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(CNN) — As China slowly eases lockdown restrictions and life returns to somewhat normal conditions, residents have once again started traveling. But an uptick in domestic sight-seeing doesn’t necessarily mean international travel will rebound as quickly. At least, not according to a recent study conducted by the Trip.com Group, China’s largest online travel agency. Based on a survey of 15,000 people across 100 cities in China at the end of March, the company found that 16% of respondents will be ready to travel again in May in time for Golden Week, a five-day public holiday. However, the vast majority — to the tune of 90% — would prefer to travel domestically, with destinations like Yunnan, Hainan island and Shanghai sweeping the top three preferences.”China is recovering well. Wuhan’s lockdown will be lifted and at the same time, everyone around the world is fighting against Covid-19,” Jane Sun, the CEO of Trip.com Group, tells CNN Travel. “With the national holiday, we feel that May is a good time for travelers to go domestic since many countries have closed off their borders.”Children wear protective masks as they visit the Badaling section of China’s Great Wall on March 24. Lintao Zhang/Getty Images AsiaPac/Getty ImagesWhat sounds like good news for China’s domestic tourism sector could spell disappointment abroad for the global travel industry, which continues to reel from the new coronavirus outbreak.Many travel agencies, hotels, shops and guides around the world have come to rely on Chinese travelers, who comprise the world’s largest outbound tourism market when it comes to trips and spending. In 2018 alone, Chinese travelers took roughly 150 million outbound trips and collectively spent more than $277 billion. “In 2001, Chinese residents made 10.5 million foreign trips. By 2018, that number rose by an astonishing 1,326%. For some countries, China is now the top inbound source of travelers,” adds Sun. “Domestic travel is the first step toward recovery. We remain optimistic about the future.”China’s domestic recovery An aerial photo, taken on April 7, shows bullet trains lined up at a station in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province. STR/AFP/AFP via Getty ImagesWith many Chinese New Year plans cut short by the coronavirus outbreak earlier this year, embarking on a post-Covid-19 adventure has certainly been on the minds of many Chinese residents.And for some, that initial trip is just around the corner. According to Trip.com, roughly 61% of Chinese travelers surveyed indicated that they would feel ready to travel again by August. A smaller-scale survey of 1,000 people across the country conducted by international management consulting firm Oliver Wyman supports these findings, while also exploring the rationale for staying close to home. Roughly 77% of those surveyed said they would prefer a domestic destination for their first post-epidemic trip, citing “the severe virus situation overseas” as one of the main considerations when choosing a destination. “From our survey, it is encouraging to see that the majority of Chinese travelers have a strong appetite to resume traveling and retail spending after Covid-19 subsides,” Katie Sham, a principal of Oliver Wyman based in Shanghai, tells CNN Travel. “The major reason that Chinese travelers want to explore domestically is that China is in a much more stabilized condition versus the rest of the world, at least in the coming three to four months.” Adventures at homeIn the 1980s, Dong Yao-hui was part of the first three-man team to walk the entire length of China’s Great Wall. Today, he’s focused on its preservation. As the coronavirus pandemic sweeps through regions like the US, UK and Europe and international air travel has slowed to a near standstill, it’s hardly surprising that many Chinese travelers would prefer to explore at home, where new domestic infections have dropped dramatically.What’s more, there’s no shortage of things to see and do across the vast nation. “Within China, cities are popular and China is home to many UNESCO sites, so there remains lots to discover,” says Sun. Across the country, China counts 55 UNESCO World Heritage Sites as well as countless natural wonders, like Zhangjiajie’s “floating” peaks, the karst scenery of the Li River outside of Guilin and Tiger Leaping Gorge in Yunnan.As Covid-19 restrictions ease, many of the country’s most famous tourist attractions are slowly reopening, including the Badaling section of the Great Wall of China and the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. “Domestic travel is the first step toward recovery. We remain optimistic about the future.”Jane Sun, CEO of Trip.com Group “Chinese people are curious and passionate about exploring their country and seeing different