Caribbean Islands Are Starting to Reopen for Tourism

Hotels will need to follow best practices guidelines distributed by the Aruba Hotel and Tourism Association. This includes new physical-distancing protocols like plexiglass barriers at desks, digital keys, and contactless check-in, plus elevated cleaning practices for luggage handling, food and beverage service, and more. 

National parks and tourism attractions will also be required to adhere to new protocols to maintain proper social distancing. Aruba’s Arikok National Park is permanently banning ATVs starting June 1 from protected areas. Larger multi-passenger UTVs will also be banned in the park from October 31.

Bahamas will reopen on July 1

With just 103 confirmed cases and 11 deaths, the Bahamas has started to reopen businesses with commercial activity resuming most recently on Cat Island, Long Island, Abaco, and Andros as of Monday, May 18. However, international commercial travel won’t resume until July 1, according to the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation.

Together with the Tourism Readiness and Recovery Committee, a group of partners from the public and private sectors, the tourism ministry is implementing a phased approach to reopening and will implement new health and safety protocols at airports, seaports, hotels, and restaurants.

Phase 1, which begins June 15, actually allows those with access to private jets, yachts, and boats to return before the wider July 1 date, in order to test the new initiatives with a smaller group of travelers. During this same time period, commercial airlines will start resuming flights to the Bahamas to allow in Bahamian citizens, legal residents, homeowners qualifying for economic permanent residency, and the immediate family members or significant others of any of these people. During this phase, everyone who enters will need to register at a Bahamas embassy or consulate and obtain a COVID-19 test with a negative result. Hotels will start to reopen during Phase 1 to allow staff to return to work and be trained on new safety and cleaning protocols.

All international travel will resume on July 1 with Phase 2. Commercial airlines will be able to fly in leisure travelers, and Southwest and American Airlines have already announced plans to resume flights to Nassau by that week. Hotels and vacation rentals including Airbnb and HomeAway will be allowed to open (Baha Mar, Atlantis, and the Ocean Club, a Four Seasons Resort will all be open on July 1). Taxis and buses will be operational by this point, too, but passengers will be limited and required to wear face masks. Restaurants will also be open, but buffets will be discontinued and staff must wear face masks and gloves.

International travelers will be asked to practice social-distancing measures and wear face masks while in public and transiting through airports. All incoming travelers will also have their temperatures screened at airports and seaports before being allowed into the country.

Turks and Caicos will reopen on July 22

Turks and Caicos plans to open its borders and welcome  international visitors starting July 22, 2020, with flight service returning to Providenciales International Airport from the United States, Canada, and Europe on that date. American, JetBlue, and United will start flights from Miami, Charlotte, and New York/Newark on July 22, with more airlift resuming in the following days. (Following guidance from health authorities, the government is delaying the reopening of the Grand Turk Cruise Center until August 31, 2020.) 

In advance of the border opening, hotels and restaurants will be allowed to reopen from July 6 to locals; however, some hotels like the Como Parrot Cay have delayed their opening date until August 1. So far, specific protocols regarding COVID-19 testing at the airports and cleaning procedures at hotels have yet to be announced as they are still being finalized by the government. There have only been 12 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Turks and Caicos and 1 death.

Cayman Islands unlikely to reopen on September 1

Earlier in May, the government in the Cayman Islands discussed reopening its borders on September 1, but Premier Alden McLaughlin now says that date is unlikely, local news source Cayman Compass reported.

“Given what I and everybody else is seeing in the United States, the September 1st reopening date is not looking good,” McLaughlin said at a press briefing on May 19. So far, the Cayman Islands have recorded 171 coronavirus cases and 1 death.

This article originally appeared online on May 19, 2020; it was updated on May 27, 2020, and again on June 3, 2020, and June 9, 2020, to include current information.