New health, safety requirements issued for group tours

Strict epidemic prevention measures for group tours were required by Shanghai's cultural and tourism authorities in a guideline released on Thursday as inter-provincial tourism resumes following the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Travel agencies and online travel operators are required to make safety assessments of their tour products and pick licensed service suppliers and cooperation partners meeting epidemic prevention standards, according to the guideline released by the Shanghai Administration of Culture and Tourism.

They should enhance information sharing to ensure safe and orderly travel experiences for group tourists, the guideline states.

Strict limits on the number of group tourists are ordered based on reception capacity, and small travel groups are recommended, according to the guideline.

The routes and schedules of group tours should be arranged properly, and staggered arrangements should be imposed to prevent gathering.

Travel agencies should prepare sufficient disposable face masks as well as temperature measurement equipment, disposable gloves, hand sanitizers and disinfectant, and ensure their suppliers and partners make thorough disinfection and cleaning of buses, hotel rooms and restaurants, according to the guideline.

The information of group tourists should be collected and registered in advance, and double checks of their health QR codes are mandatory before trips commence.

Temperature checks are required and those with abnormal temperatures are prohibited from group travel.

Travel agencies should remind suppliers to maintain ventilation and disinfection measures and require tourists to wear masks when taking public transport.

Tour guides should remind tourists to maintain social distancing during trips, and travel agencies should retain tour group records after the trips are finished, the guideline states.

The practice of using one set of chopsticks to take food from communal dishes and another set to eat with should be promoted during tours. Operators are ordered to create health records for employees and enhance training to raise awareness of coronavirus prevention, according to the guideline.

Once a suspected infection case is identified, travel agencies and online travel operators should halt all activities of the tour group and report to authorities immediately, the administration orders.

If a confirmed infection case is found, operators should impose emergency plans and cooperate with authorities over the quarantine and tracking of close contacts.

All tour groups must be registered on the nation's tourism supervision and management service platform, with electronic versions of contacts uploaded, the administration requires.

Inter-provincial group tours halted by the novel coronavirus outbreak can now resume, while the ban on inbound and outbound tourism remains in effect, according to a notice released by China's cultural and tourism authorities on Tuesday.

The green light also covers air-tickets-plus-hotel packages by travel agencies and online travel operators, although group tours are banned to domestic areas with medium and high coronavirus risks, the notice from China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism states.

Tourist attractions are ordered to keep the number of visitors below 50 percent capacity, instead of an earlier 30 percent, and should introduce measures such as reservations and visitor controls when opening indoor venues, according to the notice.