Gold Rush era mining town that hosts murky elite retreat transforms into stunning mountain getaway
And those who live there year-round boast about the mild summers and lack of tourists.
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Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Delta flight endured over six hours on Georgia tarmac
Passengers aboard a cross-country Delta flight endured over six grueling hours trapped on a Georgia tarmac with no functioning toilets onboard. A flight bound for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was suddenly diverted to Augusta Regional Airport on Friday due to the heavy rain and severe thunderstorms that swept across the state the day before, WSB-TV 2 News reported . But instead of their journey ending upon landing, travelers found themselves stranded on the runway for hours, unable to leave. 'A disheveled mess to say the least,' Pat McCormack , a passenger on the flight, told the outlet. 'There was no water on the plane,' he added. 'The toilets weren't working.' After nearly seven hours sitting motionless on the ground, passengers were finally allowed to disembark. However, with no plan in place, they were unprepared for the unexpected landing at Augusta - and only one person was available to answer their questions about what to do next. To request reimbursement, travelers must complete a form using the information the airline emailed to them. But even after submitting the form, McCormack said he received only a $200 SkyMiles credit - a settlement he considers inadequate for the chaotic ordeal. Delta has made headlines in recent months for a series of unusual travel mishaps - including a recent incident where an employee filmed a sexual video of himself on a child's Peppa Pig iPad he found left on a plane in New York City. The unidentified man was seen [expletive] in a video that was uploaded to the iCloud account attached to one of Brooke and Tony Brewer's children's iPads, a complaint viewed by Daily Mail revealed. The man was seen fondling his [expletive] while wearing a lanyard that contained a red Delta ribbon and making facial expressions at the camera, screenshots of the video in the complaint showed. He also allegedly attempted to access the iPad's iTunes account and reportedly hacked into the family's Amazon account, creating a profile named '[expletive].' On July 30, passengers on a Delta flight from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam feared for their lives as the plane suddenly dropped more than 1,500 feet before making an emergency landing . At least 25 people were injured as Delta flight 56 was diverted to Minneapolis/St. Paul International airport just two hours into its eight-hour journey. Delta confirmed in a statement that severe turbulence rocked the aircraft, with witnesses describing how its impact threw people into the air as beverage carts crashed around inside the cabin. Data from flight tracking site FlightAware showed that the plane plummeted over 1,600 feet in an 85 second span, with passengers saying that there 'was a moment where we thought we were going down.' The flight then continued for over an hour after the terrifying drop before landing safely. Last month, Delta sparked an internet uproar after allegedly cancelling a flight from Florida due to 'ice on the runway' as temperatures neared 100 degrees Fahrenheit outside. The bizarre situation emerged when a woman headed from Orlando International Airport (MCO) to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) was alerted her flight had been pushed back an entire day. She then reached out to the airline to ask about getting a reimbursement for her hotel room that night. Her request was denied because the cancelation was 'weather related,' according to a Reddit post shared by the flier's cousin after the fact. A Delta agent told the customer the flight was called off 'due to a deicing situation, which means the runway was too slippery' for takeoff, as shown in a message exchange. This 'deicing situation' was pertaining to the runway in Orlando - where the heat was scorching. In response to the claim, the customer said: 'It is 95 degrees in Orlando and 84 degrees in New York City.' According to AirAdvisor , airlines in the US do not have to financially help their passengers when a flight gets cancelled because of the weather. They are only required to either rebook the flight or provide a full ticket refund. Delta has since emailed affected passengers with details on compensation and reimbursement.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
The truth about why tourists are leaving Las Vegas
While most of us Vegas regulars have long assumed that Sin City is immortal, viral videos on social media are apparently telling a different story. Over on YouTube, there are dozens of clips of seemingly empty scenes on the Strip, as influencers gawp into the camera and proclaim that the party is truly over. Can it really be that Vegas is emptying out, and falling from favour? The official statistics suggest that, at the very least, there is a downward trend at play. Numbers from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (the guys who coined the 'What happens in Vegas' slogan) show tourism is down 6.5 per cent since last year, with a marked slump since April. As you might expect, gambling revenues have dwindled too, with a 2.9 per cent year-on-year drop across the sector – enough to wipe some $600 million from casino revenues this year. If you concentrate purely on the Strip casinos that depend almost exclusively on out-of-towners, the drop is even bigger at 3.9 per cent. Some claim it's down to the general squeeze of disposable income, with surveys showing a drop in overall consumer confidence across the States. Naturally, anti-Trump types have been quick to jump on any evidence that the decline could be partly the fault of the White House – and when it comes to one particular measure they may well have a point. According to LVCVA figures, Canadians make up around 3 per cent of Vegas visitors, with 1.4 million making the trip last year. Yet one year later, the data shows that more Canadians are thinking twice about crossing the border, perhaps due to the President's fiery rhetoric towards his northern neighbour. Recent figures from Vegas's Harry Reid Airport show that arrivals on Air Canada jets are down 5 per cent year-on-year, while passenger numbers for the low-cost Canadian carrier Flair have plummeted 55 per cent. Not the sort of thing you want to see in an already tight economy. Where does it all leave Vegas? The overall decline is real, but it isn't as bad as some headlines suggest, says casino expert John Mehaffey, who runs the Vegas Advantage website. 