Coronavirus COVID-19

As the pandemic continues to wreak havoc on the travel and airline industry worldwide and we are about to enter the third year of travel turmoil, the prospect of recovery is looking bleak.

Before the Omicron variant of coronavirus emerged onto the scene in November, many people were planning their first international trip in years.

While the Omicron strain is more infectious than the Delta strain, so far, it appears to have milder illness consequences.

According to medical specialists, South Africa’s recent reduction in new COVID-19 cases could indicate that the country’s significant omicron-driven increase has peaked.

According to airline and airport officials, new travel restrictions imposed by the Omicron coronavirus variant have delayed the embryonic recovery in international flights, causing delays…

We need to be cautious before saying that it is less severe or does not produce a more severe disease than the delta variant.

As the World Health Organization warns that the global risk from the omicron variant of the Coronavirus is “extremely high” and could result in future surges with “grave repercussions,”…

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned governments on Friday against implementing hasty travel restrictions in reaction to the discovery of a new COVID-19 variant, stating that a…

Omicron was the name given to the variant by WHO, and it was discovered in a specimen taken on November 9.

Only a few weeks ago, several US airline executives suggested that the Delta variant of the Covid-19 would have little impact on domestic air travel demand.

Vaccines work by training and preparing the body’s natural defences — the immune system — to recognize and fight off the viruses they target.

If you have taken or will take the Covid-19 vaccine, don’t worry - there is no evidence that a lack of fever or headache means the vaccines did not work or will not work, experts say.

Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe passengers who have not been vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus should be barred from travelling on an aeroplane according to a new Reuters poll.

It is the first sign of the real-world impact of vaccination in the UK.

Although it is still the early days of vaccination rollout, a handful of nations are allowing vaccinated travellers to pass through their borders.

In 2019, global travel and tourism contributed USD8.9 trillion to the world’s GDP, but due to the pandemic the financial impact of COVID-19 on world tourism resulted in huge losses.

Despite the arrival of promising vaccines and an undeniable sense of pandemic fatigue, travel seems to be slipping back into hibernation.

With the reemergence of COVID-19 in Thailand this week Prime Minister, General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister, addressed the nation.

Several countries have isolated the United Kingdom banning arrivals from the UK.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) urged governments to begin careful planning with industry stakeholders to ensure full preparedness when vaccines for COVID-19 are approved…

When will covid-19 vaccines be making their way to the public? If air cargo is any indication, perhaps the answer to both questions is sooner than you think.

Since this is the first outbreak since April, the state authorities have ramped up testing and brought in new restrictions.

A new surge in Covid-19 cases and the reintroduction of travel restrictions have halted European tourism recovery.

As more people start flying again, they are noticing how different airlines all have different COVID protection policies.

American Airlines is collaborating with several foreign governments to begin offering preflight COVID-19 testing for customers traveling to international destinations, starting with Jamaica…

According to Acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Chad Wolf, the United States borders with Canada and Mexico will remain closed through October 21.

According to John Hopkins University data, the number of COVID-19 cases in the United States of America  has surged past 6,000,000 on Monday, August 31.

TUI Flight 6215 from Zante to Cardiff, the capital of Wales had 7 confirmed COVID-19 cases after this flight on August 25. The entire flight of passengers has been forced to self-isolate…

Travel industry experts have looked into the biggest revenue loss and the highest percentage of GDP lost per country to reveal which countries have been financially impacted the most by the…

Despite COVID-19 pandemic putting many normal aspects of life on hold, a new survey has revealed a strong willingness to travel during 2020 among Americans nonetheless. According to a…

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that Russia is the first to approve an experimental coronavirus vaccine.

All over the world, governments are still working to contain COVID-19. Worldwide lockdown measures and restricted travel have heavily impacted many industries. In particular, the travel…

Eight months since the emergence of the deadly virus, an effective coronavirus cure is still not within reach.

In the Philippines, the coconut tree is referred to as the “tree of Life'', because of the endless products derived from its various parts. They say if you're stranded in a desert island all…

World Health Organisation listed “self-care” as the current cure and prevention for COVID-19 advising patients to self-isolate and rest, drink plenty of fluid, and eat nutritious food.

We are starting to see the numbers that are reveling how the closure of our borders due to the Covid-19 pandemic has devasted the travel and airline industry with March and April being the…

Global aviation and travel tech firm Amadeus recently published its latest blog, reporting on how the Spanish based company based has supported the industry during the COVID-19 crisis.…

IATA (International Air Transport Association) has published an analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on airlines, which shows the industry’s global debt could reach as much as USD550 billion…

At the onslaught of the global COVID-19 pandemic, BWHR immediately rolled out enhanced cleaning protocols and breakfast standards. Recognizing that travelers are now more concerned than ever…

BANGKOK: Not surprising opposition to another huge government handout to debt-ridden Thai Airways International (THAI) is mounting, as far as public sentiment is concern there is a change…

BANGKOK: Billionaire Dhanin Chearavanont, chairman of Charoen Pokphand, is urging the government to relax lockdown measures and welcome foreign travellers as soon as possible, and turn the…

“It will soon be the time when we will quarantine people coming into the country by air.” The words of Boris Johnson Prime Minster speaking to the nation last night, Business Travel News…

Bill Barnett, the Phuket-based head honcho of C9 Hotelworks, is not someone who needs an introduction to anyone working in the Thai travel industry. Barnett is a force of nature in…

ABTA  has released a statement welcoming the Governments decision to extend and adapt the current furlough scheme but also underlines other, urgent mechanisms which are also needed to…

Once we are all allowed to travel again, travellers may need to allot a few more hours to get through the check-in process, bag drop-off, and sanitation before boarding.

