Safe Travels Hits 250 As VisitBritain Earns Its Stamp
VisitBritain has become the 250th member destination of the World Travel & Tourism Council’s Safe Travels Stamp program.
Launched 8 months ago – in May 2020 – the WTTC’s Safe Travels Stamp program as the world’s first ever global safety and hygiene stamp, it was designed to rebuild global consumer confidence and revive the global travel and tourism sector which has been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Along with VisitBritain, other destinations that have recently joined the Safe Travels stamp list include Honduras, Belize and Malawi.
VisitBritain CEO, Sally Balcombe, VisitBritain CEO said: “We are delighted that businesses certified to We’re Good To Go can also automatically register for WTTC’s global Safe Travels stamp, recognizing the standard of protocols and processes we have in place in the UK.”
Balcombe added: “This is also testament to the hard work and commitment of tens of thousands of businesses right across the country who have adapted and innovated to safely meet new ways of working and are already ‘good to go’.”
WTTC president and CEO, Gloria Guevara, WTTC President & CEO, said: “Reaching this incredible milestone, with 250 destinations around the world now proudly holding our Safe Travels stamp, is testimony to the hard work which has been put in to make the stamp work for both destinations and holidaymakers.”
Guevara noted that: “As the global vaccine rollout picks up pace and with the restrictions expected to be relaxed over the coming weeks, we believe the stamp will prove a key component of destination recovery and restoring consumer confidence.”
And she added: “The success of the stamp shows the importance of global coordination to help rebuild and revive the international Travel & Tourism sector. Destinations with the stamp will benefit from travellers being able to recognize the destinations which have adopted the global protocols, encouraging the return of ‘Safe Travels’ around the world.”
Said Guevara: “We are finally beginning to step into the new normal of a post-COVID world, and we are proud to be leading the way for globally coordinated efforts in recovery.”
The WTTC has received the backing of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and the launch of global protocols to recover the travel and tourism sector has been embraced by over 200 CEO’s including some of the world’s major tourism groups.
The protocols were designed following guidelines from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and taking best practices from WTTC’s Members into account.
