Kitzbühel

The idyllic town of Kitzbühel in western Austria is a destination where modern lifestyle blends seamlessly with authentic alpine tradition. Throughout the year, Kitzbühel offers its visitors days that are filled with originality, natural brilliance and technical innovation, making it the ideal location for meetings that require fresh perspectives and creative thinking.

Those who choose Kitzbühel as their conference destination can look forward to top quality facilities, unique ideas, a distinctive ambience and a wide range of services and hotels. With its outstanding location inside the triangle of airports of Munich, Salzburg and Innsbruck, this sporting town in the heart of the Alps is far easier to access than one might think.

The combination of old and new in this stunning location is reflected across Kitzbühel’s hotels, restaurants and venues

Endless options
Offering a wide variety of conference centres, hotels and restaurants at a high standard and of excellent value for money, Kitzbühel is the ultimate destination for MICE planners and participants looking for something slightly different. Visitors have the opportunity to draw on the dynamic spirit of one of the Alps’ most celebrated sporting locations, guaranteeing an enriched meeting experience, as well as an exciting leisure itinerary for once the deals have been closed.

The combination of old and new in this peaceful and stunning location is reflected across Kitzbühel’s hotels, restaurants and venues. The region as a whole boasts over 9,000 hotel beds in an assortment of star ratings, ranging from rustic farmyard lodges to exquisite five-star resorts and conference centres. The area guarantees an ideal location to suit every event: for example, the modern K3 KitzKongress centre, which opened in 2010, offers state-of-the-art facilities in a beautiful, contemporary building. With a range of multi-purpose rooms, from the 615sq m Palladium conference hall to the 11 additional seminar rooms, K3’s success is based on its ideals of transparency and hospitality. For more intimate meetings and events, however, the region as a whole offers a total of 20 MICE venues.

Kitzbühel

Keeping it green
Kitzbühel’s convenient location means that it is perfectly situated for a variety of excursions, including to tourist attractions such as Swarovski Crystal Worlds. The town’s combination of beautiful landscapes, exciting attractions, traditional architecture and top sporting facilities makes for a truly inspiring setting, where visitors are able to find serenity and rest as easily as they might find exhilarating new experiences. Kitzbühel’s picturesque town centre is ideal for a leisurely stroll through historic streets, while the expansive range of hiking, running and bike trails weaving through the stunning Alps provide the perfect outlet for those looking to try something more challenging.

The alpine region has been recognised for its excellence as a business destination on numerous occasions. In 2015, two Kitzbühel MICE partners received the Austrian Ecolabel; the highest national award for recognising exemplary standards of sustainable tourism. K3 KitzKongress was one of the winners, being recognised as one of the Austrian leaders in green meetings and events. K3 has adopted a particularly sustainable and responsible approach in areas including regional value creation and social compatibility, as well as providing environmentally friendly travel connections for its guests. The second winner, the four-star sports and spa hotel, Bichlhof, was awarded the Austrian Ecolabel as a result of its dedication to providing sustainable accommodation.

Kitzbühel recognises that it is people who truly bring out the best in a destination: as such, the area’s impressive and dedicated workforce collaborate across dozens of hotels and venues to ensure that each and every guest’s experience of the area is smooth, effective and enjoyable. This collective pool of resources has helped Kitzbühel to earn its impressive reputation as one of Austria’s most exciting, unique and enjoyable destinations for business events.

ADNEC becomes leading event provider in the Middle East

Over recent years, Abu Dhabi has been continually climbing the ranks as a leading destination in the Middle East’s rapidly developing MICE sector. Moreover, the contribution of this vitally important sector to the economic growth of the region itself has increased manifold over the past few years. One of the key drivers behind this phenomenal growth is Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC), which was established by the government in 2005 with the objective of becoming the region’s leading venue provider for international exhibitions, conferences and events.

Under this mandate, ADNEC has leveraged the emirate’s immense economic potential – as well as its growing reputation as a thriving business hub – and transformed Abu Dhabi’s nascent MICE industry into one of the most promising economic sectors as envisioned by Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030.

ADNEC has leveraged the emirate’s immense economic potential and transformed its nascent MICE industry

Nothing but the best
The government’s continued support for the business tourism sector has helped ADNEC to build one of the largest and most modern convention facilities in the Middle East: the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre. The impressive venue comprises several integrated meeting areas that provide an overall event space of 133,000sq m, while its expansive facilities allow for indoor, outdoor and marine events simultaneously. Its exclusive marine facility, which is connected to the National Exhibition Centre by a pedestrian bridge, is one of a kind in the region, offering a vast channel that can accommodate huge yachts and military ships. Such unique facilities and innovative services have seen the centre named as the Best Congress and Convention Centre, Middle East in the 2015 Business Destinations Travel Awards.

Since its inception in 2007, the National Exhibition Centre has witnessed steady growth in the number of events, congresses and expositions hosted, reaching 327 events in 2014 and attracting a total of 1.6 million visitors. Across those 12 months, ADNEC’s overall impact on Abu Dhabi’s economy reached a total of AED 2.56bn. As the result of such impressive achievements, the company has been gradually expanding over the last 10 years: aside from the National Exhibition Centre, ADNEC also owns and operates a succession of international venues and key sites, including ExCeL London, Al Ain Convention Centre, Abu Dhabi’s Capital Gate skyscraper, and Aloft Abu Dhabi and London hotels.

