Search Travel Market Report

ALG Sponsored
ALG Sponsored
mainlogo
www.travelmarketreport.com
  • News
  • Packaged Travel
  • Cruise
  • Hotels & Resorts
  • Destinations
  • Retail Strategies
  • Niche & Luxury
  • Air
  • Training & Resources
  • Who We Are
    • Brian Israel
    • Briana Bonfiglio
    • Candace Protzman
    • Dan McCarthy
    • Dori Saltzman
    • Jennifer Arango
    • Kelly Fontenelle
    • Louis Intreglia
    • Tom McCarthy
ALG sponsored

ASTA: Inbound Testing Rule Still Biggest Barrier to Full Travel Recovery

by Daniel McCarthy / April 22, 2022
ASTA COVID-19 Testing Travel U.S.

The U.S.'s inbound testing rule remains the biggest hurdle for the industry's recovery. Photo: Ringo Chiu / Shutterstock.com


This week, the travel industry took another step towards its full return to normal, albeit one that still carries some uncertainty, when a federal judge ruled on Monday ruled against the federal mask mandate, and the White House, shortly after, said it would no longer enforce it while it is under review.

On Wednesday, the Department of Justice said it would appeal the decision after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) requested it do so. Still, travelers this week, in most cases, were able to shed their masks if they chose to. But, even with that change, there is room to go for the travel industry.

The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) this week emphasized that, even with the lifting of the mandate, the biggest barrier to full recovery of international travel remains—the inbound testing rule.

ASTA on Friday praised a push by a bipartisan group of 16 Members of Congress to drop the rule for vaccinated travelers, something it said would not only be consistent with the scientific consensus but would also allow “the travel industry’s recovery to begin in earnest.”

That group is led by Representative Lou Correa (D-CA) and includes names from both sides of the aisle.

“The current back and forth on the mask mandate pertaining to various forms of transportation misses the mark and overshadows very real policies deterring international travel. Requiring Americans to test negative prior to returning home from abroad is the public policy that needs immediate reversal,” ASTA President and CEO Zane Kerby said in a statement.

“Millions of Americans travel by air every day. Those traveling internationally risk quarantining abroad and navigating multiple foreign countries’ bureaucratic and ever-changing pandemic rules. As a result, Americans are delaying or simply canceling international trips, ensuring once again that travel will be the last industry to recover from the pandemic.”

According to ASTA, the change is a “commonsense” change that would match ones made in other main outbound markets, including the U.K., EU, Canada, and Australia.”

“The current policy also creates the false impression that travel outside of the U.S. invariably poses a greater COVID risk than travel within the U.S. How else would the typical traveler understand why a flight from London to New York requires testing while a flight from New York to Los Angeles does not?

“A multitude of these forward-thinking foreign governments have already removed their inbound testing requirement, and the U.S. should do the same.”

“Exempting the more than 218 million Americans who are fully vaccinated from the order would reflect the scientific consensus that widespread vaccination is the single most essential element of the fight against COVID-19 while allowing the travel industry’s recovery to begin in earnest,” Kerby said.

  34
  0
ALG Sponsored
Related Articles
ASTA Launches Four New Travel Advisor Career Pathway Trainings
ASTA’s EVP of Advocacy Eben Peck to Leave Association Next Month
How and Why Your TSA PreCheck Application Could Be Rejected
What’s New in Caribbean Travel According to Tourism Ministers
Advisors Get the Caribbean Experience at the 2023 ASTA Caribbean Showcase
TSA Adds Four More Airlines to PreCheck Program
ASTA Hosts 250+ Advisors for Caribbean Showcase, Announces Plans for 2024 in Curacao
No, the CDC Has Not Issued a Travel Advisory for Florida Over Leprosy
Report: TSA Pushed to Screen CLEAR Members After Man Used False Identity
House Approves FAA Reauthorization Bill, Now Heads to Senate

