Metro Manila’s month-long lockdown, which began yesterday as the government attempts to contain Covid-19, has brought about a domino effect on 41 other destinations in the Philippines.
Among the 41 that have imposed community quarantine in varying degrees and length of time are the provinces of Cebu, Bohol, Iloilo, Batanes and Ilocos Norte; Puerto Princesa, Coron and El Nido in Palawan; and Siargao in Surigao. The province of Aklan, which includes top tourist draw Boracay, will also impose quarantine.
Philippine capital Manila enters month-long lockdown
This effectively halts both international and domestic tourism, with international tourists now left stranded in areas like Palawan as domestic flights have been suspended.
The Department of Tourism is making arrangements to help stranded tourists return home with military planes, while several airlines will also be mounting special flights to and from Puerto Princesa. Air Swift will fly via Clark to Puerto Princesa today and tomorrow; Philippine Airlines will operate flights to Puerto Princesa until March 18; while Air Asia Philippines will operate recovery flights to and from Puerto Princessa over the next few days.
Meanwhile, in Manila, gaming operations have been suspended starting today, leading to City of Dreams Manila halting hotel, restaurant and spa bookings, as well as temporarily closing some restaurants.
Tourist destinations in the city including Sagada, The Walled City of Intramuros, Fort Santiago, Casa Manila, Baluarte de San Diego and Museo de Intramuros are also all closed till further notice.
Singapore residents have been advised to defer all non-essential travel abroad, while border restrictions have been expanded to include all South-east Asian countries, as the island nation ramps up measures to curb the risk of imported Covid-19 cases.
The travel advisory for Singapore residents will apply for 30 days, and is subject to further review, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) in a press statement released yesterday (March 15).
Singapore steps up border control measures to guard against imported Covid-19 cases to the country
From 23.59 today (March 16), all travellers, including Singapore residents, long-term pass holders, and short-term visitors, entering Singapore with recent travel history to South-east Asian countries, Japan, Switzerland, or the UK within the last 14 days will be issued a 14-day stay-home notice (SHN).
This will exclude travellers from Malaysia who arrive by land and sea, as large numbers cross the borders daily, said national development minister Lawrence Wong at a press conference on Sunday, reported The Straits Times.
The report also quoted Wong, who co-chairs a Singapore multi-ministry task force to fight the Covid-19, as saying that separate arrangements are being made by a bilateral joint working group.
All other travellers affected by the new border restrictions will also have to provide proof of the place where they will serve the 14-day SHN, for example, a hotel booking covering the entire period, or a place of residence they or their family members own.
They may also be swabbed for testing for Covid-19, even if asymptomatic, due to the risk of community transmission in these countries and evidence of cases that have been imported from these countries into Singapore, said MOH.
In addition to the SHN requirement, from 23.59 today (March 16), all short-term visitors who are nationals of any South-east Asian country will have to submit requisite information on their health to the Singapore Overseas Mission in their country of residence before their intended date of travel.
The submission will have to be approved by Singapore’s MOH before they travel to Singapore, and the approval will be verified by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officers at the Singapore checkpoints.
Short-term visitors who arrive in Singapore without the necessary approval will be denied entry into Singapore.
The extra measures come as Singapore has seen an increase of 25 new Covid-19 cases in the past three days, said MOH in its statement.
Of these, more than three-quarters were imported cases, of which close to 90 per cent were Singapore residents and long-term pass holders who had returned to Singapore from overseas.
During the same period, more than one-quarter of imported cases were from South-east Asian countries, the ministry added.
The MOH also said that it has seen a number of these cases entering Singapore for the purpose of seeking medical care, adding that it imposes a significant burden on Singapore’s healthcare resources during this critical period when they are focused on containing the situation within Singapore.
The latest restrictions follow a range of sweeping measures announced by the government last Friday to curb the spread of the virus in the country, including more border restrictions and social distancing measures.
The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) will be rolling out a host of monetary-easing measures to blunt the economic impact sustained by the travel and tourism industry from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic once the virus is brought under control.