Mark Tanzer, ABTA’s chief executive, gave evidence yesterday to the House of Commons Transport Committee as it looks at the implications for transport of the coronavirus pandemic. Asked…

IATA (International Air Transport Association) supports the wearing of face coverings for passengers and masks for crew while onboard aircraft as a critical part of a layered approach to…

Coronavirus is relatively new and studies about it are pretty much ongoing. We learn something about it every day and it is important that we get our information from reliable sources to…

Hotel guest acquisition platform SiteMinder has published its proprietary data on the momentum of hotel bookings around the world, for the first time, today. Sourced from the bookings of…

ABTA is stepping up its request to the Chancellor to extend the government’s salary support scheme for the UK travel industry, in recognition that travel companies will emerge from the…

Golden Week is usually the busiest travel periods in Japan with many salaried employees taking advantage of the week-long holiday to return to their hometown or overseas.

some other countries appear to have managed to slow down the rate of new cases and now seem to be on a slow and possibly difficult path towards recovery. Here they are:

The lack of coronavirus cure and rapid increase of reported cases have pushed many countries to turn to herbal medicine as a remedy for the pandemic.

British Airways is increasing the number of cargo-only flights from China to the UK to 21 a week, up from 13 last week, as demand continues to rise. From May, 14 flights each week will…

Emirates have announced plans to run services to Frankfurt (25, 27, 29 April), Jakarta (26 April), Johannesburg (25 April), Lagos (26 April), London Heathrow (23, 24, 26, 28, 30 April),…

IATA has put pressure on governments around the wolrd to work with the industry on confidence-boosting measures in the face of an anticipated slow recovery in demand for air travel. IATA’s…

ABTA’s chief executive, Mark Tanzer has written an open letter to customers of the Association’s Members with travel arrangements that have been affected by the coronavirus crisis to explain…

Last week Anita shared a few post COVID-19 trends and ideas on what hotel GMs can do to get ahead of the game to welcome Chinese travelers post COVID-19. Anita decided to elaborate on her…

Influential body, the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA), has published further guidance today for Members and customers on holiday amendments and refunds, as the industry continues…

Skål International Bangkok President Andrew J Wood gives his thoughts on what we can expect to see once the Coronavirus starts to dissipate

Tech firm Essence Group, along with partner FocusCura, are installing their remote monitoring tele-care technology to provide support to COVID-19 patients who have been discharged from…

We may be far from finding the coronavirus cure, but we can at least manage the symptoms to keep patients at ease. Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling tweeted a video of a breathing exercise…

On day one of ABTA’s campaign calling for grassroots political action by travel and tourism businesses, their staff and anyone who supports the industry, 13,500 people responded by emailing…

Due to the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic the US hotel industry reported significant year-over-year declines in the three key performance metrics during the week of 29 March…

We are living in extraordinary times. With the world forced into a complete shutdown and travel by any means frowned upon and commercial aircraft largely grounded GLOBALLY we are all in…

Emirates has announced that, as of  Monday 6 April, initial flights will commence from Dubai to London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Paris, Brussels and Zurich, with four flights a week to London…

Lufthansa has announced that it will extend its repatriation flight schedule, which was originally scheduled to run until 19 April, to 3 May. This also means that all remaining flights of…

Further to a statement made yesterday by the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Loganair has announced that it is working closely with the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) to provide air…

Air New Zealand is adjusting its domestic network with New Zealand now at Alert Level four. The airline will operate a limited domestic schedule from 3 April to enable essential travel only…

In times of crisis, we must hold onto what we love the most and travel media is our driving passion. We strive to maintain standards and improve our ability to deliver news and essential…

With countries closing their borders and travel is non-existent nowadays, hotels struggle to fill their rooms.

China's ministry of science and technology has announced on late Tuesday that favipiravir, the main ingredient in the influenza drug Avigan, showed "very good clinical results" during…

First patient has received COVID-19 vaccine as part of the clinical trial for possible cure of the pandemic.

After the World Health Organisation announced COVID-19 as a pandemic and cases rise to an unstoppable rate, more countries go into lockdown.

Why is the world reacting so irrationally to the Covid-19 outbreak? Why are we panic buying toilet rolls in supermarkets? Shunning Chinese restaurants? Derailing trade, education, tourism…

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte addressed the nation on Thursday night amid the rising numbers of COVID-19 cases and announced Metro Manila “lockdown”.

Gulf Air - the national carrier of Bahrain – has launched its latest ‘No Fees, Unlimited Changes’ campaign allowing passengers much more travel flexibility in reaction to the current…