'The slowdown has been more noticeable at the lower end of the market, but luxury resorts appear broadly level with last year,' he says. 'In any event, Vegas is always a bit slower in the summer.' As for those viral videos showing the supposed death of Vegas, he suspects some of the creators have been disingenuous in their tactics. 'I saw one picture of empty side walks in front of Caesars Palace, but you could see from the position of the sun that the photo was taken in the early part of the morning,' he says. @chasasworld ♬ original sound - chasasworld On the other hand, plenty of social media users are convinced they've found the real reason that fewer people are visiting Las Vegas – rip-off prices. In June, a humble bottle of water briefly became a social media sensation, when one stunned traveller revealed that it had been priced at a shocking $26 in the mini-bar at the iconic Bellagio hotel. The story was picked up across the American media. On the popular discussion website Reddit, meanwhile, forums about Las Vegas have descended into a strange game of Top Trumps, with users competing to see who can find the most excessive examples of Vegas pricing during their visit. 'I paid $14 for a bottle of Sprite and $32 for chicken tenders,' posted one user, sounding strangely proud about the whole experience. Of course, steep prices are nothing new in Sin City. But while the world's entertainment capital has never been cheap, the data shows that prices have jumped disproportionately since the pandemic, with a 50 per cent rise in the average hotel room price since 2019. Fees and charges have also spiked, as casinos seek to make up for lost revenues during the shutdown. As Vegas regulars will know, it isn't hard to avoid the worst of the pricing – provided you do your homework in advance. As a rule of thumb, I always advise anyone staying on the Strip to do as much as their discretionary spending (things like refreshments and snacks) outside of the casino resort, given that most are notorious for high prices. Another option is to get off the Strip altogether and opt for a downtown casino. Fremont Street might lack some of the extravagance of the Bellagio, but it's certainly no less vibrant. Not only are the prices much cheaper (and the odds marginally more generous), but it's a much shorter walk to get to independent restaurants and bars that cost a fraction of those on the Strip. Some might say that penny-pinching goes against the Vegas spirit. But my attitude has always been the less money you spend unnecessarily – for example, on a $10 coke from a casino concession store – the more you have to spend on the genuinely exciting stuff, whether that's playing the tables or seeing one of the shows. Will the falling visitor numbers force Vegas to change tack on its premium prices? There are already signs that some casinos are doing just that, says John Mehaffey. This summer, the Resorts World hotel and casino waived some of its charges (including the hated resort fee) in a bid to attract more visitors. As for what the future holds beyond that, Sin City will have plenty on its plate dealing with everything from Gen Z's famous aversion to alcohol to the liberalisation of sports betting across much of the States. Expect the push towards big sporting events like the Super Bowl and Formula 1 to continue at full speed, given they don't rely on gamblers or drinkers to make money. All in all, it seems the decline of Vegas has been exaggerated. This glorious city has seen off a slump many times before, and you can bet your bottom dollar it will do the same again.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Tourists warned over increasingly common passport mistake
By For some tourists, getting their passport stamped at iconic or dreamy destinations is like a badge of honor. Many use them as a way of keeping track of all the different places they've visited across the globe, almost like a souvenir. However, travelers have been warned to avoid collecting 'novelty' stamps in their official passports. At some popular destinations such as Machu Picchu, in Peru, tourists may be offered unofficial stamps as a memento of their visit. Other places include Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, in Wales and Checkpoint Charlie, Berlin . But what my appear to be a harmless addition to your passport could actually land you in trouble with border control, as some countries see these stamps as tampering or even a potential security concern. There have been instances where tourists have had to replace their passport because a foreign border official considers it damaged or altered. Jamie Fraser, an American summer camp director at Wildpacks, explained how the popular stamps have become problematic for some travelers. He said: 'Souvenir stamps have become a bit of a badge of honor for travelers — they look cool, they feel like part of the adventure. 'But the second you let someone stamp your passport who isn't a border official, you're not adding a memory — you're risking the whole document being declared invalid.' He added: 'If your passport includes anything not placed there by an official, you're at the mercy of each border's interpretation. For something that takes up just one square inch, it can cause a world of trouble.' The UK Government considers unofficial stamps, markings or writing as passport damage, according to Wildpacks. Torn or missing pages are also counted, as well as faded or unreadable information. Ink stains or water damage on passports is seen as damage, and loose or separated covers. It's recommended that travelers ask for the souvenir stamps on a piece of paper or postcard, instead of their passport. Tourists are also urged against marking passports themselves, as even small doodles or messages could case issues. A page-by-page check is also recommended before flying, to ensure everything is in order and there are no unfamiliar marks or stamps. Passengers have also been urged to replace their travel document early if concerned. It comes after we revealed there's a dreamy Caribbean island giving out passports if you buy a home there .
