The city of Buenos Aires received today the international Safe Travels Stamp issued by the World Travel and Tourism Council, a badge of support to tourist destinations that adopt and comply with hygiene protocols, sanitization and physical distancing.

"This Stamp is essential to giving confidence to all national and international travelers arriving in the city. In addition, it allows us to advance in the creation of a network of safe and prepared destinations along with other cities in the region, in particular those that send the most tourists to Buenos Aires. It is one more step towards achieving a safe reactivation of tourism", said Fernando Straface, Secretary General and Secretary for International Relations in the city government.

The news was communicated this afternoon during a videoconference attended by authorities of the National Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Inprotur and the Tourism Board of the City of Buenos Aires, who all applauded the joint commitment and work.

"The Safe Destination Stamp comes as a recognition of the joint work we've been doing with the entire tourism sector. This now will allow us to gradually reactivate economic activity, and to be in a position to receive, little by little, national and international tourists now that Buenos Aires is certified as a safe city", said the President of the Tourism Board of the City of Buenos Aires, Gonzalo Robredo.

Other destinations in the region that have obtained the seal are Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Cancun, Morelia and Quito, among others. The Safe Travels Stamp guarantees that the destinations are safe and prepared to receive tourists, and compliant with all the global health and hygiene requirements and guidelines established and endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Centers for Control and the Disease Prevention (CDC) and the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC).

"We want to congratulate and recognize Buenos Aires for joining the list of distinguished destinations around the world that have obtained the Safe Travels Stamp. This badge is a reflection of its commitment to the sector. In addition, it means great responsibility, since it requires exhaustive supervision to guarantee compliance with the hygiene and sanitation protocols", said Gloria Guevara, President and CEO of the WTTC.

The certification obtained allows future travelers to identify destinations around the world that adapted their protocols to global health and hygiene standards. The first destinations to receive the certificate were Saudi Arabia, Barcelona, Seville, Portugal, Turkey, Bulgaria, Mauritius and Ontario, among others.

The protocols endorsed by the WTTC, which confirm Buenos Aires as a safe destination, are the following: Protocol for the prevention and management of COVID-19 cases in Accommodation; Protocol for the prevention and management of COVID-19 cases in MICE Tourism; Protocol for the prevention and management of COVID-19 cases in travel agencies; Protocol for the prevention and management of COVID-19 cases in Airports; and Protocol for the prevention and management of COVID-19 cases in Gastronomy. To learn further details you can visit the website of the Tourist Board: https://turismo.buenosaires.gob.ar/es/article/buenos-aires-certificados-como-destino-preparado.

The City's Tourism Authority, together with Inprotur, will also assume the role of ambassador for the Safe Travels Stamp, thus being able to eventually grant the distinction to its tourism providers. The distinction will be granted through the Inprotur granting mechanism, validated by the WTTC, which grants power to the City to validate or invalidate the request of any actors interested in applying for the Stamp.

The call will be announced by the two organizations, and cooperative actions will be carried out to reach out to the companies interested in joining the stamp, and to exchange views and information with the private sector in general.

To further promote the recovery of tourism after the pandemic, the city has already implemented a number of actions. The Buenos Aires Tourism Board is currently working with the governments of the main national tourist destinations and its private operators exchanging plans and security protocols, aming to later generate safe corridors between the main national destinations.

In addition, the city formally launched VisitBA, the new public-private agency for the promotion of international tourism and composed of the main chambers in the tourism sector. Among other initiatives, the agency will seek to generate the aforementioned safe corridors and a network of safe destinations with Montevideo, Santiago de Chile, Lima, Bogota, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.