July / August 2008

Aviation Focus: Oil prices fuel industry crisis, Frankfurt takes on Heathrow, and behind the scenes at Boeing. Plus the ten best airport links, and destination pieces on Atlanta, Shanghai, Dubai and Amsterdam

In this issue...

Tried & Tested

Hotel check: Swissotel Grand Shanghai

Shanghai, China — full story »

Flight check: Shanghai-Zurich-London Heathrow

Swiss, business class — full story »

Flight check: London-Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia Airlines, business class — full story »

Flight check: Kuala Lumpur-London

Malaysia Airlines, economy — full story »

Hotel check: Westin Seattle

Seattle, USA — full story »

Special Reports

Focus: Oil prices

How the soaring cost of oil is changing the way we fly — full story »

Onwards and upwards

It has more routes than Schiphol, better connections than CDG and, unlike Heathrow, it actually works… Welcome to Frankfurt, says Lucy Fitzgeorge-Parker — full story »

Screen saver

Virtual meetings needn’t break the bank. Tom Otley reviews the new world of web-conferencing and asks if this could be the answer to increasing travel costs — full story »

Beating the clock

Airports quote minimum connection times to convince you to use them as hubs, but are they really viable, asks Alex McWhirter — full story »

Ten best airport links

A quick journey into the city centre can make all the difference to your energy levels as well as your itinerary. Gary Noakes provides a guide to stress-free arrivals — full story »

Building Boeing

Ever wondered how your plane was put together, or what size factory you need to build a jumbo jet? Mark Caswell takes a trip to Seattle to find out — full story »

Destinations

Learning the ropes

While the rest of Dubai is busy reclaiming land from the sea, Felicity Cousins finds a wonderful world out on the water — full story »

Going Dutch

From stock exchange to cinema, Amsterdam offers an enticing range of unusual venues for meetings and events – and it’s only 50 minutes by air from London. Jenny Southan reports — full story »

Atlanta rising

Severe weather conditions and a shaky economy have left Atlanta feeling battered, but Catherine Chetwynd finds the hotel market is riding it out — full story »

The changing face of Shanghai

Fast-paced and commercially focused, Shanghai has paved the way for modern China. Felicity Cousins follows the city’s plans as it prepares to host its biggest event yet — full story »

Lifestyle

Road hazard

Business travellers who use their own cars could be putting themselves and their companies at risk. Sara Turner explains why it’s safer to rent — full story »

Pump up the volume

Want to fill your hotel room with your favourite tunes? Mark Prigg gives a hearing to the new generation of portable speaker systems — full story »

Hot rocks

Making glamorous jewellery requires nerves of steel and years of experience. Sara Turner meets the man who turns dreams into glittering reality — full story »