provinces, cities and landmarks,” Holger Jakobs, vice president of sales and marketing of Wharf Hotels, tells CNN Travel.”There is an extensive list of destinations which many younger people haven’t seen. As international travel became easier, they were focused on quick trips to Hong Kong and Taiwan and Southeast Asia. But now I think there will be a big resurgence of classic destinations in China that were always there but were in the background for some travelers.” Wharf Hotels operates 10 properties in China, providing a solid overview of how the travel market is recovering. “I think the (Trip.com) survey is spot on. We have actually already seen a rebound in domestic travel — including leisure and nonessential business travel, corporate meetings and events — at our properties in areas that were not as affected as central China,” says Jakobs.”In particular, we have seen recent upticks in Chongqing and Chengdu. These cities were already major drawing cards for shorter domestic travel, so these hotels are leading the recovery at the moment across our portfolio.”Shifts in travel styleAs China emerges after months of lockdown, people are back on city streets and crowds flocking to popular destinations. CNN’s David Culver reports on the cautious optimism officials are warning. When it comes to the needs and preferences of Chinese travelers, it won’t be business as usual — at least not at first.Both the Trip.com and Oliver Wyman surveys found that concerns about safety and ease of travel are top of mind. “Chinese travelers want to feel safe and virus-free at each touchpoint along the journey,” says Sham.”They want to make sure that the hotels and the restaurants they choose are frequently sanitized, with hygiene being the top priority of the staff.”In addition, many travelers will prefer easy, short trips that are not too far away to test things out. The idea being, that if they encounter any problems, they can easily return home. Jakobs agrees. “What we’ve seen with our hotels is that flexibility is essential,” he says. “We are seeing a resurgence of voucher bookings and buying — meaning that you can buy a voucher for a few room nights and have full flexibility on when to use it in a given time frame, just in case something happens.” Travel modes will also shift as people adjust to travel post-Covid-19. According to the Trip.com survey, the most popular style of travel will be independent, self-guided trips and smaller group tours. By contrast, travel styles that are considered unsafe — such as large group tours or cruises — may take more time to assuage virus-wary residents. According to Oliver Wyman, 71% said they would avoid tour bus excursions and 55% would avoid cruises, due to perceived health risks. What about overseas travel? Airlines, train companies and transit systems are increasing their cleaning routines to keep people safe from coronavirus, but surfaces like subway poles and escalators can become contaminated quickly. Watch the latest videos on Covid-19. While shorter domestic trips may kick start the travel resurgence in China, international travel is likely not too far behind. Roughly 14% of Trip.com respondents noted interest in visiting European countries, although their plans will be dependent on safety and travel restrictions. “Outbound travel will gradually pick up as soon as the pandemic is contained, borders are lifted and subsequent visas from respective embassies and consulates are made available,” says Sun. Indeed, a renewed desire to travel within China signals a return to the status quo, rather than a dramatic shift in travel habits. Chinese travelers took over 6 billion trips domestically in 2019, compared with just 155 million outbound trips, based on figures from the China Tourism Academy.”More than 90% of all Chinese travelers were already traveling domestically (before Covid-19), so if you ask a more or less representative sample of the Chinese population, that is what you will get,” Wolfgang Georg Arlt, founder of COTRI, tells CNN Travel.”At COTRI, we are looking at the 10% of Chinese travelers with a passport who are traveling internationally, and how their travel behavior will change after the crisis is over,” he adds. “I think this clientele will choose short domestic trips at first, as well as regional outbound trips.”When considering the first outbound journeys post-virus, Arlt predicts travelers will likely choose nearby destinations in Asia such as Thailand, South Korea and Vietnam. “It depends on a few factors: which destination will let Chinese travelers in, which have shown empathy when Wuhan was the center of the crisis, and which destinations are not considered dangerous,” he adds. “I think for Europe and Australia and, especially the US, it will take more time before traveling to these destinations becomes normal again.”

