Revellers hurt in Thailand tourist speed boat collision

Sometimes when we are teaching people how to be safe when they travel, it does rather feel that we can use the example of the ‘Full Moon’ party on Koh Pah Ngan as an example for all of the dangers and challenges faced by independent travellers across the world; the ‘full moon party’ has them all.


It is sad to see yet another tragedy unfold and more young people seriously injured when they were relying on the actions of others to keep them safe while they enjoyed all Thailand offers.


What we continually try and reinforce through our website and during our workshops is that you must not rely on others to keep you safe, but be self-reliant.


The ‘Full Moon Party’ need not be avoided at all costs, if it is something which attracts you, then by all means go, but do take extra care; by that I mean really plan ahead for every eventuality because the dangers are significant:


• Theft – Both from the person and from rooms; spend a little more for a descent room in a more secure location and make use of any additional safety facilities available. Don’t turn up thinking you’ll party through and don’t need accommodation, if nothing else have somewhere to securely leave you things; sleeping on the beach may seem a ‘romantic’ notion to you, the Thai authorities view it differently and waking up having been robbed will ruin your trip…

• Drugs – Avoid them and look after your drink, as drink spiking is common. The police patrol the beach and even holding a ‘joint’ can see you locked up with two options; a very heavy ‘fine’ or deportation.

• Sexual Assault – Sexual assaults are not uncommon and often ‘drug-assisted’ either through drink / food spiking or self induced alcohol / drug consumption.

• Medical care – Tropical disease risk is not significant, the island is not generally associated with a high risk of Malaria or many of the other diseases you vaccinate yourself against before travel. Dengue fever can occur and is on the rise in Thailand generally. You should always visit your GP or Travel Clinic before travel. Protection against sexually transmitted diseases should be a consideration.

There are regularly casualties from the party; dehydration, heat exhaustion, alcohol related conditions, accidents, injury from violence and many of the other common travel related syndromes. Make sure your Medical Insurance covers you and that your activities do not invalidate it. There are medical facilities on the island, but more serious cases need to be transferred to Koh Samui; medical facilities on Koh Pha Ngan are often overwhelmed during the Full Moon parties.

• Traffic accident – Is one of the major dangers when travelling but it is reduced in this case because there is little traffic on the island due to its size. Some people still choose to hire scooters and motorbikes (this always seems a little odd when everywhere is within walking distance…) and these present the usual dangers; injuries from accidents usually because of lack of protective clothing / equipment / lack of experience and / or drink driving.

• Transport – This is the danger highlighted in this latest accident. There is only one way of getting to the island and that is by boat, but it is the choice of boat which will dictate your level of risk.


As a general rule I would much rather get on the slow ferry rather than the ‘speed boats’, they strike me as more regulated, more robust and there is an element of safety in the regular schedules which would allow rescue to have a much better idea of where to start looking.


The speedboats are much more haphazard, often waiting till they are ‘full’ before leaving. The drive for profit is often at the expense of safety. There has undoubtedly been an improvement in the regulation surrounding these speedboats in the past 15 years, but how strong the enforcement of these regulation is remains in some doubt.


The trip from Koh Samui to Koh Pha Ngan is not long enough for the additional risk of speedboats to be worth the time saved.


On any boat journey there are factors to consider:


• The seaworthiness of the vessel and reputation of the company
• The capacity – is it overloaded
• The safety equipment – life rafts, life jackets, communication equipment, pre-departure drills etc.
• The weather
• Visibility


In this case some people do seem to have been wearing lifejackets, which is a start. The two points from this report which would worry me most would be the weather conditions which seems to have been far from ideal and travelling at night which is something to be avoided on all but the best equipped vessels (such as those which cross the English Channel).


Maybe more facts will come out from this particular accident in time, although it seems for now that the two boat drivers have disappeared, which would be a worrying sign.


It would be remiss of us to make assumptions in such a case, especially when people have been seriously hurt in an accident; however from personal experience of this region, I have seen boat drivers, showing off, racing each other and using vessels they clearly know are unsuitable or not in perfect working order.


Few would be surprised to hear that corners are cut in an effort to increase profit and to get those tourists who arrive late, across the water and to the party, even in the middle of the night; trust me, the full moon party is not that good that it is worth risking you life for.


