Barbados: Government announces travel bubble for Caribbean countries

Barbados: The government of Barbados will introduce a travel bubble for specific countries in the Caribbean with a low incidence of COVID-19 cases, which takes place on 30 June.

Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley announced during a speech to update the country on the COVID-19 situation that 'persons fully vaccinated with a negative PCR test comintg from Grenada, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Anguilla, Montserrat, British Virgin Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands, Cayman Islands and Bermuda can enter immediately without any further tests upon arrival. She explained that the determination of low-risk countries is based on the criteria set by the Ministry of Health and Wellness. This raises the question of whether a country is considered a low risk by the automated Shape Country Risk Assessment Tool and whether it was in the community transfer phase according to the World Health Organization guidelines.

Travellers from countries in the region that do not meet these criteria will be subject to the existing protocols.

"We know that the criteria are not immediately allowed for Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Belize and the Bahamas. If their vaccinated persons have a negative PCR test, they will end up at our airport; they will have to do the second PCR test like all other vaccines do now ... If they have not been vaccinated, we know the exercise. "It is five days in quarantine before they undergo the PCR test," the prime minister said.

"We know that our brothers and sisters in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and St. Lucia had not quite been there yet. I met my brother, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves, of St Vincent and the Grenadines spoke, and we hope to hold bilateral talks over the next week to two weeks to see how we can best work together on testing and vaccinations. "that there is a lot of movement between Barbados and the Grenadines every day ... and that we really had no problems in the Grenadines, and therefore we would like to add it [to the bubble]," she revealed.

Mottley indicated that similar talks with Bonaire, St. Eustatius, Saba and St. Martin will be held, as the data "is not as clear as we would like".

Premier Mottley also spoke about plans to refine Barbados' tourism product by focusing on improving our hospitality, as this element, coupled with "our commitment to people, is endearing and that's what makes us who we are". "That's why we're having the highest number of repeat visitors on average in the Caribbean in the last few decades," she added.

According to her, emphasis has also been placed on making Barbados a more user-friendly destination. "We are redesigning the process at the airport, for example, we find that there are too many people asking the same questions ... Now that the pressure has eased, we can refine these things to make them more user-friendly, and Barbados." to create a hospitable environment that we all know it is.

"I have put together a committee to come to the country and find the ten best hostesses we would want at the airport to help us welcome people as we move forward." individuals must radiate warmth and be excellent communicators.

Mottley also indicated that the Welcome Stamp program could become a permanent feature in Barbados' tourism offering.