Wizz Air will operate new flights between Warsaw and Rome Ciampino airports, the carrier announced yesterday.

Complementing the existing network of 17 destinations from the Polish capital, the new services will operate three times a week from the Polish capital.

Flights will commence on September 16th, with tickets already on sale on the company’s website.

Tourists taking a break in Italy can transfer on to a number of popular cultural destinations with Wizz Air, which also flies to Budapest, Cluj, Sofia, Katowice and Bucharest from the Italian capital.

During May, the carrier announced it was to run new services from Warsaw to Cork and Ukraine respectively, providing tourists with new opportunities to travel within Europe on a budget.

Wizz Air, which recently celebrated its fourth anniversary, describes itself as the “largest low cost - low fare airline based in central and eastern Europe”.

The firm currently offers flights on more than 100 routes across the continent.

In a move designed to boost visitor numbers to Arizona, the State Office of Tourism, Parks Department and Trail Association have joined forces to launch the Arizona Passages campaign.

Officials wish to promote the 27 parks contained within the state and the 800-mile Arizona trail, while showcasing the outdoor recreation options available to visitors.

Margie Emmermann, director of the Arizona Office of Tourism, said that by combining the “best aspects” of the state parks and trail associations, the campaign would “create a synergy” which would encourage people to explore the Grand Canyon state. 

Visitors to any of the parks in Arizona may participate in activities such as hiking, cycling, fishing, horseback riding, boat trips and even cave tours

Those interested in culture and architecture may wish to take a trip to historic mansions, courthouses and the Yuma Territorial Prison.

Plenty of visitor accommodation is available throughout the state, allowing tourists to make the most of their visit.

According to the Arizona Trail Association, deserts, sky islands, plateaus, mountains and canyons can be found along the 800-mile route.

Tourist officials in Hawaii have launched $3 million advertising campaign aimed at bringing visitors back to the Pacific island.

The Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau (HVCB) are attempting to rejuvenate the tourist industry by convincing consumer they can afford to travel to the island state despite the rising cost of air travel, reports USA Today.

Discounted packages and hotel accommodation are being advertised across a range of media outlets to drum up interest.

Jay Talwar, HVCB’s senior vice president for marketing, said there was concern that travellers were looking at competitor destinations or alternatives such as driving holidays as a result of a “brick wall of airfares”.

He added that tourism officials had joined forces with travel agents to offer discounts on airfare inclusive packages.

According to the Hawaiian state department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, visitor numbers are expected to be down 3% overall this year compared to last year.

The volcanic state, described by the tourist board as “the birthplace of surfing and the hula”, consists of six major islands and is one of the world’s youngest geological landforms.

The Caribbean is a desirable holiday spot for families seeking luxury holidays, the editor of Luxury Travel Magazine has claimed.

Alyson Cook says the weather and standard of accommodation in the Caribbean make it a popular destination for those desiring luxury travel options.

She said: “With the vagaries and unpredictability of the British summer and, of course, the autumn and winter being predictably wet, the attractions of the Caribbean having good weather at that time of year can’t be underestimated.

“There are plenty of direct flights now to these markets so you can get a decent flight straight to the destination.”

Meanwhile, an email survey conducted by Luxury Travel Magazine in January has suggested that spending on luxury holidays among readers will increase slightly in 2008/2009 despite the credit crunch.
Some 71.6 per cent of respondents predicted their spending would increase slightly, while 6.9 per cent predicted it would increase greatly.

A new visa regime in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will not unduly affect the nation’s tourist industry, government officials have claimed.

Law changes have been made aimed at cracking down on immigration violations and visa trading, but the UAE visa regulatory body has told tourist industry businesses not to worry.

From August 1st, all visitors to the UAE will need to have health insurance to be allowed into the country.

Brigadier Nasser Awadh Al Minhali, director general of Abu Dhabi Naturalisation and Residency told the official Emirates news agency that restricting the issuance of tourist visas for only licensed tourism operators would give them the “opportunity to grow” and receive all tourists who were coming to the country.

According to the government website, the UAE is “endowed with an extensive coastline, sandy beaches and varied landscape.”

Traditional sporting activities such as falconry, camel racing and horse racing are said to be popular with tourists.

Dubai is the largest city in the wealthy Gulf state, a connecting link between Europe and Asia.