The council’s announcement comes amid its latest projections that the virus is putting up to 50 million jobs in the industry globally at risk.
WTTC projects that the Covid-19 is putting up to 50 million jobs in the industry globally at risk; travellers at Kuala Lumpur International Airport wearing masks to prevent infection from the virus
Gloria Guevara, WTTC president & CEO, said: “When the time is right, WTTC and the global private sector will be ready to help and support the government and countries to recover.”
Global travel could be adversely impacted by up to 25 per cent this year, equivalent to a loss of three months of global travel, according to latest figures from WTTC, which represents the global travel & tourism private sector. This could lead to a corresponding reduction in jobs of between 12 and 14 per cent.
Guevara said: “The Covid-19 outbreak clearly presents a significant threat to the industry as a whole, to those employed within it, and those wishing to continue travelling.
“Travel & tourism has the strength to overcome this challenge and will emerge stronger and more robust by taking all necessary measures to tackle Covid-19 and the understandable concern which surrounds it.”
Following extensive consultation with other travel & tourism organisations, WTTC is also calling for a series of measures to be taken, to enable the swift recovery of the sector once Covid-19 is under control.
WTTC will offer its support to all governments, particularly those which are implementing strong policies for a prompt recovery such as improving travel facilitation by removing or simplifying visas, reducing the cost and improving processing times, accepting other visas, and introducing more efficient technologies for seamless and secure travel.
The council will also work to ensure that unnecessary barriers are removed or relaxed to alleviate pressure at ports and airports, including temporarily lifting of the 80-20 slot policy rule, ports assignments and implementing flexible working visa for the industry in some countries with existing limitations, especially in hospitality and tour operation.
As well, WTTC will ease fiscal policies by reducing and removing travellers’ taxes which increases the cost of travel, e.g. air passenger duty and similar airport, port and hospitality taxes around the world.
It will also introduce relief and incentives to support business continuity for companies which have been most negatively impacted by the virus, particularly SMEs, which will take longer to recover.
In addition, the council will support destinations by increasing budgets and assigning resources for promotion, marketing and product development purposes in destinations when they are ready to welcome visitors again.
Meanwhile, WTTC reinforces the importance of strong public-private partnerships and greater international cooperation in order to respond and overcome the challenges faced by its members during the management and recovery from Covid-19.
The travel & tourism sector has a proven track record of resilience in the face of crises and this ability to bounce back has improved significantly in recent years, said WTTC.
Costa Cruises and Princess Cruises, subsidiaries of Carnival Corporation, will be suspending operations in light of the global Covid-19 pandemic.
The move comes amid speculations that the economic toll of the virus may sink the US$45 billion cruise industry, which has been weighed down by cancelled sailings, quarantines, travel restrictions and fears of infection.
Costa Cruises suspends cruise operations worldwide
Costa said on Friday (March 13) that it will be cancelling all of its cruises around the world until April 3, marking a broader retreat as the Italian cruise line had previously suspended operations in China and trips departing from its Italian ports.
Several of the company’s liners have been blocked in recent weeks over suspected or confirmed cases of the Covid-19, and it has halted cruises in the Mediterranean.
Costa said that cruises underway will complete to allow passengers to return home, adding that affected customers will be refunded.
A day prior, Princess Cruises said that it will suspend operations of its 18 cruise ships for two months, after it faced quarantines on two coronavirus-stricken ships.
The Grand Princess cruise ship, which had 21 people on board who were infected with the virus, had been quarantined in the San Francisco Bay for days before docking in Oakland on Monday.
Last month, more than 700 passengers on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship tested positive for the virus in what was then the biggest coronavirus cluster outside China. Six of those passengers died.
Princess Cruises said in a statement that it will continue to sail its planned itineraries, while voyages underway that extend beyond March 17 will end at “the most convenient location” for guests to disembark.
The company also said it will provide ticket holders cash refunds or vouchers for future cruises if their voyages are cancelled.
