Rest of the World News

The global average ticket price for flights booked for business travel soared 72.2% YoY to reach US$749 in 2022, far surpassing the levels recorded in 2019 (US$670).

Soaring travel costs? Welcome to the new normalBusiness travel costs are still rising but increases to be 'more moderate': report.

Lahaina, on the Hawaiian island of Maui, was devastated by wildfires. Seen here is the Lahaina Square Shopping Center area, taken on 25 June (left) and 9 August (right).

Hawaii’s ‘largest natural disaster in history’ prompts travel warningTravellers urged to stay away from Maui for now, but rest of Hawaii is unaffected.

The prosed tax law would make vacations would also require non-EU tour operators to file tax returns in Germany.

Better late or never? Germany defers tour taxA proposed tax on Germany vacations sold by tour companies outside of the EU has been deferred.

The integration of Deem with the Travelport Plus platform is a "natural extension" of Travelport's strategy as the latter moved to a single platform.

Travelport incorporates Deem into travel agency platformThe corporate booking tool is now fully integrated with Travelport+.

Raffles London, opening in October 2023, will take up residence at the OWO, an Edwardian Old War Office.

London is seeing a flurry of new luxury hotelsA crop of high-end openings is poised to catapult the city's luxury sector to new heights.

The ongoing heatwave in South Korea has severely affected the World Scout Jamboree, which is taking place in the coastal town of Buan this year.

New Korea wave makes travel too hot to handleIt’s no jamboree for thousands of young scouts in South Korea as temperatures hit soaring highs.

Greece will initiate a trial period for the cap on visitors to the Acropolis of Athens starting 4 September, with plans to permanently implement the rule on 1 April 2024.

Greece limits tourists to Acropolis due to overcrowdingOnly 20,000 visitors will be allowed into the UNESCO World Heritage site each day.

Passengers can earn stamps for each pet flight and redeem them for discounts and benefits on future flights.

Who’s flying? The rise of the furry and feathered travellersNow passengers can fly with their pets on Korean Air’s SkyPets loyalty programme and earn pet stamps too.

Dubai claims the top spot for the second consecutive year based on 140.4 billion TikTok views of #Dubai.

The world’s hottest destinations on TikTokHabibi, come to Dubai, says influencers as the emirati tops TikTok charts as the most viewed destination in the world.

After its maiden voyage on 10 August, Norwegian Viva will embark on a series of Mediterranean and Greek Isles itineraries before the official Christening ceremony in Miami on 28 November.

All systems go for Norwegian Viva’s maiden voyageNorwegian Cruise Line has taken delivery of its second Prima Class vessel, seven days before its inaugural sailing.