Israelis may be first tourists into Georgia after country lifts flight ban
About 20 air companies want to resume flights with Georgia, said Georgian Economy Minister Natia Turnava today adding that the dates and destinations will be known soon. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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Israel may be the first country from which Georgia will welcome tourists after flight bans are lifted, announced Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia at a government meeting earlier today, noting the importance of getting the tourism sector back on its feet.
He also said that Georgia is negotiating with other countries including the Czech Republic, Poland, the Baltic states, Austria and Georgia’s neighboring countries.
It is important to observe safety rules…We have to get back to normal life soon but I would like to emphasise that we need to draw conclusions from this crisis and turn this crisis into an opportunity for our country, not only in tourism but also in agriculture,” said Gakharia.
About 20 air companies want to resume flights with Georgia, said Georgian Economy Minister Natia Turnava today adding that the dates and destinations will be known soon.
Among the air companies which want to resume flights with Georgia are Wizz Air, Ryanair, Turkish Airlines, El Al and Qatar Airways.
Turnava said implementing guidelines to observe safety rules in tourism is critical, and that social distancing and other hygienic measures must be observed.
She noted that in parallel with the World Tourism Organization (WTO), Georgia is also working to implement guidelines with the recommendations of the country’s Ministry of Health.
Irish low-cost airline Ryanair will resume 40 per cent of its flights from July 1 on most routes, including Georgia, but at a reduced frequency. Ryanair is resuming flights on two routes in Georgia – Tbilisi-Milan and Tbilisi-Cologne. Tickets are already on sale.
18 airline companies ready to resume flights
Georgia is getting ready to welcome international travellers from July 1 into a safe environment during the COVID-19 pandemic by creating so-called safe corridors. Georgian Economy Minister has discussed how to prepare each transport sector in order to be able to transport foreign guests comfortably and as safely with the heads of regulatory services of the transport sector.
Georgian Economy Minister Natia Turnava held a presentation today on how the government is planning to help the tourism industry reopen and overcome challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
In May several coronavirus-related restrictions will be resumed in Georgia, announced Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia today. The plan includes resuming all manufacturing, several categories of retail and wholesale stores and opening the capital city of Tbilisi and smaller towns of Rustavi, Gardabani and Marneuli.
Georgia reported four new cases of the coronavirus earlier today, bringing the total number of cases to 671. 393 of the 671 individuals have recovered, while 12 others have died. As of May 15, 266 remain infected with COVID-19 in Georgia. The village of Geta in Bolnisi municipality of eastern Georgia has been put on strict lockdown earlier today after reporting 15 new cases of coronavirus late yesterday.
Georgian will lift restrictions limiting the size of group gatherings to three on May 18, said Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia at a government meeting earlier today.
A second outbreak of the new coronavirus may start at the end of autumn and the virus will peak in winter, the Deputy Head of the National Disease Control Centre Paata Imnadze noted in an interview with the Georgian newspaper Kviris Palitra.
Georgia is working to resume flight connections with the Baltic states after tourist bans will be lifted starting July 1. To discuss how to renew flights with the Baltic states in as short a time frame as possible, Georgian Minister Natia Turnava had an online meeting with Minister of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Lithuania Jaroslaw Narkiewicz earlier today.
Georgian Economy Minister Natia Turnava discussed the Georgian tourism sector at a meeting with Dominik Papenheim, the Thematic Coordinator for Economic Development and Market opportunities at the Delegation of the European Union to Georgia, Philipp Steinheim, the representative of the German development agency (GiZ) and Gerhard Schaumberger, the Head of Austrian Development Agency in Georgia earlier today.
‘Georgia as a safe tourism destination’ is the message Georgian ambassadors will deliver to their respective host countries starting tomorrow, announces Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Gakharia. The ambassadors will pursue the establishment of so-called safe green corridors with various countries to ensure safe international travel.
Georgia is negotiating with Czechia, Latvia and other countries to resume direct flights, announces the Ministry of Economy of Georgia. The Economy Minister of Georgia Natia Turnava held an online meeting with the Vice Prime Minister of Czechia Karel Havlicek today to discuss the issue of resuming direct flights between the countries.
Tourists from Czechia may be among the first to travel to Georgia after the country lifts its travel ban imposed in mid March amid the coronavirus pandemic. Israel is also promoting Georgia as a safe tourist destination; talks are underway with Greece, Poland and Baltic states as well.
Israel will cut Georgia from the ‘safe country’ list on July 30 following a sharp increase in coronavirus cases in the country.
Israeli tourists will be able to visit Georgia again starting September 1, but will be subjected to self-isolation or quarantine upon their return to their home country following the decision of the Israeli government to remove Georgia from the red list and place it on the orange country list.
Israeli airline company Israir Airlines is returning to the Georgian aviation market after a one-month pause, announces Deputy Economy Minister Mariam Kvrivishvili. Israir Airlines will start carrying out Tel Aviv-Batumi flights next month.