Coronavirus: How the new travel measures announced by the United States affect tourism

Diana Pazos

01/22/2021 19:03

• Clarín.com

• Travels

• My trip

Updated 01/22/2021 7:27 PM

Negative test, quarantine and alert

.

The measures announced by US President Joe Biden to contain the pandemic

alarmed

our country's

tourism industry

, since the United States is one of the preferred destinations for Argentine travelers.

"In addition to the use of masks, all those who travel to the United States from another country must take a test before getting on the plane and quarantine when they arrive."

Given the statements of the new leader of the White House, how do the airlines and travel agencies calculate that the series of decrees will affect them?

As of January 26, the United States will require as a requirement that passengers aged 2 years or more traveling from anywhere in the world present a

negative test for Covid-19

, within the three days prior to the departure of their flight.

To this is added that

Biden seeks to implement a quarantine

upon entering the country.

Disney postcard in times of pandemic.

Photo: Joe Burbank / Orlando Sentinel via AP

At the same time, the state of Florida decided to

reduce vaccination tourism

 and reserve doses for locals and temporary or permanent residents.

Consulted by

Clarín

, Aerolineas Argentinas has six weekly flights to Miami in which approximately 1,500 passengers travel per week.

The company maintains that they still do not have figures to assess whether there is a decrease in reserves: "There are inquiries, but we still do not have quantified how it will affect us. Furthermore, it is not yet implemented: since it was announced there are 15 days to implement it, and then each state and district can put other measures in place. "

American Airlines supports the implementation of the global program that requires testing for Covid-19 for those traveling to the United States.

"We are working closely with the US authorities as they implement this new order and, at the same time, we will work with any affected customers with the option to change their reservations."

They expand on American: "If a customer arrives through one or more connecting flights,

the negative test must have been carried out within the three days prior to the departure

of the initial flight. But only if the connecting flights were booked with the registration. of a single passenger bound for the United States and each connection lasts no more than 24 hours. "

From the airline they clarify that

this requirement also includes those who have already received the Covid-19 vaccine

and those who confirmed that they had the disease in the laboratory in the last three months, as long as they present the approved positive test results, and a letter from their licensed physician or a public health profession stating that the client recovered for travel.

The "Slinky Dog Dash" roller coaster at Disney's Hollywood Studios in Orlando.

Photo: Joe Burbank / Orlando Sentinel via AP

The general manager of All Seasons, Pablo Bazzetti, affirms that although it is the presentation of a plan to combat Covid-19 by Biden, the news is "high impact."

But so far

they have no requests for cancellations

to travel to Miami or Orlando theme parks.

"There are questions and expectations," he acknowledges, "and if it is implemented, we may have cancellation of reservations and modification of dates because it is a situation similar to that experienced in Europe: when countries like Spain or Italy had quarantine rules, tourism retracted ".

The top 5 of the best-selling destinations by Avantrip to the United States are made up of Miami, Orlando, New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Before the announcements, the commercial manager Nicolás Posse assures that "you begin to react when the conditions are tightened. Until the measure is regulated, people travel the same. That is what we have learned, especially since the quarantine ended. it lasts and there are possibilities to travel. "

And he says: "

We are selling everything with flexibility:

 if someone has to reschedule for a better time, they will be able to do so. Customers know that all the tickets that we have been selling to the United States for several months are flexible, and that gives them a margin. to buy the flights and reschedule them if necessary. In the short term we have no cancellations and the only thing that is known, for now, is that travelers need a PCR test after January 26 to enter the United States. "

According to Matías Mute, co-founder of Promos Aéreas, "a priori, the news is

a bucket of cold water

. We had a 'summer' with Miami (New York already required PCR), but I think this announcement has to do with the change of the United States government because Covid-19 was an axis of Biden's campaign and was one of Trump's weaknesses. There is nothing definitive yet: they will

probably ask for negative PCR and we will get used to traveling like that

, but that they require quarantine in a A place with Miami seems strange to me because if you already have a negative PCR you have to be able to stay in the reserved hotel and that's it.

New York is in the Top 5 of the United States that Argentines prefer to travel.

Photo: Johannes EISELE / AFP

"As always, we closely follow the measures and regulations that governments are applying to adapt in a timely manner and provide travelers with all relevant information. It is understandable that policy modifications or new resolutions are generated in the face of a change of government, and We are waiting for the official publication of the measure announced in the United States to know its real scope, "says Paula Cristi, Despegar's general manager for Argentina and Uruguay.

Although he considers that it is early to measure the effects, he explains: "Places like Miami or New York are in our ranking of the destinations most chosen by Argentines, and we understand that travelers may want to make last minute changes to the announcement So far we have received inquiries from travelers requesting information, but a normal volume for these cases. "

According to Cristi, "given the situation we are going through, it is important to say that our providers since the beginning of the pandemic are considering flexibility policies in most cases, which include open tickets and rescheduling or vouchers for the value of the reservation for accommodations ".

The CEO of Volala, José María García Casabal, agrees: "We are receiving many

inquiries to reschedule trips

for later, but so far we have not registered cancellations due to this new measure."

At the same time, a "strong drop in sales" stands out in the last days compared to the last three months of 2020. "We believe that it is too early to understand if it is related to the uncertainty in the face of the new restrictions, the outbreaks or it is an economic issue that hit very hard in the last year. But in the current framework, it is necessary to accompany the State to the tourism sector in order to cope with this situation. "

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