Tourism

Trump administration orders Marriott to cease Cuba hotel business

The Trump administration has ordered Marriott International to wind down hotel operations in Communist-run Cuba, a company spokeswoman told Reuters, extinguishing what had been a symbol of the U.S.-Cuban…

Read More Here

Spain won’t rush on border opening

Spain will further ease a coronavirus lockdown in its two main cities from Monday, but will not start opening its borders to foreign tourists before July 1 while it seeks…

Read More Here

Irish PM says people should not book foreign holidays yet

Ireland's prime minister on Friday advised citizens not to book foreign holidays and said the government had no date in mind yet to end its 14-day quarantine for people arriving…

Read More Here

Thailand to offer perks encouraging travel for some 1.2 million medical personnel and health volunteers

Thailand will draw up a stimulus plan for domestic tourism to be rolled out for four months starting in July, a senior official said on Thursday, as the country seeks…

Read More Here

Carnival’s Princess Cruises extends suspension of some voyages

Carnival Corp's Princess Cruises on Thursday extended the suspension of some of its voyages in Australia, Canada and Taiwan as ports around the world remain shut due to the coronavirus…

Read More Here

Greek hotels reopen to an uncertain future

Greece allowed year-round hotels to open on Monday, restarting its vital tourism sector hobbled by weeks of lockdown, although business remained quiet with international flights from its main airports only set…

Read More Here

Colosseum reopens in ‘sign of hope and rebirth’

The Colosseum reopened this week to visitors after 84 days closed for the coronavirus lockdown. The monument was closed for 84 days during lockdown "The Colosseum reopens, a place of…

Read More Here

Spain seeks to open up to some foreign tourism from June 22

Spain is working on starting to gradually open up to tourists from countries considered more secure in the fight against COVID-19 from June 22, a tourism ministry spokesman said on…

Read More Here

British ministers say UK’s quarantine of travellers vital to avoid second coronavirus wave

Britain's quarantine for travellers arriving from abroad, which will be introduced from June 8, is crucial to avoiding a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak in the country, Interior Minister…

Read More Here

One in three Belgians to opt for a internal holiday

According to a survey by the Flemish Tourist Board that was commissioned by the Flemish Tourism Minister Zuhal Demir, since the start of the lockdown in mid-March, 41% of Belgians…

Read More Here

Canada to promote holidays at home because of COVID-19 border closures

Canada will invest C$30 million ($21.8 million) to enable its provinces and territories to promote holidays in their "own back yard" because of the closure of the country's borders due…

Read More Here

Italy to open its borders for tourists on June 3rd, however not everyone is allowing Italians in

From June 3 Italy will be opening its borders to those coming from the countries of the Schengen area. No quarantine and no self-certifications. The movements between the different regions…

Read More Here

Kuoni offers UK holidays for the first time

Luxury, long-haul tour operator Kuoni is adding UK and Ireland breaks to its roster for the first time in its history to cater for a surge in demand for domestic…

Read More Here

TUI UK cancels beach holidays until July 1

Travel operator TUI has cancelled all foreign holidays for British tourists until July 1 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sending shares in the German group down 6% on Friday. The…

Read More Here

International tourism faces biggest slump since 1950s – UNWTO

International tourism is set to fall by 70% this year, marking the sector's biggest slump since records began in the 1950s, United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili…

Read More Here

Maldives to reopen on July 1

One of the world's most expensive holiday destinations is set to become even more costly as the Maldives plans to introduce compulsory COVID-19 testing for all arrivals, among a raft…

Read More Here

Cyprus to cover the holiday costs of tourists who tests positive

Cyprus has pledged to cover the holiday costs of anyone who tests positive for the virus after travelling there. In a letter made public on Wednesday, the government said it…

Read More Here

Malta’s Riviera Bay Beach chosen among 10 beaches you’re least at risk of catching coronavirus

Malta's Riviera Bay Beach was chosen among the 10 safest beaches in Europe where one is least at risk of catching coronavirus. Europe's Best Destinations issued a classification of the…

Read More Here

Slovenia could lose up to 830 million euros of tourism income due to coronavirus

Slovenia could lose up to 830 million euros ($909.68 million) of income from foreign tourists due to the coronavirus epidemic, the Bank of Slovenia said in a report on Wednesday.…