Leading the region
To prepare ADNEC for such an era of expansion, the group embraced a new business strategy that focused primarily on hosting specialised conferences in a bid to attract more international rotating association meetings and congresses. ADNEC is also currently working on producing a more diverse portfolio of events, ranging from cultural and sporting exhibitions to social and leisure occasions. Such a move displays the company’s commitment to further increasing the share of business tourism in the overall economic development of Abu Dhabi and, as a result, firmly positioning the emirate as a leading MICE destination.

As a result of these ambitious growth plans, ADNEC has been at the forefront of leading global destinations vying for the hosting rights of several major international events. The company has celebrated successes in a number of these instances, having now brought many high-profile global events, annual exhibitions and regional congresses to Abu Dhabi. Future events include the World Road Congress 2019 and the World Energy Congress 2019.

ADNEC has also established a series of partnerships with other key government entities. These synergies – including those with Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority and its subsidiary Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau – have been formed primarily to support the emirate’s evolution as a world-class meeting destination. Together, these work closely with other stakeholders within the MICE sector in order to seize international opportunities and make joint bids for various congresses and association meetings. Through such ventures and successful international investments, ADNEC has won 74 global awards since its inception.

Jeju becomes a leading MICE destination

The island region of Jeju has a list of impressive titles against its name: as the only location in the world to be recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site, biosphere reserve and a Global Geopark, in addition to being one of the New7Wonders of Nature, the fascinating island off the coast of South Korea is certainly brimming with things to be proud of.

Beyond the outstanding natural beauty for which it has become famous worldwide, Jeju is also an international free destination: the fact that visitors from over 180 countries do not require a visa for trips under 30 days means that business travel to the region has skyrocketed in recent years. As such, the island has now been recognised by the Union of International Associations (UIA) as a top international destination for MICE events, as well as being voted the Best Destination for MICE, Asia in the Business Destinations Travel Awards 2015.

The island’s strong connection to the rest of the Asian continent has contributed to its draw as a business destination

From the mainland
The rapid growth of the island’s MICE sector has contributed to considerable economic progress and increased stability across the region. Boasting a modern airport with 27 regular international routes, Jeju is now easily accessible from Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo, Osaka and Seoul, among others. The island’s strong – and growing – connection to the rest of the Asian continent has contributed to its draw as a business destination, encouraging international visitors to come and sample Jeju’s fantastic sights in between meetings and conferences. With its combination of incredible scenery, world-class convention facilities, five-star accommodation and a burgeoning tourism industry, it is unsurprising that the island’s inbound numbers are continuing to rise.

The island’s main convention centre, the Jeju International Convention Centre (ICC Jeju), is a specialised, resort-style hub with a wide selection of facilities, spaces and event rooms. Having recently renovated its facilities to make them eco-friendly, ICC Jeju has procured an impressive and wide-ranging catalogue of clients by helping to produce truly world-class events. Just some of the high-profile events that have been hosted by ICC Jeju since its inauguration include Asia Development Bank’s annual meeting of the board of governors in 2004, the Pacific Asia Travel Association annual conference in 2004, the American Society of Travel Agents’ destination expo in 2007, United Cities and Local Governments’ world congress in 2007, the World Scout Conference in 2008, the ASEAN-KOREA Commemorative Summit in 2008, and the KOR-JAP-CHI Trilateral Summit in 2010.

Boosted profile
The speed with which the island grew into a dynamic destination for meetings and events was in part fuelled by the creation of the Jeju Convention and Visitors Bureau (JCVB) in 2005. However, the natural beauty of the island and the variety of attractions on offer are the real draw for business and leisure tourists alike, and with this in mind JCVB is able to tailor each of its MICE tours to the customer’s individual needs.

Recognising that customer satisfaction is more important to the MICE industry than it is to perhaps any other, JCVB works to promote the island’s most exciting and unique assets in order to keep its guests happy and its status as a top MICE destination in good standing. And, while Jeju’s visa-free status alone lures thousands of travellers every year, there are many other key features that the bureau is keen to bring to the world’s attention.

Boasting more than 30,000 hotel beds across the island, including those of 16 five-star hotels, Jeju guarantees an enjoyable and luxurious stay for each and every traveller. The island’s compactness means that a variety of locations are on offer – from beachfront resorts to spacious city centre apartments – all within easy reach of the region’s airport and conference and meeting facilities. Events of any size – from small, one-day conferences for local businesses to week-long international conventions – can be accommodated in Jeju, which boasts a wide range of venues and a selection of distinguished facilities.

For after office hours, however, the island offers once-in-a-lifetime experiences and activities for visiting delegates, ranging from visits to its UNESCO World Heritage sites, Seongsan Ilchulbong and Geomun Oreum, to enjoying marine sports on its stunning coastline. The island itself has long been recognised as one of the world’s foremost leisure destinations, but with JCVB’s focus on bringing MICE to the centre of the region’s tourism industry, Jeju is slowly growing into something much more impressive than a mere beach destination.

