Cell phones banned by tour operator

LONDON, Oct. 2 (UPI) -- Cell phones that annoy people on trains and in restaurants have been banned by a British tour operator on exotic trips worldwide.

The Adventure Company said it had received complaints about cell phones going off at "romantic moments" at places including the ancient Treasury at Petra in Jordan, the Inca city of Machu Picchu in Peru, the Taj Mahal in India and the remote summit of Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, reported the Sunday Telegraph.

"We had people who had done the Inca trail and arrived at Machu Picchu to watch a stunning sunrise only for a phone to go off," said Mark Wright, the managing director of the travel company. "These are expensive and often once-in-a-lifetime trips so we decided that the best solution was to ban mobile phones altogether."

Next year, tour guides will collect cell phones from travelers at the beginning of a trip and return them at the end. The tour guides will have a cell phone for emergencies.