Read More Here

Greece to welcome Germans, Cypriots, Israelis in first wave of visitors

Greece will allow travellers from around two dozen countries including Germany, Cyprus and Israel to visit from mid-June without having to be quarantined, government officials said, part of a gradual…

Read More Here

Iceland prepares to welcome tourists back in June

Iceland this week eased its lockdown rules and venues were allowed to reopen. Social distancing is now advised rather than required, and many took the first opportunity in six weeks…

Read More Here

Hotels reopen in Croatia as it tries to lure back foreign tourists

Over the last days over 133 hotels and 65 campsites reopened in Croatia, igniting hopes that this summer season will not be completely lost to coronavirus. All beaches are now…

Read More Here

Ryanair CEO reports surge in holiday bookings, sees UK dropping quarantine

Ryanair expects Britain to join European nations in dropping COVID-19 quarantine plans in the coming weeks, Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said in an interview on Wednesday, reporting a "big surge"…

Read More Here

Lufthansa to restart flights to 20 destinations from mid-June

Lufthansa, which is in talks with the German government over a 9 billion euro bailout, will resume flights to 20 destinations from mid-June, including some holiday hot-spots, a spokeswoman said on…

Read More Here

Spain to reopen borders to tourists in July

Spain will reopen its borders to tourists in July and its top soccer division will kick off again in June, the Prime Minister said on Saturday, marking another phase in…

Read More Here

Hotels in Spain reopen to uncertain future as international tourism is set to start in July

Spain will reopen to international tourism from July, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Saturday. The country is emerging from one of Europe’s strictest lockdowns, implemented on March 14. As…

Read More Here

TUI to resume vacation flights from end-June

Travel group TUI is planning to resume flights to main holiday destinations in Europe by the end of June, its chief executive told a German newspaper. "We are planning to…

Read More Here

Portugal says ready to welcome back tourists

Portugal's doors are open to tourists, the country's Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva said on Friday, one of the first European countries to welcome back visitors from elsewhere in the…

Read More Here

Two-week quarantines to be imposed on new arrivals to UK

Two-week quarantines will be imposed on new arrivals to the UK from 8 June with a £1,000 fine for anyone who breaches the measure. The home secretary Priti Patel said…

Read More Here

Monaco prepares to reopen to tourists, borders to remain closed to non-European tourists

Monaco, the most densely populated country in the world, is easing its lockdown gradually and luxuriously. From floating breakfast trays and retractable restaurant roofs to smartphone menus and UV robots,…

Read More Here

Malta: Most optimistic prediction by industry sources is 1.3 million tourists in 2021 – Tony Zahra

The best possible scenario predicted so far for next year is that 1.3 million tourists will visit Malta, MHRA President Tony Zahra told The Malta Independent. 2.8 million inbound tourist…

Read More Here

Ban on non-Israelis entering the country extended to at least mid-June

The ban on non-Israelis entering the country in order to stop the spread of COVID-19 has been extended at least two weeks into mid-June. The Israel Airports Authority notified airlines…

Read More Here

UK to tell overseas visitors self-isolate for 14 days or face £1,000 fine

International travellers could face fines of £1,000 if they fail to self-isolate for 14 days after arriving in the UK, the government is expected to announce. Visitors would be asked…

Read More Here

Austria to expand its testing to screen hotel staff

Austria plans a hefty expansion of its coronavirus testing just to screen hotel staff, in the hope of luring Germans and other tourists this summer and banishing the uncomfortable memory…

Read More Here

Cambodia lifts entry ban from six countries as coronavirus eases

Cambodia has lifted a ban on entry of visitors from Iran, Italy, Germany, Spain, France and the United States that had been put in place to curb the spread of…

Read More Here

Tourists will be welcomed back to Spain “as soon as possible”

Holidaymakers will be welcomed back to Spain “as soon as possible”, but only when safe to do so, the country’s foreign minister has said. Foreign minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya said…

Read More Here

Greece to reopen tourism season in June

The Greek tourist season will kick off next month, with international charter flights to popular locations resuming in July, the prime minster says. "The tourism period begins on 15 June,…

Read More Here

Trust in the UK in airlines and holiday firms’ plummets

Public trust in the travel industry has plunged to an all-time low as airlines and holiday companies continue to deny and delay refunds for coronavirus cancellations, in breach of the…