Welcoming visitors
Charged with setting Jeju apart from the rest of the world, JCVB works to preserve the island’s natural beauty while continually improving and developing its business facilities. With the chance to swim in the pristine turquoise ocean one moment and then attend a meeting in a resort on the slopes of Mount Halla the next, visitors to the island are able to fully appreciate the diversity of Jeju’s offerings; something that makes it truly unrivalled in its credentials as a MICE destination.

The wellness industry is also booming on the island, with Jeju’s own natural minerals, local produce and water utilised across the region’s health and wellness centres and spas. There are also plenty of golfing facilities across Jeju, allowing business travellers to enjoy a relaxing game with colleagues after meetings have concluded for the day.

2015 in particular was a significant year for JCVB. Marking the bureau’s 10th anniversary, last year acted as a celebration of what the organisation has achieved in terms of promoting Jeju to the world and transforming it into one of the world’s leading business and leisure destinations. Having developed a range of first-rate support programmes, one-stop information services and unique marketing activities, JCVB’s successes are in the dozens.

Throughout all of these projects, however, its professionalism and industry expertise have prevailed above all else, being the true cornerstone of every project. As a result of its passionate approach to event management, each and every visitor receives individual support and relevant information during their stay. JCVB now successfully hosts over 200 international and domestic events every year, including the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s World Conservation Congress in 2012. In 2013, JCVB was named as the seventh best convention city in Asia by the UIA, as well as the 19th best in the world.

Though several notable goals have already been achieved, the organisation is not resting on its laurels. JCVB continually works to improve its integrated support system, allowing it host and promote more international events with even greater efficiency. The bureau is also currently developing its unique Jeju MICE card: this card is designed specifically for business travellers visiting the island, making it easier for them to use public transport and offering discounts at certain shops, restaurants and tourist sites. Guaranteed to make travelling even more convenient for international businesspeople, the Jeju MICE card is expected to further bolster the island’s tourism industry.

Maiden Voyage empowers women to travel safely

“We need you to go to Hollywood”, urged my TV boss. Sadly, he wasn’t sending me off to star in the latest blockbuster – I was being sent to look at an IT system used by Paramount Studios.

As a busy IT executive, I’d travelled enough to know that, while a trip to Hollywood sounds like an adventure, the reality is often quite different: I find the ‘dinner for one’ scenario painfully boring, and it’s a personal travesty if I don’t get out to actually see the city that I’ve travelled to. Combine that with the added perils facing so many solo female diners nowadays – from generally unwanted attention to being candidly asked if we’re ‘open for business’ – and it’s no wonder that many female travellers opt to stay in their hotel with room service in order to catch up on emails instead.

Maiden Voyage’s global ambassadors share their tips on local business etiquette, dress codes and how to get around the city safely

Sparking an idea
That is exactly what I did on my Hollywood business trip – but it turned out to be the catalyst that created a global network to inform, liberate and empower women who are often required to travel for business. Encouraging them to get out of their hotels, have a richer cultural experience and expand their professional networks, this trip was the reason that Maiden Voyage was born.

Not long after Maiden Voyage launched, the company was featured on CNN. It subsequently boomed overnight, and now boasts thousands of members from over 70 countries. Those interested in membership are able to register online before we at Maiden Voyage call them directly to ensure that they are female. Members are then granted full online access, allowing them to register their future trips online and connect with other members as they travel. Maiden Voyage has also built a team of global ambassadors: enthusiastic members who are passionate about sharing their little black books of great things to do in their city and, perhaps more importantly, their tips on local business etiquette, dress codes and how to get around the city safely.

Many of our members have met up with our ambassadors at some point, whether for a lunch in Hong Kong or at a party in New York. Two of our members, originally from the same town in the UK, have even met up in Latin America after connecting through the site. It’s thrilling to be able to connect the dots around the world, giving all female travellers access to a friend in every city.

Women supporting women
Even with the greatest efforts, unfortunately, safety-related incidents do occur, with one in four women having had a negative travelling experience. In response, Maiden Voyage launched a thorough female business traveller safety course, which is designed to educate female travellers on how to stay safe while abroad. This course was tested by the British Transport Police and other security experts before being released to the general market.

As more and more women reach higher positions within their organisations (or indeed, start their own businesses) the number of female business travellers across the world has also increased. Now making up 50 percent of all corporate travellers, women are becoming more demanding when it comes to the services they expect hotels to provide: Maiden Voyage began receiving more and more requests for safe hotel recommendations, and so we spoke to our members to understand exactly what ‘female friendly’ meant to them.

This subsequently became the brand standard, and as a result we physically inspect hundreds of hotels. Maiden Voyage’s website now includes a ‘female-friendly hotels’ section, which all provide exemplary safety features (such as double-locking doors and discretion when announcing room numbers) as well as other key extras, including salon-quality amenities and toiletries.

Where are people buying property abroad?

The latest Quarterly Index figures from OverseasGuidesCompany.com showed that a record 16,821 UK-based overseas property buyers submitted enquiries throughout the summer of 2015 – the highest number received since the Quarterly Index began, and more than a 50 percent increase on enquiries received last summer.

