Travel news: Tourists misbehave in Italy and drought reveals lost ruins in UK and Spain

In travel news this week: The ongoing drought has revealed lost ruins in the UK and Spain. Easter Island and Napoleon’s Atlantic exile of St. Helena have finally reopened to visitors. And there’s more misbehavior in Italy, as tourists surf in Venice’s Grand Canal and ride scooters through Pompeii. Extreme weather Countries around the world have been experiencing severe drought, and the situation has become so bad in Europe that many of its rivers and lakes are drying up. Here’s how that could damage the region’s tourism, now and in the years ahead. In the UK, the ruins of a Welsh village that was submerged by a reservoir in the 19th century have been revealed. And in Spain, a circle of megalithic stones dubbed “the Spanish Stonehenge” emerged in a depleted reservoir in the province of Cáceres. Islands dropping Covid rules Some of the world’s most remote islands are welcoming tourists back for the first time since Covid hit the map. Rapa Nui, better known as Easter Island, has reopened with new requirements for tourists. The return of tourism to the island renowned for its towering stone statues could mean new worries for islanders who were concerned about badly behaved tourists even before the pandemic shut travel down. St. Helena, in the mid-Atlantic, dropped its Covid requirements this month, and weekly flights are set to resume in October, according to its tourism site. St. Helena is so out of the way, it was chosen as Napoleon’s place of exile after he was defeated at the battle of Waterloo in 1815. Five years ago, it got its first-ever airport. The Caribbean dual-island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis has been open to visitors for some time, but on August 15 it dropped all its Covid entry restrictions. Here’s a guide to St. Kitts and what you need to know about Nevis. Naughty by nature Talking of tourist misbehavior, Italy has been having quite a summer of it. This week, two people were fined for surfing along Venice’s Grand Canal, while last week an Australian man was caught riding a scooter through the ancient site of Pompeii. Last month in Naples, a Swiss tourist was robbed of his watch at gunpoint – but it was soon returned, with apologies, after the thief realized the item was fake. A few weeks before, a Naples tourism leader had made the novel proposal that hotels provide guests who wear expensive watches with cheap alternatives, so their timepieces could remain safe while they explored the city. And in the southern coastal town of Sorrento, the mayor has had enough of under-dressed visitors taking their beach wear to the streets: It has introduced a fine for bare chests and swimming suits. Africa news Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak, now has high-speed internet access so climbers can document their ascents in real-time. And on the Botswana-Zambia border, the $260 million Kazungula Bridge – opened in May 2021 – has transformed what was previously a slow and congested river crossing. The home rental behemoth Airbnb has transformed the travel industry but has yet to crack Africa, possibly because Airbnb doesn’t allow mobile money, which is an increasingly popular cash transfer system on the continent. A Cameroonian startup called Bongalo, backed by Google, is hoping to make the most of this gap in the market. Australia’s deepest cave Explorers recently discovered Australia’s deepest known cave, a 401-meter-deep (1,315 feet) cave in Tasmania. They called the epic new find the Delta Variant. In case you missed it Thailand’s health minister says weed-smoking tourists aren’t welcome in the country. Come with your buds, but not for the bud. The United States’ most popular national park is set to introduce a new parking fee. But if you want to give the crowds a miss, why not check out the least visited parks instead? There’s nothing like getting your tongue around some frozen milk, cream and sugar on a hot summer’s day. Here are the world’s best ice cream treats. The little South American country of Uruguay has a lush green interior and a beach-lined coast. Here’s what Anthony Bourdain made of it when he visited it for “Parts Unknown” in 2018. Airport lounges When you’re at the airport staring down another three-hour delay in the seething masses of gen pop, the fancy world beyond the airline lounge’s velvet ropes looks mighty enticing. But how to get in there on the cheap, aside from running in and hoping they don’t catch you? Our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, have some tips on how to access some of the world’s best airport lounges.