Toronto Highlights Hospitality Safety Initiatives With #StaySafeTO Program

September 30, 2020 ctn_admin

The group that’s charged with marketing Toronto as a destination is highlighting the ways the city’s hospitality businesses are investing in the safety of their guests.

“Toronto’s hospitality industry has always placed a high priority on guest safety, and that commitment has taken on new importance in the current environment,” said Scott Beck, President and CEO, Destination Toronto.

“At their core, hospitality businesses such as hotels, restaurants, attractions and meeting venues are about welcoming people with a sense of safety, comfort and inspiration. Local businesses understand that many guests are feeling uncertain so these additional steps to ensure safety are essential now.”

Toronto’s hospitality businesses have always placed a high priority on guest safety, and that commitment has taken on new importance because of COVID, especially now, Beck said.

A new campaign is launching from Destination Toronto today that “highlights and reflects back the important and thoughtful work hospitality businesses have done to keep guests safe,” officials said in a news release.

The #StaySafeTO campaign “shows the work done by the city’s hospitality industry over the course of the pandemic to keep guests safe. The campaign will share five key ways that restaurants, bars, attractions, hotels and tours have adapted their businesses to make safety their top priority.

Destination Toronto, along with several hotels and attractions in the city, has received the “Safe Travels” stamp by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), recognizing the adoption of the WTTC’s health and hygiene protocols for travel safety. The move follows the high priority Toronto’s hospitality industry have placed on safety over the course of the pandemic.

Administered domestically by the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO), the WTTC stamp will allow guests and future travellers to recognize businesses that have adopted health and hygiene global standardized protocols so that guests can experience ‘Safe Travels.’

“It’s particularly poignant in that, now eight months into the pandemic, we’ve learned a lot about how to keep people safer. And businesses are adapting as a result,” officials said.

Destination Toronto says the city’s hospitality businesses have adapted their guest experiences to increase guest safety through five key types of action:

1. Reduced capacity

Hospitality businesses are ensuring physical distancing by reducing the number of guests

2. Managed traffic flow

Businesses are using timed tickets and physical navigation markers to keep guests moving safely with appropriate distancing

3. A commitment to masks

Employees and guests are required to wear masks for everyone’s safety

4. Contactless experiences

Businesses are using technology to provide contactless experiences like QR code menus and e-tickets

5. Rigorous sanitization

Businesses are cleaning constantly and providing hand sanitizer to keep everyone safe

“Across Canada, tourism businesses big and small are doing all they can to offer Canadians the perfect vacation. More and more Canadians are looking closer to home to escape from the challenges of COVID-19 and rediscovering their own provinces,” said Tourism Industry Association of Ontario President & CEO Beth Potter.

“When they see the ‘Safe Travels Stamp’ has been awarded to the destination or hotel they’re planning to visit they will know that they are upholding the highest standards of health and safety and demonstrating they are adhering to the global health protocols issued by the WTTC.”

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