel of laughs and some of the exhibits are not ideal for little ones, but it’s a superbly laid out, detailed look at every aspect of the regime that ruled over South Africa for almost 50 years.

Apartheid Museum by The Wandering Angel on Flickr

In a spot of town planning that seems highly apt for this paradoxical city, those seeking an immediate pick-me-up are quickly rewarded: the Apartheid Museum is based in the same complex as Gold Reef City, a scream-inducing theme park based on the site of a 19th century goldmine.

Gold Reef City by J@M€S on Flickr

The gold rush

Back in the CBD, other attractions delve deeper into Jo’burg’s beginnings and how it gained its moniker as the City of Gold. The city’s origins are best explained at the wonderfully haphazard Museum Africa back in Newtown: a sprawling collection of everything that’s ever happened in the city, housed in the former fruit and veg market.
If it all gets too much you can take refuge in one of the smaller and more focused museums – the Absa Money Museum with its collection of cash spanning hundreds of years and almost as many countries, or the Dynamite Museum out in Modderfontein which details the dynamite boom (!) that inevitably followed the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand.

On familiar ground

Having spent more time in the CBD than many Jo’burg residents, you might want to end your stay seeing the other side of the city – the sprawling malls filled with gourmet restaurants and fast food joints, chain stores and curio markets and every entertainment option you could think of from ice rinks and cinemas to nightclubs, theatres and casinos.
When you step back and survey the city you will realise that whether you see Johannesburg as exciting or daunting, vibrant or crowded, one thing no-one can claim is that the City of Gold is ever dull.
Check out Lucy’s other features on how to get up close and personal with South Africa’s incredible wildlife, and dining in style in the Cape Winelands.
Thanks to Flickr photographers J@M€S, The Wandering Angel, ign11 and Mister E for the header shot.
Virgin Atlantic operate daily flights to Johannesburg from London Heathrow. Got any Johannesburg tips to share? Let us know in the comments below.

Introducing the Travel Tip Catcher

Exciting news! We’re delighted to announce details of vtravelled’s first app – the Travel Tip Catcher – now available as part of our brand new touchscreen inflight entertainment system on Beauty Queen and Mademoiselle Rouge, the first two A330s in Virgin Atlantic’s fleet.

The vtravelled Travel Tip Catcher

The Travel Tip Catcher is a brilliantly simple way for our passengers to share and capture travel tips for all our destinations around the world. On your flight you’ll be able to:

• read tips for the destination you’re flying to
• write your own 140 character tips for other passengers
• filter results by category
• easily switch to any other destination in our network
• rate your favourite tips, giving them the chance to appear on the new vtravelled.com

Travel Tip Catcher entry screen

The vtravelled Travel Tip Catcher

Filter results by any category.

The Travel Tip Catcher will default to the destination you're flying to but you can read and write tips for anywhere on the Virgin Atlantic route network.

Lysette Gauna, Creative Director at Virgin Atlantic said “We saw a great opportunity to tap into the travel wisdom of our passengers whilst their trip was still fresh in their minds.  Who better to pass on tips than those who have just experienced the destination and who have some time on the flight to do so. This will hopefully prove to be a great resource for those passengers heading out who can read the tips throughout their flight as well as motivating them to share their own  insights on their return.”
So next time you’re onboard one of our brand new planes, be sure to check it out.
And if you’re not flying with us, we encourage all Tweeters out there to share your travel gems. We’re feeling generous at the moment and that means anything can happen if we find something we like…

Introducing the Travel Tip Catcher

Exciting news! We’re delighted to announce details of vtravelled’s first app – the Travel Tip Catcher – now available as part of our brand new touchscreen inflight entertainment system on Beauty Queen and Mademoiselle Rouge, the first two A330s in Virgin Atlantic’s fleet.

The vtravelled Travel Tip Catcher

The Travel Tip Catcher is a brilliantly simple way for our passengers to share and capture travel tips for all our destinations around the world. On your flight you’ll be able to:

• read tips for the destination you’re flying to
• write your own 140 character tips for other passengers
• filter results by category
• easily switch to any other destination in our network
• rate your favourite tips, giving them the chance to appear on the new vtravelled.com

Travel Tip Catcher entry screen

The vtravelled Travel Tip Catcher

Filter results by any category.

The Travel Tip Catcher will default to the destination you're flying to but you can read and write tips for anywhere on the Virgin Atlantic route network.

