13th May, 2020

(St. John’s Antigua; May 12, 2020)- Hotel groups in Antigua and Barbuda are implementing measures to minimize the risk of transmission as they prepare to welcome guests back to their properties once the borders are opened and they are given the green light.

Last Saturday, Minister of Tourism and Investment, Hon Charles Fernandez and Permanent secretary, Walter Christopher visited the Hammock Cove Resort and Spa and met with Resort Manager, Rosario Soler who was able to give an update about the preventative measures to be implemented to minimize the spread of Covid-19.

According to Soler, the Elite Island Resorts is working on an efficient prevention plan as health and safety hazards in hotels cannot be ignored. She said many ideas have come up such as providing guests with face masks and a disinfectant kit in their rooms, social-distanced dining and taking reservations for lunch and dinner to limit how many persons are in the dining room at a time as well as scheduling activities at different times during the week so that all their guests can participate.

The temperature of all frontline staff at all of the Elite Island Resorts will be checked daily upon arrival to work, they will also mandatorily adhere to the protocols implemented by the Ministry of Health. Facilities are in place for employees to change into their uniform upon arrival to work and shower upon leaving.

Soler said while the coronavirus continues to impact the hotel industry, before they begin to welcome guests back to the property, they will ensure that every room, dining area, bar, the pools, spa and gym will be cleaned and sanitized by the staff that has been kept on to see to the property’s daily maintenance and upkeep.

“We are depending on the Ministries of Health and Tourism to provide us with additional protocols to help us get all of Elite Island Resorts in a state of readiness”, she said.

Minister Charles Fernandez said he was pleased with the measures to be adopted by the resort and within the next few weeks the Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment alongside the Ministry of Tourism and Investment will be finalizing protocols to guide tourism industry operators going forward.

All properties will be inspected by a certification team to be comprised of officials from the Ministries of Health and Tourism before they can officially open for business.