Departure gate

China Daily | Updated: 2011-07-03 08:29

Your passport to the latest destinations and airline promotions

Where to go in summer?

When summer rolls into town, some cities come alive, shedding their winter coats and emerging as sleek, gorgeous summer models filled with charms and comforts. Which is the best? In a Lonely Planet survey, Barcelona and Sydney top the list, with Montreal, London and Chicago coming next. But Lonely Planet's Travel Editor Robert Reid has his own take. He says voters simply forget the real winner: Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland.

Cranberries to rock it in Estonia

Estonia's famous Summer Festival (formerly Ollesummer festival) combines a music and beer festival July 6-9 in Tallinn at the Song Festival Grounds. The Cranberries and Killer Queen are the headline acts, and eight stages will feature both international and local bands for expected crowds totaling over 75,000 people over the four-day event. A day ticket is 140 kroons ($13), and a pass for the entire festival is 350 kroons, with free admission for kids under age 6. There is no camping on the festival grounds, which are located at the seaside about a 10-minute walk from the city center. Tallinn has been designated one of Europe's "culture capitals" for 2011, so the capital city is primed to show visitors what makes city and country special with various exhibitions and entertainment all year.

Queensland's China Project

Tourism Queensland launched a three-year "China Project" to boost its China market. The project aims to attract more high-spending Chinese visitors and develop new airline and travel trade partnership. Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said that Queensland would train more English-speaking guides and Chinese cuisine chefs in order to wow Chinese visitors. China is already Queensland's fourth largest and fastest growing international market and 1 million Chinese tourists are expected to visit the Australian state in 2020.

Slovakia spa treats

Geothermal water and sulphuric mud have been renowned for centuries at the spa town of Piestany in the foothills of Slovakia's Povazsky Inovec Mountains. The therapeutic effects of the local mud wraps on rheumatic disorders and some neurological disorders have been known in Europe since the Napoleonic Wars (1822). Piestany is perhaps the most successful of several popular spas in the region, with more than 2,400 beds of economy, standard, superior and suite categories. Several hotels in art nouveau style were built at the beginning of the 20th-century and new spa buildings were constructed from the 1960s to the 1980s.

China Daily - Agencies