The United States is no longer advising against all international travel, according to an update from the US State Department.

On August 6, the department announced it was lifting the Global Level 4 Health Advisory, which was put in place on March 19 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and advised citizens against all international travel.

The department, along with the CDC, are now lifting the advisory and instead recommending that citizens “exercise caution when traveling abroad due to the unpredictable nature of the pandemic”. The state department will instead return to its system of providing travel advice on a country-by-country basis, due to the fact that conditions are improving in some countries and “potentially deteriorating in others”. Countries will be rated from levels 1 to 4, depending on severity of the outbreaks there.

Anyone considering heading abroad should read the entire travel advisory for their destination at Travel.State.gov. Conditions in other countries will be monitored in partnership with the CDC and other agencies, according to the state department. “The Department of State has worked closely with the CDC since the start of the pandemic to align our public messages and travel advice and to keep Americans safe.”

While the US has removed its recommendation against travel for its own citizens, the scale of the outbreak in the US means that many countries, including most of Europe, are not allowing US travelers to enter. The border between the US and Canada also remains closed. See a list of countries with restrictions on US visitors here.

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New Zealand has delayed the proposed travel bubble arrangement with Australia, with prime minister Jacinda Ardern suggesting this week that tourism between the two countries is still several months off.

In May as New Zealand and Australia began to emerge from lockdown after reporting dramatic falls in new coronavirus infections, there were suggestions the two countries would resume tourism in what's being referred to as a "travel bubble" or formally as the "trans-Tasman Covid-safe travel zone."

The "bubble" would eventually see borders between the neighbouring nations reopen for non-essential travel while borders remain closed to visitors from other countries. No timeline was confirmed, though it was hoped the arrangement would be implemented before the southern hemisphere's summer season began. However, recent COVID-19 outbreaks in Melbourne, which prompted Victoria's state of emergency, have spooked officials and pushed the plan further down the line.

Speaking to New Zealand's The AM Show, as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, Ardern stated "one of the things we said as part of our criteria was that anywhere we have quarantine-free travel they have to be free of community transmission for a period of time, 28 days. That is going to take a long time for Australia to get back to that place."

Ardern didn't put a timeframe on the proposed travel bubble, adding “it will be on the back burner for several months."

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Ardern and Australia's prime minister Scott Morrison released a joint statement in May, saying the possibility of a travel bubble had been discussed between their governments and work would begin on establishing a system "as soon as it was safe to do so." "We need to be cautious as we progress this initiative. Neither country wants to see the virus rebound so it's essential any such travel zone is safe. Relaxing travel restrictions at an appropriate time will clearly benefit both countries and demonstrates why getting on top of the virus early is the best strategy for economic recovery."

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Australia and New Zealand's borders currently remain closed to all non-citizens or non-permanent visitors. If the borders eventually open for tourism through the trans-Tasman Covid-safe travel zone, it's likely that people travelling between the two countries would not have to quarantine.

New Zealand implemented one of the world's toughest lockdowns in mid-March. And now it appears that swift action, as well as strict measures and a high level of compliance from citizens, have made it one of the safest countries when it comes to coronavirus with no known community transmission at present.

This article was first published on May 5th and updated on August 6th, 2020.

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Uber has teamed up with the river bus service Thames Clippers to take commuters across London via the River Thames, offering passengers a less jam-packed transport alternative to the Tube.

The service began operating on August 3 from 23 piers across the city, as far west as Putney and as far east as Woolwich. A fleet of 20 Thames Clippers boat are being used as river busses, decked out in distinct black and white Uber branding. Passengers can book tickets booked through Uber's app and then use QR codes on their phone when boarding to facilitate a contactless journey.

Thames Clippers co-founder Sean Collins said over 4.3 million people already use the River Thames for commuting on leisure on the company's network, enjoying the increased space per passenger and fresh air a river bus service offers. But the company hopes its partnership with Uber will encourage even more people to do so, and help it reach its goal of expanding services further along the Thames and connecting more suburbs.

On top of that, Uber may eventually be able to offer an integrated service, allowing customers to book an end-to-end journey with a connecting car on the ride-hailing app.

"As Londoners begin to head back to work and move safely across the city, they will now be able to book travel on both the river and road through the Uber app," said Jamie Heywood, Uber's regional general manager for northern and eastern Europe. "We must ensure that everyone does not return to their cars in response to the crisis, so our vision is to end private car ownership in favour of shared, electric vehicles, as well as making greater use of the river network for urban mobility," he added.

All Uber Boat journeys are fully contactless. Some seats on board have been blocked off to ensure social distancing and floor markings have been laid out to help people queue safely. All passengers must use face coverings if they wish to use the service. Tickets can be purchased here or through the Uber app. Journeys start from £4.50 for an adult ticket.

