As of Feb. 3 the government of France has halted tourism to its Caribbean territories until further notice, in an attempt to limit the spread of COVID-19. This includes the islands of Saint Barthélemy, Saint Martin, Martinique, and Guadeloupe.
Nils DuFau, president of the St. Barts Tourism Board said, “Independently of the will of our local authorities to keep St. Barts open, the French government has just decided to put in place new preventive measures against COVID-19 variants.”
St. Barts was one of the first Caribbean nations to reopen to tourism in June. DuFau said that although St. Barts has had some cases of COVID-19, they have been managing the situation well and keeping things under control.
“We are right now negotiating to ease the entry restriction and find an alternative solution. Our aim is to reopen the island’s borders as soon as possible.”
Tourists currently traveling in the countries will be returning home. Individuals seeking to enter the island nations for purposes deemed essential— health, family, or undelayable work-related reasons— may be allowed to enter.
The French government has also closed French Polynesia in fear of the continual spread of COVID-19 and new strains of the virus.
Related: French Polynesia Has Decided To Close Its Borders To Tourism