Read More Here

UK tourism chief backs call for ‘air bridges

' The head of the UK's national tourism agency has thrown her weight behind setting up so-called air bridges with countries with low coronavirus rates. Visit Britain chief executive Patricia…

Read More Here

Staycation or Vacation – Summer holidays loading: The situation in Europe

Not more than four weeks ago as new cases of coronavirus spiked and peaked across Europe, the prospect of catching a plan or a ferry to another European destination seemed…

Read More Here

Greece is considering VAT tax cut for restaurants and cafes to reboot tourism

Greece is considering a sales tax cut for restaurants and cafes as part of a broader plan to reboot the tourism-dependent economy hammered by the coronavirus lockdown. The tax on…

Read More Here

Poland expected to re-open borders on June 15th

Poland could re-open its borders on June 15, before lifting all remaining coronavirus curbs on July 1, Deputy Prime Minister Jadwiga Emilewicz told the Puls Biznesu daily in an interview…

Read More Here

Hotels firm Accor gets 560 million euros credit line, sees signs of recovery

French hotel company Accor - one of many in the tourism sector to have been hit hard by the impact of the coronavirus - said on Monday it had secured…

Read More Here

Malta: Mass unemployment looms for tourism industry unless airport is reopened, MHRA boss warns

The tourism industry risks facing a situation of mass unemployment unless Malta's borders are re-opened for tourists, Tony Zahra has warned. The Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association president said operators in…

Read More Here

Archaeological sites re-open in Greece

The archaeological sites in Greece opened on Monday to visitors, following the easing of measures against the spread of the coronavirus disease. More than 200 archaeological sites in the country…

Read More Here

Serbia pins hopes of post-coronavirus tourism revival on Chinese

Serbia is pinning its hopes of a tourism revival on Chinese visitors as it emerges from its coronavirus lockdown. But the Balkan country faces a battle with other European countries…

Read More Here

Live Update: Covid-19 Bulletin Malta – Saturday 16th May 2020

Update 2145 Six Spaniards were arrested on Friday evening after attacking police officers who approached them to inform them that they were breaking Coronavirus measures which establish that people…

Read More Here

Greeks go to the beach after re-opening as temperatures soar

Greeks flocked to the seaside on Saturday when more than 500 beaches reopened, as the country sought to walk the fine line between protecting people from COVID-19 while reviving the…

Read More Here

Clear protocols for the Maltese tourism industry are expected by Monday

In a webinar on the way forward for the tourism sector that was organised earlier today among the Ministry for Tourism, the Malta Tourism Authority and the Malta Hotels and…

Read More Here

Irish hospitality sector singled out for targeted government help

Ireland's finance minister singled out hospitality among the sectors being considered for targeted government assistance to support their planned reopening at limited capacity to control the spread of the coronavirus.…

Read More Here

France unveils “unprecedented” plan to save its tourism industry

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has announced an “unprecedented” 18 billion euro plan to support the country’s tourism industry. Under the plan, tourism businesses will be eligible for grants of…

Read More Here

Morocco hopes to boost domestic tourism to save sector

Morocco's government and tourism industry hope to encourage more Moroccans to explore the ancient souks of Marrakech and the beaches of Agadir this year, to make up for the collapse…

Read More Here

Iceland to test tourist arrivals with the aim to restart tourism by June 15

Holidaymakers arriving in Iceland will be given the choice of a coronavirus test or a two-week quarantine under plans to restart tourism to the island nation. The Icelandic government said…

Read More Here

Scotland could be closed to tourists all summer

Scotland could remain closed to tourists for the duration of the summer, one of the country’s tourism chiefs has warned. Riddell Graham, director of VisitScotland, criticised the UK government's mixed…

Read More Here

UK minister warns anyone booking a holiday is taking a chance

Britons booking a summer holiday are taking a chance on the direction of the coronavirus outbreak, transport minister Grant Shapps said on Wednesday. European travel company TUI said on Wednesday there would…

Read More Here

Tui Group to cut 8,000 jobs due to pandemic impact

Tui Group is to cut 8,000 jobs worldwide due to COVID-19, which it describes as "the greatest crisis" the travel industry has faced. The company said: "We are targeting to…

Read More Here

Abu Dhabi announces partial refund for restaurant and tourism property leases

Abu Dhabi has announced a 20% refund on annual commercial property leases for restaurants and for tourism and entertainment facilities, state news agency WAM reported on Monday. Eligible businesses…

Read More Here