The Korea Herald

Flying has never been so good for those who spend

NEW YORK (AP) ― Flying has never been so good ― for those able to splurge.While most holiday travelers will fight for overhead bins and go hours without a snack or room to stretch their legs, life in first class is stress free. It’s always been a special place on the other side of the curtain. Now, it’s getting even cushier.U.S. airlines, profitable again after a disastrous decade, are spending almost $2 billion to upgrade amenities for their highest-paying customers. On the most profitable inte

Nov. 21, 2011

Flying has never been so good for those who spend

Contemplating Jongno the quiet way

Foreign envoys visit select places in Bukchon as city promotes ‘responsible tourism’Despite the cold weather, a group of ambassadors to Korea gathered at Jongno-gu Office, excited to start their first group tour in central Seoul.The cultural tour was organized by Jongno-gu and the Korea Tourism Organization to promote “responsible tourism,” which the district office newly introduced to tap sustainable tourism.“Jongno district, one out of 24 districts in Seoul, is home to major palaces. You’re g

Nov. 18, 2011

Millennium Seoul Hilton to fire up Christmas train

Keeping its 16-year tradition, the Millennium Seoul Hilton will unveil its Christmas tree and ever-popular Christmas train on Nov. 23. Every year, a grand 10-meter Christmas tree is placed in the center of the main lobby. The highlight, for both children and adults who are young at heart, is the Christmas Train, a collection of more than 120 exquisitely handcrafted locomotives and railroad cars that will chug their way through the little village. The spirit of Christmas is also remembered as dom

Nov. 18, 2011

Air Busan celebrates third anniversary

Air Busan celebrates its third anniversary this month, having flown some 55,000 times carrying about 5.6 million passengers. Launching international flights to Fukuoka, Osaka, Hong Kong, Tokyo and other nearby foreign cities, the carrier has been expanding into a “smart, practical” airline. Purchasing two new planes next year, Air Busan plans to expand its flights further into Japan, China and Southeast Asia and increase its number of planes to 12 by 2015. The airline currently has seven aircraf

Nov. 18, 2011

Wedding parties in December

The InterContinental Seoul COEX offers a chance to make your wedding an unforgettable party during December. The package is for couples who prefer to forgo the post-wedding party and have more relaxed weddings. To satisfy couples’ diverse tastes, the hotel will be providing white, navy and even black wedding decorations as well as assorted flower arrangements. The wedding package, available only in December on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, will include wedding cake, champagne, rental of faci

Nov. 18, 2011

Hotels.com offers limited 101 hour Japan sale

Hotels.com, the global hotel specialist affiliated with the Expedia, Inc., is offering a short trip to Japan with a 50 percent discount on Japanese hotels in popular destinations for a limited 101 hours through this weekend. Those planning to travel to popular spots in Japan such as Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto until April 30 can also book hotels with affordable prices among Hotels.com recommendations. The Prince Park Tower Tokyo is offering 240,000 won per night, Hotel Gracery Tamachi 107,000 per nig

Nov. 18, 2011

Baja bound? Party down in safe, happy La Paz

LA PAZ, Mexico ― As traffic stalled along the palm-lined street, we peered from our taxi and spied the cause. A little parade came our way: boys in crimson church robes, young women balancing flower baskets on their heads, and a flatbed truck carrying a raucous band. Crackling fireworks zipped every which way.A local festival? We asked the cabdriver.He shrugged. No idea.Maybe a wedding? Perhaps a girl’s 15th birthday ― they call it Fiesta de Quinceanera. Who knew? It was just one of many little

Nov. 18, 2011

Baja bound? Party down in safe, happy La Paz

Tanzania on safari: a ‘unique, amazing place’

SELOUS NATIONAL PARK, Tanzania ― The hot African sun was unrelenting, the sky broken only by an occasional wisp of cloud. My guide, Mtambo, and I were alone in the Land Rover for an early morning game drive.As he drove through Selous National Park, gazing at the verdant treetops for an elusive leopard, I glanced at him. Mtambo, of the Ndengereko tribe, was of an indeterminate age. He could have been 40 or 70, but this much is known: He can identify every African critter or bird that crosses his

Nov. 18, 2011

Tanzania on safari: a ‘unique, amazing place’

Ghost alps of Antarctica reveal their secret

For more than half a century, geologists have wrangled over the origins of an astonishing range of mountains found beneath ice up to three kilometers (two miles) thick in East Antarctica.Named after the Soviet geophysicist who detected them in 1958 during the first International Polar Year explorati

Nov. 18, 2011

S. Korean tourist killed in boat crash in Philippines

A South Korean tourist was killed this week in a boat crash off the eastern coast of the Philippine island of Cebu, Seoul's foreign ministry said Monday.A banana boat carrying three South Korean tourists, including a 50-year-old woman identified only by her surname Ji, collided with an outrigger can

