Category: News

St Petersburg and Ras Al Khaimah are among the latest destinations to sign up to the world’s first ever global safety and hygiene stamp, launched recently by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). The growing list of endorsements have come from many major holiday and city destinations around the world, such as Kenya, St. Petersburg, and the Spanish resort of Benidorm, among many others. WTTC, which represents the global travel & tourism private sector, designed the Safe Travels stamp to enable travellers to identify destinations and businesses around the world which adopted its health and hygiene global standardised protocols. ... Read more

Oman has said that no fines are being levied for expired tourist visas until July 15, as the country is battling to stem the new coronavirus and prop up the economy. “Currently, there are no fines on holders of tourist visas in the Sultanate,” said Major Mohammed Al Hashami of the Royal Oman Police (ROP). “They can extend the visa electronically through the [ROP] website without the need to show up at the service centres,” he added, according to the Omani newspaper Al Shabiba. The exact number of such visa holders in Oman is not clear. In April, the ROP ... Read more

Kolkata’s Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport has banned flights from Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune, Ahmedabad and Nagpur from July 6 to July 19 or until further orders in light of COVID-19 situation. “No flights shall operate to Kolkata from Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Chennai & Ahmedabad from 6th to 19th July 2020 or till further orders whichever is earlier. Inconvenience caused is regretted,” state-run Kolkata airport wrote on Twitter. It is important to note that the chief secretary of West Bengal, Rajiv Sinha, had written a letter on June 30 to Pradeep Singh Kharola, secretary, civil aviation ministry on ... Read more

Five of Delhi’s tourist destinations opened to the public on Saturday, after being closed for months. Dilli Haat, Nature Bazaar, Garden of Five Senses, Azad Hind Gram and GTB Memorial are the destinations that opened in India’s capital, with precautions in place. The Delhi tourism department in a statement said that for the first 15 days of their opening, entry to these spots will be free in order to encourage high footfall. However, all visitors will have to wear masks and maintain social distancing, and will be screened on entry. Provisions for frequent hand wash will be made available, and ... Read more

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has appointed two new special ambassadors as it leads the restart of the sector across Europe. UNWTO has named renowned fashion designer Giorgio Armani and celebrated chef Gino Sorbillo as its latest special ambassadors for tourism. In their new roles, both the special ambassadors will draw on their status and influence to promote the work of the United Nations specialized agency for responsible and sustainable tourism. As leaders in gastronomy and fashion, they represent two of Italy’s biggest economic sectors and two of the industries that contribute to making the country a global tourism leader. ... Read more

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has said that the resumption of domestic tourism, which was suspended due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown, will kickstart the coastal state’s economy. There was a lot of pressure from tourism stakeholders to restart the tourism industry and the government acceded to their demands as it is an economic activity, the chief minister said. “At present, Goans require employment and there was immense pressure from tourism stakeholders to restart the sector. After considering all the aspects and putting standard operating procedures in place, we decided to reopen the sector,” Sawant said. Tourism activities resumed in Goa on Thursday, with ... Read more

The UK on Friday allowed quarantine-free international travel to nearly 60 “lower risk countries”, excluding India and the US, as it released a list of exempt nations posing “a reduced risk” from the deadly coronavirus. The UK Foreign Office Travel Advisory related to India remains unchanged as part of its wider advice for British nationals to avoid “all non-essential international travel”. The list includes European destinations of Germany, France, Spain and Italy as well as Australia and New Zealand, PTI has reported. Some of the Asian countries considered low risk include Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam, with popular holiday destinations ... Read more

Bali’s provincial government has announced plans to open the island to tourism for domestic Indonesian tourists from July 31. The plan will be executed as long as Bali’s reopening scheme for local residents, starting July 9, runs effectively. Tourist attractions will be selectively opened to avoid new sources of virus transmission, says Indonesia Expat in a report. The Indonesian island of Bali where 70% of the population depend on tourism, has seen extensive jobs losses since closing its borders in April. The economic impact so far has been greater than that of the Bali bombings of 2002, with losses of around 9.7 trillion ... Read more

Federal Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham is hoping that Australians would be able to travel to New Zealand again by September if the coronavirus flare-up in Victoria is brought under control, says a report in the Sydney Morning Herald. As Australia’s $60 billion-a-year tourism industry reels from the global pandemic, the governments from both countries have discussed plans for a travel bubble that would allow travel across the Tasman without mandatory quarantine. Simon Birmingham said on Friday that despite the flare-up of COVID-19 cases in Victoria, it was viable for quarantine-free travel between the two countries to reopen in September. “That’s a realistic ... Read more

Thailand’s Immigration Bureau is considering extending the current visa amnesty for foreigners stranded in Thailand. The Foreign Ministry’s deputy spokesperson made the announcement at the s daily Covid-19 briefing by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. The Cabinet’s last resolution was to grant an automatic visa extension for foreigners stranded here to stay until July 30, The Thaiger has reported. The deputy spokesperson asked for patience and said the bureau’s decision on the subject will be announced soon. In April, the Cabinet granted a second automatic visa extension for foreigners for 3 months. The extended amnesty was a bid to prevent long ... Read more

Pubs in England will open today at 6 am (BST) as lockdown measures eased past midnight. Downing Street said the opening time for pubs was a “sensible precaution” to avoid midnight parties that may be conducted to celebrate the reopening of the pubs which were shut since March. British Summer Time (BST), the civil time in the United Kingdom, is advanced one hour forward of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) so that mornings have one hour less daylight and evenings get one hour more. The pub industry said the reopening was “fantastic” but urged customers to respect staff and changes in ... Read more

India’s aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday announced that international air travel to and from India will remain suspended till July 31. The circular released by DGCA stated, “In partial modification of circular dated 26-06-2020, the competent authority has extended the validity of circular issued regarding scheduled international commercial passenger services to and from India till 2359 hrs IST of 31st July 2020. This restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by DGCA.’ Just last week DGCA had announced that international air travel will remain suspended till July 15. The decision ... Read more

Telangana forest minister Indrakaran Reddy on Friday said that the state government was developing lung spaces in cities and towns by setting up urban forest parks and eco-tourism parks in  available forest land. Speaking after inaugurating the urban forest parks – Anjaneya and Narasimha – at Raigiri near Yadagirigutta, the minister said the ecological balance of a place would depend on the extent of forest area and green cover. Hence, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has taken up afforestation to improve forest coverage area. No other state has taken up sapling planting in such a big way in the country, ... Read more

To allow tourist passenger vehicles move seamlessly across the country, a new scheme is being formulated by the Indian government under which any tourist vehicle operator may apply online for an all-India authorisation permit. The Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has issued a notification for an amendment to the National Permit regime under the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989 for promoting tourism across the country. “The Ministry is in the pursuit of providing seamless movement to the tourist passenger vehicles after the success of goods carriage vehicles under the National Permit Regime,” the Ministry said in a statement. This ... Read more

Even though the European Union (EU) announced on Tuesday that South Korea was on a list of 14 countries allowed to travel there, international travel still looks difficult. Anyone arriving in South Korea from overseas is required to undergo a strict two-week quarantine, either at home or at a government-run facility. They cannot leave their homes and are monitored by government officials, while those in hotels pay about US$100 per night, and there are no visits to cafés, bars, gyms or gardens. With few South Koreans spending more than one week on vacation, the burden of a two-week quarantine on ... Read more