Six out of 10 foreign holidays protected, but flat fee criticised as unfair to those on short breaks

Damon Albarn, Mike Leigh and Victoria Wood. Not the first names that spring to mind when you think of sport but they're all in the Olympics. At least, they're in the art world's answer to them, known as the London 2012 Festival, or the Cultural Olympiad, depending on which bit of the Kafka-esque 140-page brochure you get lost in.

Aviation officials have warned of a surge in the number of laser attacks on planes after nearly 2,000 such incidents were reported in the UK last year.

A comparatively trouble-free year led to passenger numbers increasing at UK airports in 2011, it was announced today.

Q&A: Travel unravelled

Scotland Yard ready to use radio controlled 'eyes in the sky' to boost surveillance

A father and his stepson were lucky to escape after their hot-air balloon smashed into houses in Bristol.

The man who pays his way

Can you guarantee your holiday? Simon Calder lays down the laws of probability – and protection

Thousands of sunseekers were trying to salvage something from the wreck of their summer holiday today after the collapse of tour operator Holidays 4U.

'The Independent Traveller' answers your questions

A collapse so early indicates how tough the Mediterranean travel trade is finding summer

A tour operator with 12,000 UK holidaymakers currently abroad has gone into administration, it was announced today.

The number of civil servants and quango chiefs on salaries over £150,000 has been cut by more than 50 over the past year, at an annual saving to the taxpayer of around £10 million, it was revealed today.