Afbeelding
The world has turned upside down! Tourism destinations and the hospitality industry - the leisure, tourism and hospitality sector – are being severely affected by the COVID-19 crisis on a global scale.
Short-term perspective: the sector in survival mode
The government is currently trying to lend a helping hand to the hospitality sector by providing a package of financial measures. Regional Taskforces are being set up to boost new collaborative initiatives. This crisis is leading to new initiatives ranging from hotels making rooms available for medical care provision to the catering industry that go all out for home delivery or delivering to care service providers. However, you may wonder whether these initiatives – however wonderful they are – will suffice to survive. Many strong enterprises threaten to fall between two stools because regulations do not fit their situation. The OECD expects that the crisis could result in a 45-70% decrease in the international tourism economy in 2020.
Scenarios offering something to hold on to
We can only guess …. Will the tourism sector recover after life goes back to ‘normal’ again? Or is the crisis becoming a real game-changer that is changing the playing field of international tourism for good? CELTH and its partners want to give destinations and industry something to hold on to by developing scenarios to clarify uncertainties and how they influence each other. For years, ETFI experts have worked with scenario planning as a method to make the tourism industry more resilient. Scenarios can be used to gain strategic foresight, and discuss what measures should be taken to restore the sector, structure it differently and make it more future-proof in due course.
Academic journal about how to make preparations for (new) crises
CELTH partner ETFI has asked scientists to contribute to a special edition of the academic Journal of Tourism Futures. This special edition aims to enhance knowledge of threats and crises that have impacted travelling and tourism from a local to a global level in the 21st century.
Expertise and capacity available for present-day challenges
CELTH partner universities of applied sciences and their students are also being badly affected by the crisis. The switch to offering online education was made quickly, and students were repatriated back to the Netherlands from their work placements and exchanges abroad. All this offers opportunities as well: students and experts are available to help the various parties to solve present-day strategic issues. We are also being approached by regional parties to contribute our knowledge and data. Together we are strong!
