Hanoi (VNA) ಞ– Hanoi plans to allow accommodations, tourist destinations as well as travel and transport firms to resume operation starting October amid the easing COVID-19 situation.

After the city People’s Committee loosened social distancing measures, the Hanoi Department of Tourism promptly finalised a plan for the resumption of tourism activities. However, due to the poor connections with other localities across the country due to the pandemic, the capital city will conduct city tours to quench local residents’ “thirst” for travelling.

Recovery roadmap

So far, 96.3 percent of the residents aging from 18 in Hanoi have been vaccinated against COVID-19. Despite the impacts of the fourth wave of the pandemic, many travel firms have remained resilient and managed to prepare to serve customers with safe and high quality products as soon as they receive permission from the city. According to Vice Director of the city Department of Tourism Tran Trung Hieu, the department has advised the city People’s Committee on a plan to recover and develop tourism activities in line with COVID-19 prevention and control measures in the rest of the year. The tourism recovery stages will be designed in line with the pandemic scenarios given by the Ministry of Health according to guidelines on safety adaptation to COVID-19 in four phases, Hieu said. He said that within October, right after receiving green light from the city People’s Committee, the Hanoi tourism sector will start to resume operation by allowing the opening of accommodations and destinations as well as travel firms and transportation service suppliers that meet safety requirements. However, other services such as spas, gyms, and karaoke shops will continue to be restricted. In this stage, the sector will mostly serve local tourists. At the same time, Hanoi will focus on building safe and creative destinations, while making use of information technology to diversify its tourism products. Hieu added that when the city switches to the new normal period, the Tourism Department will evaluate the situation and make proposals on the reopening of the entire tourism sector. Travel firms and tourist destinations will resume operation in areas where COVID-19 is brought under good control.

Tourism safety criteria to be issued

In order to specify the recovery plan, the Hanoi Tourism Department will concentrate on implementing three major tasks of building safe and creative destinations and strengthening IT application to create more tourism products; organising activities and events in tourism digital transformation; and increasing supervision and inspection to ensure safety for tourists and tourist destinations. The city will give top priority to protecting the safety of the community, tourists and tourism facilities. Leaders of the department affirmed that all 100 percent of accommodation facilities and destinations have been requested to register themselves through website safe.tourism.com.vn for safety evaluation and recognition. Particularly, the department and relevant agencies will make consultations to the city People’s Committee on the design of a set of safety criteria for accommodation facilities, tourist sites, travel firms and transport and tourism service suppliers in the new situation. At the same time, green tourism sites and accommodation facilities will be developed to ensure utmost health safety for tourists and the community. At the same time, tourists will be requested to show their COVID-19 vaccination certificates and make health declarations. During the recovery and development process, the Department of Tourism pledges to continue accompanying with travel associations and firms, while supporting them in connecting with their peers in other localities as well as tourism promotion, said Hieu, affirming that support policies to businesses and labourers in the tourism sector will be implemented in a full and timely manner./.