The most popular destination by far this quarter was Spain, which attracted its highest ever share of enquiries (37 percent of the total

At OverseasGuidesCompany.com, we measure interest based on downloads of our individual country buying guides. As usual, Spain and France were the most popular destinations with British property buyers looking overseas, with around two thirds of all downloads made for these two countries. The busiest month for downloads this quarter was August, when almost 7,000 enquiries were received; this also makes August the busiest month of the whole year.

The most popular destination by far this quarter was Spain, which attracted its highest ever share of enquiries (37 percent of the total) – along with France, Portugal and Italy, this Mediterranean hotspot also recorded a solid rise in interest compared to both the previous quarter and the same quarter, when compared year-on-year.

Global economic events provide best environment for British buyers
There are numerous reasons why this has been a bumper summer for British buyers looking to purchase property in Europe – there can be little doubt that the euro’s ongoing weakness so far this year has been one of the biggest factors behind this. The strength of sterling against the single currency has increased the buying power of those Brits looking to purchase overseas, driving further interest from British buyers in key European property markets this summer – especially those who have enjoyed holidays in the region and discovered how far their money will go while over there.

In addition to the weakened euro, the record low European Central Bank (ECB) interest rates and improved access to mortgage have also contributed to this record interest – especially in countries such as Spain, France, Portugal and Italy where the property markets are finally stabilising and beginning to improve. The UK Government’s pension reform scheme will also have helped, as many people of pension age will have been able to free cash up from their pension pot to put towards their property purchase.

The most popular destinations with British buyers…

Spotlight on Spain

In terms of the actual figures per country, there were 5,377 downloads of the Spain Buying Guide from June to September 2015 – a 98 percent rise year-on-year and a 16 percent increase compared to the previous quarter. This is a reflection of Spain’s continued position as the number one destination for UK tourists, after 29.2 million tourists visited in the first half of 2015.

France still a focus
France received 4,165 enquiries, a 29 percent share overall – this represents a 62 percent increase year-on-year, and a 29 percent increase compared to the previous quarter. Recent reports suggest that property prices in France are still experiencing a downward trend, which provides plenty of opportunity for a bargain purchase.

Popular Portugal
Portugal remained a popular choice with British buyers, with 1,894 enquiries; this was 13 percent of all enquiries – an 83 percent increase year-on-year and a 26 percent increase on the previous quarter. Portugal’s Algarve continues to be one of the most popular buying areas in Europe, helped by the country’s favourable tax system for Non-Habitual Residents (NHR).

The weakened euro also helped contribute to an uplift in interest in other popular European countries, such as Italy and Ireland – both of which experienced a significant year-on-year rise in enquiries this summer, of 34 percent and 51 percent respectively. It will certainly be interesting to see how much the ongoing events in Europe continue to affect interest in these countries for the remainder of the year.

EasyJet celebrates its 20th birthday

When EasyJet arrived onto the scene twenty years ago, it revolutionised the airline industry. With its bright orange logo and novel approach, the world’s first budget carrier introduced low cost fares and a ‘no frills no spills’ type of travel. Through its incredibly low prices, EasyJet made it possible for people to travel more often, which inspired a hoard of other airlines to follow suit.

Founded by Stelios Haji-Ioannou in 1995, EasyJet started with a pair of Boeing 737-200s on lease, which flew just two routes from London Luton to Glasgow or Edinburgh. Two decades later, EasyJet is now Europe’s leading airline, operating over 600 different routes across more than 30 countries, with a fleet of 200 plus Airbus aircrafts.

EasyJet is also now exploring the use of drones to carry out inspections and 3D printing for replacing aircraft parts

Haji-Ioannou purposefully cut out numerous services in order to drastically reduce the cost of flights within Europe, including meals during flights and the distribution of physical tickets. The strategy worked, and enabled the entrepreneur to offer a price of just £29 for a one-way ticket from to Glasgow. Now in 2015, astonishingly, the price for that same fare has actually gone down to £27.49, despite inflation.

What’s more, EasyJet has gradually started offering more ‘frills’ over the years, thereby providing customers with an even greater value-added service. For example, the budget airline recently introduced new features to its mobile experience, such as live updates during flights, gate information and the ability to scan passports with a smartphone when booking.

EasyJet is also now exploring the use of drones to carry out inspections and 3D printing for replacing aircraft parts, both of which it believes can reduce delays and make the whole business more efficient.

It is a rare occurrence for a company to offer the same prices throughout two decades, while also upgrading its product and offerings, but EasyJet’s model has been so successful that it has thus become an exception to the norm. And in doing so, it has encouraged the whole industry to take a long look at its value proposition, to the benefit of travellers everywhere.

How do cultures and customs differ when living abroad?

The OverseasGuidesCompany.com team talks to expats in a wide variety of destinations overseas on a regular basis – and one of the biggest concerns they raise with us, after they have made the move, is how to navigate the culture and customs of their new country and settle in to their new home.

Taking an in depth look at some of the most popular countries with UK expats, France, Spain, Portugal and Italy, we discuss the most common cultural differences that need to be taken on board after arrival.

France:

The biggest difference you will find in France is that life is that little bit more formal.

