While you were away: The week’s top travel stories

Well, they do look happy. The British Airways “Happiness Blanket.

Just in case you missed anything in travel news, we’ve collected the week’s top stories, with just a hint of spin—from British Airways’ new mood blanket to a new list of the country’s 50 natural wonders.

Are you verruckt?!

The tallest water slide in the world has opened at Schlitterbahn Waterparks and Resorts in Kansas City, Kansas, according to CNN. The Guinness Book of World’s Records-certified coaster named verruckt (the German word for “insane”) measures 168-feet tall and is slated to open next week pending a technical glitch which they better get ironed out, otherwise they’ll have to rename the ride Klage (German for “lawsuit”).

Passing on gas?

Get ready to feel pain at the pump if you’re hitting the road this weekend. According to MarketWatch.com, instability in Iraq is causing higher than normal gas prices—the highest for an Independence Day weekend since 2008. The current national average of $3.67 to $3.70 isn’t likely to ruin anyone’s holiday plans however; AAA still estimates 41 million American will grin and bare the high prices to spend the weekend eating bad potato salad with relatives they forgot how much they hate while getting eaten alive by mosquitoes.

Blanket statement

British Airways has taken to measuring its first-class passengers’ satisfaction with a new mood-detecting “happiness blanket,” the Huffington Post reports. Using neuro-sensors that transfer data to the fiber-optic LED-woven blankets via Bluetooth, the airline is able to determine mood levels. When a passenger is stressed the blanket turns red and when they are relaxed it turns blue. Just a guess: when the in-flight movie is Grown Ups 2 the blankets turn red and when passengers turn their heads to see how awful it is back in coach their blankets turn blue.

Freedom rains

The first tropical storm of the year may put the brakes on fireworks celebrations up and down the eastern seaboard CNN reports. Tropical storm Arthur is likely to veer away from land heading into the long weekend as it morphs into a category one hurricane, but could rain on festivities planned on the National Mall in Washington D.C. That’s too bad, the idea of watching fireworks amid the excitement of a bitter, hyper-partisan crowd always makes for some added fun.

To the wonders

In anticipation of Independence Day, CNN Travel has posted a round up of the top natural wonders in each of the 50 states. The site gives a shoutout to the Grand Canyon in Arizona, volcanic activity on Hawaii’s Big Island and California’s Redwood National and State Parks. Shockingly, Nevada’s stark terrain and Nebraska’s vast nothingness failed to make the list.

Tagged: Family time, Florida