Tourism in a Post-Pandemic Era

    

                                        

Tourism in a Post-Pandemic Era

COVID-19 is on its way to becoming one of, if not the world's worst crisis in generations. It has already taken a massive toll on human lives and the global economy, and there appears to be no proper end in sight, with new variants popping up like weeds in a garden. Although every job sector in the world shared common distress, the tourism industry took the most hits due to the pandemic. Travel was banned almost everywhere, both within countries and outside, in an attempt to control the spread of the deadly virus. Which lead to the global tourism industry reaching a stagnant state.

 

The World in Distress

It was around the same period last year when the world came to a halt. Every country went on securing their borders one after the other, and soon the entire world population was bound to the four walls of their home. All the major events were postponed while cities started looking like ghost towns.  People persevered and kept their sanity even during the most difficult times, patiently preparing for their future travels.

To no one's surprise, the economic impact has been severe as countries implemented measures to limit the virus's spread. The likelihood of a global recession is increasing by the day, with stock markets experiencing high volatility, supply chains being disrupted, and oil prices falling into the red for the first time in history.

After nearly two years of lockdowns, and the global infection rate and the death rate have seen a significant decrease thanks to vaccinations, there is still no end in sight for this crisis. That is due to new variants like Delta and Lambda popping up from various parts of the globe, so it’s still too much of a risk to fully open up and return to an era before the pandemic. 

 

The Covid Effect on the Tourism Industry

Tourism is one of the industries severely damaged by the COVID-19 epidemic, notably in Asia-Pacific and Western Hemisphere nations. Governments in these regions and elsewhere have taken steps to reduce the economic blow to people and companies, but the sector will need to adjust to a post-pandemic "new normal" in the long run.

You are not alone if you are afraid to board an aircraft these days. Tourist arrivals are expected to plummet by 74% in 2020, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

The consequences have been severe for many developing countries in the Asia-Pacific and Western Hemispheres, particularly small island republics. Tourism was a huge business before the epidemic, accounting for more than 10% of worldwide GDP. In tourism-dependent countries, the percentage was significantly higher.

Although many countries are struggling to maintain their tourism economies due to the constraints of fiscal space, some are even introducing new initiatives to boost the sector.

How to Mitigate the Crisis

Domestic tourism has restarted and is helping to mitigate the impact on jobs and businesses in some destinations. However, real recovery will only be possible when international tourism returns. This requires global co-operation and evidence-based solutions so travel restrictions can be safely lifted.

The survival of businesses throughout the tourism ecosystem is at risk without continued government support and although governments have taken impressive action to cushion the blow to tourism, to minimize job losses and to build recovery in 2021 and beyond, more needs to be done, and in a more co-ordinated way. Key policy priorities include:

•          Restoring traveller confidence

•          Supporting tourism businesses to adapt and survive

•          Promoting domestic tourism and supporting safe return of international tourism

•          Providing clear information to travellers and businesses, and limiting uncertainty (to the extent possible)

•          Evolving response measures to maintain capacity in the sector and address gaps in supports

•          Strengthening co-operation within and between countries

•          Building more resilient, sustainable tourism

While flexible policy solutions are needed to enable the tourism economy to live alongside the virus in the short to medium term, it is important to look beyond this and take steps to learn from the crisis, which has revealed gaps in government and industry preparedness and response capacity. Co-ordinated action across governments at all levels and the private sector is essential.

The crisis is an opportunity to rethink tourism for the future. Tourism is at a crossroads and the measures put in place today will shape the tourism of tomorrow. Governments need to consider the longer-term implications of the crisis, while capitalising on digitalisation, supporting the low carbon transition, and promoting the structural transformation needed to build a stronger, more sustainable and resilient tourism economy.

Recovery

In response to the sluggishness of the global economy, many countries have introduced new initiatives that can help boost tourism. Some of these include: In Costa Rica, for instance, national holidays have been moved to Monday to boost domestic tourism.

Many tourism-dependent countries are struggling to attract visitors due to budget constraints. For instance, in Costa Rica, national holidays were moved to Mondays to boost domestic travel.

As the tourism industry emerges from the recession, it is expected to benefit from a continued shift toward ecotourism. This could help boost the industry and create more jobs.

Some governments have provided financial assistance to the sector, either directly or through soft loans and guarantees. Thailand set aside $700 million to promote domestic tourism, while Vanuatu provided subsidies to small and medium-sized businesses. Countries have also aided businesses in adapting their business models and retraining employees. In Jamaica, the government provided 10,000 tourist employees with free online training certification seminars to assist them enhance their abilities.

Following the pandemic, a further trend toward ecotourism—a fast-growing business centered on conservation and local employment creation—could offer the industry a boost. This is already an important part of Sri Lanka's tourist strategy. India is also attempting to diversify into specialist industries such as adventure tourism and health and wellness packages.

Technology has the potential to play a significant role. With social alienation and health and hygiene standards set to persist for the foreseeable future, touch less service delivery and investments in digital technology might serve as a bridge to recovery.

Finally, if the decline in travel is prolonged due to changes in visitor tastes or economic damage, certain tourism-dependent nations may be forced to undertake on a lengthy and difficult road to diversify their economies. Investing in non-tourism industries is a long-term aim that might be supported by developing connections between tourist and locally produced agriculture, industry, and entertainment.

Solutions will vary in each nation, and the pace and extent of recovery will, of course, be determined by global trends. However, there is a significant possibility to be capitalized on. Aside from the immediate imperative of reducing the pandemic's impact, governments will need to establish a "new normal" for the tourist sector. Diversification, transitioning to more sustainable tourist models, and investing in new technology might all help shape the rebound.

In Sri Lanka

As the country opens for tourism in the midst of a Coronavirus epidemic, Sri Lanka's tourism business is preparing to re-enter the meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) market securely.

In collaboration with the Sri Lanka Association of Professional Conference Exhibition & Event Organizers (SLAPCEO), the Sri Lanka Convention Bureau (SLCB) held a virtual training for over 100 hoteliers, including representatives from regional hotels.

Hoteliers were trained on issues that have been faced by the travel, tourism and the event organizing sector, and on how to organize events in post-COVID- 19 pandemic adhering to health guidelines, a Tourism Promotion Bureau statement said.

Senior hoteliers with experience in handling business travellers had shared their knowledge in the program

General Manager, of Cinnamon Hotels Kamal Munasinghe, had shared knowledge on taking care of business delegates and handling attendees at conferences and events

President of SLAPCEO, Imran Hassan, had explained how to hold, hybrid, physical and virtual events and conferences.

General Manager at Aitken Spence Travels Ltd., Sajith Wijenayake had spoken on the art of creating incentive travel.

The panel also included Christopher Zappia, Cluster Commercial Director of Hilton Hotels. Zappia had spoken about ways to attract event business to Sri Lankan hotels.

Crisis is a once in a lifetime opportunity to move toward fairer, more sustainable and resilient models of tourism development. The pandemic has once again exposed structural shortcomings in the tourism system and the vulnerability to external shocks. There is an urgent need to diversify and strengthen the resilience of the tourism economy, to better prepare for future shocks, to address long standing structural weaknesses, and encourage the digital, low carbon transformations that will be essential to shift to stronger, fairer and more sustainable models of tourism development.