BTB launches second phase of DYK campaign

The Belize Tourism Board (BTB) has launched the second phase of their Did You Know (DYK) campaign. It is aimed at increasing awareness among hoteliers, persons who own a home and rent rooms, or businesses providing accommodation for remuneration purposes, of the need to register with the registrar of Hotels at the BTB.
The campaign is geared at home owners who rent rooms or managers of resorts, hotels, lodges, inns, vacation homes or guest houses, camp site or bed & breakfast facilities, motels or condominiums, time share units, bungalows or apartments, home stay program facilities, religious/educational & research facilities, villas or beach houses, community-based tourist establishments and dormitory, cottages or cabins. As a registered guest accommodation service provider, license holders can operate legally and freely and contribute meaningfully to the sound development of our dynamic tourism industry as well as benefit from the strategic plans and promotions of the BTB. As part of its DYK campaign, three informational videos will be released via radio, television, flyers, social media, bulletin boards, local newspapers, among others. The campaign will run from September this year to March 2020.
All persons who own or operate a tourist accommodation (such as a room(s) in your home) for cash purposes to any guest, local or foreign, regardless of its location in the country or if you are registered or advertising such room or property with any booking engine or marketing platform such as Airbnb, must FIRST register with the BTB as mandated by law. Registration with BTB must be done before advertising in any marketing platform.
According to Section 27 (1) of the Hotels and Tourist Accommodation Act, Chapter 285 of the Substantive Laws of Belize, (Revised Edition 2011) any person who without lawful excuse uses any premises as a hotel or tourist accommodation when such premises are not registered or when there is not in force a license granted to him by the Registrar authorizing him to use such premises for the business of a hotel or tourist accommodation, commits an offence and is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine or imprisonment or to both such fine and term of imprisonment.
Registering a guest accommodation service is easy and forms can be downloaded from the BTB’s website at http://www.belizetourismboard.org/industry-sectors/hotel-licence/ . For further information or assistance please contact the BTB at [email protected] .
About the BTB:
The Belize Tourism Board (BTB) is a statutory body within the Belize Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation, and it is governed by a Board of Directors appointed by the Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation. The BTB works in conjunction with members of the private sector – including the Belize Hotel Association, Belize Tourism Industry Association and Belize National Tour Operators Association – and is dedicated to building tourism in the most economically and environmentally sustainable manner. As a part of its responsibilities, the BTB promotes Belize as a premier tourism destination to both in-country and international consumers. Among its outreach to the international travel market, the BTB markets the country’s unique attractions to travelers, members of the travel trade industry and media outlets in key markets. The BTB is also dedicated to developing and implementing tourism programs that will help strengthen and grow the Belizean tourism industry; promote good destination stewardship; and instill high quality standards for accommodations and travel experiences. For more information on the BTB and its services, visit www.travelbelize.org.