By Nathaly Arroba
«There's a kind of magic when we go far away and, when we come back, we've changed.» - Kate Douglas Wiggin
During the last year, in which the not very encouraging figures on the collapse of tourism have been overwhelming and almost conclusive, the resilient tourism industry, between trial and error, seems to be looking for alternatives to restore hope to the millions of people in the world who depend on the sector. In March of this year, the World Tourism Organization announced the continuation of the misfortune, after registering a 87% drop in international tourist arrivals in January 2021 compared to the previous year. Far from trying to alarm, it is essential to reflect and, above all, to take action in the face of the economic dilemma we live in today, and that, finally, the multiplier effect of tourism responds to the call.
This is not the first crisis faced by the travel industry. The terrorist attack against the Twin Towers on September 9, 2001, marked a before and after for tourists and their travel destinations. Security moved up the priority scale, other consequences were the strengthening of controls, surveillance at airports and the increase in the cost of transportation by this means. Then there was the outbreak of swine flu, which in 2009 affected destinations such as Mexico to such an extent that its consequences can be compared to those of the global economic recession itself. In 2011, the Maghreb region, especially in countries such as Syria and Libya, experienced the total paralysis of tourism. Similarly, Egypt, a renowned tourist destination for its heritage sites, lost its main source of employment as a result of the Arab Spring and the political instability prevailing in the region.
And many other events that, although not comparable to the magnitude of the current crisis, leave us with a lesson: the crisis requires decisive action to respond to events that occur beyond the control of tourist destinations and that require urgent adaptation to the context in order to restore the confidence of tourists and recover the flows that are directly related to economic performance. The questions are: Can the industry recover from this particular crisis? How can we encourage travelers to take an active part in the tourism reactivation? There are many alternatives and for this analysis I invite you to reflect on two of them: The so-called “Vaccination Tourism” and “Bleisure” (a tourism modality that combines business and leisure travel).
Vaccination tourism
The efficient management of some countries with respect to vaccination processes has allowed them to become attractive destinations for avid travelers who, with absolute determination, venture in search of the vaccine against COVID-19. These destinations stand out for the immunization offer, together with other characteristics mentioned by Luis Cerdá, in a recent publication of Diario El Universo (2021): 1) Compatibility with non-crowded means of transportation; 2) Biosecure accommodations; 3) Decrease of people-to-people contact with the application of technologies; 4) Flexible travel policies; 5) Hospital infrastructures and population monitoring capacity; and 6) Official statistics and records.
In fact, iconic cities of world tourism, such as New York, are already planning to launch one of the biggest campaigns to promote tourism in the city in the summer of 2021. As a vaccination destination, they propose to offer single-dose vaccinations in the city's main tourist attractions, so that, contrary to current legislation, visitors can also be vaccinated and tourism can be reactivated.
Vaccination tourism“, unlike other currents of medical tourism such as Traditional Chinese Medicine or Ayurveda on the Asian continent, ”Vaccination tourism“ is questioned from an ethical point of view. If the resident population has not yet reached full immunization, is it ethical for foreigners to have access to this resource, even if the countries in question do not impose any restrictions, does the moral or economic cost prevail? These questions could lead to profound debates, but the economic importance of tourism for these destinations and the recursion of the industry in search of recovery is evident.
Bleisure
While bleisure is not a post-pandemic trend, it is interesting to analyze its impact on the new ways of doing tourism today. Mobility restrictions and options such as telecommuting have reduced the need for business travelers to travel to conferences, sales meetings and other gatherings. Despite this, business destinations have managed to reflect better hotel occupancy rates than leisure destinations, which shows that business travelers are taking advantage of the progressive flexibilization in certain destinations to continue their business travel.
This remote work alternative is especially appealing to certain age groups such as Millennials, who have turned to this form of tourism to combine work responsibilities with time to enjoy personalized experiences in the destination. According to a Booking.com study (2020), 40% of global travelers would consider going to a travel destination to isolate themselves, as long as the destination allows them to work remotely.
Unsettled, for example, an initiative that since 2014, offers retreats of up to 30 days to destinations around the world, to break the traditional scheme of working where “the casual walk to a colleague's desk is no longer standard operating procedure”, has resumed its face-to-face experiences. In addition to the already recognized P2P platforms, other bleisure alternatives are appearing that allow greater freedom to choose work environments: Co-living. This modality was born in Silicon Valley as a cheaper housing alternative for young professionals, most of them digital nomads.
In short, the tourism industry will always find a way to adapt and travelers will always find a reason to travel. It is no surprise to learn that today's tourist prefers to avoid overcrowded destinations and wants to be in direct contact with the destination by consuming local products and services, interacting with the local community and experiencing the unknown. Travel is a therapeutic type of respite, especially necessary in a context such as the one we live in today. Whether for personal or professional reasons, it is essential that we start by looking around us, where we will surely be surprised by more than one option.
Recommended bibliography
Booking.com (2020). The future of travel. Retrieved from: https://www.booking.com/articles/category/future-of-travel.es.html?label=gen173rf-1FCAEoggI46AdIClgDaEGIAQGYAQq4ARfIAQzYAQHoAQH4AQKIAgGiAgtvc3RlbGVhLmNvbagCA7gC0r68hAbAAgHSAiQ5MWMzMDQwNi04M2ZjLTRlOWEtYmUxYS1lZDBiYTUxZWIwYmTYAgXgAgE
Ministry of Tourism (2020). Behavior of Domestic Tourism Trips pre COVID-19 and under the New Normality generated by the Affectation of the COVID-19 Virus. Ecuador. https://servicios.turismo.gob.ec/descargas/Turismo-cifras/Publicaciones/DespuesCovid/Comportamiento-Covid-VERSION-FINAL_JSP.pdf
Pichevsky, M. (2021). Vaccine tourism: ethical and legal analysis of a questionable trend. El Universo. https://www.eluniverso.com/larevista/turismo/turismo-de-vacunacion-analisis-etico-y-legal-de-una-tendencia-cuestionable-nota/
Unsettled (2020). Behind the scenes: Unsettled's future of [remote] work report 2020.
