The pandemic of COVID-19 has closed every sector of the economy. It has shattered the economy of almost all the countries of the world. However, the problem is bigger for countries that relied mostly on such industries. One of those is Cancun, which is known for its medical and health industry.
With the pandemic in place, the US and Canadian citizens are not coming here. Everyone is limited to their home. It means no one coming to Cancun. Thus, there was a record of low hotel occupation in rooms of Hotels in Cancun.
Despite all this, the hotels in Cancun wants to reopen on the 1st of June. The idea is to mark themselves as a “COVID-free destination”. The hotel industry is lobbying even at the highest levels to get a certificate. This certificate will ensure that tourists trust the hotel’s claim of “COVID-free destination”.
The president of the Hotel Association of Cancun has proposed. He is trying his best to lobby for this proposal at the federal level. They are trying their best to reopen on the 1st of June. They had already borne a lot of loss and want to recover it now.
However, it is not that much simple as it is looking. No one knows how fast they will get a certificate. The Health and Tourism departments will decide to proceed with their request, and it will depend on their speed.
Another issue here is the definition of their claim. How can anyone claim if they are COVID-free or not? How does a certificate ensure that there is no COVID? There should be a definition and once someone fulfills it, they will also get the same certificate. There are a lot of issues that need a keen focus of the health departments.
On the other hand, the hotels’ industry is not in the mood to wait for formalities. They saw the lowest 2.7% room occupation in April 2020. Even right now, there are only 8% of rooms that are occupied. Do you think the situation has improved? No, a lot of hotels closed and there are only a few remaining.
At the same time, there is another big question. Even if they get a certificate, and all the hotels reopen, who will ensure that the tourists will come? No one has the answer to this question. Hotels in Cancun depend mostly on the medical tourists from the US and Canada. Since international borders are closed for a while, no one will risk their life to go far away area.
At this time, they are mostly dependent on local tourists. It is not a simple issue about the certificate. It is to convince domestic and international tourists to come here. The situation will remain the same for most parts of 2020.
Even if the hotels reopen, they will not be fully occupied. Unless there is a vaccine for COVID-19, the world will not return to normal life. It will take time and patience. Until then, the issuance of a health certificate will help the hotel industry in a limited scope.