• More European Union nations ban travel from UK, fearing virus variant

    More European Union nations ban travel from UK, fearing virus variant

    A growing list of European Union nations and Canada barred travel from the U.K. on Sunday and others were considering similar action, in a bid to block a new strain of coronavirus sweeping across southern England from spreading to the continent.

    France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Ireland and Bulgaria all announced restrictions on U.K. travel, hours after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that Christmas shopping and gatherings in southern England must be canceled because of rapidly spreading infections blamed on the new coronavirus variant.

    Johnson immediately placed those regions under a strict new Tier 4 restriction level, upending Christmas plans for millions.

    France banned all travel from the U.K. for 48 hours from midnight Sunday, including trucks carrying freight through the tunnel under the English Channel or from the port of Dover on England’s south coast.

    Germany said all flights coming from Britain, except cargo flights, were no longer allowed to land starting midnight Sunday. It didn’t immediately say how long the flight ban would last.

    Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said he was issuing a flight ban for 24 hours starting at midnight “out of precaution.”

    Canada announced its own ban Sunday night. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a statement that for 72 hours starting at midnight Sunday, “all flights from the UK will be prohibited from entering Canada.” . Cargo flights were not included in the ban.

    The Central American nation of El Salvador, meanwhile, said it would refuse entry to anyone who has visited Britain in the preceding 30 days.

    The British government said Johnson would preside at a meeting of the government’s crisis committee, COBRA, on Monday in the wake of the other nations’ measures. They come at a time of huge economic uncertainty for the U.K., less than two weeks before it leaves the EU’s economic structures Dec. 31, and with talks on a new post-Brexit trade relationship still deadlocked.

    Johnson said Saturday that a fast-moving new variant of the virus that is 70% more transmissible than existing strains appeared to be driving the rapid spread of new infections in London and southern England in recent weeks. But he stressed “there’s no evidence to suggest it is more lethal or causes more severe illness,” or that vaccines will be less effective against it.

    On Sunday, British Health Secretary Matt Hancock added to the alarm when he said “the new variant is out of control.” The U.K. recorded 35,928 further confirmed cases, around double the number from a week ago.

    Germany, which holds the rotating EU presidency, called a special crisis meeting on Monday to coordinate the response to the virus news among the bloc’s 27 member states.

    The Netherlands banned flights from the U.K. for at least the rest of the year. Ireland issued a 48-hour flight ban.

    Italy said it would block flights from the U.K. until Jan.6, and an order signed Sunday prohibits entry into Italy by anyone who has been in the U.K. in the last 14 days.

    The Czech Republic imposed stricter quarantine measures from people arriving from Britain.

    Beyond Europe, Israel also said it was banning flights from Britain, Denmark and South Africa because those were the countries where the mutation is found.

    The World Health Organization tweeted late Saturday that it was “in close contact with U.K. officials on the new COVID19 virus variant and promised to update governments and the public as more is learned.

    The new strain was identified in southeastern England in September and has been spreading in the area ever since, a WHO official told the BBC on Sunday. “What we understand is that it does have increased transmissibility, in terms of its ability to spread,” said Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s technical lead on COVID-19.

    Studies are under way to better understand how fast it spreads and whether “it’s related to the variant itself, or a combination of factors with behavior,” she added. She said the strain had also been identified in Denmark, the Netherlands and Australia, where there was one case that didn’t spread further.

    British health authorities said that while the variant has been circulating since September, it wasn’t until the last week that officials felt they had enough evidence to declare that it has higher transmissibility than other circulating coronaviruses.

    Patrick Vallance, the British government’s chief scientific adviser, said officials are concerned about the new variant because it contained 23 different changes, “an unusually large number of variants” affecting how the virus binds to and enters cells in the body.

    Europe has been walloped this fall by soaring new infections and deaths due to a resurgence of the virus, and many nations have reimposed a series of restrictions to reign in their outbreaks.

    Britain has seen over 67,000 deaths in the pandemic, the second-highest confirmed toll in Europe after Italy.

    Europe as a whole has recorded nearly 499,000 virus deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University that experts believe is an undercount, due to limited testing and missed cases.

    The European Medicines Agency, meanwhile, is meeting Monday to approve the first COVID-19 vaccine for the European Union’s 27 nations, bringing vaccinations closer for millions of EU citizens.

    The vaccine made by German pharmaceutical company BioNTech and American drugmaker Pfizer is already in use in the United States, Britain, Canada and other countries. -Source : AP

    File photo : Passengers from international flights arrive at Heathrow Airport, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), London, Britain, July 29, 2020. REUTERS/Toby Melville

    Dec. 21 , 2020

    • Connecting you with the world of travel and tourism

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      India resumes tourist visa for

      Chinese citizens after 5 years

      India announced  that it will open tourist visa applications to Chinese citizens from July 24, 2025. It was the first time in five years since the South Asian country suspended Chinese citizens’ tourist visa applications in February 2020.

      The Embassy of India in China announced via its Sina Weibo account  that, starting from July 24, 2025, Chinese citizens can apply for a tourist visa to visit India after completing an online application, scheduling an appointment, and personally submitting their passport and other required documents to three Indian visa application centers in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou in South China’s Guangdong Province.

      Responding to the related inquiry, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said  that “we take note of this positive move. Easing cross-border travel is widely beneficial. China will maintain communication and consultation with India to further facilitate travel between the two countries.”

