Bourbon Tourism shaking Off Pandemic Slump In Kentucky

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — With tourists flocking to distilleries, concerns about a pandemic hangover for Kentucky’s world-famous bourbon industry are quickly evaporating.

A $19 million tourist center that Bourbon Tourism opened just days ago in the heart of the state’s bourbon country is already overflowing — with reservations filling up quickly to learn about whiskey-making and sample its spirits, including its flagship Evan Williams whiskey.

It’s a similar story for the numerous other distilleries in the region that last spring were temporarily closed to visitors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than a year later, the businesses are facing such overwhelming demand for tours that one industry official has started encouraging people to call ahead or check tour availability online before pulling off the highway.

Starting last summer, some distilleries began allowing limited numbers of visitors in accordance with virus restrictions. With capacity limits now lifted, the attractions are gearing up for a full resurgence of guests, many from outside Kentucky.

“We saw it coming, but I don’t think we saw it coming this quick,” said Kentucky Distillers’ Association President Eric Gregory.

“We were a hot destination before COVID cooled us off considerably,” he added. “But now we’re getting back to the point where people want to get out, they want to have fun.”

Gregory predicted that bourbon tourism will quickly rebound to pre-pandemic levels.

“I think next year will be more of a normal year and if this trend continues, I think it will be another record-setting year,” he said.

Bourbon is an $8.6 billion industry in Kentucky, where 95% of the world’s supply is crafted, according to the association. About 9.3 million barrels of bourbon were aging in the state last year, or more than two barrels for every person living in Kentucky. And bourbon tourism has become a big business, driven in part by a surge in enthusiasm overseas.

Spirits companies invested huge sums into new or expanded visitors’ centers to play up the industry’s heritage and allow guests to soak in the sights and smells of bourbon making. Kentucky Bourbon Trail visitors spend, on average, between $400 to $1,200 per trip, Gregory said. More than 70% of visitors come from outside Kentucky.

To help visitors plan trips, the organization is promoting a new Bourbon Trail Passport and Field Guide, a 150-page guide to participating distilleries, with cocktail recipes and suggested itineraries.

In Bardstown, where Heaven Hill opened its tourist center, the return of travelers will spin off considerably more spending at restaurants, stores and motels, said Dixie Hibbs, a former mayor.

The picturesque town, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) southeast of Louisville, is so entwined with the industry that the smell of locally crafted bourbon wafts into downtown.

“Most people will tell you that’s the smell of money,” Hibbs said.

After years of constant growth, bourbon tourism plunged during the pandemic. Visitors took about 587,000 tours last year at distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail Craft Tour, down 66% from 2019 when stops topped 1.7 million, according to KDA. The craft tour features smaller distilleries springing up across the Bluegrass state, while the Kentucky Bourbon Trail showcases the sector’s biggest producers.

While most distilleries have reopened for tours, some still aren’t allowing visitors into “front line” areas where bourbon is produced, Gregory said. For guests allowed into production areas, chances are they’ll be asked to wear a mask for that phase of the tour, he said.

Some distilleries remain closed to tours. That includes industry giant Jim Beam, which is overhauling its visitor experience with plans to reopen in the fall at its flagship distilling operation in Clermont, said company spokesperson Emily Bryson York.

At Maker’s Mark, both tour sizes and the number of tours will increase starting in mid-July at its distillery in Loretto, said Rob Samuels, the brand’s managing director.

For visitors unable to join a tour, Maker’s Mark and other distilleries offer tastings of their products. They can order cocktails or perhaps a meal if the distillery has a restaurant. And they can walk the distillery grounds and shop at the gift shop.

If a larger distillery is booked, visitors often can check out a smaller distillery nearby, Gregory said. Kentucky now boasts distilleries in 32 of its 120 counties, with more than a dozen others recently announced or under construction, he said.

Like his predecessors, Gov. Andy Beshear has become a fixture at events toasting the bourbon industry’s growth. At Monday’s opening of the Heaven Hill Bourbon Experience, Beshear said the visitor center gives people “one more great reason to visit Kentucky and experience the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.”

The new tourist center is three times larger than Heaven Hill’s previous Bardstown visitors’ center and is part of a $125 million investment by Heaven Hill that includes new barrel warehousing, bottling line and equipment upgrades.

Heaven Hill Brands President Max L. Shapira summed up the industry’s relief in seeing tourists return.

“We are extremely pleased to be welcoming fans and visitors back to bourbon country to see, taste and learn about America’s Native Spirit in a new way,” he said.

By BRUCE SCHREINER

Brazil’s COVID-19 Death Toll Tops 500,000

RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazil said Saturday that more than 500,000 people in the country are confirmed to have died from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

The nation of 210 million people has been reporting an average of more than 2,000 daily deaths in recent days. Brazil’s reported death toll is second only to that of the U.S., where the number of lives lost has topped 600,000.

Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga confirmed that the official death toll had passed 500,000.

