The New York Times
09/06/2021 10:11
Clarín.com
Travels
Updated 09/06/2021 10:11
As travelers plan trips or vacations, among the essential items to bring along with items such as a toothbrush, wallet and cell phone charger, can be found
proof (or certificate) of vaccination against Covid-19
, depending on the location. where they have reserved for the night.
While coronavirus cases continue to multiply in different parts of the world, such as the United States, driven by the
highly contagious
Delta variant
, a small number of
hotels in the United States
announced that they will request proof or vaccination certificate of passengers and staff of work.
Accommodations like the PUBLIC Hotel, Equinox Hotel, and Wythe Hotel, all in New York City, Urban Cowboy Lodge in Big Indian, New York, a village in the Catskill Mountains, and Pilgrim House in Provincetown,
Massachusetts
, are among the first in the United States. United in announcing that they will request proof of vaccination - in physical card format or digital verification - from their passengers.
The precedent for the hotel vaccination requirement is already being implemented in the contiguous United States.
A view of New York.
Photo TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP
From the Caribbean to Europe
In August, Puerto Rico issued an island-wide vaccine mandate that requires passengers and staff at all hotels, hostels, and seasonal rentals, including Airbnb, to submit proof of vaccination or a negative PCR, or a antigen test performed with 72 hs.
in advance of your visit.
If a person is staying for more than a week, they will need to present negative evidence to the hotel staff on a weekly basis.
Elite Islands Resorts, a Florida-based company that runs a group of
all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean
, stretching from Antigua to Panama, announced that passengers 12 years and older may be required to show proof of vaccination against Covid-19 upon arrival, starting in September.
Will Caribbean hotels be added?
Photo Shutterstock
"It is imperative for us to
protect the hospitals in these small island nations
, and while they have had a good record of Covid-19, we must remain vigilant, and all of us do our part to become part of the solution," he wrote. Robert Barrett, founder and CEO of Elite Island Resort, in the company's announcement.
Despite the fact that European destinations are deploying varying rules regarding vaccination, most hotels do not ask for proof of immunity.
However, in Portugal, hotel guests need to present proof of vaccination or a negative test for Covid. 19.
New York
In the United States, the Public Hotel, a boutique hotel on Manhattan's Lower East Side owned by hotel mogul Ian Schrager, this month became one of the first hotels in the country to
ask for proof of vaccination
from its passengers and staff.
"We need to defeat Covid-19 together," Schrager said in a press release announcing his decision.
After all, attracting people is our business.
We did not see how to fulfill this responsibility without taking action ”.
At the Equinox hotel in New York, the first luxury fitness company hotel, guests will be required to present
proof of the first dose of vaccination
, beginning September 13.
(The vaccination rule does not apply to staff).
"The Equinox Hotel always listened and will listen to infectious disease experts as well as local governments to guide our decision making," said Chris Norton, the Equinox Hotel CEO in an email.
The American Hotel and Lodging Association, an industry trade group, published safe guidelines based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which includes encouraging employees to get vaccinated.
Museum of Modern Art in New York.
Photo AP Photo / Mary Altaffer
AHLA urges everyone who is eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible, including industry employees, ”said Chip Rogers, the association's president and CEO.
While industry leaders may be encouraging vaccination, some hospitality experts
are unconvinced that there will be a widespread movement of hotels calling for vaccination.
"In the current scenario, I don't think we will see extensive vaccination requirements from hotels," said Christopher Anderson, Cornell University School Professor of Hotel Management.
"At present, not even the major hotel chains are asking their employees to get vaccinated - let alone the passengers," Anderson said in an email.
He accepted that in boutique hotels it is likely to find rules on vaccination control easily, more than in large chains.
At the end of this month, major hotel chains in the United States, including Marriott International, Hyatt and Hilton, will not ask passengers for the vaccine.
Although guests at Marriott hotels will not be required to be vaccinated, they may be required to verify vaccination through local jurisdictions, according to Sarah Brown, a spokeswoman for Marriot International.
And the company offers incentives for employees to get vaccinated.
“In March, Marriott announced the creation of the Vaccination Care Program, offering a cash award to American and Canadian associates at their managed properties, where employees are vaccinated against Covid-19, flexibility for vaccination appointments and education or training regarding the benefits of vaccination, ”Brown said.
"Employees receive the equivalent of four hours' pay at the end of the vaccination," he added.
After being closed for more than a year, PUBLIC reopened last June and has seen a significant “boom” in business, Schrager said.
Recognizing the business risk due to vaccination rules, he said his decision was based on his
responsibility to protect staff and passengers,
as well as the future reputation of the hotel.
"Some will not be happy about this," Schrager said.
“I'm not looking to force them to do anything they don't want to.
But I do have the right to say:
if you want to work here, if you want to stay here, you have to be vaccinated ”.
Derek M. Norman
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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