When you get an email under the subject “In 5 to 10 years, forget southern Europe in summer,” you just have to read it.

Indeed, James Thornton makes some interesting—and timely—points in the message he sent me. “In 5 to 10 years, I think it will prove challenging to travel around southern Europe during July and August,” the Melbourne-based CEO of Intrepid Travel said. “Most people just won’t want to, it will be far too hot.”

Against the backdrop of heatwaves and fires in the Mediterranean countries, particularly in Athens and Rome, many tour operators are changing their itineraries, and travelers are planning more vacations in Read the rest of this entry »

The UK Met Office, the national meteorological service for the United Kingdom, yesterday issued the first “Red Extreme heat wave alert” ever issued in the UK. The Met Office was forecasting a temperature of 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) next week, with temperatures likely in the high 30’s in many areas.

See updates on Twitter:

⚠️⚠️🔴 Red Extreme heat warning issued 🔴⚠️⚠️

Parts of England on Monday and Tuesday

Latest info 👉 https://t.co/QwDLMg9c70

Stay #WeatherAware ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/YHaYvaGh95

— Met Office (@metoffice) July 15, 2022

The Red Extreme heat warning covered July 18th and 19th for central, northern, eastern, and southeastern England. An Amber Extreme warning was already in place for much of England and Wales for the 17th – 19th.

Met Office Chief Meteorologist Paul Gundersen, said “Exceptional, perhaps record-breaking temperatures are likely early next week, quite widely across the red warning area on Monday, and focussed a little more east and north on Tuesday. Currently there is a 50% chance we could see temperatures top 40°C and 80% we will see a new maximum temperature reached. Nights are also likely to be exceptionally warm, especially in urban areas. This is likely to lead to widespread impacts on people and infrastructure. Therefore, it is important people plan for the heat and consider changing their routines. This level of heat can have adverse health effects.”

The previous record high in the UK was 38.7 degrees Celsius at the Cambridge Botanic Garden on 25 July in 2019. Temperatures were predicted to begin to fall to a more normal range toward the middle of next week.

The Transport for London office advised residents and visitors to only travel if essential on Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 July, due to very high temperatures

Andy Lord, Chief Operating Officer, TfL said: “Due to the exceptionally hot weather that is expected next week, customers should only use London’s transport network for essential journeys. If customers do need to travel, they should check before they travel as we are expecting there to be some impact to Tube and rail services as a result of temporary speed restrictions we will need to introduce to keep everyone safe. It is also vital that customers always carry water at all times with them when traveling.”

The travel industry has long been a leader in environmental protection, because it’s an industry that has a major stake in preserving the environment. As the environment is degraded, the tourism product is destroyed. Every year that terrible disaster called climate change gets more in your face.

The acceleration of extreme weather events in recent years has made believers out of many who previously stood on the sidelines. Climate change is real, and very serious. It’s not an exaggeration to talk of it as an “existential crisis” for life on earth, at least for the kinds of life human beings care for.

So, what are we supposed to do? Read the rest of this entry »