Mayan calendar frenzy creates intense interest in Bugarach, France

Last week, UBC art history professor Marvin Cohodas told the Straight that the ancient Mayans had different calendars.

But that hasn't stopped a sharp increase in people looking into one-way trips to two obscure villages: Bugarach, France and Şirince, Turkey.

The travel website Skyscanner reports that searches for flights to the south of Frace are 41 percent higher this year in the week before December 21, compared to the previous week.

Believers in the Mayan Prophesy are under the impression that the world will end on Friday (December 21), but some think that Bugarach could provide safety.

Meanwhile, searches for Şirince in the province of Izmir, Turkey are up 30 percent over the previous week.

"We were surprised to see how big an increase there has been in searches for flights to the South of France and to Izmir in Turkey leading up to the 21^stDecember: the date of the Mayan Prophecy," Skycanner spokesperson Victoria Bailie said. "Although the fact that we've seen the highest number of flight searches all year for flights on the following day suggests that not everyone is convinced the end of the world really is nigh."