At Safe Gap Year our Independent Travel Safety and Cultural Awareness Workshop considers issues of Travel Safety, alongside sessions on Cultural Awareness, Travel Health, Ethical and Responsible Travel, Travel Equipment, Destination Advice, Transport Options, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more.


Please visit our website at http://www.safegapyear.co.uk/.


For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.


To view the original article Click Here
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 27th June 2010

Surviving a plane crash

The recent fatal air crash in Tripoli, Libya was only survived by one 9 year old boy and analysing why he survived will be of some use to professionals in air safety, but to most people it is just a small miracle or extreme good fortune.


Over-analysing how to survive a plane crash doesn’t help greatly in generating confidence in those who may be concerned about flying. What has to be remembered is that flying is still one of the safest forms of transport in the world.


It is still worth taking a few basic precautions:


• Fly with reputable airlines – Any airline flying into, out of or within the EU, USA / Canada, Australia / New Zealand has to undergo the most rigorous safety checks; outside of these areas it may be worth undertaking a little research into the airline you are flying with. As a general rule the ‘poorer’ the country the more in-depth checks you might want to make; especially on internal flights where regulation may not be as rigorous.

• Always listen to the safety briefing – If nothing else it is polite to do so, but more importantly the more you listen the more you will take in and the more likely your instinctive reaction will be the right one. In the case of a real accident you will have to rely mainly on your instincts, it is unlikely you we be able to draw on your rational thought process, which is unlikely to be working properly.

• Practice the ‘brace position’ and your seatbelt release – Studies have proven that in the case of a crash one of the problems people have is getting out of their seats. It sounds silly to think you will not be able to unbuckle yourself, but when under the most extreme pressure the brain does not work very rationally and instinct will take over; your instinct will be to get up and get out. The rational part of your brain may not work sufficiently under such extreme stress to understand that you must undo your seatbelt to achieve this.

• Sit near an emergency exit – It should not take a rocket scientist to work out that the closer you are to an exit the quicker you will be able to get out in an emergency. Wherever you are seated count the number of seats between yourself and the nearest exit in front and behind you; that way in the case of an emergency and the lights failing or smoke filling the cabin you can feel your way to the nearest exit.

• Don’t panic – Easier said than done. However it is worth trying to control your mind, adrenaline will be pumping through your body and you can do little to stop this (in reality you don’t want to stop this as it will help in your attempt to ‘escape’), what you want to do is control and channel the consequences of adrenaline and use them to your advantage. Respond rather than react to the challenges you face.


This is all very well to write, it is completely different to put into practice in case of a real emergency.


Don’t panic about flying, it is likely to be one of the safest parts of any travel experience; you are likely to be at much greater risk on arrival when driving from the airport to your final destination.


At Safe Gap Year our Independent Travel Safety and Cultural Awareness Workshop considers issues of Travel Safety, alongside sessions on Cultural Awareness, Travel Health, Ethical and Responsible Travel, Travel Equipment, Destination Advice, Transport Options, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more.


Please visit our website at http://www.safegapyear.co.uk/.


For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.


Date – 16th May 2010
Submitted by – Peter Mayhew

Passengers banned from the roof of ‘super crush’ trains

Travel in India is synonymous with its railway network and the romantic imagery of trains trundling along with passengers perched on the roof either to avoid the crowded carriages or in order to benefit from the ‘air-conditioning’ is one familiar to many.


But times change and the romance is not quite so pronounced in India’s burgeoning cities, where the railway journies can make the ‘London commute’ seem like a treat.


Travel in India is dangerous and poses a serious risk to travellers. With an estimated 250 fatalities on India’s roads every day, the figure of 17 fatalities on the railways each day actually seems quite small by comparison.


But as always we need to put some perspective on these figures. India is a very large and densely populated country, the Indian state railway network is vast and is the second largest employer in the world (only surpassed by the Chinese ‘Red’ Army); the number of fatalities on the road is exasperated by the standard of the vehicles and lack of safety features which we take for granted in the UK (including the failure to wear seatbelts).


So although there are inherent dangers in the transport network there are ways to reduce this risk and it should not put people off visiting India, but rather alter their behaviour in-country.


