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Are Tourism Regs Being Applied Across The Board
posted (January 27, 2016)

While on the Topic of the Bradley Paumen situation we asked BTB about another matter, which the local tourism sector has been riled up about for quite some time. That has to do with the strict regulations that are being enforced on them but allegedly not on Dark Night and other foreign private tour operators. Director of Business Development Paredes, told us that he believes in applying regulations across the board. So why do all reports say they are not?

Javier Paredes - Director of Business Development, BTB

"We always believe that whatever standards are implemented should be across the board. There should be a level playing field in terms of standards and that's what we strive towards."

Emanuel Pech

"Are you there?"

Javier Paredes - Director of Business Development, BTB

"No we are moving in that direction. Actually we are still in the process of developing standards for the past 3 years we have been looking closely at hotel standards, that's been the past 3 years. I think in 2016 we're going to be able to pass some legislation in terms of hotel standards. This year 2016 we have earmarked to look at tour operators in terms of tour operators standards. It doesn't mean that we haven't been doing work. So we have been for example, looking at dive standards for example. We've been looking at high risk standards for rappelling and zip lining. We've been looking at standards for water sports like parasailing. Standards have been looked at in term of tour operations but in terms of holistically on an assessment of all tour operators where there are and how they interface with different standards; that is something that we have earmarked for this year."

We note that the regulations that FECTAB and other local tour operators have been fighting have been in place for some time now. But it is only this year that they started implementing them at Nohoch Che'en and other reserves.

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