The 2020 pandemic and previous years’ overtourism issues showed us both the benefits, the relevance, and the limits of the tourism, hospitality and leisure industries for society. We cannot foresee the future, but we can listen to challenges and start developing solutions.
So far we have received more than 900 responses in which these questions have been discussed::
How should we IMAGINE tourism now that we have an opportunity to reset the way we do business?
Which CHANGES would you like to see? If any?
What are your CHALLENGES and CONCERNS?
What are your IDEAS and SOLUTIONS to make it through the pandemic AND into a sustainable and innovative future of tourism?
In the name of the global tourism family, many thanks to every single one of you for the inspiring feedback. Your replies are summarized in the sections below.
Don't forget to share YOUR insights (for the first time or again, with new observations):
The 10 quotes below are updated every few minutes and elephant word-clouds are recalculated regularly based on your new survey entries. You have to refresh the page or revisit us every so often to see the changed content.
OTHER / SPOTTED
It is my opinion, that now we have time to prepare fresh trip ideas and new routes, for ourselves or for others, if we work in a travel agency and so when all this is over, we will be able to offer something new, innovative and different to tourists. (March, 2020)
Student
Slovenia
Explore #TourismFromZero perspectives
Different perspectives on the selected topic: ALL
Tourism business representative
Bosnia Herzegovina
Tourist
Singapore
Tourism business representative
Slovakia
#From Instagram
TOURISM MEANS
Travelling for me is pushing myself out of the comfort zone and going into the unknown. It broadens your mind and gives you experience only you have. The trip to Cuba gave me a lot of first time experience. From buying and smoking my first cigar and exploring the history of that amazing country. If it wasn’t for that trip I would never find my love for cigars and that is the point of travelling for me. It’s not about the short term experience that travelling provides but about the long term experience that changes you for the rest of your life. (May, 2020)
Student
Slovenia
CHALLENGES
A lack of communication despite beeing able to spend even more hours than before communicating (May, 2020)
Researcher, academic
Germany
CONCERNS
I am currently concerned with the timeline. The hospitality and tourism industry will take some time to recover, but there are contrasting views on how quickly the industry will recover. Some have more bullish views and believe that once an "all-clear" is issued we will have an influx of discretionary income spending from "stir-crazy" individuals. Others have more bearish views and believe that the risk aversion associated with the Coronavirus will have a more prolonged effect even after an "all-clear" is issued. (April, 2020)
Student
United States
IDEAS
The current inability to meet physically will place a future premium on face to face meetings, especially if these decline in frequency. We wil probably see a rise in digital meetings (particularly now everybody is on Zoom), and people will start to use physical meetings not just as a way to have face to face experiences, but also to escape the tyranny of omnipresent digital meetings. (May, 2020)
Researcher, academic
Netherlands
I CAN OFFER
During this time, our company is continuing to do a little "catch-up" and behind the scenes work. This includes spicing up our website (and the property's websites) to attract guests for after quarantine and freshening up our restaurants' menus. Corporate employees are also brain-storming special deals and offers for after quarantine as well. (April, 2020)
Tourism employee
United States
I NEED
According to superiors, we can afford such poor business this year, but if the crisis continues and travel continues to be impossible, and if the state does not provide additional financial assistance, we are promised layoffs. (September, 2020)
Tourism employee
Slovenia
SOLUTIONS
Rather than always relying on trustful recources and trying to keep cool in such times I don’t have more solutions to offer. Life is always a tough place and I admire all the people who still try their best in those times. I think everyone of us should try to make the best of their lifes whether circumstances are good or bad. Only this way, we can move forward. (October, 2020)
Student
Austria
EXPLOITATION
There have been cases I heard of where companies would apply for financial support from the government, even though they where not entitled to get it and had no real need for it. (June, 2020)
Student
Austria
OTHER / SPOTTED
I think that the fact tourism is highly affected is not that big of the problem. Yes it’s true that people won’t travel during the epidemic, but when everything is over, people will travel again, they won’t just stop. Maybe this is a great chance for everybody to see how much we all can do to help restore Earth, not just in tourism, but in the whole industry sector. (March, 2020)
