Global tourism suffered its worst year on record in 2020, with international arrivals dropping by 74% according to the latest data from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). Destinations worldwide welcomed 1 billion fewer international arrivals in 2020 than in the previous year, due to an unprecedented fall in demand and widespread travel restrictions. This compares with the 4% decline recorded during the 2009 global economic crisis. According to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, the collapse in international travel represents an estimated loss of USD 1.3 trillion in export revenues - more than 11 times the loss recorded during the 2009 global economic crisis. The crisis has put between 100 and 120 million direct tourism jobs at risk, many of them in small and medium-sized en...
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The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) says the introduction of new hotel quarantines by the UK government would force the complete collapse of Travel & Tourism as we know it. WTTC, which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, fears the crippling impact of the new proposals being considered by the UK government would cause irreparable damage to a sector which contributes nearly £200 billion to the UK economy. People wearing face masks walk in St James's Park amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in London, Britain January 22, 2021. REUTERS/John Sibley The concern follows nine months of devastating travel restrictions, which has left scores of businesses crushed, millions of jobs lost or put at risk, and confidence to travel at an all-tim...
Read MoreFrench ski lifts will not reopen on February 1 and it is not clear for now whether French people can start booking winter holidays in February, French Tourism Minister Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne said on Thursday. French ski resorts can welcome tourists but the lifts have not been allowed to open since the start of the season. With no mechanical means to lift them up the slopes, skiers and snowboarders have resort to trudging up the slopes with snow shoes. FILE PHOTO: People practice with snowshoes in the winter ski resort of Isola 2000 as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues in France, January 18, 2021. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard Early January, the government said lifts would be allowed to reopen on Jan. 20 if the spread of the COVID-19 virus had been slowed, but in recent...
Read MoreIt will not be possible to host carnival celebrations in July, Rio de Janeiro’s new mayor said on Thursday, as Brazil’s second wave of coronavirus infections gathers steam with vaccine supplies still scare in Latin America’s biggest country. FILE PHOTO: A worker of the Estacio de Sa samba school walks past a carnival float at the empty samba school headquarters, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil October 27, 2020. REUTERS/Pilar Olivares/File Photo Eduardo Paes tweeted that he was aware of the economic and cultural benefits that the world-famous party, originally scheduled for next month, brings to the city. But he said there was no way it could be held even in the middle of the year. “It makes no sense to me to think at this point t...
Read MoreThe World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), have released major guidelines focusing on how private sector organisations may seek to implement health and hygiene protocols throughout their organisations and thereby improve public confidence in the Travel & Tourism sector. The guidelines are a follow up to the health and safety protocols WTTC released in 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and following the signing of a memorandum of collaboration with IOSH. The Safe Travels protocols were designed to rebuild confidence among consumers so they may travel safely once restrictions are lifted. They provide consistency to destinations and countries as well as guidance to travellers about the approach to health and hyg...
Read MoreMany high-end stores closed down in top malls The number of foreign visitors to Japan plunged 87% in 2020 to a 22-year low as the country mostly closed its borders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Japan National Tourism Organization data showed on Wednesday. The number of foreign arrivals, which include tourism and business arrivals, fell to about 4.1 million last year from 31.9 million in 2019. It was the lowest annual figure since 1998. FILE PHOTO: The entrance gate to the normally crowded Kiyomizu temple, a favourite location among tourists, is pictured amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Kyoto, Japan. REUTERS/Leika Kihara Meanwhile, more than a dozen stores closed in Tokyo’s high-end Ginza Six mall this week as the coronavirus pandemic kept big...
Read MoreWhat industry needs is a strong summer of travel More than 100 million jobs could return to the global Travel & Tourism sector during 2021, as the world recovers from the crippling COVID-19 pandemic, says the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). A strong summer of travel is expected as the sector begins its road to recovery from late March onwards, with many major travel companies reporting a significant rise in forward bookings. The sector’s revival is backed by WTTC’s latest economic forecast, which gives further hope for the year ahead to businesses and millions of people employed in the sector worldwide. Last year, during the height of the pandemic, WTTC warned 174 million global Travel & Tourism jobs were at risk. However, in its latest analysis, WTTC’s ...
Read MoreThe International Air Transport Association (IATA) is partnering with Emirates and Etihad Airways, the two flag carriers of the UAE to become the first airlines in the world to trial IATA Travel Pass – a mobile app to help passengers easily and securely manage their travel in line with any government requirements for COVID-19 testing or vaccine information. IATA Travel Pass enables Emirates and Etihad Airways passengers to create a ‘digital passport’ to verify their pre-travel test or vaccination meets the requirements of the destination. They will also be able to share the test and vaccination certificates with authorities and airlines to facilitate travel. The new app will also enable travellers to manage all travel documentation digitally and seamlessly throughout the travel experie...
Read MoreIsland nation now open to all vaccinated global travellers The vibrant outbound tourism industry of India is optimistic about some green shoots of recovery by the latter half of 2021. Travelling is innate to humans and having spent a considerable amount of time indoors, people are yearning to explore more than ever before. In light of this sentiment, Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) is all set to rule the travel rosters yet again with the appointment of BRANDit as its official representative in India. BRANDit will handle marketing, sales and Public Relations for the island nation in the Indian subcontinent. The East African Island destination is now open to all global travellers. As part of its big tourism push, Seychelles has opened up to travellers from around the world – provid...
Read MoreWider test acceptance welcomed as major step towards return of international travel
While it is still going to take months, if not years before COVID vaccination effect is noticed in larger part of the world, travel industry by large has been advocating pre-departure tests as a safer means to resumption of international travel. Now recent announcements in UK and US have been largely welcomed as a positive step in this direction. Travel without quarantine is deemed to be a major push towards recovery of brutally bruised travel industry and recent announcements pave the way for it. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) welcomed the announcement by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that it will require all travelers to the US to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test undertaken within three days prior to their departure to th...
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