Nov. 14, 2011

Jeju Island makes ‘New7Wonders’ list

The Jusangjeolli Cliff on Jeju Island. (Jeju Special Self Governing Province)Jeju Island has been named as one of the new seven natural wonders of the world on Saturday, 300 days after the nation launched an online voting campaign.Jeju Island was one of the final 28 global candidates for “New7Wonder

Nov. 13, 2011

S. Korea, Taiwan agree to expand flights

South Korea has reached an agreement with Taiwan to further expand air travel between the two countries, the government said Friday. The agreement reached in Seoul involves opening new flight services and increasing the number of seats available on existing routes that have been cited f

Nov. 11, 2011

Discover yourself in a maze of trails

A lazybones finds hiking Jeju’s scenic Olle trails awakens the sensesJEJU ― It’s a rainy November day on Jeju Island and the leaves have turned yellow and red. The top of Aloreum, on Olle trail route No.1, is difficult to make out. Fog drifts over it like mist at the base of a waterfall. One of Olle’s most famous spots, Aloreum is one of Jeju’s many oreums ― volcanic cones that look like small mountains or hills. The spot is usually filled with visitors determined to enjoy its fabled panoramic

Nov. 11, 2011

Pierre Gagnaire on Top 20 Asian restaurants list

Lotte Hotel Seoul said Pierre Gagnaire Soul, a French restaurant by three-Michelin star chef Pierre Gagnaire located on the 35th floor of the hotel, ranked at No. 8 on Asia’s Top 20 Restaurants list and was chosen as Korea’s best restaurant in the 2011/2012 edition of the Miele Guide, a regional guide book to restaurants in Asia. The hotel said it is the first restaurant in Korea to be listed on Miele’s Top 20 Restaurants in Asia. The Miele Guide was established in 2008 to better recognize and c

Nov. 11, 2011

Hawaiian Airlines offers promotion

Hawaiian Airlines said it will offer the Early Bird Promotion I and II. Promotion I offers an Incheon to Honolulu flight for 819,000 won until Dec. 10. After making a reservation, the ticket purchase should be made within seven days and an up to one month stay in Hawaii is possible. It includes one free roundtrip ticket within Hawaii. Promotion II offers a free transfer at Honolulu to 10 cities in the western U.S. A ticket to Las Vegas via Honolulu is 923,100 won and Los Angeles is 1,029,400 won

Nov. 11, 2011

Malaysia to offer year-end sale

Tourism Malaysia said the Southeast Asian country will hold the Malaysia Year End Sale from Nov. 15 to Jan. 1, offering up to 70 percent discounts at major department stores and local brands. The recommended shopping area is Suria KLCC, located at the landmark Petronas Twin Towers. It is linked with large department stores such as Isetan and Parkson and it also offers food courts, a cinema, a science house, an aquarium and bookstore Kinokuniya.(yoonmi@heraldm.com)

Nov. 11, 2011

Benikea gives away free accommodation

The Korea Tourism Organization said Benikea, the mid- to low-priced hotel chain, will hold an online event “What is YOUR Best Night in Korea?” on its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/benikea through Dec. 6. At the site, participants can upload their best picture of the night scenery in Korea and leave comments on why it is the best. Those who win first prize will receive a roundtrip flight to Korea and accommodations at a hotel affiliated with Benikea. Five second-prize winners will get hotel a

Nov. 11, 2011

Amid flood catastrophe, Thais begin festival

BANGKOK (AP) ― Every year when the moon is full and the rainy season draws to an end, Thailand’s waterways fill with millions of floating lotus-shaped lanterns ― a symbolic, centuries-old gesture once meant to placate the country’s goddess of water.Today, many Thais still believe the candlelit boats launched during Loy Krathong can carry misfortune away with them, allowing past sins to be cleansed and life to begin anew.This year, flood-ravaged Thailand has plenty of reason to pray for rebirth ―

Nov. 11, 2011

Amid flood catastrophe, Thais begin festival

Arches National Park an overlooked winter escape

ARCHES NATIONAL PARK, Utah ― I spent six hours scrambling across the frosted red rock, eyeing the endless blue above and surrendering to the quiet that commands this place in late January, when the obvious was finally put to me.“What are you doing out here ― in winter?”The question came from Kenna Chandler, 31, whom I encountered in the midst of a seven-mile hike through Devils Garden. I’d passed nearly a dozen of the park’s 2,000 red sandstone arches, carved from hundreds of thousands of years

Nov. 11, 2011

Arches National Park an overlooked winter escape

Han Bi-ya excited about new U.N. job, still loves to travel

JEJU ― Han Bi-ya, a popular travel writer and newly appointed advisor to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, is excited about her new job and proud of her accomplishments. “My job is to aid underfunded emergencies around the world, and make sure the victims get the help they need,” Han told reporters during a press conference on Jeju, Tuesday. “I am very excited and will do my best for the next three years.”The 53-year-old, who is known for her best-selling travel books and emergency relief

Nov. 10, 2011

Han Bi-ya excited about new U.N. job, still loves to travel