Lysette Gauna, Creative Director at Virgin Atlantic said “We saw a great opportunity to tap into the travel wisdom of our passengers whilst their trip was still fresh in their minds.  Who better to pass on tips than those who have just experienced the destination and who have some time on the flight to do so. This will hopefully prove to be a great resource for those passengers heading out who can read the tips throughout their flight as well as motivating them to share their own  insights on their return.”
So next time you’re onboard one of our brand new planes, be sure to check it out.
And if you’re not flying with us, we encourage all Tweeters out there to share your travel gems. We’re feeling generous at the moment and that means anything can happen if we find something we like…

vtravelled Weekly Round-Up w/c 9th May

A mixed bag of miniature fun, ice cream, romance, deep sea diving and more: our weekly web round-up of travel tips, lists and laughs…

Adventures in Lilliput

We might not fly to Hamburg, but we’d certainly love to land at their new terminals at Miniature Wunderland. The largest model airport in the world cost €3.5 million and is an exact replica of the city’s own international airport.
For a more interactive miniature experience, visitors to San Francisco should check out the World’s Smallest Postal Service. Surprise your friends and family with tiny travel missives and just hope they can actually read them.

NYC: Ice Cream and Romance

It’s about to get sticky in the city again, which means two things: outdoors and ice cream. While the trucks will be out in force, nothing really beats the real thing. So if you’re hitting the parks of Manhattan and Brooklyn soon, familiarise yourself with the best ice cream shops with easy access.
On a related note, did you or someone you know, get engaged near the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park last Saturday? Really? Well, Michael Justin Films have some pictures that might interest you.

Green home Chicago

Just as our seasonal flights to Chicago start so too does the summer run of the Lincoln Park area’s fantastic Green City Market. From now until October, the market moves outdoors every Wednesday and Saturday. More than just a farmers’ market, it’s a great community event with cookery demonstrations and live music.

Underwater Carnival

From green to the deep, deep blue…If you’re off to the diving paradise of  Tobago soon, the island’s 2nd Annual Underwater Carnival is about to kick off, so don’t miss out. And if you’re a novice, here are some great tips for first time divers.

Sin City: A vision of the future

While Las Vegas never ceases to surprise with ever more crazy entertainment and architecture, its slot machines pretty much stay the same. Vegas Tripping think it might be time for a change though we’re unsure anyone will be taking them up on their ‘Fat Elvis’ machine concept just yet. Warning: this list is somewhat puerile.

vtravelled Weekly Round-Up w/c 9th May

A mixed bag of miniature fun, ice cream, romance, deep sea diving and more: our weekly web round-up of travel tips, lists and laughs…

Adventures in Lilliput

We might not fly to Hamburg, but we’d certainly love to land at their new terminals at Miniature Wunderland. The largest model airport in the world cost €3.5 million and is an exact replica of the city’s own international airport.
For a more interactive miniature experience, visitors to San Francisco should check out the World’s Smallest Postal Service. Surprise your friends and family with tiny travel missives and just hope they can actually read them.

NYC: Ice Cream and Romance

It’s about to get sticky in the city again, which means two things: outdoors and ice cream. While the trucks will be out in force, nothing really beats the real thing. So if you’re hitting the parks of Manhattan and Brooklyn soon, familiarise yourself with the best ice cream shops with easy access.
On a related note, did you or someone you know, get engaged near the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park last Saturday? Really? Well, Michael Justin Films have some pictures that might interest you.

Green home Chicago

Just as our seasonal flights to Chicago start so too does the summer run of the Lincoln Park area’s fantastic Green City Market. From now until October, the market moves outdoors every Wednesday and Saturday. More than just a farmers’ market, it’s a great community event with cookery demonstrations and live music.

Underwater Carnival

From green to the deep, deep blue…If you’re off to the diving paradise of  Tobago soon, the island’s 2nd Annual Underwater Carnival is about to kick off, so don’t miss out. And if you’re a novice, here are some great tips for first time divers.

Sin City: A vision of the future

While Las Vegas never ceases to surprise with ever more crazy entertainment and architecture, its slot machines pretty much stay the same. Vegas Tripping think it might be time for a change though we’re unsure anyone will be taking them up on their ‘Fat Elvis’ machine concept just yet. Warning: this list is somewhat puerile.

Hang out

Washington Square Park, next door to the hotel, is Greenwich Village’s landmark neighbourhood meeting place and centre of cultural and leisure activity. Most of the buildings that surround the park belong to New York University, so students are a permanent fixture here, along with plenty of buskers and street performers. The two most famous features are the Washington Square arch, which marks the beginning of Fifth Avenue, and the central fountain, made famous in the opening credits of sitcom Friends. There’s also a dog playground and a dedicated chess-playing area in the northwest corner nearest the hotel.

Playing chess in Washington Square Park © Maxine Sheppard

Slightly further afield (about a 20 minute walk from the hotel) is Manhattan’s newest public park, the High Line. Built on a former elevated freight railroad, the park’s southernmost entrance is at the junction of Gansevoort St and Washington St in the Meatpacking District, and runs as far north as 20th Street, with the Chelsea section expected to open later this summer, doubling the length of the park.

