Palau’s first tourists to get presidential welcome but many locals are unconvinced

Palau is starting an air-bubble with Taiwan allowing tourists in the country under strict Covid-19 guidelines

In this photo released by the Taiwan Presidential Office, Palau President Surangel Whipps, center left, toasts with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen during a banquet in Taipei, Taiwan on Tuesday, 30 March 2021 (AP)

As many as 110 tourists from Taiwan are in for royal treatment as they will be escorted to Palau by the island country’s president who personally flew to Taipei to kickstart Asia’s first travel bubble.

The island located in the north-west corner of the Pacific ocean is a three-and-a-half hour-long flight from Taiwan and is renowned for its crystal clear water, pristine dive sites and the surreal Jellyfish Lake.

President Surangel Whipps who landed at Taoyuan International airport on 28 March, is set to return on Thursday with a group of 110 Taiwanese tourists on the first of weekly vacation flights, reported AFP.

The objective is to subsequently have 16 flights a week on the route, providing a push to the economy of Palau which heavily relies on tourism. In fact, tourism accounted for nearly 50 per cent of the country’s GDP, reported the Guardian. According to the report, Taiwan made up the third-largest group of tourists visiting the country after China and Japan.

“The main reason we are going is really to open up the travel corridor because tourism is our biggest economic driver and it’s important to get the tourism back in operation,” Mr Whipps told Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) in a recent interview. “I think it’s important to demonstrate to the world that this can work.”

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Palau, one of only 15 countries to officially recognise the Chinese-claimed island’s government, has reported zero coronavirus cases. The tourists, therefore, arriving in the country, would be expected to follow pandemic related restrictions.

These include an assurance from them they have not left Taiwan within the past six months, undergoing the pre-flight Covid-19 tests, following social distancing norms, and minimal interaction with locals.

Despite having the potential to revive the economy, the concerns about the move remain.

“[The] ministry of health and the government did a good job, but opening this market in such a short time, is very, very scary,” a hotel owner was quoted as saying by the Guardian.

“We are a Covid-free country but Taiwan is not Covid-free, Taiwan is Covid-safe… what happens if that one [case] comes in? After all this hard work for more than one year, we don’t want to see it, because we will end up suffering more than before,” the hotel owner said.

Taiwan’s response to the pandemic has largely been hailed as a success story, as they managed to contain the virus with fewer than 1,020 reported cases and 10 deaths in a population of 23 million.