Here are some of the latest updates on coronavirus in the world of travel. Donald Trump said arrangements had been made with the Canadian and British governments to evacuate many of the passengers on two cruise ships set to soon dock in Florida.

Trump added that officials in states overwhelmed by coronavirus infections are reluctant to have the passengers immediately return to their communities.

“It’s a tough situation you know,” Trump said. “You can understand you have people that are sick on the ships and states don’t want to take (them). They have enough problems right now. They don’t want to take them. But we have to from a humane standpoint. We don’t have a choice. I don’t want to do that but we have to. People are dying.”

Global Affairs Canada said in a statement that there are 97 Canadian passengers on the Zaandam and 150 Canadians on the Rotterdam. At this time, no COVID-19 cases have been confirmed among Canadian passengers.

“We continue to engage with the passengers and Holland America to co-ordinate travel for Canadian citizens back to Canada upon disembarkation,” Global Affairs said.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis who refused the ships permission to dock at Florida’s ports or to issue a statewide stay at home order until yesterday, said that the state’s health-care system is stretched too thin to take on the coronavirus caseload from the Zaandam. “Just to drop people off at the place where we’re having the highest number of cases right now just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense,” DeSantis said.

The US Coast Guard has directed all cruise ships to remain at sea where they may be sequestered “indefinitely” during the coronavirus pandemic. They must also be prepared to send any severely ill passengers to the countries where the vessels are registered.

The rules, which apply to any vessel carrying more than 50 people, were issued March 29. Meanwhile the Zaandam and the Rotterdam, one of which has seen four people die and 200 passengers and crew report flu-like symptoms, have not been allowed to dock.

Six planes carrying Canadians stranded in Africa and Europe were set to return yesterday in the government’s effort to repatriate travellers stranded by COVID-19.

Global Affairs Canada says the planes will arrive from Algeria, Ecuador, Senegal, Democratic Republic of Congo, Hungary and Spain.

The department says the government is planning more flights from Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Peru, Algeria, Poland and Pakistan in the coming days.

Plans are also being made for several fights from India, starting on April 4 and continuing for the next four days until April 7.

The government is reiterating that not all Canadians stranded abroad will be able to come back to Canada, and that those returning will be subjected to mandatory self-isolation.

The government says it has approved 449 loans worth $1.4 million under its emergency program for Canadians abroad and is processing another 900 loan applications.

A British Columbia woman has filed a proposed class action lawsuit against several airlines that are refusing to give customers refunds for cancelled flights.

The Canadian Air Transportation Agency ruled last month that airlines are not obliged to offer refunds for events out of their control such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

The suit filed in Federal Court last week by Janet Donaldson of Mission targets Air Canada, WestJet, Sunwing, Air Transat and Swoop.

The suit argues the airlines implemented new policies for flight credits that were not part of the original contract with passengers who are being forced to shoulder the risk of losing them if companies go bankrupt.

More than two dozen University of Texas students have tested positive for the coronavirus after taking a spring break trip to Mexico, public health officials said.

A group of about 70 people who are in their 20s took a chartered plane to Cabo San Lucas about 10 days ago, the Austin Public Health Department said Tuesday. So far, 28 people in the group have tested positive for COVID-19, the illness linked to the coronavirus, and dozens more are being monitored, the health department said.

The department said four people with confirmed cases did not have any symptoms.

“The virus often hides in the healthy and is given to those who are at grave risk of being hospitalized or dying,” Austin-Travis County Interim Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott said. “While younger people have less risk for complications, they are not immune from severe illness and death from COVID-19.”

The students were part of a group trip to Mexico that had not been cancelled by the travel company, the Austin American-Statesman reported.

Japan’s Prime Minister says Japan has banned entry from 49 more countries, including the US, Canada, all of China, South Korea and seven Southeast Asian countries.

That brings the total number of countries banned from entering Japan to 73.

Shinzo Abe says the government has tightened visa restrictions and will require a two-week quarantine to visitors and returnees from places Japan has designated as eligible for non-essential trips.

Tokyo reported 65 new cases Wednesday, after reporting a record 78 daily new cases Tuesday. Nationwide, Japan has about 3,000 cases including 712 from a cruise ship, with 78 deaths.

In a SEC filing SeaWorld Entertainment said about 90% of workers will be furloughed from April 1.

“The furloughed employees will not receive compensation from the company during the furlough period after March 31, 2020; however, subject to local regulations, these employees will be eligible for unemployment benefits,” it said.

“The furlough period is uncertain at this time due to the temporary park closures and will be reassessed as business conditions dictate.”

SeaWorld closed all theme parks in mid-March, including SeaWorld, Busch Gardens and Sesame Place.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis finally issued a statewide stay-at-home order on Wednesday as federal and local pressure mounted for him to abandon the county-by-county approach he had implemented.

DeSantis told reporters that he is issuing the order after consulting with Donald Trump and White House advisers, who have said that Americans need to stay home throughout April.

DeSantis’ move came hours after the US surgeon general, Dr. Jerome Adams, said on NBC’s “Today” show that he would tell DeSantis that the federal guidelines for social distancing should be viewed as “a national stay-at-home order.”

The state’s confirmed cases are approaching 7,000, deaths have reached 86 and almost 900 are hospitalized with a university model cited this week at the White House showing an exponential growth in the coming weeks.

More than 30 other states had already issued such orders, including other large states such as California, New York and Illinois. Those all acted more than a week ago.

Florida has ordered a 14-day self-quarantine period for travel from some out-of-state locations including New York and Louisiana.

DeSantis also ordered a temporary ban on new vacation rental bookings. Private operators and companies such as VRBO and Airbnb are not permitted to accept new reservations for stays until after April 10.

The rule does not apply to hotels, motels or resorts and existing guests currently in a rental may complete their stay.

“If you are in one now, finish and go home,” DeSantis said.

“Florida is experiencing an increase in individuals fleeing to Florida from out-of-state locations where ‘shelter-in-place’ orders are being implemented and community spread exists.”

Renters violating the order could lose their license and face criminal charges.

Wimbledon has been cancelled for the first time since World War II because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The All England Club announced after an emergency meeting that the oldest Grand Slam tournament in tennis would not be held in 2020. Wimbledon was scheduled to be played on the outskirts of London from June 29 to July 12.

It now joins the growing list of sports events scrapped in 2020 because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

That includes the Tokyo Olympics, the NCAA men’s and women’s college basketball tournaments and the European soccer championship.

Wimbledon has been held every year since 1946 after a six-year hiatus because Britain was at war.

The Edinburgh International Festival has been cancelled for the first time since it launched in 1947 in an attempt to bring arts to the community after World War II.

The event has been held every August in Edinburgh. The festivals comprise all the arts, including stand-up comedy, theatre, music and books.

Australia is sending doctors by helicopter to cruise ships anchored off Sydney to assess who needs medical evacuation rather than bring 8,500 crew members ashore and risk overrunning hospitals with COVID-19 cases.

Eight foreign cruise ships off Australia’s east coast plus a German ship birthed at the west coast port of Fremantle have defied an Australian Border Force order on March 29 to leave the country. The ships fear their crews will become dangerously ill at sea.

New South Wales state Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said on Thursday he won’t allow crew members ashore in Sydney unless they need medical attention.

Fuller said, “If a small percentage end up with the virus, it will overwhelm our health system and everything we’ve done to date will be wasted.”