American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) wrote to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on behalf of the more than 12,000 New Yorkers who work at travel agencies.
The association expressed its concern over the state’s quarantine procedures for those visiting and returning to the state from abroad which were put forth in a recent executive order by the governor.
ASTA noted that it had “grave concerns about the impact” the order would have on its members’ businesses. In the letter to the governor, it asked Cuomo to “explore alternatives to an automatic two-week quarantine for virtually all New Yorkers returning to the state from abroad.”
The letter also noted that travel agencies and advisors within the state are suffering greatly due to the COVID-19 crisis and that this quarantine rule puts an undue burden on them.
“Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, starting in March this business – and any revenue associated with it – has come to an almost complete halt. As a result, according to our member surveys, more than 9 in 10 travel agencies’ business income is down at least 75 percent as compared to 2019,” ASTA noted in its letter.
ASTA also noted the number of restrictions that have made travel advisors’ jobs even more difficult.
“The many government restrictions travel advisors have had to contend with while struggling to keep their businesses alive since March include the European Union’s ban on inbound American travelers, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) ‘No Sail Order’ effectively halting cruise ship travel through at least October 31, 2020, U.S. State Department and CDC’s recently-lifted guidance against international travel of any kind and ever-changing state-by-state quarantine requirements for domestic and international travelers.”
The letter points out that the countries on the list excluded from quarantine are not those that Americans travel to in large numbers.
“In effect, this would mean that New Yorkers returning from a sorely-needed vacation to Mexico, Jamaica, the Dominican Republican or other destinations accepting U.S. travelers (with some restrictions in most cases) would need to observe a strict two-week quarantine upon arrival, regardless of their COVID infection status. This transforms a hypothetical weeklong vacation into a three-week ordeal, and serves as a strong disincentive for New Yorkers to undertake any international travel – at the worst possible time for our members’ businesses,” ASTA noted.
The letter asks the governor to consider other measures, such as COVID-19 testing, in order to open up travel to these popular countries for New Yorkers.