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Hundreds of athletes marched through the Olympic Stadium on Friday, part of a parade of nations that — like many aspects of this year’s Games — looked a little different than normal. The masked athletes held up flags and waved as they entered, but were greeted by a near-empty stadium due to spectators being banned from the Games following the declaration of a state of emergency in Tokyo. “Over 4 billion people across the world will be watching these Olympic Games,” Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told NBC News ahead of the ceremony....

Coral reefs contain the most diverse ecosystems on the planet, and are full of life, beauty, and nutrients for our oceans. They protect coastlines from the damaging effects of storms and waves, and are essential to ocean life. Unfortunately, thanks to pollution, climate change, overfishing, and poisoning, reefs are dying at alarming rates, suffering irreplaceable damage and often times, dying completely. Just as alarming, coral reefs are dying from our sunscreen use....

Finding the best places to enjoy fromage — whether it’s a cheese shop, restaurant, or farmstead creamery — in a destination is all about the hunt. You might spend hours online pre-trip researching, or chat up all your cheese-loving friends. By that time, you could very well have aged a wedge of young Gouda or cheddar, right? But what if you put one of America’s foremost cheese experts in charge of your cheese-fueled journey?...

If spending your retirement in a warm and sunny locale sounds good to you—and if you’re planning ahead for those days of leisure—you’ll be interested to know that a city in the Sunshine State was just named the best place to retire in America. In fact, in the recently released U.S. News and World Report’s 2020-2021 list of “Best Places to Retire in the U.S.,” Florida metro areas took 13 of the top 25 rankings....

Crowded airports, overpacked luggage, cramped airplane seats — and maybe even a stomach-tightening, nail-biting anxiety brought on by the annual visit to your in-laws — are all very real perils of holiday travel. Add on the weeks of pre-holiday office treats and big holiday meals, and you’ve got a recipe for disaster. To help combat all the tolls that holiday travel takes on your body, we talked to medical experts to guide us through the medical menaces of holiday travel and to share advice on how to overcome these potential obstacles....

Tradewind Aviation is celebrating its 20th anniversary in a big way. The regional flight company will give away one round-trip private charter flight — worth $20,000 — to reunite a family separated during the pandemic. After all, family has been the backbone of the company since it was founded by brothers Eric and David Zipkin in 2001 — and it has remained a family-owned and operated business throughout the last two decades....

Editor’s note: Those who choose to travel are strongly encouraged to check local government restrictions, rules, and safety measures related to COVID-19 and take personal comfort levels and health conditions into consideration before departure. United Airlines is ramping up its winter schedule with more flights to warm-weather destinations in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America. In total, the airline is adding eight new routes to increased service to 19 destinations over the coming months as various islands and countries in Central America welcome back American travelers....

United Airlines celebrated gaining an extra hour over the weekend with extra deals, putting flights on sale for as low as $39 each way. United invited customers on Monday to “make the most of your extra hour” with its Daylight Savings sale, which passengers can book until midnight Central Time. The sale is valid for travel from Nov. 21 through March 9, 2022, on one-way domestic U.S. flights in basic economy....

Universal Beijing Resort finally revealed details about its upcoming theme park resort, unveiling the lands, rides, attractions, and experiences in store for future guests. Set to open next year, the Universal Beijing Resort will include the Universal Studios Beijing theme park, Universal CityWalk Beijing, and two hotels — the Universal Studios Grand Hotel and NUO Resort Hotel. It will be the third Universal theme park resort in Asia, following Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Singapore....

For its central location, Frankfurt is known as the “Gateway to Europe" — and travelers often only pass through, using it as a transit point to other major destination cities. More recently, however, Frankfurt has been going by a different moniker, which refers to the city’s emerging position as an exciting new destination on the Old Continent. Frankfurt has become “Mainhattan.” Spread along both banks of the Main River (hence its formal name, Frankfurt am Main), the city has always held a special place in German history....

