Mauritian borders will reopen next 15th July to tourists. A first phase that will be due till the 30th September where access will be opened strictly to vaccinated tourists who will also have to produce a negative PCR test dated less than 72 hours on their arrival, on the 7th day and the 14th day of their stay as resort tourists. For this accommodation, the government will publish a list of authorised hotels as from the 20th of June on the www.mauritiusnow.com. In the second phase, that is, as from the 1st October, access will be given without any quarantine constraints to vaccinated visitors who will, nevertheless, have to present a negative PCR test dated less than 72 hours before their check-in in their respective countries.
Concerning the Hotel workers and operators in the tourism sector, the ‘Government Wage Assistance Scheme’ will be extended to next September. The Government will commit on beautifying projects for the sake of a better touristic island figuring in the 250 million budget allocated for the beautifying of beaches like Mon Choisy, Flic en Flac, Belle Mare and La Prairie, restoration of heritage and tourist sites, greening of towns and villages and modernisation of sanitation infrastructure. In this line, the government will encourage long-term tourism and the ‘Invest Hotel Scheme’ will be amended.
The whole plan targets to attract at least 650,000 tourists over a span of 12 months. 420 million rupees will be allocated to the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA) for marketing campaigns and promotion, tradition and online, in existing and emerging markets such as Europe, South Africa and China.
Bissoon Mungroo: “Imprisonment followed by a guided holiday!”
“We can only be thoughtful towards this reopening of the border,” claims the President of the ‘Association des Hotels de Charme.’ According to him, the quarantine imposition for duly vaccinated and PCR tested travellers is quite pointless and “will only nourish the trauma of the tourist. His travel will cost him more since, in addition, of vaccine and PCR tests, he will have to be a resort tourist for 14 days and the cost for that imposition is high and unpleasant in terms of the tourist experience. It will be like an imprisonment followed by a guided holiday!” The government should have also focused the tourists’ experience. “Betting on long-term tourist is not wise for now. Before coming with such a measure, the government should have calculated better,” he explains. The reopening will require the hotels to reopen all their activities. Calculating the employees’ costs per day and operation cost in general, Bissoon Mungroo states, “we may not get so many tourists in this first phase but the hotels and operators will need to show themselves ready for business, and it is a big cost that many won’t be able to inject. And if they take the risk, the closing down of the less fortunate will be an eventuality”.
About the grant of 420 million to the MTPA for the financial period 2021-2022, Bissoon Mungroo is categorical. “It will not be enough for a proper inland and online marketing and promotion and embellishment projects. At this stage and for the actual state of the tourism industry, we need to work on a complete rebranding to turn it back into a Pillar of Mauritian Economy” he attests.
The Association des Hotels de Charme is assessing the risks of this first phase of reopening of borders to tourists. The only positive point our interlocutor finds in this budget for Tourism sector is the extension of the GWAS for “the reopening does not guarantee restoration of job for all operators in hotels, restaurants, taxi, vendors, or pleasure craft owners”.
