British low-cost airline easyJet will expand further into central Europe in October, adding new routes to Hungary and Poland. EasyJet said in a statement it planned to fly to Krakow and Warsaw in Poland and increase services to Budapest from October 31. The new routes add to the airline’s recently-established services to Budapest and the Slovenian capital Ljubljana, bringing its central European services to 17.

Iberia, Spain’s major airline will stop channelling its Central American flights through Miami and will instead fly direct to a limited number of destinations. From October, it will run direct flights from Spain to Guatemala and Panama and will suspend another five Central American routes it now serves via Miami. The cost of maintaining a hub in Miami is a factor, but Iberia can offer non stop flights by using a long range Airbus. Another factor is that customers have complained about the strict US security measures they are subjected to when they have to fly via Miami.

Air New Zealand is to remove first class and improve economy class on its flights. Air NZ’s existing fleet will be divided into premium, super economy, and economy classes. They are also introducing video screens to every seat, and installing a lie-flat seat in premium class. The seats in super economy and economy will also be replaced, and cabin interiors refurbished.

Singapore Airlines began the world’s longest non-stop commercial flight – an 18-hour trip between Singapore and New York. The 16,600 km (10,310 mile) flight on an Airbus A340-500 aircraft over the Arctic shaves four hours off an existing service and marks the second non-stop flying record this year by Singapore’s flag carrier. The plane is specially fitted with business class seats that can recline into beds measuring 26 inches (66 cm) wide and 78 inches (198.1 cm) long. Economy seats are also slightly roomier than usual at 20 inches (51 cm) wide.

The US government is implementing new tough rules curtailing visits to Cuba. The rules implemented on June 16 means that thousands of Cuban-Americans visiting relatives on the island must return before June 30 or face fines of up to USD$55,000. After that date, US residents and citizens will be allowed to visit Cuba once every three years instead of annually.

Virgin Atlantic Airways is to begin flying from London to Sydney via Hong Kong on December 7, increasing competition with British Airways and its Australian partner Qantas.

Weather at our destination is 50 degrees with some broken clouds, but we’ll try to have them fixed before we arrive.

Thank you, and remember, nobody loves you, or your money, more than Southwest Airlines. Our seat cushions can be used for flotation and, in the event of an emergency water landing, please paddle to shore and take them with our compliments, as you exit the plane, make sure to gather all of your belongings. Anything left behind will be distributed evenly among the flight attendants. Please do not leave children or spouses.

Need to convert currency?

Take a look at The Globetrotters Currency Converter — get the exchange rates for 164 currencies The Globetrotters Currency Cheat Sheet — create and print a currency converter table for your next trip.

From a newspaper article spotted by Frank in the US.ï¿Â½ Workers at San Francisco’s Department of Animal Care and Control located the owner of a newly arrived stray cat they couldn’t believe what they found: the cat belonged to a woman in Bradenton, Fla. – 3,000 miles away.ï¿Â½ Florida resident Pamela Edwards had adopted the black, short-haired cat in the summer of 1997, naming it Cheyenne. Just a few months later, Cheyenne disappeared. Edwards hung flyers and ran ads in the local paper to try to locate the cat, but had no luck.

Cheyenne was dropped off at Animal Care and Control after someone found her wandering down a San Francisco street.ï¿Â½ After scanning her for a microchip and finding she had been lost in Florida seven years ago, they wondered if it was a joke.ï¿Â½ Animal Care and Control is trying to find a way to return Cheyenne, who is now 10 years old, to Edwards.ï¿Â½ The agency can’t afford to ship her to Florida, so workers there have been searching for a traveller to carry her on a plane trip.

Moscow’s Vnukovo airport has launched a new international terminal as part of a $1.3 billion modernization plan.ï¿Â½ Anyone who has passed through Vnukovo airport will agree that it is pretty shabby. “Unfortunately when you visit Moscow’s airports…you feel only ashamed when you see such conditions, all these buildings and the atmosphere,” Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov said at an opening ceremony marked with a 15-minute jet fighter air show.ï¿Â½ The three-story terminal, with modern-looking check-in facilities, electronic arrival boards, cafes and newspaper stands, stretches 25,000 square meters and can handle up to 10 million passengers a year.

This advice is from the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office about Zambia.

Violent and armed robberies and vehicle hijackings are increasing. Lusaka, the Copperbelt towns and other tourist centres are the favourite targets of criminals but attacks can happen almost anywhere. Mugging, bag-snatching, theft from parked cars and vehicle hijackings are common in downtown areas, particularly near bus and railway stations and in some shopping areas. Vehicle hijackings can happen anywhere at any time. Drivers must stay alert and should not, for example, stop to give lifts to people flagging them down at the roadside. Drivers should also be wary where objects appear to have been placed to block the road. Walking after dark, particularly in tourist or downtown areas, can be particularly dangerous. There are continuing reports of armed cross-border raids from Democratic Republic of Congo. These are often cattle or food raids, targeting border villages. But some have been attributed to the Congolese Mai Mai faction. The border area between Zambia and Angola remains sensitive and a large number of firearms left over from Angola’s civil war are in circulation. British residents who consider their presence essential in these areas should remain vigilant.

Landmines are a potential danger in Zambia’s border areas, particularly those neighbouring Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique.

Travel by long-distance public transport at any time can be hazardous owing to poor standards of driving, lack of rest periods for drivers on long journeys, dilapidated vehicles and the poor condition of some roads. Some short distance journeys by public transport can also be dangerous for similar reasons. For example, minibuses used in urban areas are usually severely overcrowded, poorly maintained and badly driven.