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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lowered its travel warning for several popular Caribbean islands this week, but continues to warn Americans against popular countries in Europe. The agency reclassified Saint Kitts and Nevis and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines under “Level 1,” its lowest travel warning, indicating that there is a “low” level of COVID-19 there. Destinations are classified as a “Level 1” if there are fewer than 50 new reported cases per 100,000 people in the past 28 days....

By now, you’ve likely heard that a comet known as Neowise is putting on a surprise show for skywatchers this month. But, in case you needed a little boost to get outside and look for it yourself, let us present you with this unbelievable 4K video of the comet hovering in the heavens. On July 5, NASA astronaut Bob Behnken floated over to the window aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to check out the view of the Earth below....

A new Comic-Con museum is set to open in San Diego’s Balboa Park later this month when a special edition of San Diego Comic-Con finally brings fans back to the city where the famed convention was born. “When Comic-Con began as a tiny gathering of fans in a hotel basement in 1970, no one could have imagined that one day the convention would have its own museum,” Comic-Con’s chief communications and strategy officer David Glanzer said when revealing the museum’s opening date....

Disney World started testing facial recognition technology at Magic Kingdom on Tuesday, giving guests the option to try the touchless tech for entry as it continues to navigate operating amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The trial period, which is slated to run through April 23, captures a park goer’s face (with their face mask firmly in place) and converts it into a number “which is then associated with the form of admission being used for park entry,” Disney’s site read....

Google is never one to miss a beat. To keep up with the trend in smartphone usage over traditional desktop searches, the company has unveiled a brand new redesign that makes it easier to research, plan, and book a trip all within a few clicks. Let us explain how this is different and why this is kind of a big deal. Let’s kick it off with an example: In the Google search bar on your smartphone, try typing in following keywords: “Where to go in Scotland” or “Scotland Destinations....

While Dolly Parton has brought her fantasy world to life in the form of her Tennessee theme park Dollywood, the iconic singer is bringing “many colors” of spring back to the park with its Flower and Food Festival. And right at the center of the blooms and blossoms? A floral sculpture inspired by her 1971 hit “Coat of Many Colors” The spring festival held from April 22 through June 5 features more than 500,000 flowers in colorful displays throughout the park, including the “Mosaiculture” floral sculpture of Parton’s own mother sewing the coat mentioned in the famed song....

Looking to the future, when coronavirus quarantines no longer restrict us from relaxing on a long train ride, Amtrak is preparing for their customers to return with the help of an enhanced mobile app and cleaning protocols. “There’s a whole fleet of technology that we’ve been working on, that I think in general provides customers with more information, more control, [and] easier transactions,” Amtrak chairman Tony Coscia said on a conference call....

If there’s one thing that will kill your vacation vibe quicker than a delayed flight can ruin your plans, it’s getting seasick the first night on a cruise. It happens to a lot of people, and the cure for motion sickness is different for everyone. First off, what is seasickness? According to WebMD, which classifies it as the same thing as motion sickness, you can expect symptoms like nausea, headaches, sweating, and vomiting....

The Olympic torch has begun its 121-day journey around Japan ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. The torch was lit Thursday morning in Japan’s northeastern Fukushima prefecture during a ceremony closed to the public due to COVID-19 but was streamed online for viewers around the world. “The torch of Tokyo 2020 will become a bright light for hope for Japanese citizens and citizens in the world and a light at the end of the tunnel,” Seiko Hashimoto, the president of the local organizing committee and a former Olympian, told The Associated Press....

Koalas in Australia may be in graver danger than we thought. According to a new report published Tuesday, the koala population in the Australian state of New South Wales is on track to go extinct in the wild within the next 30 years. As the report found, the devastating wildfires in late 2019 into early 2020 caused a massive loss in population, from which the species may never recover. “Given the scale of loss to koala populations across New South Wales as a result of the 2019- 2020 bushfires and without urgent government intervention to protect habitat and address all other threats, the koala will become extinct in New South Wales before 2050,” the report explained....