On the rail network it should be acknowledged that climbing onto the roof is inherently dangerous; even to locals who may be familiar with the process, several fall off every day some of which end in fatalities. The clumsy traveller (sorry but let’s be honest, travellers are never as agile or surefooted as locals; that’s just the way it is…) increases these risks considerably.


My personal point of view; I love train travel, I think it is one of the most satisfying forms of travel when distance is involved, especially on ‘slow’ trains. It allows you to view the country you are in and the change in the scenery as you go from one area to another, to watch the people going about their daily business from the heart of the city through to those tending their fields out in the country.


One of the most rewarding aspects of train travel though is that it is the form of travel taken by locals. This allows the traveller to immerse themselves in the real life of the country they are visiting and meet real local people, many of whom will be only too pleased to share conversation with you during your journey.


At Safe Gap Year our Independent Travel Safety and Cultural Awareness Workshop considers issues of Travel Safety, alongside sessions on Cultural Awareness, Travel Health, Ethical and Responsible Travel, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Transport Options, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more.


Please visit our website at http://www.safegapyear.co.uk/.


For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.


To view the original article Click Here
Source – Times
Date – 18th February 2010

Two Britons die on Vietnam boat; Drowned Britons were on a world bicycle ride.

Title – Two Britons die on Vietnam boat – 28th September 2009 (www.bbc.co.uk)
Title – Drowned Britons were on a world bicycle ride – 29th September 2009 (Metro)

It is another reminder, if one was needed, that the adventures we all take part in on our travels are not without risk.

There is no indication that this was anymore than a freak accident resulting in tragedy. However it remains the case that accidents in or on the water is one of the top two reasons for death overseas from accidents; alongside road traffic accidents.

All too often boats can be overloaded, safety precautions inadequate or completely ignored and equipment old, ineffective or wholly absent.

Two of the greatest threats to young travellers in developing countries using boats as a means of travel are inexperience and peer pressure.

Inexperience leads to naivety or an assumption that what is a very safe form of transport in the developed world carries little danger in less developed countries or that local boat operators experience will keep them safe. The latter is often certainly an important factor, but in countries where many people live on or below the poverty line, profit is often the winner in the battle between investment in safety equipment & maintenance or squeezing an extra few (or hundred) passengers on board and safety.

Peer pressure, is one of those problems that is very difficult to eradicate completely. Not wanting to be the one in a group who seems over-cautious or who speaks up when something doesn’t seem quite right, but rather taking the ‘fingers crossed’ approach, has led to many accidents that were avoidable. On boats, not paying attention to safety briefings is common (I know when I was working as a Dive Master in Thailand, it sometimes seemed like I was talking to myself) and not wearing life vest when available is endemic; are you really going to be the only one sitting there in an old torn bright orange ‘waist coat’?

As I say peer pressure is the most difficult ‘problem’ to fix. What we do during Our Workshops is to find ways round the peer pressure or at least somewhere comfortable in the middle. If you don’t want to wear the life jacket and be the odd one out, why not ask for one you can sit on as a cushion? That way you don’t stand out, but if disaster strikes, you will at least have a life vest to hand in the few minutes it can take for a boat to go down.

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Travel Safety, alongside sessions on Travel Health, Ethical and Responsible Travel, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Transport Options, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

BA: now it’s £60 to pick a seat

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Title – BA: now it’s £60 to pick a seat
Source – The Sunday Times Travel
Date – 28th September 2009

I feel a rant coming on…. I will try and avoid the worst of it…

So it seems that British Airways are trying to slowly change their business model to compete with the ‘low-cost’ airlines.

The problem for me is you can’t have the best of both worlds. If you want to be a low cost airline then offer those silly low prices and charge for everything else, while providing a level of service which ‘reflects’ the price. If you want to be a scheduled (traditional) airline who can charge a ‘premium’ for flights without the mad scramble, then do that. I’m not sure a hybrid works where you pay the ‘premium rate’ and then have to pay for everything else.

The question is what is next, are they going to follow Ryanair and Easyjet and charge for every stage of the process? I’m in no doubt that other airlines will follow suit and in time we will get used to it, but I know what to expect if I am booking ‘low-cost’ and I know what I expect when I am willing to pay that little more for a carrier like BA. If the differential is no longer there, then cost alone will be the factor which decides my future airline choice… can BA really compete?

It used to be straight forward to calculate your flight costs into you overall travel budget, but independent travellers need to be careful these days not to be caught out by the many additional charges and baggage restrictions etc.