The Philippine Department of Tourism (DoT) has signed an MoU with Turkish Airlines that aims to boost the country’s tourism from the European, Mediterranean and other international markets served by the airline.
The signing of the MOU was held at the Turkish Airlines’ headquarters in Istanbul, Turkey recently, in conjunction with the Turkey Tourism Roadshow organised by the DoT and the department’s participation at the Uzakrota Travel Summit, one of Turkey’s largest tourism events.
Turkish Airlines’ Ilker Ayci inks pact with DOT undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr to boost inbound arrivals from Europe and other markets to the Philippines
Under the new collaboration, the DoT and Turkish Airlines will conduct various projects this year to promote tourism in the country, with the goal of boosting inbound arrivals to the Philippines.
Under the partnership, both the DoT and Turkish Airlines will jointly work on brand advertising, promotional and tactical marketing campaigns, digital and e-marketing, familiarisation tours for airline executives, media, travel trade partners, roadshow presentations, among other activities.
The partnership was signed by DOT undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr and Ilker Ayci, chairman of the board of Turkish Airlines, after successful discussions of possible avenues to increase air connectivity between Turkey and the Philippines, as well as various parts of Europe via Istanbul.
Bengzon said the sustained air connectivity from those areas “would definitely be pivotal in boosting our ability to grow, and make packages to the Philippines more competitive”.
European arrivals to the Philippines rose by 9.13 per cent in 2019 to 772,098 – from 707,525 the previous year – accounting for 9.34 per cent of the total international visitorship to the Philippines.
Meanwhile, arrivals from the Mediterranean markets, Israel and Turkey have doubled in the last five years, with an average growth rate of 16 per cent.
Singapore is on the cusp of resurgence as a family destination, as the country shapes up with a slate of new and upcoming developments aimed at drawing younger families.
Preceding the opening and announcements of these fresh developments was the Singapore Tourism Board (STB)’s Action Seekers marketing push.
Launched in January last year, the initiative targeted adventure- and sports-minded travellers, including children, youth and of course, by extension, families.
Then, in April last year, the island of Sentosa welcomed three new hotels under the Far East Hospitality group. Of the three, the 606-room Village Hotel at Sentosa is a family-friendly option featuring themed pools and a range of activities for all ages.
Besides playing host to new hotels, Sentosa will be rolling out major transformations such as an expansion of Pulau Brani, beach enhancements, new attractions, and nature zones.
On top of all this, Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) is undergoing a S$4.5 billion overhaul, which is set to increase the gross floor area of the integrated resort by about 50 per cent.
As part of RWS’ transformation into RWS 2.0, new experiences will be delivered in phases until 2025. The first will be a pirate-themed dining playhouse, which is slated for end-2020.
Coming down the line are a public seafront attraction with free evening light shows, expansions and two new sections for Universal Studios Singapore and an enlarged S.E.A. Aquarium, which will be renamed Singapore Oceanarium.
All of these enhancements are expected to entice visitors to extend their stay in Sentosa and Singapore.
Guy Allison, then-director of procurement, Tour East Holdings and now co-founder and chief talent officer, G & P Recruitment – a Bangkok-based hospitality company – commented: “Sentosa’s becoming quite a family destination. It’s starting to attract people to stay in Singapore for not just a few nights, but three or four – maybe even a week. With the new developments, it might even become a destination in itself.”
On Singapore’s mainland, NERF Action Xperience, with its high-octane offerings, opened in September last year. To continue pulling in more family visitors, the centre will host the inaugural NERF Agility League for children and youths from seven to 16 years old this year.
Returning in October this year is the HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens 2020, which is shaping up to be one of Singapore’s tent-pole extravaganzas for families. A third of the crowd at last year’s event had purchased family packages, said Steven Rodaway, general manager of HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens.
Billing itself as a family-focused edition of the global event, this year’s Singapore leg will feature carnival activities, a children’s FunZone with stage performances, live shows, art activities and face painting, as well as a line-up of new family-friendly activities that will be announced.
