Hotels in Mexico are offering free holidays to tourists who catch swine flu in their resorts in a bid to restore confidence in the destination.

The initiative, which involves three hotel chains, is being led by Real Resorts, which owns three hotels in Cancun and Playa del Carmen.

The company’s guarantee offers three years of free holidays to any guest who contracts the (H1N1) flu virus within 14 days of visiting its resorts in Cancun or Playa del Carmen.

General director Fernando García Zalvidea says holidaymakers have nothing to fear from visiting Mexico. Hygeine has been a top priority at Cancun Airport, he says, and restaurants, shopping malls, taxis and buses have been sanitised.
The other two Mexican resort chains offering the swine flu-free guarantee are Dreams and Secret.

Additionally, Real Resorts has cut room rates by 40 per cent, to as low as £59 per night all-inclusive, and is offering discounts of up to 50 per cent on spa treatments, dining and drinks.

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The Sunday Times online

Cancun, Quintana Roo – May 1st. 2009

The Tourism Committee of Quintana Roo was installed yesterday. This Committee aims to collect information from health authorities and the tourism industry in order to keep properly updated to the media, business partners and members of industry on the state that holds the activity state’s tourism in a systematic way against the possible health risk.

The Tourism Committee is headed by the Secretary of Tourism of Quintana Roo, and is formed by the Ministry of Health, the City Mayors of the municipalities of the State, as well as Hotels Associations, Chambers, Airport Authorities, National Institute of Immigration Taxi drivers’ Unions, Consulates and the State Destinations Tourism Promotion Boards.

The State Health Department reported that to date, Cancun, Riviera Maya and the various tourist destinations in the Mexican Caribbean are free from the contagion of the outbreak of human influenza that has been presented in the center of the country.

The various preventive measures implemented in recent days are:
The tourism industry, including hotels, restaurants, theme parks, shopping malls, marinas, buses and taxis are used for prevention and sanitation measures to prevent this serious virus affecting the general population and tourists. Green Angels and delegations of the Red Cross throughout the state distribute information related to influenza, which includes a list of symptoms, what to do and whom to go in case of any of these symptoms.

The destinations of the Mexican Caribbean have all the medical personnel, hospital facilities and medicines appropriate for providing timely care in the event of specific symptoms in a tourist or a citizen.

The hotels associations of the state reports submitted their occupation, to be held in percentages above 50 per cent general, occupancy is projected to remain next week. Similarly, reported that all accommodation establishments and tourist services are operating normally, including all restaurants.

Following instructions issued by the authorities have established procedures for medical review to be followed by all passengers at the airport in Cancun. In the case of domestic passengers must fill out a form before taking the approach of their flights. For all the passengers with international destinations, the procedures involve filling in a form, review your body temperature and a medical evaluation. A call is made to all passengers at the airport as early as possible so they can have sufficient time to implement these procedures before check in to their flights.

Xcaret, Xel Ha and all the theme parks across the state are operating as normal and usual schedule.

All restaurants in the tourist destinations in Quintana Roo are open to the condition of operating at 50 percent of its capacity to prevent agglomeration and following the highest hygiene measures. Bars and clubs are installed outdoors may operate under these same conditions, while those that are located in closed spaces will remain closed until further notice.