Be very careful especially with your baggage allowance, I have been with several carriers who have ignored my excess on the way out (skis, diving equipment etc) and when I have been on the other side of the world ready to return home have suddenly decided to follow the small print to the letter and charge me many hundreds of pounds in excess baggage… to date with no success, but more through luck, long arguments and stubborn persistence, then any magical formula.

So rant over… hopefully most passengers will object like I do to paying extra and leave the task of choosing their seat until the last 24 hours when it is free; that way everyone has a fair crack of the whip in getting a decent seat. Sadly it does seem the lottery of the emergency exit seat is a thing of the past; let’s just hope the people with the money to burn are also fit enough to open the emergency exit if required…

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Ethical and Responsible Travel, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

EU lifts Indonesian airline ban

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Title – EU lifts Indonesian airline ban
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 14th July 2009

This is a blast from the past. Garuda Airlines was long a favourite amongst backpackers and ‘gappers’, as it offered cheap flights to Southeast Asia and on to

Australia. But things went quickly downhill after the Asian financial crisis and Indonesia’s own internal problems after the fall of the Suharto dictatorship.
Indonesia has made significant progress and despite the eventual 2007 ban (many travel companies had delisted Indonesian airlines much before this) they have improved standards to such a degree that the EU have readmitted them and removed them from the list of banned airlines.

The EU ‘black-list’ is a good starting point for anyone researching airline safety; http://ec.europa.eu/transport/air-ban/list_en.htm

For now Guruda will be flying out of the Netherlands, but that does not make it inaccessible to UK travellers and I would imagine that it will still offer ‘good value’. Any increase in competition is only good for travellers looking for cheap long haul flights.

With the recent spate of accidents including the still unexplained accidents by Air France and Yemeni airline, I also welcome the EU’s scrutiny of world airlines. It helps us make informed decisions about ‘airline safety’ around the world.

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options, alongside sessions on, Travel Health, Ethical and Responsible Travel, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Travel Safety, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

Now Ryanair is charging a fiver to check in online

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Title – Now Ryanair is charging a fiver to check in onlineSource – The Sunday Times
Date – 17th May 2009

Ryanair are at it again, tinkering with the pricing and presenting it as if it was a benefit to passengers; this despite the EU leaving no one in any doubt that they have been ‘misleading’ customers through the ‘unfair practices’ on their website.

Only recently Ryanair made the ‘dramatic’ announcement that they would be abolishing their check-in counters stating that the majority of their customers were checking-in on-line and 99% of the rest had the ability to do so… clearly having the added benefit of cutting Ryanair’s costs.

This week they are suggesting that the £5 charge for checking-in online is a balance between the old £10 fee for checking-in at the airport and the free on-line service. Anyone with any business sense can tell that if the vast majority of customers were already checking-in on-line then this new £5 charge will actually generate significant new income.

The thing which bothers me most about this though is that if everyone has to check in online now anyway, how can they make this an ‘additional charge’? It’s not like you have any other choice, you have to check-in so why is that not now included on the ticket? It would be like buying a theatre ticket and paying a supplement to be allowed to sit in your seat.

I know the whole point of their marketing strategy is to advertise the lowest possible ‘basic price’ they can and I don’t begrudge them the opportunity to run a profitable business, success should be rewarded; but it does not need to be so underhanded.

Low-cost carriers have opened up whole new horizons for many people, but be careful when booking that you know the actual costs involved; they are rarely those advertised. It is remarkable how expensive that simple word ‘from’ is in this context (flights ‘from’ £1).

Also remember to clear the ‘cookies’ on your computer before you book, otherwise they will catch you out on a whole different level.

At

Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Ethical and Responsible Travel, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Travel Safety, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

UK backpacker dies in beach crash

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Title – UK backpacker dies in beach crashSource – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 19th April 2009

I try not to comment on the circumstances behind individual tragedies like this one, that is for the authorities to work through and I don’t think speculation helps. Rather I use these sad stories as examples of the potential consequences when circumstances conspire and the result is injury, the loss of life and the loss to families of their precious son, daughter, brother, sister, cousin, uncle, aunt, friend or soul mate.

