Today, Aruba Tourism Authority (A.T.A.), in partnership with Jetblue and The Vault (US Laboratory), announced that Jetblue’s passengers on flights from the US to Aruba would have the option to take a COVID-19 test before arriving in Aruba. The Vault will be in charge of the testing.
Since September 2006, Jetblue has become an important and strategic partner regarding the increase of Aruba’s tourism, with 4 different gateways from the US to Aruba. In 2019, Jetblue brought 254.635 passengers to Aruba, 22.8% of all visitors, and is the airline that brings the most tourists to our island. Between July and October 2020, Jetblue carried 16.850 passengers to Aruba, 25.1% of the total visitors Aruba received. Soon they will increase their amounts of flights to Aruba.
Aruba opened up its borders partially in July 2020 but with restrictions for the passengers before arriving in Aruba. The restrictions for our visitors are slowly being adjusted as the COVID-19 cases are becoming less.
To stimulate the tourist to choose our island as the preferred destination, as of November, the Aruba Visitors Insurance, which is required, has been reduced to $30 per person per stay and $10 per child up to 14 years old. Aruba has also removed the list of US hot zones. Furthermore, on December 1st Aruba will be opening its borders to South-America- except for Venezuela. Passengers from Mexico, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti are also welcome.
One of the biggest obstacles for visitors is the test that needs to be taken and uploaded 72 hours before arriving in Aruba. Although testing upon arrival in Aruba is possible, visitors still chooses to do so before flying. To facilitate this process, Jetblue now offers its passengers traveling from the US to Aruba the possibility to take a COVID-19 test before arriving in Aruba. We must add that Aruba is the first destination for which this has been made possible.
