Venice – joining the fight against AirBnB

Before the pandemic, the Italian city of Venice was overrun with tourists and was looking for ways to restrict numbers. Now that Italy’s lockdown restrictions are easing, the city is looking forward to the much-needed tourist revenue.

Tourists are heading back. It can’t be compared to May two years ago, but Europeans are gearing up for their post lockdown freedom to travel.

India's top tourist attraction the Taj Mahal reopens two months after it was shut when a deadly surge in coronavirus infections swept the country. Cases and deaths in the vast nation of 1.3 billion people soared to record levels in April and May but infections have declined in recent weeks, with major cities including the capital New Delhi and the financial capital Mumbai lifting some curbs on movement and activities.

Visitors are trickling back to the Turkish resort of Bodrum, a lavish holiday destination for celebrities, jetsetters and sun-seeking foreigners, but the number of visitors still pales in comparison to the resort's pre-coronavirus glory.

Lavender, basil or roses: history and aromatic plants are being grafted in Cyprus to broaden its sun-and-sea appeal and regain its lofty status dating back to Roman times.

Venice Beach in California: synonymous with sun, surf, palm trees and, now, homeless people. As many as 200 tents inhabited by them line the oceanfront in this Los Angeles-area town that for decades has been a lure for surfers and tourists.

Since the United States was placed on the European Union's green list in mid-June, American tourists have been making a timid return to Paris after almost a year and a half of absence. With more than 4 million tourists visiting France each year before the health crisis, Americans rank 9th among countries of origin.

The restriction will come into effect at the beginning of August, the Italian government has confirmed. Campaigners say the liners cause damage to Venice's ecosystem.

56,000 Germans planned vacations in Algarve for this July. That was before the warning. Now, no one knows how many of those holidaymakers will even show up.

The aircraft with 16 people on board crashed into a volcanic lake in Russia's far east. Several remain missing, feared dead.

From the Venice Film Festival, critic Emma Jones speaks to Eve Jackson about the event’s most anticipated movies, including Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana in "Spencer" and Pedro Almodovar's "Parallel Mothers", starring Penelope Cruz. In the studio, critic Lisa Nesselson tells us about two new movies out in French cinemas: "France" with Léa Seydoux and the erotic and mysterious Japanese film "Drive My Car".

Darlings of Spanish cinema, Pedro Almodovar and Penelope Cruz, marked the opening of the 78th Venice Film Festival, which guarantees, a shower of stars on the red carpet despite the pandemic.