I was tremendously excited about going to Dubrovnik. From Byron’s description – “The Pearl of the Adriatic” – to my girlfriend’s rather more prosaic “it’s just lovely”, I had only heard good things. As the last stop on my recent breakneck trip around the Balkans, I was expecting great things from the much lauded Croatian [...]
Continue reading about How cruise ships ruined Dubrovnik, Croatia
OK, this one is not so much a phrase that is used by travel writers. But it’s one that most travel writers will recognise. When we get assistance from PR companies and tourist boards, it’s only polite to keep those PR chaps and chapesses informed when an article comes out. Personally, I send an e-mail [...]
Continue reading about Travel writer clichés: 12 – “That’s great. Thanks!”
The end of free news: implications for travel You could be forgiven for thinking that yesterday’s post on Rupert Murdoch’s plans to end the era of free news had nothing to do with travel. It’s a fair cop. But I also think it has implications for travel writing and travel content on newspaper websites. If [...]
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The end of free news? News International proprietor Rupert Murdoch has signalled his intention to end the era of free content on the internet. He has not yet announced how he will do this, but it is likely that his newspaper websites will be introducing some sort of charges in the next year. This means [...]
Continue reading about Paid content on the internet: Will Murdoch’s plans succeed?
This is going to be the first in a series of utterly petty gripes; issues that I freely concede are not worth getting angry about, let alone cause to start on the protest marches and petitions. I’m probably the only one that thinks this way on many of these issues, but what’s the point of [...]
Continue reading about Petty gripes: 1 – Shops and cafés that sell coffee
Doncaster-Sheffield Robin Hood Airport? There are plenty of candidates for title of Worst Airport in the UK. Doncaster-Sheffield Robin Hood airport has to be up there both for its ridiculous name, and location in the middle of a virtually inaccessible field that is not particularly near either Doncaster or Sheffield. Or London Luton airport? [...]
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Why bother researching the history of a place, and the nuances of traditions and customs in a certain destination? That’s fearsomely hard work. Far better to just skip it altogether, and just say the place has “a rich cultural heritage”. It’s OK – the reader will know exactly what you mean, and you can go [...]
Continue reading about Travel Writer Clichés: 11 – Rich cultural heritage