Here is yet another letter of concern from a travel agent who has been booking clients for years to The Bahamas. We should be listening to these people who send us visitors. We are so
accustomed to having large numbers of visitors every year that we think that this will continue now that tourism is opening up after the worst of Covid19. However the Health Visa is so cumbersome that prospective visitors cannot be bothered going through all the hassles and expense to obtain the Visa so they are going to other destinations which are easier to gain entry.. The Tourism Ministry always say they work with "travel partners "..It does not look like much consultation was done before our Tourism Minister introduced this disastrous Visa. Will the Government abolish it when they and the operators who take the Visa payments are all making money? Will our common good come before selfish motives? As the writer says - we are in a disastrous situation - and the outlook looks pretty grim as long as we make it as difficult as possible for tourists to vacation here.

I completely agree with the letter writer. We rely on tourism for our livelihood. However,over the last year, the Minister of Tourism has done all that he can to discourage the tourism we could have had by the unworkable and cumbersome entry rules. There have been so many letters of complaint from travel agents whom we rely on to promote business as well as long term and occasional visitors. Yet none of the rules were changed to any degree. If the Visa is not abolished soon we will miss the important bookings for the winter. It is simply unbelievable that those most affected like the hotel workers union, hotel personnel and managers and local shopowners have been so silent when it is their own jobs at stake. We must face the fact that if things do not change very soon our economy could be in permanent decline.

Tourists are not coming here in any large numbers anyway with a rebound mostly in the imagination of the Tourism Minister and staff. They imposed the Health Visa . Most prospective visitors are unwilling to go through all the hassles to get the cumbersome Visa. They are going to other southern destinations where entry is far easier. Also the travel advisories of countries showing our very low rate of vaccination and the current news that we have run out of vaccines discourages tourists. Why would they want to come here when most of our population is unvaccinated?

The low percentage of our population being vaccinated does not help tourism. Many people are fearful of travelling to a country without a high number of vaccinated persons. On top of that worry is the refusal, to date, of the Tourism Minister abolishing the cumbersome and expensive Health Visa. Most prospective visitors cannot be bothered with all the time and hassles involved in applying for and waiting for approval to travel. Nearly all other southern destinations have far easier entry rules so people are going elsewhere. There have been numerous complaints, especially from travel agents, but none are listened to as of now. We are destroying our important tourism sector.

One thing which must be done immediately is to abolish the Health Visa. We are losing a lot of visitors every week because people cannot be bothered with all the requirements to obtain the visa when they can travel to most other countries with no hassles at all. Why go to The Bahamas? With Covid19 cases spiking again here there is yet another reason not to travel to our country. All so sad for the many unemployed people in the tourism sector and the ongoing fallout for local businesses. It does not appear that the Tourism Minister gave much consideration to the disastrous results of his harsh entry rules over the past year. Despite so many complaints from so many sources he refused to change any rules at all.

The Health Visa must be abolished immediately if we are to see any increase in tourism. It is too complex and tourists do not have the will or time to go through all the formalities when they can go most other places without any hassles. The Tourism Minister so far has refused to change the rules which are seriously undermining efforts to rebuild the tourism sector. How long more can we go on with mass unemployment ? Whoever dreamed up the Health Visa has seriously misjudged prospective tourists' willingness to come here with all the rules imposed. We have to return to the easy entry for which we were always known even if it means showing full vaccination certificates at the airport check in counters.

The Health Visa has to end immediately. Visitors can show fully vaccinated documents at the airport check in and be given a boarding pass and on their way to The Bahamas. We are losing a lot of visitors every month because prospective visitors are going elsewhere as there are too many hassles and the expensive Visa to be bothered coming to us. There are so many other destinations for people these days . People will go where it is easiest to enter. The Tourism Minister over the past year has seriously damaged our economy with the cumbersome and unworkable rules. All so very sad. When will he come to his senses??

Why didn't the union leaders complain to the Tourism Minister about his harsh entry rules to The Bahamas. They have been so difficult over the past year that tourism has nearly collapsed. Yet the unions said nothing. Even now we continue to have letters to The Tribune by several travel agents overseas,longtime winter residents and others saying the Health Visa has to be abolished before they can get bookings for The Bahamas. They are sending clients elsewhere where there are no hassles and much easier entry. The Visa has now become a revenue producer for the Government so, unless unions and others start complaining, it will be a long time before tourism rebounds. All such a sad situation for the Bahamian economy.

I thoroughly agree with the letter writer. However will the Tourism Minister listen? He has stubbornly refused any changes to the harsh entry rules for a year now. We have seen the result of his misguided policies. Our tourism industry has almost collapsed as other countries take our visitors with more welcoming policies and far easier entry. Now that the Health Visa has become a money maker will common sense prevail over the greed of those involved with the administration of the Visa? Time will tell.

I thoroughly agree with this letter. Continuing with the Health Visa will be very counter productive to the rebound of tourism.