Follow South China Morning Post - Travel & Leisure\, filter it, and define how you want to receive the news (via Email, RSS, Telegram, WhatsApp etc.) https://follow.it/scmp44 Tue, 21 Sep 2021 10:06:31 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUn45mNKvL7gMOT5HJgy6HUf Fiji plans to reopen for international tourists by November, aiming to rebuild its pandemic-devastated economy while battling a Delta-variant coronavirus outbreak.“Our goal is to free our country – and our economy – from the rut of the pandemic,” Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama said in a statement last week.Once 80 per cent of Fiji’s eligible population is vaccinated, it will offer quarantine-free travel to visitors from a “green list” of locations. Of Fiji’s eligible population, 66 per cent…]]> Mon, 20 Sep 2021 10:18:44 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUn45mNKvL7gMOT5HJgy6HUf https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUkzPYZdP59WlpVjH6qdYdAk “This year’s Mid-Autumn Festival will be celebrated in traditional fashion with a lantern parade at Victoria Park on September 30,” the South China Morning Post reported on September 14, 1974.The Lantern Carnival ’74 was to feature “traditional dragon and lion dances, Cantonese opera, magic and acrobatic shows, Chiu Chow folk dances, a fashion show, and other song and dance performances”, culminating with “a mass parade in which 200 members of the school safety patrols will light up the park…]]> Mon, 20 Sep 2021 04:15:14 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUkzPYZdP59WlpVjH6qdYdAk https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk2wmp2LdIzjl1cWWor9YPv In today’s interconnected world, many consider absence of seasonality a good thing; enhanced consumer choice, to have whatever one wants, when one wants it, can only be seen in a positive light, however impractical these desires. Even the most cursory tour of Hong Kong’s wet markets and supermarkets makes this point plain; almost anything imaginable can be obtained, from virtually anywhere – for a price.Curiously, the same people who strive to be “in the moment” through yoga, meditation and…]]> Mon, 20 Sep 2021 02:45:20 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk2wmp2LdIzjl1cWWor9YPv https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk2wmp2LdIzjsb1naedg1wr Tourism operators in Cambodia, the second-most vaccinated country in Southeast Asia (after Singapore), are putting pressure on the government to reopen borders to fully inoculated international tourists as soon as November. When they return, those tourists will be visiting a newly emerging eco-tourism destination.“Eco-tourism is moving forward globally and is very important in Cambodia,” says Nick Ray, tourism consultant for the Cambodia Sustainable Landscape and Eco-tourism Project (CSLEP), a…]]> Mon, 20 Sep 2021 01:15:08 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk2wmp2LdIzjsb1naedg1wr https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmmp2-jUM1aAZVjH6qdYdAk The diversity of Hong Kong’s restaurant landscape is famed for letting diners travel the world through their palettes without ever leaving the city. Such flights of food fancy are appreciated more than ever in the current climate, but spare a thought for the chefs crafting the dishes that whisk you to the heart of India, the islands of Finland or the mountains of Colombia.Many of these kitchen artists have also been grounded, unable to connect with the distant family, friends and foods that…]]> Sun, 19 Sep 2021 10:15:20 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmmp2-jUM1aAZVjH6qdYdAk https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmunKL6F7pKc-zdsCmHakzH In Hong Kong, the Mid-Autumn Festival is traditionally a calendar highlight. Every September (health pandemics permitting), the city’s streets and parks come alive with stirring dragon and lion dances, slick kung fu demonstrations and spectacular lantern displays, making for an awe-inspiring sight.For Simon Cheng Man-kit, it is a beloved occasion associated with many fond memories. When he was a child, his family would prepare paper lanterns and red candles, boxes of mooncakes, and an…]]> Sun, 19 Sep 2021 08:15:18 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmunKL6F7pKc-zdsCmHakzH https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmunKL6F7pKc11cWWor9YPv Hong Kong is ever-changing: skyscrapers and tower blocks mushroom on the city’s skyline, land is reclaimed along the harbourfront, new neighbourhoods redefine cool as transport networks spread their tentacles. And throughout the course of its history, social