In light of this growing consumer concern, safety experts Cristal International Standards has launched a specialist programme called SecurityCheck designed to help leading hoteliers and tour operators across the world secure and maintain an international standard of security excellence.
In the wake of terrorist related incidences still denominating the headlines the majority of Britons are choosing to holiday in the UK this year – believing the UK to be safer than other destinations. 72 per cent of those surveyed said that safety has been the most important factor in deciding where to go ahead of the price (52 per cent) or good weather (42 per cent).
Whilst this is good news for the British tourism industry, the UK remains on a ‘high’ terrorism alert alongside Egypt, Tunisia and Turkey, and perhaps even more surprisingly France, Germany and Spain.
In light of this growing consumer concern, safety experts Cristal International Standards has launched a specialist programme called SecurityCheck designed to help leading hoteliers and tour operators across the world secure and maintain an international standard of security excellence.
Steve Tate, Chairman of Cristal International Standards, says: “We’re not surprised to hear that more Britons are choosing to holiday at home this year, however arguably destinations like Portugal, Italy, Malta and the USA have a significantly lower threat level than the UK but are being overlooked. Therefore, it seems Britons are choosing to holiday where they know rather than, in reality, where is considered to be the ‘safest’ location.
“Although checking the Foreign Office website for travel advice should be absolutely paramount before booking a location for a holiday, currently there is no international standard for Britons to look out for to know how safe and secure an individual hotel or resort is. However, we are trying to change that through the launch of SecurityCheck, which will audit hotels and holiday resorts to review the safety protocols they have in place and make any suggestions as to how they could be improved. We know this will give British holidaymakers in particular peace of mind and not let fear hold them back from choosing to holiday abroad again. Hoteliers and tour operators can be assured that they have taken all appropriate measures possible to keep their guests safe and to act swiftly to keep their establishments secure should a terrorist incident occur.”
Leading psychologist Dr Rick Norris, who has studied the psychology of safety and well-being, said: “As humans we are threat sensitive. We look at almost all situations, including booking a holiday and automatically see the risks – even if they are irrational those risks will have a great impact on us. Fear of the unknown is very strong and if this fear is projected by reading more about that threat via the media then it is amplified.”
SecurityCheck will help hotels minimise and manage security risks to the best of their ability. As part of the Cristal International Standards E-Cristal management system, it will give hoteliers a 24/7 picture of how their hotels are performing with regards to security in real time. The audit will look at the safety and security of the property and its operation, including: buildings, amenities, activities and grounds.
The audits will be carried out by British personnel from Cristal International Standards with extensive security experience. The eCristal system will then enable a hotelier or tour operator to monitor risk levels in real time, scheduling corrective actions according to priority through data base access including summary reports and regulations. The system operates in the following languages: Spanish, English, French, German, Arabic, Portuguese, Greek, Turkish and Italian.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
