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Guadeloupe: "No reason for the time to cancel a stay planned at the end of the year"

2021-11-24T18:47:34.957Z


INTERVIEW - The Director General of the Tourism Committee Willy Rosier is reassuring as the archipelago is hit by a violent social crisis, partly linked to the health crisis.


Since November 15, Guadeloupe has been affected by a vast protest movement against the compulsory vaccination of healthcare workers, following a call for a general strike launched by a collective of trade union and citizen organizations. For several days, roadblocks have been set up on many priority axes of the archipelago, repeated nightly violence has broken out between demonstrators and the police and numerous looting of banks and food shops have been recorded. A social crisis that comes after two years of health crisis marked by a very sharp slowdown in the flow of travelers. As the high tourist season begins, Willy Rosier, director general of the Tourism Committee of the Islands of Guadeloupe, is however reassuring and does notdo not call on vacationers who plan to go to the West Indies at the end of the year to cancel their stay.

SEE THE FILE -

Guadeloupe: the

Figaro

travel guide

Willy Rosier Photo press

LE FIGARO - What are the impacts of this social movement on the tourism sector to date?

Willy ROSIER -

It is clear that road blockages cause inconvenience for travelers who wish to walk on the island, in particular between Basse-Terre and Grande-Terre where the main axes are cut. But the tourists are absolutely not targeted by the demonstrators and no acts of violence against them have been reported to us. Some hotels have preferred to close their doors because their staff was having difficulty getting to their place of work, but the vast majority of establishments remain open and many of them have excellent occupancy rates. However, we have experienced many cancellations for this week and next week. On the other hand, no wave of cancellations is currently observed for the month of December.

Read alsoTravel in Guadeloupe: ten sites and activities that make you dream

How are you approaching the end of the year?

These social protest movements are part of democratic life and even if after two years of health crisis, the tourist economy would have liked not to have to face the events that shake Guadeloupe, we remain confident and serene for the end of the year. On Wednesday, the prefecture reported a relative lull on the protest front, particularly concerning nighttime violence. Discussions are underway with local elected officials and the government to ease tensions and we are confident that they will bear fruit. To date, in view of the large number of air connections (which is moreover up slightly compared to December 2019), the high occupancy rate of planes and the very good occupancy rate of accommodation planned for the end of the year,we have no objective reason to be worried.

What about the health situation?

The epidemiological situation is relatively stable in Guadeloupe.

Last January, we welcomed a lot of travelers when the vaccination campaign had just started, and this did not translate into an outbreak of contaminations in the following weeks.

We are therefore rather confident, especially since the Minister of Overseas Territories has just announced the reinstatement of RT-PCR tests before boarding for all travelers, even those who are vaccinated.

[In its weekly epidemiological update of November 19

, Santé Publique France reported a stable number of infections compared to the previous week (224 cases), with a test positivity rate of 1.5% considered "low" .

On the other hand, the incidence rate was up 19% compared to the previous week (68 / 100,000 inhabitants), Editor's note]

What advice would you give to travelers who are planning to go to Guadeloupe for the end of the year holidays?

The situation can obviously change but at this time we do not recommend that tourists postpone or cancel their stay and even encourage them not to do so.

Guadeloupe is unfortunately used to experiencing dramatic situations, such as cyclones for example, but the population and tourism professionals know how to show resilience and have learned to bounce back quickly.

It is certain that the roadblocks, if they persist, and the curfew instituted from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m., and which has just been extended until November 28, prevent travelers from circulating freely as they would like, but this does not constitute not, in my opinion, a barrier to a good vacation.

Source: lefigaro

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