Author: NY TIMES

“The effect won’t be very big,” said Ko Koens, a professor of new urban tourism at Inholland University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. He also said that in the long run, the capping of hotels could make them more expensive to stay at.While this ban alone would not make a huge dent in the number of visitors to the city, Mr. Koens said, taken together with other initiatives it could make Amsterdam a less-appealing place to visit. But, he said, “For now, visitors don’t seem to mind.”In total, Amsterdam has nearly 42,000 hotel rooms that can accommodate more than 92,000 people,…

Sometimes the love of your life is an ex. That seems to be the case for Ashanti and Nelly.On Wednesday, Ashanti, 43, announced her pregnancy in an Instagram video with Essence magazine.Some online users expressed their disapproval of the R&B star having a baby with Nelly, 49, without a ring on her finger (though certainly not uncommon among celebrities).A few hours later, Essence broke the news that Ashanti, a Grammy-winning vocalist who has released six studio albums and sold millions of records, is engaged to the multiplatinum St. Louis rapper in a double surprise that led their fans to rejoice.…

Even as Paramount, the home of the “Top Gun” movie franchise and “SpongeBob SquarePants,” continues its talks to merge with another media company, Skydance, a new suitor has emerged.Sony Pictures Entertainment and Apollo Global Management, an investment firm, have been in discussions about teaming up for a joint bid to acquire Paramount, two people familiar with the situation said Thursday.The two companies have not submitted an official bid, as Paramount is still in exclusive conversations with Skydance, said the people, who were granted anonymity to discuss delicate negotiations. But the potential deal with Skydance has generated significant investor pushback.Apollo previously…

The New York Philharmonic, which has been facing an uproar since a recent magazine article detailed allegations of misconduct against two players it tried and failed to fire in 2018, said on Thursday that it was commissioning an outside investigation into its culture.Gary Ginstling, the Philharmonic’s president and chief executive, said in a letter to musicians, staff members and board members that the organization had hired an outside lawyer, Katya Jestin, a managing partner of the law firm Jenner & Block, to “launch an independent investigation into the culture of the New York Philharmonic in recent years.”“I am empowering Katya…

Qatar’s prime minister has said that his government is reviewing its role as a key mediator between Israel and Hamas after criticism by U.S. and Israeli officials, who have urged it to exert more pressure on the Palestinian armed group to reach a deal.“We have seen insults against our mediation, and its exploitation for the sake of narrow political interests,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, the Qatari premier, said at a news conference this week. “This has caused Qatar to comprehensively review that role.”In late March, a flurry of shuttle diplomacy involving Israel, Hamas and mediators including…

The United States blocked the U.N. Security Council on Thursday from moving forward on a Palestinian bid to be recognized as a full member state at the United Nations, quashing an effort by Palestinian allies to get the world body to back the effort. The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, had described the bid for full-member status as an effort “to take our rightful place among the community of nations.”But Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, on Thursday denounced the resolution that went before the Security Council as a “prize for terror.” He added: “The…

Here is a lesson in not leaving a party early: When the Dior show ended on Monday night, some guests headed straight for the exit.This is standard behavior at runway shows — muscle memory for many attendees like fashion editors, influencers, buyers and celebrities. (On the V.I.P. list for this production: Charlize Theron, Naomi Watts, Michelle Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy and Haerin from NewJeans.) Often, guests must rush across traffic-jammed cities to make it to their next appointment.But this wasn’t fashion week — Dior presenting a fall collection at the Brooklyn Museum in the middle of April was a special occasion.…

Mortgage rates rose above 7 percent for the first time this year, crossing a symbolically concerning threshold that threatens to keep millions of potential home buyers and sellers on the sidelines of a U.S. housing market that is increasingly showing signs of slowing.The average rate on 30-year mortgages, the most popular home loan in the United States, rose to 7.1 percent this week, Freddie Mac reported on Thursday, the highest since November. Mortgage rates reached a recent high of nearly 8 percent late last year — a level not seen since 2000.As mortgage rates have risen in recent months, making…

Netflix added 9.3 million subscribers in the first quarter of 2024, it announced on Thursday, outperforming analysts’ expectations and solidifying its status as the entertainment industry’s dominant streaming company.It also generated $2.3 billion in net income and its revenue was $9.3 billion, 15 percent higher compared with the same time last year. Netflix now has almost 270 million subscribers around the world.The streaming giant said its quarter was buoyed by audience interest in series such as “Griselda,” “3 Body Problem” and “Avatar: The Last Airbender.”Its ad-tier business, which is now a year old and offers subscribers a lower-priced option, grew…

People do not typically think of themselves as at high risk of succumbing to heat or at greater risk than they once were, causing them to underestimate how a heat wave could lead them to the emergency room, said Kristie L. Ebi, a professor at the University of Washington who is an expert on the health risks of extreme heat.“The heat you were asked to manage 10 years ago is not the heat you’re being asked to manage today,” she said. One of the first symptoms of heat illness can be confusion, she added, making it harder for someone to…