Meeting and greeting
When you are introduced to a French person, you need to say “Good day, Sir/Madam” (“Bonjour Madame/Monsieur”) and shake their hand – briefly, but firmly). “Salut!” (“Hi” or “hello”) should only be used with good friends and young adults. When saying goodbye, it is a formal custom to shake hands again. In an office environment, everyone shakes hands with everybody else when they arrive at the office and then shake hands again when they depart.

Family first
French culture and customs go back so many hundreds of years; even in today’s modern world, there is a strong legacy of the family coming first. Families tend to stick together and generations mix easily. This is probably one of the main reasons why the British love France – not to mention of course the wonderful food, and many traditions and customs in France focus on this! If you are planning to move to France, or will simply be visiting throughout the year, it’s really worthwhile learning about all the different foods and recipes on offer in your chosen region of France, experimenting with local and national delicacies.

A rich cultural heritage
The more you find out about French traditions and culture, the more you will want to learn. France includes a long and varied history and countless legends and customs have been passed down from one generation to another. Each region of France is very unique in its customs, proudly boasting its own distinct version of French culture. Researching these different cultural traditions can be very rewarding.

Spain:

The climate of Spain, so very different from Northern Europe and the UK, has a significant influence on the lifestyle, culture and customs of those who live there.

Food, glorious food!
The most noticeable difference between Britain and Spain is mealtimes. Since the day in Spain starts later, mealtimes are also later – much later. Lunch is a variable feast, between 2pm and 4pm, and the evening meal will rarely be eaten before 9pm in Northern Spain and 11pm in the South. Spanish people have two breakfasts – a quick one before leaving home and another between 11am and 11.30am in a café near to their work. This tides them over until they go for lunch. Around 6pm is the merienda, or afternoon snack, particularly for children, who come home from school at 5pm and have a long time to wait until sup per.

Making time for a siesta
Closing for lunch is very important – all but the big international stores and Spanish supermarkets do this. Not for just an hour, but usually for three to four hours. At 1pm or 1.30pm, the clatter of closing shutters fills the streets as people go home or to a local restaurant for lunch. This is also a time to be used for the siesta and perhaps some housework, or preparing the evening meal. Despite the invention of air conditioning, the afternoon closure that was originally due to the heat after midday is now very much part of Spanish culture.

Portugal:

One of the most differential aspects of the culture in Portugal compared to the UK is the bureaucracy. While this is far from perfect in the UK, it is worlds apart from what you find in Portugal. Simple tasks that can be performed online in the UK can take days in Portugal, often with officials all interpreting the rules in their own unique way, so it is important to plan ahead for any official administrative work that you need to complete when moving to the country.

Rules and regulations
The attitude towards rules in Portugal is different to what you may be used to in the UK. While, subjectively, you may find there are more rules in the UK (try to suggest an outdoor non-smoking area in Portugal, and see how well that goes down!), there is certainly a more respectful view of authority here. The rules that are enforced by the police or governmental departments are taken extremely seriously.

Café culture
Another big difference between life in the UK and that of Portugal is the coffee culture. As in many countries, coffee is a national obsession – but in Portugal, you are unlikely to find a chain store like Starbucks or Costa on every corner. Instead, you will find that even in the local snack bars, coffee is cheap, plentiful, and expertly made.

Italy:

Italy is renowned for its culture, and indeed this is one of the reasons why it is popular with the British. Its climate, cuisine and cultural heritage are all part of this.

A congenial climate
While the climate of Italy is often thought to be sunny, there is actually a noticeable variation from north to south. In winter, the Italian Alps come alive with beautiful blue skies and a good amount of snow drawing in hordes of skiers – but on the Amalfi coast, the Italian Riviera, Sicily and Sardinia, frost and snow are a rarity. Summers promise, and deliver without fail, long hot days of endless sunshine.

Top-notch cuisine
The amazing food of Italy is well renowned. Its pasta, cheese and cold meats form one of the most popular cuisines in the world. Food is such an integral part of the cultural heritage and lifestyle of the country, with Italians cooking, eating and sharing food with passion. You will find that there are many different regional approaches, but this passion remains wherever you find yourself in Italy.

Impressive cultural heritage
Pompeii, Rome, Florence, Pisa and Venice are just some of the cultural and historical hotspots that Italy is renowned for. Half of the world’s entire art collection is said to be held within its borders, along with numerous small towns that are essentially their own exhibits of centuries of art and history – some of which dates back to medieval times.

Italy has the highest number of cultural UNESCO world heritage sites of any nation in the world. Having such a wealth of cultural heritage on your doorstep, wherever your base in Italy may be, is a true attraction for any history or cultural aficionado!

Words by Elaine Ferguson of OverseasGuidesCompany.com.

Why is everyone moving to Florida?

Tourism in Orlando continues to grow, with attractions like Walt Disney World and the Kennedy Space Centre continuously popular with people from all over the world. Nearly 60 million tourists visited the Floridian city in 2014 – a 28 percent increase in just five years. Orlando has become the most visited area in the United States, and is now one of the world’s most popular holiday destinations – and equally one of the most popular locations for a second home or investment property.

Bargain properties
One of the main reasons for this is because property prices remain fairly low, and there are numerous different property types available: from a traditional family home to a luxury villa in one of the more touristy gated communities.

