Twenty-first century travel

By Luke Turner and Tina Lofthouse

Flying cars – pie in the sky? Apparently not: the world’s first “bio-fuelled flying car” has set off on a journey from London to Timbuktu in Mali, via the Sahara desert, and is currently en-route in France

This amazing hybrid vehicle can reach up to 180km/h on the road and 110km/h in the air. It carries two passengers and its wings simply fold into the boot of the car.

Could this be the future of travel? Imagine – no traffic jams, no long airport security queues, just glide off to wherever the mood takes you. OK, we may be a long way off the reality for ordinary tourists – but there will be a road sport model of the bio-fuelled flying car available from 2010.

And it’s not just the only new development when it comes to the changing face of travel. We look at the latest trends just around the corner, including micro-hotels and a stay in space.