Seychelles opened up travel to the rest of the world in March but unfortunately, South Africa was still excluded. Apparently, this decision was made by Britain, which was concerned about Britons being infected by South African tourists who carry the SA variant of COVID19, reported Travel News.
Fast forward to five months later, Seychelles is on the UK’s ‘red list’ and is referred to as the ‘no-go destination’ for Briton’s.
Nonetheless, South Africa’s vaccination programme has taken, and South African’s may finally travel to the Maldives, and to Mauritius from 1 October, which is probably Seychelles biggest competitor in the upper sections of the SA market.
Despite having other destinations open up to South African travellers, Seychelles still has not budged regarding South African tourists.
‘Our reopening in March has been very successful so far and we have already welcomed 68 000 visitors to the island with no reported incidents,’ said Seychelles tourism regional director for Africa and the Americas, David Germain.
‘We eagerly await an announcement for the island to reopen to South Africans and Brazilians, both of which have traditionally been large source markets for Seychelles, but unfortunately, this decision lies with the Ministry of Health, and our hands are tied. There has been no indication on when the current status quo is expected to change.’
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