Most of us are looking to 2021 with optimism, but for Mexico, this upcoming year won’t just be about saying goodbye to 2020. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador says 2021 will be the “year of independence and greatness” for Mexico, celebrating not only 500 years since the founding of Mexico City, but also 200 years since Mexico achieved its independence from Spain. While many travelers flock to coastal destinations like Tulum or Cabo, Mexico City offers a range of experiences far beyond slipping into a swimsuit and ordering poolside margaritas....

2016 is set to be a record year for U.S. travelers. According to National Travel and Tourism Office, the rate of Americans traveling abroad has increased by 8.2 percent year over year, as of September, the latest month for which data is available. But U.S. travelers haven’t favored all international destinations equally. Fortune, with help from Euromonitor, determined the countries with the greatest leaps (and losses) in visitors from the United States....

New York’s iconic Circle Line Sightseeing cruise line is gearing up for the summer season with a host of new options for visitors to the Big Apple. The boat tour company, known for its routes to the Statue of Liberty, returned to the water on April 1, recently launched new options starting May 22 with its Liberty Cruise. “We have been very pleased with the demand this season and are excited to provide our guests with even more opportunities to celebrate New York City as only Circle Line can,” Craig Kanarick, CEO of New York Cruise Lines, said in a statement shared with Travel & Leisure....

Two days into a Mediterranean cruise last summer, I was sitting at La Persiana, a waterfront restaurant in the Tuscan port city of Livorno, watching the sun set over the sea and thinking about shipping routes. A few crew members familiar with the area had suggested I come here for cacciucco, a typical Livornese stew. The stew, according to the Livornese, should have one type of seafood for every C. At La Persiana, that meant clams, mussels, monkfish, prawns, and octopus in a tomato base fragrant with saffron and cardamom — aromatic imports from historic trading partners to the east....

For the second year in a row, Travel + Leisure readers chose Mexico’s San Miguel de Allende as their favorite city in the world, as part of the annual World’s Best Awards. That, of course, meant it was also voted the top city in Mexico, besting such scenic cities as Oaxaca and Guadalajara. Every year for our World’s Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more....

Selena Gomez proved this week that she knows how to throw one heck of a summertime bachelorette party. The pop star, E! News reported, spent four sunny days in Mexico alongside a few of her best girlfriends. According to Elle, Gomez planned the bash in honor of her best friend and cousin Priscilla DeLeon’s upcoming wedding. And, she couldn’t have picked a better hotel to spend a bit of time in for a ladies’ getaway....

Thousands of parkgoers at Shanghai Disneyland were locked down and tested for COVID-19 Sunday evening after someone who had visited the park previously tested positive in a nearby city, according to reports. The park shut its gates to new visitors and mass-tested everyone already inside with health care workers dressed in head to toe white protective suits, The Associated Press reported. The response may have been triggered after someone who had visited the park on Saturday tested positive....

Singapore Airlines will launch nonstop flights between New York City and Singapore in November, months after COVID-19 forced the airline to cancel its famed longest flight in the world. Starting Nov. 9, the airline will run flights from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to its home city, the carrier announced, with a flight time of 18 hours and 40 minutes. The flights will operate three times each week on an Airbus A350-900 long-range aircraft with 42 Business Class seats, 24 Premium Economy seats, and 187 Economy seats....

Taking a cruise in 2020: A horrible, impossible idea. Taking a cruise in 2021: A doable, aspirational plan. That’s how quickly our opinions on sharing deck space with several thousand all-inclusive cruise vacationers have changed. This year, with vaccinations on the rise and cruise lines doing everything they can to ensure safety, not only is it possible, but it’s encouraged to get back out there on the open water. Even your favorite Friends are getting back onto cruise ships....

You don’t have to settle for vanilla any longer. A sweet, frosty ice cream cone is a quintessential dessert, but if you’re an adventurous foodie, you might be tired of the same old flavor choices. As delicious as a classic vanilla, chocolate, or strawberry cone can be, there are a wide variety of flavors out there to try. No matter where you go in the world, you can probably find an ice cream shop with some unique options on their menu....