The Czech government considered but then refused to implement a voucher scheme for hotels that would have supported domestic tourism while foreign guests find their way back to the country. Instead, it produced vouchers only for spa resorts, which it considers unique and irreplaceable. But the majority of spas aren’t accepting the vouchers which clients are trying to pay tourist agencies with, according to Libor Stoces, the head of a spa web portal called Lazne Travel. “There’s no clear methodology for using the vouchers and the level of knowledge by state offices is tragic,” he said on a Czech Television. The Minister for Regional Development Klara Dostalova claims that 85,000 people have asked for vouchers, but rejected criticism that spas hadn’t been informed about the program. “The first communications with the spas took place even before the government approved the program so that they could register for the project,” she wrote. The government program set aside CZK 1bn, which is supposed to be enough for 250,000 vouchers. The hope is that these coupons will encourage Czechs to spend a few days at local spas, given the lack of foreign guests, who traditionally make up as much as 44 percent of the clientele.