MOST VIEWED

  1. FAA Issues Nationwide Ground Stop for United Airlines Flights
  2. Maui Fires Update: Which Hotels and Resorts Are Open and Closed After Lahaina Fires
  3. Southwest Airlines Strike Seems Imminent
  4. Hurricane Lee's Uncertain Path Raises Some Travel Concerns
  5. Hurricane Lee Intensifies to Category 5: Caribbean and U.S. Impact Uncertain
  6. Hurricane Lee Update: Storm Poses Threat to New England and Atlantic Canada


  1. Tropical Storm Lee Could Hit the Caribbean this Weekend
  2. Royal Caribbean Monitoring Haiti Violence
  3. Updated Cruise Line COVID-19 Vaccination, Booster, & Testing Requirements
  4. Celebrity Cruises Removes Gratuities from "All Included" Pricing
  5. Hurricane Lee Forecast to Rapidly Strengthen into the Weekend
  6. Delta Air Lines Makes Major Changes to SkyMiles Status and Sky Club Access Rules
TMR Subscription

Subscribe today to receive daily in-depth coverage, analysis of industry news, trends and issues that affect how you do business. Subscribe now for free.

Subscribe to TMR

Top Stories
Journeys Holds Inaugural Luxury Travel Networking Events
Journeys Holds Inaugural Luxury Travel Networking Events

The first two took place last month in Toronto and New York. 

Read...
11 Questions to Ask Prospects When Interviewing for an IC
11 Questions to Ask Prospects When Interviewing for an IC

Agency owners share their top questions to ask when hiring ICs and employees.

Read...
ASTA Launches Four New Travel Advisor Career Pathway Trainings
ASTA Launches Four New Travel Advisor Career Pathway Trainings

The introductory training modules highlight different paths to becoming a travel advisor.

Read...
Headquarter Happenings: Avoya Travel Tackles 100% Commission Splits
Headquarter Happenings: Avoya Travel Tackles 100% Commission Splits

The Elite 100 program was one of several initiatives the host agency announced at its 2023 annual conference. 

Read...
Enjoy the Best of European Hospitality at RIU Hotels & Resorts
Enjoy the Best of European Hospitality at RIU Hotels & Resorts

Service at RIU Hotels & Resorts isn’t just a focus, it’s a passion—and has been since the opening of their very first hotel in Mallorca, Spain in 1953. 

Read...
MasterAdvisor 77: Tips for Making the Move to the Luxury Travel Segment
MasterAdvisor 77: Tips for Making the Move to the Luxury Travel Segment

Three extremely common mindset blocks plague travel advisors and prevent them from going after luxury clients.

Read...
TMR OUTLOOKS & WHITE PAPERS
European Travel Trends 2023 Outlook
CP White Paper 1
Cruise Trend Outlook 2023
View All
industry insider
industry-insider.jpg
//services.travelsavers.com/AMGService.svc/REST/GetImage?ImageID=e6640f25-695d-ee11-92d0-005056a8720b
Why Travel Advisors Shouldn't Worry About Artificial Intelligence
Advertiser's Voice
//services.travelsavers.com/AMGService.svc/REST/GetImage?ImageID=b9003415-3a5d-ee11-92d0-005056a8720b
Travel Agent Education Powered by Avoya
ALG sponsored
About Travel Market Report Mission Staff Advisory Board Advertise
TMR Resources Webinars Calendar of Events Outlook/Whitepapers Previous Sponsored Articles Previous This Week Articles
Subscribe to TMR
Select Language
Do You Have an Idea Email
editor@travelmarketreport.com
Give Us a Call
1-(516) 730-3097
Drop Us a Note
Travel Market Report
71 Audrey Ave, Oyster Bay, NY 11771
News |Packaged Travel |Cruise |Hotels & Resorts |Destinations |Retail Strategies |Niche & Luxury |Air |Training & Resources |Who We Are
© 2005 - 2023 Travel Market Report, an American Marketing Group Inc. Company All Rights Reserved | 243 South Street, Oyster Bay, NY, 11771 USA | Telephone (516) 730-3097| Terms and Conditions
Cookie Policy Privacy Policy