Sadly that this tragedy occurred will come as no great surprise to anyone who has been to Fraser Island, the worlds largest sand island and one of

Australia’s most beautiful locations.

The problem is how people travel round Fraser Island, especially young people. The most common way is to hire a 4 x4 and camping equipment and take off for a few days. Fraser doesn’t have any roads as such, the beach is used as the highway and tracks take you inland; all of it driving on sand…

Anyone who has driven on sand knows it is a completely different skill to normal driving and a 15 minutes briefing can hardly prepare you for this. Add to this difficulty the issue of driving along a beach which seems deceptively straight forward until you encounter a problem and the ‘problems’ come in many different forms; the speed at which some people seem comfortable driving which far exceeds the recommended limits; the sand itself whose consistency changes from almost solid to very loose, yet never changes in appearance; the tide and ‘freak surges’ which can catch out those who choose to drive too close to the water’s edge and change the consistency of the sand underneath the vehicle making it uncontrollable; the gullies which appear with the inland water run-off, crisscrossing the beach and sometimes invisible until you are upon them (they can be a foot across and a foot deep in places; and then there is the vehicles themselves.

The vehicles are not in bad condition, but the way these trips generally operate is that the hire companies act as co-ordinators. They will get a number of young people (some individuals, some smaller groups) and bring them together to form a group of 10-12 people to hire one vehicle. Generally different people within that group will take turns driving while the majority sit in the back often without seatbelts. So although you may know and have some control over the people in your own group, you are leaving yourself open to being driven by a complete stranger who has joined you. Most people have never driven off-road, let alone on sand, they may be young and inexperienced and worst of all may feel peer pressure to show-off; dare I mention the number of groups who visit the ‘bottle shop’ before they leave for the island; all in all a potential accident waiting to happen.

Looking at the statistics of 120 recorded (and you can bet your life there are quite a ‘few’ unrecorded) accidents in 6 years or two a month, the dangers are certainly there for all to see.

Now again I can’t emphasise enough that I am not suggesting that any of these factors had anything to do with this particular accident, but rather just that there are inherent dangers in driving on Fraser Island.

I also am not suggesting for one second that Fraser Island should be excluded from your itinerary. I loved my time there, I remember celebrating a Birthday there with 11 complete strangers who somehow bought me a cake to celebrate… but I do advise that caution should be used when you are there. The good thing about the island is that your safety is very much in your hands, with the only exception being someone else crashing into you; which is no more likely there than anywhere else.

Take some sensible measures and you can reduce the risks considerably, without loosing any of the experience; Try and choose your group yourself (at a hostel or as you travel the rest of the country) and have a conversation about driving skills and driving styles before you leave; come up with a democratic way of vetoing an individual who drives badly and stopping them driving for the rest of the trip; drive sensibly and don’t drink and drive (remember drinking heavily the night before is likely to mean you are over the limit the following morning); listen to the briefing and follow their guidance, they know what they are talking about; if there are seatbelts wear them; speed kills generally, on sand speed is substantially more dangerous; if you are uncomfortable speak up or walk away, there is always another group and another time; and above all enjoy the island, not the driving!

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Ethical and Responsible Travel, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. Tragedies like this accident sadly do happen and our condolences go to the families of those so tragically killed and injured. There are judgements future visitors to Fraser Island can make to reduce the inherent risks these types of activities present.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

Gap year students killed in crash

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Title – Gap year students killed in crash
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 19th March 2009

The tragic loss of 3 young men setting out on the adventure of a lifetime in such a terrible accident is not something any parent should have to deal with and not one I would even pretend to understand. My condolences go out to their family and friends.

This once again highlights the dangers of road travel in foreign countries and having driven on the roads in South Africa myself, I know not only how dangerous they can be, but also how the ‘rules’ vary considerably from what we are used to at home; how the speed cars drive at is astounding; how many obstacles there are to avoid (in the form of pedestrians, stray animals and general debris); and sadly how many accidents are head-on and lead to fatalities.

In the months I spent in

South Africa I sadly drove past many accidents where there had clearly been serious injury or fatalities. Several of these involved the local ‘minibus taxis’ which are usually crammed as full as they can be with passengers (as a rule of thumb count the number of seats and double it).

One of the parents assessment that these young men were just in the “wrong place at the wrong time” is probably the most accurate statement regarding this accident, sadly it does not make it any easier for them to bear.

