From Monday, non-essential travel within the European Union will still be allowed, although still depressing. Also, of course, be aware of the restrictions that are imposed in the countries you plan to visit. So, to be informed, one solution is to turn to travel agencies.
The opportunity for Anne-Sophie Bruyndonckx, at Matin Première, to reflect the general secretary of the Professional Union of Travel Agents, Anne-Sophie Snyers.
The phones are generally hot, she notes, but “especially to ask a lot of questions because there is still a lot of uncertainty about where we can go”. The important thing is to find out from a professional, he added, “to find out which destinations are open today for us Belgium, because the destination can be red. Most of the world and Europe are red, but then it’s the countries that don ‘t accept us, so it’s important to know where we can go today.
Where to travel and under what conditions?
The first concern of customers explains Anne-Sophie Snyers, “is to know where we can travel. Regarding the red countries, I think the Prime Minister is clear at this level, the good red countries, but the tests are up to date 1, day 7 and quarantine on return”.
And then the second question concerns insurance. There, he continued, the prime minister was unclear. “Europe travel ban lifted… From what I understand and what a lot of people understand, we could also travel to countries outside of Europe, which are red, the rest of the Europe being classified as red by Europe., but with compulsory quarantine and testing on your return.
What about insurance?
A question that is always cyclical in any case is: “Am I insured if I go to a red country, and if I go to a red country outside Europe? We have questioned a few insurers. We do not have them all, we We will do it this week, but it seems that if the country accepts us, even if it is red, the cancellation insurance and the assistance work, which is a very big point”.
So long a wait… And unfair competition
The travel industry has long awaited this unnecessary travel ban: “we had been waiting for this for a long time because we realized that Belgium was an island in central Europe, and that the countries were not other Europeans, so enforce this Jan 27 ban like we did.”
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And Anne Sophie Snyers stresses that we have to endure “unfair competition from foreign countries – I’m talking about Germany or France. Not many people left, but some still left and used foreign airports.
Either way, our belief is that behavior is far more important than where you are! “
State of health of the sector
The sector is not doing well yet Anne-Sophie Snyers. “It’s been a year since we sold anything and you know when we sell we make money, when customers come home we finally earn our commission from the partners we work with.”
No sale, but a legal obligation to stay open, “to attend and place an order and re-order etc. So we still have 20-30% of our staff working without any help. lots of requests help, but you know the support we’ve received is quite uneven between regions and that’s a big problem, but we’re not giving up and we want to keep working.”
The pool of “vouchers” that will be put in place represents hope in the context of the recovery.
Exit map
Even before the last concert committee, the sector had proposed its own emergency exit plan, called the exit plan, which was carried out in consultation with the Dutch-speaking Association of Tour Operators, which is calling for action.
“We were heard,” notes Anne-Sophie Snyers satisfactorily, “because the Corona police station and other companies got together and called us, but also the carriers and the main tour operators in Belgium, to come from find and define an exit plan, the operators have offered what they call safe travel corridors, so whichever destination we can go to, which is in the red countries, and we can go there come back without quarantine”.
But there are still many questions, such as: if you are vaccinated, can you still travel? Should we quarantine if we come back from a red country when we are vaccinated? Can we use rapid tests? And to cite the example of Spain, which “would accept a Belgium that would have a rapid test, but the Belgian government does not talk about it. These are all concrete measures and we are looking for solutions”.