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The Seattle-based ultra-luxury cruise line has announced the cancellation of sailings on three ships as part of an extension in the pause of global ship operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic; the operator has previously already announced the suspension operations from until 20 November. Sailings on the Encore will be suspended until 25 November, the Ovation until 20 December and the Sojourn until 24 May 2021.

The government of Belgium has confirmed that face masks will be mandatory in all public places within the country's capital of Brussels from today, 12 August. The news comes as the number of COVID-19 infections rose to a government alert level that puts the city among the worst affected in Europe. Until now masks had been mandatory only in crowded public spaces and enclosed sites, such as shopping malls.

The government of Papua New Guinea are pressing ahead with plans to lift lockdown measures this week despite a recent sharp rise in COVID-19 infections; the country's prime minister confirmed that a two week lockdown in the capital of Port Moresby will be lifted from tomorrow, 12 August.

The government of Macau has announced that from 12 August it will begin to reinstate tourist visas for the neighbouring, mainland Chinese city of Zhuhai. It is thought that the move will pave the way for a revival of visitors due to the fact that the majority of passengers arriving in Macau for gambling purposes utlilise the soon to be resumed visa category.

The country is set to increase its COVID-19 alert level following four cases of COVID-19 being detected in a household in Auckland - the first domestic cases of the virus in around 100 days. The capital city of Auckland will return to level three lockdown restrictions from midday tomorrow, 12 August until at least midnight on Friday, 14 August. Residents will be asked to stay at home and many businesses will close. The rest of the country will also be raised to level two restrictions during the same initial time period.

The U.S. airline has extended its pause on AAdvantage frequent-flyer program mileage expiration through the end of the year. American Airlines had earlier paused mileage expiration through to June due to the COVID-19 crisis. With this extension, all AAdvantage points that had expired since 1 July will now be reinstated.

The country’s government has said that it will introduce mandatory COVID-19 tests and quarantines for travellers from certain high-risk countries, following the arrival of a number of passengers testing positive on a flight from North Macedonia on 8 August. Subject to approval, the new measures will be enforced as soon as possible, and failure to respect the two-week quarantine would be sanctioned with up to three months in prison or a fine.

The government of China has yesterday, 10 August, that certain categories of foreign nationals who hold a valid residence permit (for work, private affairs and reunification residence permits) can now apply to any embassy or consulate in their respective countries free of charge to obtain a new visa to re-enter. The applicable countries are: Albania, Ireland, Estonia, Austria, Bulgaria, Northern Macedonia, Belgium, Iceland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Poland, Denmark, Germany, France, Finland, Netherlands, Montenegro, Czech Republic, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Romania, Malta, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, Serbia, Cyprus, Slovakia Croatia, Slovenia, Spain, Greece, Hungary, Italy & United Kingdom.

The local government of Northern Ireland have taken the decision to make it mandatory to wear a face mask in shops and other enclosed public spaces, in an effort to contain COVID-19 infection numbers which have risen three-fold since July. The Department of Health said it would be an offence to breach the law without having a "reasonable excuse", and breaches could attract a fixed penalty notice of £60 (GBP).

The country’s government has announced that from 17 August visitors from Sweden, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic will need proof they have tested negative for COVID-19 to gain entry; a negative test result obtained within 72 hours of departure must be presented. The government said the same requirement will apply to all visitors entering Greece via its land borders, including Greek citizens returning home.

The cruise line has extended its suspension of sailings until mid-November and cancelled a pair of long-haul itineraries next year following guidance from the British foreign office. Guests booked to sail on cancelled cruises will automatically receive a 125% future cruise credit or they can opt for a 100% refund.

The government of Germany has, since 8 August, mandated that passengers entering Germany from designated high-risk countries or areas must undergo mandatory COVID-19 testing upon arrival. The country regularly updates the list of high-risk areas, and the list can be found on the website of the Robert Koch Institute.

Edwardian Hotels in London and Manchester have implemented new operating procedures to ensure traveller safety during their stay. The protocols are approved by SGS, a world-leading testing and certification body.

From today, 10 August, the city of Paris has made the wearing of face masks mandatory for anyone over the age of 11 in busy outdoor areas to curb a rise in COVID-19 infections. Among the areas included are the banks of the River Seine, and a number of open-air markets.

The local government of Hawaii have announced that from 11 August it will partially reinstate an inter-island quarantine which was previously lifted in June. It will now be in effect until at least 31 August and a 14-day quarantine will be required for passengers arriving in the counties of Kauai, Hawaii, Maui and Kalawao.

The government of Australia has confirmed that strict caps on international arrivals, previously put in place to ease the pressure on government sanctioned hotel quarantine facilities, will continue until at least 24 October. This includes, but is not limited to, caps in Sydney of 350 passenger arrivals per day; Perth, 525 passenger arrivals per week and Brisbane, 500 passenger arrivals per week.

The airline has announced that, until further notice, all Qantas flights from Melbourne to Sydney will arrive at Terminal 1 of Sydney International Airport.

The U.S. airline has announced that it has extended 'Global Services' status for its current members through to 31 January 2022. United had previously also extended 'MileagePlus' status for members at the Premier 1K level and below through to the same date.

The Dubai-based airline is increasing its passenger flights to five cities in Pakistan from today, 10 August, bringing its total network connectivity to over 70 destinations worldwide. As of 16 August there will be 53 weekly flights to Pakistan on their Boeing 777-300 aircraft.

The airline has announced that it will offer 56 weekly flights to eight U.S. destinations by mid-September, meaning it us due to be the largest international carrier flying to the country. In addition, the national carrier of the State of Qatar will also increase frequencies of flights to Los Angeles to daily from 12 August, and twice-daily to New York from 1 September.