The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) today announced the new global protocols to restart travel and tourism. The new WTTC Safe Travels protocols serve as guidance to travel providers, operators, and travelers, about the post-COVID-19 approach to health and hygiene.
Designed to rebuilt confidence among travelers, these protocols follow recommendations from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). To compile the new Safe Travels protocols, WTTC also worked closely with organizations such as Airports Council International (ACI), Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), and the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
According to the official WTTC statement, the measures announced today include:
Hotels/Hospitality
- Revisit guidance for cleaning teams for all areas of the hotel with a specific focus on high-frequency touch points, such as room key cards
- Ensure social distancing for guests through signage and guidelines including lifts
- Retrain staff in infection control, social distancing and enhanced hygiene measures, including hand washing and the use of masks and gloves
- All extraneous items should be removed throughout the hotel
Integrate technologies to enable automation, such as introducing contactless payments where possible - Offer room service using no-contact delivery methods
- Have clear, consistent and enhanced communication with customers on new health and hygiene safety protocols, both digitally and physically at hotels
- Safe reopening of Food and Beverage outlets and Meeting and Events spaces with specific actions to ensure social distancing, disinfection, and food safety.
Retail
- Deep cleaning regimes
- Staff should be fully familiar and trained in the new policies, including social distancing, the use of thermal scanning and the wearing of face masks
- Social distancing should be observed in stores through special visual markers
- Minimize touch points by introducing digital maps, digital queue management, e-menus, virtual personal shopping, and roving concierges
- Promote contactless payments and email receipts wherever possible by providing complimentary WIFI to encourage take-up
- Hand sanitizers at shop entrances and exits, as well as at intervals inside premises and in bathrooms.
- In cafes, restaurants and other food outlets, all menus to be available digitally
- Special attention placed to seating and queue management in line with social distancing requirements
- Capacity limits should be introduced in retail car parks to prevent overcrowding.
Measures for the Aviation and Cruise sectors are still in development and will be announced at a later date.
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