Without any doubt the concept of “hospitality” will be discussed and some habits will leave their places to new actions during the corona virus period. The fate of tourism became the key concern during this pandemic course. We talked about the new term, tourism and the future of the travel agencies with the Dean of the Faculty of Business and Tourism of Bucharest University Prof. Gabriela Tigu. PhD. Tigu, who is also the Vice-President of FIJET Romania Press Club and a Member of World Committee on Tourism Ethics, gave some tips for the ones who are planning a trip in the next coming days.
How do you think that the term “hospitality” will be changed in tourism after the pandemic?
The current crisis caused by the new coronavirus is not the first of its kind in the history of the hospitality and tourism industry. Traffic restrictions and flight bans have triggered negative effects on the tourism sector during past epidemics. There are many studies that show us what happened in the past, as an effect of these pandemics, but none of the past pandemics have had such serious effects as it seems to have this one.
As the European Commission mentioned, the EU tourism industry, which employs around 13 million people, is estimated to lose around € 1 billion in revenue as a result of the impact of COVID-19. In many other tourist destinations, hotels have lost customers, and restaurants, bars, tourist attractions, theme parks and museums closed. Trade shows, congresses and cultural events have been canceled or postponed. Sports events, such as the Euro 2020 football championship and the Olympic Games, have been postponed until 2021. Many countries have reintroduced border controls or banned certain travelers from entering their territory.
The situation is particularly difficult in several states that are key tourist destinations, such as Italy, Spain, France, Greece, Turkey. Given the evolving nature of the situation, it is too early to estimate the full impact of COVID-19 on global tourism. According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), global international tourist arrivals could fall by 20-30% in 2020 compared to 2019. This could result in a loss of $ 300-450 billion (EUR 270407 billion) in expenses by international visitors (international tourist receipts). In comparison, the 2003 SARS outbreak led to a decrease of only 0.4% that year. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) says the default shock could cause a 45-70% decline in the international tourism economy in 2020. The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) predicts that by 2020, the travel and tourism market it could lose 75 million jobs worldwide and 6.4 million jobs in the EU. Taking into account the last more serious crisis – that one of 2009 – I would say that this sector will recover in maybe 4-5 years.
Of course, the concept of hospitality will change. From an operational point of view, housekeeping, restaurant services, check-in and check-out services and others will have to take into account the new sanitary rules established by the World Health Organization, and on the other hand, many of the hotel services will be digitized. Basically, we can talk about a rethinking of service design.
What will travel agencies face after the pandemic?
Travel agencies will face a reduction in tourist demand, especially for foreign destinations. On the short term, people will be afraid to travel far from home, so they will prefer domestic destinations, relatively close to home. I also think that the personal car will be preferred for traveling, so the sale of tourist transport services will decrease.
Also, given the economic crisis – which will be deeper than the health crisis – the holiday budget will suffer. As a consequence, the turnover of travel agencies, on the short and medium term, will be negatively affected.
What type of tourism that you think will be more attractive after the pandemic?
After this period of restrictions all over the world, people will feel the need to go out into nature more than before, in my opinion; thus, ecotourism, tourism in natural areas, outdoor activities, rural tourism will be preferred by tourists. These are also the ones that can ensure the rules of social distance, which are, for the time being, imposed. Also, health tourism will be the winner – spa, medical tourism, heliomarine cure. Event tourism will be severely affected instead – festivals, conferences, congresses.
Do you think that the prices will be higher than before in tourism?
The answer is not easy. On the one hand, it will be difficult for tourism companies to maintain their business, given the low demand and additional investments in health protection they have to make, and on the other hand they can not increase prices too much, because demand will fall further. As I said, holiday budgets will be greatly reduced, as will the number of people who will be able to afford a vacation in the short term. Moreover, going through this crisis, people are more careful with their budgets. Consequently, in my opinion, a slight increase in tourism prices is possible. But it also depends on how much the state will be involved in supporting economic agents, through fiscal measures.
What are the projects of UNWTO in this international crisis?
UNWTO has been continuously involved in supporting the sector, in identifying measures for helping the national organizations, in promoting good practices during this period – for economic agents, entrepreneurs and SMEs, for communities and tourism employees, for tourists. Organizing webinars with numerous international tourism experts has also been very helpful. The World Committee on Tourism Ethics, of which I am a member, has postponed its direct meetings for the time being, but continues to analyze various ethical issues, maintaining its topics of interest: sustainable development, digitalization, non-discrimination, job equity, respect for the rights of tourism employees, of tourists and local communities.
Interview: Oğulcan Tatar ([email protected] )
