Those looking to return home to their native Iloilo, Aklan, and Antique, among others will have to wait for another time. As reported on their Facebook page, Starlite Ferries will temporarily not be accepting certain passengers to travel to Region 6 or Western Visayas.
This new and temporary ruling, set to take effect from April 4 to April 10, 2021, is expected to affected a wide variety of people. Individuals prohibited from travelling to the region include tourists, overseas Filipino workers (OFW), returning overseas Filipinos (ROF), authorized persons outside residence (APORs), and locally stranded individuals (LSI).
This news is hot on the heels of Antique’s own announcement. As of April 3, 2021, the province closed its borders to its neighboring provinces due to the steadily rising cases of COVID-19. This move is meant to prevent further cases and it looks as though Starlite Ferries is following suit.
As a dedicated provider of both safe and high-quality sea transport for the Visayas and Luzon regions, Starlite Ferries has a responsibility to the places they accommodate. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic ensures that instances of travel suspension and border closure will remain commonplace within parts of the country.
Travel suspension is not unique to sea travel, but also for airports so long as COVID-19 continues to prevail. Although summer is already here, we can only expect more necessary inconveniences as public health takes precedence over tourism and travelling.
Source: Starlite Ferries Inc