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Like many people worldwide, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have opted to enjoy a "staycation" this summer, and have chosen to bring their children to the Isles of Scilly off the southwest coast of England. In doing so, Prince William is revisiting a beloved holiday destination from his own childhood.

Located 28 miles off the coast of Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly are comprised of around 140 tiny islands. Only five islands are inhabited: St Mary's is the largest, followed by Tresco, while only a few residents remain on Bryher, St Martin's and St Agnes. They are renowned for their great beaches, which should appeal to the royal children, Prince George (7), Princess Charlotte (5) and Prince Louis (2). The Cambridges are reportedly staying at an old stone rectory on the island of Tresco, which was once owned by the monks of Tavistock Abbey.

In 1989, Prince William was pictured exploring the archipelago by bicycle with his father Charles, mother Diana and brother Harry.

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According to the Mirror newspaper, William and Kate also cycled across Tresco on this trip and said hello to the locals they passed. It is not the first time they have visited, because the Cambridges carried out an official trip back in 2016, where they toured Tresco Abbey Gardens, the island's fabulous subtropical garden and its main attraction.

It is likely that the Cambridges will enjoy good weather as Tresco has one of the mildest climates in the UK, enabling it to support a range of exotic flora. If the royal visitors decide to island-hop, it will be easy to do so as regular ferry boats run between all five islands.

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Dallas -based carrier, Southwest Airlines, has implemented new cleaning protocols in which armrests and seat belts will not be wiped down between each flight. This is change to the cleaning procedures that were implemented in March when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold worldwide.

Between-flight disinfecting is now focused on high-touch areas, such as bathrooms and tray tables, Ro Hawthorne of Southwest tells Lonely Planet, as these are the most prone to contamination from customer use and food/beverage consumption. Southwest will also provide sanitizing wipes to passengers, upon request, to wipe down surfaces.

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The new procedures are in response to an increase in flight scheduling and minimizing the turnaround time between flights. While the armrests and seat belts will not be disinfected between flights, they will be included in the airline's "enhanced" nightly cleaning protocol, where cleaning teams spend six to seven hours deep-cleaning all interior surfaces per aircraft, including seat belt buckles, tray tables, air vents, arm rests, galleys and lavatories.

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Each plane undergoes a "deep" electrostatic cleaning once a month, which the airline says kills viruses on contact and forms an anti-microbial coating, or shield, for 30 days. According to Southwest, this application causes droplets of both a disinfection agent and antimicrobial cleaner to produce a fine mist that wraps around all surfaces and coats in a way that human hands can't touch. "Southwest will monitor customer and employee feedback as we adapt to the new normal in air travel, while ensuring we keep safety as our top priority," says Hawthorne.

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Walkers may soon be charged to climb Wales’ highest mountain. A local councilor has claimed a fee as low as £1 per person would help pay for the upkeep and preservation of the peak, which is visited by half a million people a year.

Snowdonia National Park, which contains Snowdon alongside other popular mountains such as Tryfan and Glyder Fach, was closed in March as part of Wales’ coronavirus lockdown. Since it reopened on July 6, visitors have flocked to the mountain. Warnings have been issued for illegal camping and car parks have been at capacity, with illegally parked vehicles being towed away. Snowdonia also faces ongoing problems with soil erosion and litter.

Gwynedd councilor Gwyn Daniels said the measure would raise money for path maintenance and ease congestion. “This would not only raise revenue for both the council and the park,” he said, “but could also contribute to building new car parks, therefore lessening the number of vehicles illegally parking on the roads on certain days… We’re not asking for gold nuggets, but then again we deserve more than peanuts.”

Daniels added that other countries such as Switzerland, Canada and New Zealand charge for entry to national parks. In the UK, while parking fees may be levied, entry to all national parks is currently free. The UK’s “right to roam” enshrines public access to areas including mountains, moors, heaths and downs, even where these are privately owned.

Yet the hugely popular Snowdonia, at 1085m the highest point in Wales and England, has long been a mountain apart. Yr Wyddfa (“the tomb”) in Welsh, it boasts views across to Ireland on a clear day, and is the mythical resting place of a giant slain by King Arthur. Numerous paths snake up its rocky slopes, including vertiginous ridge walks and easier tracks, and a tourist train climbs to just below the summit. Its fame means it can get busy, and its facilities need regular maintenance – costing around £250,000 per year.

The charge would be levied on those accessing the summit via train or on foot, and any fee would face legal obstacles due to the right to roam. The measure will be discussed further at a council meeting in October.

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Conservationists in Bali have released about two dozen green turtles back into the their natural habitat after rescuing them from suspected illegal poachers.