British second-homeowners
Many of the British expats who own property in Florida do not live there permanently – typically they will spend the colder UK months there, along with perhaps a summer holiday or another stint during the year. For visa and tax reasons they will usually not spend more than 182 days in the USA, and they do not have the same level of flexibility to come and go as they would have had in say, Spain or France. In general, British people can visit the US for up to 90 days in one trip under the ESTA/Visa Waiver programme – however, many of those who own property in the US apply for a B1/B2 visa at the US Embassy in London; this enables them to enter and leave the USA as and when they wish throughout the year (under the 182-day rule).

Most popular areas with British buyers
Many of the British expats purchasing property in Florida look at the centre of the state, near the well-known theme parks and several golf communities; some of the most popular areas here include Haines City, Champions Gate, Davenport and Kissimmee, where you can find resale detached properties in desirable districts for £100,000 to £150,000.

Sarasota is another increasingly popular destination, thanks to its location on Florida’s Gulf Coast. It is just a couple of hours from Orlando (home to the international airport and theme parks), and is well-known for being a family-friendly city combining a lively cultural centre with a laidback beach scene. One of the most popular areas in Sarasota is Siesta Key, home to one of the USA’s most famous beaches, and there is a great selection of condos available here – and many British expats are also finding desirable second homes further inland in downtown Sarasota.

Words by Elaine Ferguson, OverseasGuidesCompany.com.

What do currency changes mean for Rugby World Cup fans?

Rugby isn’t the only thing that will be on the minds of both the teams and fans that have descended on the UK for this year’s world cup – the turmoil in the currency markets this year will certainly have an effect. Not only will the strength of the winning country’s currency have an impact on exactly how much they take home – but will also influence how much fans can spend when they are in the UK.

The rugby superpowers of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa will have been particularly altered by this, with sterling strengthening by over 13 percent against the Australian dollar, over 20 percent against the New Zealand dollar and 16 percent against the South African rand – in under ten months.

[F]ans travelling from the US and Japan are slightly better off travelling to the UK to support their country in the competition

The main factor behind this dramatic loss for these ‘commodity’ currencies is the economic slowdown in China, which has driven the price of raw materials such as iron ore and coal to 16-year lows. This has been exaggerated by the ongoing strength of sterling this year, as the British currency has benefitted from uncertainty in Europe, the election of a Conservative government in May’s UK General Election, as well as speculation that the Bank of England (BoE) will be one of the first major central banks to raise interest rates (after the US Federal Reserve).

Sterling may well be edging lower at the current time, but the continued growth for the currency this year (resulting in around eight-year highs against most of its common currency competitors) means that many of those visiting the UK will find things expensive – not only visitors from Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, but also from Georgia, Uruguay, Namibia, Tonga and Canada (sterling has strengthened against those currencies by 26 percent, 18 percent, 17 percent, 13 percent and 12 percent resepectively). The average cost of a pint of beer in the UK is £3.31 – using the exchange rates on September 25. This is over 70 South African rand, almost eight New Zealand dollars, and just over seven Australian dollars. The figures don’t account for the even higher prices they will need to pay if they are purchasing in London, where the average cost of a pint of beer rises to £3.79 (just under 80 South African rand). For comparison, the average cost of a pint of beer in South Africa is around 25 rand.

Despite this, fans travelling from the US and Japan are slightly better off travelling to the UK to support their country in the competition, as sterling has slipped by around two percent against both the US dollar and the Japanese yen this year; it is generally believed that this is down to the recent financial slowdown in China, as well as the belief that the US Federal Reserve would be raising interest rates imminently.

Words by SmartCurrencyExchange.com

Money saving tips when you’re abroad

OverseasGuidesCompany.com knows how important it is to ensure you have enough money to enjoy and maintain your new life abroad, making the most of the income that you have – whether this is from employment, investment or a pension.

Through years of experience speaking to those buying, moving to or living overseas, Elaine Ferguson, Head of the OverseasGuidesCompany.com’s resource centre, has been able to put together her top tips for saving money when living abroad.

  • Think about all the bills, taxes and anything else that you will have to pay on a regular basis in advance. In some countries you may find that these are due at different intervals – monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly for example. It can be a good idea, at least for the first twelve months, to keep a spreadsheet or note down another way exactly what payments are due and when; this will help to ensure swift payment. This is especially important for expenses such as taxes, where hefty penalty fees could be imposed for late payment.
  • If your property runs on a gas tank or similar, you may find it prudent to top up supplies during the summer months. You will usually find that there is a discount applied due to the lack of sales when the weather is warmer.
  • You may find that your electrical tariff is ‘cost banded’, meaning that electricity is cheaper at certain times – in the evening, for example, or on Sundays or Bank Holidays. By limiting, as much as you can, your use of electrical products to these times, you will be able to keep your bills as low as possible.
  • In Europe it can be common for towns and larger villages to host a weekly market of some kind – and these will usually offer better value for money on fresh produce than the supermarkets. In many places you will often find that as you get to know the stall and market holders, you may well even be able to achieve greater discounts.
  • If you plan to fund your lifestyle using funds from the UK, such as pension payments or rental income from a UK property, one of the major areas where you can save money is on the exchanging of your sterling for another currency. This can be a risky transaction, given the constantly fluctuating markets, so we recommend using a currency specialist, who can generally offer savings of up to four percent on exchange rates. If you are regularly sending money internationally, you can take advantage of a product called a ‘forward contract’, which allows you to fix the exchange rate on your transfers for up to one year – this takes away the risk of dealing with a volatile exchange rate and allows you to plan your budget with price certainty.

