Travel news

In a secluded park in the youthful 7th district of Austria’s capital, this quirkily cool hotel, with its reception on the top floor, has been cleverly converted from a 1970s student hostel. But to associate it with student digs does it a disservice, for step inside this nine-storey building and you’ll find not tatty posters and stained carpets but a paean to the circus. More >

Pope Benedict XVI called on the international community to tackle sex tourism and organ trafficking on Monday, slamming the abuse, torture and exploitation of minors in particular. More >

Last summer’s hotel bookings were up across the EU, while Romania was well ahead of the pack, even with a low ratio of foreigners among tourists. An extra 35 million  hotel nights were spent in the EU’s hotels and holiday accommodation, equaling a 4.8 percent increase on 2010′s summer season, according to the latest data from Eurostat, the EU’s statistics office. More >

France is the largest country in the European Union and covers from the North Sea down to the Mediterranean. It features high mountains — including Mont Blanc, which is Western Europe’s highest point — and the lowlands with rivers, farms and villages and towns. More >

The Venezuelan government rejected the European Union’s announcement today that it is adding Venezuela’s state-owned airline Conviasa to its list of carriers banned from its airspace. More >