The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A MAJOR Paradise Island resort has confirmed it will re-open on December 10 after several “abnormal” months as the US eased its COVID-19 warnings on travel to The Bahamas.

Jermaine Wright, Comfort Suites general manager, confirmed in a November 12, 2020, letter to the hotel’s travel partners that it will follow Atlantis’ lead and “resume operations” on the same day as its mega resort neighbour.

“The past few months have certainly been abnormal,” Mr Wright wrote in a letter seen by this newspaper. “However, we are positive that with the launch of our new health and safety initiatives, we are ready and eager to welcome our mutual clients back to vacation in paradise.

“We have been busy creating a safe and secured environment for all of our guests so that they can feel comfortable staying with us. Our focused training for all team members was specifically for this new COVID-19 environment. We have made changes from our plexiglass partitions to our social distancing policies.”

Comfort Suites’ decision to mirror Atlantis on the re-opening comes as little surprise given that it heavily feeds off the neighbouring resort, with its guests able to access the mega property’s amenities and facilities.

Its move comes as The Bahamas received a modest bit of good news from the US State Department, which yesterday disclosed that this nation had “improved” to a so-called ‘Level 3’ status for COVID-19 where Americans are being told to “reconsider travel” - rather than “don’t travel” - to this nation.

The latest advisory, issued yesterday ahead of the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, also eliminated warnings to US tourists to avoid the Arawak Cay fish fry. “Travelers to The Bahamas may experience travel prohibitions, stay at home orders, business closures and other emergency conditions within The Bahamas due to COVID-19,” the advisory nevertheless warns.

“The vast majority of crime occurs on New Providence (Nassau) and Grand Bahama (Freeport) islands. In Nassau, exercise caution in the ‘Over the Hill’ area (south of Shirley Street). Violent crime, such as burglaries, armed robberies and sexual assault occur, but generally not in tourist areas.

“Activities involving commercial recreational watercraft, including water tours, are not consistently regulated. Watercraft are often not maintained and many companies do not have safety certifications to operate in The Bahamas. Jet-ski operators have been known to commit sexual assaults against tourists. As a result, US government personnel are not permitted to use independently operated jet-ski rentals on New Providence and Paradise Islands.”

The Government and Bahamian tourism industry stakeholders have previously argued that US travel advisories do not reflect the reality on the ground, with the vast majority of tourists enjoying a safe and enjoyable vacation. Still, the improvement to ‘Level 3’ is a modest boost as The Bahamas attempts to re-open to tourists, 75 percent of whom come from the US.

However, The Bahamas still remains at ‘Level 4’ with US health regulator, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), due to a “very high level of COVID-19 cases”. This warning, issued two days ago, appears not to take into account the recent fall in infections on New Providence.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responding to the US advisory, said: “The Bahamas understands the need for all countries, including the US, to put in place health and safety measures in the best interest of its nationals.

“At the same time, The Bahamas has also put in place travel parameters for the protection of Bahamians, residents and tourists in the country, namely by requiring all persons travelling to The Bahamas to have a COVID-19 Travel Visa and a negative RT-PCR COVID-19 test to enter The Bahamas....

“The Bahamas is confident that if all visitors, nationals and residents abide by these regulations, the spread of the pandemic will be stemmed and the loss of lives will be prevented. At the same time, while observing these rules, visitors will have an enjoyable stay in The Bahamas.”