More on Omicron COVID-19 Variant, Travel Advisors Talk Impact

As the world learns more about another COVID-19 variant, the travel environment continues to change. After omicron was found first in South Africa and then in multiple countries around the world since last week, different countries are taking different approaches to the news. 

In the U.S., President Biden urged calm during a press conference on Monday, saying that the omicron variant is a “cause of concern, not a cause for panic.” While there had been worries that the variant, and its potential, would cause a new lockdown in the U.S., Biden on Monday said that there was no need for a new lockdown at the moment. 

He also mentioned that, despite the U.S. not yet reporting a case of omicron it was “almost inevitable” that it would happen soon, something that health officials in the U.S. have been saying since the variant was discovered last week. 

Other U.S. health officials, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, said the U.S. could face a “fifth wave” of COVID from the virus. 

North of the border, Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Tuesday that the Canadian government is watching the variant “very, very closely.” The country, which announced that the variant had already been detected on Friday, found more cases this week. 

According to Trudeau, there is a potential for more travel restrictions, some of which have finally been wound down in Canada, to be installed to slow that spread of the variant. 

“We know that even though Canada has very strong border measures now — we need vaccinations to come to Canada, we need pre-departure tests, we need testing on arrival — there may be more we need to do and we’ll be looking at it very carefully,” he said. 

No final decision had been made as of Tuesday afternoon. 

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) this week also called for calm and come out against border closures in reaction to the variant (both the U.S. and Canada have made some changes to travel restrictions with some African countries while others, like Israel, have closed borders completely.

“Closing borders will not prevent the spread of new variants. The latest variant is increasingly being detected in countries around the world. The way to keep safe is to focus on the vaccination status of individual travellers rather than placing whole countries onto red lists,” Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO said in a statement. 

“Rather than stigmatising countries such as South Africa, which rely heavily on a strong Travel & Tourism, we should be applauding them for identifying this new variant so quickly.

“Until we fully understand this new variant we must focus on prioritising the world distribution of vaccines while adopting sensible measures such as wearing masks.”

Travel advisors react
Travel advisors talking to TMR on Tuesday said that they have experienced a mixed reaction from clients after news of the new variant broke. 

Carla Guerrier, a consultant with Travel Edge, said that most of her clients still want to travel, but they just want to be reassured about the protocols and requirements. 

“I tell them, just concentrate on the protocols, just be careful and continue to social distance, get vaccinated, and take it slowly,” she said. 

Leo Sgovio, the president of Markham Cruise and Travel, told TMR that the news hasn’t slowed his business but they did want more information on what happens if the variant does impact their plans. 

“I booked a client to travel yesterday and his first question to me was are they going to cancel our lift, I told them if I could tell the future I would. Be patient, I will communicate back and forth and let them know what’s happening up until their departure date, that’s my role,” he said. 

On other hand, Angela Hughes of Trips & Ships Luxury Travel said that for her the calls came in immediately, including calls from clients who had African travel booked into next summer. 

“We’re just trying to keep people off the edge and not encourage cancellations,” she said. “We learned from 2020 that it’s in your best interest when they cancel on you, not when you cancel on your supplier.” 

Shalene Dudley, the owner of Latitude Concierge Travels, said that the biggest question she’s received is on how suppliers are handling it. 

“I talked to someone for an hour yesterday who is not concerned and just wanted to know what coverage we booked for her original trip. She is vaccinated, being safe, the destination is also requiring testing – I think it’s been a lot more people asking what the term and conditions are,” she said. 

Heather Kearns, an advisor at Latitude, said that her approach is to let clients know not to hit the panic button. 

“Let’s wait on the scientific data and make educated decisions,” she said. 

Sue Marshall of The Travel Agent Next Door said that omicron is just “one more hurdle we have to go through.” 

“I keep telling my clients to wash your hands, use your facemask, and control what you can control, it’s just another hurdle for us,” she said.