Trips & Ships Luxury Travel

Last week the first vaccines against COVID-19 were administered in the United Kingdom. These vaccines are truly a game-changer and a step towards the return of international travel becoming normal once more. They will slowly be rolled out around the world.

All East African countries have been open for travel for a couple of months now. You can read our article about each country’s travel requirements here.

Tanzania, which relies heavily on tourist revenue, was the first country to relax its COVID-19 requirements. They only require a negative COVID-19 test if the airline requires it. They have put in place stringent cleaning, health and safety measures, and social distancing throughout the tourism sector. These regulations have worked, and we have had guests travel safely in Tanzania over the last couple of months.

We have also hosted a successful agent educational, so that they could assess the safety measures for themselves. Please read Angela Hughes report on her trip in The Luxury Travel Advisor.

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) as well as the Airports Council International (ACI) and the World Economic Forum (WEF) all hailed the new vaccine roll out last week. They cautioned against making COVID-19 vaccine as a requirement for travel.

Gloria Guevara of the WTTC said, “it will take considerable time to vaccinate the world and for the vaccines to have a significant effect on the global population, and the global Travel & Tourism sector simply cannot wait. Vaccination must not be a requirement to travel but should co-exist with testing regimes and be considered as a progressive enhancement to already safe travel.”

We at Trips & Ships Luxury Travel feel that this is the right approach. We have shown that guests can travel safely to Africa. It will take time for the vaccine to be rolled out globally. In the meantime, travel needs to resume. It not only supports millions of jobs, but also helps fund continued conservation projects which support Africa’s wildlife.

Many destinations have cut the price of permits such as for Gorilla trekking in Uganda. Entrance fees to national parks have been slashed. Many lodges are running incredible specials now. The tourist destinations are less crowded. It is the perfect time to go on a safari in Africa. You will be out in the wilds of Africa away from crowds of people. Our tours are small and exclusive. There has never been a better time to book your dream African safari.