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New Zealand's government yesterday extended a ban on cruise ships arriving in the country, which was previously set to expire on 30 June. It also tightened measures for visitors to exit quarantine, after reporting more COVID-19 cases linked to overseas travel. Passengers in quarantine may now need to undergo multiple virus tests, and must test negative for COVID-19 before leaving the facilities.

Passengers arriving in the Australian state from overseas will be charged fees for quarantining in government arranged accommodation from 1 July - unless they carry proof that their flight booking was made prior to 17 June. The state has published a detailed list of FAQ's on their website including a scale of costs, which start at AU$2800 for a single traveller to undergo the 14-day mandatory quarantine.

The airline yesterday published their latest update on flight schedules for June and July 2020. Reinstated scheduled services include flights to Adelaide, Amsterdam, Auckland, Barcelona, Brisbane, Cebu, Christchurch, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Medan, Melbourne and Osaka.

In response to the Australian state of Victoria recording a ‘concerning’ spike in COVID-19 cases, the state government of neighbouring New South Wales has warned against anyone travelling to virus-hotspots in the state. Meanwhile, the Queensland state government has declared that any visitors or returning residents who have travelled to or lived in a Victorian virus-hotspot must self-quarantine for 14 days.

The country's prime minister told Fiji's parliament yesterday that he plans to create a travel bubble with Australia and New Zealand, as part of of a plan for the slow resumption of tourism in post-COVID-19 society. No confirmed plans or dates are yet in place, though, for the so-called 'Bula Bubble'.

The health guidelines provide clear and consistent advice regarding risk-minimisation principles and processes, in domestic airports and on aircraft, for domestic passenger travel. The protocol is informed by health advice from the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee, as well as guidance from international aviation authorities.

Avani have published updated information on the measures they're taking to prepare for post-COVID-19 travel, as more of their hotels globally begin to re-open. Their protocols, introduced under the name 'AvaniSHIELD', include initiatives such as digital check-in/out, a digital concierge app and a trusted partner program for local transport.

The global hotel group has introduced a program of rigorous standards for cleaning and safety, working with their housekeeping and cleaning partners to deliver hygiene protocols over and above the World Health Organisation’s best practice recommendations.

The state of South Australia is re-opening its borders to people coming from Queensland; Premier Steven Marshall says the change will take effect from 00.01 (local time) on 20 June, meaning anyone coming from that state will no longer be required to spend 14 days in quarantine on arrival in South Australia.

The airline has announced a new process to improve how customers can use their ticket value held in credit if their travel was impacted by COVID-19. Customers now have the option to use ticket credit towards multiple bookings, with greater flexibility that allows them to complete rebooked travel up until an extended deadline of 31 December 2022.

Accor has launched the ALLSAFE global cleanliness & prevention label, which has been developed with, and vetted by, Bureau Veritas - a world leader in testing, inspections and certification. All of the group's hotels must adhere to these standards, and will be subject to audits either by Accor operational experts or by third-party auditors such as Bureau Veritas to receive this label.

Hilton has announced updates to a global program developed to introduce a new standard of hotel cleanliness and disinfection to ensure that guests enjoy an even cleaner and safer stay: Hilton CleanStay with Lysol protection. The program has been developed with experts from RB, maker of Lysol and Dettol - brands trusted for safely disinfecting surfaces. In addition, experts from the Infection Prevention and Control team at Mayo Clinic will advise and assist in enhancing Hilton’s cleaning disinfection protocols.

The airline has announced that passenger flights between Auckland and Shanghai will resume once per week from 22 June. Flight number NZ289 will leave Auckland on a Monday, and return from Shanghai on a Wednesday. The service will be operated by a Boeing 787-9 aircraft and will remain on this schedule until 30 August, unless otherwise advised.

The airline has reportedly suspended all international flights until at least 24 October, with the exception of some services to New Zealand.

The government of the state of South Australia will reopen the state's borders to Western Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory from midnight (16 June) as it further accelerates the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. The change means travellers from those jurisdictions will no longer need to isolate themselves for 14 days when they arrive in South Australia.

The airline is set to double current capacity by early July, adding approximately 30,000 seats across 320 flights per week to its domestic schedule. Virgin Australia will also introduce a comprehensive new set of safety and wellbeing measures, including pre-departure eligibility and health screening, contactless check-in, more frequent cleaning onboard and at the airport and expanded social distancing measures.

The airline has today released updated details of flight schedules in June, including the resumption of a number of routes. Although subject to change, flights to destinations including cities in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia and Singapore are currently due to operate.

The country will lift all social distancing measures from 00.01 (local time) on 9 June as it moves to alert level one; this follows the news that for now, New Zealand has eliminated the transmission of COVID-19. Public and private events, the retail and hospitality industries and all public transport are due to resume - however the country's strict border restrictions remain in place, suspending most international arrivals.

The international flights of both airlines will be grounded for an indefinite period from today, after a government-subsidised repatriation network covering journeys from London, Auckland, Los Angeles and Hong Kong came to an end. The Australian government says it is reviewing whether it needs to fund further flights to get Australians home from overseas.

Emirates has announced today that from 15 June, flights and transit services will be resumed between Dubai International Airport and a further 16 cities. Flights will shortly be available to Bahrain, Manchester, Zurich, Vienna, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Dublin, New York JFK, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Jakarta, Taipei, Hong Kong, Perth and Brisbane.