Tag: corona virus crisis

Safety and health, insurance, cancellation and refund policies will be some of the important elements travellers will consider while a choosing a destination post-pandemic, a survey has said. Maximum flexibility and travel customisation will be the other factors that visitors will bear in mind, the European survey conducted by VIA Outlets said. It interviewed close to 1,400 agents and tour operators from Spain, France, Germany, Netherlands and Italy for the survey. VIA Outlets, members of WTTC, aims at fostering cross-sectorial collaboration and strengthening cohesion, offering insights that can help in a multi-level and large-scale approach to prepare for the future ... Read more

AirAsia has announced that it would waive flight change fees for any new bookings made between June 3 and Oct 31, 2020. In a statement, it said the option is applicable for online bookings on airasia.com for domestic flights within Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and India. “Guests may make an unlimited number of flight date changes via the ‘My Bookings’ tab on airasia.com or the AirAsia mobile app, and may rebook their flights for travel up to Dec 31, 2020, subject to seat availability and fare difference,” it said. Meanwhile AirAsia Group president (Airlines), Bo Lingam, said due to ... Read more

People returned to some of Thailand’s famed sandy beaches this week, maintaining adequate social distancing. The authorities have eased coronavirus restrictions for the first time in more than two months, and tourists were only too happy to take advantage. Local authorities ordered beachgoers to stay at least a metre apart. Not all beaches were closed during the lockdown, and not all re-opened this week. So, it’s like a slow roll out. Phuket, in the south, is still off-limits, while Hua Hin remained open throughout. Pattaya, the hotspot, is back in action. Despite recording the first case of the virus outside ... Read more

Ireland’s world-renowned pub culture has been hit hard by the coronavirus lockdown and pub owners are certain that if the restrictions are not eased, they would be in utter ruins. The country has imposed probably the strictest lockdown in Europe, under which the pubs can only reopen in August and must keep drinkers two metres apart. A Reuters report quoting Ronan Lynch, owner of The Swan, a small, Victorian pub said relaxing the guidelines will be the difference between reopening or not. “We’re at the periphery of Europe with a peripheral view of the two-metre rule. No business can operate ... Read more

Etihad Airways has announced plans to link 20 cities in Europe, Asia and Australia via Abu Dhabi, following the decision of the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority (NCEMA) to reopen UAE airports for transit flights. Etihad recently launched links from Melbourne and Sydney to London Heathrow, allowing direct transfer connections to and from the UK capital via Abu Dhabi. Throughout June, transfer connections via Abu Dhabi will be available from Jakarta, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Melbourne, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney, and Tokyo to major cities across Europe including Amsterdam, Barcelona, Brussels, Dublin, Frankfurt, Geneva, London Heathrow, Madrid, Milan, Paris ... Read more

Amritsar’s tourism industry is looking down the barrel. There are around 700 hotels and guest houses in Amritsar which attract international as well as domestic tourists. But all of them are running empty, and fearing closure. Amritsar has plenty of tourist attractions like the Golden Temple, Partition Museum, Town Hall, Sadda Pind, War Memorial, Jallianwala Bagh, Attari-Wagah border, Durgiana Temple, Heritage Street, Ram Tirath Complex, Gobind fort and Pul Kanjari. But there are no tourists in sight, and hardly an help has come from the government to improve the situation. Its gourmet tradition, found in roadside eateries dishing out delicacies ... Read more

All tourist locations in the union territory of Puducherry have been permitted to open with immediate effect. District collector T Arun has said that Beach Road, Botanical Garden, Paradise Beach and Chunambar boat club can open as per the new guidelines. Shops are now permitted upto 8 pm, while take away from restaurants can be done up to 9 pm. Retail liquor shops have been permitted up to 7 pm, while bars are not allowed to open. He said while the Puducherry beach has been opened, no events would be allowed to be conducted. Tamil Nadu buses plying from Cuddalore ... Read more