      Chinese experts said the latest move taken by the India marks a phased milestone in the easing of relations between the two countries, and creates favorable conditions for further strengthening bilateral people-to-people exchanges.

      On February 2, 2020, India temporarily suspended its e-visa facility for Chinese travelers and foreigners residing in China amid coronavirus outbreak. – Global Times

      Trump to pause anti-immigrant

      raids in hotels , restaurants

      US President Donald Trump has decided to temporarily suspend raids on farms, hotels and restaurants, according a media report.

      The US government has ordered immigration officials to pause raids and arrests on farms, hotels and restaurants, according to a report by the New York Times.

      Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were sent a directive asking that they refrain from heading to such establishments, which also include meatpacking plants and aquaculture.

      Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin confirmed the report, saying in a statement that “we will follow the president’s direction and continue to get the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens off America’s streets.”

      The pause in the raids potentially reflects the government’s concerns about the negative impact these operations are having on vital economic sectors, as well as electoral support. The agricultural industry, particularly in states like California, relies almost exclusively on immigrant labour for its day-to-day operations.

      The recent protests in Los Angeles, which were triggered by large-scale immigration raids in local communities, have increased pressure on the government. This situation poses a dilemma for the president, who is seeking to maintain the support of key constituencies ahead of the upcoming congressional and midterm elections in 2026.

      Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has implemented an unprecedentedly heavy-handed immigration policy. His cabinet officials recently held meetings with ICE leadership, setting a minimum quota of 3,000 arrests per day, a mandate that has resulted in intensified immigration raids nationwide.

      The temporary suspension of the agriculture and hospitality raids likely does not represent a fundamental change in Trump’s immigration policy, which remains aggressive in rhetoric.

      Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem pledhed that federal authorities are “not going away”, and that people who are in the country illegally, as well as violent protesters, will “face consequences”.

      The administration has relied heavily on a crime-focused message, which places significant emphasis on apprehending individuals illegally in the country who are also violent criminals.

      That message has been undercut, however, by statistics revealed this week which show the number of people arrested for immigration violations that have never faced other criminal charges or convictions has shot up from 860 in January this year to 7,800 this month.

      The number of individuals arrested with criminal charges and convictions also went up, but at a significantly lower rate of 91%. – Euronews , June 14, 2025

      Gulf Cooperation Council Tourism 

      Dubai – As tourism destinations in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) continue to grow, involving local communities in destination development has become increasingly vital for long-term success.

      Abu Dhabi’s Tourism Strategy 2030 aims for 39.3 million visitors per year, while Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 targets 150 million domestic and international visits, emphasising how tourism is being established as a key element of economic diversification throughout the region.

      At Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2025, industry leaders emphasised that sustainable revitalisation of destinations must align tourism investments with community partnerships, cultural authenticity, and immersive guest experiences to provide lasting value for both residents and visitors.

      During the session on “Considerations and Implications of Involving Communities in Destination Revitalisation” on the ATM 2025 Global Stage, experts shared insights into building resilience, enhancing local prosperity, and ensuring tourism growth is both inclusive and enduring.

      Arabian Travel Market 2025, held under the theme “Global Travel: Developing Tomorrow’s Tourism Through Enhanced Connectivity”,  featured more than 200 speakers across three content stages and welcomes over 55,000 travel professionals from 166 countries.

      Messe Berlin India launched 

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      Messe Berlin announces the official launch of Messe Berlin India, a newly incorporated subsidiary that underscores the company’s long-term commitment to one of Asia’s fastest-growing markets. Headquartered in Delhi , the new entity will serve as a strategic base for expanding ITB India and launching future projects tailored to the Indian market. With this establishment, Messe Berlin is reinforcing its vision of India as a regional hub for innovation, collaboration, and sustainable business growth within the exhibition and events industry.

      “Messe Berlin’s presence in India reflects our strategic intent to strengthen our international reach by being where the growth is. India is a key market for us — vibrant, diverse, and full of opportunities. With Messe Berlin India, we are laying down long-term foundations to build strong partnerships, support local industries, and elevate our global platforms,” said Dr. Mario Tobias, CEO, Messe Berlin.

      ITB India, inaugurated in 2023, continues as the flagship event under the new subsidiary. Held annually, ITB India is a three-day B2B travel trade show and convention that connects the global travel and tourism industry with the Indian market. Alongside MICE Show India, Travel Tech India, and the ITB India Conference, ITB India serves as a unique platform to forge new partnerships, strengthen existing ties, and capitalize on the fast-growing potential of the Indian and South Asian travel economies. The show hosts key players from the MICE, Leisure, Corporate Travel, and Travel Technology sectors. The upcoming edition, ITB India 2025, will take place from 2 – 4 September 2025  in Mumbai.

      FACTS —

      Tourism helps in:

      👉Reducing poverty

      👉Reducing Inequalities

      👉Promoting gender equality

      👉Fostering decent work and economic growth

      World Tourism Day 2021: ‘Tourism for Inclusive Growth’

      In 2019, Travel & Tourism’s direct, indirect and induced impact accounted for:
      -US$8.9 trillion contribution to the world’s GDP
      -10.3% of global GDP
      -330 million jobs, 1 in 10 jobs around the world
      -US$1.7 trillion visitor exports (6.8% of total exports,
      28.3% of global services exports)
      -US$948 billion capital investment (4.3% of total
      investment)