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(CNN) — With a list of past and present owners that includes media mogul Rupert Murdoch and controversial former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, superyacht “Morning Glory” has a long history of playing host to the rich and famous.During a time when many yachts have stopped sailing due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 158-foot vessel, built by Italian shipyard Perini Navi, is seeking a new owner.Berlusconi recently put the ketch-rigged sailing yacht up for sale for $11 million just over two decades after buying it from Murdoch, who’s said to have married his third wife Wendi onboard back in 1999.Million-dollar refitSilvio Berlusconi has put his superyacht “Morning Glory” on the market for $11 million.Courtesy Burgess”Morning Glory” has been through an extensive refit since then, with new engines and generators added, while its hull has been repainted a dark blue shade.The “first-class” superyacht, which is being sold via broker Burgess, holds four luxurious suites, a full beam owner’s suite, as well as four cabins, and can accommodate up to eight guests.Along with “generous and versatile deck spaces,” the vessel has an L-shaped lounge, a marble fireplace, a spiral staircase, along with a fully equipped sit-up bar and games table.Situated on the lower deck, the lavish owner’s suite is equipped with a master study, along with separate his and her bathrooms. ‘Efficiency and exhilaration’The ketch-rigged sailing yacht is being sold via broker Burgess, who describe it as “first-class.”Courtesy Burgess”As a motor yacht that sails, she offers both the comfort and convenience of the former and the efficiency and exhilaration of the latter,” reads a product description from Burgess.”Her interior showcases the many talents of Perini Navi with warm woods beautifully crafted throughout.”According to Burgess, the vessel can reach a top speed of 14.5 knots “when not sailing” and a trans-oceanic range of 4,900 nautical miles at 10 knots.Although $11 million feels like a pretty steep price tag, it’s merely a drop in the water when compared to the $49 million asking price for mammoth superyacht Leander G, which went on the market last month.The 246-foot (74.98 meter) vessel, which has hosted both Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles, can accommodate 22 guests, and has six decks, 10 suites, a helipad and a dive room.

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(CNN) — San Francisco’s iconic City Lights bookstore is on the brink of collapse as the coronavirus pandemic is forcing the business to keep its doors shut.Elaine Katzenberger, who is the Publisher and CEO of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers — both the store and its publishing arm — has started a GoFundMe campaign to raise the $300,000 that is needed to keep the business afloat.”City Lights is faced with formidable challenges at present: Our bookstore has been closed to the public since March 16, and must remain closed for an indefinite period of time,” Katzenberger wrote on April 9.She added: “Unlike some shops, we’re unable even to process online orders, since we want our booksellers to remain safely at home. With no way to generate income, our cash reserves are quickly dwindling, with bills coming due and with a primary commitment to our staff, who we sent home with full pay and healthcare, and who we hope to keep as healthy and financially secure as possible.”City Lights was founded by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, one of the members of the Beat movement, in 1953. The store in the now-fashionable North Beach neighborhood is synonymous with the Beat Generation and was the publisher of Allen Ginsberg’s famous poem “Howl.”It still serves as a meeting place for San Francisco’s creative community and hosts readings, book signings and other literary events.Ferlinghetti was named the first-ever poet laureate of the city of San Francisco, and his 100th birthday, March 24, 2019, was decreed Lawrence Ferlinghetti Day in the City By the Bay. As of April 10, the “Keep City Lights Books Alive” campaign had raised $106,000, more than one-third of its goal. The bookstore has also asked fans around the world to share their memories of City Lights on social media. City Lights, 261 Columbus Avenue at Broadway, San Francisco, CA 94133

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Virtual Airbnb Experiences pairs travelers with local hosts from more than 30 countries

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(CNN) — Here’s a home we wouldn’t mind isolating in: a Bahamas beach house with a pool, five bedrooms, a terrace and 180 feet of private white-sand frontage. It was certainly good enough for Princess Diana, when she vacationed at Casuarina Beach in 1993 with her sons William and Harry. Now the property in Lyford Cay, a gated community on the western tip of New Providence Island, is up for sale for $12.5 million, through Christie’s International Real Estate, the property arm of the fine art auction house.Ken Wharfe, the princess’s royal protection officer for six years, wrote about the stay at Casuarina Beach in his 2017 book, “Guarding Diana: Protecting the Princess Around the World.” The royals were staying there as guests of Kate Menzies, of the newsagent millionaire Menzies family, and accompanied by Andrew Charlton, a lifelong friend of Prince William, and Catherine and Harry Soames, the family of British politician Nicholas Soames. Wharfe described Casuarina Beach as “a development that afforded a great deal of privacy, being part of a huge luxury complex, privately policed and spotlessly maintained. Princess Diana (back row, right), Kate Menzies (back row, center) and Catherine Soames (back row, left), ride Splash Mountain at Walt Disney World earlier in their trip. Prince Harry is front left. BOB PEARSON/AFP via Getty Images”The house itself had a magnificent swimming pool,” while “the beach was less than 50 yards away. “The group flew to the Bahamas from Florida, where they had spent two days at Walt Disney World and visited the set location for “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.”Having got wind of the royal vacation, the press were moored offshore in a chartered boat. Lyford Cay is one of the Bahamas’ most exclusive communities, with neighbors including Sean Connery and the Bacardi family. The Casuarina Beach property, long owned by the Menzies family, was designed in 1969 by mid-century modernist architect Robertson “Happy” Ward. It was refurbished in 2009 and has close to 5,000 square feet of interior space.

