As Guyana continues with its reopening as more persons get vaccinated against COVID-19, the Guyana tourism experience is expected to be in the spotlight during the month of November which is celebrated as Tourism Awareness Month.
Activities for the month were today launched at the Bimichi- Eco Lodge at St Cuthbert’s Mission.
Under the theme “Preparing for a new frontier- stimulating innovation within the tourism sector”, the Ministry of Tourism is set to work along with tourism stakeholders in the industry to put Guyana’s tourism product back on the market.
Minister of Tourism Oneidge Walrond said that Guyana’s tourism product is one that was directly impacted after businesses were forced to close their doors in the early days of the pandemic.
She said it is now time to revitalize the industry.
“The theme of preparing for a new frontier- stimulating innovation within the tourism sector comes in the context of the global tourism industry which has begun to emerge from the devastation brought on by COVID-19. International Travel has resumed with the requisite protocols and many hotels are reporting occupancy. However, the harsh reality is that we continue to battle this dreaded coronavirus and its attendant challenges. We, therefore, are still very much in unchartered territory, but the tourism sector must continue to rebound”, the Tourism Minister said.
As part of the month-long celebration, a number of events will be hosted to showcase Guyana’s tourism product.
A total of 27 official activities have been listed including the launch of a new tourism website, a safari, and the popular Guyana Restaurant Week.
The Tourism Minister said there is a need now for the refining of the tourism sector.
“We cannot advance strategies and approaches as policymakers and stakeholders. We must now refine our tourism offerings to cater to what will be the new norm and expectation of the post- covid 21st century. We have to therefore embark on a series of strategies and initiatives aimed at transforming our tourism.”
The Minister also lauded community based-tourism and investments into small hotels and lodges.
“These communities owned and led products are an indispensable component of an integrated strategy that we have for tourism in Guyana. We consider them to be as just as important as the internationally branded hotels that we are seeking to attract to our country, four of which we are already in the advanced stages of development. Our integrated strategy seeks to make Guyana a leading destination to the Americas for conventions, conferences, and sporting events, and we envisage that visitors to Guyana will wish to take the opportunity to stay that extra day, the extra weekend, or even an extra week to unwind, to experience what communities like St Cuthbert’s Mission have to offer”.
The local tourism sector was hit hard by the pandemic and is now on a slow recovery. Players in the sector have welcomed the lifting of some of the COVID-19 restrictions since that is now allowing persons to safely visit their facilities.
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