We’re living in the age of disruption

Bold predictions based on intuition are rarely a good idea. Margaret Thatcher, as Education Secretary in 1973, famously asserted that the UK would not have a woman prime minister in her lifetime. IBM’s president, Thomas J Watson, declared in 1943 that there was “a world market for perhaps five computers”. And, when movies with sound made their debut in 1927, Warner Brothers’ Harry Warner asked, “Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?”

At a time when four powerful forces are disrupting the global economy, upending most of our assumptions, such pronouncements on the future – shaped by intuitions based on the past – are even more likely to be wrong. Each of these four ‘great disruptions’ is transformational on its own, and all are amplifying the effects of the others, producing fundamental and unpredictable changes on a scale the world has never seen – and that will prove our intuitions wrong.

Not long ago, international links existed primarily among major trading hubs – now, the web is intricate and sprawling

Unexpected influence
The first great disruption is the shift of economic activity to emerging-market cities. As recently as 2000, 95 percent of the Fortune Global 500 was headquartered in developed economies. By 2025, nearly half of the Fortune Global 500 companies will be based in emerging economies, with China home to more of them than the US or Europe. Cities are at the vanguard of this shift: nearly half of global GDP growth from 2010 to 2025 will come from 440 emerging-market cities, many of which Western executives may not even know exist. They are places like Tianjin, a city southeast of Beijing with a GDP that is practically on par with Stockholm’s today – and could equal all of Sweden’s by 2025.

The second great disruption is the acceleration of technological change. While technology has always been transformative, its impact is now ubiquitous, with digital and mobile technologies being adopted at an unprecedented rate. It took more than 50 years after the telephone was invented for half of American homes to have one, but only 20 years for cellphones to spread from less than three percent of the world’s population to more than two thirds. Facebook had six million users in 2006 – today, it has 1.4 billion.

The mobile internet offers the promise of economic progress for billions of emerging-economy citizens at a speed that would otherwise be unimaginable, and it gives entrepreneurial upstarts a greater chance of competing with established firms. But technological change also carries risks, especially for workers who lose their jobs to automation or lack the skills to work in higher-tech fields.

Replacing bodies
The third disruption is demographic. For the first time in centuries, our population could plateau in most of the world. Indeed, population aging, which has been evident in the developed world for some time, is now spreading to China and soon will reach Latin America.

30 years ago, only a few countries – home to a small share of the global population – had fertility rates substantially below the replacement rate of 2.1 children per woman. In 2013, about 60 percent of the world’s population lived in countries with sub-replacement fertility rates. As the elderly increasingly outnumber working-age people, pressure is building on the labour force, and tax revenues (needed to service government debt and fund public services and pension systems) are diminishing.

The final disruption is the world’s increasing interconnectedness, with goods, capital, people, and information flowing ever more easily across borders. Not long ago, international links existed primarily among major trading hubs in Europe and North America – now, the web is intricate and sprawling. Capital flows among emerging economies have doubled in just 10 years, and more than one billion people crossed borders in 2009 – over five times the figure in 1980.

Moving with the times
The resulting challenges – a host of new and unexpected competitors, volatility stemming from faraway places, and the disappearance of local jobs – are already overwhelming workers and companies. Of course, this interconnectedness also offers important opportunities, but an implicit bias toward the familiar is impeding the ability of workers, firms, and even governments to take full advantage of them.

This is especially true for companies. According to McKinsey research, from 1990 to 2005, US companies almost always allocated resources on the basis of past, rather than future, opportunities. Firms that succumb to such inertia will probably sink, rather than swim, in the new global economy. Some firms, however, will adapt, taking advantage of unprecedented opportunities to remain agile. Instead of, say, building a new headquarters, renting a storefront, or purchasing a restaurant – traditional requirements that demanded large amounts of up-front capital – they can open a satellite sales office, create an online store or launch a food truck. Flexibility and responsiveness will enable such firms to thrive.

Cause to be optimistic
The pace and scale of the current economic transformation is undoubtedly daunting, but there is plenty of reason for optimism: inequality may be on the rise within countries, but it has dropped dramatically among them. Nearly one billion people were lifted out of extreme poverty from 1990 to 2010; another three billion will join the global middle class in the next two decades.

In 1930, at the height of the Great Depression, John Maynard Keynes declared that the standard of living in ‘progressive economies’ would increase four to eight times over the subsequent 100 years. His prediction, which was regarded as hopelessly Pollyanna-ish at the time, has turned out to be correct, with the improvement likely to be at the top of his projected range.

Keynes, unlike many of his contemporaries, recognised the forces at work in the economy, adjusted his thinking, and, crucially, was not afraid to be optimistic. We must do the same.

Richard Dobbs, James Manyika and Jonathan Woetzel are Directors of the McKinsey Global Institute

© Project Syndicate, 2015

The Sino-Russian marriage

The Chinese are the most historically minded of peoples. In his conquest of power, Mao Zedong used military tactics derived from Sun Tzu, who lived around 500 BC: Confucianism, dating from around the same time, remains at the heart of China’s social thinking, despite Mao’s ruthless attempts to suppress it.