“I am working tirelessly to vaccinate all Brazilians in the shortest time possible and change this scenario that has plagued us for over a year,” Queiroga tweeted.

Brazil is registering more than 70,000 confirmed coronavirus infections every day. Just 11.4% of the population has been fully vaccinated, according to the government.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has downplayed the coronavirus while trying to keep the economy humming. He dismissed the scourge early on as “a little flu” and has scorned masks.

Travelore Consumer Alert: Cruise Giant Carnival Says Customers Affected By Breach

Carnival Corp. said Thursday that a data breach in March might have exposed personal information about customers and employees on Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line and Princess Cruises.

In a letter to customers, the company indicated that outsiders might have gained access to Social Security numbers, passport numbers, dates of birth, addresses and health information of people.

The company declined to say how many people’s information was exposed.

The breach comes after Carnival was hit twice last year by ransomware attacks.

Carnival spokesman Roger Frizzell said the company detected the latest intrusion to some of its information-technology systems on March 19 and shut down access and hired a cybersecurity company to investigate. He said Carnival is making changes to improve security of its information systems.

Frizzell said the company has notified the affected people and set up a call center to answer their questions.

The Miami-headquartered company disclosed in a securities filing in April that hackers broke into its systems in August of last year and again in December.

The attackers encrypted part of one cruise line’s IT systems and gained access to personal information about customers and employees. Carnival said there was no indication that personal information exposed in those attacks was misused. The company did not indicate whether it paid a ransom.

Carnival’s shares fell 3% on Thursday.

French Tourism Seeks New Boost With Disneyland Reopening

PARIS (AP) — France’s tourism sector is taking a further step toward normality with the reopening of Disneyland Paris, two weeks after the country reopened its borders to vaccinated visitors from across the world.

Europe’s most frequented theme park in Marne-la-Vallee, east of the French capital, opened its doors on Thursday after nearly eight months of closure.

A crowd of smiling visitors was welcomed by Disney characters dancing to the sound of joyful music.

“Amazing,” said Debbie Tater. The Delaware resident travelled from the United States to visit her family, including her daughter and two granddaughters, who live in France and whom she hadn’t seen for a year and a half.

“Happiest place on earth,” she said, with tears in her eyes.

“We couldn’t miss the reopening,” said Elodie Piedfort, from Haute-Loire region in central France. “Because I’m a nurse it’s been a very difficult year and being here, together with my son, is great. And the reopening, moving on is great as well.”

Visitors must wear masks inside the park and other measures are in place, including a cap on visitor numbers to ensure distancing.

Pauline Baudouin, a Disney fan from Angouleme in western France, said: “We were missing the magic, because it was already a complicated period and we needed to recharge our batteries in this magical world.”

Prime Minister Jean Castex said Wednesday that France is returning to “a form of normal life again,” as he announced that people won’t have to wear masks outdoors any more, except in crowded places.

The government confirmed children can remove masks in school playgrounds — yet they remain compulsory in class for those aged 6 and above.

The 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew will be lifted on Sunday.

On Thursday, Health Minister Olivier Veran said night clubs will be able to reopen in July under strict regulations — a first since the France’s initial lockdown in March last year, The French tourist industry hopes to rebound over the summer as the country welcomes foreign visitors again — on condition they have received one of the four EU-approved vaccines. Travelers are banned from 16 countries, including India, South Africa and Brazil, that are wrestling with virus surges and worrisome variants.

France started gradually reopening its economy last month. Monuments and museums, including major sites like the Louvre and Versailles, are open, as well as hotels, cafes and restaurants.

Tourists will still have to wait for the Eiffel Tower, set to reopen on July 16 after major renovation work.

The government said the easing of restrictions is due to a drop in daily infections and to a vaccination campaign that has seen more than 59% of France’s adult population receive at least one shot. The country opened this week vaccination to those aged 12 to 18.

Portugal Opens To American Travelers With Negative COVID Tests As Of June 15th

The Portuguese Government has announced that Portugal will welcome all vaccinated travelers from the United States on June 15, according to Visit Alentejo. And, direct flights are resuming on TAP Portugal, United, Azores Airlines and Delta from US gateway cities, too.

American visitors will just need to produce a negative COVID test performed at least 72 hours before arrival. Clear COVID-19 restrictions are still in place around Portugal.

As to where Americans will want to go in Portugal, the Alentejo looks to be the perfect post-COVID destination. It is set in the south of Portugal, between the River Tejo and the Algarve mountains. To the east it borders Spain and to the west - the Atlantic Ocean. It is a vast rural region, lightly populated, making up about a third of Portugal. The beauty of the landscape and the quality of its cycling, hiking, wines and historic traditions, combined with the wonders of its food and music, make it the type of place Americans will seek out.

For the latest information on travel requirements please visit www.visitportugal.com and https://www.visitalentejo.pt/en.

‘Freedom Day’ For England Pushed Back 4 Weeks To July 19

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed Monday that the next planned relaxation of coronavirus restrictions in England will be delayed by four weeks, until July 19, a decision he said will save thousands of lives as the government speeds up its vaccination drive.