change in the city has been marked by a series of milestones that have shaped the way we live today.As Beijing tightens its grip and Hong Kong teeters on the brink of yet more change, there is a palpable air of nostalgia – and what better…]]> Sun, 19 Sep 2021 03:15:13 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmunKL6F7pKc11cWWor9YPv https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmeJAaRyQulkuzdsCmHakzH Businesses in Malaysia’s prime holiday destination, Langkawi, are gearing up to welcome the return of tourists this week, as the country takes an early step towards recovery from a devastating coronavirus crisis. Its Indonesian counterpart Bali, meanwhile, is contemplating an uptick in business, with social restrictions having been eased on Monday, and even the return of foreign visitors.A cluster of 99 islands in the Strait of Malacca, Langkawi will reopen from September 16 to fully vaccinated…]]> Wed, 15 Sep 2021 06:45:16 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmeJAaRyQulkuzdsCmHakzH https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmX-bZTseOmpeT5HJgy6HUf Whether it liked it or not, pre-pandemic Pattaya was synonymous with sex tourism. But when Thailand closed its borders in March 2020, “The country’s tourism industry – which is entwined with the sex worker industry – collapsed”, American media organisation NPR reported in February.Eighteen months into the pandemic and Pattaya is reportedly unrecognisable. In a follow-up interview with NPR, one of the sex workers featured in the February report spoke about having no choice but to leave the city…]]> Wed, 15 Sep 2021 02:45:09 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmX-bZTseOmpeT5HJgy6HUf https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUnznAJl9nddY11cWWor9YPv The first country in the world to legalise most uses of marijuana is looking to capture business away from illicit sellers and bolster its cannabis industry by allowing foreign visitors to buy pot.The administration of Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou could release its plan as soon as this year in a bid to build political consensus and support, said Daniel Radio, secretary general of the National Drugs Board.The aim isn’t to promote Uruguay as a destination for cannabis tourism but rather…]]> Tue, 14 Sep 2021 17:45:16 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUnznAJl9nddY11cWWor9YPv https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmjT760M9rXfeT5HJgy6HUf Yet another billionaire entrepreneur is set to ride into space this week, strapped inside the capsule of a SpaceX rocket ship, as part of an astro-tourist team poised to make history as the first all-civilian crew launched into Earth’s orbit.Jared Isaacman, the American founder and chief executive of e-commerce firm Shift4 Payments, will lead three fellow space flight novices on a trip expected to last three days from blast-off at Cape Canaveral, Florida, to splashdown in the Atlantic.The 38…]]> Mon, 13 Sep 2021 16:15:17 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmjT760M9rXfeT5HJgy6HUf https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmsezgwEKmJx-zdsCmHakzH It’s not every day you find chilli crab being dished up in a restaurant outside Singapore – much less a hotel restaurant. Halfway around the world, however, the Pan Pacific London, which opened its doors on September 1, serves an array of classic Singaporean dishes.Housed in a glass, bronze and steel skyscraper in the British capital’s financial district, the 237-room hotel is the first European outpost of Singapore-based hospitality brand Pan Pacific Hotels Group. The hotel advertises its…]]> Mon, 13 Sep 2021 01:15:14 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmsezgwEKmJx-zdsCmHakzH https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmmsMDCjQ0dEylmFkX7M1Jw The first time I saw a wild orangutan in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, I was cruising on the crocodile-filled Kinabatangan river looking for proboscis monkeys. I was lucky, even though the ape was high up in the forest canopy and all that could be discerned was a maroon spot hovering against a wall of foliage.I had a closer encounter with Borneo’s endemic primate in the highly protected Danum Valley Conservation Area, but for that I had to hire a local guide with an eagle eye and deep knowledge,…]]> Sun, 12 Sep 2021 12:15:21 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmmsMDCjQ0dEylmFkX7M1Jw https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmmptaP7vpuYZs0ohxaO6Yr One of the first ice hockey games to take place in Hong Kong ended rather theatrically. In 