The Tourism Authority of Mauritius has released a new set of guidelines outlining sanitary measures for the resumption of activities in the tourism sector.

The work is designed to provide tourism businesses with specific health and safety solutions to ensure the protection of staff and customers.

The release of the document – which is available for all tourism partners to download online – forms a key part of Mauritius’ recovery strategy.

The solutions provided in the guidelines document, which have been endorsed by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), are tailored to the different operational needs of a variety of businesses connected to tourism from car rental companies and golf courses to restaurants and guest houses.

Measures include recommendations on cleaning and disinfection, social distancing, providing contactless options and protocols to follow for suspected cases of Covid-19.

Regular inspections will be carried out by the authority to ensure the implementation of these measures is being applied correctly and failure to comply may result into license cancellation

In addition to these guidelines, the authority has partnered with Mauritius Telecom to introduce a ‘Safe Travels’ app which all tourism operators under the tourism authority act are required to download.

The app breaks down tourism businesses into different categories by operation and clearly outlines the protective measures each business category needs to follow when providing services.

Mauritius has been praised for its efficient response to the pandemic and the measures that were implemented quickly and decisively by the Mauritian government to control the spread of the virus.

The authority also released a video demonstrating what travel to Mauritius in the ‘new normal’ will look like showing some of the measures being implemented to protect visitors across the country including at the airport and in hotels and public spaces.

Arvind Bundhun, director of the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority, said: “The safety of visitors to Mauritius and staff working in the leisure, tourism and hospitality sector is of utmost importance to our organisation and so we felt it was important to provide a list of sanitary guidelines for businesses to follow as they plan to resume operations.

“We are working closely with our private sector and stakeholder partners to prepare for the return of visitors to the destination so that we are ready to welcome them back to Mauritius as soon as travel restrictions are lifted.”