COVID Certificates impact affects tourism catering industries, according to experts - Beyond being able to travel between countries without the need to quarantine or undergo PCR testing at source, the COVID Certificate seems to have found another use that few expected to become necessary at this point.

In force throughout the European Union since 1 July and initially developed to facilitate cross-border mobility, the certificate accredits vaccination, a negative coronavirus test or that the person has recovered from the disease.

Whether a tool to promote vaccination or to safeguard the economy and leisure avoiding more drastic measures, the requirement of the certificate in leisure or restoration begins to spread throughout Europe and has already had its first followers in Spain, where each community issues this document that can be obtained in physical or electronic format.

Some European countries, such as France, Italy or Portugal, already request it to enter trains, cafes, theaters or hairdressing, and several Spanish autonomous communities propose its use to access restaurants or other leisure places after the worsening of the epidemiological situation due to the advance of the Delta variant.

In Spain, this safe-conduct is already a reality in Galicia and the Canary Islands with the aim of maintaining the balance between health and economy. These regions already limit access to some establishments, including hotels, if you cannot prove that you are immunized or if you do not have a negative COVID-19 test.

COVID Certificates impact affects tourism catering industries

"It is clear that unvaccinated people are going to have a disadvantage in terms of mobility and access. It is already happening," says Alberto Peris, executive director and founding partner of CESAE Business & Tourism School.

"We are facing a public health problem and vaccines are proving to be useful in combating the pandemic. However, this whole scenario gives rise to legal issues related to fundamental rights. We will see what happens because changes in regulations are constant," he adds.

Although the certificate does not limit movement through Europe to those who are not vaccinated, it does involve costs and inconvenience, as Esther González, director of the Tourism Research Group at EAE Business School, points out. "To the stress of organizing any trip will be to look for somewhere to perform the test and obtain the certificate," he points out.

For Luis Buzzi, KPMG's Tourism and Leisure partner in Spain, the certificate is a very beneficial initiative for the tourism sector, as it provides a coordinated way at European level to facilitate the mobility of EU citizens. In addition, he adds, it is a rational measure to preserve, as far as possible, the health security of destinations and industry from possible waves of contagion that lead to stoppages in activity and a greater deterioration of the sector.

According to Peris, the certificate is here to stay in the short and medium term, at least in the EU. "Tourism needs health and safety guarantees, otherwise it will not be able to make the flight. The resurgence and high incidences indicate that the pandemic is still present through its new variants," he recalls.

COVID Certificates impact affects tourism catering industries

González also believes that we will have to learn to live with him, "like it or not." As it is the most effective control between EU borders in airports and planes, trains and ships, the expert believes that its implementation in hotels and restaurants could be the only way to control those who arrive by road.

"If we look only at the business vision, all those measures that guarantee the mobility of tourists make sense in the time that is necessary, provided that they are not complex or difficult to comply measures that discourage that mobility," says Buzzi, who considers the certificate as a simple measure to comply with due to the ease in obtaining it and the low level of associated requirements.

It is this facility that makes González think that its implementation will last as long as the high incidence of COVID-19 lasts. "Although it may seem like an additional bureaucracy, obtaining it is quite simple and quick. Let's not forget that children have a vaccination card that must be kept and presented in many situations," he says.

Peris explains that the most negative impact on tourism is the constant change in regulations, since uncertainty and insecurity are generated. "This type of measures should be agreed between the different public administrations and well defined from the legal and health fields," he says.

For González, the measure is a "huge" responsibility on tourism companies, since not everyone is familiar with it and hoteliers can find cases of people who have paid the reservation but do not have a certificate.

COVID Certificates impact affects tourism catering industries

However, Buzzi believes that, if it becomes another of our usual identification documents (such as the DNI or the driver's license), it should not have a significant impact on the industry: "Showing this identification will become a routine that will help make these spaces safer, returning practically to normal before the pandemic".

Peris adds that decisions such as those taken in Galicia and the Canary Islands have a double effect: in principle, they will affect the reduction of reserves and occupation, since flows can be transferred to other areas where these obligations are not imposed, but they will benefit in the medium and long term, because people will feel safer with this measure and the incidence figures will most likely fall compared to places where this requirement is not required.

The travel agency Rumbo.es he assures that holiday package bookings in Galicia and the Canary Islands have not been affected so far among Spanish customers.

COVID Certificates impact affects tourism catering industries

However, the company has noticed a decrease of between 10% and 15% in the sales of airline tickets to these destinations from other Spanish airports, a trend that they do not observe in other national routes.

In Galicia, although the reserves have had a steady growth since mid-April, there was a drop last week, according to Davide Mara, Marketing Director of Rumbo for Spain and Italy.

The travel portal Weekendesk has also observed a slight slowdown in bookings in Galicia week after week, specifically by 10%.

COVID Certificates impact affects tourism catering industries

"Uncertainty and lack of preparation have also increased cancellations in these areas at the last minute, because consumers associate it with high-risk COVID areas," says Brigitte Hidalgo, Director of Operations at Weekendesk.

EAE Business School has consulted hoteliers and restaurateurs and, according to González, they do not feel comfortable requesting certificates: "They see it as another stone on the road to business recovery, another procedure and that will not always be easy to implement without some customers feel upset".

When society believed it had adapted to the new normal, the scenario continues to change and will continue to alter the way leisure was understood before March 2020.