The Wrap’s world tour brings home some of the best travel stories on the Web this week.
Egypt’s women-only beach
The Age in Melbourne has an interesting story about a beach in Egypt which is dedicated for the exclusive use of Islamic women.
"La Femme", French for "The Woman", in the posh resort of Marina is where women can lounge on sun beds, tan, join in a daily belly-dance contest or breastfeed their babies shielded by barriers of palm idea to have a beach reserved for women only.
Most of the women at the beach are can afford to dish out US$14 dollars on weekdays and US$16 on weekends for the privilege of entering the gated beach club to preserve their modesty.
And to ensure the women's "sanctity", guards at the entrance to the club search all the beach bags to keep out any cameras that could be used to take pictures of bikini-clad bathers that could end up on the Internet.
Burqa to bikini at Egypt's women-only beach
Meet Ivan the Terrible – and his flashy mates
Move over loud Americans and towel-brandishing Germans - now there’s a new tourist annoying British holidaymakers, says Max Davidson in the UK’s Daily Telegraph.
And wouldn’t you know it – it’s the newly-rich Russians who are upsetting the stoic Brits this time.
Every generation of British holidaymakers has its bête noire, its least favourite fellow tourist. And now it’s Ivan from Moscow, the hotel guest from hell, says the Telegraph.
The Brits, it seems are not taking kindly to seeing “that guy with a gold bracelet propping up the bar, with a blonde on each arm." That’s Ivan.
“See the guy at the corner table, puffing clouds of smoke while snapping instructions into his mobile phone? That’s Ivan’s mate.”
“Partly, of course, we are envious,” says the man from the Telegraph.
“Some of them do make an easy target,” says travel writer Claire Wrathall, who spent time in Russia as a student.
“I am thinking of the ones who turn up in the bar wearing silver trainers or an absurd amount of bling. But if you take the trouble to get to know them, particularly the ones travelling on their own rather than in a tour group, they are remarkably sophisticated, the reverse of narrow-minded.”
From Russia with riches – and rudeness
I’ll take the Bvgalri, thanks
The etiquette of taking hotel toiletries is taken up by a blog on USA Today.
Should we snaffle the shampoo and conditioner, along with the fancy soap or leave it for the next guest.
Or should we feel good by collecting up all those unused toiletries from our travels and take them to a homeless shelter, knowing that the hotels have budgeted for their use anyway.
Some interesting comments from readers – most seem to think it’s okay to stash the unused items in your toilet bag when you leave.
The etiquette of taking hotel toiletries
Finding the flirtiest of French flirts
The Times in London has nominated the world’s 10 sexiest hotels.
You may have your own favourite, but here’s a sample of what The Times believes makes one New York hotel room sexy.
“It’s impossible to walk into these bedrooms, with their flagrant display of extravagance and generosity, and not be filled with a sense of fun. They’re like a little devil on your shoulder, persuasively listing arguments why you need to loosen your corsets and behave very badly indeed.
“There are the gorgeous 7ft hand-carved beds, with curves as coquettish as the flirtiest of French flirts, piled high with the plumpest pillows and dreamiest, flounce-inducing linens, with antique chandeliers overhead and vast dinosaur-egg stone baths perched provocatively at their bases.”
Check out The Times article to discover where you will find this love nest – and nine others like it.
The world's 10 sexiest hotel rooms?
