Editorial desk

Outspoken Digest Travel Desk

Destinations, airlines, borders and the practicalities of getting there.

Stories by Outspoken Digest Travel Desk

Travel

Tropical Storm Trudy Is Forecast to Become a Major Hurricane as It Nears Mexico's Pacific Coast

Forecasters expect rapid strengthening before the storm nears the southwest and west-central coast this weekend, with dangerous surf first, so travellers to Acapulco should watch updates.

Oct 15, 2026/2 min read

Acapulco Bay in Mexico seen from the hillside with high-rise hotels along the shore and a ship alongside a pier, photographed in February 2010, a file photograph of the bay and not of Tropical Storm Trudy

Travel

Portugal Picks Lufthansa Over Air France-KLM for a 44.9 Percent Stake in TAP Air Portugal

The government chose the German group after Wednesday's cabinet meeting, citing a bid 16 percent higher than its French-Dutch rival and a plan for pilots, fleet and Lisbon airport.

Oct 14, 2026/2 min read

A TAP Air Portugal Airbus A320 on the runway at Lisbon airport, photographed in March 2020, a file photograph of the airline and not of Wednesday's announcement

Travel

Riyadh Airport Lost 353 of 354 Departures on Sunday, and Airlines From Lufthansa to Cathay Are Cancelling Saudi Flights

The shutdown at King Khalid has no reopening date, 17 October is only the day the restriction expires, and the disruption has spread to Dammam, Jeddah and the carriers that serve them.

Oct 13, 2026/2 min read

Road signs for international parking and the Riyadh centre on the approach road to King Khalid International Airport, photographed in 2025, a file photograph and not from the days of the closure

Travel

Hurricane Simon Closes Puerto Vallarta's Airport and Sends Tourists to Shelters as a Category 4 Storm Nears Mexico

With hurricane warnings up from Manzanillo to Punta Mita, hotels pausing bookings and flights cancelled until Monday, here is what travellers on Mexico's Pacific coast have been told on Saturday.

Oct 10, 2026/2 min read

Palm trees and hotel buildings along the Malecon seafront in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, photographed in February 2023, a file photograph illustrative of the resort area and not of Hurricane Simon's approach

Travel

Lufthansa Group Suspends Riyadh Flights to 16 October After Houthi Strikes as Nearly Half of Departures Are Cancelled

Foreign carriers have pulled out of the Saudi capital's main airport for days or weeks. Here is who has stopped flying, for how long, how many flights were scrubbed and what to check first.

Oct 9, 2026/2 min read

An orthorectified satellite image of King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh showing its terminals and runways, dated August 2006, a file image illustrative of the airport layout and not of the damage reported this week

Travel

Hurricane Isaias Closes Gulf Coast Airports and Clears Alabama's Beaches as Airlines Waive Change Fees

Destin-Fort Walton Beach shuts at 9 p.m. Thursday and Pensacola's terminal on Friday, as Delta, United, American and Southwest open rebooking waivers ahead of a landfall expected late Friday.

Oct 8, 2026/3 min read

Hotel towers and people on the beach at Gulf Shores, Alabama, photographed in March 2015, a file photograph of a resort town covered by evacuation orders and not of Hurricane Isaias

Travel

Oktoberfest 2026 Ended With a Record 7.4 Million Visitors, Beating the Previous High by 200,000

Munich's final tally put the 16-day festival at 7.4 million guests and 6.7 million litres of beer, with the Oidn Wiesn heritage area up almost a quarter and lost property down.

Oct 4, 2026/2 min read

Crowds inside the Hacker-Festzelt tent at Oktoberfest on the Theresienwiese in Munich, photographed on 3 October 2025 and not this year's festival

Travel

Hawaii's 90-Foot Hōlei Sea Arch, About 550 Years Old, Collapsed Into the Pacific During Storm Nolo

The National Park Service says one of the Big Island's best-known landmarks was standing on 23 September and gone by the night of 27 September. Rangers are warning people to stay back from the unstable cliffs.

Oct 3, 2026/2 min read

The Holei Sea Arch on the Kalapana coast, Hawaii, photographed while it was still standing, long before the collapse in September 2026

Travel

Hilton's First Hawaii Curio Collection Hotel Opens on Kauai This Week With Views of the Ocean Course

Hale Hokuala Kauai, a 210-room resort near Lihue Airport, began welcoming guests on 1 October as Hilton's first Curio Collection property in Hawaii, with access to the Ocean Course at Hokuala and a working farm on site.

Oct 1, 2026/2 min read

The coastline at Wailua on Kauai, illustrative of the island where the new resort has opened and not the resort's own grounds, photographed in December 2011

Travel

Heathrow's Terminal 5 Is Getting a Bigger Flagship Lounge Built Like a British Country House

No1 Lounges released renders of the flagship space replacing Club Aspire at Heathrow Terminal 5, a 28 per cent larger lounge with rooms styled as an Orangery and a Library, due to open in spring 2027.

