Speaking at the 4th TravTalk Digital Conclave on June 9, 2020, Meenakshi Sharma, Director General, Ministry of Tourism, said that one of the biggest challenges they faced as the government was with the unorganised workforce. She said, “This sector has no structure and they are not part of any regulation. This pandemic has shown us that the way we are doing things is not the best. We need to have more cross collection of data. We should have a structure to deal with the problems without making it regulatory. One thing we must have, and the industry agrees, is to be able to support without having the regulation. In any industry, a lot of engagement with the government comes with its partnership on regulation. This is not good for a sector which is ever-changing.”

In order to inspire lateral thinking and bring forth innovative ideas to the forefront in this time of crisis, Singapore Tourism Board (STB) will organise a webinar today at 11am. It will begin with a panel discussion on the topic ‘Singapore Tourism: Getting Ready for Re-start’ that will have three experts as panellists, and will be followed by a product update. For more information and registration, please contact Jaspreet Kaur on 9650196532 or jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com.

A delegation of the Karnataka Pradesh Hotel and Restaurants’ Association (KPHRA) recently met the state chief minister BS Yediyurappa said at his office in Bengaluru and has requested him to grant permission to re-open hotels. The Karnataka Chief Minister said he will decide on the reopening of hotels and restaurants by May 31, when the fourth phase of lockdown ends. The KPHRA delegation has also requested Yediyurappa for a special package for hotel and restaurant workers in terms of waiving off three months of electricity bills and property tax of hotel buildings.

Sunil B Satyawakta, Director, Civica Travels Pvt. Ltd, and Former Chapter Chairman (UP & Uttarakhand), TAAI, feels strongly that all IATA agents should re-negotiate the terms with IATA. He explains, “I am expecting that our ticket sales will be down at least 50 per cent in the next financial year. Keeping this in mind, we must ask IATA to bring down our bank guarantee and our targets by a minimum of 50 per cent. Normally the amount of financial security is based on an agency’s 20-day average turnover in last 12 months. Submission deadline for Bank Guarantees is 24 June, 2020 for period 1st July 2020 to 30th June, 2021. As the circumstances are unlikely to change in the coming 12 months, we must voice this concern to them before that.”

In continuation of its efforts to highlight the issues and concerns of the outbound industry to those in the office of power, Riaz Munshi, President, Outbound Tour Operators of India (OTOAI), met up with the Tourism Minister, Prahlad Singh Patel. He had a detailed meeting with the minister at the Ministry of Tourism Office along with presidents of other leading travel trade associations. Munshi says, “The Tourism Minister listened patiently to all that we had to say. He has assured us that roll-back of TCS, not making pan card necessary for foreign remittances for foreign nationals and NRIs will be taken up with the government on priority. The honourable Minister is hopeful that all these discussions will have a positive outcome and that relief on these fronts will be announced soon.”

Saint Lucia has announced plans to begin reopening the island’s tourism industry in phases starting on June 4. Among their many precautions, visitors will have to take a coronavirus test before arriving. Elsewhere in the Caribbean, St. Kitts and Nevis prepare to welcome tourists.

The Bahamas is targeting July 1 in its latest plans to reopen its borders for international travel, depending on the circumstance. Its resorts, airports and seaports are currently finalising health and safety protocols that will be necessary for them to provide for a re-opening.

Spain will allow tourists to return from the end of June. Many Spaniards were able to meet up in small groups and have a drink on restaurant terraces. In Valencia, masked waiters laid out tables. Churches and cathedrals in some areas of Spain have been open at 30% capacity for a week.

Greece has started welcoming visitors to the Acropolis. Italians enjoyed their first meal out in two months as the bars and restaurants opened for business. St Peter’s basilica in the Vatican also opened with physical distancing in place. In Venice, gondoliers wearing face masks ferried visitors along the Grand Canal.

The Seychelles’ international airport will reopen for commercial flights in June. However, the reopening will make no immediate difference as the island nation’s main markets are still under no-travel orders. Seychelles will also be closed to cruise ships until 2022 and the islands will have to rely on air travel only.