DEPARTURE LOUNGE //WINTER 2019
G o
News on the
DON’T LINGER TOO LONG AT
THE TAJ MAHAL | India’s most iconic
CASH IN ON INSTANT REWARDS
WITH MANGO’S NEW LOYALTY
PROGRAMME | A new Mango rewards
programme allows passengers to access
12 // MAKE MEMORIES FOR LIFE
| Travellers to Dubai can now apply for
a free 30-day liquor license, which will
allow non-Muslims over the age of 21
to buy alcohol at outlets of Mercantile
and Marketing International (MMI),
the sales and marketing subsidiary of
Emirates Group.
Prior to this, visitors to Dubai could
only buy and drink alcohol in licensed
venues such as hotels, restaurants
and clubs. Visit MMI’s website
for more details on how to apply
(www.mmidubai.com) or ask your
Sure Travel agent to assist when
booking your next trip.
WHERE IN THE WORLD?
rewards within 24 hours of paying for
a ticket.
The programme, called GoRewards,
offers instant rewards as opposed to
having to accrue these over months
or even years. According to Mango,
customers are entitled to three rewards
up to the value of R2,000 for every flight
booked. If they book a return flight, they
get double rewards. Rewards remain valid
for up to a month after the flight date
and are redeemable for days out, dining,
accommodation, entertainment, fashion,
or pamper vouchers.
So how does it work? Within 24
hours of payment for the flight, Mango
will send an email or SMS providing
a unique code, which can be used to
redeem the various reward vouchers on
www.gorewards-flymango.com.
I’m called the “pink city” – a name
that has stuck since my walls were
first painted terracotta pink to
welcome British royalty. One of my
architectural landmarks was built
by a prince and has 953 windows,
which allowed women of the court
to peer down on everyday life in
the streets without being seen.
I’m home to two Unesco World
Heritage sites – one a massive
sandstone fort with lakefront
views and the other a monument
dedicated to astronomical tools. My
quarries produced the white marble
used to construct one of the world’s
most iconic tombs, the Taj Mahal,
and was transported to the building
site by more than 1 000 elephants.
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Flip the page and find out if
you’re correct...
NEW HIGH-SPEED THAI TRAIN LINK
The Thai government has given the
go-ahead to start construction on a
high-speed rail project that will allow
tourists and other commuters to bypass
much of Bangkok’s notorious traffic in the
near future. The rail line will link Bangkok’s
main airports with Pattaya and the Rayong
district, two of Thailand’s most popular
tourist areas. The project is anticipated to
cost approximately R101 bn and is slated
for completion by 2021.
landmark now has a fine for visitors who
stay longer than three hours, in a bid to
reduce overcrowding.
“If tourists exceed their time limit of
three hours, they will be charged an extra
amount equivalent to the ticket, which
will have to be paid at the exit gate,”
superintending archaeologist Vasant
Swarakar recently told The Times of
India newspaper. “Entry time will also be
enforced and if tourists don’t arrive at
the slotted time, they will not be allowed
entry and will have to buy a new ticket.”
Currently, the Taj Mahal sees as many
as 50 000 visitors per day and a ticket
costs 1,100 rupees (approximately R220)
for foreign tourists, plus an additional
200 rupees (R40) for an interior view of
the main mausoleum.
<< WANT A DRINK IN DUBAI?
YOU’LL NEED A LIQUOR LICENSE
And you thought Cape Town traffic was bad...