We have recently commented on a number of tragic road accidents in this blog, which demonstrates the dangers travellers face on roads all over the world:

· Vietnam bus plunge ‘kills 10’
· Belgians die in Egypt coach crash
· Families pay tribute to Britons killed in Ecuador bus crash

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. Tragedies like this accident happen in every part of the world but I don’t believe there is a country in the world where the level of road traffic accidents should put us off travelling. There are however considerations and judgements we should make in regard to our transport options, to reduce the inherent risks they present.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us our Facebook Page and our Facebook Group. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

Vietnam bus plunge ‘kills 10’

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Title – Vietnam bus plunge ‘kills 10’
Source – http://www.bbc.co.uk/
Date – 14th March 2009

Yet another story which demonstrates the road safety issues at some of the world’s popular destinations for independent travellers, we have commented on a number of these over the past year from Ecuador, to Egypt and now Vietnam:

·

Belgians die in Egypt coach crash
· Families pay tribute to Britons killed in Ecuador bus crash

Vietnam is another of the destinations where fatalities from road traffic accidents are high, with over 12,000 a year, it is an issue for independent travellers when they travel.

Unfortunately these types of accident are not always avoidable as the number of factors involved which are out of the control of the traveller themselves is high; but even if we can learn to reduce those few risks which we can control, it can improve our odds considerably.

This incident in Vietnam and these fatality figures don’t include the number of near misses which can have a dramatic effect on travellers. In our own experience we know of one such first time traveller who was involved in a bus crash in Vietnam where the bus ended up hanging over the side of a bridge; the passengers fortunately managed to escape out of the back window before help was summoned. It was an experience which ruined a trip and led to the individual returning home before their scheduled return.

It is a sad fact that many travellers do find a traumatic experience like this is enough to call and end to a trip and often that is the right decision at the time, as a loss of confidence can result in further problems; besides if the positives don’t outweigh the negatives then there is little point to the travel. The key is not to let it ruin future travel and we are pleased to note our friend has subsequently travelled independently and continues to travel to this day.

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. Tragedies like this accident happen in every part of the world but I don’t believe there is a country in the world where the level of road traffic accidents should put us off travelling. There are however considerations and judgements we should make in regard to our transport options, to reduce the inherent risks they present.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us our Facebook Page and our Facebook Group. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

Airlines’ limit on liquid in hand luggage to be lifted

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Title – Airlines’ limit on liquid in hand luggage to be liftedSource – The Times
Date – 12th March 2009

It has yet to happen, but it does seem like the limit on liquid being taken onto flights will soon be lifted; or at least selectively lifted.

However we would still advise that you prepare your luggage and pack with the existing limitations in mind. It seems that at first there will be trials followed by a roll-out of the new machines which can detect those liquids which pose a risk to flights. But at £100,000 a machine the balance between the cost of installation and the additional cost of security at airports (not all of which will be cut back on thanks to these machines) will be difficult to balance.

The key to remember is that although we would imagine that Heathrow will be one of the first to install these machines, the airports you are flying into are less likely to have the machinery installed soon. This means that it is important that you plan not just for your flight out, but also for your return flight; take vessels for your liquids which you can use in both directions.

The best advice is to make sure you pack all your liquids in your hold luggage to avoid all possible problems. Remember also that the restrictions on knives, nail clippers, scissors and other ‘sharps’ will remain in place.

At

Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. Packing your bags should be done not just with your outward journey in mind but rather considering every journey you will be making on your travels. The way to pack for a flight is very different to the way you should pack for a 10 hour bus ride through the backbone of India, are very different.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us our Facebook Page and our Facebook Group. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

Just how cheap are those no-frills flights once the hidden extras are taken on board?

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Title – Just how cheap are those no-frills flights once the hidden extras are taken on board?Source – The Independent
Date – 8th March 2009

I recently commented on this blog about

Ryanair threatening to charge for the use of toilets on it’s flights and I then came across this article highlighting the ‘real’ costs of ‘budget flights’.

Before we look at all the add-ons to the advertised cost of these flights I should point out that with the advent of the ‘budget airline’ the options for the independent traveller have substantially increased and they continue to grow. The launch of an Air Asia service from Stansted to Kuala Lumpur and beyond have added a whole new dimension to the possibilities for independent travel.

