Travel news overview

• Destinations
• 16/12/2021 16:24

Rwanda ranks 6th in visa openness in Africa

Rwanda progressed the most, after Tanzania, in regional countries that opened to visitors from other African countries as well as African Union initiatives in the last five years. This is according to authors of the latest Africa Visa Openness report 2021.

Rwanda scored 6th in this year's rankings and top performers despite t… read more

• Flights
• 16/12/2021 04:04

COVID-19: How well have African Airlines recovered?

The big question as to whether Africa could produce its own mega-carrier or an ‘African Airlines Alliance’, like the global alliances of SkyTeam, Oneworld and Star Alliance, appears to be getting a definite response as Kenya Airways signed a Strategic Partnership Framework with South African Airways late November 2021. The airlines describe this… read more

• Flights
• 16/12/2021 04:04

AASA breathe a sigh relief as UK reverses Travel Restrictions

The Airlines Association of Southern Africa (AASA) said it is relieved that the UK has decided to relax the travel restrictions that were hastily imposed on South Africa and other Southern African countries following the announcement of the identification of the Omicron variant by South African scientists last month.

Aaron Munetsi, … read more

• Miscellaneous
• 16/12/2021 04:03

2021 Africa Visa Openness Index

Opening up Africa's borders to travel will drive investment and an economic rebound, according to the authors of the 2021 Africa Visa Openness Index.

Published yearly since 2016, the Index measures African countries' openness to travellers from elsewhere on the continent. This year's edition found that the onset of the Covid-19 pand… read more

• Cruise
• 16/12/2021 04:03

New AIDAnova mega-ship sails from Hamburg for first time

AIDAnova arrived in the port of Hamburg for the first time on Monday, and the final preparations have been made for the welcome of the first guests and the start of the first cruise on Tuesday.  AIDAnova on December 14th will become the 10th AIDA cruise ship to resume cruises since the pandemic, sailing roundtrip out of Hamburg.

• Destinations
• 16/12/2021 03:59

Seychelles International Airport launches biometric corridor for ‘contactless’ travel screening

The Ministry of Transport has announced the launch of a biometric corridor for health travel screening at Seychelles International Airport, becoming the second country in the world after the UAE to leverage walk-through biometrics at its borders, guaranteeing contactless and secure travel and an unmatched customer experience for all tr… read more

• Flights
• 15/12/2021 18:54

Brussels Airlines plans to grow Its Offering In Africa Next Summer

Brussels Airlines is resuming some of its previously canceled routes to Africa due to the COVID-19 crisis. For its 2022 summer schedule, the Belgian flag carrier will add West-African destinations Conakry (Guinea) and Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) from June 11th. The airline credits its expansion to an additional Airbus A330 that will join i… read more

• Destinations
• 15/12/2021 18:54

Travel Bans - Tourism Companies bleed N$2,1m each in one week

TOURISM companies have received cancellations well into 2022, signalling one of Namibia's most severe crises in the tourism sector in the past two years. The tourism and hospitality sectors in Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe lost on average U$134 383 (N$2,1 million) per business in the first week after the new Omicron Covid… read more

• Flights
• 15/12/2021 18:53

Crisis averted: Emirates could return to Nigeria after Air Peace deal

In the latest installment of the UAE-Nigeria aviation drama, it seems the UAE has backed down on its allocation of slots for Nigerian airline Air Peace. In a letter seen by Simple Flying, Dubai Airports has allocated slots at Dubai (DXB) for Air Peace, instead of at Sharjah. This paves the way for Emirates to also restart flights t… read more

• Miscellaneous
• 15/12/2021 18:50

Senegal releases EUR 6 million to pay off former Air Afrique staff

On 28 March 1961, eleven French-speaking African states signed the treaty creating Air Afrique in Yaoundé, Cameroon.  This was an act of great historical, political and economic significance. After more than forty years of operations, littered with several rescue attempts, the pan-African air carrier was finally liquidated on 25 April 2002 by the Commercial Court of Abidjan.