Sydney – Auckland from $140 (BestFlights)

BestFlights are advertising Aerolineas Argentinas fares from Sydney to Auckland from $89 one way plus taxes from $49.

No details on how long the offer lasts or availability.

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Spectacular images of Boeing’s Dreamliner

Fortune Magazine has some spectacular photos of the global manufacturing process behind Boeing’s new 787 ‘Dreamliner’.

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90 days don’t go so far any more

The Sunday Telegraph had an article worth reading about the ramifactions of EU enlargement for Australian travellers to Europe. The accession of nine Eastern European countries to the EU, and to the Schengen Agreement makes it much easier for Australians to travel to those countries as a 90 day Schengen visa will be issued on arrival. However, the sting in the tail is this – because Australian travellers are still only allowed to stay in the area covered by the convention (which also includes most of Western Europe, coloured blue in the map) for ninety days in a six month period. these nine new countries are included in the same ninety days as France, Germany, Italy, Scandinavia, etc, the likelihood of Australian travellers wishing to exceed the total 90 days is greatly increased.

The article also observes that

An emerging problem arises from travellers booking flights themselves over the internet, and therefore being unaware of visa requirements.

Then, when they’re checking in at the airport, they discover the airline won’t carry them because their paperwork isn’t in order.

“That can obviously be a pretty big problem for the traveller, yet it happens quite frequently; it’s a pretty common occurrence,” Mr Derbyshire says.

A sage reminded to be extra careful if you’re travelling through a number of countries.

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How the other half flies

The Singapore Airlines website has virtual walkthroughs for all classes of the new A380 aircraft. Worth a gawk are the first class suites. Partioned with full size beds (but none of that) seats upholstered by ‘master leather craftsmen’ in Italy, tableware by Givernchy – you get the idea.

Just don’t watch the economy class walkthrough afterwards; I almost cried.

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Travel Budget Calculator – Find out how much your trip will cost

SavingForTravel have a great tool I came across a while ago. The Travel Budget Calculator provides an estimate of travel costs for most countries in the world (sadly Djibouti is not covered). Simply select the destination(s) and the number of weeks you intend to stay in each country. The site will estimate (in Pounds Sterling) the cost for a ‘no-frills budget traveller staying in hostels or guesthouses, eating as cheaply as possible, travelling an average amount internally and seeing the typical sites’. Even if this description doen’t match the way you intend to travel the site can give you a quick snapshot of the likely cost of a trip or the comparative cost of two or more destinations.

I’ll need £420 for three weeks in Kazakhstan, but £378 for Kyrgyzstan, apparently. Jagshemash!

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