The COVID-19 pandemic has turned the world upside down. Not only the tourism sector but the economy as a whole has come to a standstill. There’s no doubt we are confronted by an outstanding challenge. The first quarter of 2020 has seen a drop of 67 million international arrivals, which represents a loss of US$ 80 billion for the tourism industry. The drop has been felt like a domino-effect across the world: airlines, tour operators, hotels, restaurants, many of which might be on the brink of bankruptcy. A catastrophic scenario including a widespread emergency of companies going out of business.
Society as a whole needs to discover how we will travel tomorrow to boost not only economic recovery but also trust in human cooperation, resilience, and the continued nourishment of cultural bridges that tourism brings about.
Sustainability is key for the tourism of tomorrow. Conservation of biodiversity, respect for the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, securing social welfare and economic prosperity of host communities, and sustainable use of environmental resources need to be the pillars of the a new post-covid model of tourism.