Tag: coronavirus

The world has been gripped by the coronavirus for the past year. Although we are still going through unprecedented fears, the advent of the vaccine has made things a lot easier. Many areas where the corona is badly spread are on the path to recovery. Of these, tourism is the most notable. Many countries have now resumed tourism since the Corona era when tourism was rampant. It was a difficult time with lockdowns, international travel bans, cancellations of flights, and the closure of countries. But with the advent of the corona vaccine, most of the closed ones were opened. Many ... Read more

The Civil Aviation Ministry has come out with a draft standard operating procedure (SOP) for commencing commercial passenger services in the country, that will make travelling safer but more tedious. The passengers will need to show the `green status’ on their Aarogya Setu app, go through temperature checks, do web check-in and fill up a detailed questionnaire, if the draft is approved. One of the key recommendations is not to allow cabin baggage in the aircraft. The passengers will also have to reach airport at least two hours before the flight departure. The draft SOP has also mooted having the ... Read more

Come July, Dubai hopes to reopen itself for tourists. After having halted arrivals last month to contain the coronavirus pandemic, the economic hub wants to encourage travel for business and leisure by July or latest by September. The process will be gradual and could be delayed until September, depending on global trends, Helal Al Marri, director general of Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Tuesday. Many countries remain closed and it’s more about the bilateral discussions, Al Marri said. Is it going to be July when things start slowly opening up? ... Read more

India should introduce hygiene protocol to tackle epidemics The impact created by the corona virus may last up to a year and the tourism sector may face the biggest financial crisis in its history as a result. In an elaborate interview, ATTOI President Vinod CS says this is the time to take initiative and control the situation to reduce the damage, even as he looks for support from the state and central governments. Excerpts: Q: Corona virus has impacted Kerala’s tourism fortunes to a very large extent. Can we attach a value to the loss incurred to Kerala tourism due ... Read more

The World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has called for greater international cooperation to underscore a united response based on the latest public health recommendations and reflecting the deep economic ripple effect and social cost of the pandemic. “This unprecedented public health emergency has already become an economic crisis which will come at a social cost”, said UNWTO’s Zurab Pololikashvili. The Secretary-General added that tourism “is the hardest hit sector and all our best estimates have been overtaken by the changing reality”. In a virtual meeting in Madrid, UNWTO and other related UN stakeholders have decided to form a Global Tourism Crisis ... Read more

No scheduled international commercial passenger aircraft should be allowed to land in India from March 22, for a period of one week, a statement from the Press Information Bureau said. All state governments should issue appropriate directions so that all citizens above 65 (other than for medical assistance) remain at home. Exemptions will be made for public representatives, government servants and medical professionals. Similarly all children below 10 should be advised to stay at home and not venture out. Railways and civil aviation will suspend all concessional travel except students and patients. States are being requested to enforce work from ... Read more

Australia has decided to halt all travel to the country for a period of six months. Only Australian citizens and permanent residents can come in, from March 20. All non-Australian residents will be barred from entering the country from Friday. The number of Covid-19 cases in Australia has crossed 700, with majority of cases coming in through overseas travel. Prime minister Scott Morrison said the travel ban was essential to stop the further spread of the virus. “The reason for this decision is that about 80% of the cases we have in Australia are either the result of someone who ... Read more

Uber has suspended its shared ‘Uber Pool’ class of rides, the company has said. The Uber Pool option would match up to three passengers together in one vehicle based on their destination. But the service is now seen as risky, with the spread of the corona virus. Uber Rides and Platforms Vice President Andrew Macdonald said that the company’s “goal is to help flatten the curve on community spread in the cities we serve” through suspension of the service. Its competitor Lyft has also announced that it would be “pausing shared ride options” across all markets where it offers them.

IndiGo has announced that it will be cancelling its flights on Delhi-Istanbul and Chennai-Kuala Lumpur routes till March 31. “These are purely temporary and precautionary measures. We understand that these measures will cause inconvenience to our customers and we will be refunding the full amount to the impacted passengers,” the airline stated in a press release. The airline has already cancelled flights between Bangalore-Kuala Lumpur until March 31 and Delhi-Kuala Lumpur until April 30.

Indian low-cost carrier GoAir has suspended all international operations in the wake of the global coronavirus pandemic, and asked its employees to opt for leave-without-pay on a rotational basis till April 15. “The sharp decline in air travel that we are currently experiencing is unprecedented,” GoAir said in a statement. The airline said that its short-term and temporary rotational leave-without-pay programme will not only help the company counter the short term reduction in capacity, but will also ensure that a cross-section of employees stays away from the workplace to ensure business continuity.

If you are currently in France, stepping out of your place of stay will become an inconvenient affair. Tourists and even French citizens will be required to fill out a form online each time they venture outside. For example, they may have to write “Stepping out to buy groceries” or “going to the park” every time they feel the need to go out. If that is not followed a fine of Euro 38 will follow. French president Emmanuel Macron has said that people would have to stay home as much as possible, unless they have to shop for food, go ... Read more