Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourism

[3] Conflicting and unilateral travel restrictions occurred regionally[4][5] and many tourist attractions around the world, such as museums, amusement parks, gyms and sports venues closed down.

[8] The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development released a report in June 2021 stating that the global economy could lose over US$4 trillion as a result of the pandemic.

[10] A number of college students tested positive for COVID-19 after returning from traditional spring break destinations such as the Florida beaches, South Padre Island, and Cabo San Lucas.

[11] Dubai received global scrutiny for opening tourism too soon, despite a high rate of COVID-positive cases detected in the emirate.

Accusations that Dubai was acting as a "super-spreader" of the virus, forced authorities of the emirate to close all bars and pubs for a month on 1 February 2021.

[13] As a result of the pandemic, many countries and regions have imposed quarantines, entry bans, or other restrictions for citizens or recent travellers to the most affected areas.

A possible long-term impact has been a decline of business travel and international conferencing, and the rise of their virtual, online equivalents.

[23][failed verification] Cambodia's tourism industry, which amounted to 4.92 billion US dollars, is currently being hit hardest by the ravaging pandemic.

A tourism data showed that Cambodia received a total of 223,400 foreign tourists in March, a decrease of 65 percent over the same month last year.

[22] Tourism in China has been hit hard by travel restrictions and fears of contagion, including a ban on both domestic and international tour groups.

[28] Tourism has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, amid social distancing rules since 26 March 2020, including a ban of organised domestic tours and all tourist attractions closed.

[44] In efforts to control the spread of Covid-19, various travel restrictions in Bahrain led the tourism sector to witness losses over BD 1 billion.

As stated by Bahrain’s Industry, Commerce and Tourism Minister Zayed Alzayani, the country lost nearly BD 108 million per month following plunge of 29,000 visitors per day.

[45] [46] The number of foreign tourists who visited Bosnia's Federation in March plummeted 79% on the year, to 9,660, the entity's statistical office said.

[47] Travelers from Greece and Serbia on business trips or with family ties, and diplomats, humanitarian and transport workers will be allowed to enter Bulgaria from 1 June without undergoing a 14-day quarantine, said Bulgarian Premier Boyko Borisov.

[57] The Australian Tourism Industry Council (ATIC) called on the Government of Australia for financial support especially in light of the large number of small businesses affected.

[59] It also suffered a 75% decline in share price,[60] and announced that 6,000 staff would be made redundant or placed on unpaid leave globally.

[62] The Consejo Nacional Empresarial Turístico (National Tourism Business Council, CNET) sent two letters in March to Alfonso Romo, Chief of Staff to the President of Mexico, asking for government support for the sector.

Most vacation travel was done by car, as gas prices are low and many people prefer to wait to the last minute to plan trips due to uncertainties.

Bookings and cancellations grew as extensive media coverage of ill passengers on quarantined ships hurt the industry's image.

[78] The pandemic has affected the global food-industry as authorities close down restaurants and bars to slow the spread of the virus.

Tourism is one of the industries that was impacted deeply, and some of the companies are still struggling with the labor shortage issue as employees prefer to stay at home.

[82] Budget hotels are hugely impacted due to their characteristics, and are vulnerable as they are mostly owned by individuals lacking finances, manpower, strategy, or a plan to overcome the crisis.