Sep 29, 2026/2 min read

Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5, where the new flagship lounge is being built, photographed ahead of the announced redevelopment

Travel

Hurricane Nolo Grounded Two Dozen Flights and Shut Trails on Hawaii's Big Island Over the Weekend

Hawaiian Airlines and Southwest cancelled 21 flights out of Hilo and four major carriers issued travel waivers as the storm parked south of the island, closing state parks, trails and coastal tours even after its hurricane watch was lifted.

Sep 27, 2026/2 min read

An aircraft coming in to land at Hilo International Airport on Hawaii's Big Island, the airport where flights were cancelled ahead of Hurricane Nolo, photographed in March 2013

Travel

American and Starlux Launch a Codeshare Tying Taipei to Four West Coast Cities as Flights Begin This Week

American's flight codes now appear on Starlux services linking Los Angeles, Ontario, San Francisco and Seattle to Taipei, while Starlux codes go on 26 American domestic routes, with the new joint schedule taking effect on 30 September.

Sep 27, 2026/2 min read

Travel

COTALAND, a 30-Ride Theme Park Beside Austin's Formula One Track, Opens Its Gates This Weekend

Built on 30 acres next to the Circuit of the Americas, the park's grand opening runs Saturday and Sunday with a ribbon cutting and fireworks, headlined by Circuit Breaker, the only tilt coaster in Texas, and a second coaster called Palindrome.

Sep 26, 2026/2 min read

The Circuit of the Americas racetrack in Austin, beside which COTALAND has been built, photographed in March 2023

Travel

Hurricane Nolo Strengthens Toward Hawaii's Big Island, With Forecasters Warning of Up to 35 Inches of Rain

The Big Island is under a hurricane watch as Nolo, now packing 80 mph winds, is expected to make its closest approach late Friday into Saturday. Forecasters say the rainfall could trigger catastrophic, life-threatening flooding and mudslides.

Sep 25, 2026/2 min read

A wooded stretch of the Big Island of Hawaii's coastline, illustrative of the terrain under Hurricane Nolo's flood warning, photographed in September 2021

Travel

Travelling With Prescription Medicines: The Paperwork, the Packing and the Countries That Say No

A medicine that is routine at home can be controlled, restricted or banned elsewhere. Carry originals, a prescriber's letter and only what you need, and check the destination's rules before you pack.

Sep 20, 2026/3 min read

A weekly pill organiser beside loose tablets and capsules, illustrative of everyday prescription and over-the-counter medicines and not a particular treatment, photographed in December 2017

Travel

Kyoto in Autumn Colour: How the Season Moves Across the City and How to Beat the Crowds

The leaves turn from the hills in first and the city temples last. Plan around the colour front rather than a fixed date, go early, and know which routes and rail lines save you the most time.

Sep 16, 2026/3 min read

Maple trees in orange and red autumn colour at Ginkaku-ji temple in Kyoto, photographed in November 2007

Travel

Your Airline Owes You About Two Thousand Dollars for a Lost Bag, and Twenty One Days to Say So

On an international flight the Montreal Convention caps the airline's liability at 1,519 SDR per passenger, roughly 2,060 dollars. Almost nobody claims it, mostly because the deadlines are short and the airline is not going to remind you.

Sep 2, 2026/4 min read

The baggage claim hall at Phnom Penh International Airport, empty belts and a handful of waiting passengers

Travel

A Catamaran Ferry Left Kyrenia at Half Past Twelve and Began Taking On Water Almost Immediately

The FILOJET was carrying 259 passengers and eight crew to Tasucu. Eight people died, 18 are still missing and 241 were brought ashore. The captain and all seven of his crew have been detained and remanded while an investigation begins.

Aug 31, 2026/4 min read

Small boats moored in the old harbour at Kyrenia in northern Cyprus, the town the ferry sailed from

Travel

Eight Point Seven Million Airport Customers Lost Data, and the Field That Matters Is the Number Plate

Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands lost email addresses, phone numbers, postcodes and vehicle registrations taken from car park, lounge and wifi bookings. No payment details. The combination is still enough to build a message you would believe.

Aug 30, 2026/4 min read

The landside concourse at Manchester Airport Terminal 2, with shops, an information desk and passengers walking through

Travel

A Glacier Fell 1,200 Metres Onto a River, and a Valley Full of Travellers Was Gone in Half an Hour

The ice broke away above the Lhende river in Tibet on Wednesday morning, dammed it, then let go. Nepal's tourism department has 668 visitors from 34 countries listed as missing. The mechanism has a name, and the Himalaya is producing it more often.

Aug 28, 2026/4 min read