Search alerts

Marriott International has announced it that will require all guests to wear a face covering in its U.S hotels from 27 July; the move follows an announcement on guidelines from the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) last week.

Strict cleaning and safety protocols have been introduced by AVIS Australia including minimum-contact vehicle pick-ups, deep cleaning and sanitation of rental cars, plus staff training to ensure greater safety when hiring a car.

Budget Rent a Car in Australia has introduced their Worry-Free Promise. Incorporating minimum contact vehicle pick-ups, deep cleaning and sanitation of rental cars, plus staff training to ensure greater safety when hiring a car.

The Royal Caribbean group has announced the decision to extend the suspension of cruise sailings for passengers due to depart on or before 30 September. Included among the group’s brands are Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Azamara and Silversea.

Quest, a global serviced apartment hotel brand, has released their Stay Safe health and safety promise - a commitment to ensure that the safety of their customers during COVID-19 remains their top priority. This is now valid at all Quest properties in Australia, New Zealand and the UK.

American Airlines has announced a New York-based partnership with low-cost U.S. airline jetBlue, which will give its passengers access to over 130 domestic U.S. routes via the city's airports. In the longer term, it’s hoped that the partnership will also facilitate more long-haul services via New York to markets in Europe, Africa, India and South America.

The government of the Philippines has announced that it will allow the entry of foreign nationals with long-term visas into the country from 1 August. However, applications for new entry visas will not yet be accepted and returning Filipinos will have priority on inbound flights, given existing caps on airport capacity.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the U.S. have extended a no-sail order for cruise ships from ports in the country through to 30 September - it was previously set to expire on 24 July. The order applies to ships with the capacity to carry 250 passengers or more, meaning that a number of small-ship ocean and river operators are though excluded and free to resume sailings this summer.

As of 10.00 (GMT+8) on 17 July, mainland China is now requiring those arriving from Hong Kong to show a negative COVID-19 test taken within the previous three days, as well as being subject to 14 days of supervised quarantine in order to gain entry.

The government of Jordan announced on 16 July that it will partially resume commercial flights from August to a limited number of European and Asian countries on an internationally approved safe list; the list currently includes Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Greece, Hong Kong and Thailand.

Alaska Airlines yesterday announced the upcoming launch of a number of new routes from Los Angeles International Airport to further connect passengers to key destinations across the U.S, including the first non-stop service from the west coast to Fort Myers in Florida. Other destinations will include Kona and Lihue in Hawaii, Bozeman in Montana, plus Eugene and Medford in Oregon.

Italy's government announced on 16 July that the country has now banned arriving passengers who have been present in Serbia, Kosovo and Montenegro in the last 14 days, including those seeking only to transit. Last week, Italy had already banned entry to people coming from an additional 13 countries, including Brazil, all of which it said presented an excessive rate of COVID-19 infections.

Iraq's government announced on 16 July that the country will re-open its airports for scheduled international traffic on 23 July, after suspending regular commercial flights in March because of the COVID-19 outbreak. The country will also lift a nationwide night-time curfew after the Muslim holiday of Eid Al-Adha, and re-open restaurants and malls as long as they implement certain measures.

Further domestic airports within South Africa are set to re-open; from 21 July, East London Airport, George Airport and Kimberley Airport will resume operations. Airports that have already re-opened within the country include O.R Tambo International Airport, Lanseria International Airport, Cape Town International Airport and King Shaka International Airport, Bram Fischer International Airport, Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport, Pietermaritzburg Airport, Port Elizabeth International Airport, Richardsbay Airport, Skukuza Airport and Upington International Airport.

All people travelling to the Northern Territory must now complete an arrival border-crossing application. If you are intending to travel to the Northern Territory from an identified COVID-19 hot spot, or reside in the Northern Territory and are intending to travel to a hot spot, you are advised to cancel your plans. If you previously held an exemption to travel from a hot spot this is revoked effective immediately.

From 15 July, Russia has started to lift further restrictions on international flights with some countries. All foreign arrivals are now asked to provide a medical certificate to prove they have either tested negative for COVID-19 or tested positive for COVID-19-related antibodies. Arriving passengers are also no longer required to quarantine unless they are experiencing symptoms.

Airlink have announced that all flights between the South African destinations of Johannesburg and Pietermaritzburg will be suspended from 20 July, as will its flights between Johannesburg and Upington from 27 July. The soon to be suspended routes were among a number of regional destinations that were introduced on 6 July as part of a government COVID-19 level three strategy, but have since not proven successful in terms of demand.

The South African services, trading, and distribution company has said that it may be forced to close or sell its car rental business as it struggles to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bidvest’s car rental business includes car, van, truck and coach hire in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia.

The state government of Hawaii have announced in a press conference that it will not ease restrictions on out-of-state U.S travelers until at least 1 September, a month later than previously planned. The decision, which was made due to a reported surge in cases of COVID-19 in both Hawaii and the U.S mainland, means that a 14-day quarantine requirement for out-of-state tourists who test negative for the virus will remain in place until the new deadline.

Short-term additional safety measures will apply in Bolivia's department of La Paz, which includes the city of La Paz, from 16-19 July; this is in addition to controls on weekday movement that have been imposed in the city since 23 June. Until 19 July, visitors and residents will not be allowed outside unless travelling in a medical emergency, or to catch a humanitarian repatriation flight.