In a press briefing, Johnson voiced his confidence that the new date for the lifting of restrictions on social contact will be the final one as the vaccination drive is accelerated to counter the delta variant that scientists reckon is between 40% and 80% more transmissible than the previous dominant strain in the U.K.

“I think it is sensible to wait just a little longer,” he said. “Now is the time to ease off the accelerator, because by being cautious now we have the chance in the next four weeks to save many thousands of lives by vaccinating millions more people.”

He said that by July 19, two-thirds of the adult population will have been double-vaccinated, including everyone over the age of 50, and that everyone over the age of 18 will have been offered a jab, earlier than the previous target of the month’s end. The gap between the two doses for over 40s is also being reduced to eight weeks from 12 to provide the maximum protection against the variant sooner.

New analysis Monday from Public Health England showed that two doses of the main vaccines in the U.K.’s rollout are highly effective against hospitalization from the delta variant, which was first identified in India. It said the Pfizer vaccine is 96% effective against hospitalization after 2 doses while the AstraZeneca jab is 92% effective.

“It’s unmistakably clear the vaccines are working and the sheer scale of the vaccine rollout has made our position incomparably better than in previous waves,” Johnson said.

Under the government’s plan for coming out of lockdown, all restrictions on social contact were set to be lifted next Monday. Many businesses, particularly those in hospitality and entertainment, voiced their disappointment about the delay to what had been dubbed by the British media as “Freedom Day.” Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber has been particularly upset at the prospect of a delay and has said he will reopen his theaters regardless, a move that would risk him being arrested.

A delay is particularly bitter pill for nightclubs, as they have not been allowed to reopen since March 2020.

It will also likely impact how many fans are allowed into the Wimbledon tennis tournament and the European Championship soccer matches at Wembley Stadium, which will host the tournament’s semi-finals and final. However, actual numbers may be higher at certain events as Johnson said the government will carry on with its test program to allow more fans into stadiums.

The Confederation of British Industry said the delay is “regrettable” but “understandable” and urged the government to provide more support to those businesses affected.

“But we must acknowledge the pain felt by businesses in hospitality, leisure and live events,” said the CBI’s director-general Tony Danker. “At best they’re operating with reduced capacity hitting revenues, and at worst, some aren’t open at all.”

When Johnson first outlined the government’s four-stage plan for lifting the lockdown in England in February, he set June 21 as the earliest date by which restrictions on people gathering would be lifted. However, he stressed at the time that the timetable was not carved in stone and that all the steps would be driven by “data not dates” and would seek to be “irreversible.”

Though daily infections have increased threefold over the past few weeks they are still way down from the nearly 70,000 daily cases recorded in January. On Monday, the British government reported 7,742 new confirmed cases, one of the highest daily numbers since the end of February. The delta variant accounts for around 90% of all new infections. The number of peopled being hospitalized with the virus has edged up over recent days.

Many blame the Conservative government for the spike, saying it acted too slowly to impose the strictest quarantine requirements on everyone arriving from India, which has endured a catastrophic resurgence of the virus.

Despite the government having faced criticism for that decision, it has won plaudits for the speedy and coherent rollout of vaccines. As of Monday, around 62% of the British population had received one shot, while about 45% had got two jabs.

The rapid rollout of vaccines and a strict months-long lockdown helped drive down the number of virus-related deaths in the U.K. in recent months. Despite that, the country has recorded nearly 128,000 virus-related deaths, more than any other nation in Europe.

But infections are now going the wrong way, upending the government’s plans as well as those of many businesses.

“The reality is we have marched the troops up the hill,” said Howard Panter, joint CEO and creative director at theater operator Trafalgar Entertainment.

By PAN PYLAS

Vaccinated Visitors Can Take Off Masks At Disney World Starting June 15th.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Walt Disney World in Florida is making it easier to see smiles again, but guests still can’t hug the characters.

Starting Tuesday, face masks will be optional for visitors to the theme park resort who are vaccinated, though Disney workers won’t require proof of vaccination, the company said on its website.

Visitors who aren’t fully vaccinated still will need to wear face masks indoors and on all rides and attractions. All visitors, whether vaccinated or not, will still be required to wear face coverings on buses, monorails and Disney Skyliner, the resort’s aerial gondola, according to the latest guidelines.

The decision on masks is Disney World’s latest tweak to the virus-related safety rules it created when the coronavirus pandemic was declared in March 2020. Disney World closed for two months last year at the start of the outbreak and reopened last summer with strict safety guidelines that involved masking, social distancing and crowd limits.

Last month, Disney officials started allowing visitors to go without masks outdoors. Disney officials said they expect to ease up on physical distancing guidelines in the near future.

“It’s important to remember that some experiences and entertainment may still be operating with limited capacity or may remain temporarily unavailable,” the company said on its website. “We’re not quite ready to bring back everything yet, but we are optimistic and look forward to the day when Disney pals and princesses are able to hug once again.”