The Health Ministry has come up with a new set of standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ease the nation into what is being called ‘Unlock 1.0’. The SOPs for restaurants, workplaces, shopping malls, religious places and hotels have been rolled out to restrict any further transmission of the coronavirus. According to the SOPs for restaurants, takeaways should be encouraged, instead of dine-in. Food delivery personnel should leave the packet at the customer’s door. Direct handover of the food packet to the customer will not be allowed. Hotels should advise guests to use room service, for dining purposes. “The staff for ... Read more

The US government has said it will block Chinese airlines from flying into the US in response to what it says is a policy that has prevented US carriers from service between the two countries. The Transportation Department restrictions will take effect June 16 but could be enacted earlier if President Donald Trump decides to do so. It says the Chinese government is violating an agreement between the two countries for international travel by preventing United Airlines and Delta Air Lines from resuming the trans-oceanic flights. Those airlines had asked to resume service on June 1. United, Delta, and American ... Read more

Hubloft Vacation Rentals has introduced a ‘Roadmap to Recovery’ initiative, under which it is implementing strict cleaning practices and guidelines before reopening. SOPs have been laid out for staff while dealing with guests on all its properties. The guidance will include specific instructions on best practices such as contactless check-in, mandatory use of face masks while in contact with guests and enhanced cleaning standards. “As we work to reopen, we want to assure travellers that our homes will be cleaner and safer than ever before when they are ready to travel again,” says Raiyaan Nayeem. “In order to build confidence ... Read more

Medical tourism will revive faster in India than that in many other countries, a senior India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) official has said. “Indian medical tourism industry is likely to revive faster than even some developed nations in Europe, and probably USA too. India has shown comparatively better handling of the pandemic situation as compared to these nations,” said Piyush Tiwari, director (commercial and marketing), ITDC. “Medical tourists will look at countries which seem relatively safer. They will look at a country that has better health protocols. Countries like India that have had a lower number of Covid-19 deaths, are ... Read more

Global air passenger traffic plunged by 94.3% in April this year as compared to the same month a year ago as the coronavirus pandemic virtually shut down air travel across the world, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said. “This is a rate of decline never seen in the history of IATA’s traffic series, which dates back to 1990,” said a press release from the organisation that has around 300 airlines as its members. “Passenger demand in April plunged 94.3% compared to April 2019, as the Covid-19-related travel restrictions virtually shut down domestic and international air travel,” the airlines ... Read more

Nearly three months after it suspended visas granted to foreigners, India has finally allowed arrival of foreigners for purposes of business, healthcare, engineering and technical works. It has said they would be allowed to fly into India on non-scheduled chartered flights. In an order issued on Monday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said, “Foreign businessmen coming to India on a business visa (other than on B-3 visa for sports) in non-scheduled commercial/ chartered flights would be permitted.” The ministry said certain other category of foreigners who could avail of this relaxation included “foreign healthcare professionals, health researchers, engineers and ... Read more

Marriott International, which has reopened all its hotels in China, is seeing a steady recovery in the United States, its biggest market. Chief Executive Officer Arne Sorenson said, “It’s not just leisure travel growing, but it is business travel. Chinese are flying again.” Sorenson said the occupancy rate in China was 40% currently, up from 7% to 8% in February, when COVID-19 started spreading. In the United States, Marriott’s hotels that have remained open, crossed the 20% occupancy threshold and continue to see an improvement, Sorenson said. The company had an occupancy rate of about 12% in North America in ... Read more

With the spread of coronavirus under control and domestic leisure travel growing, Middle East travel professionals are now looking to China to initiate international tourism. A joint survey conducted by the Ivy Alliance Tourism Consulting, China Comfort Travel Group (CCT), and Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), was discussed by a panel of experts during the three-day ATM Virtual event that is currently taking place. Danielle Curtis, the exhibition director (Middle East) of the Arabian Travel Market, said: “In China we are already witnessing the green-shoots of recovery and many industry experts are looking to China to kickstart international tourism.” Moderated ... Read more