Novotel Sharm el Sheikh attains Green Globe Certification

The Green Globe programme is the official international environmental certification programme responsible for travel and tourism. In July 2007, Novotel started the rollout of Green Globe with a pilot program that involved 28 hotels in 12 countries.

Each hotel is assessed according to 10 key performance areas that seek to guarantee a range of environmental measures including better waste management, air quality improvement and energy & water consumption control. Each hotel is to undergo an annual onsite certification audit as part of the pilot program in the initial year and then every two years.

At present, the Novotel chain has 4 hotels with the Green Globe certification including the Novotel Sharm el Sheikh located on the sea front in Na’ama Bay. This 5* hotel is often overlooked by people but it is definitely one of the best hotels in Na’ama Bay.

Enjoy the sun and sea on the private beach and whether you are with your partner or family, enjoy a unique holiday doing whatever you please. The Kids Club offers different programs of popular sports and a childrens’ pool. Relax at the bars, dine indoors or out at a choice of 3 restaurants. There is also a spa with oriental Hamman and massages.

Although it is just a few minutes walk from the heart of Na’ama Bay, the Novotel is generally quiet offering all the benefits of location as well as the peace and quiet many people look for when on holiday. There are plenty of water sports available on the beach and for scuba divers, Emperor Divers is located right across the road.

Explorer Travel are pleased to offer huge savings on dive packages when you book both your holiday and diving with us. Please visit our website where you can send us an enquiry by email or give us a call to discuss staying at the Novotel Sharm el Sheikh.

Red Sea Explorer – http://www.redseaexplorer.com/

Novotel Sharm el Sheikh attains Green Globe Certification

Danger UXB

On Sunday, I went for a quiet walk with my family at the seaside town of Felixstowe. It was an uneventful afternoon and there was a lot of work being down to strengthen the sea defences there.

The next morning, I took a break from work to catch up with the local news and was amazed to see the headline on the local newspapers website reported an unexploded German bomb had been unearthed by workman. The worker had scooped the device up in his digger bucket which not surprisingly gave him a bit of a shock. He still had the fore-thought to take a couple of pictures of it before departing the area and calling the authorities.

It turns out the device is a 500kg German bomb (an SC type shell, to be precise) dating from 1942 during World War II. There is no telling how unstable the bomb was so the bomb disposal experts had to treat it as if it could still cause the maximum damage. As a result, a huge area of the Felixstowe sea front was cordoned off and 1,200 local residents were evacuated.

The bomb disposal squad came up with the plan to tow the bomb offshore, sink it to the sea bed and then blow it up from a safe distance at around 2pm on Tuesday. The North Sea isn’t particularly deep, probably no more than 15m in the area of the proposed explosion so there was still a lot of scope of a large explosion.

So off I went to Felixstowe at about 1pm. After all, its not every day you get to see a World War II bomb detonated. I found a good vantage point and not surprisingly, a number of people were already there. There was a good mix of people; a young mother with her son, an old man (we had a good chat about Shingle Street and World War II) and some passing shoppers.

The local radio were also providing regular updates and soon we had the news that the detonation had been delayed until 2.30pm. As the time approached, we had more news that strong currents had prevented the divers from completing their work which meant there would be no explosion for us to witness.

On Wednesday, I got up and tuned into the local radio to get the latest news and again there would be no explosion to witness as the bomb had gone missing. On the face of it, this sounds like the bomb squad have been a bit useless but unless you’ve dived in a strong current, its quite difficult to appreciate the problems they have encountered. These guys are professional divers and if they can’t work in the water, it means the current is very strong and will easily move a 500kg bomb.

Hopefully, this story will come to a conclusion soon with the safe detonation of the bomb but what it does highlight is the fact that although there has been no air raids for more than 60 years, there are still dangerous, undiscovered weapons out there. If you ever come across any old items on an old battlefield, it is so important that you do not take them home as a souvenir. These things were designed to mame and kill. In the fields of Flanders, the farmers regularly unearth various items dating back to World War I. These are left by the side of the road and taken away by local bomb disposal experts.

