DWHSA Urges Quick Action On Testing Rules

The Destination Wedding & Honeymoon Association (DWHSA) is making it clear that travel advisors who sell destination weddings, honeymoons, and all types of romantic getaways need immediate information and support from suppliers and tourism offices in light of new U.S. and Canadian Covid-19 testing rules affecting airline passengers.

Those new rules include presenting proof of negative results from Covid-19 tests taken within 72 hours of departure for passenger arriving in Canada (which took effect on Jan. 7) and the United States (beginning Jan. 26).

Lisa Sheldon, president of DWHSA, says the greatest needs are available, affordable testing on site at resorts in destinations that have reopened in 2021 and flexible lodging and retesting options in the event of “false positives.”

Said Sheldon: “These brand-new testing requirements announced within the past two weeks have raised lots of questions from our clients, many of whom have already booked spring and summer trips.”

Sheldon also noted that: “We understand the reason for the new rules, but they threaten the momentum advisors were beginning to see as their businesses continue recovering from the pandemic.”

DWHSA is now contacting its supplier and destination partners to help in three key areas:

• Making the correct types of tests available on site in destinations at an affordable cost (“We salute the Excellence Collection for being the first resort company to offer these tests to guests free of charge, and we hope others will follow suit if they can,” Sheldon says.)
• Distributing updated information about how current travel insurance plans will apply to testing costs and the risks of testing positive days before departure flights
• Flexible lodging and retesting options for about-to-depart travelers, especially in “false positive” cases

DW&HA’s president concluded: “Many romance travel specialists still feel very encouraged about recovery this year,” Sheldon notes, “so we must do everything we can as an industry to support advisors who’re trying to generate sales that will help all of us rebuild as vaccine efforts get underway.”

Go to www.JoinDWHSA.com for more.