Cunard shows off the new Queen Elizabeth

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The new Queen Liz

Cunard have recently shown off pictures of their new ship the Queen Elizabeth, to be launched in September 2010. The new Queen will join the Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria as Cunard’s flagship ships and takes the name of a former Cunard ship the Queen Elizabeth that first sailed with Cunard White Star Line in 1936 and was later retired in 1969 when the QE2 took to the seas. The theme of this new ship is much like her namesake with some wonderful art deco designs that are reminiscent of the 1930’s. hit up the full page for a gallery of the plans. Read the rest of this entry »

Boosting tourism with a Giant Squid vs Robot fight

Some of the first thoughts that come to mind when you think of stereotypical Japanese’s favorite things would be sea creaters, robots and anime. Well this tourism video by the city of Hakodate sees a giant squid  fighting a robot (while destroying the city in the process). How this gets tourist to the town we are not sure as all we can make out from the series of ads is that it’s from a campaign called “Go Hakodate”. Hit the read more for more from this odd series of ads. Read the rest of this entry »

The Heritage Listed Big Pineapple

The Big Pineapple

The Big Pineapple

When you think about a building that is on the heritage register you probably think of everything else but a huge fiberglass pineapple.  Today the Big Pineapple was named on the heritage register in Queensland, and while many people may consider the pineapple and the fact that it now has heritage protection a bit of a joke, you must remember the pineapple has been a tourist icon of the state for some time. The Big Pineapple was built in 1971 and has attracted a huge amount of tourists over the years to not only the pineapple but also to the plantation it sits on where the Nut-Mobile ( a nut shaped train) takes tourist around the plantation of pineapples and macadamia nuts finishing up at the gift shop next to the huge plastic fruit. The Big Pinapple is located near Nambour on Queensland Sunshine Coast. Read the rest of this entry »

Happy Birthday Concorde

It’s 40 years since everyone’s favorite supersonic jet first hit the Sky’s, so we found this great British Airways promo video over at youtube that is kind of cool and makes us want to go for a flight in it. Sadly for us I don’t think that is going to happen, but at least you can see them on display at several museums across the world like this one at Shinsheim in Germany we visited a few years back. If you have visited a Concorde at a museum or have been on a flight in one and want to brag about it hit up our comment form below.  Read the rest of this entry »

Miss Hissy at Hong Kong airport

We really shouldn’t be making fun of this, but it is just too funny. Check out this wonderful hissing fit by a lady at Hong Kong airport recently. She has thrown an absolute banana after missing her flight. Stamping, shouting and throwing a real wobbly. Turn the sound down a bit before watching this one as the shrieking is just terrible.  Where’s the tranquilizer gun when you need it.  A good lesson for everyone- get to the airport early.

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DisneySea’s BraviSEAmo!

At the end of a huge day at Tokyo’s Disney Sea the ocean’s come alive with the most spectacular show only Disney could attempt. BraviSEAmo! features fire, fireworks, giant dragons, fountains, boats and of course all your Disney characters- it is absolutely amazing.  This You Tube video also features some of the DisneySea 5th year celebrations including Mickey and his team in a fantastic dance routine, overlooking the beautiful harbor. Later in the video are some of the magnificent shows including the Mystic Rhythms which feature the living spirits of the rain forest which tell their take of this land far from civilization and the Little Mermaid show which is a huge hit for both young and old. There is only one DisneySea in the world and it’s in Tokyo right next door to Tokyo Disney Land and is an amazing and unique theme park enjoyed by millions every year. Read the rest of this entry »

Travel pods for Heathrow

Heathrow airport is one of the world’s busiest and with its five different terminals it can be a nightmare to navigate with sometimes huge distances to travel between flights and to the carpark.

Well they have come up with a futuristic and novel way to help move people around, with the trial introduction of a pod system which should move travellers easily and swiftly around the complex. Read the rest of this entry »

Dine in a A380 without taking off

Recently in the Taiwanese capital Taipei a novel restaurant opened which has caused a bit of interest around the world. Known as the A380 In Flight Kitchen the restaurant is themed as the giant Airbus A380. There is although a bit square, airline like seating for 84 people and people are served by waitresses dressed as flight attendants and serve their food on plastic trays.  People queue up to board with their boarding passes before the ‘flight’ and are welcomed aboard by the head steward before being show to their seats.

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The Stalin Museum

Nasty old Stalin

Nasty old Stalin

We like off beat museums at tripandom and there are plenty of them around the world, but very few are dedicated to dictators. One such museum is the Stalin Museum in the city of Gori, Georgia. The museum shows the life of the Russian dictator Joseph Stalin who was born in the city and went on to lead the USSR from 1922 to 1953. The museum features his personal train carriage, his childhood home as well as many artifacts from his life as well as plenty of statues and artworks of him. Hit up the next page for a short news video about the museum as well as the link to their website where you can see a few galleries of the exhibits. Read the rest of this entry »

Frugal Fun in Las Vegas

Paris Las Vegas

Paris Las Vegas

Though Las Vegas still remains one of the top spots for high rollers, with upscale boutiques at the Palazzo Las Vegas, a high-stakes poker room at the Bellagio, and $25,000+ a night suites at The Palms Las Vegas, travelers are beginning to discover why Sin City is one of the best locations for a penny-pinching vacation. In these difficult economic times, everyone’s looking for new ways to save and cutting back on expenses. But a vacation doesn’t have to be one of the things you cut out from your budget. This year, try booking a trip to Las Vegas, where you can save on discounted shows and hotel rooms. Read the rest of this entry »