Tourism officials in Mozambique hope to increase the amount of visitor accommodation in the country ahead of football’s 2010 World Cup in neighbouring South Africa.

According to national news provider Maputo, an estimated rise from 18,000 to 25,000 beds has been predicted as the developing nation attempts to cash in on the nearby staging of potentially the most lucrative sporting event ever to be staged in Africa.

National Director of Tourism Promotion Hiuana Abacar said the initial estimate of an increase to 20,000 beds had been raised due to many homeowners indicating plans to make domestic rooms available for rental.

Maputo claims that the Mozambican government, in partnership with the private sector, has been investing in the tourism industry ahead of an expected influx of up to 50,000 foreign travellers in 2010.

Resources are being pumped into the building of hotels, lodges, and leisure infrastructures.

Mozambique tourism describes the country as “the land of smiles”, saying visitors can participate in activities such as scuba diving, snorkelling, deep-sea fishing, fly fishing, sunset cruises, sailing and dolphin tours.

Wellington has come out on top in a New Zealand visitor study, according to the government national statistics provider.

The tourism industry in the capital city, located on the southern tip of the North Island, reported an eight per cent growth during April compared to a four per cent decline seen in the rest of the country.

Recently named the 12th most desirable place to live in the world, Wellington appears to be especially popular with visitors from abroad.

According to the study, it was the only Kiwi region to see an increase in foreign travellers.

The central waterfront, botanic gardens, hillside tramway and Mount Victoria are all popular tourist attractions in Wellington.

Meanwhile, the harbour city is also used as a gateway to the beautiful, more-sparsely populated South Island.

According to Tourism New Zealand, among the attractions here are the impressive Mount Cook, the mountains and lakes of Queenstown, the laid-back culture of Christchurch and the Milford Sound fjord.

Families are taking more luxury holidays to the Caribbean islands, according to the editor of Luxury Travel Magazine.

Alyson Cook says that while family holidays are “usually the last thing to go” in the UK holiday market, her magazine had discovered that the reverse was now true.

She said that research carried out at the beginning of the year within her magazine readership –  upmarket travel agents and premium tour operators - indicated the luxury travel market would not be unduly affected by the credit crunch.

Luxury travellers were said to be “cash rich and time poor”, with their family holiday time “sacrosanct”.

Ms Cook said the Caribbean resorts were particularly popular with families, saying the region is popular because of the child-friendly nature of venues such as Antigua, Barbados and Jamaica.

She added: “The tendency in this particular market, where we are talking about large spend holidays, is that the whole family goes together.

“Quite often grandparents are included and usually the nanny.”

Research conducted by the International Luxury Travel Market in 2007 suggested the luxury travel industry as a whole is booming, with major growth being witnessed in developing markets such as India, Russia and China.

A luxury hotel in Thailand is offering guests the chance to wake up to their favourite music by providing the latest iPod clock radio docking stations in its rooms. Guests on luxury holidays at the Chaophya Park Hotel will be offered use of the new contraption, which comes equipped with a remote control, at no extra cost. Located in Bangkok the 402-bedroom was recently the Thailand Tourism Environment Friendly Award. Competition is hotting up among luxury hotels in Thailand with the country’s first Park Plaza hotel opening in December 2007. But innovative offers such as the iPod docking station are likely to keep guests keen to take advantage of the hotel’s full length golf driving range and fitness centre flocking in. The Chaophya Park Hotel also boasts complimentary WiFi and internet access in all guest rooms, with five different styles of accommodation to meet its guests discerning tastes.

Hoteliers will soon be able to boast green environmental credentials with a new technology being developed by Australian researchers.

The EcoNova project at the University of Queensland has said it will target the tourism industry with its pilot model of a new waste treatment system. University of Queensland researcher Beth Rounsefell notes that the resulting three by-products are both “safe and recyclable”. Clean water, methane for clean green energy and a solid soil conditioning residue are all produced when waste is taken through the anaerobic conditioning system. “This is especially important to the tourism industry which is under increasing pressure to ensure its activities are sustainable,” Ms Rounsfell added. Environmentally friendly initiatives are becoming more prevalent in Australia’s tourism industry Most recently, green energy company Clean Energy is pursuing a project with the country’s 300 surf clubs in an attempt to get them operating on renewable energy alone.