Frank Gehry's IAC building taken from the High Line park © Maxine Sheppard

Fantastic views of Chelsea and its many new architectural wonders can be enjoyed here (Polshek Partnership’s Le Corbusier-style Standard Hotel and Frank Gehry’s IAC building are just two) and it’s especially beautiful at night when all the benches, water features, plants and flowers are imaginatively floodlit.
Many thanks to Flickr photographers snowpea&bokchoi, Rachel from Cupcakes Take the Bake, pcphoto, ElvertBarnes and aturkus for the great header shot.
For further information, reservations and room rates, visit the Washington Square Hotel.
Virgin Atlantic operate daily flights from London Heathrow to New York’s JFK and Newark airports.

Hang out

Washington Square Park, next door to the hotel, is Greenwich Village’s landmark neighbourhood meeting place and centre of cultural and leisure activity. Most of the buildings that surround the park belong to New York University, so students are a permanent fixture here, along with plenty of buskers and street performers. The two most famous features are the Washington Square arch, which marks the beginning of Fifth Avenue, and the central fountain, made famous in the opening credits of sitcom Friends. There’s also a dog playground and a dedicated chess-playing area in the northwest corner nearest the hotel.

Playing chess in Washington Square Park © Maxine Sheppard

Slightly further afield (about a 20 minute walk from the hotel) is Manhattan’s newest public park, the High Line. Built on a former elevated freight railroad, the park’s southernmost entrance is at the junction of Gansevoort St and Washington St in the Meatpacking District, and runs as far north as 20th Street, with the Chelsea section expected to open later this summer, doubling the length of the park.

Frank Gehry's IAC building taken from the High Line park © Maxine Sheppard

Fantastic views of Chelsea and its many new architectural wonders can be enjoyed here (Polshek Partnership’s Le Corbusier-style Standard Hotel and Frank Gehry’s IAC building are just two) and it’s especially beautiful at night when all the benches, water features, plants and flowers are imaginatively floodlit.
Many thanks to Flickr photographers snowpea&bokchoi, Rachel from Cupcakes Take the Bake, pcphoto, ElvertBarnes and aturkus for the great header shot.
For further information, reservations and room rates, visit the Washington Square Hotel.
Virgin Atlantic operate daily flights from London Heathrow to New York’s JFK and Newark airports.

Eat & Drink

 

Babbo Italian restaurant on Waverly Place by pcphoto on Flickr

Babbo (110 Waverly Place), the flagship Italian restaurant of celebrity chef Mario Batali, is bang opposite the hotel. Make a reservation in advance, or if you can’t get in, console yourself with the cookbook. The Cornelia Street Cafe (29 Cornelia St) is an excellent alternative, with a performance space downstairs – Suzanne Vega got her first big break here.
The cupcake craze is not going anywhere, and in this neighbourhood you’re spoilt for choice. The Magnolia Bakery (401 Bleecker St at West 11th), made famous by its appearances in Sex and the City and The Devil Wears Prada, has now expanded to three other sites in Manhattan (Upper West Side, Rockefeller Center and Grand Central Terminal) but this is the first and the original.

Sweet Revenge, New York by Rachel from Cupcakes Take the Bake on Flickr

There are plenty of competitors for its crown: Sweet Revenge (62 Carmine St) is a bar that pairs its cupcakes with wine and beer, Crumbs Bake Shop (37 East 8th St) is famous for its ‘colossal’ cupcakes (the size of an average birthday cake), and Cupcake Stop (70 Greenwich Avenue) also has a mobile truck which parks at different destinations around the city daily – check their twitter feed for location details.
Beloved local gourmet deli Citarella (424 6th Ave at 9th St) also sells an impressive range of cupcakes and other baked goods, but is better known for its incredible array of seafood, aged meats and handcrafted breads. Head here to stock up for your Central Park picnic.

Citarella by snowpea&bokchoi on Flickr

Joe the Art of Coffee (141 Waverly Place) is the choice of locals for your daily java, and late night snackers will find satisfaction at the 24hr Washington Square Diner (150 West 4th St at 6th Ave).
The White Horse Tavern (567 Hudson St at 11th St) is one of the very few remaining artist and writer hangouts that is still open today. Dylan Thomas drank here, as did Bob Dylan, Jim Morrison, Jack Kerouac and Norman Mailer. Mix it up with locals, NYU students and tourists, and dream of that novel you’ll write one day. The Stonewall Inn (53 Christopher St) kickstarted the modern gay-rights movement after the infamous Stonewall Riots of 1969. Its bars on two levels have recently been renovated and host nightly events and parties.