Just as travel agents and tour operators had started to see some business return, many now fear the new travel restrictions will stall bookings, lead to cancellations and leave a lasting impact on the tourism sector.

“We are all very concerned, just at a time when business had begun to build up,” said the president of the travel agents’ federation (FATTA), Iain Tonna.

“I am worried that with the new restrictions, some companies might not survive.”

Just a month into the reopening of travel, the government announced that all travellers must present a recognised vaccine certificate to enter Malta as of July 14, as a sudden rise in COVID cases set alarm bells ringing.

Only Maltese, EU and the UK’s NHS vaccine certificates are currently recognised by local authorities. 

The change will also hit unvaccinated local residents planning to go abroad.

Air Malta has said that it fears the new restrictions will lead to a "dramatic" drop in bookings, noting that similar restrictions on the UK market were followed by a 30 per cent drop. 

“The industry was banking on a fair recovery this summer and we had started to see a better recovery than expected. The situation is now more difficult,” Tonna said.

The new restriction, he said, would impact a chunk of potential travellers.

“We are expecting to see the true impact on Monday (today) but we have already received cancellations.”

He said a lot of American tourists, whose flights are in conjunction with the large cruise company Viking Cruise line, might not be able to enter the island.

“America currently does not have an official vaccine certificate but a vaccine card, which is not recognised here. So now we are not sure if these Americans will be allowed to travel to the island.”

Local residents might also consider cancelling their holidays abroad.

“Vaccination for over 12-year-olds only began last week, so in reality, until they are fully vaccinated, it will be mid-August, a time when most families would have booked a trip to Italy or Disneyland.”

What are travel agents proposing?

He said that FATTA had sent a number of proposals to the government.

“We are asking the authorities to reconsider accepting PCR tests on arrival, and to say that those who arrive with an unrecognised certificate and a negative PCR test must take another PCR test after 48 hours,” he said.

“This is a proposal other countries have taken up.”

The federation, he added, was seeking a solution in line with COVID mitigation but that would not take such a hard line on tourism.