Just when we thought we had a few more options for escaping the pandemic, the list begins to shorten again. Last week, officials in the U.S. Virgin Islands announced that effective Aug. 19, the territories would re-close its borders to leisure travelers after COVID cases began to spike again.
Once the announcement was made, hotels, Airbnbs, and all other vacation style accommodations were ordered to stop taking reservations for at least the next 30-days.
Local islanders were placed on a two-weeks stay-at-home order from Aug. 17- Aug. 31, to help slow down the spread as well. Restaurants will only be able to serve takeout or delivery. All bars and nightclubs have shut down again as well.
“With the recent spike in cases, especially in the St. Thomas-St. John district, we must reset, take stock, safeguard human life and prepare to restart our tourism economy at a later date,” Joseph Boschulte, the commissioner of tourism said in a statement.
The order will be reevaluated at a later date to determine if things will reopen again.