The Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce of the Government of the Canary Islands, Yaiza Castilla, has positively assessed that the United Kingdom has decided that, as of July 19, the more than 30 million Britons who have received the double dose of the vaccine do not have to quarantine upon their return when traveling to places that are on the amber list, as is the case of the Canary Islands. Castilla pointed out that this decision will boost travel bookings to the Islands, but "as long as they remain on the amber list and do not move to the red list in the next review of the Covid traffic light that the Government of Boris Johnson is periodically carrying out".
This review is scheduled for next week and the Global Travel Task Force defines in its protocol for evaluating travel destinations the accumulated incidence, the progress of vaccination, the care capacity, the presence of new variants, the capacity to detect variants, the number of tests carried out and the positivity rate.
For this reason, the Minister has insisted on the need to "keep all parameters under control in the Islands so as not to ruin this incipient opening".
Castilla recalled that the Canary Islands accounted for 7% of British holidays in 2019, so she is convinced that many of the fully vaccinated citizens, more than 30 million, will not hesitate to return to the archipelago if they do not have to quarantine upon their return.
However, it will still be necessary to carry out at least two PCR tests for vaccinated people traveling to amber destinations, "which implies an additional economic cost that is very discouraging, especially in the summer season, when the size of the group is larger due to the predominance of family tourism", according to the Minister.
Therefore, Castilla insisted that, "although this is great news for our sector that may lead to an increase in travel bookings to the Canary Islands, prudence must prevail because the pandemic is still present and we must continue working to maintain the reputation of the Islands as a safe destination".
France
Regarding the recommendation made from France in which travel to Spain and Portugal is discouraged, Castilla assured that "the situation of the pandemic is different now than in previous times in which vaccination did not exist or was not so widespread", so she believes that "we should not take steps backwards in the progress already made in terms of harmonizing measures in Europe to facilitate the mobility of people to reactivate tourism and the economy in safe conditions", such as the EU digital Covid certificate.
"This certificate was a decision of the member states to be able to travel freely between countries since it proves that the holder has received the full course of the vaccine, has passed the disease or provides a negative PCR test, so I do not think it is a good measure to establish new restrictions, vetoes or recommendations that stigmatize a country within the EU", said the Minister.
However, Castilla acknowledged that the incidence that is being recorded not only in the Canary Islands, but also in Spain and other countries of the European Union, is "certainly very worrying", so she made a new appeal "to take extreme precautions and not lower our guard". In any case, the Minister has clarified that now "there are more mechanisms to minimize risks and it is possible to make certain economic activity compatible with the current levels of incidence, especially in the vaccinated population segment".
In this regard, Castilla recalled that the Canary Islands is the only community that has a decree establishing strict preliminary conditions for accessing regulated tourist accommodation in safe conditions, by certifying that they have been vaccinated or have a negative Covid test.
The safety of the destination
In this line, the Ministry, through the public company Promotur Turismo de Islas Canarias, is addressing a statement to the main European tour operators in order to qualify the information in which Spain is "stigmatized" for its high epidemiological incidence, so that they can pass it on to their clients and so that they have complete data on the reality of the Canary Islands and do not back down on their decision to travel to the Islands.
Turismo de Canarias recalls that the regional government maintains a "strict" protocol for monitoring the incidence of Covid-19 on the eight islands since the beginning of the pandemic. A protocol that allows surgically activating control measures in each municipality to determine from the maximum number of people who can meet in public and private spaces to the control of restaurant hours and other services.
Although the accumulated incidence has increased "slightly" in the last fifteen days, standing somewhat above 100 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last 7 days, the regional government defends that the Canary Islands has remained throughout the pandemic at around 50 cases "thanks to the strict application of maximum security and control measures".
In addition, it is pointed out that the geographical situation of the Islands has been "essential", since "at all times it has been possible to control the arrival of tourists at its airports". Likewise, Turismo de Canarias reminds tour operators that the Archipelago has "strict prior conditions" for accessing regulated tourist accommodation, such as the obligation to present a negative Covid test in the 72 hours prior to arrival in the Archipelago or an official document indicating that they have been fully vaccinated within 8 months prior to their trip or that they have received at least one dose of the vaccine in the last 4 months and at least 15 days before the trip.
Likewise, it is stated that the vaccination process in the Islands continues "at a good pace" and that currently 40% of the population already has the two doses administered and 60% has at least one dose.
Regarding health coverage, in addition to having a public health system that meets European standards, the Canary Islands signed an agreement last year with the insurance company AXA to reinforce security during the pandemic, offering insurance for tourists who did not know they were infected with Covid-19 when they embarked on their trip or those who have been infected during their stay in the Islands. The policy includes medical expenses, repatriation and an extension of the stay in the Canary Islands so that visitors can complete the 15-day quarantine period.
