CARACAS, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Venezuelan government Monday unveiled new regulations for social distancing and sanitary measures as the tourism sector resumes activity following a nearly eight-month lockdown.
Officials have been "in permanent contact with service providers at inns and hotels" to stipulate new rules to ensure the safety of tourists, Minister of Tourism Felix Plasencia said at a press conference in Caracas.
The minister said he had also met with beach and spa service providers for new operational procedures, "insisting on health, protection and health prevention for citizens."
As part of the new guidelines, beaches, spas and clubs will be open to the public between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. local time. Amusement and theme parks will operate from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., while cable cars will operate from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time.
Tourism saw "encouraging figures" before the COVID-19 pandemic and the new measures should help boost the industry, said Plasencia.
As of Sunday, Venezuela reported a total of 736 COVID-19 deaths and 86,636 cases since the first case was detected on March 13. Enditem