AirAsia triumphs, THAI bombs

Emirates, the largest airline in the Middle East, was named the World’s Best Airline 2013 by Skytrax during the recent World Airline Awards 2013 held as part of the Paris Air Show.

Qatar and Singapore Airlines came second and third respectively while AirAsia picked up the gong for the World’s Best Low-Cost Airline, an award it’s received for five consecutive years. Thai Airways International didn’t even make it into the Top 10, marking its poorest showing in the last five years. The national airline was placed ninth in 2012 but plunged to 15th place in Skytrax’s latest survey. Billed as the Academy Awards of the airline industry, the non-profit Skytrax Awards are decided by airline customers.

Up close with rural Switzerland

Tourists can now enjoy “Hop on – hop off” tours through the Swiss countryside. City tours where passengers can get on and off where they want have until now been mainly an urban amenity for tourists. Now tourists can do the same in the countryside, with two communities, Moudon and Echallens, offering rural versions with flexible start and end points. A retro bus does the circuit stopping at 15 stations. Among the points of interest along the way are the Sherlock Holmes Museum at Lucens Castle, a mini-golf course in Cremin and the medieval roads of Moudon. Visit www.Echallens-Tourisme.ch and www.Moudon.ch. – DPA

Lens goes baroque

The Louvre in Lens is dedicating its first international exhibition to Peter Paul Rubens with the new outpost of the Paris Louvre showing 170 artworks of the baroque artist in the northern French city. Among the works are paintings and drawings as well as sculptures, according to tourism officials in Nord Pas de Calais. The artworks come from the Louvre in Paris and other museums. Paintings by Rubens’ contemporaries such as Anton van Dyck are also on display. Visit www.LouvreLens.fr.

Peeking at the neighbours

Privacy loses its meaning from July 14-16 in Kyoto, as residents of the Japanese city will allow visitors who knock on their doors inside to look around their homes. The universal invitation to neighbours and tourists is part of the Gion Matsuri festival that runs from July 1-29. The festival has ancient traditions, originating during an epidemic in 869 when people prayed to the deity of Gion to get rid of the pestilence. Another highlight of the festival is a parade of 32 decorated floats on July 17. Visit www.Pref.Kyoto.jp/visitkyoto/en/. – DPA

Inspirations from Islamic art

A new exhibition in Amsterdam will be presenting the influence that Islamic art had on the artist MC Escher. Starting on July 12, the Tropenmuseum will show how fascinated the Dutch artist was by geometrical patterns in the Alhambra in Granada. Besides works from Escher, including items on loan from the Victoria Albert Museum in London, there are also Islamic art masterpieces on display, according to the Dutch tourism board. Visit www.TropenMuseum.nl.

‘United’ we sleep

United Airlines now features 180-degree flat-bed seats and personal on demand entertainment in the premium cabins on all long-haul international flights from the airline’s eight North American hubs and between Seattle and Tokyo Narita. United is the only US carrier to exclusively provide flat-bed comfort to premium cabin travelers on such scheduled, long-haul flights from the continental United States. The airline also offers turn-down service for customers seated in United Global First.

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AirAsia triumphs, THAI bombs