PATA tells agents to be ready for when bookings bounce back

Asia Pacific tourism body, PATA, has issued an upbeat update on the coronavirus outbreak and urged agents to make sure they are ready for when bookings bounce back.

It claims its tour operator partners are reporting few cancellations and instead travellers are asking to postpone their trips.

"New bookings have been slower than expected during peaks, however, bookings are still coming through and largely for later in the year," it said.

It said feedback from agent members this week showed customers are still interested in booking holidays to New Zealand, Australia, Bali, Thailand and the Philippines.

"Based on past experiences, such as Sars, the industry began to show signs of recovery very quickly and we are anticipating a swift return to normal booking patterns in the months ahead as the outbreak is brought fully under control and consumer confidence returns," said PATA.

It advised agents to take travel advice from ‘factual, reliable and official sources’ such as PATA and its members.

"Follow the news and advice from members to reassure your customers as they are able to provide the latest and inside information," it said.

"Updates are also being shared on our website and social media too including Facebook and Twitter."

It said although the FCO is currently advising against all travel to Hubei Province, and against all but essential travel to the rest of mainland China and to cities of Daegu and Cheongdo in South Korea, it is not advising against travel to any other country/territory in the PATA region.

"We recommend following the FCO Travel Advice closely for the relevant country you’re selling. We will continue to carefully monitor the situation and provide ongoing updates," it said.

"Our members, particularly tourism boards, report the situation to be plateauing with fewer new cases being reported outside of China and Korea. Preventative measures were put in place very quickly which has largely contained the situation within Asia and ongoing strict screening measures and travel restrictions are working well."

It said PATA Exchange will go ahead on March 9 with over 75 Pacific Asia region sellers.

Agents will also be attending its first quiz night of 2020 in Birmingham on March 24.

"We welcome industry and agents to join us, as usual, to keep up to date with the latest travel advice and maintain their knowledge and training about the region. Enquiries will come back and we want agents to be prepared and ready for selling. These are opportunities to work together as a team and support one another to minimise the effects on sales as little as possible."