Thirteen months after the reopening of the Dominican borders and one year into the administration of the new administration, the country’s tourism is recovering from an unprecedented crisis.
Since August 2020, starting from a flow equivalent to only 20% of the normal levels of tourists, the fight for domestic and international tourism began.
And, for the first time in 17 months, in July, the barrier of 500,000 monthly tourists who on average arrived before the Covid-19 pandemic was surpassed, recovering 97% of the influx of the best moments in the industry.
The Dominican case is positioned today as an international benchmark for effective tourism management. While worldwide international tourist arrivals in the first five months of 2021 were equivalent to only 15% of the same accumulated in 2019, tourist arrivals to the Dominican Republic already reached 48% of pre-pandemic levels, and in those first seven months to 60%.
The key to success in the ‘safe and responsible restart of tourism’, as stated by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), depends on the effectiveness of the vaccination processes of the countries, harmonized safety protocols, and effective communication to help restore consumer confidence.
This same is the recipe that has been applied to the Dominican case. The takeoff of this great industry has been the result of the implementation of the Responsible Tourism Recovery Plan; the Medical Insurance for Tourists against Covid-19; the opening of new trade routes; negotiations to increase the frequency of strategic flight trips; a relaunch of international advertising through digital media; and real-time monitoring of the Dominican tourist situation.
At the end of the last twelve months, the inflow of tourists is five times higher, the routes have doubled, the occupancy of the flights rose to its maximum, the cruise ships began to arrive, the hotel occupancy is now four times higher, the Jobs have grown by 70%, and the Hotels, Bars, and Restaurants industry had its first growth record after the pandemic.
The favorable results of the sector have gone hand in hand with a strict implementation of security measures or failing that, a regime of immediate consequence in case of violation of these guidelines, Covid-19 tests in airports (with the positivity of 0.01%), and the total vaccination of all workers in the industry.
The prospects are promising. The total reservation of air tickets to arrive in the country from September to December 2021, already significantly exceeds the existing level of reservations on this same date to arrive from September to December 2019.
In fact, the reserves of December 2021 are 20% above those of December 2019, with a visible advantage over our competitors (Cuba -77.9%, Mexico 4.8%, Puerto Rico 6%, Jamaica 12.8%, and Bahamas 17%).
All these indicators come directly from the migration system, from the hotels that every day send to the Ministry of Tourism the occupation of their hotels, from the employee data registered in the Social Security Treasury, and from international systems such as forward keys and Expedia, which has historically high data on flight and room reservations.
These have only been achieved with the fully open American market. The imminent opening of Europe and Canada will help us overcome the crisis at the beginning of 2022.
Arrivals
While worldwide international tourist arrivals in the first five months of 2021 were equivalent to only 15% of the same accumulated in 2019, tourist arrivals to the Dominican Republic already reached 48% of pre-pandemic levels, and in those first seven months to 60%.
Reservations go up.
December 2021 bookings are 20% higher than December 2019,
Growth
The imminent opening of Europe and Canada will help us overcome the crisis at the beginning of 2022.
Source:
Listin Diario