If you are interested in visiting battlefields from years gone by, please visit our website to see the range of tours we are able to offer – www.battlefieldexplorer.com

Danger UXB

High Euro Means Egypt Will Offer Better Value

A few days ago, the Pound hit an all time low against the Euro which prompted Federation of Tour Operators director-general, Andy Cooper to state that the exchange rate would affect operators deals with hotels, transfer companies and handling companies. The effect won’t be immediate but prices for 2009 could increase by £35 per person on accommodation.

Destinations outside the Eurozone will benefit from the exchange rate. Families are already comfortable with travelling to destinations such as Egypt and as a result of the strength of the Euro, Egypt will become an even more popular destination.

Nile Cruises followed with a resort offer an excellent combination of culture and relaxation and with the introduction of budget airline Easyjet flying to Sharm el Sheikh and Hurghada, holidaymakers will also find it easier to introduce flexibility into their holiday duration instead of the regular 7 or 14 nights.

For information and advice on visiting Egypt, visit our website or if you have a question regarding scuba diving give us a call or send us an email and we’ll be happy to help.

Red Sea Explorer - www.redsea.explorertravel.co.uk

Don’t forget to visit our new online store for all your scuba gear, beach and swimwear – www.explorertravelshop.co.uk

Source: Travel Weekly

High Euro Means Egypt Will Offer Better Value

Battlefields and Football - Part 3 Stade de France

Amiens has a magnificent cathedral in the centre and some lovely cafes and bars down by the river. It looks like a lovely place to spend summer evenings. However, it was an early morning in March so all I was interested in was a few pictures before heading south towards Paris and meeting up with my friends for the friendly international between France and England.

The drive down to Paris gave me my first experience of a French toll road. Given that the price of petrol is more expensive than it is in the UK, I can’t really believe the French put up with it (and this is a nation that knows how to protest). Anyway, the roads were fairly clear and Garmin got me all the way to my hotel in Gard de Nor, a very un-exclusive area of Paris. I was quite thankful that the hotel had a secure underground car park.

I make no apologies for stating that I have no love of Paris. I find it incredibly expensive so as I had a couple of hours to spare, I decided to just relax in my hotel room. By about 5pm, I had arranged to meet some friends near the main station which was only 3km from my hotel. It was raining and I didn’t fancy walking so I called a taxi. I should have known better as the meter was already on 8.60 Euros when I got in and the short journey cost me 14 Euros. Thankfully, my friends had found one of the less expensive bars and a beer was ‘only’ 5 Euros.

Its always good to catch up with friends at England matches. We live in different parts of the country so its generally quite rare we all meet up apart from at the games. My hotel was on the way to the stadium so we soon jumped on the metro so I could pick up my ticket. From there, we walked to the stadium. At away matches, I don’t like arriving late. Queues can build up and you never know how the police will react, its not always as calm as it is in England. As it happened, there was the build at one of the gates at the game, tensions rose and police fired tear gas into the crowd. Now these were not rioting hooligans; it was men, women and children. I saw one of my friends in the ground who was caught up in it with his 8 year old son. A gas canister had actually landed at his feet and his son had ended up in the First Aid tent. Thankfully, when I saw him, he was alright although not surprisingly, he’d lost interest in the match.

The game itself was one of the most dull games I’ve ever seen and I won’t dwell on it. We stayed to the end and then walked back to the hotel for a final beer and then bed. I had to be at Bolougne for my ferry home by 12:20 so I wanted to be on my way by 9am. I know what traffic can like in London at that time and I didn’t want to get caught up in long queues in Paris.

As I drove past the Stade de France, the old Blondie song “Dennis Dennis, I’m so in love with you” was on the radio. She obviously wasn’t singing about the area around the stadium which is called St Denis.

Once I cleared Paris, the drive back was good. The toll road north was clear but it did cost me 15 Euros. The most difficult thing is that driving a UK car with the steering wheel on the correct side, it was quite tricky to go through the toll barriers as I had to keep reaching across to the passenger window to put my credit card in the machines.

I got home that evening and taking my car instead of flying was definitely a much better option. I was alone so it wasn’t that cheap but naturally, if there had been 2 or 3 passengers in the car with me, costs would have been split and it would have been a very cost effective way of visiting Belgium and France.

If you are interested in sports travel, why not visit our dedicated Sports Travel website.

Explorer Travel Sports Travel – http://www.sportsfanexplorer.com/

Battlefields and Football - Part 3 Stade de France