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85 Percent of U.S. Travel Agencies Won’t Survive the Year Without Aid, Trade Group Warns

anyaberkut / Getty Images

The American Society of Travel Advisors says most U.S. agencies won’t survive past 2021 without federal support. anyaberkut / Getty Images

Skift Take: Travel advisors play a critical role in the recovery of the leisure tourism sector. But these majority women-owned, small businesses will need relief to stay afloat if the U.S. travel industry is to benefit.

— Lebawit Lily Girma

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Lockdowned Iran Bans Travelers From India Over Covid Variant

Franx' / Flickr

Destinations in Iran, like Tehran (pictured) will not be accepting travelers from India as Covid spreads across both countries. Franx’ / Flickr

Skift Take: Iran joins a growing list of destinations with worries over Covid variants in India, barring travelers from the country on Saturday. Until vaccines roll out more quickly across the world, a ban like this, unfortunately, will not be the last.

— Tom Lowry

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Hard-Hit New York City Will Deploy a Record $30 Million to Woo Back Tourists

Tom Lowry / Skift

Crowds are slowly returning to Central Park post-vaccine, as the city prepares to bring tourists back. Tom Lowry / Skift

Skift Take: That a city like New York needs significant investment to sell itself to potential tourists speaks loudly of the pandemic’s crushing blow on the iconic destination. Government officials recognize the importance of tourism to the city’s economic recovery. The role that its destination marketing organization will play is crucial.

— Lebawit Lily Girma

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Greece Eyes May 15 Tourism Reopening as Vaccines Help Covid Spread

Pedro Szekely / Flickr

The good news for destinations like Santorini (pictured) is that they soon could be filled with tourists as restrictions in Greece are expected to lift May 15. Pedro Szekely / Flickr

Skift Take: A fifth of Greece’s GDP depends on tourism. With the summer season looming, the prime minister described a tourism reopening in mid-May as the end of an “unprecedented adventure.” That’s one way to look at the pandemic.

— Tom Lowry

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