Once the capital of St. Lucia, Soufrière is best known as the home of Gros Piton and Petit Piton, the iconic pair of now-dormant volcanoes that rise from the gin-clear Caribbean — best viewed from the breezy upper balcony of Orlando’s. But there’s a lot more to this west coast town. What to Do Paul Baggaley/Getty Images Hiking 2,619-foot Gros Piton — a four-hour adventure rewarded with views of neighboring Martinique and St....

Some people can’t get enough chocolate. Luckily, at one Belgian chocolate factory, you can eat as much as you like. According to Metro, Journalist Jon Stone discovered a chocolate paradise in Brussels that would make Willy Wonka jealous. While visiting the Neuhaus Belgian Chocolate Factory, he found out that visitors can actually gorge themselves as much as they like while they’re on the premises — free of charge. Stone wrote on Twitter, “I don’t want to alarm anyone but at the end of Brussels metro line 5 there’s a factory outlet for chocolate maker Neuhaus and you can literally ‘try’ (eat) as much as you like for free....

A town in Canada is looking for a fresh image — and, especially, a new name. The town of Asbestos, located in Quebec, used to be known for its mining of the mineral that has been linked to cancer cases but only recently stopped operations. Now, according to Bloomberg, the town is moving on from its old reputation by choosing a new name. In October, residents of Asbestos will be able to vote on a new town name....

Breeze, the newest airline from JetBlue CEO David Neeleman, looks like it’s going to be a breath of fresh air for the airline industry. Neeleman made a statement on Friday announcing the name of his latest endeavor – a U.S.-based budget airline called Breeze Airways. The new carrier, originally known by the codename “Moxy,” has officially submitted its application for operations with the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. Department of Transportation after many years of planning, Business Insider reported....

Curacao, an idyllic Dutch Caribbean island just off the coast of Venezuela, has joined the list of paradises courting digital nomads with foreign income sources and the freedom to work from anywhere. Curacao is welcoming non-residents to live and work on the island, which offers a year-round temperature around 84 degrees Fahrenheit and widely available 4G connectivity, for up to six months. They’ll be able to come and go as they please during that period, and won’t be subject to local income taxes....

The Department of Homeland Security will allow New Yorkers to apply for and renew Global Entry membership after the agency initially blocked residents from participating in the Trusted Traveler Program in February. The original decision to cut New Yorkers out of the popular travel programs — which help people speed through the immigration process at airports — was made after New York passed a “Green Light Law,” which allows people to apply for a specific driver’s license using an expanded list of documents (including foreign passports and foreign driver’s licenses) and banned the sharing of records “to any agency that primarily enforces immigration law” without a court order or warrant or unless required for federal ID purposes....

Disney Cruise Line has extended its pause of U.S. voyages through the end of June. “We are carefully reviewing the recently released guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and working toward resuming operations,” the cruise line announced on its website this week. “As we continue to refine our protocols for our eventual return to service, we are canceling all Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy and Disney Wonder sailings departing through June 2021....

Between postponed vacations, canceled festivals, and limited-size gatherings, 2020 has not been a good year for socializing. For music lovers itching to enjoy a live show again, an arena-filled concert may not be possible, but the W Fort Lauderdale is offering the next best thing: in-suite live music experiences. This new amenity — appropriately named Suite Sounds — allows guests at the luxury beachfront hotel to turn their balcony into a private concert venue with a live performance all to themselves....

They say “it’s better in the Bahamas.” And after months cooped up at home, you may want to find out for yourself if the Caribbean destination lives up to the hype. (Spoiler: it does.) Spread over 100,000 square miles, the archipelago of 700 islands has been open since July 1. But entry procedures and COVID-19 protocols continue to change as infection numbers fluctuate, both locally and in the United States, so it’s wise to check the country’s official website for current entry regulations....

Hawaii is encouraging travelers to volunteer during their visits in exchange for a free night in a hotel after the island welcomed visitors back in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The initiative, called Mālama Hawai‘i — or care for Hawaii — allows tourists to volunteer, getting involved in everything from tree planting, ocean reef preservation, making quilts for elders, to taking on a beach cleanup on their own time, the Hawai‘i Visitors and Convention Bureau shared with Travel + Leisure....