So when President Xi Jinping launched his New Silk Road initiative in 2013, no one should have been surprised by the historical reference. “More than two millennia ago”, explains China’s National Development and Reform Commission, “the diligent and courageous people of Eurasia explored and opened up several routes of trade and cultural exchanges that linked the major civilisations of Asia, Europe, and Africa, collectively called the Silk Road by later generations.” In China, old history is often called to aid new doctrine. The new doctrine is ‘multipolarity’ – the idea that the world is (or should be) made up of several distinctive poles of attraction. The contrast is with a ‘unipolar’ (that is, an American- or Western-dominated) world.

In China, old history is often called to aid
new doctrine

Multipolarity is a political idea, but it is about more than power relations. It rejects the notion that there is a single civilisational ideal to which all countries should conform. Different world regions have different histories, which have given their peoples different ideas about how to live, govern themselves and earn a living. These histories are all worthy of respect: there is no ‘right’ road to the future.

Teaming up
Eurasia is an idea whose time, it is said, has come around again. Recent historical research has rescued the old Silk Road from historical oblivion. The late American sociologist Janet Abu-Lughod identified eight overlapping ‘circuits of trade’ between northwest Europe and China that, under the aegis of a Pax Mongolica, flourished between the 13th and 14th centuries. According to Abu-Lughod, Western imperialism superimposed itself on these older circuits, without obliterating them. Islam continued to spread across geographic and political boundaries. Chinese and Indian migrations did not stop.

Now a unique conjuncture of economic and political developments has created an opportunity for Eurasia to emerge from its historical slumbers. In recent years, Western self-assurance was humbled by the financial crisis of 2008-2009 and political catastrophes in the Middle East. At the same time, the interests of the two potential builders of Eurasia, China and Russia, seem – at least superficially – to have converged.

China’s motive for reviving Pax Mongolica is clear: its growth model, based largely on exporting cheap manufactured goods to developed countries, is running out of steam. Secular stagnation threatens the West, accompanied by rising protectionism sentiment. And, although Chinese leaders know that they must rebalance the economy from investment and exports to consumption, doing so risks causing serious domestic political problems for the ruling Communist party. Reorienting investments and exports toward Eurasia offers an alternative.

As China’s labour costs rise, production is being relocated from the coastal regions to the western provinces. The natural outlet for this production is along the New Silk Road. The development of the road (actually several ‘belts’, including a southern maritime route) will require huge investments in transport and urban infrastructure. As in the 19th century, reduction in transport costs will open up new markets for trade. Russia, too, has an economic motive for developing Eurasia: it has failed to modernise and diversify its economy. As a result, it remains predominantly an exporter of petroleum products and an importer of manufactured goods.

China offers a secure and expanding market for its energy exports. The big transport and construction projects needed to realise Eurasia’s economic potential may help Russia recover the industrial and engineering might it lost with communism’s fall.

Cutting out the West
This year Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan have joined together in a Eurasian Economic Union (EEU); a customs union with a defence component. The EEU is seen by its advocates as a step toward re-establishing the old Soviet frontiers in the form of a voluntary economic and political union, modelled on the EU – a project to take the sting out of the West’s ‘victory’ in the Cold War.

Official Russian opinion looks forward to “the interpenetration and integration of the EEU and the Silk Road Economic Belt” into a “Greater Eurasia”, which will afford a “steady developing, safe common neighbourhood of Russia and China”. On May 8, Putin and Xi signed an agreement in Moscow that envisages the establishment of coordinating political institutions, investment funds, development banks, currency regimes and financial systems – all to serve a vast, free-trade area linking China with Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

How realistic is this dream? Russia and China both feel encircled by the US and its allies. China’s anti-hegemonic aim, expressed in almost inscrutable prose, is to secure “tolerance among civilizations” and respect for the “modes of development chosen by different countries”.

Putin, meanwhile, has ratcheted up his much more explicit anti-American rhetoric since the Ukraine crisis, which he sees as a prime example of Western interference in Russia’s domestic affairs. Boosting trade flows between Russia and China, and strengthening political and security coordination, will reduce their vulnerability to outside interference and signal the emergence of a new centre of world power.

It may be considered a singular success for Western statesmanship to have brought two old rivals for power and influence in Central Asia to the point of jointly seeking to exclude the West from the region’s future development. The US, especially, missed opportunities to integrate both countries into a single world system, by rebuffing reforms of the International Monetary Fund that would have strengthened China’s decision-making influence, and by blocking Russia’s overtures for NATO membership. This led both countries to seek an alternative future in each other’s company.

Whether their marriage of convenience will lead to an enduring union – or, as George Soros predicts, a threat to world peace – remains to be seen. There is an obvious sphere-of-influence issue in Kazakhstan, and the Chinese have been squeezing the Russians for all they can get in bilateral deals. For the time being though, squabbles over the New Silk Road seem less painful to the two powers than enduring lectures from the West.

Robert Skidelsky is Professor Emeritus of Political Economy at Warwick University

© Project Syndicate, 2015