TOURISM LAW AND COMPETITION – A PORTUGUESE PERSPECTIVE 443 60% to 90% compared to the same period last year”. And consequently, “Refund requests from travellers due to cancellations far exceed the level of new bookings. According to preliminary estimates of the European Travel Agents’ and Tour Operators’ Association (ECTAA), the COVID-19 pandemic may cause a loss of 30 billion euros (minus 60%) in the first quarter of 2020 and 46 billion euros (minus 90%) in the second quarter, compared to expected turnover based on previous years. The numerous cancellations entailed by the COVID-19 pandemic have led to an unsustainable cash-flow and revenue situation for the transport and travel sectors”. Conversely, the Commission in the same Recommendation also takes into account “the need for vouchers to be an attractive and reliable alternative to reimbursement in money”. Moreover, “Member States may decide whether to introduce specific schemes to provide support to operators in the transport and travel sectors to ensure that reimbursement claims caused by the COVID- -19 pandemic are satisfied, and may decide on the timing and the type of measures that they wish to put in place”, whilst acknowledging they may constitute State aid (and require prior notification and approval to be lawfully implemented). Understandably, these measures cannot be seen in isolation, as their effectiveness depends notably on the ones referred hereunder on the temporary reintroduction of borders. More precisely, the recovery of the tourism industry continues to be highly impacted by the political decisions of each Member State and also of third countries75. Examples of such measures include policies on transportation, investment on healthcare systems and the the establishment of travel corridors in the context of the gradual opening of the borders within the European Union and also with third countries. This influences the sector’s dynamics, both internally (in the EU and even in the same Member State) and externally, with the increased risk of a surge of government induced distortions to competition. Although there has been no adoption of an EU package of measures specifically addressed to the tourism sector, initiatives at various levels have been 75 In the beginning of July, the United Kingdom has excluded Portugal from its safe travel list and this has heavily impacted on the immediate recovery of the tourism sector. Such an exclusion meant that all citizens travelling back to the United Kingdom after visiting Portugal must be under quarantine for 14 days, thus desincentivizing non-essential trips.
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