Holiday Destinations

If you've ever been to Las Vegas you'll probably be familiar with Stratosphere, the 1,149-foot-tall hotel and casino that towers above the famous Strip. If you're the adventurous type, you'd also know there's some fun to be had at the top in the form of three hair-raising amusement rides. Now there's a fourth. Claiming the title of the world's highest commercial decelerated descent, the SkyJump takes thrill-seekers on an 855-foot "controlled free-fall" at 40mph - think base jumping, but with a safety wire.  Read More

With the end of the world apparently scheduled for December 31, 2012, there’s sure to be a number of opportunistic companies looking to cash in on the upcoming apocalypse. One such company is Vivos, which envisions a network of 20 underground shelters located near major cities across the U.S. with accommodation for up to 4,000 people.  Read More

Sometimes even the travel-weary budget flier would pay just about anything for a couple of hours sleep after a long haul flight in “cattle class” - which is where the Sleepbox concept comes in. Imagine your joy at spotting one of these comfy cocoons at the airport lounge while you’ve got a few hours between connecting flights. Or if you’ve arrived late at night in a strange land and don’t want to risk finding a hotel room in the dark – or the lone cab driver parked in the shadows of the airport or train station. Check into the Sleepbox and you could be on cloud nine before your head hits the pillow.  Read More

If you fancy getting amongst nature in some of the world’s wildest and most remote locations, but don’t really want to sleep in a tent, you might want to consider boarding a Rotel (rolling hotel) for your next holiday destination. The Rotel rolls a coach and hotel into one unit (or for larger groups, a bus and tag-along sleeping quarters). By day passengers sit in the front of the coach and take in all the sights, and by night they adjourn to the rear of the vehicle to enjoy their semi-private sleeping quarters.  Read More

When Ferrari World opens its doors in Abu Dhabi later this year, fans of the prancing horse will be treated to a monster roller coaster with a difference. Riding in a Ferrari (of course), the ride will take thrill-seekers on a two kilometer journey at up to 95 kmh and because there are two cars running side-by-side, the roller coaster becomes a racetrack with a different "winner" each time.  Read More

There's no doubt in our mind that Spencer Conway's solo circumnavigation of Africa by motorbike will offer more than enough dramatic material for a hollywood film, if not at least a television reprise of Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman's Long Way Down. At time of writing, Spencer has been on the road for 134 days, 23 hours, 58 minutes and counting, since leaving Biddenden, Kent on November 1st 2009. His route will take him clockwise around the outer countries of Africa and will cover 60,000km in total. The project, sponsored by Swaziland-born Richard E. Grant aims to raise UK£28,000 (US$42,000) for charity organization Save the Children, and so far he has traveled across 28 countries, through 30 borders, and biked 27,000km.  Read More

You will probably never get the chance to race a Bugatti Veyron against a Eurofighter Typhoon, play "car darts" or fire an anti-tank gun at a flying Ford Scorpio - because unless your name is Clarkson, May or Hammond, you don't have the best damn job in the world. But if you fancy a taste of the incredible life the Top Gear crew enjoy, you might be interested to hear that Arctic Trucks, the Iceland-based company that took the lads to the North Pole in 2007's Polar Challenge, is now offering a range of two-day, five-day and longer expeditions across the same territory - in the same beefed-up Toyota 4WDs that raced against Hammond's dog sled team. Bring your own smug British humor.  Read More

Now more than ever airlines are charging hefty penalties for baggage that exceeds the specified weight limit. Weigh To Go is a combination luggage tag/weighing scale that is designed to help globetrotters avoid overweight baggage fees. The compact device attaches to the luggage handle and displays the luggage weight on its small display.  Read More

It seems that Sir Richard Branson's quest to conquer unexplored frontiers isn't limited to space tourism.The Virgin boss's latest acquisition is a DeepFlight three-person aero submarine that "flies" through the briny deep using the positive buoyancy system developed by Graham Hawkes. Christened Necker Nymph, the flying sub will find a home on Branson's 74 acre private island in the British Virgin Islands where it will launch from shore as well as operating from the luxury 105 foot catamaran Necker Belle - just add a quiet US$25,000 to the weekly hire price tag.  Read More