Travellers: Easy movement between Trinidad and Tobago for Easter

Travellers and the head of the Tobago business chamber have commended Caribbean Airlines for its reliability and efficiency on the inter-island airbridge over the long Easter weekend.

Passengers moving between Trinidad and Tobago to participate in the Easter activities expressed relief that their experience was hassle-free.

When Newsday visited the Piarco airport on Sunday, all the domestic check-in counters were clear.

Newsday saw only two men seated opposite the domestic check-in lounge.

One of the men travelling from Tobago to St Vincent spoke with Newsday while waiting for his luggage to arrive from Tobago. He said because of the availability of flights to Trinidad, he was put on an earlier flight while his luggage remained on the one he was originally booked on.

He said there were no long lines or any hassle at the ANR Robinson airport at Crown Point.

The other man, Christian Job, said he travelled to Trinidad to collect an item at the airport and he hoped to get a return ticket to Tobago.

In under ten minutes, Job left the counter with a return ticket in hand.

“This is really shocking, especially for an Easter weekend. I took the chance to come over because what I had to do was important. I’m just glad I didn’t have to wait.”

In March, Tobago tourism stakeholders and Tobago House of Assembly Chief Secretary Farley Augustine called on CAL and the TT Inter-island Transportation Co (TTIT) to adjust the schedules to meet the Easter season demand.

TTIT deferred the scheduled maintenance on the Buccoo Reef until mid-April. Before TTIT’s announcement, CAL said from April 2 it would operate 24 daily flights to meet the inter-island travel demand.

Chairman of the Tobago Business Chamber Martin George said he was happy to see the boost of activity on the island after CAL’s decision to increase the capacity on the airbridge.

“We are happy and excited to see there are so many thousands of visitors to the island for the Easter celebration. We think this is going to be a tremendous boost to the economy for Tobago as it definitely represents a kick-start of the return to normalcy.

“In that regard, we urge persons to be responsible and to take charge of their own personal safety to still try and follow the Ministry of Health guidelines for covid19, and we urge business owners to exercise that sense of responsibility and not get carried away by the increase in business, abandon all care and throw caution to the wind.

“That is not how we want this to be approached. We want it to be approached in a mature and sensible manner while enjoying the benefits and pleasures of the Easter weekend in Tobago.