Traditional travel agents who always used to be the best option for multi-stop long-haul flights, now have real competition. Anyone wishing to take a trip to South East Asia or even Australia can find cheaper alternatives on-line. But be warned there are positive and negative sides to this change.

But back to the short-haul budget flights….

The table in this article gives you some idea of the extras; but be warned they are likely to continue changing on a regular basis, so make sure you check all the booking conditions before you hand over your credit card (yes there is a charge for that too…)

Remember also to factor in all the other costs as well. It is all very well getting a cheaper flight with a low cost airline, but make sure the airport they are flying from and to do not mean that the increase in cost of getting to / from (or parking at) the airport outweigh the benefits; make sure you clear the cookies on your computer before you book (yes they track your activity and it can increase the cost); take your own food and drink as it saves buying overpriced food and drink on board and it will taste better; make sure you book as early as possible as this will generally make it cheaper (I even know of people who book multiple flights many months in advance as they are unsure of their dates, but know that even if they discard most of their flights in the end it will still be cheaper then booking at the last minute.

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. The options for the Independent Traveller seem to get greater and greater each and every year, but it is almost getting to the point where the options are so great that it has become confusing and getting the best deals means a lot of research or finding someone you can really trust; many will claim to offer you the best and ‘only’ option, but this is rarely the case. We can help you reduce the number of options you need to investigate and direct you to those which will best suit your plans.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us our Facebook Page and our Facebook Group. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

Ryanair puts travellers in holding pattern with ‘pay a pound to spend a penny’ plan

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Title – Ryanair puts travellers in holding pattern with ‘pay a pound to spend a penny’ plan
Source – The Times
Date – 28th February 2009

The hidden charges of ‘budget’ airlines are generally well known and although new regulation has been brought in to stop airlines from advertising flights at rock bottom prices and ignoring the taxes, this has not stopped them reducing prices for advertising purposes. Adding on ‘extras’ which they do not need to advertise, but which many travellers would consider an fundamental part of the ‘ticket’ they are buying, is now common practice.

Ryanair are the ‘leaders’ in this practise and this is just the next step of that process. The question is where will it end and how much loose change will passengers need to start carrying before the fuel used to carry that loose change cost more than the additional profit made by Ryanair…

Don’t get me wrong, I welcome cheap airlines, they have revolutionised travel, but they are not without their issues. They need to be more honest with passengers, we understand that £20 to fly from London to Milan (they say Milan, maybe ‘near Milan’ would be more appropriate) is cheap, we would think £21 for the same flight was cheap and as such would accept the extra pound on the fare. However I think most people would rather pay £21 and have a flight with toilets rather than the thought of seeing how long they can hold it in, before 250 people rush off the flight on landing and head for the nearest toilet.

The bigger question for me is this; if I am on a 1 hour flight to continental Europe, I can plan my ‘pit stops’ appropriately. But lets be honest there are occasions when people get it wrong. So imagine the situation, you are trying to save that £1 and think to yourself that you only have to hold it in for another 15 minutes…. No problem… the seatbelt sign comes on as you start the descent, but then the flight is put into a holding pattern, but the seatbelt sign will stay on…. 15 minutes has just become 30 minutes…. Then 45 minutes…. Sound familiar? Now the question is do you get up in contravention of the seatbelt sign and do you approach the airhostess for change for a fiver? The point I make is would people not prefer to pay an additional £1 and not have to think about how many people have not managed to hold it in on the seat you are sitting on?

Ok I know it’s a little over the top, but I am allowed to have a little fun with this after all Michael O’Leary of Ryanair has been having a little fun with us…. The serious point is this. ‘budget airlines’ are a real viable alternative to more traditional means of independent travel in almost every corner of the world. But make sure you read past the home page and factor in all your requirements before you buy; don’t forget, before you book, clear down your ‘cookies’ to get the best price.

At

Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. Deciding on your means of transport will be determined by price, availability, convenience and personal preferences. We present you with all the alternatives before you decide. There are also considerations of environmental impact that should influence your decision making.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us our Facebook Page and our Facebook Group. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

Miracle as passengers escapes plane disaster / British student shot in Ecuador

Title – Miracle as passengers escapes plane disaster / British student shot in EcuadorSource – London Lite
Date – 25th February 2009

It does sometimes seem that airline accidents come in threes, with the miraculous escape of those on the flight which landed on the Hudson River in New York and the tragic accident in Buffalo this Turkish airlines accident in Holland is the third.

