- Title: Thomas Cook customers in Tunisia will complete their trips - minister
- Date: 24th September 2019
- Summary: TUNIS, TUNISIA (SEPTEMBER 24, 2019) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** MEDIA AT NEWS CONFERENCE / TUNISIAN TOURISM MINISTER, RENE TRABELSI, SPEAKING VARIOUS OF TRABELSI SEATED NEXT TO BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO TUNISIA, LOUISE DE SOUSA / CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) TUNISIAN TOURISM MINISTER, RENE TRABELSI, SAYING: "The visits of tourists who are here in Tunisia will continue, that means they will not return or leave the country. On the contrary, every tourist who is here in Tunisia will complete their visit and go home on planes, not Thomas Cook planes but flights will be arranged by the British government. The bills of the 4,500 British tourists in Tunisia will be paid to Tunisians after a maximum of 40 days." VARIOUS OF CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) TUNISIAN TOURISM MINISTER, RENE TRABELSI, SAYING: "What matters to us is that hotels don't get into many difficulties. The 2020 tourism season will be big and we will be helping and supporting hotels through the bankruptcy of Thomas Cook." VARIOUS OF CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS HAMMAMET, TUNISIA (SEPTEMBER 24, 2019) (REUTERS) ARCHWAY AND WALL IN MARKET VARIOUS OF GOODS ON DISPLAY IN MARKET STALLS TOURISTS SHOPPING AT MARKET (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) VENDOR, REDA, SAYING: "It is a surprise, a big surprise and we were hoping that they (British tourists) would help the market pick up but this is a shock that we have received." GOODS ON DISPLAY IN MARKET STALLS CLOTHES AND BAGS ON DISPLAY (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) VENDOR, REDA, SAYING: "We are at the end of the season, it is the end of the season, if this were in August or July, it would have been a disaster for us. It only takes four or six British tourists to run a whole market, look at how empty the market is." ARCHWAY AND WALL / PEOPLE WALKING
- Embargoed: 8th October 2019 23:52
- Keywords: Thomas Cook Thomas Cook collapse Thomas Cook customers Thomas Cook in Tunisia Tunisian tourism sector tourism in Tunisia
- Location: HAMMAMET AND TUNIS, TUNISIA
- City: HAMMAMET AND TUNIS, TUNISIA
- Country: Tunisia
- Topics: Debt Markets,Economic Events
- Reuters ID: LVA001AY0RRK7
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:British tourists visiting Tunisia on Thomas Cook packages will finish their holidays and their hotels will not lose out, the Tunisian tourism minister said on Tuesday (September 24).
The 4,500 British tourists currently in the North African country will not be cutting their trips short, Rene Trabelsi told a news a conference.
Seated next to British Ambassador to Tunisia, Louise De Sousa, Trabelsi said Tunisian businesses will be paid within a maximum of 40 days after the tourists' departure.
The collapse of the world's oldest travel firm has created unease among people working in Tunisia's tourism sector including market trader Reda.
Reda said the collapse came as a shock, adding that the only silver lining is that it happened at the end of the holiday season. Had it happened just a few months earlier it would have been a disaster, he said.
Trabelsi said he has met with hotel owners and people who have been directly affected by Thomas Cook's collapse, adding that the ministry will be supporting hotels if they struggle due to the firm's closure.
The minister said on Monday that Thomas Cook owes Tunisian hotels 60 million euros ($66 million) for stays in July and August.
Tourism is a vital sector for Tunisia's economy and a key source of foreign currency, and the government had expected another 50,000 Thomas Cook customers to visit this year.
(Production: Hend Kortam. Zoubeir Souissi) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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