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(CNN) — The coronavirus pandemic has grounded most of the world’s airplanes for the immediate future. But when aviation eventually reboots, pilots will need to be up to speed. That doesn’t just mean polishing their Ray-Bans and dusting off their navy-blue blazers. It means brushing up on flight-deck skills and ensuring they keep within the boundaries of aviation’s stringent safety regulations. And that is presenting a looming challenge as pilots remain housebound.”Pilots require frequent training and ‘recency’ to be able to fly,” says Brian Strutton of the British Airline Pilots Association, or BALPA, which represents the interests of all UK pilots.”Recency” means complying with regulations that stipulate a pilot must have successfully carried out three takeoffs and landings — one of which using the cockpit’s autoland facility — within the previous 90 days. To qualify for flying both at daytime and night-time, commercial pilots also need to perform three night-time take-offs and landings within the 90 days, which are harder because the pilot has less visual cues. This covers the three daytime take-offs and landings as well.But there are other annual checks, as well. These include the License Proficiency Check, which a pilot would have to do every year to keep their pilot’s license valid. Also, the airline that the pilot flies for will have to perform an Operational Proficiency Check every six months. Airlines around the world have been forced to park their planes due to the coronavirus pandemic. Jeff Swensen/Getty Images North America/Getty Images”Most of these checks could be conducted in what is known as a ‘D level’ simulator,” says Adam Twidell, an experienced pilot and CEO of PrivateFly, a booking platform for on-demand jets. These are the most realistic and offer the highest definition and lifelike responses — just like flying the real thing.Simulators are also important to help pilots keep their skills sharp. While much can be practiced using computer games such as Microsoft Flight Simulator, there is no substitute when it comes to ratings, training and certifications. Pilots need to access real, full-scale flight simulators.But for that to happen, simulators need to be available. In the UK, for example, many facilities offering simulators are closed.There is also the issue of the availability of instructors and examiners to conduct checks. A co-pilot also needs to be present.”There’s going to be a significant backlog of available simulator slots. When airlines do want to get back to normal operations they won’t be able to do it instantly,” Twidell tells CNN Travel. Expense is an issue, too. Simulator time costs around $300 to $400 an hour, and that’s without the necessary associated personnel. It’s all an enormous undertaking.Air France pilots sit inside an Airbus A350 flight simulator at the company training centre near Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport. ERIC PIERMONT/AFP/AFP via Getty ImagesAdditionally, there are regular fire and smoke training requirements, where pilots have to go into a smoke-filled aircraft and evacuate it. There are also first aid courses and crew resource management training, which involves assessing how crew members work together as a team. Combine the complexity of the different types of training and certifications that flight crew might have to catch up on if the grounding persists for a prolonged period with the fact that the majority of the world’s 290,000-plus active pilots are sitting at home, and the scale of the imminent problem becomes all too apparent. Pushing the boundariesTo help alleviate the pressure accumulating from the potential expiration of the pilots’ medical certificates and ratings (additional elements of the pilot’s license that allows them to fly specific types of aircraft), time extensions are being granted worldwide by regulatory authorities.Across Europe, the EU Aviation Safety Agency, or EASA, has extended the deadlines for certain requirements on condition that each airline comes up with a detailed pilot training plan that the agency will assess. If it’s a credible plan, an extension could be granted.In the United States, the Federal Aviation Administration’s assistant chief counsel for enforcement, Naomi Tsuda, says that, due to the extraordinary circumstances related to the pandemic, the FAA will not take legal action against pilots in cases of noncompliance with medical certificate duration standards if their certificate expires between March 31 and June 30, 2020.”The FAA will reevaluate this decision as circumstances unfold, to determine whether an extension or other action is needed to address this pandemic-related challenge,” said Tsuda in an FAA Notice of Enforcement Policy.In the UK, the Civil Aviation Authority, in line with EASA guidance (while the UK is still in the EU), has exempted all operators, aircrew, instructors and examiners engaged in commercial air transport from the normal validity periods for licenses, certificates and ratings that expire before October 31, 2020.Deferring the expiry of licenses and certificates is certainly