Now I should point out that this is far from an exact science or even a statistical reality, but rather just an observation.

Actually the point of me including this article is not really anything to do with airline safety, because we have little control over this beyond the choice of airline we make and all the airlines involved in these three accidents have perfectly acceptable safety records.

The key for me was simply to point out that despite any loss of life being a tragedy it is amazing how many people survived two out of three of these accidents; we generally assume that the chances of surviving an aircraft accident are minimal. We all remember the miracle of the plane that landed on the Hudson River with no loss of life where the potential for fatalities on the ground and the plane were substantial. In this case in Amsterdam (despite what this early report suggests) nine people sadly died, but notably 125 people survived. It demonstrates the incredible safety record flying has when compared to other means of transport, thanks to technology and the remarkable courage and training of the crews.

Sadly on the same day we picked up on an article highlighting the dangers of travel and living in parts of the world where guns play every day part in communities. Trespassing in the UK is likely to result in at most an angry exchange and a reprimand; in many part of the world the threat to landowners from extreme violence perpetrated by ‘attackers’ means they protect themselves with firearms and the results can be deadly.

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Travel Safety and Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice, Documentation, Travel Money and Insurance and more. Some of the dangers we face when travelling independently are difficult for us to influence, but they should be put into the context of the dangers we face in our everyday lives; others we can manage and resolve to reduce the risks independent travel presents.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us our Facebook Page and our Facebook Group. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.

This is your pilot slurring…

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Title – This is your pilot slurring…
Source – The Independent
Date – 4th February 2009

What comment can I make on this story? How can I find a purpose or a lesson we can learn from it?

Maybe the only thing it makes us really aware of is the rise and fall of standards both in companies and countries. It reminds us that things change quickly and having access to the latest information is key to

Safe Travel.

During the cold war information was not always easy to come by and was closely controlled in a propaganda war. With the fall of the Berlin wall came the fall in economic fortunes of many of the eastern bloc counties, the ‘new’ Russia included.

For a decade Russia struggled economically, infrastructure crumbled, public servants went unpaid and the gloss came off the former Soviet grandeur. Along with this there was much talk of Aeroflot failing to maintain its fleet and sadly even if they didn’t quite match the image that many painted of planes falling from the sky, there were too many accidents involving Aeroflot aircraft for it to be a coincidence.

But as countries fall so new ones rise and for the past decade Russia has rebuilt itself, helped by the high oil and gas prices it now relies so heavily on and through strong (many think too ‘strong’) leadership has become a rich and powerful nation once again. More obvious is that a ‘super-class’ of oligarchs have arisen as the ‘mega-rich’ who control many of the key industries in Russia. This includes Aeroflot and it has benefitted from renewed investment and rebuilt in some people’s eyes its reputation to some degree.

It would be flippant of me to compare this incident to the current economic downturn, which with such low oil prices is hurting Russia more than most. This may be well be a one off; a PR disaster; a bad joke; an over reported incident; but in a country that as times get tougher seems to be turning inwards in some respects, such a press freedom and openness, any information is worth consideration.

If we take it as a one-off, then it is an example of how we should stand up (literally and figuratively), when the alarm bells start ringing and follow our instincts. Don’t be a sheep and follow the crowd for fear of what it will look like, stand up, in this case get off and then watch how many people thank you for taking the lead as they follow.

That they tried to explain off what some perceived as a drunk pilot as a mild stroke or suggest that the pilot has little to do except press a button is absurd. Ask Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III, the pilot nicknamed ‘the Hero of the Hudson’ if he could have performed his remarkable feat when drunk or after a mild stroke?

At Beyond The Blue (Safe Gap Year) our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness Workshop (GYITSA) considers issues of Transport Options alongside sessions on Travel Safety, Travel Health, Travel Equipment, Travel Insurance, Destination Advice and more. Flying is one of the safest transport options we can make, but there are still some checks we should make to protect us from the rogues out there who cut corners and compromise safety.

Please visit our website at www.safegapyear.com or join us on Facebook. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.

For more information on any of our services, please call us on 0845 602 55 95 or Contact Us.