Reimagining Tourism Amidst a Pandemic

We are facing a great epoch in the world that will probably mark a turning point in history and will be seen as something that has completely changed the world and ways of life. All sectors and all spheres of life are undergoing radical transformations during this ongoing pandemic. In our tourism and hospitality industry, the pandemic has by far the most serious effects and impacts, as it involves the movement of people across borders, which is the main trigger for a pandemic as well as the basic countermeasure to contain it. Let's see how this pandemic situation will affect the tourism industry in the near future and how the movement of people across countries will alter.
 
>>> The History of Tourism

With the onset of the pandemic and its widespread effects at the beginning of this year, tourism and all activities surrounding it have almost completely stopped, which means that countries have closed their borders to international travellers for tourism purposes. This has undoubtedly had a profound impact on the countries that rely on tourism, such as Spain, Mexico, Italy, etc. After almost three months of complete closure for most countries, the focus is now on reviving tourism and making adjustments for tourists in this state of turmoil. The restart of tourism and the implementation of the new guidelines are in force and the countries are ensuring that each protocol is complied with to avoid additional costs in human lives and to prevent the downturn of the tourism sector in general.
 
>>> Where are people planning to holiday when lockdown ends?
 
In Spain, a Safe Tourism Certification system is in place issued by the ministry of tourism to make tourism and tourists visiting Spain safer, a list of guidelines established by health professionals and public health authorities is already in place in regard to this. These guidelines apply to all places that involve the movement of people, including hotels, restaurants, tourist places, bars, cafés, etc. In Portugal, a "clean and safe" label has been introduced by the Department of Tourism for all private and public enterprises, with a list of practices and hygiene measures necessary for tourists living in places such as hotels and Airbnb. Similarly, in Costa Rica, the "Protocol of Anti-COVID 19 measures during the 2020 tourist season" is being implemented and includes all health guidelines to safeguard the health of visitors to the country.
 
>>> Why right now is actually the perfect time to start planning your next holiday
 
Croatia, France, Italy and Portugal have special provisions that allow travel and trips cancelled due to the pandemic to be redeemed with vouchers. In Austria, the ministries of tourism and the relevant regional departments are working closely together to discuss and implement new measures. Thailand has a project to develop a large data storage system which will be available for use as intelligent data to track the impact of the pandemic. The Federal Government's Centre of Excellence for Tourism in Germany launched the Corona-navigator website. Through this website, the latest information is presented to all interested parties. Greece's Ministry of Tourism introduced a Crisis Management Committee to provide rapid responses during emergencies and to regain confidence in the tourists visiting Greece.
 
>>> Travel Updates for Your Skiing Trip This Winter

The full impact of the pandemic is still unknown and countries with the concerned authorities are still preparing for the future of tourism with a lot of ambiguity and uncertainty. But what is certain is that there is much more planning and back-ups in place to deal with sudden situation like this. The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) in a statement said that, “for tourism to fulfil its potential to help societies and whole countries recover from this crisis, our response needs to be quick, consistent, united and ambitious”. To mitigate this global tourism crisis in the face of a pandemic, it is necessary to implement several initiatives, including a stimulus package for the thousands of people who are engaged in the tourism sector, as tourism is a two-way business that includes tourists as well as the massive workforce in the tourism and hospitality sector who run the entire industry. There are lessons to be learned and behavioural changes to be made for future impacts and, with sustainability in mind, the tourism sector is slowly but progressively leading the way for tourists around the world.
 
>>> Let’s save the planet with sustainable tourism