1984, Swire Group opened a tiny rink at Taikoo Shing’s Cityplaza, and while it was an improvement on the old Lai Chi Kok Amusement Park ice rink, which had only metal handrails for boards, the new sheet of ice presented another challenge – it was right in the middle of a shopping mall.During a heated game, an errant slapshot flew over the boards and smashed the window of a clothing store, sending…]]> Sun, 12 Sep 2021 02:15:16 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUmmptaP7vpuYZs0ohxaO6Yr https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUksyutI7vJX1V1cWWor9YPv In the great pantheon of Balinese folklore, few stories are more endearing – or have greater geopolitical significance – than that of King Jayapangus and his wife, Kang Ching Wie.According to inscriptions, the king became infatuated with the Chinese beauty after she arrived on the Indonesian island aboard a merchant ship owned by her father sometime in the 12th century. Despite objections from priests whose role it was to uphold traditions and who warned the relationship would turn sour, the…]]> Sat, 11 Sep 2021 07:15:08 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUksyutI7vJX1V1cWWor9YPv https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUkSqefuQMvQd-T5HJgy6HUf Flip through any guidebook to Hong Kong, or online top 10, and it won’t be long before the following words appear: country parks; concrete jungle; 40 per cent; amazing. Or to put it another way, around four-10ths of high-rise, high anxiety Hong Kong’s 1,100 sq km is official and utterly placid green space.It’s one of the city’s glories: hop in a taxi amid the metropolitan grit and grime of Wan Chai, and 10 minutes later you can be stepping out onto a trail that winds downhill through Tai Tam…]]> Fri, 10 Sep 2021 02:45:07 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUkSqefuQMvQd-T5HJgy6HUf https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk9auvOpLwyAaCY3L745TL_ European travellers helped plug a gap left by Asian and North American tourists stuck at home by the pandemic, staving off a total washout this year for Europe’s hospitality industry. After a disastrous 2020 tourism season, the sector had banked on vaccination campaigns and the easing of travel restrictions to see brighter days this summer.While European visitors might have shored up numbers, the recovery was patchy, with tourists spending in different places, on different things – and not with…]]> Wed, 08 Sep 2021 16:15:08 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk9auvOpLwyAaCY3L745TL_ https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUm7NNGm45tGmezdsCmHakzH Angkor Wat is one of the most famous temples in the world. Before the coronavirus stopped tourists from travelling around Asia, the 12th century Hindu complex in Cambodia’s Siem Reap province attracted 2.2 million visitors in 2019.In contrast, Sihanakhon, a temple complex under construction in Thailand’s Buriram province, is not a name many will be familiar with. Unless, perhaps, you are Cambodian and spend time on the internet.Pictures of the scaffolded structure were recently posted on social…]]> Wed, 08 Sep 2021 05:15:21 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUm7NNGm45tGmezdsCmHakzH https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk8d_BS-XHd35s0ohxaO6Yr There’s no ominous music, no telltale fin breaking the surface as the powerful silhouette of a great white shark glides alongside a small tour boat off Cape Cod, in the American state of Massachusetts.Michael Simard crouches low and points a finger in the direction of the roughly three metre (10ft) predator cruising in the glassy water below. The 48-year-old construction foreman from Cambridge, Massachusetts, glances back at his partner, Penny Antonoglou, who dutifully pulls out her smartphone…]]> Tue, 07 Sep 2021 15:15:16 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk8d_BS-XHd35s0ohxaO6Yr https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk8d_BS-XHd36CY3L745TL_ From a control room inside the police headquarters in Venice, Big Brother is watching. To combat tourist overcrowding, officials are tracking every person who sets foot in the Italian lagoon city.Using 468 CCTV cameras, optical sensors and a mobile-phone tracing system, they can tell residents from visitors, Italians from foreigners, where people are coming from, where they are heading and how fast they are moving.Every 15 minutes, authorities get a snapshot of how crowded the city is, how many…]]> Tue, 07 Sep 2021 11:15:22 +0200 https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-click/v3/UHsjY7aYpUk8d_BS-XHd36CY3L745TL_