The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree arrived in New York City on Saturday, signaling the start of the holiday season in the Big Apple. The 74-foot Norway spruce was driven into Manhattan’s Center Plaza, where it was hoisted in place by a crane. It will take 5 miles (about 8 kilometers) of light strands with more than 50,000 multicolored LED bulbs to wrap the tree, whose diameter measures 43 feet (13 meters). A Swarovski star crown sparkling with 3 million crystals will top it. The towering conifer, donated by the Albert family in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts, was cut down Thursday morning and loaded onto a flatbed truck for the 140-mile (225-kilometer) trip. It is the first Rockefeller Center Christmas tree to come from Massachusetts since 1959. It was met in New Yo...
Read MoreTag: holiday season
Sojern, the leading digital marketing platform built for travel, has shared its latest travel data ahead of the holiday season and beyond. Travelers are eager to hit the road or skies, but economic concerns and inflation are widening the wealth gap. Compared to 2023, more consumers are opting for road trips over air travel, if they're traveling at all. Sojern data shows upscale and luxury hotel prices have risen by 1.7% and 1.4%, while economy lodging remains steady, reflecting growing demand for higher-end accommodations. "Unlike the pandemic where travelers chose less crowded destinations, those who are traveling are going back to more popular and expensive cities–and they're willing to pay a premium," said Noreen Henry, Chief Revenue Officer at Sojern. "We saw this with Taylor Swift...
Read MoreExpert Travel Tips With one of the year's busiest travel periods on the horizon, airlines, airports, and passengers are bracing themselves for a hectic holiday season. Historically, holiday travel has been synonymous with delays and cancellations. With more of the same expected over the next few weeks, Squaremouth, the US based leading travel insurance marketplace, shares their top tips for travelers flying over the next few weeks. Photos courtesy of Shutterstock Plan for delays Delays are an all too familiar aspect of travel nowadays. Roughly 25% of all paid travel insurance claims in 2023 have been related to delays and missed connections. If last year's festive season taught us anything, that number could rise dramatically during the holidays. Travelers with trips thi...
Read MoreHospitality industry is still recovering from the COVID impact, says an expert While travelers are feeling more comfortable about resuming holiday travel and celebration, they will continue to face delays, cancellations, and other frustrations, says a Virginia Tech expert. The reality is that the hospitality industry is still recovering from the impact of COVID, says travel and tourism professor Mahmood Khan. “The backbone of the travel industry is affected due to the blockage of the supply chain; acute labor shortages; and coming out of the lockdown psychology,” says Khan. “The problems facing the travel industry are evident by last minute flight cancellations, lost baggage, delays, and unruly customer stories.” Khan says that expecting travel to be as normal as during pr...
Read MoreHoliday company TUI Group expects a strong 2021 summer season and will operate 75% of pre-pandemic capacity, with rising levels of vaccinations set to fuel last-minute bookings, it said on Wednesday. The pandemic has hammered TUI, the world’s biggest holiday group, and while it sunk to a 1.3 billion euro ($1.6 billion) loss for the six months to the end of March, it said that the worst was behind it as European resorts start to reopen. FILE PHOTO: TUI logo is seen at the TUI travel center following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, Britain, July 28, 2020. REUTERS/Carl Recine New bookings have doubled since April, with customers from Germany and Belgium driving demand for holidays after winter lockdowns, and the group expects UK bookings to ca...
Read More
You must be logged in to post a comment.