Meanwhile, Hong Kong plans initiative to woo back tourists after outbreak
Singapore has been removed from the World Health Organisation’s “SARS-affected” list of destinations at the weekend, delighting tourist chiefs.
The country was removed from the WHO list because there has not been evidence of a locally-acquired case of the disease for 20 days, which is twice as long as the SARS incubation period. There had previously been 206 cases and 31 deaths from the disease in Singapore.
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, the tourist authorities have begun a major push to attract more foreign visitors following WHO’s decision to lift its advice against non-essential travel to the former colony. According to the Daily Telegraph, the HK government has allocated £100 for regenerating tourism in a region where visitor numbers have plummeted as much as 90 per cent since mid-March.
Kevin Welsh, the tourist board’s director for Europe, told the newspaper: “It is our job to get the message across that it is safe for visitors, and that shops, hotels and restaurants are all open again. There will be a delay but business travellers should come back quite quickly.”