Outrigger Hotels and Resorts has launched a revitalised rewards programme, Outrigger Expert Advisor, which offers several benefits to Australian agents.
Agents who join the programme can earn unlimited reward points on Outrigger bookings through a wholesaler, GDS, phone or website, to redeem for accommodation at selected Outrigger properties.
Outrigger has launched a revitalised rewards programme, and this year’s points can be redeemed for a stay at Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort (pictured)
This year’s points can be utilised towards hotel room stays at Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort and Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort.
The properties which agents can redeem points on may change each year to familiarise agents with the hospitality group’s collection of resorts and hotels.
Agents will receive an initial 500 Reward Points upon certification, plus extra Reward Points for completing additional educational courses. For each night booked, agents will receive 100 Reward Points. There will be monthly booking promotions to allow agents to earn points faster.
Other benefits include incentive opportunities with select airline carriers, a dedicated help desk, and exclusive room rate discounts.
Agents can join the programme by completing an online course at www.OutriggerAdvisor.com.
In celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD), Insight Vacations has launched its inaugural women-only journey, which is set to take place in India come 2021.
Inspirational India, A Wander Women Journey, which is the first itinerary in Insight’s new Wander Women journey programme, will offer immersive learning opportunities, wellness experiences and authentic dining, while highlighting the impact tourism has on women’s economic empowerment.
Insight guests can enjoy a ride offered by Pink City Rickshaw Company which supports economic empowerment for local women in Jaipur
With this year’s IWD theme being #EachForEqual, Insight is aligning itself with a gender equal world, showcased by launching these journeys created and led by women.
“With 57 per cent of our guests being women along with the rise of women-only travel, our new journey which is designed and run by women, is a perfect fit for those who want to get below the surface and experience India as a culturally immersive destination as well as have opportunities to give back and empower women in the local communities while learning about their day-to-day lives,” said Ulla Hefel Böhler, global CEO for Insight Vacations.
“This journey is also a great opportunity to connect and meet with other fabulous women from around the world and provides economic empowerment to local women.”
This exclusive women-only journey is only available on a limited departure date, so clients are encouraged to book early to secure their space.
The 12-day India journey, departing March 24, 2021, offers experiences such as jewellery-making, ayurvedic spa treatments, a Bollywood dance class, a henna demonstration, morning yoga with a female guru, a meeting with a local astrologer, and a visit to the Taj Mahal.
Guests will also get to visit a café solely run by acid attack survivors, which promotes social integration and economic empowerment. Other unique experiences include a rickshaw ride offered by a company which provides jobs to 200 women from low-income households in Jaipur.
On the eve of the Holi festival, guests will have the chance to visit an Indian family to join in their Holika Dehan tradition, which includes a home-hosted dinner and a bonfire that’s meant to ward off evil before the following day’s festivities where guests can don local Kurta attire and take to the streets for a colourful celebration.
Singapore has implemented a range of sweeping measures, including wider border restrictions, social distancing measures, and ceasing port calls for all cruise vessels to curb the spread of the Covid-19, after it was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation on Wednesday.
The measures include additional travel advisories to Singaporeans against non-essential travel to countries hard hit by the coronavirus.
Singapore will cease port calls for all cruise vessels as part of new measures to combat Covid-19
From 23.59 on Sunday (March 15), all visitors who have been to Italy, France, Spain and Germany within the last 14 days will be banned from setting foot in the country, according to a Ministry of Health (MOH) statement released today.
As well, from 23.59 on Sunday, Singaporeans and permanent residents who have been to Italy, France, Spain and Germany within the last 14 days will be issued a stay-home notice (SHN), which means they will be required to stay home at all times for 14 days upon return to Singapore.
The notice will also apply to long-term pass holders with recent travel history to these countries within the last 14 days.
Furthermore, travellers showing any signs of fever or respiratory symptoms at the checkpoints will need to serve a 14-day SHN, even if their swab test results for Covid-19 were negative.