Marine officials on the popular tourist island helped 25 green sea turtles return to the wild on Wednesday on Kuta Beach in Denpasar. The sea turtles, some of which can weigh upwards of 300kg, were placed on the sand by conservationists who stroked their heads and gently guided them to the sea. Photos show the turtles digging their flippers into the sand before scrambling into the water.

The turtles were among 36 seized in a raid last month that saw the arrest of seven suspected traffickers in the Serangan waters. The remaining 11 are currently being rehabilitated and are expected to return to the sea later in the month. Speaking to Reuters, Agus Budi Santoso, head of the Bali Natural Resources Conservation Center, said the remaining turtles need to be assessed to ensure they are healthy enough to adapt to life in the wild. "If they cannot adapt to the environment, we cannot release them," Santoso said. "Hopefully these 25 turtles will survive so that they can lay their eggs again," he added.

Six of the world’s seven species of sea turtle inhabit Indonesia’s waters and under the country's wildlife protection laws, anyone convicted of involvement in the trafficking of marine turtles can be jailed for up to five years.

Nearly all the species of sea turtles are classified as endangered, with three of the seven existing species being critically endangered, according to the World Wildlife Fund. Sea turtles virtually everywhere are slaughtered for their eggs, meat, skin and shells and suffer from poaching and over-exploitation. Plastics and discarded fishing gear also harm and kill sea turtles through ingestion and entanglement, while chemical pollutants in the sea weaken their immune systems.

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Since an unexpected fire severely damaged the iconic Cathédrale Notre Dame de Paris back in April 2019, restoration work has started and stopped for a number of reasons. First the site needed to be cleared of toxic dust that had potential to be harmful to workers and visitors near the site, then COVID-19 halted progress. But now, renewal efforts are concentrating on the cathedral’s beloved grand organ that was miraculously spared. With nearly 8000 pipes, restoration is expected to take up to four years as the organ is disassembled and cleaned.

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With roots that date back to the 15 th century, the grand organ has long been celebrated for its incredible sound and impressive size. It survived the French Revolution (when many organs were melted down for weaponry) and WWII, and has been renovated by experts many times throughout history in order to stay functional and be upgraded, with a rebuilding by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll taking place in the 19 th century.

Thankfully, the organ was spared from unrepairable damage in the fire due to its location. While much of the roof is wooden, the organ’s location at the front of the cathedral beneath a stone overhang meant that flames did not reach it. There was, however, extensive damage caused by dust and water from the fire hoses however, and experts have said that each and every pipe will need to be cleaned individually over the next four years.

According to The New York Times, one of Notre Dame’s three main organists Vincent Dubois was informed of the fire by text message in 2019, but was elated to hear that the organ was spared. The fire caused a reported 440 tonnes of lead inside the 850-year old roof to melt, along with scaffolding that had been in place adhering to the roof. In June the Cathedral’s plaza opened to the public following extensive cleaning by a team of workers.

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For the first time in four years, endangered tigers have been spotted in western Thailand – a positive step toward the country’s goal of increasing tiger populations by 50% by 2022.

In late July, Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP), wild cat conservation organization Panthera, and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) announced that their remote camera traps – part of a joint wildlife monitoring program – had caught the big cats in high definition. The footage was taken near one of the only breeding populations of Indochinese tigers in the world, and all eyes are on the region to see if the big cats settle in and establish territories, the DNP’s Wildlife Research Division chief, Dr. Saksit Simcharoen, said in a press release.

During the last century, 100,000 tigers roamed the planet. Today there are just 3900 in existence, and in the area they were recently discovered, there are so few that scientists have yet to estimate their numbers reliably.

Still, according to ZSL's chief technical advisor in Thailand, Dr. Eileen Larney, witnessing “apex predators, like tigers, returning to forests means the ecosystem is recovering, which is good for all wildlife. The situation for tigers worldwide remains precarious, but successes like this show that through our work with communities and governments, we can see populations start to recover.”

In many parts of the world, poachers have run rampant during the pandemic lockdowns, but the DNP has strengthened its patrols during this time, the agency said, using Panthera’s PoacherCams to spot those hunting illegally and notify law enforcement in real-time.

“These tigers are in a precarious situation,” Simcharoen said in a press release. “Sustained and stronger protection of this area from poaching activity of any kind is the key to ensuring these individuals live on, helping Thailand’s tigers to rebound.”

“In a sea of news casting doubt on the future of our planet’s wildlife, this development is a welcome sign of hope and potential turning of the tide for the endangered tiger in Thailand,” Panthera chief scientist and Tiger Program director Dr. John Goodrich added in a statement. “These tigers’ repeated detections in new areas suggests suitable habitat and prey exists for this small but significant population. All to say that our collaborative conservation efforts are paying off at a time when the species needs it the most.”

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