Trinidadians heading across to the sister isle for the Easter long weekend are being urged to not let their guard down regarding COVID protocols and guidelines.
The advice comes from Head of the Tobago Hoteliers Association Chris James.
The Easter long weekend traditionally sees thousands of persons flock to Tobago with beaches, and tourist locations packed with persons.
Tickets on the inter-island ferry and flights to and from Tobago are also usually booked out.
Speaking with News Power Now ahead of the long weekend, Mr James echoed the concerns of health professionals regarding the numbers of persons expected to travel to the sister isle.
County medical officer for Tobago, Dr Tiffany Hoyte had previously expressed concern that the number of travellers could pose a risk regarding a possible increase in cases in Tobago.
Tobago has seen only 165 cases of COVID with only two COVID related deaths on the island.
Mr James is urging travellers to be cautious and observe protocols as he believes the island is unable to withstand a surge in cases
Mr James said the hotels are nonetheless excited to welcome guests with occupancy rates seeing a surge.
Checks with the Trinidad And Tobago Inter-Island Transportation Company show that sailings from Port of Spain to Scarborough between today and Sunday are already booked out with return sailings all of next week also fully booked.
Meanwhile checks with Caribbean Airlines show availability on just 2 flights to Tobago on Friday and 3 on Saturday with no return flights available on Monday or Tuesday.
With the closure of Trinidad and Tobago’s borders, persons interested in international travelling and have been unable to leave the country for fear of being unable to return.
Meanwhile, the border lockdown also means that with the lack of opportunities currently available for international travel, Tobago hoteliers have been kept afloat by inter-island tourism.
Suggesting a symbiotic relationship, Mr James urged locals wishing to travel abroad to scratch their itch for travel and sight-seeing by visiting Tobago whenever possible as he noted that the economic impact of travellers to Tobago is always a welcome boost.
Source: Power 102FM
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