Greece lifted COVID-19 restrictions on Sunday for foreign and domestic flights, its civil aviation authority said, ahead of the summer tourism season that officials hope will see revenues bouncing back from the pandemic slump. To fly in or out of the country, travelers were previously required to show either a …
Read More »10 Killed after Bus full of Tourists collides with truck in Egypt
Fourteen others were taken to hospital but are in stable condition, says the governor of Aswan. Ten people, including five Egyptians, four French, and one Belgian national, have been killed when a bus carrying tourists collided with a truck and burst into flames in southern Egypt, authorities say. The accident …
Read More »Flaming bus crash in Bulgaria kills 45 North Macedonian tourists
A bus carrying North Macedonian tourists crashed in flames on a highway in western Bulgaria before daybreak on Tuesday, killing at least 45 people, including 12 children, officials said. The cause of the accident was unclear but the bus appeared to have hit a highway barrier either before or after …
Read More »Iraqi Marshes of Chabayish records an unprecedented number of tourists
Al-Chabayish Tourism and Environment Organization in Dhi Qar Governorate announced the recording of the highest number of Iraqi and foreign tourists entered this season on Friday. The director of the organization, Raad al-Asadi, said in a press statement, “The marshes area in the district of Chabayish, the far south of …
Read More »Dhi Qar: Number of Foreign Tourists has increased to the Ancient City of Ur
The director of the Dhi Qar Antiquities Department, Amer Abdul Razzaq, revealed, on Tuesday, a serious trend by the central and local government in the province to develop the archaeological city of Ur and preserve the importance of its cultural history, while announcing the increase in the number of foreign …
Read More »Probe ordered after four Russian tourists found dead at Albania beach resort
Police say four Russian tourists were found dead at a beach resort in western Albania. Albanian police issued a statement Saturday saying the four were found asphyxiated in a hotel sauna in the village of Qerret late Friday. Police did not give more details about the circumstances of the deaths, …
Read More »England eases COVID-19 testing rules for most incoming passengers from Oct. 24
Fully vaccinated passengers arriving in England from low-risk countries from Oct. 24 will no longer have to take expensive COVID-19 tests, the British government said on Thursday. Last month the government simplified the rules for international travel to England in a boost to the tourism industry, which has blamed the …
Read More »India decides to reopen for foreign tourists from October 15
India will reopen for tourists from October 15 after being closed for more than a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the government said Thursday. “After considering various inputs, the MHA (home ministry) has decided to begin granting fresh Tourist Visas for foreigners coming to India through chartered flights with …
Read More »US travelers dropped from EU safe list as Covid cases surge
The European Union recommended on Monday that Americans should be banned from nonessential travel to its member states after a rise in Covid-19 cases in the United States. Countries within the 27-nation bloc, which includes France, Italy and Germany, have been advised to reinstate coronavirus-related restrictions and halt the arrival …
Read More »Venice hires armed guards as city struggles with overcrowding amid COVID-19 rules
With Italy and Venice, reopening for tourists following a sustained COVID-19 shutdown, authorities have resorted to arming guards across the city in a bid to control overcrowding and combat the spread of coronavirus. Lines for public transport have continued to increase in the city as COVID-19 restrictions limit passenger capacity …
Read More »Tourists wade through Venice square hit by unseasonal flood
Rare summer flooding submerged Venice’s famed Piazza San Marco in up to a metre of water overnight. The lagoon city is often hit by so-called “acqua alta” (high water) in autumn and winter, and devastating floods in November 2019 caused hundreds of millions of euros of damage. Sunday night’s event …
Read More »Economic fears in Venice as cruise ship ban comes into force
Environmentalists and cultural heritage activists have long sought to limit the number of vessels travelling through the Italian city, calling them an eye-sore and pointing out that they could cause pollution and erosion. The law — which will see only small passenger ferries and freight vessels enter the lagoon city’s …
Read More »Tourism: France expects 50 million foreign visitors this year
Foreign tourism to France is rebounding this summer versus last year when the pandemic shut borders, though American and Asian visitors will remain limited, Tourism Minister Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne said in an interview with the Journal du Dimanche newspaper. France expects 50 million foreign tourists, up from 35 million last summer …
Read More »Greece’s first underwater museum opens the ancient world to dive tourists
Emerging from the crystal-clear turquoise waters of the Aegean Sea, Hans-Juergen Fercher has just returned from his fourth dive to where mounds of 2,500-year-old wine pots mark the site of an ancient shipwreck — and Greece’s first underwater museum. “This is a combination of diving and archaeological diving. It’s diving …
Read More »Greece’s Mykonos bans music, imposes curfew amid rise in COVID-19 cases
Greece banned music in restaurants and bars and imposed a nighttime curfew on its popular holiday island of Mykonos on Saturday after a rise in new coronavirus infections there. Known as the party island of the super-rich, Mykonos is one of Greece’s most popular destinations, attracting more than a million …
Read More »Germany cautious about re-opening as England prepares to lift COVID-19 curbs
German officials said on Tuesday coronavirus measures should be maintained until more of the population has been vaccinated, and one called England’s plan to lift most restrictions despite the spread of the Delta variant “a highly risky experiment”. England will become from July 19 the first part of the United …
Read More »India medical body warns against reopening tourism due to coronavirus threat
Opening India’s tourist destinations and allowing pilgrimage travel could act as COVID-19 “super spreaders” of the third wave of infections, the country’s top doctor’s body warned on Monday. After a catastrophic second wave, driven largely by the more infectious and dangerous Delta variant, ravaged the country’s health system, India is …
Read More »Overseas tourists finally roam free on Thai island of Phuket
Newly arrived overseas tourists on Thailand’s island of Phuket were able to roam free without quarantine on Friday for the first time in more than a year, as Thailand launched a special programme for vaccinated visitors to the island. Tourists swam in hotel pools and walked along Phuket’s postcard-perfect beaches …
Read More »Portugal imposes night-time curfew in areas to curb COVID-19 spike
A night-time curfew will be imposed in several Portuguese municipalities, including the capital Lisbon and the city of Porto, as authorities scramble to bring under control a surge in COVID-19 infections, the government said on Thursday. The 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew, which starts on Friday, will be in …
Read More »Blue Origin flight: Wally Funk, 82, to join Jeff Bezos space flight
An 82-year-old woman who has spent six decades trying to reach space will join Jeff Bezos on the first human flight by his space company later this month. Wally Funk was one of the “Mercury 13” who underwent training in the 1960s. Mr. Bezos has invited Ms. Funk as an …
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