Even as Sri Lanka took preventive measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus in the country, some Chinese tourists in Sri Lanka were seeking to extend their stay as they feel safer here than going back home. The impact has also hit outbound travel in Sri Lanka. One agent was saddled with a large [...]

Business Times

Coronavirus hits travel industry

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Even as Sri Lanka took preventive measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus in the country, some Chinese tourists in Sri Lanka were seeking to extend their stay as they feel safer here than going back home.

Chinese tourists wearing face masks at the Bandaranaike International Airport. Pic by Amila Gamage

The impact has also hit outbound travel in Sri Lanka. One agent was saddled with a large number of postponements or cancellations of Sri Lankan incentive tours to various parts of Asia that amounted to over 500 persons postponing their travel plans. The financial damages faced by the agent were enormous, it was revealed.

The travel industry is likely to be further hit by the current crisis as most companies in Sri Lanka this week have restricted their employees from travelling overseas unless it is essential effectively impacting corporate travel.

A number of Chinese visitors that arrived in the country are now seeking to overstay their holiday as they fear going back home in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that hit China and led to the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring a global emergency. At present there are between 800 to 1,000 Chinese travellers in the country.

Following these developments relatives in China of the Chinese tourists here were said to have asked them to continue to stay in Sri Lanka and the immigration authorities have assisted in granting them extensions on their visas, it is learnt.

In the wake of the announcement by the WHO that the virus outbreak is a global threat it is likely that people might panic and decide not to travel.   Airlines are said to be monitoring the situation in this respect and are likely to see the results of this declaration next week.

Numbers hurt

Sri Lanka like all other countries faces its biggest hit as China imposed a ban on group travel by tour agents to all countries. As China celebrates its New Year during this time of year, it is also a peak season for Chinese travel as many go on holiday to other destinations.

Most industry persons noted that Sri Lanka was just recovering from the Easter Sunday attacks when they were hit by the current crisis.

Currently occupancy at city hotels are said to be at around 58- 60 per cent that is believed to be far below normal levels, while this drop could increase in the future based on future Chinese arrivals.

Some hotel groups have pointed out that they were likely to lose about 10 per cent of room nights for February following the ban on Chinese travel as cancellations are on the rise.

At least one company has recorded about 2000 cancellations and the total is likely to increase up to around 5000 for the month of February and no re-bookings have been reported either.

Over 18000 Chinese travellers visited Sri Lanka in December alone and a total of 167,863 in 2019, a drop of over 30 per cent from Chinese arrivals in 2018.

Industry experts believe the China market could be down until around March this year following the virus outbreak.

Sri Lanka has seen an improvement in other markets like Russia, Europe and India and was expecting to pick up on the numbers during the Chinese New Year holidays this year.

Meanwhile, in a show of solidarity with the people of China, Sri Lanka is to issue a number of media advertisements in Chinese newspapers endorsing their support to the country battling the coronavirus.

Sri Lanka on alert

The airports and hotels have been given necessary precautions in a bid to ensure adequate checks are carried out to contain the virus spreading further.

Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Director General H.M.C. Nimalsiri held a meeting on Monday with Airline Managers and Cabin staff on the precautions to be adopted in line with the outbreak of the virus even as preventive measures have been taken at all international airports namely the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA), the Ratmalana International Airport and the Jaffna International Airport.

In this respect, as a precaution face masks were asked to be worn especially onboard aircraft but due to non availability the authorities were able to obtain stocks which were distributed to the airport authorities and the CAA.

These stocks, he said, would be made available to any airline that requires these supplies and added that they had also requested sanitizers be placed where passengers were present at the airport as well.

Temperatures of arrivals are being checked, specifically those flying in from China and other virus-infected destinations, he pointed out.

Interestingly some airlines that arrived from China were found to be re-using their blankets. “We told them to bring two sets of blankets,” he said. In this respect, the regulator would be carrying out random checks as well onboard aircraft, he said. The BIA has also allocated a separate parking bay for any aircraft arriving from China.

Moreover, passengers were also asked to voluntarily report any their ill-health when arriving at the airport as well. Cabin staff is to identify ill persons when onboard as well, it was pointed out.

Mr. Nimalsiri noted a reduction in passengers from the usual 1500 that arrive at the BIA on flights from China aboard the seven flights per day.

The domestic airports were also said to adopt similar preventive measures as scheduled flights were said to commence from Saturday via Fits Aviation taking off from Ratmalana.

Meanwhile, top officials at the Colombo Port held a meeting and conducted at least two seminars for employees on how to cope with the current situation, the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Chief Manager Communication and Public Relations Nalin Aponso said.

In this respect, those coming in direct contact with people namely the security, logistics, operation and navigation staff have been asked to wear masks, he explained.

Further monitoring and steps to be taken in future are also been assessed at present, it was noted.

In addition, the Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) has advised its members on the increased awareness of personal hygiene, particularly hand washing considered critical every 30 minutes.

Further, THASL states there should be “careful monitoring of employees and guests’ wellness including contractors”. Hoteliers are to monitor temperatures should the situation worsen.

A thorough contact information of all guests is required in a bid to ensure they will be able to trace any suspected case and even potentially contact anyone that person may come in contact with.

Protective equipment and sanitizing chemicals are to be made readily available and staff has been advised to remain vigilant and adopt good hygiene measures.

THASL has also stated that this is not a note of panic but instructions sent to its member to be cautious and prepared.

As the country readies to address the issue Sri Lanka has so far reported only one confirmed case of a Chinese national holidaying in the country that was infected with the coronavirus.

Some countries have resorted to bans on travellers from Wuhan like Malaysia and North Korea while Russia stopped issuing Chinese nationals with electronic visas and closed their border close to China.

In addition some countries like the UK have updated their travel advisory indicating that Sri Lanka had reported its first case of coronavirus. But the US updated their advisory with only road closures for the upcoming Independence Day celebration and rehearsals.

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