Singapore will also cease port calls for all cruise vessels with immediate effect.
As well, all ticketed events with 250 participants or more are to be cancelled or postponed, including cultural, entertainment and sporting events, in line with the government’s social distancing measures.
For events that have already been committed to, like in the case that tickets have been sold, organisers must adhere to precautionary measures set by MOH before they can proceed.
Participants could be seated at least one metre apart from one another, and reduce contact with others such as by not shaking hands, said MOH in the release.
Employers are also advised to put in place measures to reduce close contact, such as implementing tele-commuting and video-conferencing, staggering work hours, and allowing employees to commute at off-peak hours. Seating in meeting rooms and work stations could also be spaced apart.
For public venues, measures to reduce close contact by patrons or customers could include setting seats at least a metre apart at dining venues. Entertainment venues and tourist attractions, including casinos, cinemas, theme parks, museums, and galleries, could limit the number of visitors at any one time, and increase spacing among visitors.
In addition, sports centres with indoor facilities, such as gyms and private academies, could limit the number of patrons, introduce physical separation measures, increase the frequency of cleaning, as well as issue advisories to reduce unnecessary contact, and practice public hygiene.
The measures were announced by minister for health Gan Kim Yong and minister for national development Lawrence Wong, who chair the multi-ministry task force on tackling the virus.
Gan said that the island country is increasingly seeing more imported cases, and warned that more are expected with the surge in cases globally, highlighting the importance of border control restrictions.
He added: “But even as we continue to tighten, we know it is not possible to close borders, we need to ensure measures are sustainable in the long term, and that life can go on.”
The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) is beseeching governments to roll back or refrain from introducing travel restrictions, citing the disruption caused to people’s livelihoods and the negative repercussions to the wider economy, following reports from the WHO indicating that the Covid-19 outbreak has now spread to over 100 countries.
WHO has repeatedly advised against travel or trade restrictions as such measures are generally ineffective, AAPA said in a statement, noting that in the majority of the countries, the spread is now predominantly through local transmission rather than from imported cases.
Covid-19 fears has fuelled growing travel bans globally; travellers wearing masks in Osaka Kansai Airport
Furthermore, travel restrictions cause significant disruptions to supply chains, commerce, trade, and most importantly, people’s livelihoods due to the severe economic impact, stressed AAPA.
WHO has also noted that travel restrictions if introduced, must be based on a careful risk assessment, be proportionate to the public health risk, be short in duration, and be reconsidered regularly as the situation evolves.
Medical experts have stated that air travel is safe, noted AAPA. To protect the travelling public, the airline industry has been adhering strictly to WHO and IATA guidelines on inflight hygiene and disinfection, including the stepping up of cleaning of aircraft and airline lounges, and the use of hospital grade HEPA air filtration systems on board aircraft. To date, there have been no reports of Covid-19 infections attributed to inflight transmission, according to AAPA.
The association urged for “a fundamental rethink on travel restrictions”, given that the Covid-19 outbreak is now progressing across the globe.
Andrew Herdman, AAPA director general, said: “The airline industry is fully committed to the safety and well-being of the travelling public. Asia-Pacific airlines are well-equipped to handle health crises, and are strictly following established guidelines developed by the IATA, in consultation with the WHO and Airports Council International, covering the management of public health risks.”
However, the proliferation of travel restrictions worldwide and insufficient adherence to international health regulations are imposing enormous costs on society with little or no public health benefits, said Herdman.
He added: “AAPA appreciates the leadership of WHO on this issue and calls on governments to fundamentally reconsider the rationale for such travel restrictions and measures, taking into account the disruption caused to people’s livelihoods and the negative repercussions to the wider economy.
“Governments must strengthen cooperation across borders and work together with WHO, ICAO, and other stakeholders to develop a more globally co-ordinated set of policy measures, in addressing the current outbreak, avoiding unnecessary social and economic disruption.”
