Miles Better; Is it Time to Cash in Your Airline Reward Points?

It’s common to examine currency exchange rates when you’re planning a trip, but how many think the same about frequent flyer points? You don’t? Well, now’s the time to do so. You see, flights are so expensive at the moment that the redemption value of points has soared in relative terms. You can almost think […]

Five Minutes With Chris Smit, The Global Culture Expert

Our Five Minutes with… this month is with Chris Smit, The Global Culture Expert. Travel and culture. Do they go hand in hand? The obvious answer would be yes. Or rather should be yes. This video is a bit stereotypical but in the core it’s correct: What skills are needed for international work? One of […]

Cultural Differences – Do’s and Don’ts

When Delta invested in Virgin Atlantic, Sir Richard Branson marked the moment by removing his opposite number’s tie. The immaculately dressed US chief executive looked a little uncomfortable but grinned his way through it. The open-necked Branson was subtly pointing out the cultural differences between the two carriers – ironic seeing as it’s usually us […]

Seamless Door To Door Travel

The other day when I arrived at the airport I got a bit upset, because no one recognised me. Please don’t misunderstand me, I didn’t have a hissy fit and spout “Don’t you know who I am?” at the poor check-in lady as I don’t have illusions that I’m some sort of celebrity, but it […]

Business Travel Is Back

D’know, I think things are finally on the move. For nearly two years, we’ve all been sat at home and even those who were fed up with travelling for business then are climbing the walls now. Restrictions are lifted in the UK and we’re free to go, at least in theory, depending on how other […]

Seth Wise: Running on Water

For many people the ultimate sporting challenge is to run a marathon, a fearless few decide to tackle an IRONMAN, but for Seth Wise, none of these is quite enough. In April 2024, Covid-permitting, he is going to be one of forty or so people to run the delayed 2021 FVD North Pole Marathon – […]

The Rise of Bleisure in 2022

Bleisure: It’s a made-up word, mixing business and leisure. I suppose you could also combine travel and working, but that’s a little too close to twerking, and I’m not sure how well that goes down at the office. Bleisure can get a bad rap; adding a few days to a business trip often provokes snide […]

The A380, A Case Of Premature Evacuation?

It’s enough to make a plane spotter weep down his anorak – first British Airways scraps its Boeing 747s, then the last Airbus A380 rolls off the production line. Things are looking bleak for those who like their flying on the roomy side. The pandemic caused the 747’s premature retirement from BA (and Virgin) just […]

Space, the final frontier

You used to return to the office after a long break to find at worst, your chair or favourite pen had disappeared. Now, for some, the whole office has vanished. The switch to remote working during the pandemic led many firms to realise, quite rightly, that there’s no need to spend two hours commuting each […]

Impact of a No-Deal Brexit

While the rest of the world is focused on the Covid pandemic and its impact on global health, trade and travel, in the UK we have our own little challenge to face – and unlike Covid there is no vaccine for a no-deal Brexit. With the transition period running down the clock until it strikes […]