OTHER COVID-19 UPDATESSeveral more states have issued stay-at-home orders, to the point where this affects more than two-thirds of the U.S. population. The National Governors Association has a comprehensive list of the actions each state has taken.On Sunday, President Trump announced that the 15-day social distancing guidelines issued on March 16 would be extended through the end of April.On Saturday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a “strong travel advisory” for the New York tri-state area. The latest travel warnings and advisories can be found on their website.A record number of Americans—3.3 million—filed unemployment claims last week. The previous high was 695,000. For more information on unemployment benefits, reference our CARES Act Relief Resources FAQ.On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced that the REAL ID compliance deadline would be extended by one year, to October 1, 2021. While U.S. Travel praised the decision, we also cautioned that a longer extension may be necessary to ensure that implementation won’t further disrupt the American travel economy.If you have a colleague who would appreciate receiving this weekly newsletter, as well as our weekly coronavirus research newsletter and other COVID-19 communications, please have them sign up here. |
AROUND THE INDUSTRY: RESOURCES & EXAMPLESThe Meetings Mean Business Coalition (MMB) announced recently that in light of COVID-19 meeting restrictions, travel guidance and social distancing policies, in-person participation in Global Meetings Industry Day (GMID) is being postponed to later this year. However, to keep the industry connected, MMB has created GMID Virtual to unite the industry online on April 14. They have provided three specific ways to get involved—more information on how to participate, as well as the full announcement, can be found here.U.S. Travel will be participating in a Skift webinar tomorrow, April 1, at noon ET to discuss the CARES Act and its implications for the travel industry. You can register here.Hotels across the country are turning their lights into a symbol of hope for the industry, including IHG, Hilton Garden Inn Downtown Colorado Springs, Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Four Seasons Philadelphia, and several San Francisco hotels.Other destinations are sharing hopeful, uplifting videos to encourage unity in the industry and invite travelers back as soon as it is safe, including Niagara Falls USA and Visit Myrtle Beach.Over the weekend, Discover Puerto Rico put together a virtual “weekend getaway” on their website, with dance lessons, a cocktail making class and cooking demo, all online. Visit Norfolk also shared a list of ways to enjoy their city virtually, NYC & Company is offering virtual experiences across all five boroughs and Destination DC has created a page full of virtual museum tours, a live cherry blossoms camera, DC-related books, music and more.The COVID Tracking Project is an independent, crowdsourced data tracker that provides real-time updates on the spread of coronavirus in each state, including positive cases, cases that tested negative, pending cases and deaths. |