Roadmap to Recovery Travel Weekly webcasts: The holiday market’s resumption, and what co INTERNATIONAL TOURISM LEADERS


ABTA’S MARK TANZER


Rita Marques


Christopher Rodrigues


Eduardo Santander


Travel Mark Tanzer


‘So far, so good’ say European holiday chiefs


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ntra-European holidays have so far resumed without mishap, but industry leaders remain cautious about the rate of


tourism’s recovery. Speaking last week, Eduardo


Santander, executive director of the European Travel Commission, said: “So far, so good. We are not seeing a resumption of full operations. Nobody could expect that. “[But] people are not only


looking for a holiday, but booking. So this is good news.” Santander was speaking in a


virtual Destination Summit hosted by the Global Travel & Tourism Resilience Council (GTTRC)and marketing agency Finn Partners. He added: “Outbreaks here


and there are not helping. People are looking at the media headlines, [deciding] if they are going to proceed with their bookings.” Portugal opened its beaches


to tourists on June 6 and Rita Marques, secretary of state for tourism in Portugal, told the summit: “Everything is running smoothly. We evaluate everything on a daily basis,


12 16 JULY 2020


but so far so good. All the protocols are in place and the rules are quite clear. Our infection rate has been low compared to other countries. [But] we knew we had to open very carefully.” Marques expressed


disappointment at the UK decision to exclude Portugal from the destinations to which UK citizens may travel without restrictions. But she said: “We are in open dialogue with the UK and we believe the decision is going to be reviewed very soon.” Christopher Rodrigues,


World Travel & Tourism Council ambassador and former chair of VisitBritain, said: “I’m as confused as everyone else [about the UK decision on Portugal]. “The narrative is not consistent.


The Foreign Office advice is different from the Department for Transport advice. One thing I’ve learnt in my years in tourism is that the winners have joined-up messaging.” The GTTRC was founded by


Travel Weekly parent Jacobs Media Group in association with senior figures in the global travel and tourism industry.


Weekly’s Ian Taylor


‘Abta has key role to play in rebuilding confidence’


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bta has an important role to play in the Covid-19 recovery, according to chief executive Mark Tanzer.


Speaking on a Travel Weekly


Roadmap to Recovery webcast, Tanzer said: “Good-quality information, passing from destinations to members and from members to customers, is absolutely crucial. “There is going to be a confidence


issue not just this year but into next, and we have the relationships, can aggregate the information and pass it on not just to members but to customers.” He said: “The government has a


role to play, [but] the industry also has a role in giving good information to customers [and] getting good processes in place in destination to make it as safe and trouble-free as possible.” Tanzer reported: “We’ve had


1.2 million visits to the consumer advice on coronavirus on Abta’s website. Our role in building customer confidence and getting customers to book with professional travel organisers is really important. “We have a lot of other channels


Later in the year I’d


hope to see us talking direct to customers and encouraging them to book


providing training and guidance for members. We have country recovery plans on the website where all the information we receive about restrictions, local protocols and healthcare provisions are there for members, and that is kept up to date. “We’ve published our own post-


pandemic guide on communications with customers, risk assessments and so forth, and we’ve launched a ‘restarting travel guide’ for customers online. This includes tips about rebooking, Foreign Office advice and travel insurance”. Tanzer suggested it remains too


early in the recovery phase for Abta to launch a consumer media campaign “when there is so much uncertainty”. But he said: “At some point later in


the year I would hope to see us talking direct to customers, encouraging them to book.”


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