helpful. But all of this is incredibly stressful for the airlines’ workforces.Staffing issuesThe world’s longest and largest twin-engine airliner, the Boeing 777-9X, has completed its first test flight from Boeing’s wide-body factory near Seattle. “Over 40 airlines have grounded their entire fleets, including airlines like EasyJet, and the majority of others have grounded 80-90% — it’s just unheard of. That gives you an idea as to how many pilots are not flying aircraft,” says Sam Sprules, managing director at pilot recruitment agency AeroProfessional.Sprules tells CNN that a lot of flight crew are either grounded on minimal pay or being asked to take unpaid leave for the next couple of months. In some countries, airlines are operating from the furlough or pay subsidy schemes, and in worst case scenarios crew are being terminated.”Recruiting of flight crew has pretty much dried up at the moment while airlines are rightly focusing on trying to consolidate their finances just to survive,” he says.This is a colossal body-blow to an industry that was booming before the Covid-19 crisis took hold. However, Sprules also says that a small minority of aviation businesses are taking an optimistic approach, believing that recovery will be sooner rather than later. “What they want to do is keep their recruitment moving to capitalize on the fact that there are a lot of skilled crew in the market right now.”Face-to-face interviews are now replaced with online tools such as Microsoft Office Teams or Skype. Airlines can build up pools of candidates so that as soon as the sector is back into recovery mode and restrictions start to subside they can jump into action.”We are doing that with a few of our clients — conducting applicant gathering and documentation screening and getting candidates to a point where we can go no further, until things start to move again,” says Sprules.”You start forgetting things”So besides using computer simulators, how can pilots stuck at home keep their cockpit skills honed? Karlene Petitt, a US-based Boeing 777 pilot and author of “Normalization of Deviance: A Threat to Aviation Safety,” tells CNN that pilots could use this time of grounding for educational improvement.She says that in an age where certain aspects of the flight deck are automated, pilots need to know, procedurally, how to set up the flight deck, which buttons to push and which checklists to read.”You start forgetting things if you don’t use them,” she says. “And much of what we, as pilots, do is cognitive based. If you can keep that alive, then you’re not going to lose proficiency. “It would be nice if the airlines made available online training tools that we had during initial training or during initial type rating, so we could go and maintain proficiency while at home, until we get back into the sky.” Carriers could also have the ability to track and see which of their pilots are actually utilizing those tools, says Petitt, adding that even a home-made low-tech approach could be beneficial too:In the past, when Petitt was “out of the cockpit” for a couple of years in the days before online pilot training was an option, she made flashcards and what she calls a “paper trainer,” a sort of wall poster, to practice cockpit procedures at home.”We did this years ago. You just physically move and touch the button because the motion of actually touching where you would be touching in the airplane helps to instill it into memory.” The well-being factorJoji Waites, flight safety specialist at BALPA, tells CNN that his organization is ensuring that the few crew that are still flying (on cargo, medical, repatriation, and a few scheduled services) are equipped with protective kits where necessary, and checking that aircraft are properly cleaned.”For those that are not flying — those that are furloughed — the shift is towards well-being,” says Waites. Beyond the practicalities of brushing up procedural skills, pilots need to keep their minds in good shape too.Flight crew are used to quite a structured way of working and are conditioned to knowing what is coming up in the next month in terms of their flight schedules.Waites says that BALPA has been sharing, with its members, mental health and well-being tips from the MIND Charity and from Public Health England. “There are specific resources available,” says Waites. “And there is a requirement coming out later this year in August for airlines to have a peer support network program staffed by pilots for pilots for them to raise, confidentially, concerns of well-being and mental health.” Many airlines already have these in place ahead of when the regulation comes out, pointing pilots towards those facilities within their airlines where they can share concerns, by “having people to talk to about their anxieties and what they are going through.””Pilots are not used to sitting around,” says Waites. “We’re thinking ahead to the time when things hopefully resume and scheduled flights start up.”Paul Sillers is an aviation journalist specializing in passenger experience and future air travel tech. Follow him at @paulsillers

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