YORK, Maine — Maine's hospitality industry is looking forward to a successful summer after the pandemic tanked business last year.
"Phones started ringing immediately," Peter Foster, the general manager at the Stage Neck Inn, said.
"We're taking reservations," said Ted Hugger, the owner of the Cedar Crest Inn and the Cod Cove Inn.
This comes after Governor Janet Mills loosened coronavirus-related travel restrictions last week. The plan allows travelers from all New England states to come to Maine without having to quarantine for 10 days or provide a negative test. It also exempts travelers who have either recently had COVID-19 or have been fully vaccinated regardless of the state they are traveling from.
Starting May 1, all travelers—except those from states on a new exclusionary list—will be able to come to Maine without quarantine and testing requirements.
"It's steady. I think we booked five or six reservations yesterday," Hugger said.
Ted Hugger owns the Cod Cove Inn in Edgecomb and the Cedar Crest Inn in Camden. He said he lost a lot of money in revenue last year.
"We lost about 50 percent of where we were in 2019 at the Cod Cove Inn and we lost about 80 percent of business at the Cedar Crest Inn in Camden," said Hugger.
Foster experienced the same type of losses.
"We're down astronomically in 2020. Without the support of the federal government and PPP, I would not be sitting in this chair talking to you," he said.
While they are both excited for what they hope will be a better season, they said it's been a challenge finding employees.
"Folks that found other industries that they like better and they won't come back to the hospitality industry, so there is going to be some gaps there," Foster said.
"We're advertising, we're taking resumes, we have made a couple of hires, but there is not a lot of activity yet. We're ok for a while, but that could be the real challenge," Hugger said.
It's a problem they have yet to find a solution for with tourism season right around the corner. Meanwhile, both said they are keeping up cleaning protocols to make sure guests feel safe.